''The Big Beat'' is an American music and dance television program broadcast on the ABC Network in 1957. It was hosted by

Alan Freed Albert James "Alan" Freed (December 15, 1921 – January 20, 1965) was an American disc jockey. He also produced and promoted large traveling concerts with various acts, helping to spread the importance of rock and roll music throughout Nor ...

, and subsequently by Richard Hayes. The program debuted on May 4, 1957, four months before ''

American Bandstand ''American Bandstand'' (AB) is an American Music television, music performance and dance television series that aired in various iterations from 1952 to 1989. It was hosted by Dick Clark who also served as the program's Television producer, pr ...

'', making it the United States' "first nationally-televised rock 'n roll dance show". ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...

'' summarized the end of the program as follows. "Four episodes into “The Big Beat,” Freed’s prime-time TV music series on ABC, the show was canceled after black singer Frankie Lymon was seen on TV dancing with a white audience member".

History

''The Big Beat'' was the first interracial teen show broadcast in New York City which was debuted on May 4, 1957. The show was broadcast on Fridays from 10 to 10:30 p.m. Eastern Time. Guest stars included

Connie Francis Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero ( ; born December 12, 1937), known as Connie Francis, is a retired American Pop music, pop singer, actress, and top-charting female vocalist of the late 1950s and early 1960s. She is estimated to have sold more th ...

, the

Everly Brothers The Everly Brothers were an American rock duo, known for steel-string acoustic guitar playing and close-harmony singing. Consisting of Isaac Donald "Don" Everly and Phillip "Phil" Everly, the duo combined elements of rock and roll, country, an ...

Don Rondo Don Rondo (born Donald T. Rondeau; January 5, 1930 – January 27, 2011) was an American singer of popular music ballads during the mid-1950s, known for his distinctive baritone voice. Career Rondo, born in Ware, Massachusetts, first became popula ...

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

Chuck Berry Charles Edward Anderson Berry (October 18, 1926 – March 18, 2017) was an American singer, guitarist and songwriter who pioneered rock and roll. Nicknamed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Father of Rock and Roll", he refined and de ...

Bobby Darin Bobby Darin (born Walden Robert Cassotto; May 14, 1936 – December 20, 1973) was an American singer, songwriter, and actor who performed Pop music, pop, Swing music, swing, Folk music, folk, rock and roll, and country music. Darin started ...

Fats Domino Antoine Caliste Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American singer-songwriter and pianist. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New Orl ...

Clyde McPhatter Clyde Lensley McPhatter (November 15, 1932 – June 13, 1972) was an American rhythm and blues, soul, and rock and roll singer. He was one of the most widely imitated R&B singers of the 1950s and early 1960sPalmer, Robert (1981)"Roy Brown, a Pio ...

Gogi Grant Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg (September 20, 1924 – March 10, 2016), known professionally as Gogi Grant, was an American pop singer. She had a No. 1 hit in 1956 with " The Wayward Wind". Life and career Grant was born Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg in P ...

, and

Jerry Lee Lewis Jerry Lee Lewis (September 29, 1935October 28, 2022) was an American pianist, singer, and songwriter. Nicknamed "The Killer", he was described as "rock 'n' roll's first great wild man". A pioneer of rock and roll and rockabilly music, Lewis m ...

. The fourth episode caused an uproar 1957 when it showed

Frankie Lymon Franklin Joseph Lymon (September 30, 1942 – February 27, 1968) was an American rock and roll/rhythm and blues singer and songwriter, best known as the boy soprano lead singer of the New York City-based early rock and roll doo-wop group the Te ...

, a black teen star, dancing with a white woman. Two more episodes were aired but the show was suddenly cancelled. A local version continued on WNEW-TV New York.

Controversy

On July 19, 1957, New York-based American Black teen singer

was dancing with a white girl, causing the outrage with TV stations in the Southern states. In those Southern states, racial segregation was "still in effect" since the civil rights movement was at its earliest stages. A few weeks after the incident, the show was immediately cancelled after four episodes. Therefore, the ABC executives "buckled under the pressure." Following the incident regarding interracial dance between Frankie Lymon and a white girl, Freed was often featured in magazines and newspapers which he wore bright scarlet tuxedos or outsized window-plaid sport coats punctuated with a wispy silk bow tie favored by Black or white hillbilly artists. Therefore, Freed was fired from ABC. According to an ''

'' producer to ''

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...

'', the interracial dance between Frankie Lymon and a white girl "contributed to ''American Bandstand's'' segregation." It is also revealed that ''

The Milt Grant Show ''The Milt Grant Show'' is an American teen dance television show hosted by Milton "Milt" Grant (1923–2007). It aired on WTTG (channel 5), an independent station in Washington, D.C., from 1956 until 1961. Similar in tone to Philadelphia st ...

'' faced similar issues two months prior to the following incident. Regardless of the controversies among Southern Americans who were working in TV stations, Freed was inducted along with

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American singer, pianist, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the "Ar ...

, and

into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame "in its very first class" in 1986 because he promoted the interracial dance. It appears that the clip of the final episode does not exist, but the audio files remain online.

References

External links

Spots and Auditions
at Alan Freed's official website. {{DEFAULTSORT:Big Beat (TV program), The 1957 American television series endings American Broadcasting Company original programming Black-and-white American television shows Pop music television series 1957 American television series debuts