Penn’s Van Pelt Library celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Beatles’ American debut with a special exhibit

The University of Pennsylvania’s Van Pelt Library will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the British Invasion with a special Beatles exhibit that focuses on the publishing angle of the band’s legacy.  Curated by the Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books & Manuscripts, Tomorrow Never Knows: The Beatles in Text and Image will display paperback books, magazines, postcards and other non-musical objects from February 24th through August 11th.  It’s an interesting point of view to take of the band that went on from that first week in America to become a major influence in music, fashion and film, as Kislak Center director David McKnight explains:

Since it’s very unusual to see Beatles exhibitions that don’t revolve around memorabilia, nostalgia, or non-printed materials, I thought this exhibition could be an interesting opportunity to illustrate how The Beatles have become a part of print culture.

Penn Libraries has also organized a symposium to supplement the exhibit, which will open on February 27th with the book launch for Jude Southerland Kessler‘s John Lennon bio-novel She Loves You, and continue through March 1st with presentations by Larry Kane (Beatles expert and author), Al Sussman (editor of Beatlefan Magazine) and Anthony DeCurtis (editor at Rolling Stone).

More information on the exhibit, symposium and other Beatles-related events taking place this year can be found on the Penn Libraries website.