March 6th

After recording the horns for the "Sgt. Pepper" title track on March 3rd, Paul decided it would be cool to hear this "fictitious band" warming up in the studio prior to the actual start of the song, much as a real orchestra would do prior to beginning their concert.  Although there was no orchestra present that night, they didn't need to look far to find an appropriate orchestral warm up … it had been captured at the session for "A Day In The Life" back on February 10th … so this was simply spliced into the beginning of the track.  The remaining background sounds were taken from the EMI archives, most notably the sounds of audience murmuring, applause and laughter from a 1961 tape called (appropriately enough) "Applause And Laughter".  The screams that are part of the segue into "With A Little Help From My Friends" were borrowed from the then-unreleased live Beatles concert at The Hollywood Bowl!)  

The "Alias Micky Dolenz" episode airs tonight on The Monkees' television series. Songs featured include "The Kind Of Girl I Could Love" and "Mary Mary".  The Monkees will win their timeslot for the sixth consecutive week as this program is watched by over eleven million fans.  

President Lyndon Johnson announces his plan to start a draft lottery.  

Former Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin's only daughter, Svetlana Alliluyeva asked for, and was granted, political asylum in the United States.  She approached the United States Embassy in New Delhi, India, and stated her desire to defect in writing.  US Ambassador Chester Bowles offered her political asylum and a new life in The United States and notified Washington "Unless you instruct me to the contrary, I'm putting her on the one am plane for Rome, where we can stop and think the thing through.  I'm not giving her any commitment that she can come to The States.  I'm only enabling her to leave India, and we will see her to some part of the world -- The US or somewhere else -- where she can settle in peace.  If you disagree with this, let me know before midnight."  (India did not want to face any repercussions from The Soviet Union so they sent her to Rome.  From Rome she was sent immediately to a six week tour of Switzerland prior to coming to The United States.  She arrived in New York City on April 21, 1967, and denounced both her father and The Soviet Union during a pre-arranged press conference.)  

Although she soon became a naturalized citizen of the United States (where she became known as Lana Peters), she returned to The Soviet Union in 1984 and thereafter divided her time between Cambridge, England and Richland Center, Wisconsin, (home of our WRCO Radio Buddy Phil Nee!), where she died of complications from colon cancer in November of 2011.

Singer / Actor Nelson Eddy dies at the age of 65 following a stroke.  

Mark Twain Tonight, starring Hal Holbrook, premiers on CBS Television tonight.  

Earlier this afternoon you could catch Neil Diamond ("You Got To Me"), Alvin Cash ("Twine Time") and Steve Alaimo ("The Green Green Grass Of Home") on "Where The Action Is".