Editor's note: Since Oct. 6, 2012 (the 50th anniversary of the release of the Beatles' debut album Love Me Do), we've been on a half-century celebration cycle in which we are scheduled to relive every Beatles innovation, every release of the Beatles' landmark career in real time, right until the inevitable 50th anniversary of their breakup in 2020. But what other long-forgotten anniversaries are being overshadowed by the Fab Four? To answer that question, we present another installment in this series entitled The 50th Anniversary of Something Else.

See also: How the Beatles Trampled A Singing Nun On Their Way To The Top

What? It's bad enough that lazy writers tag The Fab Four "the first boy band" as if the Beatles ever boogaloo'd in unison. But to suggest they were bubblegum is blasphemy on a par with saying One Direction is more popular than (insert unassailable deity of your choice). Relax, Fab protectors, the closest John, Paul, George and Ringo ever came to bubble gum (at least until the acid bubble pop of "Hello Goodbye") was when the Beatles trading cards debuted in May of 1964. Prior to Topps launching the first of five Beatles card series, non-sports cards were a rarity and rock star cards were non-existent. Naturally, with Beatlemania at fever pitch, bubble gum representation was needed. And fast. By the time their movie A Hard Day's Night debuted in late summer, the Beatles were already on their fourth card series.