<P> On May 27 1956, The Ed Sullivan Show showed an animated short film entitled A Short Vision . The short film showcased a unidentified object which is only known as it by the narrator . The object flies over Earth . When it passes, the people are asleep except the leaders and the wise men who look up at the object . As the leaders and wise men look up and predators and prey hide in fear, it produces a mushroom cloud in the sky, killing everyone and everything; vaporizing the people, the animals and Earth . After the cloud there is only a moth and a flame left, the moth flies in to the flame, gets vaporized and the flame dies; thus marking the end of humanity . The short is narrated in the style of the Bible and the animation is derived from still images which produces a terrifying and horrifying outlast of man's last moments . Just before the short, Ed Sullivan instructed children to leave the room . The film gained notoriety from the show; but it also gained controversy because of it, due in nature for the graphic way it depicted the horrors of a nuclear confrontation . It also got into controversy for its graphic visuals . One of the visuals in the short including a terrifying and graphic of an animated person eyes imploding and the remains running down their cheeks and then they get destroyed by the object . According to some sources it produced a reaction as big as Welles' "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast 20 years prior. Because of the popularity of the short, it was screened again on June 10 of the same year . However, Ed became significantly stricter for his warning to children not to watch the short . </P> <P> On January 26, 1958, for their second appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, Buddy Holly and The Crickets were scheduled to perform two songs . Sullivan wanted the band to substitute a different song for their record hit "Oh, Boy!", which he felt was too raucous . Holly had already told his hometown friends in Texas that he would be singing "Oh, Boy!" for them, and told Sullivan as much . During the afternoon the Crickets were summoned to rehearsal at short notice, but only Holly was in their dressing room . When asked where the others were, Holly replied, "I don't know . No telling ." Sullivan then turned to Holly and said "I guess The Crickets are not too excited to be on The Ed Sullivan Show" to which Holly caustically replied, "I hope they're damn more excited than I am ." </P> <P> Sullivan, already bothered by the choice of songs, was now even angrier . He cut the Crickets' act from two songs to one, and when introducing them mispronounced Holly's name, so it came out vaguely as "Hollered" or "Holland ." In addition, Sullivan saw to it that the microphone for Holly's electric guitar was turned off . Holly tried to compensate by singing as loudly as he could, and repeatedly trying to turn up the volume on his guitar . For the instrumental break he cut loose with a dramatic solo, making clear to the audience that the technical fault was not his . The band was received so well that Sullivan was forced to invite them back for a third appearance . Holly's response was that Sullivan did not have enough money . Film of the performance survives; photographs taken that day show Sullivan looking angry and Holly smirking and perhaps ignoring Sullivan . </P> <P> On October 18, 1964, Jackie Mason allegedly gave Sullivan the finger on air . A tape of the incident shows Mason doing his stand - up comedy act and then looking toward Sullivan, commenting that Sullivan was signaling him . Sullivan was reportedly letting Mason know (by pointing two fingers) that he had only two minutes left, as CBS was about to cut away to show a speech by President Lyndon Johnson . Mason began working his own fingers into his act and pointed toward Sullivan with his middle finger slightly separated . After Mason left the stage, the camera then cut to a visibly angry Sullivan . Sullivan argued with Mason backstage, then terminated his contract . Mason denied knowingly giving Sullivan the middle finger, and Mason later claimed that he had never even heard of the gesture at that time . In retaliation, to protect the perceived threat to his career, Mason filed a libel suit at the New York Supreme Court, which he won . Sullivan publicly apologized to Mason when he appeared on the show two years later, in 1966 . At that time, Mason opened his monologue by saying, "It's a great thrill and a fantastic opportunity to see me in person again," and impersonated Sullivan during his act . Mason later appeared on the show five times: April 23, 1967; Feb. 25, 1968; Nov. 24, 1968; Jul. 22, 1969; and Aug. 31, 1969 . </P>

Knight who hosts a country music radio show