He was a cultural TV icon best known for introducing Elvis and the Beatles, but Ed Sullivan had a much deeper effect on American music and culture than most ever realized.

For twenty-three years, tens of millions of people gathered around the television to see what new and different acts he might feature on his Sunday night show.

“If you were on the Ed Sullivan Show, it meant you mattered,” says Sullivan’s granddaughter, Margo Precht Speciale, producer of Netflix documentary Sunday Best: The Untold Story of Ed Sullivan. “He didn’t showcase only pop stars, he brought on opera, ballet, and Broadway artists, as well. He trusted the audience to care about all of it and made culture feel accessible to everyone during that time.”

The show was originally called The Toast of the Town when it debuted in 1948. The name was later changed to The Ed Sullivan Show.

Read more at Forbes.com