1983: U.S. Secretary of State, James Watt, proves how utterly clueless he was by banning the Beach Boys from performing on the mall in Washington D.C., claiming they “attract a bad element.”
He named Wayne Newton as the band’s replacement. Newton was subsequently booed when he attempted to perform.
Widely mocked for this attitude, Watts was forced to apologize to the band and the Boys made a triumphant return with a 4th of July blowout on the mall the following year (and several years thereafter).