John LennonFrom TinWiki.org
Born in Liverpool, England, on October 9, 1940, John Lennon was one of the most prolific musicians and songwriters of his generation. He gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. He was also a writer, an artist, and a peace activist. During his solo career, he penned and recorded classics such as Give Peace a Chance and Imagine. He was controversial, and his passions showed through in his music, his art, and his activism. John Lennon was a husband and a father to two sons. After a self-imposed retirement from 1976 to 1980, he reemerged with a comeback album, but was murdered one month later in New York City on December 8, 1980. John Lennon has made the lists of the 100 Greatest Britons and the 50 Greatest Artists of All Time. Memorials to him stand today in Central Park (Strawberry Fields, across the street from the Dakota) and in Iceland (the Imagine Peace Tower, which is lit every year on Lennon's birthday and the anniversary of his death).
[edit] Personal LifeJohn Winston Lennon was born in Liverpool, England, to Julia and Alfred Lennon. At the age of 6, he was given to the care of his mother's sister Mimi, and resided with her and her husband, George Smith, through his adolescence. He was raised as an Anglican, attending Dovedale County Primary School, Quarry Bank High School, and later the Liverpool College of Art. In college, he was diagnosed with hyperactivity and dropped out before his last year of college. [edit] First MarriageLennon met his first wife, Cynthia Powell, at the Liverpool Art College in 1957. The beginning of their relationship was rocky, and she found out she was pregnant in mid-1962. They married on August 23, 1962, having to keep the marriage secret due to concerns over a "married Beatle". Their son Julien was born in April of 1963. John was never close to his son, and Julien felt a closer bond with John's bandmate, Paul McCartney. The distance between them was never fully closed during John Lennon's lifetime. Cynthia and Lennon divorced in 1968, citing infedelity, drug use, and time apart as the reasons the marriage failed. [edit] Second MarriageJohn Lennon met Yoko Ono met in 1966 at an exhibit Ono was giving at the Indica Gallery in London. She became his mistress in 1968, miscarrying their son in November of that year. The couple was married in March of 1969 in Gibralter, spending their honeymoon in Amsterdam. The Beatles broke up in 1971, citing Ono's influence over Lennon, and the couple moved to New York in August of that year. They set up permanent residence at The Dakota in February of 1973. After an almost two year separation, Ono and Lennon reunited, and on John Lennon's 35th birthday, October 9, 1975, Ono gave birth to their son, Sean. Ono and Lennon were still married at the time of his death. [edit] May PangIn June of 1973, Ono and Lennon separated, and she suggested that he take her personal assistant, May Pang, as a companion. Lennon and Pang soon moved to California and embarked on the eighteen month "Lost Weekend". Lennon stayed drunk during most of this time and tried to reconnect with his son Julien, who he hadn't seen in over four years. Pang and Lennon returned to New York in May of 1974, claiming to have witnesses a UFO upon his return, and in January of 1975, Ono and Lennon reunited. [edit] MusicJohn Lennon was one of the most prolific musicians and songwriters of his generation. [edit] The BeatlesJohn Lennon founded The Quarrymen in 1957, meeting Paul McCartney at the Quarrymen's second concert. Along with bassist Stuart Sutcliffe and lead guitarist George Harrison, they changed their name and became The Beatles in 1958. Ringo Starr joined The Beatles in 1962, after Sutcliffe's death, and the final incarnation of The Beatles was in place. They released their first album Please Please Me in 1963, and The Beatles went on to dominate the music world for the next seven years, before splitting in 1970. [edit] Solo CareerJohn Lennon released numerous solo albums after The Beatles split up. He also recorded singles like Give Peace a Chance, Cold Turkey, and Instant Karma in conjunction with his work as an anti-war activist. During the years he was working solo, he also wrote songs for Ringo Starr and produced albums for people like Mick Jaggar and Elton John. He also entered into musical endeavors with his wife Yoko Ono and her Plastic Ono Band. Lennon's last album Double Fantasy, a collaboration with Ono, was released in November of 1980, one month before Lennon's death. [edit] Other Artistic EndeavorsJohn Lennon appeared in several television comedy shows during his time with The Beatles, sometimes showing what some called his dark humor. He started writing and drawing early in life, creating his own comic strip in his highschool book called The Daily Howl. It featured images of crippled people and satirical writings. He released two books before his death, and Yoko Ono released anthologies of his art and writings after his death in 1980. [edit] Political ActivismJohn Lennon and Yoko Ono used their honeymoon in Amsterdam's Hilton as a "Bed In For Peace", attracting world wide media coverage. Their second "Bed In" in Montreal, garnered more media attention and set the stage for their recording of Give Peace a Chance. They befriended peace activists Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman, performed at anti-war rallies, and protested to have antiwar activist John Sinclair released from prison. [edit] DeportationThe Nixon Administration tried to have John Lennon deported in 1972, believing that Lennon's support of George McGovern could lose him the next election. It was suggested that deportation could be a strategic counter measure against Lennon, and in March of 1972, the Immigration and Naturalization Service began deportation proceedings against him. They argued that his 1968 misdemeanor conviction for cannabis possession in London had made him ineligible for admission to the US. Lennon spent the next 4 years in deportation hearings. In March of 1973, Lennon was ordered to leave the US within 60 days, while Yoko Ono was granted permanent residence. In June of 1973, Lennon and Ono made their last political statement by attending the Watergate hearings in Washington D.C. His order of deportation was overturned in 1975. His immigration status was finally resolved favorably in 1976 and he received his green card. [edit] FBI FilesAfter Lennon's death, due to a Freedom of Information request filed by historian Jon Wiener, the FBI admitted it had 281 pages in it files on John Lennon but refused to release most of them. The refusal was based on the claim that they were national security documents. The FBI settled out of court in 1997, releasing all but 10 of the contested documents. The final 10 documents were released in December of 2006. [edit] Death
John Lennon was shot four times in the back on December 8, 1980, in the entrance hallway of the Dakota by Mark David Chapman. Lennon had signed a copy of Double Fantasy for Chapman earlier that evening. Lennon was pronounced dead on arrival at Roosevelt Hospital at 11:15 pm. John Lennon's body was cremated two days after his death. There was no funeral, and Yoko Ono keeps his ashes. Chapman pleaded guilty to second degree murder and was sentenced to 20 years to life. He is still in prison, having been denied parole 5 times. [edit] Mark David ChapmanMark David Chapman shot John Lennon, in front of Yoko Ono and others, killing him. He stayed on the scene until arrested by police. He changed his plea of not guilty by reason of insanity to guilty of second degree murder. He had been assessed as delusional and possibly psychotic, but due to the guilty plea, he was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for Lennon's murder. He remains in prison to this day. [edit] LifeChapman had a problematic life, fantasizing about having imaginary powers in his early life. He used drugs, skipped school, and lived on the street during his teen years. He became a born again Christian at the age of 16, and though a former fan of The Beatles, turned against John Lennon for his comments about Jesus. A friend recommended The Catcher in the Rye to him, and the book took on great personal significance to him. He reportedly wished to model his life after its protagonist. He attended college, but had an emotional breakdown. He attempted to go back to college, but emotional problems got in the way. He attempted suicide many times, was treated for clinical depression, and hospitalized. In 1980, he lost his job and began drinking heavily, telling his friends he was going crazy. [edit] Murder of John LennonMark David Chapman went to New York in October of 1980 with the intent to kill John Lennon. He left briefly to travel to Georgia to get ammunition, then left briefly again to return to Hawaii, telling his wife his earlier plans and telling her he had lost the urge to kill Lennon. He returned to New York on December 6. On the morning of the murder, he left his hotel, leaving personal items in the room for the police to find. He bought a copy of The Catcher in the Rye from a bookstore, writing in it "This is my statement", signing it "Holden Caulfield" (the main protagonist in the book). He spent most of the day in front of the Dakota, talking to other fans and the doorman. He missed seeing Lennon return to his building that morning. Chapman met Lennon and Ono's housekeeper and their son, Sean, that morning. Around 5:00 pm, Lennon and Ono left the Dakota for a recording session. Chapman met Lennon, shaking his hand and getting his copy of Double Fantasy autographed (a photographer caught this moment on film). The couple returned around 10:49 that evening, passing by Chapman on their way into the building. From the street, Chapman turned and fired five times at Lennon, hitting him four times in the back and severing Lennon's aortic artery. Chapman remained at the scene, reading Catcher in the Rye until police arrived. He was arrested without incident. [edit] Motivation
There is no clear motivation of the murder of John Lennon. Most agree that he was killed because of the delusions and psychosis of a deranged fan. Mark David Chapman was a huge fan of The Beatles, and of Lennon, until Lennon made remarks referring to them being bigger than Jesus. Chapman used massive amounts of drugs in his teens, such as LSD and marijuana, displaying more and more anger towards Lennon over the years. Some who assessed Chapman say his real motivation for killing Lennon was his belief that Lennon was a "phony".
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