Study in China

In Beatles lore, a woman named May Pang is forever linked to the phrase “Lost Weekend.” That 1973 “weekend,” which lasted 18 months, is when John Lennon left Yoko Ono and, according to legend, wandered drunkenly in a haze until she took him back. (He was thrown out of LA’s Troubador nightclub twice, once for heckling the Smothers Brothers and once for walking around with a Kotex on his forehead.) But May Pang, the young personal assistant he was living with, remembers the time differently. Lennon, she says, was mostly happy and productive, working on Walls and Bridges and his oldies album. Recently she found a shoebox of old photos that support that claim and make up the bulk of Instamatic Karma . The photos are decidedly casual – focus is an elusive thing – but they offer a nice look at Lennon and the mid-70s rock world. There’s a series of photos taken as guests walk through the front door to Lennon’s New York apartment. Paul and Linda, Mick Jagger, David Bowie all gr...

  The Beatle抯 John Lennon was born on Oct 9 1940 and murdered forty years later on Dec 8 1980. His killer, Mark Chapman was caught, tried and sentenced to twenty years to life in prison � a sentence that he is still serving. So much is history but it might not be the whole story.At a big London railway station in the spring of 1970, a plastic carrier bag was found in the regular search for bombs before the station closed for the night. The contents were an odd assortment of letters and photos, which seemed to have been taken at kinky party attended by some well-known figures in entertainment. One in particular showed a pop singer who masquerades under a Christian persona; dressed in women抯 underwear he was pictured with young boys. The bag was duly taken to the station office and as a senior rail worker wrote out a report for the lost property office, two MI5 men and a special branch officer arrived and demanded the photos. They claimed that the pop ...

March 5, 2012 – If you love John Lennon and will be in Louisana this weekend, head over to Shreve Memorial Library on March 10 from 2-4pm. Jude Southerland Kessler, author of Lennon bio-novels Shoulda Been There and Shivering Inside, will be giving a presentation and book signing about John Lennon and the Beatles. Jude gave us the details about this exciting Lennon event, saying the presentation will be different from prior book talks. “It will consist of three segments,” she said. “First I will discuss my research techniques, tell about some funny interviews I did in Liverpool, and why I chose to write this series (of Lennon novels).” The presentation will turn lively with rare photos, music, and Ms. Kessler's re-enactment of a 1963 scene in her book. A book signing will follow a Q&A with the author. Jude Southerland Kessler gave an inspiring talk about John Lennon entitled, "Everything in life I learned from NSU and the Beatles" in November of 2011. Video: Ju...

Poet by John Lennon By BBC Arts Correspondent Madeleine Holt John Lennon will be remembered first and foremost for his musical skill but a new exhibition shows he had artistic leanings too. Drawings and prints by the Beatles legend are going on show just yards from the site of the original Cavern Club, where the band first made their name. John Lennon as a young art student It is the first permanent exhibition in the UK of Lennon's works, some of which were banned when first exhibited in the country 30 years ago. When John Lennon put his artwork on show in London in 1970, the Metropolitan Police were alerted within 24 hours. They took away some of his more erotic sketches, and closed the whole thing down. Now, some of those same works, including one of the most shockable, are being displayed in the Mathew Street Gallery in Lennon's hometown. Beatles enthusiast Ian Wallace is the brains behind the gallery. As a collector of Fab Four memorabilia for mo...

The McCartneys moved to this ex-council property in 1955, from their previous address in Ardwick Road, Speke. This was the McCartney's 7th home and the last Liverpool home of Paul. He lived here until 1963. Paul's bedroom was above the front door and was the smallest bedroom of the three. 30 years after the McCartneys had left, a book was discovered in the attic by the then owner of the house. The inscription in the front of the Rupert Bear Annual read; "This book belongs to Paul and Michael McCartney, 12, Ardwick Road, Speke. " The house is now owned by the National Trust who have restored it to its original 1950s appearance. The front of the house. The restored kitchen at Forthlin. The living room. Me outside 20 Forthlin Road. Thanks to John for the amazing tour!!! This is the mini-bus that takes you to the childhood homes of John Lennon and Paul McCartney . ...

John Lennon and May Pang when they were dating May Pang as she looks today May Pang as she looks today May Pang when she dated John Lennon May Fung Yee Pang was born in October 24, 1950 in New York City. Her parents were Chinese immigrants. Her mother owned a Chinese laundry. They had lived in a tenement building in Spanish Harlem until they were torn down. The later moved to 97 street and Third avenue in Manhattan. May had gone to New York Community college, and later tried to dabble into modeling. She met John and Yoko Lennon and was hired to be a production assistant and coordinator. In 1973 John and Yoko had separated and Yoko had suggested to Pang that she become Lennon's companion. Yoko had arranged for John Lennon and May Pang to move to California to work on some albums. Eventually John and May had rented a house in Santa Monica and lived there with some other musicians who were also working on the same album. At this ti...