NY - Mark David Chapman & the murder of John Lennon, 1980

PrayersForMaura

Help Find Maura Murray
Joined
Aug 14, 2003
Messages
14,162
Reaction score
136
NEW YORK -- Twenty-five years ago, Mark David Chapman stamped his name into history by shooting four bullets into John Lennon's back _ a desperate, senseless grab for the kind of fame the voice of a generation was so steeped in. Instead, all he gained was infamy.

"I want to be important," Chapman later said of his mind-set before the murder. "I want to be somebody. I was never anybody."

The journey from nobody to notorious started in Decatur, Georgia, where he grew up with his parents and sister. After high school, Chapman worked as a camp counselor at an Atlanta YMCA and was briefly enrolled at Covenant College, a Christian university in Georgia. But he dropped out, broke off an engagement and entered a dark period of depression.

In the spring of 1977, Chapman moved to Honolulu, where he attempted to kill himself using the exhaust from a car. In the following years, Chapman, a devout Christian, would take exception to Lennon's perceived anti-religion beliefs. At the height of Beatlemania, Lennon had famously proclaimed the Beatles "more popular than Jesus," and later sang in "Imagine": "Imagine there's no heaven."

At the same time, Chapman developed an obsession with J.D. Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye," the landmark novel that focuses on a disaffected youth, Holden Caulfield, during a trip to New York City.

Though previously a great fan of the Beatles, Chapman began attaching Caulfield's favorite slander _ "phony" _ to Lennon. He made that assessment after seeing photos of Lennon atop his exclusive Manhattan apartment building, the Dakota.

"At some point, after looking at those pictures, I became enraged at him and something in me just broke," Chapman would explain later. "I remember saying in my mind, `What if I killed him?"'

"I felt that perhaps my identity would be found in the killing of John Lennon."

Believing himself the embodiment of Holden Caulfield, Chapman, then 25, arrived in New York City Dec. 6, 1980. Two days later, he bought another copy of Salinger's book and wrote in it, "This is my statement." He went to the Dakota and waited for Lennon.

When he arrived, Lennon politely signed an autograph for the pudgy, dark-haired, ordinary-looking fan. Chapman stayed, waiting for Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono, to return later that evening.

"It was like a runaway train," Chapman would later say of his desire to kill Lennon. "There was no stopping it."

Just after 10:50 p.m., the couple exited their limousine and began walking into the Dakota. Chapman unloaded, hitting the 40-year-old Lennon with all but one shot. Then, without a word, he sat down and opened "The Catcher in the Rye."

The man whose songs and lyrics had meant so much to so many, died on the way to the hospital.

The outpouring of grief was immediate _ as was confusion. Who was Chapman? Why did he do it?

More: http://www.nynewsday.com/news/local/manhattan/ny-bc-ny--lennon-markchapma1128nov28,0,6576773.story?coll=nyc-moreny-headlines
 
that's what they give in New York. There is no such thing as a "life" sentence. Although I suspect he won't get out.
 
I remember that day :eek: I'm a big Beatles fan and I loved John Lennon.. I was heartbroken over this... You are right, Marthatex, 20 years to life???? :furious:
 
Marthatex said:
There's no death penalty in New York?

Nope. We had it reinstated once, but none of the prosecutors would seek the death penatlty, it was overturned a few years back, and we no longer have it. So the maximum anyone can get is 20-life. Sick isn't it?
 
I never was a huge fan of the Beatles or of Lennon, but the songs of his that I do like are among my favorites. I saw a documentary about him the other night though and just was left with a complete blank. All he wanted to do was spend time with his family and try to make the world a better place. The complete senselessness of someone who felt like a complete zero removing John from this world is lost on me. I just don't have the brain necessary to figure it out. Just sad.
 
PaperDoll said:
I remember that day :eek: I'm a big Beatles fan and I loved John Lennon.. I was heartbroken over this... You are right, Marthatex, 20 years to life???? :furious:

I love the Beatles too; look how their music has endured through the generations.

My son, 25, finds them more fascinating than I ever did (actually I found some of their music a bit weird (during their I am a Walrus, Yellow Submarine, we're high as a kite stages).

I have that big, silver Bealtles Anthology

John's Aunt Mimi, who raised him said "The guitar's all right for a hobby, John, but you'll never make a living at it".

Hahahahahahhahahhaha

J
 
PaperDoll said:
I remember that day :eek: I'm a big Beatles fan and I loved John Lennon.. I was heartbroken over this... You are right, Marthatex, 20 years to life???? :furious:
gawd does this all bring back memories.I grew up on the Beatles I still rememeber growing my hair in a Beatle mop (even with curly hair) 3 freidns an I used broomsticks and garbage cans as instruments and sang to the records.
The night he was shot I still see. I was laying on the floor of my Apt. talking to a girlfreind on the phone and watching monday night Football. As the news scrolled across the bottom of the screen.I sat there in utter disbelif wondering why why why. I told her I get to get off the phone as I was losing it in emotions.
 
Jeana (DP) said:
I never was a huge fan of the Beatles or of Lennon, but the songs of his that I do like are among my favorites. I saw a documentary about him the other night though and just was left with a complete blank. All he wanted to do was spend time with his family and try to make the world a better place. The complete senselessness of someone who felt like a complete zero removing John from this world is lost on me. I just don't have the brain necessary to figure it out. Just sad.
It's sometimes eerie how your posts echo my thoughts exactly Jeana! Ditto that.
 
A quarter century after John Lennon was gunned down outside his New York apartment building, a struggle remains among his family, friends and fans for control of the former Beatle's legacy. .
Defining Lennon has, since his murder on December 8, 1980, become a cottage industry -- pumping out exhibitions, memoirs, album re-issues, documentaries and even a Broadway musical. .
The gatekeeper of the Lennon legacy and chief protector of his posthumous image is his widow Yoko Ono, 72, who continues to act as his spokesperson on issues ranging from contemporary music to the war in Iraq. .
"I'm sure John would have been terribly upset" about the war, Ono told an interviewer in March 2003. .
"And I'm sure that he would have expressed his anger and told them off," she added, referring to US President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. .
Widely believed to have been a major factor behind the Beatles' breakup, Ono has always divided public opinion and her pronouncements on Lennon's behalf have been received with a mixture of respect and irritation. .
In the run-up to the 25th anniversary of Lennon's death, other voices have sought to challenge the gospel according to Ono and offer a more earthy image of a cultural hero whose premature death made him an almost saintly figure. .
In her memoir "John," published in October, Lennon's first wife, Cynthia Lennon, wrote of the "pain, torment and humiliation" she suffered in her marriage with a man who could be as cruel as he was loveable. .
Cynthia, 66, pushed the memoir as "the real story of the real John" -- a message echoed by her and Lennon's son, Julian, in a foreword to the book. .
"If there is to be a balanced picture of Dad's life, then Mum's side of the story is long overdue," he wrote. .
In a separate statement on the 25th anniversary, Julian Lennon admitted to "very mixed feelings" about his father. .
"He was the father I loved who let me down in so many ways," he said. .
Ono, meanwhile, marked the anniversary by editing a compilation of glowing tributes from celebrities such as Elton John and Mick Jagger who, according to the book sleeve, "reminisce about Lennon as a visionary and friend, musician and performer, husband and father, activist and jokester." .
In her own introduction, Ono said the intervening 25 years had done little to numb the pain caused by Lennon's murder. .
"When I'm alone, when the evening light starts to drench the world in pink, in the dark of the night and a dawn, my heart still shakes and will not stop," she wrote. .
Ono has authorised a number of retrospective projects over the years, triggering criticism from some quarters that she was turning Lennon into a brand name. .
"I don't think I'm merchandising John aggressively at all," Ono once responded in an interview. .
"If I didn't do it, then some people would do it and make some kind of cheap version of it or something like that. And it would really destroy John's work. And so I have to protect his work," she said. .
Ono has sued former employees for trying to sell stolen Lennon memorabilia, rowed with Paul McCartney over his attempt to reverse the famous Lennon-McCartney songwriting credit, and last month the producers of a Lennon musical in Britain were forced to drastically change the show after she threatened litigation. .
An Ono-approved musical about Lennon's life and work played on Broadway earlier this year, but closed after just five weeks following scathing reviews. .
Ono has also lobbied hard to keep the man who shot Lennon, Mark Chapman, behind bars, and she recently castigated the NBC television network for choosing to mark the death anniversary by broadcasting an old taped interview with his killer. .
Chapman, who was arrested at the scene of the murder, is currently serving a 20 years to life prison sentence. .
Now 50, he was denied parole for a third time last year after the parole board cited the "extreme malicious intent" of his crime and said releasing him would undermine respect for the law. .
In the interview, recorded more than 10 years ago, Chapman describes how the search for his own personality compelled him to shoot Lennon five times in the back. .
"It was like a train, a runaway train, there was no stopping it. No matter -- nothing could have stopped me," he says. — AFP

A quarter century after John Lennon was gunned down outside his New York apartment building, a struggle remains among his family, friends and fans for control of the former Beatle's legacy. .
Defining Lennon has, since his murder on December 8, 1980, become a cottage industry -- pumping out exhibitions, memoirs, album re-issues, documentaries and even a Broadway musical. .
The gatekeeper of the Lennon legacy and chief protector of his posthumous image is his widow Yoko Ono, 72, who continues to act as his spokesperson on issues ranging from contemporary music to the war in Iraq. .
"I'm sure John would have been terribly upset" about the war, Ono told an interviewer in March 2003. .
"And I'm sure that he would have expressed his anger and told them off," she added, referring to US President George W. Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair. .
Widely believed to have been a major factor behind the Beatles' breakup, Ono has always divided public opinion and her pronouncements on Lennon's behalf have been received with a mixture of respect and irritation. .
In the run-up to the 25th anniversary of Lennon's death, other voices have sought to challenge the gospel according to Ono and offer a more earthy image of a cultural hero whose premature death made him an almost saintly figure. .
In her memoir "John," published in October, Lennon's first wife, Cynthia Lennon, wrote of the "pain, torment and humiliation" she suffered in her marriage with a man who could be as cruel as he was loveable. .
Cynthia, 66, pushed the memoir as "the real story of the real John" -- a message echoed by her and Lennon's son, Julian, in a foreword to the book. .
"If there is to be a balanced picture of Dad's life, then Mum's side of the story is long overdue," he wrote.


More:

http://www.todayonline.com/articles/88317.asp
 
NEW YORK (AP) - A television news producer. An emergency room doctor. Two NYPD beat cops. Before that December night 25 years ago, they shared little but this: As children of the '60s, the soundtrack of their lives came courtesy of the Beatles.

Alan Weiss, a two-time Emmy winner before his 30th birthday, was working at WABC-TV. His teen years were the time of "Revolver" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band." In his 20s, Weiss admired John Lennon's music and politics.


Dr. Stephan Lynn was starting his second year as head of the Roosevelt Hospital emergency room. He remembered the Beatles playing "The Ed Sullivan Show," although he didn't quite get the resultant hysteria. Officer Pete Cullen, with partner Steve Spiro, did the night shift on Manhattan's Upper West Side. They'd occasionally run into Lennon walking through the neighborhood with his son, Sean. "The Beatles were a big part of my life," Cullen said.

http://www.thevictoriaadvocate.com/24hour/entertainment/music/news/story/2949813p-11624691c.html
 
Has it really been 25 years?

Jeez, I still remember it like it was yesterday. I was away at college, and I remember my Mom calling me, crying, to tell me the news.
 
After twenty five years,I am still furious at that damn loser!! I can't stand looking at his ugly pig face. I never watch anything about him,I do not want to give the pig one ounce of the attention he thinks he should get!!
 
Pook said:
Has it really been 25 years?

Jeez, I still remember it like it was yesterday.
Weird, Pook. These were my exact thoughts when I saw the thread title...
 
Me too. It has been a long time. I was never a Beatles fan then but some of the music now is more importent. It is always 20/20.
 
Click here for link

Yoko Ono did sell John Lennon’s rare home recording of "Real Love" to JCPenney for a commercial.
The spot began airing on Sunday night during ABC’s "Brothers & Sisters" before JCPenney could even make the announcement.




Respectfully,
dark_shadows
 

Members online

Online statistics

Members online
159
Guests online
2,073
Total visitors
2,232

Forum statistics

Threads
590,024
Messages
17,929,138
Members
228,040
Latest member
Rainydaze17
Back
Top