What John Lennon's killer looks like now. What did the great musician John Lennon die from: a brutal crime

John Lennon (born October 9, 1940 - died December 8, 1980) - rock musician, singer, composer, poet. One of the founders legendary group « The Beatles" 1980 - Killed by a fan.

Early years

John was born into a poor family in Liverpool (England). His father went missing in action during the war. IN school years the future idol of millions was known as a careless student. He was most interested in drawing, English and literature. He began composing poetry early, but it was only in early 1956, influenced by an Elvis Presley song he heard on the radio, that he began to become seriously interested in music. It was he who created the school group, which later turned into the Beatles.

December 9 - after the murder

John Lennon's three main sacred things are peace, love and music. These same shrines were also worshiped by millions of his fans, who could not understand why a lone madman decided to kill their idol.

1980, December 9 - early in the morning, many people gathered in front of John's New York house, singing the song "All you need is love." They mourned their idol, who the day before was fatally wounded at the entrance to this house.

John Lennon was killed just as he was beginning to appear in public after a long period of seclusion. For a long time he avoided meeting even with friends and left the world of commercial music. A few hours before his death, John Lennon gave his first interview in many years, which was dedicated to his new album Double Fantasy. The musician stated that this album is addressed to people of his generation. “To people who grew up with me, I say: “Here I am, how are you doing? How are your relatives doing? Tell me, were the 70s boring years? Let's make the 80s great!" - called the famous musician.

Threatening letters

The musician began to fear for his life and those of his loved ones after an unpleasant incident that occurred in 1964 in France.

During a concert in one of the cities, he received a note that spoke of the death prepared for him the following night. Dark time John spent 24 hours in anxious anticipation, but the “joker” did not fulfill his promise.

In subsequent years, letters with death threats continued to arrive, but the threats always remained only threats.

John regarded such messages as unfortunate jokes by fans on a celebrity; he could not even imagine that there could be a person who would decide to commit such a daring crime as murder.

Murder Evening

On December 8, at about 11 p.m., John Lennon, one of the musicians of the legendary group The Beatles, and his wife Yoko Ono were returning home from the recording studio. Just before the entrance, a man called out famous singer. And as soon as he turned around, a shot rang out, followed by a second, third, fourth, fifth. Yoko began to scream in shock, and her husband, bleeding, somehow managed to get to the entrance. And before falling to the floor, the mortally wounded musician was even able to shout out the phrase “They shot at me” twice in a row.

“They shot at me,” the musician croaked, choking on blood. The security guard called the police, who arrived in less than 2 minutes. The policeman put the bleeding man in the back seat of the car and rushed at top speed to the nearest hospital. A few minutes later, John was already on the operating table, but the wounds turned out to be so serious (blood loss was about 80%) that it was not possible to save the rock star.

The 25-year-old killer of John Lennon named Mark Chapman did not even try to escape from the scene of the tragedy. While waiting for the immediately called police to arrive, he calmly read his favorite book, “The Catcher in the Rye.”

Who killed John Lennon

Born Mark David Chapman in 1955, he was an exceptionally devout man. At some time he became interested in the music of the Beatles, and in particular Lennon. Trying to imitate his idol in everything, Chapman even wore an “I am Lennon” badge. Over time, he began to increasingly show signs of mental illness. Once he tried, but failed. Lennon continued to attract him, but at the same time Chapman was tormented by an inferiority complex. In the fall of 1980, he decided to kill John Lennon.

“I felt that I was nothing, and if I killed him, I would become something,” he later explained the motive for his action. On the day of the murder, he took an autograph from his idol, and a few hours later he killed him in the same place.

Chapman, who was arrested at the scene of the crime, did not deny his guilt. After passing the sanity test, which established mental disorders, the killer was sent to prison. He was placed under strict supervision to prevent a possible suicide attempt.

John Lennon's killer Mark Chapman was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Ten years after the high-profile murder that shocked the whole world, in an interview with an American newspaper, Mark Chapman revealed the “true” reasons for his action.

He insisted that demons and Satan pushed him to commit a crime; they were the main initiators of the murder of John Lennon (of course, this looked like the delirium of a mentally unstable person). In addition, the killer spoke in detail about the preparation for the crime.

After the murder

Kennedy's assassination was investigated for 10 months by a specially created commission...

The murder of John Lennon caused an explosion of outrage around the world. The next day, radio stations continuously broadcast songs performed by him. More than 250 thousand letters of condolences came to the house where the legendary musician lived. Over the next 2 months, two million Beatles records were sold in England alone.

Paying tribute to the rock star, the American media emphasized that the Beatles became an integral part of the lives of an entire generation of young people who grew up in the 1960s. “I feel like I’m growing up, I’m becoming a completely grown-up person,” said one of Lennon’s young fans who gathered outside his home after the death of their idol.

A American President James Carter said Lennon "helped create the music and mood of our times. He left behind a compelling and timeless legacy. It is especially bitter that he fell a victim of violence, although he himself always fought for peace.”

I think I'll die before Yoko

The famous musician thought little about death; he still had a lot to do in this world. In a recent interview published in Newsweek magazine, John said: “I don’t feel like I’m forty. I feel like a child and I still have so much ahead of me good years life with Yoko and my son, at least that's what we hope."

The singer's killer admitted that he also planned to kill such celebrities as Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor. It became known that Chapman attended the play in which he participated David Bowie. Mark took a photograph of him near the stage, after which he went to Lennon and shot the singer. As Chapman himself admitted, if he had failed to kill Lennon, he would have gone back to the theater to shoot Bowie.

According to the killer himself, he tried to force himself to kill the rock star several times, but until the fateful evening she defeated him every time bright side. Mark bought a gun a few months before the crime and even quit his job. He worked as a watchman, and on his last day of work he signed the work log not as “Mark Chapman”, but under the name “John Lennon”.

After several tiring hours in the studio, Lennon and Ono decided to head home. However, due to the rather warm December weather, they decided to walk a little instead of driving home with bodyguards. This choice cost the rock musician his life.

Start of the day

On the morning of December 8, John and Yoko posed for the cover of Rolling Stone magazine for photographer Annie Lebovitz: naked John hugs and kisses Yoko, dressed in a black sweater. Although, according to Annie’s recollections, “nobody wanted Yoko on the cover,” John insisted that they be together in the picture. The magazine with this photo was published on January 22, 1981. In 2005 American community Magazine editors voted this cover the best magazine cover of the last 40 years.

John later gave his final interview to San Francisco radio host Dave Sholin for the RKO Radio Network.

Around 5:00 p.m., John and Yoko left the house and headed to Record Plant Studio to mix Yoko's track Walking on Thin Ice. thin ice). In front of the house, as usual, there were several autograph hunters, among them the future killer, Mark Chapman. He silently handed over a copy of Double Fantasy, which Lennon signed (photographed by Paul Goresh). After this, John politely asked Is this all you want? (Is this all you wanted?). Chapman smiled and said hesitantly, “Yes, that’s all, thank you, John.”

In November 2010, this record was put up for auction with a starting price of 850 thousand US dollars.

Murder

John returned home with Yoko around 10:50 p.m. to say goodnight to Sean. The limousine did not enter Dakota's courtyard; John and Yoko got off at 72nd Street. John caught up with Chapman and glanced at him briefly; Yoko walked slightly ahead. They walked into the arch of the house, Mark David Chapman called out to Lennon: “Hey, Mister Lennon!”, John slowed down, about to turn around, but the killer shot him in the back 5 times, the first bullet passed over Lennon’s head and hit the wall, the rest hit John : second and third to the heart area, fourth and fifth to the left shoulder. Staggering, after walking 5 steps, John fell.

Doorman Perdomo knocked the gun out of the killer's hands and threw it on the sidewalk. He yelled at Chapman: “Do you know what you’ve done? (Do you know what you did?).” He calmly replied: “Yes, I just shot John Lennon (Yes, I just shot John Lennon).” Chapman took off his coat and hat, demonstrating that he was unarmed. He did not try to escape and remained at the crime scene until police arrived. A paperback copy of The Catcher in the Rye by Salinger was found on him. On the inside cover was written in Chapman's handwriting: To Holden Caulfield. From Holden Caulfield. This is my statement. (To Holden Caulfield. From Holden Caulfield. This is my testimony.)

Entrance to Dakota

At 22:55 the police arrived at the crime scene. In 5 minutes, covering 15 blocks, the ambulance brought John to Roosevelt Hospital. Dr. Stefan Lynn took action to save Lennon. When he arrived, he had no pulse and was not breathing. Dr. Lynn and two other doctors worked for 20 minutes, opening the chest and attempting direct chest compressions to restore circulation, but the damage to the blood vessels around the heart was too great. Lennon was pronounced dead upon arrival at the emergency room at Roosevelt Hospital at 11:15 p.m. Dr. M. Elliott Gross, the chief medical examiner, said that no one could have survived for more than a few minutes after such multiple wounds. After all, Lennon was killed by four shots with bullets that are hollow from the inside, which expand upon entering the target and seriously tear most of internal tissues. Lennon's damaged organs were virtually destroyed by the gunfire. His wife, sobbing and screaming, "Oh no, no, no, no... tell me it's not true!", was taken to Roosevelt Hospital and left in shock after learning her husband had died. At that moment, the song “All My Loving” started playing on the radio in the hospital.

The next day, Ono announced: “There will be no funeral for John. John loved and prayed for the human race. Do the same for him, please. Love, Yoko and Sean." On December 10, 1980, John's body was cremated at Ferncliffe Cemetery. The ashes were given to Yoko.

Reaction to murder

Lennon's murder shocked the rest of the ex-Beatles and increased their already existing fears for their lives. Shortly after the murder, Paul McCartney, when asked by a journalist “how did you feel when you heard about John’s death?” replied “Drag isn’t it?” (the word “drag” is usually understood as “boring, whining” and Paul subsequently had to repeatedly justify himself for a remark that was misunderstood by many)

Currently

Chapman is serving a life sentence in Attica Prison. Since 2000, he has the right to apply for early release every two years, which he invariably uses, each time also invariably receiving a refusal.

Ironically, John sang about the same prison in one of his songs.

Notes

Mark Chapman will likely never be released

June 22, 1981 American Mark David Chapman At a trial in New York, he pleaded guilty to the murder of one of the most famous musicians of the twentieth century - John Lennon, one of the creators and leaders British group The Beatles.

The judges found Chapman sane and sentenced him to life imprisonment, which he was to serve in the Attica prison near Buffalo.

Six months earlier, on December 8, 1980, Chapman shot the legendary Beatle at the gates of the Dakota House building in Manhattan, where Lennon lived with his wife, a Japanese avant-garde artist Yoko Ono, and a five-year-old son Sean.

Autograph before death

The events of that ill-fated December day, when one of the “murders of the century” was committed in New York, the world media later vied with each other to describe in great detail. Around 5 p.m., John and Yoko went to the recording studio to work on new composition– Walking on Thin Ice (“Walking on thin ice”).

Leaving the Dakota House (they had lived in this house for eight years by that time), the couple, before getting into the car, managed to chat with a group of fans who, according to tradition, were waiting for them at the entrance to the building, holding photographs and covers at the ready autograph plates.

The couple did not know that among the fans there was a man who, five hours later, would fire five bullets at John. 25-year-old Mark Chapman, a guy from the Hawaiian city of Honolulu, was waiting for the musician in the company of other fans. When Lennon approached, Champion handed him the cover of the Double Fantasy album and a pen. The Beatle smiled and wrote: “John Lennon, December 1980,” after which he asked: “Is this everything you wanted?” “Yes,” answered the young man. “Thank you, John.”

It is amazing that the moment of this meeting was preserved on film. Historical photo taken by an amateur photographer Paul Goresh. He, too, was a devoted Beatles fan, and when a stranger approached him with a request to help get Lennon’s autograph and even offered $50 for Goresh to capture their interaction, the photographer agreed without any doubt.

When asked why it was so important for Mark to get this photo, Chapman replied: “Otherwise no one in Hawaii will believe me that I talked to John Lennon himself.”

Then events developed like this: at half past ten the Lennon couple returned from the studio. They could have driven the limousine directly into the protected yard of the Dakota, but, as luck would have it, this time they decided to walk the last, short part of the journey. Leaving the car outside, John and Yoko walked through the wide archway into the courtyard.

Shots into history

John walked a little behind his wife and even managed to pay attention to the man trampling at the gate young man, with whom he communicated during the day. A few seconds later, when the musician was almost leading into the yard, a shout was heard from the street: “Mr. Lennon!”

John turned around - and at that moment a bullet whistled over his head, and behind him there was a crash of glass: it was one of the windows of the Dakota breaking. A second later, the Beatle was hit by a second bullet. Then the third, fourth... Two of them hit Lennon in the left shoulder, and two more in the back, piercing the lung and aorta.

Amazingly, after this the musician was still able to stand on his feet. He walked staggering a few steps; got to the entrance, wheezed to the concierge Jay Hastings: “They shot at me!..” - and fell, dropping from his hands a cassette with a recording of a song just recorded in the studio.

While Dakota employees were bustling around in the hall, trying to help the mortally wounded musician, and Yoko was screaming in horror; While the police arrived, without waiting for the ambulance, they loaded John into the car and rushed to the nearest hospital, trying to get there before he bled to death. Chapman calmly took off his hat and coat and sat down on the sidewalk. Opposite the Dakota, across the street, was the entrance to the subway, but the killer did not even try to reach it, run away or hide.

Waiting for the police to finally come after him, he took a book out of his pocket and began to flip through the pages, skimming them with his eyes. It was the novel "The Catcher in the Rye" Jerome Salinger. When going on a crime, Mark deliberately took him with him. Later he admits that in his thoughts he often identified himself with the main character of the novel, a teenager Holden Caulfield.

Doorman Jose Perdomo, jumping out of the Dakota, shouted at Chapman: “Do you know what you did?!” “Yes,” he answered. “I just shot John Lennon.”

Split personality

The question that for many years after this tormented both John’s fans and journalists who conducted numerous investigations on this matter: what made Chapman commit the crime?

At one time, the conspiracy version of the murder was popular in the American press; it was, in particular, promoted by the famous publicist Phil Strongman. He was sure that Lennon was “ordered” by the American intelligence services at the suggestion of even higher and “darker” figures in the country’s leadership.

Politicians and influential lobbyists from arms companies could not help but be irritated by Lennon's declarative pacifism, Strongman is convinced. John and Yoko staged protests many times against the Vietnam War, the arms race and, in general, the rabid militarism for which the United States is so famous. Each of these performances, without exaggeration, became a global event.

However, fans of this version remain in the minority. Most are sure that the matter is a matter of mental illness, a strange insanity of Mr. Chapman himself.

A day after the murder, on December 9, Mark, while at the police station, wrote a statement that two entities lived inside him. The one who is more kind, she would never want to offend anyone, much less take their life. But his smaller inner half, his own pocket devil, had been “persuading” him for several months to carry out his insidious plan.

The devil wanted to become famous, to become famous throughout the world, as John Lennon was famous. I wanted to become new Herostratus. And in the end the devil won. Mark flew from Hawaii to the States, came to the Dakota and committed murder.

Chapman later admitted that when he shot his victim, he was trying to “become a little Lennon.” In his work log - he worked as a security guard and watchman - he sometimes signed not as “Mark Chapman”, but as “John Lennon”.

A century of will not to be seen

36 years have passed since the murder, and Chapman spent all these years behind bars. Nine times he applied for pardon and parole, but the court never took his side.

The killer first addressed the authorities and the public with such a request in 2001, after serving 20 years. He stated that he had overcome his psychological problems and was no longer a danger to society. John Lennon, Chapman recalled, was a man of progressive, tolerant views, and would certainly have pardoned him if he had been alive.

However, for the trial - both that time and all subsequent times - the opinion of the widow of the deceased, Yoko Ono, turned out to be decisive. The artist said that she would no longer be able to live in peace if the killer was released.

Fear for own life and for John's children - Sean and Juliana, born in the first marriage of a musician with a college classmate by Cynthia Powell, - will turn her life into hell.

“I am afraid that this will bring back nightmare and chaos,” the Japanese woman wrote to the judges. “Neither I nor both of John’s sons will be safe for the rest of our lives.”

Surprisingly, unlike so many people who would prefer to move away from a place where everything reminds of the tragedy, Yoko did not even think about selling her apartment in Dakota. He still lives in his and John’s home, not wanting to part with the memories dear to his heart.

Close to home in New York Central Park, there is a memorial to Lennon, where on a platform with the word Imagine laid out on it - in honor of one of his most famous songs - Yoko scattered the ashes of her beloved husband.

John Lennon was born in the English port city of Liverpool. His mother Julia and father Alfred Lennon practically did not live together. Soon after the birth of their son, Alfred was taken to the front, and Julia met another man and married him. When John was 4 years old, he went to live with his mother's sister Mimi Smith, who had no children of her own. The boy rarely saw his own mother; their relationship was more friendly than mother-son.

John had a fairly high IQ, but he did very poorly at school because he could not stand the routine of daily classes. But the boy began to realize his creative potential as a child. John sang in the choir, published his own magazine, and was a talented painter.

When the rock and roll boom overtook England in the mid-50s, teenagers began to create own groups. Young Lennon did not stand aside either. He organized the group “The Quarrymen”, its name was given by the school where all its participants studied.

A year later, the first boy from another area of ​​the city joined the group. He was younger than the others, but played the guitar much better. It was he who soon brought him to study with him.

Graduating secondary school, John Lennon managed to fail all his final exams and was the only one educational institution, which agreed to accept the unusual teenager, turned out to be the Liverpool Art College.

But even art education did not attract John. He spent more and more time with Paul, George and Stuart Sutcliffe, whom he met in college and invited him to play bass in The Quarrymen. The band's name was soon changed to Long Johnny and Silver Beetles, and later shortened to the last word, one letter changed to include a pun, and they became known as The Beatles.

"The Beatles"

Since the early 60s, the guys have completely focused on music. They not only did their own cover versions famous hits, but also began to write their own songs. Gradually the group became popular in their native Liverpool, after which the Beatles traveled to Hamburg several times, where they played in nightclubs.

At that time, the style of music and the image of the group was standard for a rock band: leather jackets, cowboy boots, hair like that and so on. But in 1961, Brian Epstein became the Beatles' manager and completely changed their appearance. The guys change into formal suits without lapels and begin to behave professionally on stage. The world-famous Beatles' hairstyle was invented by German photographer Astrid Kircher, for whose sake Stuart Sutcliffe stayed in Germany.

The change in image contributed to the popularity of the group. The Beatles' performance at the Royal Palace drew even more attention to the group. concert hall, where John Lennon famously said:

“Those who are sitting in the cheap seats, applaud. The rest of us can jingle our jewels.”

"We're more popular than Jesus now."

After the release of the first single “Love Me Do” and the subsequent full-length album “Please Please Me,” Beatlemania began in the UK. And after the release of the new single “I Want to Hold Your Hand,” a wave of popularity swept across America and then the whole world.

For the next few years, the Beatles practically lived out of suitcases, touring non-stop and releasing one album after another.

In 1967, when John, Paul, George and Ringo stopped touring and concentrated on recording and writing new songs, Lennon began to lose interest in the group. At first he refused the role of the leader of the Beatles, then for the first time in many years he began to compose separately from McCartney.

Previously, they created all the songs only together. After releasing several more very successful records, the group ceased to exist. Officially this happened in 1970, but there were problems in the team over the past 2 years.

Solo career

John Lennon recorded his first independent album in 1968 and called it “Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins.” Yoko Ono also took part in the work on this disc. It was a psychedelic musical experiment that was recorded in one night. There are no songs on this record; it consists of a fragmentary set of sounds, screams and moans. The following works “Wedding Album” and “Unfinished Music No.2: Life With The Lions” are in a similar vein.

The first "song" album was John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band, released in 1970. And the next album, “Imagine,” released a year later, practically repeated the success of the last albums of “The Beatles.” The title song became business card singer and is still considered one of the anti-political and anti-religious anthems.

In Rolling Stone magazine's 2004 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, the song was ranked #3.

Subsequently, John Lennon released 5 more studio albums, several collections and concert recordings.

Creation

John Lennon is famous not only as the author of many popular songs. He is also known as an actor. Along with the other Beatles, Lennon starred in musical films“A Hard Day’s Night”, “To the Rescue!”, “Magical Mystery Journey” and “Let It Be.” He also played the shooter Gripvid in the military comedy “How I Won the War” satirical comedy"Chicken Dynamite" and the drama "Fire in the Water." In addition, Lennon directed several films with Yoko Ono. These were mainly political social films.

John Lennon realized himself as a writer back in the 60s. He published 3 books: in 1964, “I Write as It’s Spelled” was published, a year later “The Spreader in the Wheel” appeared, and in 1986 the book “Oral Literary Writing” was posthumously published. Each edition presents a collection of stories in the style of black humor, with a large number of planned errors, puns and wordplay, which is reflected in the titles of the works.

Personal life

John Lennon first married his classmate Cynthia Powell in 1962. In April 1963, their son Julian Lennon was born. But the marriage was not strong due to John’s constant absences associated with the Beatles’ tours, as well as due to his collapsed popularity. Cynthia, who wanted more peaceful life, left her husband in 1967, and they officially divorced a year later.

In 1966, John met a Japanese avant-garde artist. In 1968, they began an affair, and a year later John and Yoko got married and became inseparable.

The couple dedicated the song “The Ballad of John and Yoko” to their wedding. In October 1975, their son Sean Lennon was born. After this event, John officially announced the end musical career, stopped touring, hardly appeared in public and focused on raising his son.

Murder

At the end of 1980, John Lennon released the studio album Double Fantasy after a long hiatus. On December 8, 1980, he gave an interview to journalists at the Hit Factory recording studio in New York. As he left the studio, the singer signed numerous autographs, including signing the cover of his own record, which a man named Mark Chapman asked him to do.

When John and Yoko returned home and were already entering the arch of the Dakota building where they lived, Chapman fired 5 shots into Lennon's back. The singer was taken to the hospital named after a few minutes later, but due to large blood loss, doctors were unable to save his life famous musician, and he died the same day.

John Lennon was cremated and his ashes were scattered by Yoko Ono in New York's Strawberry Fields Central Park.

Mark Chapman was convicted of his crime and is serving a life sentence. He said the motive for the murder was the desire to become as famous as John Lennon himself.

Solo discography

• 1968 - Unfinished Music No.1: Two Virgins
• 1969 - Unfinished Music No.2: Life With The Lions
• 1969 - Wedding Album
• 1970 - John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band
• 1971 - Imagine
• 1972 - Some Time In New York City
• 1973 - Mind Games
• 1974 - Walls And Bridges
• 1975 - Rock'n'Roll
• 1980 - Double Fantasy

Death of John Lennon

John Lennon, the famous rock musician, one of the founders of the legendary group The Beatles, on whose songs more than one generation of people of the 20th century grew up, probably did not even suspect that his music would cause the death of anyone, especially his own. John called peace, love and music his shrines. He dedicated his life to the service of these three things. Shrines to Lennon were also worshiped by millions of admirers of his talent.

For a long time these people could not believe that their idol was no longer alive, that some crazy person dared to raise his hand to the sacred.

The news of the fatal wound of the famous rock musician instantly spread throughout the world. Early in the morning On December 9, 1980, a crowd of thousands of admirers of John Lennon's talent gathered in front of his New York home. People sang the famous rock musician’s song “All you need is love,” which became a kind of requiem for their idol. This is how mourners mourned the famous singer, poet, and active participant in the peace movement, John Lennon.

Late in the evening of December 8, after a hard day at work, John and his wife Yoko Ono were returning home from the recording studio. The couple was already entering the entrance when a man suddenly called out to the musician. Lennon barely had time to turn around when a shot rang out, followed by a second, third, fourth...

Yoko, shocked by what had happened, screamed shrilly, and the bleeding John crawled towards the entrance. He miraculously managed to reach the security guard's desk. Choking on blood, the musician croaked: “They shot at me...”

Soon the police arrived at the scene. There was no time to wait for an ambulance. Having placed the wounded man in the back seat of the car, the policeman rushed at high speed to the nearest hospital.

John Lennon

A few minutes later, Lennon was already on the operating table, but the wounds turned out to be so serious (blood loss was about 80%) that it was impossible to save the victim.

The killer, twenty-five-year-old Mark Chapman, did not even attempt to escape. The police caught him at the crime scene reading his favorite book, “The Catcher in the Rye.”

The murder of John Lennon caused a wave of outrage throughout the world. The next day, all radio stations played the musician’s songs, including those performed by himself.

Condolences poured into Lennon’s family in a powerful stream; in a short period of time, Yoko received about 250 thousand letters of condolences, and how many more were in telegrams and phone calls! The Beatles' records were in incredible demand; 2 million of them were sold in England alone over the next two months.

But it was not only indignation and grief over the death of the great singer and musician that dominated the world in those days. Many Americans acknowledged with shame the inability of their security services to protect celebrities.

After all, for the umpteenth time in the “invincible” United States, a killer easily dealt with a person known to the whole world.

Lennon's murder is comparable only to the death of President John F. Kennedy in 1963. The fact is that both Johns, a talented rock musician and the most popular American president, became icons of sorts for their contemporaries, exponents of the hopes and aspirations of progressive-minded representatives of new generations.

The American press, paying tribute to the memory of John Lennon, has repeatedly written that the Beatles are an integral part of the life of an entire generation that grew up in the 60s of the 20th century.

The shared grief forced the teenagers to take a fresh look at their lives.

One of the young admirers of Lennon's talent, who was present on January 9, 1980 in the square in front of the house deceased musician, said then: “I feel like I’m growing up, becoming a completely grown-up person.”

Even the 39th President of the United States, James Carter, noted the services of the famous Beatles musician to society. In a speech addressed to Lennon's grieving relatives and fans, he said: “This man helped create the music and mood of our times. He left behind a compelling and timeless legacy. It’s especially sad that John Lennon fell victim to violence, although he himself always fought for peace.”

The famous rock musician apparently felt some kind of threat to his life.

He left the world of commercial music and lived for a long time as a hermit in a house near New York's Central Park.

During this period of seclusion, Lennon did not even meet with close friends.

John began to fear for his life and the lives of his loved ones after an unpleasant incident that occurred in 1964 in France.

During a performance in one of the cities, Lennon received a note that spoke of death prepared for him that coming night. The musician spent the dark time of day in anxious anticipation, but the “joker” did not fulfill his promise.

In subsequent years, letters continued to arrive with messages about Lennon's impending death, but the threats always remained just threats.

The musician regarded these messages as unfortunate jokes by fans on a celebrity; he could not even imagine that there would be a person who would dare to commit such a daring crime as murder.

John Lennon died just as he began to appear in public again after a long period of seclusion. He made new plans, wrote songs. There was even talk about the revival of the Beatles, which had practically disbanded by that time.

A few hours before his death, John gave his first interview in many years (and at the same time his last), dedicated to the new album called “Double Fantasy”.

The musician addressed the record to his peers, as evidenced by his words: “To the people who grew up with me, I say: “Here I am, how are you doing?” How are your relatives doing? Tell me, were the 70s boring years? Let's make the 80s great!“

However, he failed to fulfill his plans; the killer ended the life of the “star” with his insidious shot. And who knows, maybe John Lennon's songs would have allowed us to achieve more?

The famous musician thought little about death; he still had a lot to do in this world before going to the next. In one of his last interviews published in Newsweek magazine, John said: “I don’t feel like I’m forty. “I feel like a kid and I still have so many good years ahead of me with Yoko and my son, at least that’s what we hope.”

John Lennon's killer, Mark Chapman, was a megalomaniac. Having imagined himself to be a legendary musician, he considered the real Lennon to be his double, who must be destroyed.

Chapman became an ardent fan of the Beatles and John Lennon in particular from the very moment he heard their first album of songs, imbued with deep philosophical meaning. Lennon appeared before the future killer as a preacher eternal love, kindness and peace.

Chapman strove to be like his idol in everything, he even started playing the guitar. However, before legendary musician Mark was very far away. Awareness of his own mediocrity became the reason for his fierce hatred of the star. It was this hatred that pushed Chapman to crime.

During the investigation into the death of John Lennon, it was possible to establish that his killer was a mentally unstable person. It was difficult for him to stay in one place, he could not study due to frequent depression, and once he even attempted suicide.

At the same time, the hated Lennon continued to bask in fame and luxury. Chapman could no longer put up with such injustice; he soon decided to commit a crime. Having bought a gun, the killer went to New York.

It only took him a few days to reconnoiter the situation. In the crowd of fans wandering around Lennon’s house day and night with the sole purpose of looking at their idol, Chapman was invisible. The day before the murder, he even managed to get an autograph from the famous rock musician.

Chapman, who was arrested at the scene of the crime, did not deny his guilt. After passing a sanity test that established mental abnormalities, the killer was sent to prison and placed under strict supervision in order to prevent a possible suicide attempt.

Soon Mark Chapman's delusions of grandeur reached highest point. The killer confidently stated that he was famous singer and musician John Lennon. In confirmation, the criminal provided his autograph, which imitated the painting of a real star.

10 years after the high-profile murder that shocked the whole world, in an interview with one of American newspapers Mark Chapman revealed the “true” reasons for his action.

The killer claimed that demons and Satan pushed him to commit the crime; they were the main initiators of the murder of John Lennon (naturally, this looked like the delirium of a mentally unstable person). In addition, the criminal spoke in detail about the preparation for the murder.

What’s most interesting is that there is a drop of common sense in Mark Chapman’s words: he hopes to someday beg forgiveness from God and people for the crime he committed. But, most likely, he will not be able to do this, since this cannot be forgiven...

Long John was “shanshaled” November squally winds sweep over the Irish Sea - from Newport to the quay walls of Bristol. The storm howls in the rigging of the anchored ships. In the narrow harbor alleys, the dampness penetrates to the bones, and the fog is even thicker than usual