The Assassination of John Lennon
By Alice Clarke, 3rd Year History
Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace
You may say I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one
John Lennon, Imagine (1971)
At 5pm on the 8th of December 1980, Mark D. Chapman, 25, approached John Lennon outside The Dakota Apartments in New York for an autograph. Lennon happily signed Chapman’s copy of his new album Double Fantasy and left with Yoko Ono. Yet, 5 hours later the singer would be dead, shot by the very fan he’d met that day.
John Lennon was murdered at the age of just 40. Born in Liverpool in 1940 to working-class parents, his rise with The Beatles is befitting of the tag ‘rags to riches’. Though the band were together for just a decade, they are widely regarded as one of, if not the, most influential bands ever, and are the biggest selling artists of all time. Even following their infamous break up in 1970, Lennon continued to make music, including frequent collaborations with his partner Yoko Ono.
John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1972
Lennon used his platform to speak out about many causes, often being dubbed the “smart Beatle.” He and Ono were vocal during the anti-war movement, with titles such as ‘Give Peace a Chance" and "Happy Xmas (War Is Over)" becoming 70s anthems. President Nixon, fearful of the brewing anti-war sentiment’s potential to eject him from office, went so far as to undertake a 3 year battle to have him deported from the US.
Just three weeks before his murder, Lennon released his first album in five years following a hiatus. This would be the album that Lennon would sign for Chapman.
Having shot Lennon five times, Chapman waited at the scene whilst the doormen and concierge to Lennon’s apartment tried to help him. On arrival, the police found Chapman standing calmly on West 72nd Street reading a copy of J.D. Salinger’s Catcher in the Rye.
This was a book which the culprit would say inspired him to commit the murder. He had aimed to emulate the protagonist of the novel, Holden Caulfield, who criticised “phonies.” Chapman said that he was angered by Lennon’s comments about God and felt betrayal at the ‘hypocrisy’ of Lennon’s lavish lifestyle.
After pleading guilty to the murder of Lennon, Chapman was sentenced to 20 years to life and is still in prison to this day, having been denied parole 11 times.
On the 14th of December 1980, a week after the music icon’s death, millions of people around the world paused for 10 minutes to remember Lennon as per Yoko Ono’s request.
It is hard to overstate John Lennon’s legacy and impact 41 years on from his death, and his ever-presence even today is testament to that fact.