Today marks the day (well it just turned midnight here, so I guess yesterday) that long-time friend of the Beatles, Mal Evans passed away. If you read my blog often, you know that I have a real soft spot for Mal. When you really think about it, he experienced just about everything the Beatles did but without all of the mania directed at him (although I know that girls went crazy for him...mostly to try to get to the Beatles). He went on all the tours, was on the set (and in most) all of the movies, attended just about every recording session, went with them out to nightclubs, went to India and a few other holidays, etc etc etc. He was one of the few insiders that actually experienced the Beatle life without being one of the Beatles! Plus he was there the entire run of the Beatles career.
Mal wrote a book called, Living the Beatles Legend in 1975. At the time of his death in 1976, he was putting the finishing touches on the book and it was going to be published later that year. It would have been the first book written by a true insider on the Beatles. It would have set the bar for other books to come. I would have studied that book like none-other. However, the manuscript was lost in the mail after his death. Huh? Somehow this just doesn't make sense to me. There was only ONE manuscript? There weren't any other copies of even before the last edit? Nothing at all? Not even notes scribbled in a notepad? Nothing to reconstruct this book? And it seems to me that no one seems to care. It was just like....and yeah Mal's book and a bunch of other stuff got lost along the way. Oh what a loss. Did anyone in Mal's family have a major search for it? Surely it would have brought in a lot of money. I don't know. Maybe I read too much into these things. I know nothing about writing a book (even though it is my dream to write a book about the Beatles) and maybe there really was just one manuscript.
Anyhow.....enjoy these photos of Mal...the true Gentle Giant.
Mal must have had a great story to tell. The Times did a mag feature in his diaries not so long ago, which were quite revealing, and a bit sad.
ReplyDelete...'on' his diaries I mean
ReplyDeleteMel always looked so sweet ... a great, big Teddy Bear of a man who took very good care of the Beatles.
ReplyDeletei have good memories of him. nice man. and so loyal to the boys! it's a shame he wasn't paid accordingly, when there were so many "hangers on" like magic alex...
ReplyDeleteIf there were a sad tail to the Beatles it would be Mal. For all his giving and sacrifice he should have never been cut loose from Apple. Apple became a cash cow for the Beatles. It wouldn't have been loose change for the boys to give Mel a cushy post there doing something. They wouldn't have felt the cost and Mel might still be here. I love the Beatles but on this one they were cheap!
ReplyDeleteAgree, one in particular very mean after Mal's death.
DeleteIn LA, many deaths or death investigations seem to get botched when it involves a high profile death. People have the power to make 'it' go away.
DeleteIt's terribly sad really. Imagine what how invaluable he'd be to all of us if he were still with us. Lizze - Can I ask a question? Was it Mal that came outside to get you and Gayleen for Across the Universe or was it Paul as the book "Recording Sessions" states?
ReplyDeleteMaybe noone was really too interested to have it published (in the Beatles camp) and thus efforts to hunt it down were not made from that side or - attention, conspiracy theory - even prevented others from making this effort.
ReplyDeleteYup. They didn't want that book published.. EVER.
DeleteMaybe it's just wishful thinking that there was ever a Mal manuscript. Neil Aspinall too probably had a fantastic book in him, but his loyalty was above that. Same perhaps for Mal. I do wonder how well looked after Mal was post-Beatles. He pops up like an old friend in some of the John and May photos.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Mel was silenced. It almost seems like a mob job. Man writes tell all book. man suddenly dies. Manuscript suddenly lost. This book may have been a bit too reveiling and cost Mel his life. The Beatles were highly influential people.
ReplyDeleteThe timing of the event didn't make sense. He had many positive things in his life.
still shocks me today that Mal was let go after all those years; there had to be some job for him then with them
ReplyDeleteThe Beatles were a phenomenon worth a lot of money to a lot of people. If Mal's book was going to reveal some secrets, then I can see how not having him around any more was beneficial. Just too much of a coincidence about everything that happened, including him being doped up. And the whole book vanishing.
ReplyDeleteMal's girlfriend called police because he was acting volatile after using valium and alcohol. He was also brandishing a weapon which he refused to put down in front of the cops. No conspiracy.
ReplyDeletethis is the story according to the cops.
DeleteIt is also the story according to his girlfriend.
Deletevery sad ending for him
ReplyDeleteread somewhere that his family had the manuscript but who knows - he was a nice man
ReplyDelete