Writing on

Tonight have a story to share with you from the George Harrison chapter of the Beatles fan club.  The newsletter was called the "Harrison Herald" and this story was written by Val, the London correspondent for the fan club.    The story appeared in the April 1971 edition of the newsletter, so the events in the story took place the end of February through March.   At that point in Beatle history, the Beatles had been broken up officially for about a year and they had been going to court and things were looking pretty ugly between Paul and the other three.    The fans weren't sure what to think about all of this.  And it is hard for me to put myself there in early 1971 when it was going on.   I know the outcome of everything.   But reading about the Paul suing the other three in the newspapers must have been somewhat of a shock to the fans.    So the fans in this story did what fans do...they started a petition.   

John Lennon and George Harrison in May 1971 -- a few months after this story took place.

Writing On

By Valerie

Harrison Herald – April 1971

So much has happened since the last time my column was printed in the newsletter.    Consequently, I’m going to just tell you about one of the best times I’ve been to George’s.   I was at his house twelve times in the past month.    Anyway, the last time I saw him was the best.  I went up there with my friend Carolyn.  We first went to John’s home, really gorgeous, and then to George’s.   I had this wild idea of a petition in support of the partnership, etc. and I wanted John, George and Ringo to be the first three to sign it.   John loved it and signed right away, with a very pleased look in his eye.  The petition reads, “We the undersigned, present this petition in support of keeping the partnership form being dissolved.”    

  Anyway, George was next.  I was afraid he’d be angry with me for coming up so often (I’ve been labeled by all as the only Henley Scruff), and I really regretted going up to him until he came over.  He and Pattie and some other guy were pulling branches off a dead, overgrown tree when he spotted us walking up the road. He squatted on the ground to look to see who it was, under the branches.  He didn’t look too pleased and started to stab the ground with a stick.   I wanted to leave then, but Carolyn had to call him.  I was really frightened of his yelling at me, because I didn’t want to spoil my great relationship with him.  But, he was so sweet and gentle.  When he came over I casually pulled out the petition and explained about it, and that I didn’t expect it to help or hinder the decision, etc, but it was more or less just to show them that we, the fans, still care.   Contrary to public opinion.   He read it and almost burst out laughing.   I felt like such a fool.  But being such a nice person, he didn’t laugh, but smiled greatly and to avoid breaking up he stuck out his tongue and fell back on his other foot.   He then looked right into my eyes and said, “But you see this won’t help one way or the other.  See it’s a legal matter, and this won’t’ make any difference.”    I agreed but looked disappointed all the same.  He said, “Don’t worry about it girls, because we’re all looking for a solution.  And if Paul wants out, there’s nothing to hold him in.   We’ve all gone through so much these past two months that we just want an end to the whole thing.   And anyway, Paul won’t come out any better than the rest of us.  He’s in it just as far as we are.  All he wants is for a new receiver to be in (the new receiver had been okayed by the judge two days before).    Then, we all said together, “And it looks like he got that!”   We all laughed over this and George said “So this is a very sweet idea, and we appreciate it, but my signing this wouldn’t help, and it wouldn’t be good for me.  Do you understand?”   One thing I love about George is that he must get his point across, and wanted us to understand why he didn’t want to sign.  Is aid yes I did, but Carolyn said, “But don’t you care, being he was one of your best friends?”   George looked at us both for a moment before saying, “Sure I care, we all do.  But we have to leave him to sort out his own life.”   Carolyn then said, “Then you think Linda is to blame?  Or rather has a lot to do with it?”  He quietly said, “Yeah, sure” and looked down at the ground as though to say, “end of discussion.” 

  I changed the subject by saying “Working hard?” as he was working on the grounds.  He smiled, relieved perhaps, and said “Uh, just clearing the grounds here and there.  A few things need doing.”   I had a poster of him, which I had just made up from a small photograph of him that Carolyn took.  She had given him a copy of the photograph a long time since.   I asked him if he’d mind signing it and he said, “Oh, of course.”   I held it up and he wrote on the top, “To Val, with Love from George Harrison.”  I was so pleased.  I guess he knows my name.  Anyway, I suggested to Carolyn that we let him get on, and I said, “Well, thanks so much for being so nice to us.   I really appreciate it.”  He said, “Yeah, well thanks for everything, Tarrah then.”   Then we left.

One other time we were visiting him, I asked him about hitting the policeman. He said “Well, I got off lucky.   Of the crime I was charged with, I was guilty.  But I had no other choice.”  He said that there was traffic in the back of him all blowing horns to get through.  The light changed just as he was in the middle of the intersection.  The cop tried to make him go back but other cars were already in back of him.  He had no choice but to drive slowly.   The cop backed way and walked into his car, which was slowly moving and this happened three times.  George said the way the court worded it, he had no choice but to plead guilty.  He doesn’t care much, as he can always have friends drive him around.  Oh, nearly forgot another thing he said about the split up, “But in any case WE won’t be dissolved.  It’ll take two-three years to legally dissolve the partnership, and by then it’s 1973-74, and the thing ends in ’77, so it’d hardly be worth Paul’s trouble.”   Also on his birthday, I took a cake (chocolate) up to his house.   Well, I guess that’s all for this time!