Halloween Treat (1974)

 

Halloween Treat

By Linda Aiello

With a Little Help From My Friends

January 1981

    It was October 31, 1974 —Halloween night —and I was at work. I had heard that John had recorded Walls and Bridges at the Record Plant recording studio, so I figured he was probably also working on the Rock and Roll album there. 

    I got off work at 4:30pm, and it was a last-minute thing. I asked a girl in my office to come with me, since I was afraid to go alone. She wasn't even a Beatles fan, but she did me the favor and came with me. 

    It must have been close to 5 p.m. when we got there. When we got out of the elevator, I went into the reception area, and the girl at the desk told me John was in. There was a Chinese girl on the phone at that time, May Pang. This was at the time when John and Yoko were separated. I could not believe how easy it was to get up there. Nobody stopped us.

     When May got off the phone, she asked what I wanted. I asked her if she was May Pang, and she said, "Yes. How do you know me?"  I told her I heard about her. Again she asked me what I wanted. I told her, "I just wanted to meet John."  She told me he did not wish to be disturbed and that I should leave. 

    The door to the recording studio was open, and I didn't hear anything. I could not imagine what John was doing. She told me he had been mixing the Rock and Roll album. I told her I was not going to leave, (but I said this in a nice way.)  She said that I was going to have to. I told her I would be quiet and that I would wait at the elevator if I had to, but I was not going to leave.

        I asked her if she would do me a favor and get his autograph for me, and just have John wave to me. She said, "No." Doesn't she sound sweet? 

    Just as I was telling her that I would not leave again, John came out. I bet he was hiding behind the door, just waiting to make his entrance. He saw how excited I got when I saw him. I took both of his hands and said, "John, I can't believe it, after all these years!"  And he replied, "Indeed, it's a great pleasure," in a funny-sounding voice. He looked great, even though he was supposed to be upset about not being with Yoko. He looked fine to me. He looked as if he had just shaved, and he was dressed nicely as well. He really looked beautiful.

     I didn't know what to say next, since I was the only fan there. Of course, I had to say something dumb, like, "I have all your Beatles albums", to which he said, "I've got them all too". And he laughed.

     And then he said, "Excuse me."  And went over to the sofa in the reception area. On it was the Walls and Bridges album. May Pang went over to him, and she had her arm all over his back. He wasn't really bothering with her. While he was on the sofa, I asked the receptionist for a hardcover book I could borrow so John could use it to lean on when he gave me his autograph. She gave me her ledger book.

     By the way, my friend from work just stood at the reception desk and didn't say a word.

     When John returned from the sofa, he said, "Good night" to me. And I said, "John, wait, can I please have your autograph? " And he said, "Sure." So he started to sign, but my pen would not write, and he said, "At least you could have given me a pen that writes." And laughed. I told him to scribble with it, and it would write. That is just what he did. And then the pen worked. Every time I look at his autograph now, I think of the story behind it. 

    He was really warm and friendly as he was signing, he noticed my name on the pen. At my office, everyone was losing their pens, so I  put my name on mine. When he saw the name, he said, "That's clever." I never did get to tell him why my name was on it. Then he said, "Good night" again. And he started going back into the studio.

     I decided I wanted to kiss him. From the corner of his eye, he saw me starting to approach him, all determined, and he turned back to me and gave me his cheek. I kissed him and said, "Thank you." He walked back into the studio and waved to me. 

    At this point, I was so excited that I was leaving with the ledger book. The receptionist started yelling at me when I was in the elevator. I was sorry for not giving her back the book, but she understood. I would have been glad to bring it back to her at a later date. 

    This is where the story ends. It was the greatest Halloween of my life. One regret is that, since it was a last-minute thing, I did not have a camera. I know John would have posed for a picture.

     As I'm writing the story, I'm crying, and I don't have to explain why. I am so thankful that my one-to-one experience with John was a beautiful one. I'm also happy to share it with all of you. For those of you who never met John, he was truly a wonderful man. For those of you who did meet him, you know what I'm talking about. Peace is all that he wanted. So let's keep it!