The infamous accident

 December 26, 1965

Let's have this conversation WITHOUT getting into the silly Paul-is-Dead conspiracy, okay?   Paul's official story about the moped accident was that on Boxing Day of 1965, he and his friend, Tara Browne, were riding mopeds around Liverpool.  Paul had been there visiting his family for the holidays, and Tara was visiting him.   Paul talks about how he was looking at the full moon when he suddenly realized he was going to smash his face into the pavement and couldn't stop.   Bam!  Paul gets all banged up and a semi-drunk doctor gets called and stiches him up without any pain killers.  Paul's brother Mike takes some photos.   While some people will tell you that there wasn't a full moon on December 26, 1965 -- that isn't even the part of the story that bothers me.   What bothers me is the next part that Paul always tells.   

He goes on to say how he had a bump on his lip, and so he grew a mustache. The other Beatles saw him with it and liked it, and that is why all of the Beatles had mustaches during the Sgt. Pepper era.  WHAT??   

Whenever Paul tells this story, he completely skips the year 1966.  In January 1966, Paul did not have a mustache.  We see him at George and Pattie's wedding, and I never noticed a bump on his lip when he is trying to kiss Pattie in the wedding photos.  

So then I assume that Paul just got the year wrong.  But check out this article Neil Aspinall wrote for a magazine called Fabulous208, which was published July 26, 1966. This leads me to believe it is the true story of what happened in 1965.   Which then makes me wonder if Paul didn't have another moped accident or some sort of accident again in December 1966.

    Of all the Beatles, Paul has always been the biggest believer in theatrical type disguises. As I was saying last week, he and a friend decided to go for a spin on a couple of mopeds around his father's place in the Wirral last July.

 

    Paul put on an old raincoat, beret (to hide his Beatle mop), false mustache, and glasses. "How on earth will you be able to see through those?" asked his father. (The glasses had thick lenses.)

     

    "I needn't wear these all the time", decided Paul slipping them in his pocket. "I'll shove them on if I have to stop for petrol or anything."

     

    Inevitably, the moped ran low on petrol, and Paul had to pull in at a service station. Problem was he couldn't find the right pump for the special moped two stroke fuel mixture, because the lenses blurred his view. At last, he found the right pump.

     

A girl attendant came over at once. Paul put on one of his special accents, "Fill 'er up, please", he said in a mock American accent. "Sure, Paul," the girl replied at once. "What the.......? How did you recognize me?"   "I'd know that voice anywhere, luv."

 

    If he'd used his own voice and not worn such fantastic clothes, I guess Paul would have got away with it. You'd be amazed how different a Beatle looks with his hair brushed back. That's as far as Paul should have gone, just the beret to keep his long hair pulled back off his face.

 

    Paul still has those two mopeds, by the way, he uses them every time he visits his father. A couple of weeks after the tour, he went up to Liverpool, just before Christmas, this time, there was a lot of ice on the roads around the Whirrl district, and Paul skidded violently. He came tumbling off and cut his lip. The gash healed up quickly, but Paul had to have stitches put in his mouth, and it was quite painful for a week or so.

  

Christmas call

 

Mull of Kintyre #3

 

In December of 1977, Wings made what is known as the Mull of Kintyre promo #3.  While it has only been seen by some collectors, these photos/stills have been shared.  We see that it features the McCartney family's mini horse (who was supposedly called 'Jet', but that was also the name of a dog they owned).   It also had a strange Santa mannequin and a Christmas tree in the background.  I hope one day to see this promo. 

Praise for Turkey Boys SOS Mission (1995)

 Praise for Turkey Boys SOS Mission

No Writer Listed

Western Evening Herald

December 23, 1995

    Linda McCartney has praised a school boy who forked out three weeks' pocket money to save a pair of Turkeys from the Christmas table. 

    The wife of former Beatle Paul spoke after animal lover Christian Pierce paid £6 to rescue two turkeys advertised for sale in a newspaper. He had named the six-month-old birds' Christmas' and 'Dinner' to celebrate their seasonal escape. 

    Well-known vegetarian Linda McCartney recently paid £3000 to save just one prize turkey from the oven. She said today she was delighted to hear of Christian's goodwill gesture. She said, "Christian by name and Christian by nature. What a wonderful example this young man is setting.

     "Like many of us, he obviously believes we should be trying in every little way to make this a kinder Christmas. He is obviously a very big-hearted gent."

     Christian's mother, Angela, said he only got £2 a week pocket money, and was determined to put it to good use. But she admitted there would be turkey on the table at the Pierce home in Crowland, Lincolnshire, on Christmas Day. 

    She said, "We will be having turkey on Christmas Day, but it won't be Christmas or Dinner. Christian, of course, will not touch it. He thinks it's cruel."

Christmas Concert

 

Beatlemania Rages On! (1965)

photo copyright held by Sara Schmidt 

 

Beatlesmania Rages On!

Written By Eugene Gilbert

The San Bernadeno County Sun

December 25, 1965

    Hold your ears, Dad. Beatlemania once thought a passing fad, apparently, is here to stay, and hip teens now see the long hairs from London as pace setters and a whole new trend of music yet to be explored.

     Some of them assert that Elvis Presley is for old people. "The Beatles are kings," says Ricky Flake, 15, of Pomona, California. A whopping 75% or 821 of 1100 teenagers we interviewed agreed with him. The reason, as dad may suspect, very considerably.

     16-year-old Jay Gartman of Miami, Florida, likes them because "they've calmed down a good cultural music." Jay's classmate Alex Dawns, 16, thinks the Beatles are "neat dressers."

     17% of our teenagers pick Presley over the Beatles. Presley is the hip swinging, guitar-playing gyrator who rocketed to fame and millions in the 50s and at 30 is still going strong. Those who prefer Presley are usually the older teenagers, those young enough to have been at the hair-tearing hero worship stage a few years ago, and the Presley fans look with mock disapproval at the Beatles bandwagon.

     "I remember Presley when he started, and I always enjoyed him," said Gary Lautenberg, 19, of Flushing, New York. Vince Lowney, 16 of Geneva, New York, says "Presley, at least sings."  And Clinton Weimeister, 18, of Baltimore, says he prefers Presley because "he's American."

     There's some dissension in the Beatles ranks over who has had or will have the greatest influence on pop singing. A solid 48% or 528 of the 1100 say the Beatles' influence is the strongest, and another 21% or 229 teens pick Presley, perhaps giving him more credit for age.

     A quarter percent of those polled choose various other English singing groups, as well as Sonny and Cher, Bob Dylan, and Herman's Hermits.

     "Presley actually started modern pop singing and thus has had a greater effect," says Clayton White, 17, of Capertino, California. Some agree with Clayton, some don't, depending on when their conception of pop music begins. 

    For 12-year-old Kim Phillips of Lincoln, Nebraska, "The Beatles' idea of music is the best in a long time, and a far greater influence than Presley."  Linda Goldberg, 13, of Pennsauken, New Jersey, says "the Beatles are the greater influence in music because no one can top them. "

    In Miami, 14-year-old Norma Harina says, "The Beatles are new and something different. Presley is for old people."

     In 10 years, when Norma, Linda, Gary, and Vince are parents, maybe there will be a new trend towards chamber music. Meanwhile, relax, Dad, those long hairs and their offshoots are well entrenched.

They Wanna Be Santa Claus

 

Make sure you leave milk and cookies out tonight for Santa Lennon

 

Backstage at the Christmas Show

Photo taken by Paul McCartney 

 

The Beatles Panto