One of those Days

 

“One of Those Days” (November 9, 1973)

By Kris Spackman

With a Little Help From My Friends

April 1974

 

I knew from the moment we got out of bed on Friday, November 9, that it was going to be one of those days!  Actually, it had all begun the night before, when we’d literally tried to eat ourselves out of house and home, so we wouldn’t have so much to carry when we moved flats the following day.  Marla and I were amazed at the amount of junk we’d accumulated in 3 months’ time in London, and though we stayed up half the night packing, we still had a thousand and one things to do that Friday.

As we rode the underground into town for our daily jaunt to Apple.  I half-jokingly predicted, “You watch – just cuz we have all this stuff to do, probably George, Ringo and McCartney will show up today!”   At Green Park Station, we paused to buy an Evening Standard, then made our way to Apple, arriving about noon – fifteen minutes ahead of our planned meeting time with Pattie and Kathy.  Taking up our “places” on the step outside, we began to read the paper.  Minutes passed and we were both hunched over a story, when a voice above us commanded, in a very insistent tone: “All right, you lot!  No sittin’ about here!  C’mon, let’s go…”

My immediate thought was “Oh for Christ’s sake, who in Hell is bothering us now?” and was ready to tell the intruder to buzz off when we looked up into the mischievously grinning faces of Paul and Linda!!  Talk about instant heart failure!  We both scrambled immediately to our feet, Mar repeating, “Ok…. Ok…” while I mumbled some incoherent, “Yes, sir’s” Quite enjoying the whole thing, McCartney slugged Marla in the arm, assuring, “I’m only kidding!” and before we could utter another word, they were on their way inside.  I finally managed to call, “It’s nice to see you again,” to which Linda smiled and waved.

Then we collapsed!  We had been seeing McCartney and Linda almost daily for most of the month of October when they’d been recording “Band On The Run.”  But they're turning up at such an unexpected place as Apple, and taking us so completely by surprise threw us into a mild state of pandemonium!  Through the door, we watched them bop around reception, talking to Roger (one of Ringo’s errand boys), who was on the switchboard, then they disappeared upstairs for a few minutes.  Ringo had not yet arrived, and for a panicky few moments, we thought sure they’d “escape” before Pattie and Kathy arrived, or before our friend Angela (who worked in Apple’s kitchen) was made aware of their presence.  In fact, they were on their way out the door, while we frantically racked our brains for some sane conversation which would keep them there an extra few minutes – when Ringo pulled up, in driver Peter’s little blue Volvo, instead of his own tan Mercedes.

And there we were, folks …. McCartney and Linda to the left of us – Ringo to the right of us, and poor Kris and Marla in the middle, looking slightly more idiotic than usual!  In his usual slow pace, Ringo got out of the car; he was wearing one of his “work uniforms,” a red and black diamond checked sweater, blue jeans, and tennis shoes!  He paused to nod at us and bid us “Good morning,” and when he saw smiling Paul (who was holding the door open) and Linda, his face broke into a big grin and he held out his arm, greeting cheerily, “Good morning, boys and girls!”

McCartney called, “Hello, hello” and in they all went, trooping through reception and on upstairs.  A few paces behind, driver Peter shook his head and grinned at us, teased and amused, for we apparently looked as delighted as we felt!  We did manage to say hello to him, then summoned Roger, who was hopping around and babbling idiotically about getting McCartney’s autograph, and told him to tell Angela to get the hell up here!  When she appeared, we said a grand total of 3 words to her, “Ang, Paul’s here…” and she was off like a shot!

The whole thing was so absolutely insane, like a scene from some crazy movie, that we couldn’t get over it!  We still had no idea where in the world they’d come from, for neither the Rolls nor the Lamborghini were anywhere in evidence.  And they had to have come from the direction of Piccadilly Street to come upon us like they had.  I’d always had a feeling that McCartney would show up at Apple one day, but never expected him to sneak up on us that way!  When he’d been recording, he’d spent most of his time at George Martin’s Air Studios; but when he did the remixing, he spent one day at Kingsway and 2 or 3 at EMI.  We’d always managed to find out where he’d be ahead of time and turn up before he did, until finally, one day at EMI, he asked how we did it! (Kathy merely smiled and Marla told him, “We have our ways!”) (and to digress momentarily here, that was the same day that Mar and Linda had a heart-to-heart chat about Cleveland because her mother was from there!).  Anyway, in our discussion of the Macs’ “ambush” upon us “innocent by-sitters,” we decided that, on seeing us, he probably thought, “All right!  Now it’s my turn!  This’ll really get ‘em!” 

But little did he know that we had Angela on the “inside” who would shortly serve him tea and undoubtedly blow his mind!  Meantime, Pattie and Kath finally arrived, and once they’d heard what they’d missed, vowed never to be late again!  Then Angela came out, all aglow.  She had brought Ringo, Paul, and Linda their tea, and Mr. McCartney had indeed been quite astounded, as though we’d planned the whole thing!  When she came into Ringo’s office, Paul had stared at her in amazement, and said, “You work here?  How long have you been working here?”  She told him, “Three months,” to which he added, “Do you mean all the time at the studio… you were working here?”  He then proceeded to tell Ringo how Ang and her friends had waited for him at the studio, and Ringo teased her about “deserting” him!  Ringo really liked Ang, as does everyone at Apple who works with her; she’s just one of those immediately likable sorts, though basically quite shy.  We were really happy for her and for ourselves.  Later, Ang once again served them coffee.  Linda, who was on the phone, accidentally bumped into her, and was profusely apologetic!

Meantime, we waited outside, anxious to see what would happen next!  We heard they’d come to discuss publicity for the new album, but when they emerged about 2:30, Mccartney was carrying a copy of Ringo’s album.  By this time, we’d all calmed down a bit, and I noticed she was wearing a long coat, a red and blue vest, black pants, and a blue cap.  He stopped in front of us, all smiles, and said, “Your friend works in there! She brought me tea and I was all...”  and he did a darling imitation of his astonishment at seeing Angela!  Mar laughingly told him that’s what he got for sneaking up on us!  And then out of nowhere appeared that magic taxi which arrives the instant he sets foot out the door.   Calling goodbye, he and Linda got in and were off.  As we made our way home, I vaguely recall someone saying she wouldn’t be surprised if Paul returned to Apple later that day.

As per usual, we went back to Apple at 6 to wait for Ringo, and Ang met us with the news that McCartney and Linda had come back.   We’d missed them by just 15 or 20 minutes, and at the time, Ang had been outside talking to this older Italian woman who was a friend of Lucy (of ex-Scruff fame).  McCartney had asked Ang if that was her mother, which just completely broke us all up!

Ang gets off work at 6, and besides the four of us, she and two other friends of ours, Elena and AnnaMaria, waited as well.  Elena had some flowers which she gave to Ang to give to Paul and Linda when they came out.  We passed the time talking to each other and to Dave from McCartney Productions, who was going to drive them home.  Dave was in a harry and assured us they wouldn’t be long.

They came out about 8:30, smiling and saying “Goodnight” to us all.  Then Mar asked, “Paul, can we give you something?” He was quite agreeable and Ang and Kathy gave the flowers to them.  They thanked them, then Dave led them back to his car.  They called “Goodnight” to us again as they climbed in the back seat, then waved to us as Dave drove off.

The night was not yet over, however, for we were soon to be witness to another “phenomena.”  Mr. Richard Starkey at the wheel of his own car.  Apparently, he’d given Peter the night off and someone had brought the Mercedes into town for him.  But when Ringo took the wheel, we worried about him til we next saw him safe and sound.  The Mercedes was parked out front, between one of the other driver’s cars and another in front of it.

Ringo came out about 9:20. I was a bit nervous at the time because I’d been volunteered to ask him to sign a birthday card for a friend of ours, which we’d gotten most of the other Apple employees to sign.  He was saying his “Goodnights” when I approached him with the card, and without a second thought, almost before I’d gotten the word out of my mouth, he took the pen I held out, the card, and told me to “hold it” as he signed “Ringo – xxx.”  It almost seemed as though he were expecting me to ask him, and he was so sweet about it!  Then he moved towards the car, and started to get on the wrong side before he remembered he was driving! As he went around the other side, he winked and smiled at Angela, then got in and started it up.  We all stood by, nervously guiding him out of the parking space, crying for him to stop when he almost backed into the car behind! “Should we go out and stop traffic?”  Elena wondered aloud, but he finally worked his way out of the spot and drove very slowly up the street, as we all crossed our fingers and hoped for the best!

To celebrate the day, we then went to the pub, where Mal joined us a short while later for one drink and entertained us with stories about the ghosts at Friar Park!  Oh, we did finally get all our packing and cleaning done that day, somewhere in between times and when we got home that night.  And even though it was “one of those days,” we wouldn’t have missed it for the world!

Paul invades the U.S. (New York) 1984

 Paul Invades the U.S. – New York

By Pat Deese

Believe it or not, walking down Park Avenue in NYC, I actually spotted someone I knew – Jennie, so I rushed across the street, caught up with her, and asked if she knew where Paul might be.  She said she had just seen Trevor go by in the limo and was trying to figure where he was going.  She then told us that she had heard that Paul was supposedly going to do an interview with “Entertainment Tonight” at the Carlisle Hotel on 76^th Street.  So Kathy and her friend LouAnn and I headed off to look.  We saw a group of fans there as we arrived.

A little while later we saw some “ET” people arrive, so we thought he must be coming.  The security got ready to some cops arrived.  At about 1:20, Paul arrived. As he got out of the car, he was besieged with the fans, handing him boxes of flowers and presents.  Some were really shoving and he said, “Please don’t crowd.”  I stood back and snapped a few photos.  He proceeded to go in as it was a bit wild.  He wore dark pants and a jacket.

As we waited to see him leave, we were across the street when someone yelled, “Julian!” and we looked to see him bouncing out of a car.  After that, we decided to wait across the street.  A while later, Linda arrived, and still later, Heather came (to see Julian perhaps).  They left later and I got a photo of Julian leaving, but he would not slow down for anyone and basically everyone let him be.

The security started joining forces and the cops arrived once more, so we knew that Paul would be leaving soon after.  It was about 4:15 when he left. This time Linda was with him, and he had changed and was wearing a red jacket.  This time he did not even attempt to stop, just walked towards the car.  The crowd waiting was quite large and passersby were also waiting across the street in hopes of catching a glimpse.

We were then told he was attending a party at a club on 60^th Street at 6pm, so we headed off in that direction.  IT was much more crowded with fans and photographs alike.  Kathy and I managed to get close to the entrance and proceeded to wait as various celebrities, including most of the MTV crew, arrived.  We were rewarded finally around 7:30 to the sight of Macca bouncing out of his car and proceeding to entertain the fans and photographers with a lot of bouncing and smiling and posing and jumping about!  I caught a fabulous glimpse of this as I was standing not 10 feet away and the photographer directly in front of me was bend down leading on a table they had earlier put up as a barricade.  I took a few photos at first but was unable to tell if I was in focus, plus I was being jostled by the crowd. I switched to my movie camera.  I was rewarded with a wild pose and a knees down arms outstretched pose right at my camera.  Needless to say, I nearly dropped the camera.  He looked gorgeous and wore a dark suit and tie.

 

Some of the people left there then and headed for the premiere, but we decided to wait at the exit as we would be much closer to him there.   I got up and kneeled on the table for close to an hour.  Kathy eventually stood on it along with Louann.  I was so sore, but I was not about to let that stop me from catching a glimpse.  He came out somewhere after 8:30 (which of course made him late for the premiere!) and after snapping a few photos and getting a good look, we headed for the theater, which was about 5 blocks away.  We sure had a feat ahead of us, and that was to get there ahead of Paul.  So, everyone was running.  Picture maybe 50 of more fans setting off running up the street, across streets, probably in front of stunned drivers, yelling, laughing, passing bewildered New Yorkers casually strolling down the street, turning, looking, staring, wondering why was everyone running, what was happening, who did you see?  I could barely breathe after the first two blocks, so I slowed to a fast walk.  Actually, the only thing that had kept me going was that he was going to be there.  It was like the chase scene in “Hard Day’s Night.”  We had not sat down or eaten in over 12 hours, and had walked and run all over New York.

We got to the premiere and there were tons of people.  Luckily, we did beat Paul there, although with all the people there, we did not see him.  I did however see his hand go in carrying roses and giving a victory sign to the screaming crowd! It was wild and I guess he really enjoyed it and did a whole number of the crowd and press.

After that we decided to watch him leave from across the street at McDonald’s, where we could actually see him in the distance.  Jennie and her friends stayed there and saw him arrive, so that’s how we knew he “milked” the crowd.  We saw the mounted police arrive on their horses and knew he would be soon departing.  He left ahead of everyone else and waved wildly to the enthusiastic crowd.  We walked across the street and managed to get copies of the programs and some girl gave us tickets that had been handed out for the premiere.

The whole thing was an exhausting experience, but I would do it all again for the man. 

Los Angeles - Take 2

 Los Angeles – Take 2

By Gail Nowak

With a Little Help From My Friends

Issue #48

October 1984

 

October 23, 1984 – I knew ahead of time that Paul was one of the guests scheduled to appear on the Tonight Show.  I have a friend, Robbie, who works for NBC, so I planned to take a half day off from work and figured that Robbie could get me tickets, no sweat.  Much to my dismay, the employee tickets would go to the studio at 8:00 a.m. the morning of the show.  This was an impossibility for me since I had already made up a story to take off a half day.  So I resigned myself to the fact that I would not get into the taping, but since I had a half day to kill, I went down to NBC anyway, but myself, armed with my camera, in hopes of at least getting a glimpse of the man.

I arrived at NBC at approximately 3:00p.m. to find about 800 fans waiting in line (a record for the Carson Show).  This blew my hopes even further.  Then I spotted a friend of mine (Mike, who owns the GREAT Pepperland Records in Anaheim) up toward the front of the line.  He had spent the night at NBC waiting to get tickets.  Not only did he let me in line, but he also got me a ticket from a girl behind us who had an extra (Mike, I will love you forever!)  At this point, I was as good as in.

While waiting in line I became instant buddies with a girl named Janice, and we teamed up for the remainder of the afternoon/evening.  We got great seats for the show; about halfway up and right in the center.  It was the most exciting thing I’ve ever seen since the studio is really small, so we were really close.  The audience was really primed and it was like Beatlemania all over again.  Paul was out on stage for almost an hour, since he was the first guest on, and remained onstage throughout the taping.  Fortunately, the video crew ran into technical difficulties when trying to show the “Broadstreet” clip.  This added about 15 minutes of extra time that we were allowed to gape at that gorgeous face.  A guy next to us had binoculars which he shared with us for a super closeup view.  During commercials, Paul and Johnny joked and chatted.  Once in a while Paul even answered fans that were yelling things to him from the audience.  I’m sure you all saw the broadcast of the show, so I won’t go into that.

After the show, Janice and I went to the side of the building to try to see him leaving.  There was a fence to keep the public out, but we could see a limo and a crowd of people at the exit door.  Sure enough, before long, we saw Paul (though not very well because he was surrounded by people) get into a black Corvette which pulled away and drove off.  About 5 minutes later I was on the phone with Robbie (NBC employee) when Janice starts screaming to me that there was a black Corvette out on the street right in front of us.  Needless to say, I hung up the phone and ran over to the curb.  In between the cars, I could see that Paul was driving the ‘Vette and had the window rolled down.  Janice and I grabbed hands and started running across the street towards his car, which was stopped at a red light.  Paul saw us coming and was smiling and laughing.  As we reached the car he said, “Hello, girls.”  Janice said hello, shook his hand, and gave him a kiss.  Then it was my turn.  I also shook his hand and gave him a kiss (on the lips!).  Unfortunately, the light turned green (drat!) and the cars started moving.  He then said, “Watch out, girls.  Gotta go!” and off he drove to some unknown destination in LA.  It all happened so fast it seemed like a dream.  Of course, Janice and I are now friends for life due to this common bond that we shared.  I didn’t get a picture or an autograph, but I wouldn’t trade that kiss for anything in the world!

John's Home!!!

 

John’s Home!!!

By Vickie McCartney

With a Little Help From My Friends

October 1978

On October 3, 1978, Donna Standin and I went into NYC to view John’s Rolls at the Cooper-Hewitt Museum Design.   After we took all of the pictures we wanted to get, we decided to go over to the Dakota.

We didn’t really expect to see anyone.  When we got there, two limos were parked out in front.  That was it.  I was determined not to budge until we saw who was going to come out.  We were barely there two minutes when John and Yoko came out of the building.  They started walking up 72^nd Street pretty fast.

They were holding hands.  Yoko’s hair is almost waist-length.  She was wearing a grey coat sweater, black pants, and shoes.  John’s hair is just about collar length, and it’s hard to believe how skinny he is.  John wore a blue suede cap, brown suede jacket, black turtleneck sweater, a red plaid scarf, black Cuban-heeled boots, wire specs with black lenses, and black drainies so tight he looked like he was poured into them.

We ran up in back of them so fast, if John had stopped short, I would have rear-ended him.  This was the first time Donna had ever gotten to see John so close.  It must have been a shock because of saying something to them, she said, “Let’s go to McDonald’s.”  I finally found my voice, “John, could I trouble you for an autograph?”  He looked over his shoulder, smiled, and said, “Sorry luv, I don’t do that.  But I could say ‘good morning.’”  It was 11:00 a.m., and he looked tired.  Me: “Ok!”  Brilliant conversation. John: “Good morning.”  Me: “Good morning, John.  Thank you!”  I can’t believe I said that!

We followed them for 12 blocks taking pictures from the rear.  Everyone once in a while they would stop and window shop.  We wonder if they were trying to see if we were still following them.  When they stopped and waited for the light to turn green, John looked to see if we were still there.  We pulled out a subway map and hoped we were faking him out.

We decided to go into McDonald’s after all; we didn’t want to make him mad.  But the strange part was, the whole 12 blocks we tailed them, no one else stopped them or talked to them.  It ended up being a perfect day!

The Beatles in Cleveland

 

From the Desk of Marilyn Doerfler...

By Marilyn Doerfler

With a Little Help From My Friends

October 1978

This time around, I have been asked to write about The Beatle days in Cleveland, so here goes.  The typewriter is willing, but the gears in my mind have rusted some.  However, let's take a trip back to 1964 and the Beatles' first personal appearance in Cleveland at the Public Hall.  Maybe we'll find some memories there.  The front acts are finished, and The Beatles seem to be in the middle of their set when a wave of girls rushed the stage.  The police want The Beatles to leave the stage, and George is arguing with one of them, and if I remember right, it went something like this..." this isn't the first city that our shows had to be stopped because of rowdy audiences.  We've never had to leave the stage before.  We would just wait for things to calm down, or if they didn't, a representative, like a disc jockey or someone would talk to the crowd and calm them down."  This is so!  Did not hear the rest of George's commentary as he was ushered into the wings.  As I recall, John found it all rather amusing, and he leaned against his amp, taking the whole situation in, but later, all were angry and said they were being treated like children.  Brian Epstein put it another way..." this is insidious!"  Twenty minutes later, The Beatles returned to the stage and, in case no one noticed, did their whole show over again.  This time, believe me, no interruptions. 

The Public Hall was closed to all rock-oriented shows after all the destruction that happened when The Beatles played there. That is definitely why the Beatles didn't play Cleveland in 1965, but 1966 was a different story. 

The Beatles returned to Cleveland and this time to the Cleveland Stadium, a "field day" for all. After settling in our favorite hotel, it was interview time for the entourage, followed by various phone calls to radio stations, frantic to know what The Beatles did that day, how they felt, what they said, how they held their mouths when they said whatever, etc.  Then it was to the Press Conference, where two major newspapers and half a dozen radio stations, and various, various, various college, high school, and what have you papers were represented.  From there, The Beatles, their opening acts (The Cyrkle, Ronnetts, Bobby Hebb), and entourage were ushered to the stadium amid a standing ovation!  The Beatles then entered their dressing room behind the stage -- a large mobile home  made specifically for them and relaxed until showtime. 

I'm sure most of you will recall that, once again, the show was stopped!  During one of the songs (Day Tripper), thousands of Beatle people rushed the stage, and they just kept coming!  Finally, the boys were literally shoved in the trailer until order could be restored.  It was some time later when the field was cleared then, once again, The Beatles appeared amid the shouts and cries of adoring fans!  Fantastic!

Before I continue, I must add that since 1966 was an all-baseball park tour, we all lived on hot dogs (to this day, I hate them) and Coke.  Or, once in a while, hot dogs and beer, and if we were really lucky, some of the ballparks put a little sauerkraut on top of them.  And all the time, I bet the general public thought we dined on steak and the like..fooled you!

After The Beatles were through, we were ushered back to the hotel, where we were informed that we could all go to the press party that was already in progress.  John whispered to me, "Get me out of this one. I'm tired and way behind on some cartoon things," and before I could say yes, no, or maybe, he did a typical John Lennon idiom by raising his voice and saying "that's a darling girl."  So, I went but decided that I would stay just a short while, too.  But that wasn't to be.  After excusing John to Brian Epstein et al., I was politely backing out, smiling all the way, when I felt something hit my back.  Ringo had stuck his finger in my back and said, "I'll pull the old trigger if you don't stay here and escort me about."  Needless to say, I did, and so, the evening melted away. 

The next day was similar to all Beatle tour days, except that when we walked out of the door supposedly to the limos, we were confronted with a bus.  Every other city had limos to pick us up from the airport and take us back, but not Cleveland. Besides the Beatles and their opening acts and entourage, there appeared 1000 disc jockeys in an unairconditioned bus on a hot August day.

When we came to the runway where our rented American Airlines plane was to be, there was not a vehicle of this proportion in sight.  We waited quite a while and then were told that our plane would be a little late...no kidding!

When the plane did arrive, a young gal was escorted off.  "Eh," John said, "why did you take your sweet time then?" The American Airlines representative whispered as low as he could, "there were no stirrers for your drinks, and we had to get them from the terminal.  It took a while."  John replied, as we drove out of sight, "that's alright, chap.  If it had been anything else, we might not have forgiven you" as they walked up the aisle, overheard John ask, "now that we've got that settled, are you sure we have something to stir?"

"Goodbye, Cleveland..." Paul and George yelled, and as the people on the ground began to look like ants, the poker cards came out, the drinks were served (with stirrers) and it was off to another city which The Beatles own for the day. 

Mac'd Out in Hollywood

 

Mac’d Out in Hollywood

By Kris Spackman

With a Little Help From My Friends

October 1984

 

The ol’ boy’s done it to us again, gang!  What a mad, wonderful two days were October 22^nd and 23^rd (1984) in LA Beatle history!  As he did in New York and Chicago, Paul breezed into town to promote “Broad Street,” and gave us the chance to see him again.  I hadn’t seen him since the ’76 tour, so I was both thrilled to pieces and absolutely determined we were gonna track him down!

Good old Simmons phoned to let us know he’d left Chicago Friday morning and was LA-bound.  We cruised around town a bit on the weekend, but the weather was so lovely, we guessed that they could be at the beach, Disneyland, the zoo visiting the Chinese pandas?  Anyway, wherever they were was definitely where we weren’t.

But Monday evening was another story.  Thanks to a good friend, we found out that the official press party was being held at one of those fancy Beverly Hills restaurants, the Bistro.  I zoomed over there immediately after work and was joined shortly by my two good pals, Leslie and Sue.  As the legions of Hollywood press descended on us, along with the video camera, crews from Entertainment Tonight, half a dozen local TV stations, and even a film crew hired by Mac himself to film his arrival for his archives.   Tension began to mount as the 6 pm arrival time drew near.  The Beverly Hills police assisted Fox publicity people in lining everyone up in a half-orderly fashion on either side of the doorway, and Sue and I found ourselves sandwiched behind a video cameraman and his boom-mike man on one side while Leslie peeked between two photographers on the other side.

We waited…and waited…and waited…while Jane Seymour, Michelle Phillips, Richard Perry, Michael McDonald, Victoria Principal, D.J. Rick Dees, and Weird Al Yankovic all arrived.

I guess they must’ve been waiting for the eggs to boil again because it was 7:15 before they finally turned up.  And there he was!  What a sight for sore eyes!  In the shock of drinking in that face again after all these years, all I could do was just look at him.  They paused momentarily to pose for the press, and Linda made a funny face at “our” video cameraman as she went through the door.  I remember thinking he seemed smaller to me and that he was wearing an iridescent green suit!  I couldn’t swear to it at the moment, though.  But oh, how gorgeous he still is!

In a minor state of shock, and that glow you feel after seeing one of them, I had to rush off then to the next part of the day’s adventure, leaving Sue and Leslie to await his departure for the LA premiere of the film.  Of course, he was late leaving the restaurant, but the girls reported that there were less people around, so they got another brief but good look at him.

Meanwhile, I connected with my good friend, Kim, at the UA Egyptian Theater in Westwood.  Kimmie miraculously had managed to secure a ticket for herself and guest to the premiere itself!  Westwood was absolutely one gigantic scene!  On both sides of the street, barriers had been erected to hold back hordes of cheering, yelling crowds who’d come to wish him well.  Spotlights crisscrossed the night sky while the Broad Street soundtrack blasted over speakers set up outside the theater.  For a panicked moment, I wasn’t sure I’d be able to find Kim in the mass of humanity, but there she was, right at the arranged point of meet.

On pins and needles, we went through the barriers and were admitted to the theater.  It was only about 7:45, and we were among the first to arrive.  A friend of Kim’s who was an usher pointed out to us the row of seats reserved for the Macs among the four set aside for “celebs,” so we promptly sat down in the next row behind.  And what a choice of seats!

 

We could tell when Paul and Linda arrived by the spontaneous roar of the crowd outside.  And in they came, flashbulbs and TV lights going off around them.  Paul was signing a hasty autograph for someone at the door, and then, as Trevor escorted them down the aisle, the whole audience broke into applause.  It was fantastic!  He looked so happy, smiling, and proud.  He and Linda edged down the row of seats, past friends seated in the first 5 or 6 seats, and then there he was, seated directly in front of me and only two rows ahead.  I couldn’t believe it!

Before he sat down, though, he turned around he gave a thumbs up, and thanked everyone for coming to another burst of applause.  The security people made sure he was surrounded by people he knew.  Bob Giraldi was in the row directly in front of us, Paul in front of him, so we had a wonderful view of him the whole time.

As he and Linda settled in their seats, Michelle Phillips asked him if he wanted the rest of her popcorn, and he accepted, ate some, and handed it to Linda.  Then he turned around and said to the guy next to Giraldi, “And who are you?” so Bob introduced him to whoever it was.  He also chatted to the guys seated to his left, who looked like musicians but no one we knew (Toto maybe?).  When the lights went down, Kim said she thought he was biting his nails.  He made comments to the guys on his left and to Linda.  They leaned heads towards each other during “Here There and Everywhere” which was real sweet.  When her first appearance came during “Ballroom Dancing,” Linda kind of laughed and leaned toward him to say something, almost as if she were a bit embarrassed…and she did the same almost every time there was a closeup of her.  For the most part, Paul seemed to be listening to the audience’s reaction, and he got lots of applause for all of the wonderful songs.  I wished I could see his face, but I was glad to be behind him, so I didn’t have to turn around to look.  Occasionally, his head would bop to the music.  At one point, I was reaching under my seat for my Coke and knocked it over!  In a moment of horror, I imagined it running down under the seats and getting his feet wet, but thank God, the lid stayed on tight, and I was saved!

As the film ended, he and Linda got up immediately to leave, and he danced down the row to the aisle.  They were quickly escorted outside where we heard the waiting crowd roar a farewell.

Kim was absolutely blissed because it was the first time she had ever seen him, and I wasn’t much better, since I hadn’t seen him in so long.  And to be close for two whole hours!

After the movie, Kim and I raced back to her place to pick up her sleeping bag, and we were off to Burbank and NBC, where we joined Sue for an all-night campout for the “Tonight Show” tickets.  God bless Sue!  She’d gone directly to NBC after Paul left the party at the Bistro, arriving about 9 p.m. to find she was 7^th in line.  Kim and I got there about 11:30, and we all spent a long, cold night huddled together in sleeping bags and blankets, trying to catch a couple of hours sleep.  People continued to arrive all night long, and by 7 a.m. the next day, at least 300 people were in a long line, stretching away from the building and around the corner.  The box office opened promptly at 8:30; clutching the precious bits of paper in hand, we raced around to the front of the building to the Carson studio entrance.  And so began a long day of waiting.  We didn’t date leave for fear no not getting in, though Kim had to go to work for a while, so we held her place and ticket.   

The taping itself was not scheduled to start until 5:30 p.m., so we spent the day gabbing with each other and others around us and eating out of the cooler Sue had brought. 

As the day wore on, the old “natives are restless” syndrome began to set in; as more and more people arrived, the line grew behind us and in front of us.  Some people in front of us seemed to be collecting new friends by the minute, and we finally had to protest to the NBC pages, who confronted the culprits and sent them to the back of the line.  As it was, by the time they began to allow people into the studio at 4:30, there were at least 350 people in line and a group of about 40 stand-bys, all of whom, amazingly, made it inside!  We found out later that Paul insisted that tickets be distributed to the fans who had waited all those hours and not to family/friends of NBC and Carson show staff.  Yey Macca!

We were among the 2^nd bunch to be let in, and we decided to split up for single closer seats.  Sue and I were about 8 rows up, and Kim and her friend, Mary Ann, were up a bit higher.  The problem with the Carson Show is making sure the huge cameras and boom mikes don’t block your view.  I had a great view of Paul while he was in the main chair but not when he moved to the couch, and for Sue, it was just the opposite.

Anyway, by the time the taping was to start, the crowd was practically hysterical with excitement, almost to the point where I was afraid, they’d start throwing people out.  I can apricate all the enthusiasm we can muster for the man…but when it gets to the point of spoiling things for him and for the people who want to hear him, it just isn’t fun anymore.  If all those fans who screamed and yelled every time his name was mentioned had just shut up, he would’ve been on stage and on your TV screens five minutes sooner.  So please, folks…remember that in the future.

 

As you know, he looked just great.  He seemed just a bit nervous and a trifle low-key at first, but there was our Mac underneath it all!  During the commercial breaks, fans kept yelling down at him.  Some were ok, and then there were the idiots who made fools of themselves (like the girl who yelled, ‘You’ve got a great bum!’ which embarrassed him at that point; he just ignored them and conversed with Carson).  He responded to an “I love you, Paul” with a cute “I love you too!”  and to “How’s Linda?” and “How’s Ringo?” with “Just fine!”  Then one girl said, “Thank you so much for all the music,” and at that, he really smiled, half stood with thumbs up, and replied, “Thank you!” and everyone applauded and cheered.  Some dumb guy yelled at him, “Hey Paul, sing ‘Hippy Hippy Shake’” and in his best NY-American accent, Mac mocked him back, “Yeah…yeah, sure man…yeah!”  He mostly chatted with Carson in-between, though.

One funny moment was when they went to play the tape of the Broad Street clip, and for the first half a dozen tries, the tape would not play properly.  Carson’s comment was, “Where’d you get this thing? Fotomat?”  And Paul protested, “I didn’t touch it!”  He said he’d never looked at it, so he didn’t know if it worked on not.  The producer then stopped action until they finally got the tape going and said they’d re-start from there.  So all the “bad starts” wound up on the cutting room floor.

While Mary Gross and the magician were on, he talked to her or Ed McMahon during commercials.  He seemed rather bored with the magician and kind of looked around, swinging his foot in time to the music. 

At the show’s end, he shook hands all around and waved goodbye to the audience.   We all headed home, exhausted and overwhelmed.  Hurry back, Mac!

 

 

 

 

 

Sleepless Nights by Lizzie Bravo (final installment)

June 4, 1967

 

June 7, 1967

Sunday, June 4, 1967 -  Paula and I went to the Saville.  Procol Harum and Jimi Hendrix were on tonight.  We stood by the door watching the people go in, went to have something to eat, and ended up missing Paul.  The girls told us someone kicked Jane when she got out of the car and that Paul was upset, but found it funny, too.  He had his "joker" jacket on (as usual these days).  George, Pattie, and Cynthia also arrived.  Cyn was wearing orange.  We saw Mick Jagger and Peter Asher.  During intermission, we managed to sneak into the theatre and saw the part with Jimi Hendrix, which was great!  Paul and the others were there at their usual upstairs place.  He clapped many times, smoked about 4 cigarettes, and bent over like he was trying to see something.  Jimi started his show playing "Sgt. Pepper," --fantastic!  We went outside to wait for you-know-who.  HE came with Jane and was rather in a hurry -- I suppose he was worried the girls would kick Jane again.  He put his left hand on Paul's shoulder and said, "Excuse me" (which left her rather dazed), then took Jane's hand, got in the car, and left immediately.  Jane had a nice light flowered dress with a headband of the same material.  I took two photos of Paul. 

Tuesday, June 6, 1967 -  Went to Cavendish.  Saw Paul and Jane arriving in the Aston around 6:00.  He had on green trousers, light green jacket,  and the baseball boots he's been wearing. 

Wednesday, June 7, 1967 -  Paula came here around 11:00, and we listened to the LP, then we went to Cavendish.  Paul was in.  Neil arrived and left shortly afterwards with John and Mal in his car.  They came back in about 15 minutes.  John was smiling and playing the guitar, gorgeous!  I took some pictures. They all left again.  This time Paul was in the back seat with Jane in his lap (his fans didn't like seeing that too much...).  We rushed to EMI.  Mal and George Martin arrived first, then at around 7:30pm, was in Ringo arrived in a new black car.  He was in a great mood, signed for a few people, and pretended to scare a girl who was trying to take his picture!  Neil, John, Paul, and the others arrived next.  John signed a few autographs and said, "I've got no time, luv."  Paul just rushed in.  A long time after that, Pattie, Cyn, Carl Wilson, and Mick Jagger arrived. Cyn had a blue dress on.  She looked at me a lot -- I wonder if she realizes that I am the one that asked her to send that letter back.  

Ringo was the first one to come out.  He was in a great mood, signed my "Sgt. Pepper" album, and asked me quite seriously why wasn't I wearing the moustache (from inside the cover), for which I greatly apologized!  Paul was second out at 2:40a.m.  Paula stopped him by the door, politely asking him to sign for her (she was rather shaky at this moment), to which he replied, "Sure, got a pen?"  She handed him the pen, and he signed.  One of the girls took a photo of him and her at that moment.   She thanked him and, he said, "Alright luv, good night" and went down the stairs, with his hands in his pockets.  He met Carl Wilson, who asked him, "Can I go with you?" getting, "No, Jane's home" as a reply.  (he was walking backwards while saying this!)  He said, "See ya" and walked home.  Mick and Marianne left next, full of bell sounds (from necklace)  . George came out, signed my album,, and said, "Hello."  John left around 3:00.  Paula accidentally bumped into him.  I said, "Can you sign, John?" and he said "Yes, I can!" and "Yes, you may" to Paula (I can't remember what she asked him). I took some photos and gave Cyn some roses I had picked up at a garden for her.  I told her they looked nicer when I'd just picked them.  She was genuinely pleased, but I think at first she thought I was going to hit her (some of the girls would call her names and be really rude).  She was surprised when I handed her the roses.  She said, "Oh, thank you, great!"  and smiled, and I asked her if Julian was alright, to which she replied, "Yes, fine, great, thank you"  I asked her to give him my love and said,, "Yes, great, thank you."  She was very, very sweet and kind and has a very sweet voice too.  (Mad me feel REAL guilty for wanting her husaband so much, still I can't help it -- how can I possibly resist the handsomest, sexiest human being on earth?).  My album slipped out of its cover right on the ground, and John bent down and picked it up for me, for which I thanked him.  I gave him the little lucky charm from Brazil that my mum had sent for him, and he said, "Thanks mum!"  Cynthia sat on his lap in the car but thank goodness I didn't see that --the girls told me.  I would have died of jealousy and pure envy.  This girl must be the luckiest person on earth.  I walked back home and went to sleep.

Sleepless Nights by Lizzie Bravo (3rd installment)

Photo taken by Lizzie Bravo

 Friday, June 2, 1967 - Cynthia sent my father's letter with the check inside it to me -- thank God! (If you can believe it, I wrote my father and put John's address instead of mine in the letter -- I was certain everybody on the planet had to know his address by heart.  My dad thought I'd moved again and sent a letter and check there and a telegram to my "old" address to let me know.  Do I need to say how I felt when I got the telegram?  I phoned Cyn and asked her to please send it to me. I told her I'd moved and my dad didn't know my address but knew I'd be around John somewhere (a dirty lie))  

Paula came here to listen to the new album -- she loved it, of course!  Spent the afternoon at Cavendish, as usual -- it was pouring down with rain.  John arrived in the Rolls that is now all painted yellow with lots of flowers, and it's really beautiful!  George was with him.  Paul opened the front door to greet them.  Some girls rushed inside the gates, which infuriated Paul, who said, "Get out, come on!" with his right finger pointed at them.  He was really upset and called the cops.  John was wearing a red coat and pink corduroy trousers.  Paula went to EMI, and the doorman told her as a secret that they would be recording there on the 7th, 8th, and 9th.

Saturday June 3, 1967 -  Paula met me at Cavendish in the afternoon.  "Stick" told us to leave twice.  Millie (the housekeeper) told us Paul was home and had a bit of a cold.  A couple we had never seen got in the house.  A taxi stopped in front of the house, the gates opened, and Paul came out in the Aston.  It was about 9:30pm.  Jane had her hair tied back and a navy-blue dress, and she didn't sit beside Paul.  There were other people in the car.  Paul turned the car lights on and kept looking back.  We left, and I came back home and worked on my scrapbook on John. 

Sleepless Nights - Lizzie Bravo's diary (part 2)

 Sleepless Nights 

Lizzie Bravo

"With a Little Help From My Friends"

January 1985

Photo taken by Lizzie Bravo (3 months before this story takes place)

Thursday, June 1, 1967

Paula and I went back to Cavendish and spent the whole time running from the cops -- it was awful.  One of the girls told us Paul and Jane had taken Martha to Regent's Park.  We went there, but his car wasn't in the usual place.  We went back to Cavendish and spent hours walking around the block since the cops wouldn't leave us alone.  After a while, right through the gates, which Mr. Kelly had already opened.  We didn't see much, as the gates were immediately closed.  Paul got John's phone number from one of the girls, and she called from her hotel.  Cyn answered, and Paula asked her very politely if they were recording tonight.  Cyn was very nice and told her they would be, so Paula got a taxi and went straight to EMI.  They were not there, the recording was to be at another studio, and we couldn't find out which one it was.  Paula met me at Cavendish, where I had seen John arriving in the Mini.  We were there with two other girls who left shortly afterwards.

The phone rang inside Paul's, and we saw a shadow passing by his bedroom -- must have been him.  Somebody closed the windows.  A few minutes after that, we heard footsteps and a car door slamming.  John came to open the gate.  He had on a flowered jacket and a straw sombrero with a colourful ribbon on it, and dark trousers.  Paul was standing there and said something to John while Terry got the car out.  Then Paul closed the gates with his left foot.  John held the car door open for him, and he got in the back.  I tried taking a photo, but Paul said, "No, no, no....no, no, no...."  Paula wanted to talk to him, but I had warned her he doesn't always talk or sign autographs when we're outside his house -- it depends on his mood.  It's better to try at EMI.

Paula and I were talking in Portuguese, and John got curious and said, "What??" and I explained to him that I was talking to Paula.  They left. I think they went to the other place they had been recording at, that is not EMI.  I heard something about Olympic studios, but I am not sure. 

Sleepless Nights by Lizzie Bravo

 Beatle friends, I have a treat for you!  I know that most of you have been waiting for Lizzie Bravo's book to be published in English.   No word on when/if that is going to happen.  But I found a few of Lizzie's diary entries that she translated for "With A Little Help From My Friends" newsletter in 1985.  At that time, her book was titled "Sleepless Nights."   I will be adding one entry a day over the next week or so

. 

Enjoy!

Photo by Lizzie Bravo (I included it because it was the photograph from the article)

Wednesday, May 31, 1967 -  I went with my friend Paula to Cavendish.  She was very excited as she had never seen Paul or any of the others before.  We learned from the girls that Paul, Jane, John and Ringo left in John's black Mini just before we arrived.  "Stick" (Mr. Kelly, Paul's housekeeper) went out to walk Martha.  Anthony (John's chauffeur) arrived driving Cyn's caramel Porsche.  There was another man inside the car.  The police are chasing us all the time -- it's terrible.  Our feet hurt from walking around the block over and over again.  John and Paul arrived together in one car.  Ringo and Jane were not there.  The gates were closed very quickly and we had to rush to the other side of the road to try to see them going in the front door. Paul was wearing black trousers and his "joker" jacket (green and blue).  John had on red trousers and a short flowered jacket.  We went to EMI to see if they were recording tonight, and the answer is no.

When we went back to Cavendish the girls told us Jane and her mother had just arrived.  After a few minutes the gates were opened and we rushed to see who was coming out, but it was only Mrs. Asher.  We went to the corner of the street to see if all was "clear" (of cops, of course), and as we were returning we noticed the gates were open.  We rushed there.  The front door was open.  Paul came jumping down the steps and got into the car beside Terry Doran, who was driving.  John was already inside, in the back.  Terry had to get out of the car to close the gates, since Mr. Kelly was out.  The car windows are dark, and you can only see faint shadows through them.  We were trying to see them through the windows.  Paula rushed to Paul's side and was lucky enough that he had left the little side window open.  He had the end of a cigarette in his left hand resting on his thigh.  Paula was in shock -- it's the first time she's seen him so close.  One of the girls had the cheek to open Paul's door -- he grabbed the door and without looking at her said, "Come on..."  John did something really cute:  he knocked on the window so I knew where he was, and as I got closer to see him, he smiled through the dark glass.  He really melts my heart with these sweet little things he does.  The car finally left and I had to "assist" Paula, who was in the middle of the road, suffering from "total paralysis and amnesia"--a common thing for first-timers.  I know how she feels, for I can well remember the first time I saw John, only a few months ago.  We saw Jane upstairs in their bedroom, apparently making the bed.  Paula left for her hotel and I went home and slept really late.  

September 1977 - James is born!

 

Since today is James McCartney's 45th birthday (Happy Birthday to James!), I thought I'd share this story of some fans that met Paul at the time of James' birth and gave Paul some flowers to congratulate him on the birth of his first boy. 

Paul in London September 1977

By Sil Perrone

With a Little Help From My Friends

January 1978

 

We all went to England in September of 1977, hoping to be able to get in on being there first to see “the birth.”  Everyone in England wanted Paul and Linda to have another girl.  I guess it’s self-explanatory.  We kept checking out the house and ran into Paul and the family often.  Heather dressed as a punk all the time, tried to ignore us but approached us one day to tell us to leave.  She seemed to try to impress us with her new fad, but we just moseyed off.  Paul had agreed to come out one afternoon, and we waited at “THE GATES.”  He paused briefly for pictures with arms around pregnant Linda.  Then he tried to get her purple Mini started.  Linda stood holding the gates open as we chatted.  She wanted to know where we were from and if we had visited England since our stay.  We said we wanted to go to Paris.  Linda was really concerned and said we must go, so we asked for the cheapest way possible.  She told us all about going on the Hovercraft or flyover.  As we chatted, I kept looking at Paul, and he was having a terrible time starting that car.  Finally, he backed out, and again he posed for photos while sitting in the car.  He charmed us up by asking where we lived and then proceeded to introduce us to a fellow in the back seat.  I hadn’t noticed him before.   Paul said, “I wanted to introduce you to Malcolm Brown.”  We all said hello and asked who he was.  Paul’s reply – “Who’s Malcolm Brown??  Everyone knows Malcolm Brown!”  (Does anyone know who Malcolm Brown is?  We never could figure it out.  I think Paul was just teasing).  Then they took off.

We came around a little more after that but didn’t want to bother him too much.  But one night in particular, we came around at about 12 midnight, and all his lights were on.  It was very strange to see his house like that – his lights are never on at night.  I mean, it was lit up like a Christmas tree.  We had a funny feeling that the baby came.  So the next morning, we met two English boys from Manchester who came with a guitar.  We asked the obvious question, and we all became well acquainted.  They wanted to audition for Paul since Jimmy had left and Paul needed a guitarist.  David White was one of them, and he was very nice.

 

All of a sudden, the gates swung open, and we shut up quickly.  Two men came out who seemed to be repairing something in the house.   Out of the blue, they asked if we knew about the baby.  Shocked, we asked where it was born, what it was, and what they’d name it.  All in a row, he said, “Last night, it was a boy, and his name was….”  The man couldn’t think of it.  He kept trying to remember.  It was like playing charades.  Finally, he blurted out, “James Louie!”  Not Louis, but Louie.  They pronounce Louis as Louie in England, like the French.  We couldn’t help but laugh because Louie sounded so funny to us.  Especially after the name James.  It just didn’t seem to fit.

 

The man left, and the next thing we thought of was, “Where?!” We all ran in a panic to call friends and hospitals.  No luck.  We didn’t have any idea where they could have been.  We called where Mary and Stella had been born, and they didn’t seem to have them there.  So, we walked back to the house, very depressed.  At the gate, a telegram boy came, and we wondered if maybe John or someone hot like that had sent a telegram of congratulations.  The kid said no, it wasn’t from Lennon, and out of the blue told us where Paul and Linda were.  Everything seemed to have laid right in our lap that day.  They were around the corner at the Avenue Clinic.  He even gave us directions.  So off we went out to see Paul’s first son.  We waited at a very small house like a hospital.  After about an hour we decided to go get flowers.  Dagmar (our German friend) went all over High Street looking for flowers while we worried that he wouldn’t be back in time and would miss Paul.  Finally, he came bouncing out, and we again took pictures.  Dagmar was back in time.

 

He was very nice, and we congratulated him, giving him the flowers.  He was grateful, and I asked him what they named the baby.   I know I knew already, but I wanted to hear it from Paul.  He seemed sort of shy or embarrassed and said, “James…. James Louie.”  We, of course, didn’t laugh this time but just repeated, “Oh, James Louie.”  Then I asked how Linda was.  He was glad to hear someone was actually concerned enough to ask.  He smiled at me and said, “She’s fine.”  He asked us how old we were at one point, and we said, “How old do you think we are?”  (We’re all about 25).  He kiddingly (I hope) said 15.  Then one of my friends blurted out, “What are ya, crazy?!”  It was funny to hear someone say a remark like that to Paul McCartney, but I’m sure he wasn’t offended.  He gradually worked his way to the purple Mini parked neatly in the parking lot.  He was holding our flowers and fumbling for his keys as we clicked away and talked.
 There were two photographers from the “Daily Mirror” there too, but they didn’t say much.  Paul then did the cutest thing.  As he got in his car, he didn’t seem to be as happy as I had expected him to be, but as soon as he pulled out of the driveway, he honked his horn and stuck his thumbs up through his sunroof as if to let all his excrement out at once.  We all cheered!   We never did get to see James Louis, but seeing Paul was a delight.

 

 

A Carefree, Relaxing Weekend in Fun City

Photo by George Tebbins

 A Carefree, Relaxing Weekend in Fun City

By Sharon Uzarewicz

With a Little Help From My Friends

January 1976

Sunday, December 28, 1975

If it was possible for things to get worse, on Sunday they did.  Nancy wanted to do some sightseeing so while the rest of us were getting dressed she went to get her camera out of the car trunk and somehow managed to lock her only set of keys in it as well.  The locksmiths we called watched $60 to come and open it but luckily, we managed to break into the car and pull out the back seat and retrieve them ourselves, with only an hour delay.

As we proceeded to the Dakota and of course there was no sight of John.  We sent up a card similar to the first mentioning we’d be back later that evening.  We arrived at JFK hours before Paul’s flight and as 7:00 approached the tension became unbearable.  We were so certain we’d see him that we almost refused to believe that 7 had come and gone without his arrival.  We checked with the ticket agent.  Paul had been booked for that flight and he hadn’t canceled.  He was simply, as the agent put it, “a no-show.”

 

Eventually, we drove back to Manhattan and (you guessed it) the Dakota.  As we drove past the doorman waved at us but we thought it was only in recognition and we didn’t stop as we were going a few blocks down for something to eat.  When we returned, Nancy got out to talk to him and it turned out that he was waving at us to follow the limo a few cars ahead of us which contained John and Yoko!  Nancy and the doorman had quite a long chat and when she showed him the photos, I’d brought he was quite impressed and said, “John hasn’t got anything like these upstairs. I’m sure he’ll really like them.  You ought to stick it out and wait for him to return.”  He also told her that they had a Japanese babysitter who looked after the baby when they went out and that John was quite nice but he didn’t like Yoko.  According to Jose, she was jealous of the fans and had called the police on a number of occasions to stop them from hanging around.  (The day before a different doorman had told us that John was horrible to the fans.  Apparently, some had come from Ohio and Philadelphia and he’d just shoved them aside, saying “Leave me alone” – at least that’s what the doorman said.)

Knowing how much it meant to me to see John, Nancy and George agreed we should wait at least a few hours (it was around 10pm) but then we’d have to leave and start the drive home because both Nancy and myself were supposed to be at work on Monday morning.  The whole trip had been such a bitter disappointment.  Eventually, George fell asleep in the back seat and Nancy curled up by the steering wheel.  I thought it best to let them sleep as they had such a long drive in front of them and I kept a lookout on every car and cab that passed by.

 

Monday, December 29, 1975

It was 3AM when the silver Lincoln Continental pulled up and without seeing its occupants, I knew it was them.  I shook George and Nancy and tried to gather my photos and Instamatic and jump out of the car.  I had a little trouble getting out of the car but when I did and I turned around, John was standing there looking very, very paranoid as if he was unsure whether I was carrying a camera or a revolver.  What I later learned was that when I woke Nancy her first reaction was to start the car, gun the motor, and flash on her headlights.  I guess I was just bursting out of the car at the exact same time John, not knowing our intentions, literally jumped a foot.  As I turned around, all I caught was his paranoid expression.  Forgetting the gate was locked and remembering what the other doorman had said about his brushing past fans, I hurried over to him and said, “John, we’re from Chicago and I have some photos I’d like to give you.”  His face relaxed and he replied, “Oh, sure.”  Then I heard George behind me asking whether or not we could take some photos and he said all right.  I pulled out the photos I wanted to give him and he took it and said, “Yoko, look at this.”  He genuinely seemed to like it and asked me where it was taken.  I said “Chicago” and he looked down and me and said, “But when was that?  What was I doing there?”  Being completely freaked out by that point, I told him he’d been in town to visit Dick Gregory and he replied that was strange because he’d just been talking to Dick that very day.  In the photo I gave him he was wearing a scooped neck black-t-shirt and denim jacket and when he looked at this he said, “What was I wearing?  A low-cut black bra?” and “Was I fat then.”  Yoko commented that it must have been warm because they were both wearing t-shirts.

I believe it was Nancy who asked if they’d gotten our cards and he said yes and they were sorry they couldn’t come down, “but we’re very busy – with the baby shittin’.”  He added that they get cards and letters all the time even from Rome “but we can’t come down and look for the Romans.”  It was as if he was actually apologizing for not coming down and that he really wanted us to understand why.  George asked if he’d pose for a photo and he seemed very willing.  After I took two shots, I wanted to get in a photo myself but I was too shy to ask him even though I’m sure he would have said yes.  Instead, I sort of walked in back of him while he was signing something and leaned my head around his side just so it would get in some of the photos George was taking.  I didn’t think John knew I was there and I was waiting for George’s flash to go off when suddenly John ducked his head down next to mine making a funny face.  Overcome, I touched his back and mumbled a thank you, moving away.

 

When hew as finished signing things I realized Yoko hadn’t signed mine and I asked if she would.  He took it from me and told her to.  George was holding out a felt pen but John said, “No, someone give me the ball point I was using before – it works better.”  I fumbled in my pocket and gave it to him.  Someone mentioned that we’d been in the car for three days and he said, “That’s a helluva way to live.”  It wasn’t a put-down, it was more like, you must be crazy to go through all that for me, but I’m pleased you have.

Then I remembered I had more photos with me and I handed them to him telling him he could have them if he liked.  He genuinely seemed to like them and he went through them more than once showing them to Yoko.  He looked down at me and repeated, “But I want to know what I was doing when I look at these.”  It was incredible of him to say something like that.  Whether he intended to toss them out or not, it was still fantastic of him to give the impression that they meant something to him and that he’d be looking at them again.  

Yoko was rather quiet but once out of the blue she looked at me and very sweetly said, “I like that top you are wearing.”  I was so stunned that she even noticed.  All I could think of to say was “Thank you.  I got it just for the trip.”  When we finally left she wished us all a happy new year.  John asked us if we had everything (at least 3 times we’d asked him for “one for photo” and he didn’t seem bothered at all) and then they walked to the gate and rang for the doorman.  George and I took some distance snaps of them by the gate but after he’d been so wonderful to us we didn’t go any closer.

No matter how many times I repeat it, I just can’t convey how absolutely marvelous he was toward us.  He really seemed to care about us.  He understood what we’d been through and he was pleased to give us a little of his time.  He must have been tired but he didn’t rush us in the least.  He was fantastic.  He also looked fantastic.  The most recent photos I had seen of him made him look old and tired.  When we saw him in the flesh he looked like he was in his early 20s – healthy and happy.   His hair was drawn back into a ponytail and he was wearing a blue beret and a long navy blue pea coat and beige slacks.  I didn’t get a good look at anything but Yoko’s face.  Her hair was very long and she was pale but looked beautiful to me.  She was incredibly sweet to us and not at all the way the doorman had described her.  She talked to us but mainly stayed in the background and didn’t seem to mind how hysterical we were becoming over her husband.  It really proved to me how little of what you hear 2^nd and 3^rd hand can be believed.

WE left NYC as soon as the Lennons went in but it was several hours before any of us came back down to earth.  Just a brief mention about our return trip – the roads were clear until we hit Indiana where we came into freezing rain which transformed the roads into a slide.  Never, and I repeat, NEVER, were three people more thankful to arrive home on that Monday evening than were Nancy, George, and myself.  Was it worth it?  You’d better believe it was worth it – it’s “just a helluva way to live.”

 

 

 

Ringo's L.A. Press Party

 The Story goes along with the one from a few days ago that I shared about the fans that got to be extras on the Ringo TV Special.   This time some of the same fans were invited to a special party in LA where they were able to watch a preview of the special and meet Ringo. 

The author of this story, Pattie, with her friend, Sil.

Ringo’s L.A. Press Party

By Pattie O’Neil

With a Little Help From My Friends

April 1978

 

It all happened on Monday, April 17 (1978), the official release date of his album.  Sponsored by his newly acquired Portrait people, and held in one of the exclusive rooms at the Beverly Hills Hotel, it turned out to be just the unique opportunity.

“Ringo Bad Boy Starr requests your presence…”  That’s an invitation a lot of people would like to receive.  I can still only imagine it all over again, what just such an evening would be like…” for cocktails and hors d’oeuvres, time 6:30, R.S.V.P….”

The host arrived on time and spent the early evening hours with his company, spending time talking and greeting everyone, and to be sure, he was definitely “the host superb.”  I had been a subject of anxious anticipation, wondering if the outcome would be one of a quick appearance, an enormous crowd, or if perhaps there would even be an opportunity to talk to him.  I was far beyond relief.  To say the least.  We never had the thought that our Starr would give his guests such a personal, gracious treatment.

My friend, Karen was my accomplice, and I owe her my thanks in the biggest way.  She was able to receive an invitation through her position at Tower Records, and her dealings with the promotional people connected with her job as a buyer for the store’s huge tape department.  I simply came along as her guest.  As a result, along with getting a preview of his TV special and seeing him honored by the general manager of Portrait with a gift and his praise, Karen and I had the special chance to watch and participate in the friendly personality and warm wit of one very charming and handsome host.

At the door, we were greeted by a friendly hostess and a stern bored looking security guard, standing at one side of the entrance to make sure all arrivals were welcomed.  We were checked off a list and given a badge saying “OGNIR RRATS.”  Once past the reception table, the atmosphere changed and the anticipation was satisfied.  The room seemed somewhat full, but never the quantity of people I would have expected, and Ringo was just there casually talking to a group standing around him.  The feelings was friendly.  Unfortunately, my only regret was realizing through the party that a few friends were left behind and stood in the hotel lobby without invitations.  Kris, my closest friend was among them.  I regret that she wasn’t able to share the incredible encounter with me.

Only a few steps brought us closer to Ringo, who stood shifting his attentions and conversation from one to another of the people loosely gathered around him.  Easy to observe, those executive and media guests were just as delighted to meet Ringo as ever.  He was flanked by one photographer who shuffled busily around taking flash after flash, recording all of the introductions and meetings of the guests.  Face after handshake, Ringo turned to pose for the camera with every guest he greeted.  He wore a black velvet jacket and white high-collared dress shirt, but somehow, he always gets away with looking great by underplaying the bottom half with jeans.  Another accessory, his dark glasses.  I heard him explain to guest that the dark glasses were a necessary combat against the constant persistence of his photographer’s high powered strobe unit.  After watching him for a short time, I understood the reasonings there; but he continued, seeming not to be bothered – his attention and antics were all focused on his company.

Before long, Karen started looking around for the man who was responsible for getting her invited, and we soon found him at the far side of the room.  He asked us if we had our pictures taken with Ringo yet.  Upon reply he took it upon himself to lead us over to him for introductions.  When it came to the moment, the poor man drew a blank and forgot Karen’s name, ironically, a name he knew well!  I would expect that he was a bit embarrassed, but I couldn’t help realizing the effect Ringo can have on people, and the result of it causing his loss of words.  Karen spoke to Ringo and he reacted warmly, and when he turned to me, Karen had reminded our introductory of my name as well.  Ringo extended to me his warm handshake and a sincere smile.  It was a reaction, I’m sure, to my own beaming and a wink that was spontaneous.  I wasn’t aware of the photographer at first but apparently, several photos were taken; when I heard someone say, “Just with the girls” and the camera kept on until Ringo teasingly said, “With these two ... FLASH. he’s going mad …FLASH … we’ll go on all night…FLASH.”   It was a delight.  I couldn’t help thinking he recognized me from the taping of the special or other times, and he did have a recollection.  Karen told him later on the evening that we were his rooting section during the concert taping from the special and he immediately reacted by telling us where we sat… “on my right side…so how come they let you in here?”  I must say, he takes us very well.

The party was still very young after our introductions with Ringo and so we soon felt like taking our potions at a nearby table, by way of the bar.  We couldn’t have been in a better place, joining one young man at an otherwise empty table.  Ringo continued favoring his subjects only a few yards away as he was very gradually edging his way in the direction of our table.  Karen jokingly suggested that since there was the space, we might as well invite him to sit with us.  For what seemed like forever, we watched his antics, and his expressions he exchanged.  He teased shy laughs out of a younger guest, repeatedly accepted people’s comments on his appearance on Mike Douglas aired that same afternoon, and jived dancing in place now and then to the music coming from the back room system, playing other Portrait artists’ records.  You would have really been fooled if he wasn’t enjoying himself.  Eventually, or finally, he was standing at our table.  Just then I saw about familiar face – Sil Perrone was also in front of me!  After I’m sure, a deceptive entrance into the party, she mingled int the right direction.  “Where is he?”  One more step and she would have stood on his foot!

                                                                                                                                                                                            

As it all progressed, Ringo found himself at another side of the room and his table where Keith Allison and, of course, Hilary were among his own personal entourage.  He stood nearby while the scattered greetings continued.  Eventually, everyone’s attention was asked from the small stage and Portrait’s General Manager was announced.  (I had noticed a fabulous neo sign sitting to one side of the stage saying simply RINGO, the I dotted with a star).  “This is a first time for Portrait; Ringo, would you come back up here.”  As he continued to say, “on behalf of our gratitude, etc... And we would like to present…etc.”  Ringo muttered, “Not another pillow.”  And from behind stage, Ringo as handed peculiar-looking…that’s right. Pillow.  Made of black satin, half-circle shaped, it had red embroidery on either side, one saying “Portrait,” the other “Ringo.”  IT was somewhat explained that its function was to fit the inside of his bass drum as a muffler, but Ringo seemed a bit puzzled about it.  It created a bit of comedy as he said, “What can I say?”  pause “I mean…what CAN I say?”  He shifted it around in his hands, tried putting his head on it, and said…” You shouldn’t have gone to such an expense.”  The room filled with laughter.  Next, we were prepared for the treat of seeing the preview of the special.  Ringo had explained that the concert scene was a “dry mix.”  He returned to his table and the lights went down.

I couldn’t start to say how fantastically delighted we were with the film.  We saw some of the bits that Kris and I had seen filmed at A&M Studios and the final concert scene.  I was charmed.  We were delighted.  What can I say?  Ringo sat at one side of the room, and we, the other.  To Karen’s advantage, she was able to watch his continuous glances our way to see our reactions.  We clapped and smiled at the film and felt without a doubt that he enjoyed being enjoyed.

Many people started to leave after the film, but Ringo stayed.  After a few more drinks and a lot more of Ringo, eventually the evening was gracefully closing.  His new album was passed out as the guests exited and I overheard someone commenting that the guests shouldn’t have them inside – “He’s not supposed to sign them.”  Irregardless of promise or formalities, Ringo signed anyway.  As I watched and waited, I was wondering if he might finally be getting weary of what seemed to be the constant exchange of faces and contact of hands; but he carried on sharing his charming ways, the camera still busy.  Sil was able to get a roll of shots too, and he didn’t seem to mind a bit.  I had been standing observing him all this time; then there was a break and he turned directly towards me.  It was quite spontaneous yet very definite.  His reaction was warm and sincere.  I said, “If the film is the best bit of an indication…your special is nothing short of fantastic.  It’s positively delightful.  You definitely have a winner.  There’s no possible doubt.”  To wish him good luck wouldn’t have been correct.  There is just no luck needed to carry it.  He IS the greatest.  HE made me feel he understood my enthusiasm and appreciation completely and returned his appreciation warmly.  What a moment.  How often is there an opportunity to really tell Ringo just how much you enjoy his just being himself?