Where are all the fans?

Looks to me that just a bunch of male reporters and photographers were there to greet the Beatles in Paris.  Does that look like Brian in the right hand corner to you?

Hello Hello!

Paul in New Orleans 1975 (part 2)

Here is the 2nd part of Gina Fontana's story of hanging around the studio where Wings was recording the Venus and Mars album in New Orleans in Jan and Feb 1975.  I can't help but think how neater this story could have ended up if John went down to N.O. and recorded a song with Paul as originally planned. 

For the next three weeks every spare minute I had was spent waiting outside that studio.  I cut so many classes I flunked my math and science courses.  I had to go to summer school because of it (it was worth it).  There was a group of about 12 (including me) of us who were there all the time.  Allen Crowder really got aggravated with us.  He kicked us out of the hotel so many times I think he lost count.  The roadies, Stave and Mike, really hated us too.  Sometimes they were really rough when it wasn’t necessary.

Every once in a while there was something out of the ordinary to amuse the group of regulars.  Like one day this cab drives up and this girl gets out.  All she had on was a dirty white t-shirt.  All of a sudden the girl takes off this t-shirt and she’s standing there naked.  Allen Crowder came outside and got her.  Someone heard that she used to go out with Jimmy and she followed him down to New Orleans.  That was just one of the crazy things that happened while Paul was there.

Every day we’d stare down the same street (we renamed it McCartney drive) just waiting to see that white Delta 98.  You’d be sitting on the ground talking about the Beatles and you’d hear somebody say, “Here comes Denny.”  That meant within the next five minutes, Paul would come zooming down the street.  We always had about a five minute warning before Denny and the others were coming because the two roadies would come outside and wait for them to arrive.  The roadies were so mean.  Paul even told them sometimes to leave us alone.  He was always really nice to the fans.  Paul would go out of this way to be nice.  Linda would usually go straight in.  Almost every day Paul was asked the same question, “Can we kiss you?”  He’d always answer with something like, “You don’t want me wife to get mad at me,” or “Do you want Linda to be jealous?”  But one day Linda was sick so she didn’t come into the studio.  It was their second-to-last-day at the studio.  I had never asked Paul if I could kiss him but I decided this was the best time to ask.  After he got out of the car I said, “Can I please kiss you Paul?”  and to my surprise and delight he answered, “Sure.”  After I kissed him, he was swamped by kisses.  You could tell he loved every minute.  He was bubbling all over.

The last day that Wings came to Sea-Saint was Friday, Feb. 21, 1975.  There were about a hundred fans there that day.  The TV stations did an interview with Paul the day before and they gave all the information out, so there were a lot of people that day.  It was so crowded, you could hardly get near him, but after most of the crowd left; Allen O’Duffy (the engineer Paul had brought with him) came outside.  He told us they weren’t leaving town until Monday night.  He wasn’t sure what time so he told us to give him a ring Monday and he’d let us know.  He was so nice.  Sunday, the TV news said that Paul had left earlier that day so that eliminated a lot of people showing up at the airport.

We talked to O’Duffy Monday and he gave us the flight number and the time the plane was leaving or L.A. We went to the airport not knowing what to expect.  One of the girls that was with me called her father from the airport and he told her to go talk to some man because he might be able to help us get into the room where you could wait for your plane to leave.  Well, this man got us into the room.  We sat there with all the passengers.  We didn’t know what to do.  We decided we’d try and act like we were just normal people but that didn’t’ go off too well.  We were so excited – my mind was gone.  I had two flowers, one for Paul and the other for Allen O’Duffy.  I wanted to thank Allen for being so nice.  After five minutes passed and we were still sitting there scared stiff.  I thought Linda or Allen might kill us when they saw us waiting to attack Paul.  Anyway, they all came in the room and sat down right across from us.  Allen O’Duffy didn’t even sit down – he came straight to u and brought Paul and Lidna over to us!

I was just about to hand Paul the flower I had for him when Linda grabbed it out of my hands (and I mean grabbed!) and said, “Is this for the lady?”  I didn’t know what to do.  I was so shocked I couldn’t believe she actually did it.  She knew the flower was for Paul.  I mean it only had a big card on it that said PAUL.  Paul looked like he was embarrassed when she did that.  My mouth just flew open.  Paul tried to help the situation out by asking me my name and where I went to school.  He was so sweet.  He took the flower from Linda and he told me it was really nice to give them a going away present.  He kept asking us how we got past all the people without a ticket.  I think he thought we were flying on the same plane as they were at first.  We told him we had connections all over the place!  We also said we had a lot of good photos from the studio, and Linda said she’d really like to have a  few.  So Paul told Brian Brolly to give us their address in London and the address of the hotel they would be staying at in L.A.  Then some man from the airline asked if they’d like to go across the hall to a private room while the other passengers boarded the plane.  We waited outside in the hall.  A few minutes later Mike (one of the roadies) came out with the three girls.  He was taking them to the bathroom.  On the way down the hall to the bathrooms there were some candy machines.  Stella started saying she wanted some candy, and then Heather and Mary said they wanted some too.  Mike told them there was no time and they had to hurry up.  Stella started screaming, “I want some candy!”  Mike told her no again but Stella wouldn’t’ take no for an answer.  She hauled off and kicked Mike smack in the shin.  I never laughed so loud in all my life – Mike was so mean to all the fans; he deserved a good swift kick!  He ended up getting the girls candy.

A few minutes later they all came out and started to board the plane.  Paul kept winking at us and making all these cute faces.  I loved it and I loved him.  We kissed Denny, Jimmy and Joe goodbye.  Linda wouldn’t let us touch Paul.  A man from the airline asked us if we’d like to go on the plane and say goodbye again because the plane wasn’t leaving for a few minutes, so we all went on the plane.  I was too scared to go near Paul and Linda so I went and told Denny and Jimmy goodbye.  I talked to them for a little white and kissed them goodbye again.  Allen Crowder looked like he was going to have a nervous breakdown when he saw us walk on the plane.  I asked Allen if I could kiss him goodbye and he said yes (I knew Allen had a heart under all those dirty looks he gave us).  We each kissed him about 4 times.  He kept saying, “Now stop that, you’re holding up our plane.  You have to leave.”  We just laughed at him.

We finally thanked them once more and got off the plane.  As we were leaving the plane Paul winked at us.  I knew that was probably the last time I’d ever get to see that wink.  We left the plane and as it took off all I could do was cry.  The dream was over.  I knew he wouldn’t be back for a very long time.

The months of January and February will always bring back happy memories  I’ll never forget the look on his face the first time I saw him   He was so beautiful.  I know that memory will never fade away.

Beatles in Thailand

I thought I knew a LOT about the Beatles 1966 touring schedule, but this news that they landed in Thailand during the Far East portion of the 1966 World Tour and couldn't get off the plane is news to me.   It isn't shocking or surprising news, but still just something that I do not recall being mentioned before, although it is highly likely that I just forgot.   Anyhow, here is a story and interview with a fan who met the Beatles in Thailand on their airplane when it stopped.  I included a few photos of the Beatles on the plane during the tour and one rare one of Paul at the Manila harbor.

Jan Wiseley’s teen years could be called nothing short of amazing.
Jan and her sister Susie were the daughters of Air Force Col. Robert Uhrig and his beloved wife “Toots.” They moved to Thailand in 1963 when her dad took a Southeast Asia assignment.
Uhrig was a patriot, historian and exceptionally-skilled officer. He was friends with Gen. Chuck Yaeger among many others.
After his Air Force service, Uhrig spent a few years with Air America — the CIA’s covertly-sponsored airline — and later represented the Northrop Corporation in Southeast Asia until his retirement.
Uhrig wanted his daughters to see the world and its events for themselves — including a special trip to meet the Beatles.
The Fab Four touched down at Bangkok Airport during their 1966 Far East tour. But they didn’t go over well with Thai authorities, who wouldn’t allow the mop-tops to set foot off the plane.
Wiseley, 63, gives her account, and talks a bit about living in Thailand as an American teen.
(The following interview with Jan Wiseley was conducted Thursday by Staff Writer Matt Surtel at her house in Castile.)
 Can you tell me exactly how you met the Beatles?
They were going to fly in, and Daddy heard they were going to land in Bangkok.
They wouldn’t let them off the plane. I thought it was their hair, but my sister Susie says it was the hair and the music.
So they evidently weren’t allowed on the tarmac. They were on their way to Hong Kong.
My dad, and I think it was Col. Fox, had heard they were going to land, so they got us out of school. There were about six of us. When they had to refuel, they let the stairway down and let us on the plane, and they gave us their autographs.
Did you have any idea, when you awoke that morning, that you’d be meeting them?
Yes, because my dad had heard — I’m pretty sure. I’d have to ask my sister if we knew.
She didn’t get the autographs because she didn’t get to go up high enough. I got to go into the plane to get their autographs.
Weird question, but what were they doing?
I just remember them standing there and they were talking to us, you know? And I remember getting the autographs.
 Were you a fan at the time?
Yes, because my aunt was real cute. “The Twist” had started too, I think, and my aunt would bring music in her suitcase, if (the Thai authorities) hadn’t gone through it — they confiscated a lot of stuff.
Did you get to talk to them for very long?
I don’t even remember that, because it was so long ago. I just remember being on the plane. I knew the Beatles, but I didn’t think how popular they were. I was in 10th or 11th grade. I know I wasn’t a senior.

Airplane photos

I am sure someone will correct me if I am wrong, but these appear to be photos taken when the Beatles were at Nassau airport during the filming of Help!.    Dick Lester appears to be in one photo and the fact that they all have camera also makes me think these are photos from that time.   I was going to try to fix the color, but something about the original washed-out look to these appealed to me.   I most likely will fix them up some at a later date.

A Hard Day's Night

These airline stewardesses worked for the airline that transported the Beatles to and from London and Liverpool on July 10, 1964 for Liverpool premiere of "A Hard Day's Night." Each one of them received an "LP slick" of the UK cover of the movie's soundtrack album, which each Beatle personally autographed before the flight returned to London. It is interesting to see them in this photo.

Flirty Paul....again!

Traveling on the plane

Little Child

This cute little girl seems too shy to go up to the Beatles.

Neil and George sort of help her along

There you go! Pose for a photo with the Beatles. Looks John is holding the same sort of doll that you are!

So the airport photos with this little girl are precious!!!

Return of the striped shirt! (part 2)

Vegas Baby!

Some glimpses of the Beatles in Vegas during the 1964 tour.

Sweet

What an adorable little girl!!

Meeting the Beatles on a plane

Here is a funny story written by Pat Simmons (yes the same girl that joined Pat Kizer on her trip to meet George at Kinfauns that took those beautiful photos of him standing at the door in 1969) about her embarrassing meeting with John, Paul, George and Ringo on an airplane leaving Cleveland Ohio in 1966. I found this story in the No 1 Vol 2 (from 1979) issue of Beatlefan magazine.




The events that took place on a chartered American Airlines plane on August 15, 1966 at the Cleveland (Ohio) Airport really started nearly two years before that when The Beatles were in Cleveland for the first time.

A high school student back then, I was earning fan mag money by babysitting for kids of a friend of my father’s. Both my father and his friend work for American Airlines, the airline that The Beatles always chartered for their American tours. I found out not from my father, but from his friend, Cliff, that they both had not only been in charge of setting up security arrangements for the Beatles at the airport but had also met them on the plane before they left for the next city in ’64!

I was astounded, to say the least. Especially as I was learning this from Dad’s friend – not him. I think I nearly disowned him then. Cliff tried to console me by telling me he’d tried to get The Beatles autographs for me, but was told by one of them their manager wouldn’t let them, because people turn around and sell them for a small fortune! Instead, Ringo gave him a postcard with a picture of The Beatles on it, and Cliff gave that to me. Hearing that Ringo had actually touched this postcard, I immediately wrapped it in cellophane, where it remains to this day.

For two years after that, I bugged Dad to death to please tell me when The Beatles would arrive or leave the next time they came to Cleveland. Maybe it was the pathetic, panic-stricken look that came over me…maybe he was afraid I really would disown him. Whatever, it worked.

By this time, summer of ’66, I was out of high school and going to a business college. I can’t remember when the tour schedule came out…all I remember is hearing about it on the radio one day – being in the car with a bunch of other lunatic friends – and how we rolled down the windows and screamed liked banshees that The Beatles were coming to Cleveland this year (they hadn’t in 1965).

From that day on, I was kept in horrendous suspense as to whether Dad would tell me when the Beatles would arrive or leave at the airport. Then, the Friday before the Sunday when they were due to appear at the Cleveland Stadium, two penciled notes were on the floor under my door when I got up. One of them said, ‘I have some info on your 4 friends if you will be free at 2 p.m. Monday. Let me know. Dad.”

You’ll notice from the half-said things the not contains that my father has a wicked sense of humor and likes to keep his daughter’s sanity at a minimum.

How I ever got through that weekend without going totally out of my mind, I‘ll never know. The concert itself on Sunday (Aug 14) helped a lot!

When the dream is still a dream, it’s amazing how calm you are over the prospect of meeting The Beatles, of holding intelligent conversations with them, of acting –ah-normal. You’ve gotten an idea that they don’t like meeting a fan who stands there and foams at the mouth and says nothing, just ogles. But YOU won’t be like that when you meet them, no sir.

After arriving at the airport Monday, I went to my dad’s office because I wanted to stash my books; After all, you can’t meet the Beatles and be so uncool at the holding SCHOOL books. I had my camera along and this nifty catch all purse, the kind that doesn’t’ close at the top, but I loved it because it held so much swell junk.

Dad took me down to the gate where the chartered plan was waiting. They were loading equipment and food on – everything but The Beatles and the other passengers, which they were sneakily going to board at the end of the runway a couple of miles away from the terminal and their crazy little fans. Dad told me that the plan was the plane would arrive at the end of the runway about 10 minutes before the bus containing the Beatles et al. would arrive from their downtown hotel. The moment the plane stopped, I was to get off. I would be permitted to stand at the end of the ramp and watch them go up the stairs, was that clear? Yes, sir, real clear. Now that it was getting toward the nitty gritty that I actually might see The Beatles up close, I was getting progressively chicken and thought maybe it was a better idea to just ogle instead of trying to say something clever to them. So standing by the ramp was just fine with me.

Dad took me on the plane and planted me toward the back. I busily took pictures through the window of guitar cases being loaded on. When I saw THE drum kit, I really freaked out…guitar cases were one thing, but I knew Ringo’s drums when I saw them, even with heavy canvas over them. When I didn’t have my nose up against the window watching all that action, I was gazing on in shocked wonder at all the cases of booze being loaded on the plane. But then, of course, the Beatles wouldn’t drink that. It was for everyone else. (I was still a naïve kid back then). Cliff, Dad’s friend was on the plane, too, in a panic because the stirrers for the drinks were nowhere to be found. While he was off and running looking for those, I talked to a stewardess who said she’d been to The Beatles party at the Sheraton Hotel the night before. If that had been today, I could have thought of some REAL interesting questions to ask her, but being ignorant of what The Beatles “parties” were really like back then, I believed her when she said George stayed on the phone all night, John got drunk and went to bed early (I bet he did!) and Paul and Ringo were the most talkative and the friendliest.


It never occurred to me how much time had passed since Cliff had run off to find the all-important stirrers. Not even as we began taxing down the runway. The only think on my mind right then was my contact lens, which had just started ripping my eye apart. I forgot all about the Beatles and airports and plans. All I could think of was digging out my contact lens. I found my mirror and began poking and prodding my eye, which was tearing like mad. I finally got it shoved down to where it belonged, but just to make sure, I covered my other eye and looked straight ahead to see if my vision was blurry or clear. Reality of where I really was slammed me right in the face because right there before my tortured, watering eyeball was John Lennon, walking down the aisle of the plane, straight toward me.

I’d like to put into word what my first thoughts were right at that moment but I couldn’t tell you. My mind froze, my intelligent conversation froze, as did my whole body. Paul was right behind him, wearing a blinding yellow jacket – he was the only one I could remember right afterwards what he was wearing until later when I saw the picture I had taken.

You would think your first time seeing them up close would be so clear in your mind, but while it’s going on it’s like a dream – vague, unreal, like you’re going to wake up any minute. Especially when all four of them are just a few feet away from you (plane aisles are not very big).

Sitting there stunned, staring in utter disbelief, if I said anything at all, I’m sure it was just gibberish.
John was the only one who said anything to me, “Ah, you wear contacts, too!?

Brilliant opening, why couldn’t I give him a brilliant answer, like saying “duh, YEAH!” Nope, I just continued to gape. Sensing nothing clever was going ot come out of my mouth, John, followed by the others, continued on to the very rear of the plane on the opposite side of where I was.

John and Ringo were in the very last seats. Paul and George in front of them. I was so petrified by this time I couldn’t even look back there, much less go up and ask something original like “can I have your autograph” or “do you know I have all your records?” But here I was with the golden opportunity to go talk to them (there was nobody in the back them and me) and I was blowing the whole deal.

My feet were not cooperating. A stewardess walked by then, and suddenly my spell broke. I asked if I could take a picture, just one picture, please, huh, can I, I’ll hurry, just one? No, she said, the plane was about to take off and I was to leave immediately. I must’ve looked totally crushed and generally pathetic because right at that moment a voice that was distinctly Paul said, “Oh, let her take a picture. What harm can it do?”

Dear old understanding Paul. “Before anyone could say otherwise, I wizzed around and snapped the shutter. By that time, my main objective was getting off the plane without looking any more like an idiot than I already had. I grabbed my purse, which had been sitting on the seat, but in my rush I grabbed the wrong end.

The contents of my purse, which was a lot, flew all over the floor of the plane. I don’t think I have ever felt so embarrassed in my life. It made such a racket that they would have HAD to heard it and probably looked. All they saw, I’m sure, was a blur of flying arms scrammed all this junk back into a purse that didn’t look like it could hold half of it.

I then proceeded to WAIL off the plane, steam rolling anyone in my path. Fortunately, despite my path of destruction, most everyone was by then sitting down. The only face that really struck home in my gallop out was Brain Epstein’s. I roared out of the plane, down the ramp and up to my father, half scared that he’d be really mad I didn’t get out of the plane right away and already mortified, realizing I’d made a complete ass of myself in front of The Beatles and hadn’t even talked to them once. Yet knowing that if I had to do it all over again, probably the same thing would happen.

But Dad wasn’t angry. With a patient smile on his face, he just asked if I’d see The Beatles. He gleefully told me that I should’ve come with him in the car instead of choosing to ride on the plane. It seems that the plane had been delayed leaving the terminal (the missing stirrers, remember?) and therefore the bus arrived way before the plane. Somebody from American Airlines had to go on the bus and p.r. their way through an explanation of the delay to The Beatles and that someone had been my very own father.

Dad and Cliff drove me back to the terminal. I was clutching a piece of paper, a form, on the back of which John, George, and Ringo had scribbled their names. I’d gotten it from two cops sitting in a squad car near the bus that had brought The Beatles called me over and asked if I’d gotten their autographs. When I said no, they whipped out that piece of paper and gave it to me (they hadn’t gotten to talk to Paul, so they didn’t have his autograph). I kept staring and staring at the signatures, not believing they were real. The form is yellow, now but safe behind a glass frame.

Aug 15 had really happened – to me, not to somebody else that wrote in to “Datebook.” There are times where I can still hardly believe it myself, until I look at that old photo I took. It is blurred (I wonder why), a bit washed out because of so much sunlight streaming in through the windows. Paul’s looking down, George is looking out the window, but that’s the Beatles all right..and you can’t photograph a dream.

Interesting photo...

According to the auction where I found this photo, this is George and John (obviously) with the pilot and two stewardesses who were on the plane with them in 1964 and this photo was taken right before they landed in Los Angeles for the Hollywood Bowl performance. I believe the stewardess who is standing up in the photo is the person who was selling the photo. But mysteriously, just as quickly as I saw this photo, it disappeared off ebay. Maybe the former stewardess decided she wasn't ready to part with this treasure.

Press honeymoon photo

I tell you...these Honeymoon photos of Paul and Linda are just popping up everywhere! Here is one that the press released. I like it.

One last autograph....

John squeezes in that one last autograph before boarding the plane in L.A. during the 1966 tour.

Paul in a striped shirt

Blog reader, Guus, sent this photo of Paul in a striped shirt. He seemed to think it is Paul in his famous blue and white shirt. However, I tend to think it is his red and white shirt that he wore on the 1966 tour. Regardless of which shirt it is, Paul sure liked shirts with stripes!

Leaving for New Zealand

1965 airplane shots

John heading home photo

Why are you wasting your time here when you should be at the Beatles photo blog?? Miss Tammy has posted some AMAZING photos that have made me wet my pants in excitement. Here is one of those photos. It was taken I would guess a fan on an airplane from South Africa to New York in May 1980.

Now there has been a lot of discussion about John actually going to Capetown, South Africa in May of 1980. Honestly, there isn't a LOT of information about this trip (it was a short get-away). I quickly scanned my books tonight and I found the most information in the book Nowhere Man by Robert Rosen I will type here part of what it says. I don't' want to type up the whole chapter because it is a little....well...gross!!

The last week of April 1980, Yoko told John that a karmically cleansing directional voyage to the south and east was imperative - he was to leave immediately for Cape Town, South Africa. This was, perhaps, a peculiar choice of destination. The South African Broadcasting Company had banned Beatles music for five years in the wake of John's 1966 comment that the group was more popular than Jesus. And even after lifting the ban, they kept Lennon's solo work blacklisted. Nonetheless, he jumped at the opportunity to get away. Even though he thought the karmic cleansing was a load of bloody crap, he felt the isolation would be beneficial. And having been to C-town before, he knew that it was a good place to get jacked off.

The journey inspired John. He took notes on everything: the scenery, the cab ride to Cape Town form the airport, and his cab driver and self-appointed tour guide, Mohammad. After checking into the Mount Nelson Hotel under an assumed name, John went shopping for a raincoat, shampoo and macrobiotic fruit.

Back at the hotel bar, he couldn't' figure out how much money to put in the cigarette machine. A businessman who recognized him from the plane offered him a cigarette, which he happily accepted.

That day, every time John set foot outside his hotel room, somebody recognized him. Strangers offered him drugs and whores, but he declined. A pretty, blond hotel waitress tried to pick him up, but he turned her down. The last thing he wanted was a story in the gossip rags about being seen in public with a waitress. Alone in his room, he clipped classified ads for massage parlors form a local sex tabloid.....

John sat in his hotel room that night reading the local newspaper. An article reported that he'd been spotted buying a raincoat. HE felt strange -- like a flying saucer. He suspected reporters had somehow gotten into his hotel room when he was out.

Later in the week, he telephoned May Pang. She was depressed and unemployed. They chatted for an hour; he promised to send her a postcard Next he telephoned Yoko. She played a tape of a song she'd just written. John thought that the lyrics were great, but he was concerned that the muse had given Yoko exactly one melody, which she was doomed to repeat for the rest of her life. HE asked God to inspire his wife.

The following afternoon, John sat in his hotel room eating his macrobiotic fruit. He decided to return to the massage parlor....

The next day John returned to Cold Spring Harbor, only the tarot card reader Charlie Swan aware of exactly what he'd been doing in Africa.

The other tidbit about his South African trip comes from a source I find to be more reliable, and that is Philip Norman's book <>John Lennon The Life.

For much of this turbulent time for Yoko, as things turned out, John was not in the same home, the same town, or, finally, even the same country. As spring turned Central Park's trees into pink and white froth, the all-powerful numerologist, Takashi Yoshikawa- presciently but, alas, far, far too prematurely -- detected clouds of evil beginning to form above his head and worked out the direction in which he needed to travel to escape them. At the end of May, he flew off alone on the prescribed course, ending up in Cape Town, South Africa.