Well, it wasn't me, but my sister who had
her "brush with greatness"
with her favourite Beatle, Ringo. Two years ago, my family and I
went
to see him and his All Starr Band perform at Casino Rama in Orillia,
Ontario. Naturally, being the modern days Beatlemaniacs that we we
are, my younger sister, cousin & I were all decked out in our
t-shirts,
pins and WE LOVE RINGO and RINGO IS A STARR signs. We left
early because we wanted to get there on time but unfortunately,
there
was bad traffic that night so we arrived about 10 minutes late
Consequently, it was hard to find our seats and we we finally did,
we
realized there weren't any seats available for my sister and cousin!
Fortunately, one of the security guards in our section said there
were
2 spots available in one of the first few rows so she led the way
and
they were escorted off. The audience crowded the front of the stage
almost immediately (I had the chance to do the same but being the
idiot that I am, I stayed were I was) and when I looked down, I
could
see my sister and cousin right at the front holding up their huge
signs. Obviously, Ringo saw them too and apparenlty smiled and
nodded at them in approval. (Eventually, someone from behind took
the WE LOVE RINGO one from my sister's hands and the RINGO IS A
STARR one got trampled on in the rush; too bad, they were cool
signs!) While walking across the stage singing "With a
Little Help
From My Friends" my sister also managed to touch his foot! As
an
added bonus, keyboardist Greg Lake winked at her! I enjoyed the
concert a lot from where I was but when it was finished, I couldn't
wait
to ask my overzealous sister and cousin everything about what
happened up there. Their responses were overwhelming that seeing
a Beatle up close was the greatest thing that's ever happened to
them (especially my sister, who's totally in love with the big-nosed
drummer). Somehow, my sister knew all along she would make
contact with him that special night although my parents and I highly
doubted that. I'm happy for her but also very jealous! Too bad we
forgot to bring a camera with us; it would have been awesome to
capture those memories (and see for myself just how close they
were!) I hope to see him again the next time he swings by Ontario; I
want my own brush my greatness to share!
Dani |
| Well....I've seen Paul in Rome.
I'd like to write to you in Italian, because I'd explain me better.
In English it's a little difficult. But there aren't any words in
any language that could describe my sensations that night. I arrived
in Rome Saturday morning. Everywhere there were many Paul's posters
"Paul McCartney at the Colosseo". I was in a funk just to
see him on a poster!!! He's wonderful, in my opinion is the most
handsome man of the world. My friends and relatives tell me:
"Are you crazy?!He's 60 years old!" But I don't lie when I
say that he's really beautiful, the most beautiful man on the
planet. I love his face, his look, his clothes, everything! Then I
spent my afternoon in Rome, looking around, hoping to see him or
someone of the band. Then after dinner I went to the Colosseo. It
was wonderful, with many stained light. And I saw the big stage for
the concert of the next day. Anyway, outside the Colosseo there were
many people. I spent one hour to implore a body guard to let me go
in the Colosseo! I know it was impossible, so I beg to go near it,
because the colosseo was enclosed with a mesh-fence. Anyway, there
was nothing to do with the body guards! I've seen 2 girls with the
tickets and I told them "Have a good night...".It was in
that moment that I understand what is envy! I mean: I'm not a
envious girl, but Paul was inside the Colosseo, I was
outside...Anyway: I found a great place from wich I could see Paul!
I started to cry when he came on the stage. I cried very much. The
people around me watched me and say "I can't believe it!
You're a young girl! I though that this thing happened only in the
'60!!!" and a nice man who was incredulous to see me crying,
ask the police to let me go near the Colosseo! But it was really
impossible. Just the people with a pass could go inside. Anyway,
I've see the concert and I listen to it. There was a great acoustic
of the sound also from the outside. Then a man told me where was the
exit for Paul's car, and I run there. Paul and his band were in
about 5 cars, but unfortunately they didn't stop. I've touched the
cars, so he saw me, but I didn't see him because of the car windows
were obscured. Then I returned to the big stage behind the colosseo
and there were about 30 people who were sleeping there. So I run at
the house where I was staying, (it were about 3 o'clock in the
night), I took my water, food, I "slept" for an hour and I
returned to the Colosseo. It was a beautiful sunny and very hot day.
After about 17 hours I would have seen Paul again! I was too happy!
I wore the T-shirt with the autograph of Paul when I met him in
Milan and many people ask me "Where did you meet Paul?!!".
I tried to sleep on the street for some time. There weren't many
people at the beginning. There were some boys with the guitars.
Then, after lunch, a body guard said "Paul is coming to do the
sound check!" It gives me the shivers only to think of it! Paul
played many songs, for about one hour and a half! And he played just
for the people in the first group! I was so excited! The stage was a
little far from us, but there was a very big screen! Paul was very
kind with us, he said "See you later!!". He played Honey
Don't, Coming Up and other songs with his band. Rusty had a video
camera and he filmed us! Then Paul left the stage. It was so hot! So
there was the hydrant for us. Then, after 3 hours, a body guard
says: Now I'll open the "gates (?)" and you'll go under
the stage, but be quiet and don't run". I can't remember that
moment. I've only seen a woman lying on the street because she fell
down. It was really dangerous. I'm sure that an angel helped me to
arrive in the second row. There was hundreds of people who press.
And there was no space to sit down. But it doesn't matter, I
resisted for Paul. Only for him. There were many nice fans, Italian
but also English. After 4 hours I began to to bleed from the nose
for about 15 minutes! Maybe because of the temperature or for the
emotion, I don't know. A woman near me was an nurse and she told me
that the pulsations were regular. I tried to stay hidden from the
ambulance, because I thought "If they see all this blood from
my nose, maybe they could tell me "Come on!" ! But
fortunately I was feeling well. You couldn't go to the toilets,
because you would have loose your little space near the stage. So
some boys used a bottle! Anyway, then came the sunset and
then...when I saw the number to text with your mobile, I wrote
" I want to hold your hand...again!! Vale" (the first time
was in Milan). And my text was shown on 15 screens in via dei fori
imperiali! I was sooo happy! And the answer was: Thanks for sending
in your message, check big screen. Exclusive competition announced
soon. Hope you enjoy the show. Stop updates txt Paul.." Then
there was the beautiful pre-show and then....Paul. I felt fain! He
was nice, wonderful, fantastic. He spoke in Italian and he sang
"Volare (Nel blu dipinto di blu")!!!! The Italian audience
was very very friendly. I enjoyed myself so much...The songs were
wonderful as always, I saw the moon in the sky, then the Colosseo,
then The Beatles on the screen and then Paul, in front of me. I have
nothing to add. You can imagine how wonderful it was. And very
touching during Here today and Something. And My Love. And Let it
Be, and Yesterday! Paul wore blue jeans and a red shirt. There was
his magic piano. A great night...
Vale |
I woke up at 8:45 AM to my sister yelling,
"YOU'RE GOING TO SEE RINGO!" over and over. I got up, took
a shower, put finishing touches on my posters, got all of my Ringo
stuff together, and put on my black shirt sent by my pen-pal Judy
and my sparkley blue and purple skirt and white and red stockings!
We left home at 11:30 AM. We went to eat Chinese and I just ate
fruit because I'm a vegetarian. Besides, who can eat when you are
about to see the great, the wonderful, the ever so cute Ringo Starr?
But we drove down to Atlanta and finally got there at 4:00 PM. I ran
to gate 4 and there were strange people playing around on stage and
I'm like, "No Ringo." So I walk around. I walk into the
woods (off of the trails! Sneaky me!) and I see it...RINGO'S TOUR
BUS. I go to Publix and buy a camera and come back and get pictures.
But then, at 5 PM, I see 4 guys standing around the backgate. They
say that Ringo is coming, so I wait with them for an hour...then,
two!
vans pulled up! One was black, the other was white! I run to
the front of the guys and I'm just staring in disbelief because
RINGO IS 3 FEET AWAY FROM ME IN THIS VAN! The driver rolls his
window down and smiles and then Ringo begins to roll his window down
and these 4 guys PUSH ME OUT TO THE BACK!!!! I CAN'T SEE RINGO, BUT
RINGO SEEN THEM PUSH ME AND ROLLED HIS WINDOW UP AND DROVE INSIDE
THE GATES. I was so ticked. But we watch Ringo get out of the van
(he was in a black jacket and black pants with 2 white stripes down
each arm and leg and a gray shirt and a black cap and black shoes
and glasses!). I scream out, "RINGO!" and he turns and
waves! Then, one of the guys turns to me and says, "If you
would have been in front, Ringo would've stopped! He loves younger
fans!" and I snap back, "WELL, DUH, IDIOT, BUT YOU PUSHED
ME BACK! HE DID STOP AND THEN SEEN YOU PUSH ME AROUND!" So, I
know Ringo seen me outside the van, which is #1, and I he looked and
waved...well, I think he waved...I couldn't see to well...these guys
were in my way!, which is #2. I run back to gate 4 where I sit on
wooden steps recording what I just saw in my notebook and then
someone shouts, "RINGO'S ON STAGE!" I run to find that the
gate is crowded, so I run onto the mud to hopefully get past, I slip
in the mud, fall over a trashcan, and just lay there in my skirt,
straddling this trashcan yelling out, "RINGO! RINGO!
RINGO!" lol, what a sight! And I start to record Ringo's every
move and the time...some guy asked if I was a journalist! NO, I am
just obsessive. But I stay for Ringo's soundcheck! If he could've
only seen my super-cool fall I done for him! But Colin Hay sings and
Ringo plays the drums so well. I am the only one who claps at the
end and Ringo says something, but some guy behind me started to
talk! ERG!!!!!!!! But I do believe Ringo looked up at me and said,
"Thanks!" Can this be brush with greatness #3?
The gates open at 6:30 PM, I go in to sit down. I'm really close to
the stage. I touch the stage and walk 5 feet in front of his drums!
What an honor! I buy a Ringo teddy and a program then sit down.
Happy? Yes...but it wouldn't last for long.
The show starts, I'm sitting there in awe. Then I start to get
jealous. Ringo is holding fans hands, people are giving him flowers,
he is saying "I LOVE YOU TOO!" to fans and I am just sort
of trying everything I know how to notice me! AND HE DOESN'T. I JUST
WANTED TO BE NOTICED. So, I sit there and cry. When he started,
"YOU'RE 16", he asked if there was any young girls. I jump
up and hold up my "I'M 16!" poster and nothing happens.
He's too busy paying attention to the other PRETTY girls in front.
So I sit down defeated. I try again at the end. This time, he looks
my way and sort of bows like to a princess! Was he bowing to my
poster? I still was not sure if he had ever noticed me at all...any
of the times before!!!! So I was depressed and I was sitting there
crying when Colin Hay began to sing and Ringo just played drums. I
sat there and cried, all hunched up and depressed and then the
lights shone on the audience and Ringo looks to our section and just
sort of stares for!
a minute. Everyone is dancing and singing except me and I just
cry like crazy...I though for sure I would flood the place, and
Ringo's drumming slows and his smile slowly fades and I'm like,
"Does he see me?" and he stares for the longest time. I
know he seen me...he had to. Why else would he look so sad? #5?
Anyways, he looks away and starts to drum faster seeing he's getting
behind.
I am getting my stuff ready to leave because I can't take it
anymore. I am ready to leave because it hurts to much. And then he
starts "Photograph" and I'm like, "I love this song.
And the girl in the book looks like me." So I stay. The words
inspire me to try again...this time I stand up on my chair with my
"I LOVE YOU RINGO" poster and it happens. At the end of
the song...
RINGO LOOKED DIRECTLY AT ME AND MY "I LOVE YOU RINGO"
POSTER, AND POINTED, SAYING EVER-SO-GENTLY TO ME WHAT I WILL FOREVER
REMEMBER...
"THANK YOU, MY LITTLE GARDEN OF LOVE."
I AM RINGO'S LITTLE GARDEN OF LOVE!!!! HE SAID IT TO ME DIRECTLY! I
KNEW FOR SURE NOW THAT RINGO HAD NOTICED ME ALL OF THOSE TIMES,
CONFIRMING IT WITH THIS TIME!!!! HE CALLED ME HIS LITTLE GARDEN OF
LOVE!!!!!!!!
I couldn't believe it, just couldn't believe it. I cried with
happiness, and needless to say, I stayed because...well, I was
mistaken about it all.
The concert from there on was fantastic. The band was great,
especially small little Ringo (he's so small!). Sheila was fantastic
and so was everyone else, but it'll always be Ringo for me. I find
it kinda weird that he called me his "little garden of
love"...if he was calling that to me at all. Maybe I was
hallucinating...after all, he did have a huge stack of flowers give
to him by fans...BUT, my poster was green and red, denoting...well,
a garden. And my mother AND the woman behind me said he said it to
me. Me? I was too busy screaming with happiness to hear what he
really said...but I'll take their word for it. At least I can die
happy now. Ringo...my dear Ringo...knows I'm alive :)
This all happened on August 13th, 2003 at Chastain Park Amphitheater
in Atlanta, Georgia.
Hyl |
| I was living in London at the time and heard that
John and Yoko were going to be at a local bookstore promoting her
book Grapefruit. I decided to skip work and go. I rode
the tube (underground train) and played in my head all the things I
would ask John. I waited in line, got to the front, John
looked up at me and smiled and said he liked the peace sign ring I
had on. I went completely blank, just stood there a minute
staring at this gorgeous man. Finally he chuckled, I mumbled
thank you and he and Yoko signed the book. He had such a
wonderful gleam in his eyes; I will never forget it.
Linda Cooper |
Well I (emphasis on the I) haven't met them, but a
friend of my doctor has. He was in Hamburg, Germany (on business).
And had lunch where they were playing, and the guy threw away the
program which was STUPID!!!!
Andrea Williams |
I have some wonderful memories of the
Boys from my teenage years. Like many of the girls of my age
at the time of Beatlemania I use to go along to Heathrow and either
welcome the boys home or back from touring abroad. In fact
there was a little click of us, about 10 in all, who use to really
quite honestly probably drive them mad. Where ever they were
we were too. We use to hang outside their houses, Abbey Road,
BBC, in fact anywhere we knew they would be. On several
occasions over the years I met all four Beatles. I remember
once when Paul lived at Wimpole Street in the home of Jane Asher's
parents, we were as usual standing about on the corner of the street
just hoping for him to arrive. We filled the keyhole to the
house with matches so that when he did arrive he was unable to put
his key into the lock and make a quick dash inside. He took it
very well never ever really got annoyed with us, although looking
back now he had every reason to be.!
He was such a lovely bloke always had time for the fans and
as I said earlier we must really have drove them mad. I
remember one night sleeping in the greenhouse at John's Weybridge
home and getting caught by Mal Evans. We were all made to
leave but not until it was light and the first train was running. On
another occasion John came down to the main gate, where we were all
hanging around as usual, he said he thought we should all go home as
it was cold and miserable and didn't we have better things to do
than stand outside his house? Of course our answer was no but
really looking back he was probably politely telling us to get lost!
On the same occasion I remember getting hold of his hand and
noticing a cut on his thumb when I asked how he did it he told me he
had been in the garden that afternoon and caught his hand on a
prickly bush. I have lots of other memories and made friends
with some really nice girls during my Beatlemania years. Sadly
we all grew up and lost contact, but I often reflect on those years
and remember the great times we all had but some how I feel our joy
was The Beatles pain. We never left them alone. George
Harrison refers to us as Abbey Scruffs in his autobiography "I
Me Mine" and although, I am sure, we drove the boys mad If I
could go back I would not change a thing.
Laraine |
It was a numerologists dream, but I was totally
unaware of any of that at the ripe old age of 14. I had been
chosen the 14th winner in a 14 person contest to see the Beatles at
the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh. It was sponsored by KQV radio
whose frequency was 1410 on the AM dial. The concert was held
on September 14, 1964. It was my 14th. birthday.
We watched the concert from the first row. And that was about
it. We WATCHED the concert. The screaming was constant
from the time they came out until the time they left the stage.
I don't think anyone heard a single chord but then I don't think
anyone really minded.
After the concert we were wisked backstage to meet the Beatles.
It was an atmosphere of smoke, clinking glasses, loud talking and
laughter, flashbulbs going off, reporters shouting questions.
It was very disorienting for a 14 year old.
We were taken through the crowd where we were literally presented to
the Beatles. Our audience lasted about 20 seconds but it
seemed like hours. The only thing I said was..'It's my
Birthday!' Upon hearing this, George Harrison said, 'Happy
Birthday'. He motioned for me to sit next to him on a trunk
and a black and white Polaroid picture was taken of me sitting next
to George with his arm on my shoulder.
If anyone remembers the old B/W Polaroid's, you had to coat the
picture with this goo after you took the picture. Needless to
say that no one thought of doing that at the time. I still
have the picture, but because of the lack of secret coating, it has
turned to a brown color and the image is more of a negative now than
the original positive image. But I know it's there. I
had it framed for awhile, but I found out that light was
deteriorating it due to the lack of the coating. So every now
and then, I take it out. I took it out the day he passed on
and I was 14 again.
I guess you could say that I was then what is now known as a dork or
geek. For a guy to be "into" the Beatles they had to
be uncool. Before they hit the scene I had no interests in
anything. They gave me a life, which enabled me to feel
confident within myself. I am re-reading this as I type and it
seems so trite and yes, dorky, but I wouldn't have traded a single
moment of my experience with them growing up for anything in the
world.
Bob Poropatich |
This is a two parter. When my auntie was 20 she had
a run in with the beatles during the filming of "Help!"
She mistook a set area for an area to audition. She ran smack dab
into them as they raced from the room towards another area of the
building. My aunt froze as they brushed past her. Ringo stopped and
said hello to her. She mumbled a bit about how sorry she was.
Apparently he just laughed and asked her her name. She told her
Beatrice Starkey. Ringo shook his head and called her pathetic. My
aunt explained that it really was her name and he smiled saying
"We'll maybe were cousins." My aunt about that time was
rushed off as Ringo was needed on set.
I'm 21 and 3 years ago I met Ringo Starr by mistake. I was going to
pick up my brother from his "All Starr band" concert. A
crowd of people was headed my way and I stumbled to get out of the
way. Watching from a SAFE distance a man ran from the crowd ducking
into a limo. I could only guess but I thought it was Ringo. I had to
get my brother so after picking him up we headed for a near by Star
Bucks. We were almost the only customers because it was late but I
almost died when I saw who WAS there! Ringo was sitting
drinking coffee and seemed to notice us enter. When I placed my
order I guess he heard my British accent and waved me over.
Snatching up my coffee i plopped not to gracefully across from him.
I don't even know where my brother was at this time. Who cares. I'm
pretty bold so I just started in with some questions. I'm not
really sure what I asked. He just shook his head and asked me what
my name was. I told him Marla Starkey and he sighed. I told him
"REALLY! it's my real last name!" and he got up smirking
asked? "do you know Beatrice Starkey? "I think I croaked
yes but it was an awkward moment. Then I was totally in shock and
begged him to sign a napkin before he left. My brother showed up
after that and didn't believe me until i showed him my signed
starbucks napkin. It reads: "To my bird Marla. And Hello
Beatrice." I was thrilled to show my aunt this. She
almost died laughing. I don't know how he remembered but he did! And
i am proud to announce Starkey is really my last name! I can only
HOPE Ringo is some long lost cousin but it isn't likely.
Mara Starkey |
| I didn't really meet any of the Beatles, but I
wrote Yoko Ono a letter in September. I really didn't think
that I would get a response, but 10 days later I received this very
nice card from her. There was a preprinted autograph on the
back, so I don't really know if she even read my letter or if a secretary
did. I wrote her another one this month, and I received the exact same card. Even though I don't know if they
are actually from her, I think that it is very generous of her to
send every one of her fans something. I think that she is very
talented, and that people need to give her some credit. (If anybody
knows how to personally contact Yoko my email address is
IamTheWalrus4@aol.com)
I also saw Paul McCartney in concert on May 12, 2002 in Atlanta
Georgia. The show was great!
Kyle Hartman
|
Well, I hope this counts....I'm 15 years old and I
went to see Ringo in concert with two other friends. The one who is
my best friend and fellow Beatle maniac and I saved up and earned
money to buy two dozen long stemmed red/orange roses-not that we
expected them to reach Ringo. Although, before it began, we went
around to every staff member trying to send him the flowers. We
cried and begged, but they kept apologizing and referring us to
other people. Oh well.
Anyway, when we were there, these really nice guys behind us
pointed out that we were really the only teeny boppers there. Ringo
seemed to notice, too. He said, "Are there any young girls in
the audience?", as I hear he sometimes asks, and we screamed. I
don't know what he said then, I was high off the moment, but the
guys told us he wanted us to go up there. We were skeptical but I
grabbed our bouquet and we eventually ran to the 'bottom' of the
stage.
There was security lined up along the front and the wouldn't
let us through, despite Ringo. We bit and pushed and screamed and by
some miracle, reached over the security guards and handed the roses
to a straining Ringo almost falling off the stage. He took them and
mouthed thank you, from what I could tell. And as they forced us
back, I blew him a kiss and he laughed and threw a bunch of quick
kisses with both hands. He put them up on his drum kit.
As we ran up to our seats in a cloudy haze of excitement and
disbelief, hand from all sides reached out for us to give high
fives. We were famous! It was the most unbelievable night ever.
Afterwards, everyone asked us where we got our pins and shirts and
things (we had made them, actually) and recognized that we had been
'those girls'. WOW!
Also, Paul said something to me on his forum once, but that's
a whole other story ;)
Thanks for listening to my giddy rambling!
MaccaByrd |
'Twas the summer of 1980.
I am now 50 years old, so I grew up with the Beatles, though I must
admit, while I liked their music I was far from their biggest fan.
But, by 1980 I had realized that the Beatles were more than a Rock
group. They were, for better or worse, the vanguard of the new
world. Their music transcended simple entertainment and was a major
weapon in changing society's perception of ... well everything.
In 1980 I was 29 and owned a small business in Manhattan. Late one
afternoon I was standing on the sidewalk in front of my store on
First Ave. just south of 86th St. Looking uptown to the corner
of 86th Street I saw John and Yoko walking towards me. I was,
and though I no longer live in the Big Apple, still am a jaded New
Yorker. In my business I had worked for the likes of Liza Minnelli,
Paul Simon and Reggie Jackson just to drop a few names. I never once
asked for an autograph. But the Beatles, as I have said, were
special.
I ran into the store, grabbed a pen and paper and rebounded out the
door.
John and Yoko were just about on top of me. The pair was looking at
the classified section of a folded newspaper and periodically
checking street addresses. "Excuse me. John, Yoko may I
ask you for an autograph?" I said.
"They both smiled at me.
"I'm sorry," John said, "we don't give'm. But, would
you know how far 1503 First Ave would be?"
I made and educated guess and they both said thank you and walked
on.
That December John did stop to give an autograph.
Mike Glazer
|
| At the beginning of June, in 2002 (this month, yes)
I got Yoko Ono's Dakota phone number from a guy off my mailing list
- I was so excited because I knew I was
going to call it no matter what. My parents picked me up from the
library and I was telling them about it. My mom said that it didn't
matter that I had it because I wasn't going to call it. In my head I
thought, yeah right... I'll just ask dad. When I got home, I went
into my bed room. My dad came in and I whispered to him asking if I
could call it on the calling card. He said I could but I can't let
my mom know. My parents left and I went to a pay phone. I called
collect on my phone card. I called and when I was calling a fire
truck or something was coming down the street. It was so loud. I
couldn't hear anything!! Then some guy answered. I asked for Yoko
and the guy said he don't think that she's there. He said that it
was the front desk and he couldn't give me her number. I told him
that I knew that and he asked if I wanted to leave her a message and
so I did. I gave her my first and last name, my phone number, where
I lived, and had them note that I was a Yoko Supporter. She has
never returned my phone call since then. I wrote her two letters
(yes, in one month) and I'm waiting for a respond. I really hope
that I get one, because I really, really love her. I have a web page
of her
http://www.geocities.com/oyosp-
and an mailing list of her -
http://www.groups.yahoo.com/group/LoveMeDo
Tiffany Dysart
|
Well, to start with, I am only...we
are not supposed to give out info. on ourselves...so I am at the age
between 14 and 16. There. I didn't exactly meet Paul McCartney, but
I think he knows that I am alive and well. You see, I went to his
concert in Atlanta, Georgia on May 13, 2002 for his tour of America.
I shouted out real loud "I LOVE YOU PAUL!!" He smiled, so
I think he heard me!!! I felt stupid afterwards, but he was talking
to somebody when he looked at the audience after I yelled that, and
I saw him smile on the huge screen. It was meant for me. Paul smiled
at me! He probably didn't see me (DUH!!!) but he smiled to me!!!
When I am asked what my favorite group is and I give my answer, I
get all types of funny looks. That's because they think they are
old. Okay! So they are not a group anymore, but they are legends!!!
I didn't have the privilege to see the Beatles and what they
generated, so I really want to meet Paul McCartney in person.
If anyone has any tips on how to see Paul in person, as in talking
to him, meeting him in person, this, that, etc. or if you have
Paul's address, please contact: (I would be so grateful!!!!!)
tadams
|
It was 1984 and my Mom and I were
headed to Strawberry Fields and we met up with Yoko that Oct 9th and
she looked so beautiful and she was walking with her friend Sam and
I was so thrilled to have met Yoko, all I could saw as it's Yoko
over and over, and she seemed to be very glad to have met us too. She
stopped and said Hi and she asked us where we were going and I said
to your place to leave flowers for John. She smiled. She was real
nice and on our way leaving I said bye Yoko I love you and I threw a
kiss and she threw one back as we parted she was really sweet.
I've kept in touch with Yoko thru the years with cards and letters,
she's responded to nearly half or all of them. Yoko is a very nice
lady and I'm sick and Tired of the media and the fans alike to keep
bashing her. She was John's choice for a wife and he loved her and I
love her too.
John didn't like the way people treated his wife. He loved her and that's
good enough for me. All these other people concerning themselves
with John & Yoko's private life need to get a life of their own
and stop living other people's lives for them.
Gloria Jean Roberts
|
| I was only 13 when I attended a Beatle
concert...I was so very excited. Well, in the middle of the concert
Paul called me on stage so I climbed over the gate and there I was
right next to the Beatles! John grabbed me by the hand and he kissed
me on the cheek! I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Ever since
then I can't believe what happened to me that "one fine
day."
Trish |
It was 1974.
John was being a guest DJ at KHJ Radio in Los Angeles. I packed up
my 8mm movie camera and went off to stand with about 20 other
people. John came out (behind a fence) and waved at us.
He got in a limo and drove off. I chased the limo in my car
and have it all on film.
In 1979 I was police officer in Los Angeles. Ringo rented a
house from Harry Nilsson in the Hollywood Hills. The house caught on
fire while Ringo was home. I was called up to help protect the
remains of the house which contained gold records and other
memorabilia. I spoke with Ringo briefly and he was very nice,
considering his house just burned down! For the next few hours I had
to turn away scores of fans who had heard on the radio about the
fire. It was a thrill to see these two guys up close.
On the night that John was murdered. I was working patrol in
Hollywood. We received a complaint about people gathering up
on a street named, "Blue Jay Way". It is where the
Beatles once rented a home and then George wrote a song about it.
I had to kick these sad people (I was sad too) off of the street as
they called me names thinking I was oblivious to what had happened
to John. They thought I was just a "pig" who didn't
get it.
Bob Allen
|
I TOUCHED
RINGO! Well, I have loved the Beatle far as long as I can
remember. I'm only 17 so I missed the beatles when they were
together.
Well, I went to Ringo's concert this last summer in Detroit.
I had the best sets in the world! 2nd row center! Well I brought a
stuffed Panda in hopes that I might be able to throw it on stage. A
few weeks before Ringo was on the net talk in a chat room I told
were I was going to be sitting and that I was bring him a stuffy.
But he never answered me, so I didn't think he read what I wrote.
Well When he came out on stage he looked at dead and the eyes and
pointed to me! Well I just started to cry, and I all most passed
out!
The concert was all most over and I still had the panda. When all of
a suden he looked at me again and told me to come here!!!! I was stunned
and said "really". He laughed and said yes. I went to run
to the the stage but I was STOPPED by one of the people that worked
at freedom hill, my heart sunk I looked at the guy and pointing to
Ringo he said I could with tears running down my face the guy
stepped to the side and let me pass.
I went up to the stage and Ringo bent down and I gave him the panda
with one arm and grabbed his arm with my other hand! I looked dead
into his face and he just smiled. Feeling that I was going pass out
and seeing out of the corner of my eye another one of the people the
worked there come running I let go of his arm all though I didn't
want too! And I slowly walked back and fell into my seat my mom
grabbed for I was so far out of. I couldn't talk or do anything but
cry and look at Ringo for about two more songs.
HE had put the Panda on his KIT (drum)!!! He was about to
start another song when he looked my way and said, "alright now
all of you get down here". I ran as fast as I could jumping
over a chair of those employees of freedom hill. I got right I front
of his mic. I clung to the stage as I could feel the people around
crash into me and try from my perfect spot.
Ringo started to sing "Don't go were the road don't go"
and on the chorus he got down on his knees right in front of me an I
got sing the course with him! WhenI realized what I was doing I
screamed he jumped back and laughed. I couldn't believe it I felt as
I had died ant went to haven! Then he broke into "With a little
help from my friends". And on the chorus he came back to me one
last time and pointed to me!!!! And when he ran of stage he took the
panda with him!
So there it is my story of my brush with greatness! I still
can't believe it and I cry every time I think of it.
PEACE & LOVE
Luv, Taya
|
| It was a long
time ago, me and my two friends (Irene and Dan) went to the Cavern
Club because we had heard of a group of young boys that played
awfully good music. I grew up in Liverpool, and later moved, but me
and my friends had a blast! We were just barely old enough to enter,
we used to just stand outside and listen (Irene was quite the
smoker). I am proud to say that both of my twin daughters became
Beatlefans as well, I gave the, most of my collection for various
birthdays, etc. I even found an two old photos of the Beatles, but
they were sadly quite dim.
Linda |
| I got to
meet Paul at a book signing : ) he kissed me OMG and I felt his hand
and it was sooooo soft.
Paula |
| I went to
Ringo's All-Star band performance at the Universal Amphitheatre
this past summer. My boss has a connection with Ringo, so he
got me and a friend backstage. I was told that Ringo doesn't
like to be bothered before a concert, so I was standing in a
hallway, waiting to meet Marc Rivera, the saxophone player.
All of a sudden, a man came out of a room and told me to clear the
way. I thought it was for a cart or equipment or something.
But, the door swung open again and out came Ringo. He walked
past me and I froze. Then, he noticed my boss and brushed past
me to pat him on the back. I just about died at that point,
having been, "Touched by a Beatle."
Amanda |
| Well, here it
is nearly a life time of waiting. Being to young to
attend a Beatles concert I had to be content to see them at the
movies or whenever they made an appearance on the TV. As I
grew older I continued to love The Beatles. I had quite an
extensive collection of original Beatle memorabilia, everything from
records to books and magazines and everything in between. It
was very sad when we had a fire in 1980 and lost everything.
Being young and having a family I couldn't replace it all.
About 8 years ago we found two boxes of Beatles stuff at my parents.
What I neat surprise. I teach school (elementary art) and own
a beauty and tanning salon done in a Beatles theme. Now that I
'm older and a bit more financially secure I've been back into
collecting and again have a nice collection. This summer we
went to see Ringo and his All Star Band at Mountaineer Race Track in
West Virginia. We had terrific seats in the 7th row. I
had my Ringo Sgt. Pepper doll with long yarn hair. Ringo
spotted it. He came down to the edge of the stage, put one
foot forward, bent forward with one hand on his hip and pointed at
me with his other hand and said, "I see you, you can put the
doll down and sit down. It doesn't look like me."
Everyone went crazy over his words and I had people asking me all
night where I got the doll. Well it took a life time but I can
say I had words with a Beatle and now I only have one more thing to
wait for in life. RETIREMENT. By the way I do have all
their autographs with COA and now I'll be looking to get one of
George. The thrill of seeing Ringo and having him spot me out of a
couple thousand of people will last me the rest of my life.
Karen |
Well, it
wasn't quite me, it was my dad. See, he had a job with a
music book company that thrived for many years, but recently dissipated.
In 1980 or 1981, the company decided that they would like to put
together a tribute book for John. My dad was given the very
interesting job of calling whatever companies were needed to get
permission of the artist to put the song in the book with little or
no royalties. The inevitable came about, and "All Those Years
Ago" was selected for the book. So my dad made the call, not
believing that anything interesting would happen. According to my
dad, who may have distorted the storyline a bit, George's secretary
came on, listened to my dads query, and then said something along
the lines of, "Well hold on a minute. I don't have to write
that down, I'll ask him right now," and she did. There was a
pause, and then very casually George's voice came. He wasn't holding
the receiver, but his question was directed at my dad. !
He simply wanted to make sure that there was no garbage being
attached to John's (or his, for that matter) name. After my dad
verified this information, George turned to his secretary and quite
happily told her that the man could use the song if he wanted to
without charge. Now, as I said before, there may be slight
distortions to this account, but the gist of it is the real thing.
And having my dad's sense of humor, I find this weird run-in just as
funny as he does. :)
Siobhan |
Ever
since I was an infant, I've been a Beatles fan. I
remember my dad getting mad at me for getting into his record
collection and accidentally scratching Sgt Pepper when I was like 2
yrs old! hahaha
Well, plain and simple, The Beatles are my heroes. I have a pretty
good sized collection, which includes autographs, unpublished
photos, rare recordings, instruments (lefty Hofners, etc), and other
collectables (Butcher covers, original memorabilia, etc)
The opportunity came for me to see Paul McCartney up close at the
"Adopt-A-Minefield" benefit show in Los Angeles June 14,
2001. It was $500 a ticket and fortunately, some people who actually
know Paul invited me to have a plate at their table!
I arrived at The Beverly Hills Wilshire Hotel and stood in the
lobby. Gathered there was a flock of reporters and guests. My heart
came to a stand-still when the flashes went off and everyone shouted
"PAUL!" He walked right in front of me!
I took my table with my friends, only to find him sitting 3 tables
away from us! Well, both him and Heather stood up and went on stage
to present a humanitarian award for an individual who participated a
great deal in the campaign.
When Paul and Heather left the stage, they walked right in front of
our table! I took an original Elvis Presley "Heartbreak
Hotel" EP to give to him for his birthday. When he approached
me, I held it out and said "Happy Birthday, Paul!" He
stopped and he said "What? Are you giving that to me?" I
didn't know what to say! So, I nodded and said "Yeah!" He
took then record and said "Oh! I'll have that! Thank You!"
He then sat down for some dessert and enjoyed Paul Simon's
performance. He came by our table and said "I hope you all
enjoy this!" Then Jay Leno called him up to perform!
He took his Martin acoustic and did a spectacular version of
"Yesterday". Then, he got his Hofner and performed
"The Long And Winding Road" "Driving Rain", a
poem called "Jerk Of All Jerks" "let It Be" and
"I've Just Seen A Face" with Paul Simon!
It was definitely the perfect night, and for a guy to meet his hero,
was a dream come true!
I hope you all enjoyed my story, and I want to let you know - If you
have a dream, go out and get it! Never in a million years would I
think that it would happen to me!
Jude Montoya |
Not myself, but
my daughter in LA was at Ringo's house last month (OCT) in the Los
Angeles area. My daughter graduated from college with Ringo's
step-son about 9 years ago. She was going to visit him and told me
that Ringo might be there. I asked her to thank Ringo for his
inspiration to me as a young drummer as I wore out my Beatles '64
and Meet the Beatles LP's learning to drum along in my early teens
(I am 50). As luck would have it, he WAS there. My daughter told him
the story and that Dad fed us when he was out of work by playing
drums and that I am still out making music. The reaction
was classic Ringo. He was incredulous that anyone would be
inspired by him and was genuinely moved. He asked her to thank
me for the compliment, that it meant a lot to him and best of luck
in my future musical endeavors.
That really made my day, if not, my entire year. She also said
he was a gracious host and a fine, classy gentleman. Also a
great Dad.
This shows me that Ringo was truly the Heart of the Beatles...
Dan |
| As a young
beatles fan living (and still living) in Liverpool I have actually
heard the beatles playing live on the cavern on a few occasions.
actually, being to young to enter the cavern we were standing
outside the front door at the time, little did we know we were
listening to history being made (if only I had a tape recorder). we
were a gang of young lads aged about 14 we all had the beatles
autographs ( some were definite forgeries) forged by Alan the boy
who forged our parents signatures on sick notes for school ( where
are the genuine autographs now). we seen the beatles going into a
few venues on merseyside just before they made it big outside Liverpool
( if only I had a camera ).oh well that's life. I only live about 20
mins from Matthew St I often call into the grapes pub and the
jacaranda pub for a drink at the weekend, although Matthew St is
nothing like it was in the 60s, now it bursting at the seams, loads
of pubs, clubs, tourists. dare I say it, yes, I'm to old for Matthew
St now. Oh well that's my little story from someone who was there,
hope you enjoyed it.
Jay |
My meeting with George was much nicer (see a previous
post about Ringo). I was getting a 'guri-guri' (Japanese slush) at
the Maui Mall when I heard that George had just left a gift shop and
gotten into his Jeep. I ran across the mall parking lot and caught
up to him at a red light. I was almost out of breath. We shook hands
and I told him how much his work had meant to me over the years. I
asked him if he could sign an autograph but I had no pen and he said
he didn't have one either. "Cloud Nine" had just come out
at that time. He said that if I mailed an LP to his home he
would sign it & send it back. I did that week, but it never made
it back. That would have been a real treasure if it happened.
I had previously met the caretakers for his beautiful estate in
Nahiku. I visited his seaside Estate several times, where I met Roy
Orbison shortly before his death. (There is no photography allowed
there.) The opportunity to meet both George + Roy was a thrill I'll
never forget.
Recently, there was litigation regarding a right-of-way that is on
his property. He had thought of selling the estate. If anyone is
aware of the outcome of that issue, I would appreciate finding out
about it. Please Email me @Cchazhe@aol.com
Chaz Healy
|
Bad news, but
hey-it's a story!
I was living on Maui during the 80's. In 1988, I ran into Ringo with
Barbara and a few friends in a windsurfer town called Paia. I
approached him discreetly on the street. He wouldn't sign-said he
was on 'Holiday' with friends. (Many on Maui knew that he had a home
there). Disappointed, I went on my way.
The next meeting was several weeks later at a bar in Paia. If I
remember correctly, it was the Blue Parrot. I sent a beer over to
his table. He came back yelling at me: "What the Hell do you
want? Why can't you all just leave me alone?" ( He was wrecked
at the time!)
The third time I saw him (on the beach), I steered quite clear. What
a disappointment to realize that someone you've idolized all your
life is such a jerk! He was drinking heavily then-perhaps that was
the reason for the attitude.
Chaz Healy |
| Ok, well I didn't
really MEET Ringo, but my and my friends went to a Ringo Starr and
his all Starr Band concert in August (2001) in Portland, Oregon. We
only sat 16 rows a way! One of my friends ran up to the stage and
got 4 feet away from him!!!!!! When the the concert was over she was
telling us that Hark Rivera (saxophone) pointed to her, Sheila E.
(drummer) smiled at her, and she could see the corner of Ringo's
eyes in his sunglasses!!!!She wanted me to go up with her, but I was
happy where I was, now I wish I would of gone up there!!!!!
Emily |
| Way back in 1967,
I was only 7 years of age, my sister and i were able to participate
in the making of the Magical Mystery tour , which was filmed at the Air force
base where our family was stationed. Because my Mother had won a
Gardening competition at the base we were not only allowed to take
part in the film , we were allowed to pick which songs we wanted the
Beatles to play for us. I got to go in the bus , mess around
with the Beatles and of course take part in the Film. My
sister and myself can be seen in several clips of the film( my
sister better than myself). Because we were so young it did
not mean to much to us back then ,but now I m trying to collect
everything I can get dealing with the movie. If any of you
have anything original and interesting and which to sell it please
contact me. I'm trying at this time to get every possible different
pressings of the movie and have between 30-40 different ones at this
time from all over the world. Best wishes and thanks for any
help you can give me.
Simon
Mitchell |
I met Paul
4/17/1993 at Anaheim Stadium Anaheim California
It was filmed by Entertainment Tonight and later shown on national
television 4/26/1993. I was taken backstage before the concert
started and received two kisses and a hug from Paul McCartney just
before he went on stage to perform.
Debby Lindsey |
| I guess I'm like
a few people here, in that I met Pete Best. However, it was a
great circumstance. In 1989, I went on a London and Liverpool
Beatles tour. One of our stops was the Casbah club for a
night. Anyway, the guy playing music asked if someone wanted
to come up and have a go. So I went up. I played a few
Beatle tunes (mostly early stuff) and came off the stage area, I
went over to the place where they had sandwiches and drinks. I
was getting a drink when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned
around, and the guy was saying, "You were pretty good!" I
shook hands with him, looked up, and it was Pete Best! I had
him sign his book, "Beatle!" and got to hang out with him
for a while. That was the best (pun not intended) night I had
in Liverpool!
Ed |
March 1983 I was
working part-time at a "used" record store in L.A.
Late one rainy weekday afternoon I was filing records in the bins
and there were only 2 customers in the store and 3 employees (owner
- who was my boss, his son, me).
I was busy working minding my own business and barely aware of the
customers when I looked up and thought I saw a familiar face.
But I figured it was impossible, it couldn't be George Harrison.
However, I knew that if he opened his mouth and said something I'd
know that voice anywhere (having grown up with the Beatles it was
imprinted on my brain). Sure enough...he spoke and I knew.
Was too nervous and didn't want to "violate" his privacy
so I just calmly walked over and tried to help him find a particular
album (remember, this was in the days right before CDs). It
was a Beach Boy album from 1962. Unfortunately we didn't have
it in the store but he was so nice and polite and kept thanking me
for my efforts. I assumed the owner and his son (who were
British) knew it was Harrison and were respecting his privacy as
well by not making a fuss, but when George and his friend left I
asked my boss if George came in there a lot and he looked at me as
if I were crazy. He and his son had NO IDEA. They could
have kicked themselves and were angry at me for not speaking up.
Barb
|
Besides Ringo, I
met George's sister, Lou. Let tell you something about the
first time I met Lou. I went to Beatlefest '98 at Chicago for
the first time. On the first day of Beatlefest, we were
waiting in line, until I spotted a woman name Lou Harrison.
When I first talk to her, she was very nice. I saw her again
at our St. Louis Beatles Fan Club Picnic on the same year. She
gave me an autographed picture of her. I think I made a new
friend. Then two years later, it was my second year at
Beatlefest in the year 2000. On the night of the second day of
Beatlefest, I saw Lou again near the elevator. She was
surprised to see me, my sister, and our friend Jamie. I also
met her grandson in the grand ballroom. I forgot his name.
That was the last time I saw Lou. I hope she comes to
Beatlefest again.
Now Ringo. I first saw him at his concert before Beatlefest
2000. I was the only one in the audience, jumping, and waving
my arms at him, until he noticed me. Then one year later, I
found out about Ringo coming to Yahoo Chatroom. I was so happy
to meet him online. I asked him a couple of questions.
One of my favorite questions is like, "Hey, Ringo. I sang
YELLOW SUBMARINE for my old school Talent Show '98 when I was in 5th
grade, and I learned to play the same song on my recorder (flute) at
home. Wasn't it the best song you sang for your tour?"
And he's like, "Yes, it was very exciting. I think you
have a knack for doing stuff like that, Erica. :)" I was
so happy, I started giggling. I hope I get to see him again.
Erica |
Didn't meet the Fab Four,
but had the opportunity to meet the ORIGINAL drummer, PETE BEST!!
I attended a Detroit area Beatles convention, Beatle-Con 1990; it
featured him, plus Dark Horse author Geoffrey Giuliano, and the Cast
of Beatlemania...Pete talked about his Beatle days, specifically
being recruited by John to join the Hamburg tour and their rise to
fame back in Liverpool.
Just seeing him in person and being able to talk with him for a
short time was the most INCREDIBLE thing! He's really down to
earth, friendly, didn't even seem to mind the attendees asking how
he felt about Brian Epstein sacking him...on that note, who knows
how different things would have turned out? I'm not sure, but
I think he also discussed that it detail.
He was only there for about two hours, so naturally EVERYONE lined
up to talk with him and get his autograph. I was one of the
lucky 100 or so to do so...had him sign his new 45,
"Heaven", now the Holy Grail of my collection...and other
fans' also! When he left, several people were upset at missing
this opportunity; one fan in particular was REALLY upset, but
nothing could be done. Even so, everyone had a great time.
I went to the second one the following year, met Bill Harry and saw
the "Cast" (missed them at the first)...one of the BEST
tributes ever! I've recently seen "Beatlemania: The
Movie" and agree it's the next best thing to being there!
I'm attending this year's Beatlefest for the first time...who knows,
Pete may show up...
LONG LIVE THE FAB FOUR!!!
Jason J. Young |
My name is Marc
B. , and I have met a son of a Beatle...Does that still count ? I
work in Retail and have actually waited on more than a few famous
Rock Stars ! All very nice folks , really , just like you & me
.... I helped out Zak Starkey once , and he is pretty down to earth
just like his famous Dad ! ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Thanks !!
Marc B. |
I was in Madrid
(Spain) when I read that Paul was going to be the "Working
Classical" concert. I called at the moment to get a ticket. I
got it. I flew to Liverpool, and after of visiting all the Beatles´
homes I went to the place where the concert was going to be. There
were some Beatle fans there, and we all got Paul's signature, but I
wanted more...
At the middle of the concert I got up and tried to see Paul more
closely, but security didn't want to. Then, I had to act as if
I were going to bathroom, when I went out, I saw a lot of people and
I didn't know what was happening, and when I turned my face ˇI
almost crush with Paul McCartney!. He was in a kind of a saloon
prepared for him and his friends (or something), and the security
team started to invite us to take our seats. I told a security
person that I came from Spain to see Paul and I beg him to let me
stay there ˇIt worked! (thank you very much whoever you were), and
when Paul went out I told him: "Paul, please, May I shake your
hand?" and he said: "yeah, jfskldjflghshls" ˇI WAS
SO NERVOUS THAT I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHAT PAUL McCartney WAS SAYING
TO ME!!!!!!!. Anyway, I took the left hand of Paul McCartney with my
two hands and I felt I was in a kind of dream. I flew that night to
Spain again with an autograph that says "to Borja, Paul
McCartney", and I shook Paul's hand. I felt the happiest man on
earth. Ah, Paul's plane was at the airport that night, I saw
it, and I know that he was going to fly at 8 o'clock more or less. I
left Liverpool at 7:30 more or less Oooooooohh. |
My then
boyfriend, now husband, and I were at the opening of Yoko
Ono' art exhibit in Syracuse, NY in October, 1971. George,
Ringo, and of course Lennon and Yoko were there. We happened
to find out where their limos were parked (next to the museum's
underground loading docks) and as they were leaving the museum, we
lucked out and were right next to them.
My boyfriend jumped up on the loading dock, shook Ringo's hand and
started to follow the throng down the steps to the limos. A
cop, when trying to push my boyfriend back from the car, actually
pushed him right into Lennon and he almost fell into the limo with
him!
All this was on the evening news that night. We've been trying
to locate old footage of the newscasts but the film was either
stolen or lost in a fire many years ago.
Lida |
It was Summer of 1971,
I
was working at a Restaurant in Ventura, California. The restaurant
was named John's At The Beach. John and Yoko came in for dinner that
night, Yoko had Shrimp Scampi , she wasn't too pleased because of
the excess amount of garlic on the shrimp, John I believe had a
Steak.
I remember Yoko's dinner because I made their dinner, I offered to
make another for her but she said it was OK, during their dinner I
was asked by the owner John Blonder, to insure nobody bothered John
and Yoko while they were eating. Well somebody found out very
quickly John and Yoko were in the house, didn't take long for a
small crowd to arrive, to include a 4 foot snake that some kids put
under the hood of their car, which was
driven by someone I don't remember. I had to go out front with
the driver and I believe the kids removed the snake. They
finished their dinner and I went over to the table to introduce
myself, and I recall John talking about the American Dollar. I
regret not getting their Autographs at that time. Didn't want
to impose on them, anyway they left that night. and returned
the next night. They Didn't have dinner, but John and Yoko had
played pool and I believe John had a beer, can't remember what Yoko
had. The owner John Blonder, was talking to Yoko and Yoko had
noticed a Original newspaper mounted on the wall in a frame. and
Yoko was talking about the newspaper which was about WW1 , Yoko was
fascinated with the paper, and Mr. Blonder gave it to her.
John and Yoko sat in the small tavern, which was part of the restaurant,
Some one brought up a request that John and Yoko give a small
concert, The tavern had a small stage, somebody brought John a
Acoustic Guitar and Someone brought a snare drum, along with another
Acoustic, and there they went. It was Fantastic...John and Yoko Live
in Ventura...They sang a few songs from their new release
"Sometime In New York City", LP...Wow great night!!!!,I
remember calling home and for my wife at that time to rush down and
bring a camera...she was there in a flash....I went to take some
pictures and Bummer!!! No film ....
Anyway I was quite disappointed!!!.But I still remember those nights
vividly...It was time to close up the restaurant. I cleaned up
and went out the door right behind John and Yoko's car they headed
in the direction of my apartment. I was tempted to follow them to
see where they were staying, .but not wanting to bother them, and
being the nice guy that I was but was still excited on the
meeting. I went home and waved them
goodbye. Don't know if they saw me probably not. Both
John and Yoko were in the back seat sitting very low. Well
that's the end of my story, and I will never forget those two night
when John and Yoko were "Live in Ventura California...
Julian Espinoza |
| t'was
the summer of '63 and I, as so many called it, was about
14 years old. I was at the JFK airport and I was looking onto the
air ramp when suddenly, I saw them coming out of their plane waving
their hands to the air! I was very excited!
Manny
|
Hello from Bill in
Wakefield, Yorkshire, England. During 1965 I was in a band
that had been signed to Brian Epstein. The band was The
Rustiks and as a consequence of being managed by Brian we were
invited to Beatle parties and the like. Christmas eve, 1965, I
was at the NEMS Christmas party in Argyle Street, London. The
office was packed with Epstein's office staff and his groups and
solo singers. I was hungry and so I went into the buffet area.
I was alone in the buffet and I filled a plate with goodies and sat
down in a corner to tuck into my grub. I was munching away at
some turkey when a bloke (guy) walked past me. I though to myself,
'he looks familiar' and the guy proceeded to tuck into the turkey.
After filling his plate he turned around and saw me. 'Hey man,' he
shouted to me, 'how are ya doin?' I'm doin fine John, and yourself?
'Yeah I'm OK!.
I'll catch ya later, I'm going to talk to somebody in the other
room.'
Read about my Beatle days at http://website.lineone.net/~macvicar/ |
| I am
doing a film on Sun Records and Paul came into a NY
studio to record a song "That's Alright Mama"- first made
famous by Elvis. In fact he recorded it with Scotty Moore and Dj
Fontana- Elvis' sidemen. He was magnificent and very generous
and of course had his Hofner bass with him. For a fan it was a dream
come true.
Bruce Sinofsky |
Well, I haven't exactly
met a Beatle. But I did see a British Airways parked by a black Limousine
in Phoenix Arizona two years ago on my way to San Diego. That's when
Linda McCartney died. The British Airways was picking up Linda's
body to take back to London that day. The British Airways don't usually
fly out to Phoenix. But Paul and Linda had a house somewhere
in Arizona.
Well that's my Beatle Story.
Steve Sposato |
Remember back in -
what was it - about 1968 - when George and Patti and Derek Taylor
flew to San Francisco for the day from LA? I think it was
newsworthy as they visited the Haight. Well, I was working in
the record business back then - during and just out of high school.
I went to work that morning (company shall remain nameless).
My boss was on the phone and when done, sheepishly came out of his
office. "We're going to have a very special visitor.
If I tell you, you can tell NO ONE". Of course, I
promised!
Turns out it was George! He and his entourage were
"dropping by" to pick up some "substances"
- imagine that!!! Of course, I IMMEDIATELY hid the phone and
called my friends to get there ASAP!
My desk was right next to the front door - next thing I know - it
opens and a mini-parade passed through. First was Derek, then
GEORGE. I was in shock - simply said hello - shook his hand -
then there was Patti then they all filed into the bosses office.
Yikes. Five minutes later they paraded out!
That's my story - and I'll never forget it!
My friends? - Well, they drove up TWO MINUTES after they left!
Darn.
Terri Craib |
I had just turned 14
years old when the Beatles first came the US. They came down to Miami, Florida and stayed at the hotel
on the beach, where we were staying! Two wonderful things happened! One:
While my sister and I were swimming in the ocean, there was a media frenzy
very close by. At the time, we weren't aware that the Beatles were there.
Just when we were walking toward the media frenzy, we realized that they
were moving towards us! Next thing I knew, I was pushed and shoved and I
heard "Excuse me, luv" I looked up and I couldn't believe it! Paul McCartney
just brushed against me! I nearly died. Two: I was in the gift shop near the
hotel, looking through some clothes to take with me back home. My sister was
babbling away (she's a talker) when I saw someone who looked very familiar.
Oh, my God! It's Cynthia Lennon, looking through a rack of clothes right
next to me. What was going to say? What was I going to say? I didn't hate
her, in fact, I envied her. I loved her. She was very pretty, and very nice. Luckily, I forgot
to put on my watch, so in order to at least talk to her, I asked, in a calm
voice, "Excuse me, do you have the time?" She smiled, looked at her watch,
and gave me the time. I said thank you, quickly grabbed something near by
(which happened to be the ugliest sundress I ever saw in my life!), grabbed
my sister, and went to the dressing room. There, I shriek, gasp, and was
shaking with excitement! Oh, my Gosh! I just touched a Beatlewife! First
Paul accidentally brushed against me, and now Cynthia, when I tapped her for
the time. To this day, I get shivers when February comes, knowing about my
very quiet, quick moment of communicating with celebrities.
Jeannette
|
It was May, 1975 - The place, Philadelphia, PA. The
news anchor on the local ABC affiliate TV station, WFIL channel 6,
was Larry Kane. He had traveled with The Beatles on their American
Tours in '64 and '65 and had become fast friends with Lennon and
McCartney. It was also Larry Kane who interviewed Lennon &
McCartney in '68 in New York, when Lennon was asked how the trip
over from England was, and Lennon replied that the flight was lousy,
but the trip was good.
In 1975, the sister radio station of the TV station that Kane now
did the news on, was holding a three-day charity event called,
"Helping and Marathon". Kane decided to call Lennon at The
Dakota to ask if he would be interested in hosting the three-day
event. Lennon agreed and arrived in Philadelphia early on a Friday.
His arrival made the news that night. Lennon was seen exiting his
limo and being greeted by a female fan who asked Lennon to sign the
front of her tee-shirt, which he did with a marker. He then turned
to the camera and said jokingly,. "I'm signing boobs, ladies
and gentlemen!"
Lennon appeared "live" on that night's Larry Kane 6 p.m.
news broadcast, playing the weatherman! He pointed to the city of Scranton, Pennsylvania with the pointer, saying, he'd had a touch of
Scranton was he was a child. He began knocking most of the numbers
off of the weather map with a pointer, stating, "I only like
the 'nine's', ya see." , leaving only the 'number 9's' on the
map! After a few more jokes, Lennon then explained the deal about
the charity. He would be playing DJ on radio for the entire weekend
as he hosted the event, and would be meeting fans at the radio
station parking lot on his breaks from the radio mic, to take
pictures, sign autographs etc. all in exchange for donations to the
charity, which Lennon explained, "is for people who have got
things."
On the radio, Lennon also took requests on the air and sang the old
Beatles' songs, destroying them for a laugh, as he sang with the
original records, again, for donations. He also played, "I
Should have Known Better" "live" on harmonica, then
sang/joked with the record. Lennon sang "I Feel Fine" for
ME over the air that Sunday morning, and then I headed out to the
radio station parking lot with a friend to finally meet John Lennon,
carrying a Polaroid, an import "Revolver" album to get
signed and a donation to hand Lennon after I shook his hand!!!!!!
Now, as it happened, the friend that I went with was a former
band-mate of mine. I had played music for a while, and for whatever
reason, had left all of that all of the behind and was dead set
against getting back into playing music, despite this friend of mine
always trying to talk me into getting back into the music scene.
Little did I know what my friend had up his sleeve! No sooner that
we parked the car and walked up to the side door of the studio,
where only a modest crowd of fans was gathered by 1 p.m., out walked
John Lennon, looking like he had just stepped out of the studio as
he looked when filming the "Let It Be" movie. With long
hair parted in the middle, he was dressed all in white, wearing
thick, round, sun glasses.
Of course, I froze as he walked past me, and toward the fans who
were furthest from the door he'd come out of. But, while I had
become a statue, my friend followed him to the rest of the crowd,
where I saw him talk to Lennon for a moment, and watched Lennon sign
his White Album cover. Well, I had to snap out of it, and I began
calling over to Lennon about my import "Revolver" album.
John was just finishing up with another fan and called back that
he'd be right over! WOW! On his way over to me, I saw that my friend
was pointing me out to Lennon as he walked my way.
When Lennon reached me, he shook my hand, took the donation money,
and began, in a kind tone, lecturing me that I should "stick
with the music" as he and Paul had!!" My friend had asked
Lennon to do this! My mind was on fast forward and reverse, as you
could imagine! As Lennon continued talking to me in a very thick
accent, I handed him my "Revolver" album in such a way
that it would be easy for him to sign across his image. Instead,
Lennon turned the album cover around a few times and signed across
McCartney's face!! Lennon looked pleased about that, giving me a
smile, and handing the album cover back to me. One of the guards
then took my camera and Lennon posed for a few seconds, but the
guard took too long, so I wound up with Lennon's profile in the
picture as I posed with my hand on Lennon's shoulder. My friend then
walked up, laughing, to where Lennon was standing with me, and
Lennon acknowledged that he had given me the advice!!
I took one more picture of Lennon as he signed another autograph,
then he disappeared back into the radio station, to continue playing
DJ. Lennon had mentioned on TV that weekend, that he had been on the
phone with Paul McCartney the day before he got to Philadelphia.
McCartney must have been amazed that Lennon was going to be playing
his old "Early 60's Beatles John" role once more for a
charity event. Lennon could not have been more kind with the crowd,
more jovial or friendly and warm, and on the air he was a riot, and
sounded like he was having a great time, making up slogans for the
charity, such as "Give a Buck!", doing the commercials,
singing, playing his old 50's favorites that he loved as a kid etc.
I still have about 10 minutes that I taped from the radio of John
Lennon clowning and having fun on the air, as well as the audio from
the TV broadcasts.
Back on the TV news that night, newsman, Larry Kane showed footage
of the tour he gave Lennon of the City of Philadelphia the day
before. Lennon remarked that he had tried to fix the crack in the
liberty bell, but couldn't because Larry Kane's teen-aged fans were
swarming them! Lennon also mentioned his "green card"
woes. When asked by Kane if he would be recording anything new,
Lennon replied, "I've got a bunch of songs in me back pocket,
but I've decided to leave recording..... until next year."
The event which I attended in May '75, turned out to be Lennon's
very last announced public appearance. But as a result of having met
John Lennon, and having him tell me that I should stick with music
like he had, I did wind up going back into the music scene, and
today, I am in my 17th year teaching music! Lennon was the only guy
on earth, I think, that could have turned me around, and put the
music back into my life.... and he did, and I in turn have passed
that gift from John onto many music students! Life is what happens
to you while you're busy making other plans.
Joseph
|
OK, I am going to
make a long story very short. I am also recalling facts from
quite a few years ago. So, I might be a little fuzzy on the
correct dates, etc. but the essential story line is intact.
Date: @May 11, 1968
Place: St. Regis Hotel, NY, NY.
I was one of 1000s of fans hanging outside the St. Regis Hotel in
NYC. Word was out that John and Paul had flown into NYC this
particular week.
At the time, there was a very serious Beatles' cult underground in
NYC. We knew and shared every fact and move the Beatles made
(or allegedly made) at the time. Remember now, in 1968, we had
no computers, emails, call waiting or any other modern technology.
Yet, we had a finger on the pulse, big time, all the time! I
must admit, though, that we went on many a wild goose chase hunting
down the Beatles. However, in the process we met everyone else
who was big at the time from Brian Jones to Mick Jagger to Mary
Hopkins to Jefferson Airplane, etc. We also cut a few too many
classes to hunt the Beatles down. If you ever saw the movie,
"Beatlemania" that was us!
Anyway, back to the St. Regis. My friend and I snuck away from
the crowd. We had cased the place and knew that Gucci's was
connected to the St. Regis Hotel. So, we creep through
Gucci's, right into the St. Regis lobby and straight up the stairs
to John and Paul's supposed floor. I think it was the
9th or 7th floor. Unbelievably, we crept up to the floor
without a hitch. It was way too easy considering all the fans
and security surrounding the hotel, but we did it. (Hey, I am
not complaining at all!)
So, here we are on the floor! We are not shy. We are not
embarrassed. We are not frightened. We are running on
pure adrenalin. So, we go right to the suite where we believed
John and Paul were staying. The door to their hotel room was
located in this small hallway right off the main hallway of the
hotel. I had the gall to go right up and ring the doorbell.
I kept ringing and ringing. Someone must have been asking who
it was because I kept saying, is John there; is Paul there?
Meanwhile, my friend was grabbing me and shaking my arm. She
kept poking me in the back and pulling on me. (In fact, I even
had black and blues the next day!) However, because my
concentration was solely on the inside of that hotel suite, I never
looked back at her. I was too excited about ringing the bell
and getting in. She finally got my attention and I turned
around...the rest of this story is in slow motion...
...as I turn around, whom do I see? Standing there, right
there in the hallway with us, were...JOHN and PAUL!!!!!!!!!!!!
I fell back against the wall dumbfounded! I mean I was totally
and absolutely floored. My eyes were bugging out of my head.
My friend was also plastered against the wall opposite me. All
I kept thinking was to say something but I was
speechless!!!!!!!!!!!!! They were there, breathing the same
air as me!
Meanwhile, I remember vividly how Paul's hair was so dark and how
John's hair was so light, like a strawberry blonde color. John
had the granny glasses on and a band aid on his chin. My mouth
dropped open at how very handsome Paul was (of course).
However, I was equally fascinated with John's looks. I
remember thinking that they were taller than I was. I am
5'8" now. (At the time, I was 14 but I was always tall.)
John and Paul were alone and they kept saying repeatedly, is this
the room, is this the room? They were very amused at how
stricken we looked. John says, very loudly, hey bizarres
(accent on the e), is this the room? Finally, I decide to pipe
up and pull myself together. (I had to make an impression, ya
know!) Yea, your room, yea, this is your room. The next
thing I remember, I turned to John and said something like, oh,
John, I've came all this way to see you. (I guess I was
looking for an icebreaker.) Paul was standing there with a
very sweet smile. In fact, John was kind too, amused but kind.
(Hey, we were really kids and looked and acted every inch of it.)
John says kindly but very sarcastically, yea, and I came all the way
from England to see you too! Oh my gawd, I have told this
story 1000 times in my life! It was a turning point! LOL!
At this point, I remember a hotel security guard finally came into
the little hallway where the four of us were standing. The
guard sees us and starts ranting and raving about you goddamn kids,
I'm sick of you all, bla, bla, bla. The guard then grabs us by
the neck and literally drags us down the hallway by the backs of our
necks. Our legs were complete Jell-O and we saw our big
opportunity slipping away. As the guard is dragging us, we are
waving and shouting, and all we were saying is bye Paul, bye John,
bye Paul, bye John. In the elevator down to the rest of the
1000s of fans, we could not stop laughing hysterically! We
knew this was BIG! Were our fellow comrades so jealous as we
told this story over and over. When we got out front, they
were shouting, you just missed them, you just missed them. No,
we didn't and we share our experience oh, at least, 2 million times.
But, our story does not end there. In the few days, John and
Paul were guests on the Johnny Carson Show. However, Johnny
Carson was not hosting the show that night. (Duh! What else
was new?) I believe the guest host was Joe Garagloia (check my
spelling on this one). When Paul and John came out, they kept
asking over and over again, Where's Johnny? Where's Johnny?
In hindsight, this is the time John and Paul came to NYC to get
Apple launched and is possibly the first weekend Paul might have
stayed with Linda.
Anyway, during the same week, we find out from our underground fan
club that the St. Regis Hotel was only a cover. Actually, John
and Paul were staying at Nat Weiss' apartment over on East 72nd
Street, as I remember it. So, as word got out, all of us
converged at Nat Weiss' apartment, your typical NYC high-rise
apartment building with a door attendant. Ever the ingenious,
we got Nat Weiss' phone number from information and called right up.
At the exact moment we called, someone picked up the phone to leave
it off the hook. Instead of hanging up first, they put the
phone down. Obviously, they were getting many calls in their
secret hiding place. They also had no idea we were on the
phone still. So, we all listened to John and Paul talk to
whomever was in the apartment with them. We could not hear
their exact words but we recognized John and Paul's voices. Oh
my gawd! For the longest time, we kept passing around the
phone to everyone as we stood in a phone booth on a !
NYC corner. Some of us were shouting into the phone to get
their attention (very charming). It must have been some sight
to watch all these fans try to listen on the phone in this phone
booth.
Finally, on May 15, 1968 or so, word was out that John and Paul were
flying back to England. So, we waited outside of Nat Weiss'
apartment and sure enough...in the late afternoon, John and Paul
come out. Paul was first. The crowd of us goes bonkers.
I run up to Paul and he smiled at me as he got in the car. I
turn to find John and he had the most evil look on his face.
Hung over maybe? Dunno but I did not care. I run right
up to John and I was saying, John, John, remember me? Remember
me? He stared right at me, as if he had had it with the whole
fan thing. However, I was over the moon anyway. (Geez, I
remember I was wearing a football jersey, which was very stylish
then!) Then John gets in the limo behind Paul and they drove
off. We all jumped in a cab to follow them to Kennedy Airport
but we could not keep up with them. Our heroes were gone for
now.
Anyway, in 1972, my family moved to LA and life goes full circle.
Not counting all the many concerts I've been to, including the
Concert for Bengla Desh at Madison Square Garden, I've had other
encounters with the Beatles. Last September, I met Paul again
at his Run Devil Run Listening Party at the House of Blues in LA.
I also met Ringo about 5 years ago. I would have thought that
age would have cooled my jets but when I met Ringo, I tried so hard
to contain myself and not swoon. I don't know how well though.
HA! I just saw Ringo again at the House of Blues in LA just a
few months ago! When I went to see the movie
"Imagine" in Westwood when it first came out in 1988, I
was forced to leap out of my seat (in a very crowded theatre)
shouting, that's me, that's me! Somehow, I was filmed when I
went to a John Lennon tribute here in LA a night or two after he was
killed...and this film clip of me made it to the movie screen in
Imagine. I was frozen on the screen, me, in the movie.
Oh my gawd! I don't know what everyone else thought but I did
not care. Last January I took the Beatles Tour in London.
A year or two before that I took the Magical Mystery Tour in
Liverpool. Oh my gawd! If you can ever make these tours,
they are the best. I've been to Paul's house on Cavendish
Avenue, Abbey Road, the Bag of Nails, the old Apple offices, etc.
No, I have a few more great moments to share but you get the idea.
Anyway, I pride myself on being one of the original Beatles fan.
I remember when they got off that plane at JFK in 1964 and changed
the world and me. When I saw Revolution (or whatever it was
called) the other night on Channel 7, I watched my story too.
Lisa
|
| It was back in
1992. In the U.S. Navy, stationed in Japan, I was sent to
Hawaii for about two months of fun and sun. On my way back to
Japan I flew into Tokyo's International Airport. I was the
only American in a hall of Japanese people waiting to pass through
customs. From the right approached a band of people who looked
"American." As they got closer I noticed Paul first.
He was walking with Linda and the remainder of his band. It
was easy for him to notice me in the crowd. I was about 20
feet from him as he walked by. I said, "Hey Paul"
and he returned the hello. I asked him if he wanted to cut in
front of me in the long line I was in and he replied that he already
had some arrangements to get through. His whole entourage went
around the whole crowd and through their own gate. What was
amazing is that no one in the whole area reacted to it. I
didn't want to act like a crazed fan so I didn't move from my spot.
I played the whole scenario out a few times afterwards. I
wished I had just stepped up to him and shook his hand and said
thanks.
Mike Mullarkey
|
It was February
25, 1999 when I went to Count Basey theatre in Redbank New Jersey to
hear George Martin himself speak about the making of the Sgt. Pepper
album. That past Halloween, my mom had made me a replica of
Paul's outfit to wear as my costume. It seemed only
appropriate then to wear that to something like this.
George Martin got out there and talked about the album, everyone in
the audience hanging off his every word. And afterwards, he
almost immediately left the theatre. I persevered however, not
to be taken in as simply another member of the crowd. I got
right up to him, showed him the outfit, after shaking his hand, and
actually asked him if he remembered why Paul and John were laughing
so hard on And your bird can sing on the second anthology. A
bodyguard was standing next to him, who asked if George Martin
wanted to answer my question. He was already shrugging with a
look of, "Boy- I don't have a clue!" written on his face.
Shortly after, he shook my hand again, and I managed to get a
picture of him before he was shooed into the waiting car to get away
fro
Kate Workman
|
| Does meeting
Cynthia Lennon count for anything? Several years ago at
a Beatles convention in Toronto, Canada, she was one of the guests
at the show. Actually Pete Best and Allan Williams were
there as well. In fact, all of them were sitting in the
bar having a drink right across from my table. My wife
brought her camera and I decided to take a picture. I
thought, great, having a picture of all these people from Beatles'
history would be fantastic. To make a long story short,
the batteries were dead in the camera. To this day I do
not let my wife forget that fateful day. We've gone to
endless weddings of relatives who I didn't really care about and she
had plenty of film and fresh batteries. Now something
like this happens and the batteries are dead. Anyway, the next day
Cynthia was signing autographs upstairs. My wife and I
waited over an hour for the lineup to reach her. I had
my copy of her paperback "A Twist of Lennon" in my hand.
When I reached her table I couldn't really believe it was her.
She looked great! She asked me how I was and to tell you
the truth I couldn't say anything. My wife answered
instead. I finally blurted out, I love your book! She
smiled and said thank you. On each side on her were two
burly bodyguards who kept their eyes on each and every fan as they
walked by the table. Just seeing her that day was a treat.
I kept thinking to myself, man, I just met John Lennon's first wife,
cool. Actually earlier that day she took questions from
the audience in a large room. I stayed for awhile and was quite
embarrassed from some of the questions from the audience members.
One woman actually asked her what it felt like having John Lennon's
baby! Cynthia answered with class, "It was quite
painful". Class all the way.
Thanks Rick S.
|
| December 8, 1986 London,
England....Soho
Square
....
I had been living in England for 3 months while going to school for the fall
semester at the University of London. I was to return home mid-December to
tell all about the wonderous autumn spent in the city of London. I was 19
in 1986....ready for anything....ready to travel.....ready to meet a Beatle.
The latter was something on 'my list' of things to do while in England. I
was able to check off Liverpool, Abbey Road and lots of other sights in
Liverpool and London that had to do with my favorite band. But there was
one item that hadn't been checked off....meeting a Beatle. It wasn't
something I was totally serious in doing...it was a dream. I did
think....hmmm....is this attainable? Well...I was soon to find out that it
was.
On a dreary, cloudy and cold London morning, my friend Linda and I (she's
also a Beatle nut) headed out of our dormitory (a refurbished hotel on
Collingham Place near the Glouster Street Tube Station) on route to Soho
Square Tube stop. We knew that Paul's office, MPL Communications, was
there. We brought our camera's and our high hopes. At around 11am, we found
ourselves among other Beatle fans doing the same thing we were; waiting for
Paul. No one (a small group of about 20 or so folks from all over the
world) even knew whether or not Paul was even in the country. The friendly
staff of MPL came out a few times and gave us promotional pins and posters
of Paul's newest CD Press to Play. These people never shooed us away or got
mad at us for hanging around. I remember asking one of the employees if Paul
was in the building or if they expected him. She said she could not say but
then she said, "you are not wasting your time". Oh my God! That's when the
reality of this 'event' hit home. I could not quite believe that we were
most likely going to see Paul.
About an hour later, it started to rain a bit. Umbrella's started to pop up,
yet folks hanging were still in good spirits. We were talking about getting
soup to warm up when all of a sudden I saw these girls down the streets
screaming and pointing up the street past where we were standing. I looked
to my right only to see Paul and Linda McCartney walking directly toward the
loving crowd of Beatle fans. Linda and I immediately started to run there
way....it seemed to be all in slow motion because I couldn't quite believe
Paul was walking toward us. (It seems funny to me that we were
running.....poor guy!) I kept saying to my friend Linda, "get the
thing...get the thing..." meaning the camera. She started to take photos
and as soon as we got to Paul and Linda...everyone just stood
there...smiling....not knowing what to do next. Paul says "come on
now..it's stating to rain...let's go under the overhang..." We all moved
with him....we situated ourselves under the overhang and I was pushed into
the corner...right next to Paul. I just stood there for about 5
minutes...looking at him..smiling...watching everyone turn their Sgt. Pepper
and Revolver LP's over to Paul to sign...I also realized I only had ONE
THING FOR HIM TO SIGN...my AIFS card (school card). So, I finally got up the
nerve and said to him "Sheila from Liverpool says hi".....(I had just been
in Liverpool on a tour with Paul's ex-secretary/friend, Sheila Johnson and
Sheila said to me jokingly, "If you see Paul, tell him I said hello").
Well, this was no joke. He looked at me and said "oh you mean the tour
guide?"
I honestly don't remember what I said after that because I was just so
thrilled that I asked a question that was cool and not so normal or
over-used. I did tell him that his music means the world to me and I
thanked him for all of his songs. My friend Linda met Linda McCartney. I
did not :( She said she was gracious and sweet. In the meantime, my friend
Linda was standing on the other side of the crowd taking photos of me and
Paul. The one photo that came out the best was Paul's profile and me just
smiling at him....adoring this guy who has brought me so much joy. I
consider the Beatles my friends and they always make me happy when I'm down.
The Beatles have always been there for me.
After a few more moments, Linda and Paul waved goodbye and they disappeared
into the lobby of his office. Everyone in the crowd was thrilled,
giddy....we all kept saying...I can't believe it....I can't believe it.....
We got back to the dorms.....just beat after all the excitement. I wrote
everything I could remember in my journal and I still have it to this day.
It was one of the best days of my life. After telling EVERYONE in the dorm
about the day (friends were amazed) we found out that another friend of ours
in the dorm had just met Jimmi Page.
I was happy to share this story and will be happy to ready many more.
Cheers!
Denise
|
I "almost"
met John Lennon
once. It was 1975 and I was working in NYC handing out pamphlets for
an exercise club. I was handing out my pamphlets on 42nd Street and
Madison Avenue, when I noticed John heading straight towards me. At
the time, I had met several famous rock stars and had always
conducted myself properly, but
seeing John on the street was so totally unexpected that I just
froze, with my mouth open, and couldn't move or speak. As he walked
by, he looked at me and smiled, as though to say, "I know that
you know who I am...just don't scream!". I had the opportunity
to meet my idol and I blew it! It's now 25 years later and I can
still kick myself for not being able to talk to him! I can only hope
to redeem myself by someday meeting Paul, George and Ringo without
flipping out...
Camille
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I had
a friend who worked in New York
back in the 70's. One day she was walking down the street about two
blocks from the Dakota when she saw John walking on the opposite
side of the street coming towards her. She also "froze"
and couldn't say a word. Seeing her, John crossed the street, came
right up to her and grabbed her arm. He said "Have you had
lunch yet?" She murmured something unintelligible, and John
said there's a great sidewalk cafe about a block away. He just took
her by the arm and walked her to the cafe where they had a great
lunch together, talking like they were old friends. She was
completely floored at how nice he was about her acting like a statue
on the street. After more than an hour, he ended up paying for the
lunch and dashing back to the Dakota before "someone noticed he
was missing."
For all the stories I've heard in
"tell-all" books and weird scenes like in the movie about
John and Paul's last meeting, I know that's a true story(!), and
that's the John I choose to remember.
Terry
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I saw
him play RFK stadium in DC back in 89 and took my FABFOUR plate off
my car to the front row with me. During Hey Jude we all rushed up to
the barrier and I held it up for him to see. He motioned for me to
give it up and I handed it to the guy standing at the barrier. He in
turn handed it to Paul. At the end of the show I expected to get it
back, but no luck. Maybe somewhere in Paul's
barn there are a bunch of Beatle related tags hanging up...So it
wasn't actually me, but my car that had a brush with greatness!!!
BTW, I got pulled over a few days later for only having one plate
and had to tell the cop it got stolen at the show so he wouldn't
give me a ticket. Can you imagine his reaction if I had said,
"Well, I gave it to Paul McCartney!"
Jen
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