December 8, 1980: The Day John Lennon Died (Book) [Hardcover]

Keith Elliot Greenberg (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 2010

In a breathtaking, minute-by-minute format, December 8, 1980: The Day John Lennon Died follows the events leading to the horrible moment when Mark David Chapman calmly fired his Charter Arms .38 Special into the rock icon, realizing his perverse fantasy of attaining perennial notoriety. New York Times bestselling author Keith Elliot Greenberg takes us back to New York City and the world John Lennon woke up to. The day begins with a Rolling Stone photo session that takes on an uncomfortable tone when photographer Annie Leibowitz tries to maneuver Yoko Ono out of the shot. Later Lennon gives the last interview of his life, declaring, "I consider that my work won't be finished until I'm dead and buried and I hope that's a long, long time." We follow the other Beatles, Lennon's family, the shooter, fans, and New York City officials through the day, and as the hours progress, the pace becomes more breathless. Once the fatal shots are fired, the clock continues to tick as Dr. Stephan Lynn walks from the emergency room after declaring the former Beatle dead, Howard Cosell announces the singer's passing on Monday Night Football, and Paul McCartney is lambasted for muttering "Drag, isn't it?" - his bereavement confused with indifference. The epilogue examines the aftermath of the killing: the considerable moment when 100,000 New Yorkers stood in silence in Central Park, the posthumous reunion of the Beatles in the studio - with George, Paul, and Ringo accompanying the recordings of their old friend - the unveiling of a bronze John Lennon statue in Fidel Castro's Cuba, and the durable legacy that persists today.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

*Starred Review* Greenberg, a best-selling author and television producer, seizes the reader’s attention and heart in this finely honed chronicle of the death of John Lennon. This page-turner begins with the release of the album Double Fantasy, a ravishing collaboration between Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono an achievement that ended a sweet period of seclusion with their then-five-year-old son, Sean. Lennon was 40 and rejuvenated creatively and emotionally. Drawing on a wealth of primary sources, Greenberg emphasizes Lennon’s happiness, noting, with no small irony, how safe he and Yoko felt living in the Dakota, a fanciful old Manhattan apartment building, and how friendly Lennon was to the fans who gathered there, including his killer, Mark David Chapman. Greenberg enfolds a wealth of fresh biographical facts and penetrating insights into this richly dimensional and riveting account, circling deftly between Lennon’s past and his last months in 1980, and the chilling story of Chapman’s obsession with Lennon and history of concealing his mental illness, and how close he came to not pulling the trigger. Greenberg’s definitive and unforgettable inquiry into John Lennon’s death illuminates the cruel mysteries of madness, and, more resonantly, all the qualities that made Lennon such an exceptional and compelling artist. --Donna Seaman

About the Author

Keith Elliot Greenberg is a New York Times bestselling author and producer for America's Most Wanted. In addition to producing programs for VH-1, 48 Hours, MSNBC Investigates, the History Channel, and Court TV, among others, Greenberg has authored more than thirty non-fiction books and written for such outlets as Maxim, The Village Voice, The New York Observer, USA Today, Playboy.com, and US Weekly.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Backbeat Books (November 1, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879309636
• ISBN-13: 978-0879309633
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.3 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #418,733 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #33 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( L ) > Lennon, John

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 26 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars A Disappointment October 28, 2010

By Jeffrey R. Copeland

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

This is deceptive. The title and jacket sleeve indicates the book is about December 8th 1980. In fact, only a rather small portion of the book details the events of 12/8/80. The rest of the book is filler covering the same history of John Lennon we've read many times before. I wish the author would go back and rewrite this book with the focus being on 12/8/80 only. If he made the effort, a great book could be had.

27 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Eerie portrayal of a life unfinished..." October 9, 2010

By Thomas Moody

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Many Beatles fans, I'm sure, had trouble with John Lennon's seemingly newfound life in the late 1970's when he'd discovered 1) that, irrespective of his early seventies drug induced personality and "lost weekend" antics, he truly loved Yoko Ono and wanted to spend eternity with her and 2) that a whole new vein of music was slowly evolving in his mind, given this newfound serenity, and it was music well removed from that of the Beatles...that is to say that the notion of a reunion now seemed a distant non-starter. With Lennon's release of "Double Fantasy" in October, 1980, a new, non-Beatles idealism was growing and Lennon, to some, seemed to have reinvented himself on the world music stage. To a small faction, however, this new musical direction and seemingly tranquil lifestyle drove a wedge into the endless enchantment that Beatles fanatics, in hopes of a reunion, were guilty of and, as Keith Greenberg points out in this excellent crime drama wrapped around an intimate portrayal of Lennon's late 70's life as well as a plausible post-Beatles explanation for their breakup, explains, perhaps, some rationale for Mark David Chapman's horrid and completely self-centered and selfish act. Combining thorough investigation with intimate and sincere moments in the life of John and Yoko, Greenberg pens a step by step account of that fateful day and the aftermath that brings a fresh and nuanced look at this seminal moment in music history.

Intertwining chronological events of December 8th 1980 with categorical memories of the Beatles era, Greenberg constructs the whole of Lennon's life out of seemingly fragmented parts. We see the demise of the Beatles, the deep convictions for a fair and meaningful universal peace and, of course, the music. First with the Plastic Ono Band and then with self titled albums, Lennon composes some of the seventies most influential music, all the while still trying to "find" and define himself personally as he matures. The literary result is a marvelous and seamless narrative that takes the past and gives an ethereal context to that day and its aftermath.

Chapman's psychosis is also clearly on display here as Greenberg has clearly done his due diligence and presents a fair and compassionate account of Chapman who's personae is riddled with self doubt and destructive tendencies all the while being harbored by his ever present copy of "Catcher In The Rye". Chapman then is shown sliding (some would say becomes uncovered) ever so surely into the maniacal personality that, in the end, reveals the true danger that he possessed all along and one that he brought to bear on that fateful night.

I would say that the only critique of this work that I can muster is that Greenberg's post assassination coverage of the grief extolled by all Lennon's intimates is, at times, schmaltzy and a bit overdone. This is especially true when explaining Paul McCartney's "Drag, isn't it?" remarks in the immediate aftermath of Lennon's death.

All told though, Greenberg is able to take a clear veneration of the Beatles and Lennon, in particular, and turn it into an excellent investigative account that doesn't lose the literary touch that great books need. I would definitely recommend this to all readers.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars not good June 20, 2011

By daven

Format:Kindle Edition

I read about half of this book and gave up. If you have ever read any half way decent bio of lennon or the beatles, you will learn nothing new here.
Secondly, even if there was anything new here it is painful to read. this book seems like it was written by a first year journalism student. brutal!