The Infamy and Idiocy of December
Besides 9/11/2001 and 11/22/1963, no 2 dates stand out more in American history and culture that December 7, 1941 and December 8, 1980. These are, of course, the respective dates for the Japanese invasion of Pearl Harbor and the assassination of John Lennon. Ask any senior citizens and they can probably tell you where they were or what they were doing on those dates in 1941 and 1963. The same holds true with baby boomers for 1980 and 2001 but the next 2 days will contain stories of remembrance and loss and while I was not born in 1941, I vividly remember 1980.
I listened to and loved the Beatles since I was old enough to enjoy music and continued to love them as a group through the breakup in 1969 all the way to the present. I don’t think I truly appreciated John Lennon as a solo artist until he released Double Fantasy in 1980 only to have him tragically killed by Mark David Chapman 2 months later. I remember sitting there watching Monday Night Football and having Howard Cosell utter the following in the final moments of the game,
“An unspeakable tragedy confirmed to us by ABC News in New York City: John Lennon, outside of his apartment building on the West Side of New York City, the most famous, perhaps, of all of The Beatles, shot twice in the back, rushed to Roosevelt Hospital, dead on arrival.”
John had actually been shot 4 times but that was immaterial at the time. He was dead and any chance of the Beatles ever getting back together for even a single performance was now gone. John left a legacy of musical achievement and a personal life strife with grudges, infidelity and controversy. He was both loved and loathed by millions but the bottom line is he died WAY too soon. Just as the infamy of December 7th lives with us today, so too does the idiocy of December 8th…..just imagine what could have been
