John Lennon
1940 - 1980Born and raised in Liverpool, Lennon became involved as a teenager in the skiffle craze; his first band, The Quarrymen, evolved into The Beatles in 1960. As the group disintegrated towards the end of the decade, Lennon embarked on a solo career that produced the critically acclaimed albums John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band and Imagine, and iconic songs such as "Give Peace a Chance" and "Imagine". Lennon disengaged himself from the music business in 1975 to devote time to his family, but re-emerged in 1980 with a new album, Double Fantasy. He was murdered by Mark Chapman three weeks after its release.
Lennon revealed a rebellious nature and acerbic wit in his music, his writing, his drawings, on film, and in interviews, and he became controversial through his political and peace activism. He moved to New York City in 1971, where his criticism of the Vietnam War resulted in a lengthy attempt by Richard Nixon's administration to deport him, while his songs were adopted as anthems by the anti-war movement.
As of 2010, Lennon's solo album sales in the United States exceed 14 million units, and as writer, co-writer or performer, he is responsible for 27 number-one singles on the US Hot 100 chart. In 2002, a BBC poll on the 100 Greatest Britons voted him eighth, and in 2008, Rolling Stone ranked him the fifth-greatest singer of all-time. He was posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1987 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994.
Monument
Ture Sjölander, Lars Weck
Bengt Feldreich, Sophia Loren
In the fall of 1967, intermedia artists Ture Sjölander and Lars Weck collaborated with Bengt Modin, video engineer of the Swedish Broadcasting Corporation in Stockholm, to produce an experimental program called Monument. It was broadcast in January, 1968, and subsequently has been seen throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States. Apart from the technical aspect of the project, their intention was to develop a widened consciousness of the communi - cative process inherent in visual images. They selected as source material the "monuments" of world culture— images of famous persons and paintings.
Monument
The Beatles 1+
John Lennon, Paul McCartney
The Beatles '1' was originally released in 2000 and quickly became the fastest selling album of all time. Featuring 27 of the band's most significant singles, all of which reached #1 in the US or UK charts, '1+' represents the ultimate collector's edition of The Beatles '1', featuring all 27 promo videos from the album and an additional 23 videos, including alternate versions, as well as rarely seen and newly restored films and videos. All the videos have been beautifully restored by a team of film and video technicians and restoration artists who have undertaken painstaking frame-by-frame cleaning, colour-grading, digital enhancement and new edits that took months of dedicated, 'round-the-clock work to accomplish.
The Beatles 1+
The Beatles: Destination Hamburg
John Lennon, Paul McCartney
Packed with interviews and restored footage, this hourlong documentary recounts the story of the Beatles -- from their early days as the Quarrymen and meteoric rise to international fame to their place in the pantheon of music history. Included are recordings by early Fab Four collaborator Tony Sheridan, plus Kenny Everett radio interviews with mop tops Paul McCartney, John Lennon and Ringo Starr.
The Beatles: Destination Hamburg
Holiday Greetings from 'The Ed Sullivan Show'
Bob Newhart, Ed Sullivan
A comical and musical collection of yuletide appearances on the Ed Sullivan show. Timeless appearances by musical guests such as Johnny Mathis, Sergio Franchi and Bing Crosby are included along with comedic performers such as Topo Gigio and the Muppets.
Holiday Greetings from 'The Ed Sullivan Show'
The Nation's Favourite Beatles Number One
Stephen McGinn, John Piper
John Lennon, Paul McCartney
The Nation’s Favourite Beatles Number One tells the stories behind some of the greatest Beatles songs ever. With interviews from Beatles’ insiders including musicians, friends, fellow performers and celebrity fans, we’ll hear about the stories behind the Fab Four’s best-loved hits
The Nation's Favourite Beatles Number One
The Music of Lennon & McCartney
Philip Casson
John Lennon, Paul McCartney
A 1965 British television special honouring the songwriting partnership of John Lennon and Paul McCartney. It was produced by Granada Television and aired on that network on 16 December 1965 before receiving a national broadcast the following evening. The programme mainly consisted of other artists miming to their recordings of the songs. The Beatles performed Day Tripper and We Can Work It Out, and Peter Sellers delivered a comedic interpretation of A Hard Day's Night, in the style of stage actor Laurence Olivier's portrayal of Richard III.
The Music of Lennon & McCartney
The Mersey Sound
Don Haworth
Michael Barton, Brian Epstein
This 1963 film packed with raw, archive footage and interviews is the story of the Mersey Sound. Fuelled by Beatlemania, this musical explosion changed the face of pop music forever. The Beatles, The Undertakers and Group One are filmed in a number of venues including The Iron Door and Southport’s Little Theatre.
The Mersey Sound
The 4 Complete Ed Sullivan Shows Starring The Beatles
Paul McCartney, John Lennon
This collection consists of four of the most cherished shows in television history. On February 9, 1964, The Beatles made their debut TV appearance in the U.S. on the Ed Sullivan Show. 73 million Americans watched and Beatlemania is born! Other shows included were February 16, 1964, February 23, 1964, and September 12, 1965. Includes 20 song performances, as well as the rest of the four Ed Sullivan shows. Also included in some special editions is the show rehearsal (Deauville Hotel, Miami - Feb.16, 1964)
The 4 Complete Ed Sullivan Shows Starring The Beatles
Around the Beatles
Paul McCartney, John Lennon
The show opens on an image of the Globe Theatre, with Ringo Starr unfurling a flag with the legend "Around The Beatles". The studio setting is arranged as a theater in the round, (hence the show's name) echoing the seating arrangement of the Globe. The opening act is a humorous rendition of the "play within a play", Pyramus and Thisbe (Act V, Scene I) from William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, with Paul McCartney as Pyramus, John Lennon as his lover Thisbe, George Harrison as Moonshine, and Starr as Lion.
Around the Beatles
The Compleat Beatles
Patrick Montgomery
John Lennon, Paul McCartney
Now, for the first time, you can re-live the Beatles legends with this stunning 2-hour musical “Rockumentary”. It’s all there from the wild exuberance of the early Cavern Club days through eight incredible years, to the grim finality of “Let It Be”. See John, Paul, George and Ringo in performance, on tour, in films, recording with George Martin and in rare footage never before seen. Narrated by Malcom McDowell.
The Compleat Beatles
The Beatles Story
Nigel Turner
John Lennon, Paul McCartney
This one-hour documentary recounts the musical career of the "Fab Four" in its entirety: from their early days in Liverpool to the peak of their success as the world's most successful pop group. The film is largely archival and built around extensive footage that chronicles the phenomenon of Beatlemania as it rapidly spreads across the globe. Much of the material has not been seen before and includes a number of interviews with The Beatles at critical moments in their career, plus fascinating footage from their final American tour. To complete the film there is also recent footage and retrospective interviews with members of The Beatles entourage as well as those who have spent time analyzing and evaluating The Beatle's musical and social impact on our lives.
The Beatles Story
George Harrison: Living in the Material World
Martin Scorsese
George Harrison, Olivia Harrison
Director Martin Scorsese profiles former Beatle George Harrison in this reverent portrait that mixes interviews and archival footage, featuring commentary from the likes of Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Ringo Starr and Yoko Ono.
George Harrison: Living in the Material World
