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WHAT WOULD YOU DO???
After getting two 'stand by' tickets from NBC Studios, I walked uptown to wait for John Lennon outside The Dakota. Waiting for John Lennon meant leaning on a parked car between the entrance of The Dakota and Central Park West while facing the entrance of the building.
I arrived just after 10:00am and the Dakota doorman informed me that John was in England. Being 16 years old and believing him, I left to get something to eat at Blimpie's on West 72nd. Just before 11:00am I had a 'sixth sense' to return to The Dakota thinking/believing that John may want to talk a stroll on this beautiful spring day. So I took my position - looking directly at the entrance of The Dakota while leaning against a parked car between the entrance and Central Park West.
If the doorman was considering chasing me away, he never got the chance because 5 minutes later, as I was looking directly at the entrance of The Dakota (hoping the very next person would be John Lennon), out walked John & Yoko. For some reason I was expecting only John, but ‘I should have known better’ that John & Yoko would be together.
They made a left out of The Dakota and started walking ‘en route’ to Central Park West..….RIGHT TOWARDS ME!!...…I didn’t even have to move….it took just 5 seconds…..as they approached me I said “John can I shake your hand?” While walking and without stopping, John extended his right hand for me to shake. I noticed that his fingers were long and thin and pale white in color. This 'on the move' limp hand shake came and went quickly. I shouted-“You're the greatest!” and then found myself standing at the corner of West 72nd and Central Park West watching John and Yoko walking hand in hand down Central Park West.
John was wearing a matching blue denim jacket and pants with black square heel boots, a big off-white colored beret, and circular dark red sunglasses. Then I locked on to his famous pointy nose…..John looked like he didn't shave for a couple of days……even though I couldn't believe how thin John’s face & body looked..….HE LOOKED REALLY COOL!!!
Yoko was dressed in white with a big white hat and large circular black sunglasses.
From the right side of West 72nd I was following right behind John & Yoko down Central Park West. At West 66th after 6 blocks of 'purely stalking', John turned around to me (still walking) and said “Hey don't follow us!”. The great John Lennon had spoken to me!!! Not very flattering, but it was something unique to remember for a long time. So I crossed Central Park West (to the other side of the street) as I watched them walk hand in hand, stopping to look in shop windows, talking to various people on the
street, making their way 'ever so slowly' down Central Park West. After following them for 13 blocks, ‘we’ were at Columbus Circle at West 59th, but at different sides of Central Park West. I now realized that John and Yoko were going to cross Central Park West towards me. I still wanted more and had to speak to John one last time. We both crossed Central Park West at the same time going in different directions. As I walked towards John and Yoko right in the middle of Central Park West I started to say the following “John I don't want to bother you...I just want to tell you that I love you....you're the greatest!!”
In the middle of Central Park West I stopped and looked back at John & Yoko. I will always remember that John (while still walking) turned his head to the left to look at me, I could see his left eye to the side of his sunglasses. We made eye-contact with each other as he waived to me with his right hand.
What a thrill…I couldn't believe it…John was my favorite Beatle. I remember the next thing I did was dump over a dollar in change to call my brother and said to him…..screaming: “I just saw John Lennon!!!…I just saw John Lennon!!!….. and he’s still walking!!!….come down if you want to see him!!!”
I was floating on air for hours, but eventually I met my Dad at NBC Studios where we waited in the 'stand-by' ticket line for the 7:30pm Dress Rehearsal for 'Saturday Night Live'. Unfortunately, we had a high number on our tickets so NBC did not let us in to see the show. Fortunately, I was able to get home in time to watch the Live Broadcast at 11:30pm. After a very exciting day I remember watching Steve Martin doing his hysterical 'King Tut' routine. There were so many funny lines, but the one line from the ‘King Tut’ song 'He gave his life for Tourism' still makes me laugh today and reminds me of a 'Thrill of a Lifetime' that happened to me on Saturday, April 22, 1978.
Looking back on that day, it appeared that John & Yoko were walking in the direction of The Plaza Hotel from Central Park West. The doorman Eddie Trinka had told me that he often saw them walking past the Plaza Hotel.
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