BBC News Report: 9th December 1980

"Former Beatle John Lennon has been shot dead by an unknown gunman who opened fire outside the musician's New York apartment."

The 40-year-old was shot several times as he entered the Dakota, his luxury apartment building on Manhattan's Upper West Side, opposite Central Park, at 2300 local time. He was rushed in a police car to St Luke's Roosevelt Hospital Center, where he died.His wife, Yoko Ono, who is understood to have witnessed the attack, was with him. A police spokesman said a suspect was in custody, but he had no other details of the shooting. 'This was no robbery,' the spokesman said, adding that Mr Lennon was probably shot by a 'deranged' person.

Witness reports say at least three shots were fired and others have claimed they heard six. There are also reports Mr Lennon staggered up six steps into the vestibule after he was shot, before collapsing. Jack Douglas, Lennon's producer, said he and the Lennons had been at a studio called the Record Plant in mid-town earlier in the evening and Lennon left at 2230. Mr Lennon said he planned to have some dinner and then return home, Mr Douglas said. The Lennons are said to have left their limousine on the street and walked up the driveway when the gunman opened fire. It is unclear whether the man had been lying in wait in the entrance to the building for Mr Lennon, or whether he came up behind him. Witnesses describe the gunman as a 'pudgy kind of man', 35 to 40 years old with brown hair.

Other former band members, Paul McCartney, guitarist George Harrison and drummer Ringo Starr are thought to have been informed of Lennon's murder. Fans have already begun arriving at the scene, many still unaware Lennon has died. Who Killed John Lennon?

John Lennon's Funeral
John Lennon was pronounced dead on arrival in the emergency room at the Roosevelt Hospital at 11:07 p.m. on 8th December 1980, by Dr. Stephan Lynn. The cause of death was reported as hypovolemic shock, caused by the loss of more than 80% of blood volume. Dr. Elliott M. Gross, the Chief Medical Examiner, said that no one could have lived more than a few minutes with such multiple bullet injuries. As John Lennon was shot four times using hollow-point bullets, which expand upon entering the target and severely disrupt more tissue as it travels through the target, Lennon's affected organs were virtually destroyed upon impact. Yoko Ono was crying 'Oh no, no, no, no... tell me it's not true,' and was taken to Roosevelt Hospital and led away in shock after she learned that her husband was dead. The following day, Yoko Ono issued a statement: 'There is no funeral for John. John loved and prayed for the human race. Please pray the same for him. Love, Yoko and Sean.' John Lennon was cremated on 10th December 1980, at the Ferncliff Cemetery in Hartsdale, New York, and his ashes were given to Yoko Ono.

Liverpool Remembers: 14th December 1980
An estimated 30,000 people turned out for a 10 minute vigil in the at St George's Hall in Liverpool on December 14th 1980. The crowd sang 'Give Peace a Chance' on St George's Plateau as millions of people around the world, including over 100,000 in New York joined in with a vigil for world peace and non-violence in memory of John Lennon.

In May 1990 a tribute concert was staged in memory of John Lennon in Liverpool. 'John Lennon: The Tribute Concert', was held at the Pier Head with performances from artists including B. B. King, Joe Cocker, Kylie Minogue performing a disco version of 'Help', Roberta Flack, the Moody Blues, Hall and Oates, Wet Wet Wet and Lou Reed performing 'Jealous Guy'.

The University of Liverpool received more than £500,000 from the Lennon estate following the 1990 concert, the money was invested in a trust and is used to fund scholarships for local children.

John Lennon continues to be mourned throughout the world and has been the subject of numerous memorials and tributes, principally New York City's Strawberry Fields, a memorial garden area in Central Park across the street from the Dakota building. Ono later donated $1 million for its maintenance. It has become a gathering place for tributes on John Lennon's birthday and on the anniversary of his death, as well as at other times of mourning, such as after the New York September 11th attacks and following George Harrison's death on November 29th 2001.
John Lennon is also mourned in the city he was born, Liverpool. His life is constantly celebrated on Mathew Street and in the Cavern Club, with special tributes held on October 9th (John's birthday) and December 8th each year.

The Tributes: What famous people said about John Lennon

Source of quotes: Ballad of John and Yoko (A Rolling Stone Press book), by Jonathan Cott & Christine Doudna. 1982.

Paul McCartney
'I have hidden my self in work today. But it keeps flashing in my mind. I feel shattered, angry and very sad. It's just ridiculous. He was pretty rude about me sometimes, but I secretly admired him for it, and I always managed to stay in touch with him. There was no question that we weren't friends, I really loved the guy. I think that what has happened will in years to come make people realize that John was an international statesman. He often looked a loony to many people. He made enemies, but he was fantastic. He was a warm man who cared a lot and with the record 'Give Peace A Chance' helped stop the Vietnam War. He made a lot of sense.'

George Harrison
'After all we went through together I had and still have great love and respect for him. I am shocked and stunned. To rob life is the ultimate robbery. This perpetual encroachment on other people's space is taken to the limit with the use of a gun. It is an outrage that people can take other people's lives when they obviously haven't got their own lives in order.'

Bob Dylan
'John and the Beatles were doing things nobody was doing. Their cords were outrageous, and their harmonies made it all valid. Everybody else thought they were for the teeny boppers, that they were gonna pass right away. But it was obvious to me that they had staying power: I knew they were pointing in the direction where music had to go.'

Nick Hopkins
'The first time I worked with John was in 1968, when I played electric piano on 'Revolution'. He was real pleased with the way things went and told me there'd be a lot more sessions he'd be inviting me to. But I didn't see him again until 1971, at his home in Ascot, where he was recording 'Imagine'. I reminded him of his comment and asked why I hadn't been invited to any more sessions. 'Well Nick,' he said, 'we thought you were to involved with the Stones, and we were afraid to ask.' If only I'd known that was the reason! Later that year, John and Yoko invited my wife and me to his birthday party. It was in Syracuse, New York, where Yoko's 'This is not Here' art exhibition was being held, and John flew us there and back to California. He gave everybody silver zodiac necklaces, even though it was his birthday.'

Mick Jagger
'I liked John a lot. He was the one I really got on with the most. We weren't buddy-buddies but we were always friendly. But after the Beatles and the Stones stopped playing clubs, we didn't see each other that much until he separated from Yoko, around 1974. We got really friendly again. And when he went back with Yoko, he went into hibernation ... when I went to visit someone in the Dakota, I'd leave him a note saying: 'I live next door: I know you don't want to see anyone, but if you do, please call.' He never did.'

Frank Sinatra
'It was a staggering moment when I first heard the news. Lennon was a most talented man and above all, a gentle soul. John and his colleagues set a high standard by which contemporary music continues to be measured.'

James Taylor
'I had a couple of conversations with John during the recording of the 'White Album' and I remember him being very busy and devoted to his craft. I watched him work on the two or three versions of 'Revolution' and he was really intense. He believed very passionately about what he wrote. It was obvious that the song was a response to people making demands on him concerning his radical point of views, and you realized that by adulation of the group, we were making it more difficult for them to continue.'

Edward Koch
'John Lennon profoundly affected a generation. His music and that of the Beatles was worldwide in import. Every death by violence is a trauma to society. The death of someone of John Lennon's stature intensifies this trauma. We mourn his loss.'

Sid Bernstein
'John Lennon was brilliant, so gifted, so giving. He was the Bach, Beethoven, the Rachmaninoff of our time.'

Chuck Berry
'Since the time they had one of their first hits with Roll Over Beethoven, I've always felt very close to the Beatles. I felt as if I lost a little part of myself when John died.'

Harold Wilson
'John Lennon's death was a great tragedy. What the Beatles were doing for kids was taking them off the streets and giving them a new interest in life.'

Cynthia Lennon
'I would like to say how terribly upset we are at the sudden death of John Lennon. I have always had the deepest affection for John since the divorce and have always encouraged his relationship with Julian, which I thought was best. It came so suddenly. Julian remained very close to his father in recent years and is hoping to follow a career in music. He was looking to his father for guidance. Julian was hoping to see his father shortly.'

Sean Lennon
'Now Daddy is part of God. I guess when you die you become bigger, a part of everything.'

Yoko Ono Lennon
'The only way you can better John is by copying him exactly.'