DECEMBER 9, 1980. THOUSANDS GATHER
IN STUNNED SILENCE OUTSIDE THE EXCLUSIVE
DAKOTA APARTMENTS IN NEW YORK CITY. THE MUSIC WORLD
MOURNS A LEGEND. JOHN LENNON IS DEAD. THE NIGHT BEFORE, THE FORMER BEATLE
HAD BEEN GUNNED DOWN AS HE RETURNED TO HIS
APARTMENT AT THE DAKOTA. MARK DAVID CHAPMAN,
A 25-YEAR-OLD DRIFTER, WAS ARRESTED AT THE SCENE AND CHARGED WITH
SECOND DEGREE MURDER. CHAPMAN WOULD LATER SAY THAT HE WAS A LONG-TIME
FAN OF JOHN LENNON. THE NEXT AFTERNOON, THE FRONT PAGE OF
THE NEW YORK<i> DAILY NEWS</i> CARRIED
THIS HAUNTING IMAGE OF JOHN LENNON
SIGNING AN AUTOGRAPH. THE ADORING RECIPIENT WAS
HIS KILLER--MARK DAVID CHAPMAN. THE NOW-FAMOUS PICTURE
WAS TAKEN BY PAUL GORESH, A 20-YEAR-OLD AMATEUR
PHOTOGRAPHER FROM NEWARK, NEW JERSEY. LIKE CHAPMAN, GORESH WAS OBSESSED
WITH JOHN LENNON. IN ESSENCE, PAUL GORESH
AND MARK DAVID CHAPMAN ARE TWO SIDES
OF ONE COIN, BUT WHILE CHAPMAN'S
FIXATION ON LENNON TOOK A TRAGIC,
DEMENTED TURN, GORESH'S PURSUIT
OF THE EX-BEATLE EVOLVED INTO A UNIQUE,
FRIENDLY RELATIONSHIP. THE STORY BEHIND THIS STORY
BEGINS 11 YEARS AGO. GORESH WAS A LIFELONG
BEATLES FAN WITH AN ELABORATE SCHEME
TO PENETRATE SECURITY AT THE DAKOTA
APARTMENTS AND MEET
HIS BOYHOOD IDOL. IT WAS FEBRUARY 12, 1979. PAUL GORESH WAS
A PART-TIME DRIVER FOR AN ELECTRONICS SHOP. AT NOON, HE AND A FRIEND
ARRIVED AT THE DAKOTA POSING AS TV REPAIRMEN. PAUL CARRIED A COPY
OF LENNON'S FIRST BOOK AND A BOGUS SERVICE ORDER
TO GET HIM IN THE DOOR. J&J ELECTRONICS. WE'RE HERE TO SEE,
UH... J...J. LENNON? IS HE EXPECTING YOU? WE WENT UP
TO THE DOORMAN. I SHOWED HIM
THE SERVICE ORDER. I'D WROTE "J" ON IT. I WANTED TO ACT
TOTALLY OBLIVIOUS TO WHOSE APARTMENT IT WAS. HE DIDN'T EVEN
BLINK AT IT. IT WAS PERFECT TO HIM. IT WAS PAUL GORESH'S
LUCKY DAY. BY COINCIDENCE, JOHN LENNON WAS HAVING
PROBLEMS WITH HIS VCR. LENNON'S SECRETARY
ASSUMED THAT LENNON HAD MADE THE SERVICE
CALL HIMSELF. STOP ACTING
SO NERVOUS. INCREDIBLY,
THE TWO IMPOSTERS WERE ALLOWED
TO PROCEED UPSTAIRS. I HEAR HIM.
IT'S HIM.
HE'S IN THERE. I SAID TO MARIO, "HE'S IN THERE.
I HEAR HIM. "WE'LL KNOCK ON THE DOOR.
SHE'LL OPEN THE DOOR, AT THAT TABLE." WL BE SITTING THE ADRENALINE'S
REALLY FLOWING NOW FOR ME, AND I'M REALLY EXCITED. AND I'M EXPECTING
THE SECRETARY. AND MY CHIN MUST
HAVE JUST DROPPED. J&J EL-ELECTRONIC
SERVICES HERE. BECAUSE I WAS
IN AWE OF HIM. I'M JUST STARING
AT HIM. I'M AMAZED
HE OPENED THE DOOR. OK. COME ON IN. IT'S FUNNY. I THINK
HE DETECTED THAT
SOMETHING WAS FUNNY. IT WAS FROM
MY REACTION MAYBE, BECAUSE I WAS SO EXCITED
WHEN I SAW HIM. THAT LOOK PROBABLY
LOOKED FAMILIAR. PAUL'S SCHEME TO GET
AN AUTOGRAPH SOON BACKFIRED. THE LENNON HOUSEHOLD HAD RECENTLY BEEN THE TARGET
OF CRANK CALLS AND THREATS. LENNON BELIEVED
HIS SECRETARY HAD CALLED THE REPAIRME AND BECAME ANGRY BECAUSE HE'D NOT BEEN
CONSULTED BEFOREHAND. COME HERE. THE SECRETARY SUGGESTED THAT PAUL RETURN
IN A FEW DAYS WHEN LENNON
HAD CALMED DOWN. COME BACK
ANOTHER TIME. SO I WAS
A LITTLE UPSET. I WAS PROUD
I GOT TO SEE HIM
AND DEAL WITH HIM BUT DISGUSTED
HOW IT TURNED OUT, ESPECIALLY THAT
I DIDN'T GET MY AUTOGRAPH. FOUR DAYS LATER, PAUL SCHEDULED
ANOTHER APPOINTMENT WITH LENNON'S SECRETARY. SHE DIDN'T KNOW LENNON'S
VCR PROBLEMS WERE OVER. HE SIMPLY PURCHASED
A NEW ONE. UNAWARE, PAUL
AND ANOTHER FRIEND ARRIVED AT THE DAKOTA. THEY FOUND LENNON IN
HIS FIRST FLOOR OFFICE. THIS TIME, PAUL GORESH
BROUGHT A CAMERA. HE WAS REAL
FRIENDLY AND CORDIAL. HE SAID, "I WANT
TO APOLOGIZE TO YOU GUYS "FOR MY BEHAVIOR
THE LAST TIME, "BUT I WASN'T
MAD AT YOU. I WAS MAD
AT MY SECRETARY." I ALMOST WANTED
TO TELL HIM IT WASN'T HER FAULT,
'CAUSE I'M JUST A FAN. I STILL WANTED
TO GET MY BOOK SIGNED. LAST TIME
I WAS HERE, I BROUGHT A COPY
OF YOUR BOOK ALONG. I HAVE IT NOW.
WOULD YOU
AUTOGRAPH IT? HE SAYS, "I DON'T GIVE
AUTOGRAPHS HARDLY ANYMORE, BUT I OWE YOU THAT." THEN HE SPOTS
AN INSTAMATIC CAMERA
THAT I HAD. JUST ONE? NO PHOTOGRAPHS.
I'LL TELL YOU WHAT. I'LL AUTOGRAPH
YOUR BOOK IF YOU DON'T
TAKE ANY PHOTOGRAPHS. HAVE YOU GOT A PEN? OK. HERE'S YOUR BOOK.
HERE'S YOUR PEN. HERE'S YOUR CAMERA,
AND HERE'S YOUR BOX. <i> ARRIVEDERCI, ROMA.</i> AND I FELT BAD, BECAUSE I THOUGHT
THAT WOULD BE THE LAST TIME
I SAW HIM. I COULDN'T BE
A JERK. HE WAS REAL NICE. I'D GOTTEN WHAT
I WANTED TO GET. JOHN. HI.
REMEMBER ME? YOU WERE THE FELLOW
COME TO REPAIR THE VCR. THE AUTOGRAPH MERELY SERVED
TO WHET PAUL'S APPETITE, AND HE SOON RETURNED
TO THE DAKOTA. IT'LL JUST
TAKE A MINUTE. I SIGNED YOUR BOOK. DON'T TAKE MY PHOTO.
LEAVE ME ALONE. SO I FIGURED,
IF HE'S NOT
GOING TO STOP AND LET ME
GET A PICTURE, I COULD PROBABLY
GET A TELEPHOTO LENS, STAND ACROSS THE STREET,
FOLLOW HIM, TAKE A FEW PICTURES. HE'LL NEVER BE
ANY THE WISER. HE DOESN'T GET UPSET,
I HAVE MY PICTURES, AND EVERYBODY
WILL BE HAPPY. WHAT ARE YOU DOING?
I SAID NO PICTURES, AND YOU'RE TAKING
PICTURES. WHAT'S ONE PICTURE? GIVE ME THE FILM. IT'S JUST ONE PICTURE. GIVE ME THE FILM. I SAID, "WHAT ARE YOU
SO WORKED UP FOR?" HE SAID, "YOU SAID
YOU'RE A FAN. IF YOU'RE A FAN,
GIVE ME THE FILM." I SAID,
"I WANT THE PICTURE
BECAUSE I'M A FAN." HE SAYS,
"IF YOU'RE A FAN,
LEAVE ME ALONE." PROCESS IT.
IF YOU LIKE THEM, SEND ME A COPY, OK? RIGHT. I SAID NO PICTURES. AND I WAS JUST...
DISGUSTED. YOU KNOW, NOW
HE'S MAD AGAIN. I GUESS I WAITED
PROBABLY A MONTH OR TWO, AND I WENT BACK. JOHN. WHAT DO
YOU WANT? I DON'T HAVE
MY CAMERA. I SAID, "I JUST
WANT TO TALK. "I NEVER MEANT
TO CAUSE YOU GRIEF. "I REALLY,
REALLY FEEL BAD
THAT YOU GOT ANGRY. "IF YOU TELL ME
TO LEAVE YOU ALONE, I'LL NEVER COME BACK
HERE AGAIN." AND REMEMBER HIM
LOOKING RIGHT IN MY EYES, AND HE SAID,
"STOP LOOKING AT ME
AS A BEATLE. TREAT ME LIKE
ANYONE ELSE." AND HE SAID, "COME ON." AND WE WENT
FOR A WALK. PAUL GORESH BEGAN
TO LIVE OUT THE FANTASY OF EVERY BEATLES FAN. FROM TIME TO TIME
DURING THE FOLLOWING MONTHS, LENNON LET PAUL
TAG ALONG DURING ERRANDS AND WALKS
IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. WE TOOK WALKS
ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. SOMETIME THEY
WOULDN'T BE LONG. SOMETIME THEY'D BE
5, 10 MINUTES. BUT THEY WERE
AN ETERNITY FOR A FAN. AND I REMEMBER
WE WERE WALKING ONE DAY, AND, UH,
I SAID TO HIM, "IF IT'S NOT GOING
TO HURT OUR RELATIONSHIP, "HOWEVER LITTLE IT IS, IF I COULD GET
A PICTURE?" HE LAUGHED AND SAID, "YEAH. WHEN WE'RE
READY TO GO PUBLIC, "I'LL HAVE MY GUY
CALL YOU. "YOU CAN TAKE
ALL YOU WANT. "I THINK
I'M GETTING READY." SIX MONTHS LATER, LENNON HIRED
A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER TO PROMOTE
HIS RETURN TO MUSIC AFTER A FIVE-YEAR HIATUS. REMARKABLY, LENNON KEPT
HIS PROMISE TO PAUL GORESH. HE INVITED PAUL
TO BRING HIS CAMERA AND ATTEND THE SESSION. PAUL, GET YOUR SHOT? YEAH. JOHN TURNS
AND SPOTS ME,
AND HE SAYS, "PAUL, YOU MADE IT. I'M GLAD. NOW YOU CAN
TAKE YOUR PICTURE." IT WAS FUNNY,
BECAUSE IN THE SEQUENCE
OF PHOTOS THAT I TOOK, HE'S LOOKING AT ME
INSTEAD OF THE GUY THAT THEY WERE
ACTUALLY PAYING. PAUL WAS ASTONISHED
WHEN THIS PICTURE WAS CHOSEN TO GRACE
THE JACKET COVER OF LENNON'S HIT SINGLE<i>
WATCHING THE WHEELS.</i> WHEN THAT RECORD
CAME OUT,
I WAS SO PROUD BECAUSE THERE'S ONLY
FIVE NAMES ON THE RECORD. THERE'S JOHN'S NAME,
YOKO'S NAME, THE PRODUCER
OF THE RECORD, THE OWNER OF
THE RECORD COMPANY,
AND MY NAME. FROM THAT MOMENT ON, PAUL GORESH
WAS JOHN LENNON'S OFFICIAL "UNOFFICIAL"
PHOTOGRAPHER. HE BECAME A FIXTURE
AT THE DAKOTA, DOCUMENTING LENNON'S
COMINGS AND GOINGS WITH DOZENS
OF INFORMAL SNAPSHOTS. DECEMBER 8, 1980,
WAS A DAY LIKE ANY OTHER, UNTIL PAUL GORESH MET
ANOTHER JOHN LENNON FAN NAMED MARK DAVID CHAPMAN. YOU WAITING
FOR LENNON? YEAH. HE SAID,
"I'M WAITING TO GET
MY ALBUM SIGNED." SO I SAID, FINE." HE SAYS TO ME,
"WHERE ARE YOU FROM?" I SAID, "I'M
FROM NEW JERSEY." I SAID, "WHERE
ARE YOU FROM?" HE SAYS,
"I'M FROM HAWAII." I SAID, "WHERE
ARE YOU STAYING?" HE SNAPPED BACK, "WHY
DO YOU WANT TO KNOW?" I WAS TAKEN ABACK, BECAUSE HE'S THE ONE
THAT CAME OVER AND INITIATED
THE CONVERSATION. I DIDN'T WANT TO TALK
TO THIS GUY. I WANTED TO KEEP JOHN
PRETTY MUCH TO MYSELF. I SAID, "LOOK,
LEAVE ME ALONE. I DIDN'T ASK YOU TO
COME AND TALK TO ME." THREE HOURS LATER, JOHN AND YOKO
LEFT THE DAKOTA FOR A STUDIO SESSION. PAUL GORESH AND MARK CHAPMAN
WERE BOTH WAITING. DO YOU HAVE
THOSE PHOTOS? YEAH,
I GOT THEM. ALL RIGHT. ALL RIGHT.
VERY STUDLY. CHAPMAN WALKS UP TO JOHN
AND HOLDS THE ALBUM OUT. WHAT, DO YOU WANT ME
TO SIGN IT? AND JOHN LOOKS AT ME LIKE, YOU KNOW,
THERE'S SOMETHING STRANGE. AND AS HE'S
SIGNING THE ALBUM, I TOOK A PICTURE
OF HIM AND CHAPMAN. AND AFTER HE SIGNS
THE ALBUM, HE TURNS THE ALBUM
TO CHAPMAN AND SAYS, "IS THAT ALL RIGHT?" I TOOK ANOTHER PICTURE
WITH HIS EYEBROWS RAISED. CHAPMAN SAYS, "YEAH,"
AND STEPS BACK, LIKE, JUST BACK AWAY. JOHN TURNED AND
LOOKED AT ME, LIKE,
THAT'S QUITE STRANGE. AS HE WAS GETTING
INTO THE LIMOUSINE, I TOOK ANOTHER
PICTURE OF HIM. AND JOHN GOT
IN THE LIMOUSINE, AND HE WAS SITTING,
LOOKING AT ME. AS THE LIMOUSINE
WAS PULLING AWAY, HE WAVED TO ME. AND I WAVED BACK, AND THAT WAS
THE LAST TIME
I SAW HIM. THE LAST PICTURE
PAUL TOOK THAT NIGHT TURNED OUT TO BE
THE LAST PHOTOGRAPH EVER TAKEN OF JOHN LENNON. FOR MOST OF THE WORLD, THIS PICTURE OF JOHN LENNON
AND MARK CHAPMAN IS THE ONLY
IMPORTANT PICTURE PAUL GORESH EVER TOOK. IRONICALLY, IT MAY BE
THE ONE PHOTOGRAPH PAUL GORESH WOULD LIKE
TO FORGET. FOR HIM,
THE DREAM WAS OVER. IT SEEMS LIKE
A DREAM NOW. IT DEFINITELY SEEMS
LIKE A DREAM NOW, ESPECIALLY 10 YEARS LATER. THAT'S WHY I THANK GOD
FOR THE PICTURES. AND I'M VERY THANKFUL
FOR ALL THE MEMORIES. HE OWED ME NOTHING, BUT HERE'S A MAN
THAT'S SO SPECIAL, AND HE'S BOTHERING TO CARE
A LITTLE ABOUT ME. I'LL ALWAYS REMEMBER THAT. IT'LL ALWAYS BE SPECIAL
BECAUSE HE WAS SO DECENT.
