New photos of Beatles' John Lennon appear after 40 yearsShould be a wonderful set of photos -- an interesting time in our history. Posted by DaveH at March 12, 2010 1:44 PM
The extraordinary photos of the musician and Yoko Ono, taken during their famous Bed-in for Peace in Montreal in 1969, snapped by Life photographer Gerry Deiter.
He was the only photojournalist allowed to witness and document the bed-in for the full eight days and managed to capture pictures of the couple totally off-guard.
But his story about them, due to run in Life magazine, was ditched at the last minute for an article on the Vietnam war.
Since the photographer's death in 2005, the unpublished photos were hidden away until this week, when they go on exhibition for the first time in Coventry Cathedral, West Mids, on Saturday.
Lennon and Yoko flew to Montreal on May 26 where they stayed in Room 1738 and 1742 at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel, writing and recording the song Give Peace a Chance from their bedroom.
Nick Chevasse, the Cathedral's tourist director, said the photos had only recently been unearthed.
He said "Gerry Deiter was the only photojournalist there the entire eight days, with complete access.
"He was on assignment for Life magazine, but his story was bumped in favour for one about Vietnam.
"The photos were never published, they never ran, so Deiter hid them away.
"This is why many of the images are not familiar, even to Lennon fans - they have never been seen before by anybody.
"He captured the celebrity visitors, the action and intimate, behind the scenes moments between John and Yoko."
Thanks so much for picking up on the Telegraph item. I am the curator for the exhibition and I hope that the folks at the Experience Music Museum in Seattle will want to have the exhibition there next year. Drop them a line! The photographer was born in Brooklyn, and in 1968 headed north to Montreal where Life assigned him to cover the story. He spent the last 30 years of his life on the West Coast working and living aboard the MV Luigi. I have a book which is on Amazon and Indigo - Give Peace A Chance: John and Yoko's Bed-in for Peace 1969 (Wiley) by Joan Athey. Yes - as you observe, an interesting time in OUR history. And the message of peace even more relevant today. Cheers!
Posted by: PeaceworksNow` at March 12, 2010 7:04 PM