Yoko Ono was warned that her late husband John Lennon was “in danger” before his death, according to a new book.
This book We All Shine On: John, Yoko and Me was written by Elliot Mintz, former spokesperson and confidante of Lennon and Ono, who addressed the aftermath of Lennon’s tragic death in and 1980, and the profound impact that it had on his two sons, Sean and Julian.
John Lennon was shot dead by obsessed fan Mark David Chapman on 8 December 1980. The singer was walking towards his apartment at The Dakota in New York, prior to the shooting. Lennon had reportedly signed an autograph for Chapman earlier that day.
Back in 2022, Mark Chapman was denied parole for John Lennon’s murder. More on this here.
“Why was there no warning?”
In an extract taken from The Times, Elliot Mintz claimed that Yoko Ono grew suspicious of those around her and had opened up about how they had a disagreement after he asked to interview her and her son Sean on the radio, to speak about the rumours surrounding the Lennon family.
According to Mintz, Ono told him that she would have to check with her “advisors” who comprised of tarot readers and numerologists.
Elliot Mintz said: “Yoko, let me ask you something. If these advisers are as good as you believe they are, why is it that none of them saw what was going to happen to John? Why was there no warning?”.
“Elliot,” she replied, “How do you know I wasn’t warned? Did you ever ask me if there were warnings?” Mintz added: “OK, I’ll ask you: Did any of your advisers warn you about John being in danger?”.
“Yes,” Ono replied. “I was told he was in danger in New York and that he should be removed immediately. That’s why I sent him to Bermuda over the summer … But I couldn’t keep him away forever. He had to come back at some point”.
John Lennon “wanted to be free” – Yoko Ono
At this point, Yoko Ono’s next response left Elliot Mintz speechless.
According to Mintz, Yoko said: “Look, Elliot. You know how John felt about his own safety. We talked about this at our kitchen table when your friend [the actor Sal Mineo] was killed. John said, ‘If they’re going to get you, they’re going to get you.’ It didn’t matter what my advisers told me. He didn’t believe in bodyguards, he wouldn’t put up with them. He wanted to be free”.
Following John Lennon’s divorce from his first wife Cynthia Powell, Paul McCartney wrote the song ‘Hey Jude’, for their son Julian to help him process the pain of his parents’ split.
Last December, Julian revealed that the song has left him “driven up the wall”, as it serves as a “dark” reminder of the divorce and his father’s tragic death. More on this here.
We All Shine On: John, Yoko and Me, arrived on October 10.
