On this Day
On this Day 1980: Murder of John Lennon boosts his record sales
OTD, December 9th, 1980…
Anne Diamond spoke to Roger Reynolds, a record shop manager from Birmingham, about the effect on album sales following the murder of John Lennon. Reynolds confirmed that the music store was selling more Beatles and Lennon albums, including his final one, Double Fantasy, since news came through of his murder in America two days earlier.
On 8 December 1980, in New York, around 5 pm (EST), Lennon signed a copy of Double Fantasy for Mark David Chapman before he and Ono departed The Dakota for a recording session at the Record Plant.
Later that evening, after the session, Lennon and Ono returned to The Dakota via limousine at approximately 10:50 pm (EST). Exiting the vehicle, they walked through the building’s archway where Chapman shot Lennon four times at close range. Lennon was immediately taken to Roosevelt Hospital in a police cruiser and was declared dead upon arrival at quarter-past-eleven. (EST).
