John Lennon Was Booed During an Event Where He Was the Guest of Honor 

TL;DR:

• John Lennon wrote a book in 1964.
• During an event to honor him for his writing, the crowd booed John Lennon.
• John Lennon said he could never have made a speech.

John Lennon published the book In His Own Write in 1964. Though some believed his collection of poetry and short stories would be a disaster, it was a commercial and critical success. A bookstore hosted an event and made Lennon the guest of honor. When he broke with tradition by not giving a speech, the crowd turned against him, however.

The Beatle published the book ‘In His Own Write’ in 1964

Not long after The Beatles became internationally successful, Lennon decided to try his hand at a different medium.

“Three weeks after the Beatles began filming A Hard Day’s Night, John’s book In His Own Write was published,” Lennon’s first wife, Cynthia, wrote in her book John. “It was a collection of witticisms, anecdotes, stories and drawings that John had put together over several months. An editor at Jonathan Cape had read some rhymes he had written and had asked him if he could come up with enough for a small book, and John was thrilled.”

She said that Lennon pulled from a number of inspirations to write the book.

“For weeks he was jotting and drawing, totally absorbed in it. He had always been a fan of The Goon Show, a satirical radio programme then at the height of its popularity,” Cynthia explained, adding, “He and Stuart Sutcliffe used to fool around for hours, imitating the Goons, Peter Sellers (John’s favourite), Spike Milligan, Harry Secombe and Michael Bentine.”

She noted that he was inventive in his style of writing.

“He loved their offbeat humour, and it’s easy to see their influence in John’s own writings,” she said. “He loved playing with words, turning them inside out, experimenting with their flexibility and inventing malapropisms.”

The crowd booed John Lennon at an event in honor of his book

Lennon’s bandmate, Paul McCartney, helped him come up with the title, In His Own Write, and also wrote the book’s introduction. Lennon didn’t expect much, but the book was successful.

“The book was an immediate bestseller,” Cynthia explained. “Bookshops that had ordered only a few copies demanded more and it was reprinted twice in the week it came out. John was pleased if bemused by the attention it got, and even more so when we heard that a Foyle’s Literary Luncheon had been arranged in his honour at London’s Dorchester Hotel. A Foyle’s luncheon was a great accolade for any author, and for John’s the demand for tickets was unparalleled.”

Lennon and Cynthia didn’t realize how big a deal the luncheon was, so they stayed out late the night before. She explained that they woke up with “appalling hangovers” and had to rush to get there on time. Though Cynthia felt nervous, she said she finally started to relax until she realized that Lennon had to give a speech.  

“I looked at John and my heart went out to him,” she wrote. “He was ashen and totally unprepared. Never lost for words in private, a public speech was beyond him — let alone to a crowd of literary top dogs, with a hangover.”

Lennon stood and gave an eight-word speech: “Thank you very much, it’s been a pleasure.” The audience didn’t hide their disappointment. Typically, guests of honor gave much longer speeches.

“There were gasps and shouts of ‘shame! shame!’ last week at Foyle’s literary luncheon when the guest of honor broke with tradition and refused to make a speech,” read a 1964 article in The New York Times. 

John Lennon said he could never have made a speech, even if this meant getting booed

Afterward, Lennon shared that despite his level of fame, he didn’t feel comfortable giving a speech.

“I would have died,” he told the Times. “I might be able to give a speech when I’m 40.”

One of the attendees believed Lennon should have given the speech despite his jitters.

“I think it was very bad of Lennon not to speak,” author A.P. Herbert said. “Very feeble. A poor show.”