Tuesday, December 9, 1980. I was nine years old. It was approximately 3:00 in the afternoon and it was overcast. Actually, it was more than overcast -- very dark and dreary. Typical Newell, WV weather for that time of year. I was on my way home from school and the crossing guard said, “Isn’t awful? John Lennon’s dead!” At first I thought she was joking and after I expressed my disbelief, she was adamant he’d died. She was probably also surprised that a kid of nine would even care, but I had been listening to my brother’s Beatles albums and was, by all definitions, a fan. I will never forget walking the rest of the way home looking down at the old bricks that paved the way. Shocked.
When I got home, mom had the radio on and they played Beatles and Lennon songs all day long. It was true. John Lennon was dead.
He was murdered the night before, but I didn’t learn of it until the next day. Most of the kids my age probably didn’t even know who he was so it wasn’t talked about during school. I will never forget those words from the crossing guard. Isn’t awful? John Lennon’s dead!
When friends and family, and even celebrities, suffer with an illness and finally die, it isn’t much of a shock. In many cases it’s a blessing. Such was the case recently with Farrah Fawcett.
However, when somebody dies suddenly it becomes seared into our memories. No doubt many people are going to remember specific details about the day they learned of Michael Jackson’s death. The time of day, where they were, who told them, what they were wearing, and so on.
So here’s the question: What celebrity death do you remember the most? For me it is obviously John Lennon, but I also vividly recall Lucille Ball and Rock Hudson.
