It was near impossible to get reliable information about the Beatles or the individuals at the time of, or following their breakup. We knew them mostly from the radio and a bit from TV. I don’t remember they did movies until they aired on TV years later. Anything that appeared in newspapers or magazines about them either related to marketing them or came from sources too remote to be reliable. In those days the only people who would immerse themselves in the breakup story were rabid fans and the stories that came out were tailored to them.
I heard repeatedly in the schoolyard that Yoko broke up the Beatles and I didn’t care enough to form a critical opinion or to make the effort to find out if it was true. It really took the internet with its instant access to tons of materials to get a better sense of what happened. > On Dec 4, 2021, at 8:37 AM, PGage <[email protected]> wrote: > > > There is a great moment when Paul observes how stupid it will seem so in 50 > years that the Beatles broke up because Yoko sat on an amp. Of course that’s > not why they broke up, but like most good relationships that fail it does > later seem stupid. > > What’s magical about this particular moment in Beatle history (January 1969) > is that even though the Let It Be film kind of fixes this as a crisis period, > it really is more of an oasis between crises, when they were still able to > work together and make great music. Things had been worse in 1968, and will > soon get much worse. > > The financial and management issues that will soon add unbearable pressure > are hinted at in the documentary, but one of the biggest pressures that is > not mentioned at all is Lennon (and Ono’s) heroin addiction (though John’s > withdrawal and apathy in part one might easily be a result of this). They had > been fighting like, well, brothers, for more than a decade by this point, but > their conflicts became toxic because heroin addiction made John uninterested, > unpredictable and prone to irrational rages. It was not so much that Paul > couldn’t forgive him for this, but that because of it they could no longer > communicate and resolve their issues. > >> On Sat, 4 Dec 2021 at 1:29 AM 'Dave Sikula' via TVorNotTV >> <[email protected]> wrote: >> We finished it tonight and my main reaction (other than thinking it's >> marvelous) was frustration and sadness that they weren't able to overcome >> their differences (which seem minuscule here, but who knows what was going >> on when the cameras were off?) and continue creating together. I'm not >> thinking they should have been "The Beatles" uninterruptedly until 1980, but >> who knows what occasional reunions might have achieved? >> >> And, yes, Yoko does seem like she's a one-trick pony, and that trick isn't >> very interesting. >> >> --Dave Sikula >> >>> On Friday, December 3, 2021 at 8:57:42 PM UTC-8 PGage wrote: >>> I spent much of my TV-watching time this week binging “Get Back” (it’s >>> closer to 8 hours than 6), and it greatly exceeds my mildly optimistic >>> expectations. I have linked below my favorite review (which is to say, the >>> one I most agree with). >>> >>> It is a stunning achievement, often thrilling, sometimes heartbreaking. It >>> is not precious, and gives us plenty of warts for everyone (except maybe >>> Ringo). Despite the opening sentence of about 4 of the reviews I read, I >>> doubt anyone other than my ten-year old self really thought Yoko broke up >>> the Beatles in any simple way, so I don’t think absolving her of that blame >>> is a major accomplishment. What is a major accomplishment is that I came >>> away from this liking her a little (though still, not her screeching). >>> >>> One of the take homes from this is the possibilities afforded by streaming. >>> I think this was originally going to be a theatrical film, and even a long >>> one would have been little more than a third of what we have here. Perhaps >>> this could have played as a mini-series on HBO, but I doubt it would have >>> the same impact in 8 or even 4 weekly installments, and I suspect most >>> people who watch the whole thing now will see it in a week or two at the >>> most. >>> >>> >>> Sent from Gmail Mobile >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "TVorNotTV" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/f302a399-c57d-4bdc-b871-715cbb91df1bn%40googlegroups.com. > -- > Sent from Gmail Mobile > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "TVorNotTV" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CAKGtkYLH35otpmeFOYHt29JGncva92TqTMnEE7iJuVcbtGK9CA%40mail.gmail.com. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TVorNotTV" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/50F0722F-2304-4FA1-840E-AAC554B8DFD8%40gmail.com.
