Lennon, John (Winston)

(born Oct. 9, 1940, Liverpool, Merseyside, Eng.—died Dec. 8, 1980, New York, N.Y., U.S.) British singer and songwriter. He wanted to be a sailor like his father but became a musician after hearing Elvis Presley's recordings. In 1957 he formed the band that became the Beatles, and in the 1960s he achieved enormous success performing with the group and writing songs with Paul McCartney. In the mid-1960s he began working on side projects in film and music, notably with the Japanese-U.S. avant-garde artist Yoko Ono (b. 1933), whom he married in 1969. Their political activism and social ideals were reflected in much of Lennon's early solo work, including the hit “Imagine,” and attracted the attention of the U.S. government, which sought to have him deported. After 1975 he withdrew from public life; he and Ono returned with the album shortly before his murder by a deranged fan. His sons, Julian (b. 1963) and Sean (b. 1975), also became musicians.

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