The Heartbreaking Events After John Lennon Was Killed

It started like any other Monday—December 8, 1980. People were heading to work, getting ready for the holidays, and football fans were hyped for that night’s Dolphins vs. Patriots game. Even Bloom County, a soon-to-be iconic comic strip, made its debut that morning. But by the end of the day, everything changed.

That was the day Mark David Chapman, a 25-year-old from Honolulu, did the unthinkable. After spending hours outside the Dakota in New York City, he shot and killed John Lennon—the man who asked us all to “Give Peace a Chance.” Just hours earlier, Lennon had even signed an autograph for Chapman.

The news of Lennon’s death sent shockwaves around the world, leaving fans, friends, and the music industry in disbelief. To this day, Chapman’s motives remain murky. But one thing is clear: that single act shook the world and changed how we think about fame, violence, and music forever.

John Lennon Was Nearly Spared by a Twist of Timing

Mark David Chapman was clearly disturbed, but John Lennon might have lived if fate had played out just a little differently—and if Chapman hadn’t read two particular books. One was The Catcher in the Rye, which he became obsessed with, relating to Holden Caulfield’s hatred of “phonies.” The other was John Lennon: One Day at a Time by Anthony Fawcett, which, as Chapman said during a 2000 parole hearing, convinced him that Lennon was “a hypocrite,” a man who preached peace and “no possessions” while living lavishly.

Chapman first flew to New York months before the murder but backed out. “The urges started building in me again to do this crime,” he later admitted to The New York Times. “I flew back to New York on December 6th and checked into a hotel, and then on the day of December 8, stayed outside the Dakota waiting for him with intent to shoot and kill him.” Ironically, Chapman almost missed Lennon completely that day—telling CNN he was chatting with fans as Lennon quietly slipped by into the building.

His Final Photo Shoot Captured an Iconic Goodbye

Later that morning, famed Rolling Stones photographer Annie Leibovitz arrived at the Dakota for what would become John Lennon’s final photo shoot. She was working on a Rolling Stone cover story highlighting Lennon’s return to music after five years away to focus on family. “John came to the door in a black leather jacket,” she told Smithsonian Magazine. “He had that early Beatle look… I was thrown a little bit by it.”

Leibovitz, inspired by the black-and-white kiss on the Double Fantasy album cover, wanted to capture something just as raw and intimate. “In 1980, it felt like romance was dead,” she said. Originally, she pitched the idea of photographing Lennon and Yoko Ono nude. “It wasn’t a stretch… because they did it all the time,” she recalled. But when Ono declined, Leibovitz quickly shifted to a bold alternative: Lennon, naked, curled around a clothed Ono.

A test Polaroid sealed the deal. Lennon loved it instantly. That hauntingly tender image—intimate, strange, and full of emotion—became not only the Rolling Stone cover, but the last professional photo ever taken of him.

His Last Interview Was Full of Hope for the Future

After wrapping up his final photo shoot, John Lennon sat down for an interview with Dave Sholin of RKO Radio for a syndicated music show. They talked for nearly two hours, and Lennon was surprisingly upbeat about what was ahead. “I hope the young kids like [Double Fantasy] as well, but I’m really talking to the people who grew up with me,” Lennon said. “And saying, ‘Here I am now. How are you? How’s your relationship goin’? Did you get through it all? Wasn’t the ’70s a drag, you know? Here we are, well, let’s try to make the eighties good, you know?’ ’Cause it’s still up to us to make what we can of it.”

He also reflected on his legacy with eerie honesty: “I consider that my work won’t be finished until I’m dead and buried, and I hope that’s a long, long time.” Sholin later recalled the powerful connection between Lennon and Ono: “They would look at each other with an intense connection. No words had to be spoken.” After the interview, Lennon asked Sholin for a ride to the studio—unaware that his next interaction would be with his killer.

He Calmly Signed an Autograph for the Man Who Would Kill Him

As John Lennon stepped out of the Dakota that afternoon, he was approached by two familiar faces—one with a camera, the other with a sinister secret. Amateur photographer Paul Goresh had met Lennon before and was showing him some recent shots. Meanwhile, Mark David Chapman stood quietly nearby, holding a copy of Double Fantasy for Lennon to sign. As strange as it sounds now, the interaction was surprisingly normal.

“He was very kind to me,” Chapman later admitted at a 2012 parole hearing, according to the Times-Union. “Ironically, very kind, and he was patient with me. The limousine was waiting, his wife was waiting in the limousine, and he took his time with me… He asked me if I needed anything else. I said, ‘No. No, sir,’ and he walked away.”

Chapman said the moment gave him second thoughts—briefly. “There was an inner struggle… but I was so compelled to commit that murder that nothing would have dragged me away.”

John and Yoko Headed to the Studio for What Would Be His Last Recording Session

That night, John Lennon and Yoko Ono made their way to the Record Plant to put the finishing touches on a song that had been nagging at Lennon: “Walking On Thin Ice.” With Ono on lead vocals, the dance-driven track had been left off Double Fantasy due to production delays. But just a week earlier, Lennon had revived the project, asking session guitarist Hugh McCracken to rework the guitar part—and even recorded a fiery solo himself that brought the track to life.

Working with producer Jack Douglas, Lennon spent the evening finalizing the mix. When they got it just right, he turned to Yoko and said, “From now on, we’re just gonna do this,” adding, “This is the direction!” He believed she’d just cut her first No. 1—and he wasn’t wrong. In 2003, the remixed version topped the U.S. dance charts. As Ono later wrote in the liner notes: “I hope you like it, John. I did my best.”

John Lennon’s Final Return to the Dakota

After wrapping up the mix on “Walking on Thin Ice” around 10:30 p.m., John Lennon told producer Jack Douglas they might grab something to eat before heading home. According to The New York Times, Lennon and Yoko Ono returned to the Dakota about 10:45 p.m., choosing—for reasons unknown—to use a side entrance near the lobby attendant’s office instead of the main courtyard.

Waiting in the shadows was Mark David Chapman. In a CNN interview, he recalled, “I was sitting on the inside of the arch of the Dakota Building. And it was dark. It was windy… I see this limousine pull up… I knew that was his. And I said, this is it, and I stood up.” He added, “Yoko got out. John was far behind… I nodded to Yoko… John came out, and he looked at me, and I think he recognized, here’s the fellow that I signed the album [for] earlier, and he walked past me.”

Chapman Fires the Shots That Shook the World

According to eyewitnesses and Mark David Chapman’s own account to CNN, he stood up from his spot near the Dakota’s archway, called out “Mr. Lennon!” and fired five hollow-point bullets from a .38 revolver into John Lennon’s back. One missed, but the others hit — two in his shoulder, and two more that fatally damaged his lung and major arteries near his heart. Yoko Ono fled around the corner at the sound of gunfire, only to return when she realized John wasn’t behind her. Lennon, still conscious, managed to stumble inside and tell the doorman, “I’m shot.”

During a 2019 parole hearing, Chapman revealed his motive for choosing such deadly ammunition. “I secured those bullets to make sure he would be dead,” he said, as reported by Mass Live. “It was immediately after the crime that I was concerned that he did not suffer.”

Chapman Waited Calmly with a Book After the Shooting

Right after the shots were fired, Mark David Chapman stood still, revolver in hand, in what he later described as a shift from calm to complete shock. According to The Washington Post, doorman Jose Perdomo ran up to him in tears and asked, “Do you know what you just did?” Chapman replied coldly, “I just shot John Lennon.” Not knowing the gun was empty, Perdomo managed to knock it from Chapman’s hand and kick it away, as reported by Fox 61.

Then, in a surreal turn, Chapman pulled out his worn copy of The Catcher in the Rye and started reading while waiting for the police. Inside the book, on the front page, he had written a chilling message that would echo through history: “This is my statement.”

John Lennon Didn’t Make It to the Hospital

In a 2020 interview with The New York Post, Officer Peter Cullen recalled the surreal scene at the Dakota that night: Mark Chapman calmly reading a book, doorman Jose Perdomo yelling, and Yoko Ono overwhelmed with panic. Cullen’s partner Steve Spiro tackled Chapman and cuffed him, while Cullen spotted Lennon face down, bleeding from the mouth. Realizing an ambulance would take too long, Officers Tony Palma and Herb Frauenberger loaded Lennon into their squad car and sped toward Roosevelt Hospital.

Chapman didn’t resist arrest. “He was docile,” Cullen said. “He apologized to us for ruining our night. I turned around and said to him, ‘You’ve got to be f****** kidding me. You’re worried about our night? Do you know what you just did to your life?’”

Lennon was still barely alive when they left the Dakota. “[Yoko] asked if John would be alright,” Frauenberger recalled. “I told her, ‘He’s going to the best hospital in New York City.’” Tragically, Lennon’s injuries were too severe. He died on the way, despite 45 minutes of attempted resuscitation.

Yoko Broke the News to Sean—A Producer Helped Break the Story

While John Lennon was rushed into the ER, Alan Weiss—an injured news producer from WABC-TV—was lying nearby after a motorcycle accident. At first, he assumed the man being rushed past him was just another victim of a city crime. But that changed fast. “The two cops come out, and they’re literally standing right by my bed, over my head,” Weiss told The News-Times. “And one cop says to the other, ‘Can you believe it, John Lennon?’”

Still dazed, Weiss immediately went into reporter mode. He phoned his editor and then jumped on a call with ABC Radio, helping deliver one of the biggest breaking stories in music history. Later, he worried that young Sean Lennon might hear the news on TV first. But according to The Guardian, a hospital official confirmed that a media blackout was kept in place—giving Yoko time to tell Sean herself.

Howard Cosell Broke the News to America During Monday Night Football

On the night of December 8, 1980, millions were watching the Dolphins and Patriots battle it out during Monday Night Football. Then came a moment that stunned the nation. Legendary broadcaster Howard Cosell didn’t want to break the tragic news on live TV, but his co-host Frank Gifford urged him: “You’ve got to. If we know it, we’ve got to do it … Don’t hang on it. It’s a tragic moment, and this is going to shake up the entire world,” as recalled in ESPN’s Outside the Lines (via Newsday).

So with just three seconds left in the tied game, Cosell delivered the devastating update:
“Yes, we have got to say it. Remember, this is just a football game, no matter who wins or loses. An unspeakable tragedy … John Lennon, outside of his apartment building … shot twice in the back … Dead on arrival.”

The Beatles—and the World—Never Fully Healed

Just three days after John Lennon’s death, Yoko Ono opened up to The Washington Post about the crushing moment she had to tell their five-year-old son the news. “I told Sean what happened,” she said. “I showed him the picture of his father on the cover of the paper and explained the situation. I took Sean to the spot where John lay after he was shot. Sean wanted to know why the person shot John if he liked John. I explained that he was probably a confused person.”

Lennon’s death left a hole in the hearts of his fans, and even more so in his bandmates. Paul McCartney, reflecting in 2020, admitted to NME, “It’s very difficult for me … I occasionally will have thoughts and sort of say, ‘I don’t know, why don’t I just break down crying every day?’ Because it’s that bad.”

On December 14, 1980, people around the world honored Lennon with a silent tribute, stepping away from his music just long enough to say goodbye.