Lot 14
  • 14

Lennon, John

Estimate
5,000 - 7,000 USD
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Description

  • Lennon, John
  • "Sad Michael", corrected authorial typescript
  • ink on paper
corrections to four words and punctuation added in blue ink, seven words deleted in black ink, one page, large post quarto (10 x 8 in.; 255 x 205 mm, "64 Mill Bond Extra Strong" watermark), pin holes, very slight adhesive marks

Condition

see catalog
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Catalogue Note

This short piece about the "debb and duff" Michael is one of the most personally revealing stories in In his Own Write, where it is published on p.35. Michael is inexplicably sad despite the fact that "everyone liked him, (the scab)" and he "has everything", just as Lennon was beginning to discover that fame did not bring personal happiness, and his description of Michael's fortune in having a wife who is "well controlled" echoes the possessiveness of his own relationship with Cynthia. "Sad Michael" includes the first appearance in print of the phrase "a hard day's night", which was to become the title of the Beatles first film, third studio album, and a song which is often considered (by Ian Macdonald, for example, in Revolution in the Head) as heralding the beginning of the band's period of greatest creativity. Lennon later said that "a hard day's night" was a "Ringoism", a malapropism uttered after an exhausting day's filming on 19 March 1964. As so often with the Beatles, however, memories are hazy: In His Own Write was written before filming on A Hard Day's Night began on 2 March.