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May Pang
May Fung Yee Pang
Born (1950-10-24) October 24, 1950 (age 74)
Manhattan, New York
Occupation(s)Personal assistant, production coordinator, jewellery designer and author
Known forprofessional and personal relationship with John Lennon
SpouseTony Visconti (1989 to 2000)
ChildrenSebastian, Lara
Websitewww.maypang.com, www.maypang-amin.com

May Fung Yee Pang (龐鳳儀 / 庞凤仪) (born October 24, 1950) is best known as the former girlfriend of John Lennon. She had previously worked as a personal assistant and production coordinator for Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono.

In 1973, Lennon and Ono separated, and Lennon and Pang had a relationship that lasted over 18 months, which Lennon later referred to as his "Lost Weekend." Pang produced two books about their relationship: a memoir called Loving John (Warner, 1983) and a book of photographs, Instamatic Karma (St. Martins, 2008).

Pang was married to producer Tony Visconti from 1989 to 2000 and had two children, Sebastian and Lara.

Early years

Pang is the daughter of Chinese immigrants and grew up in New York's Spanish Harlem area with an older sister and an adopted brother (both of whom were born in China).[1] Pang's mother had a laundry business in the area, but the Pang family left when the tenements where they lived were scheduled to be torn down, and moved to an apartment near 97th Street and 3rd Avenue, in Manhattan.[1]

After graduating from Saint Michael Academy, Pang attended the New York City Community College. She wanted to be a model, but was told she was too "ethnic" by the modeling agencies.[2] Pang's early jobs included being a song-plugger, which meant encouraging artists to record them.[1] In 1970, she began work in New York as a receptionist at ABKCO Records, Allen Klein's management office, which at that time represented Apple Records and three former Beatles: Lennon, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr.[3][4]

Pang was asked to help Lennon and Ono with their avant-garde film projects, Up Your Legs Forever and Fly, in December 1970.[2] Pang was then asked to be Lennon and Ono's secretary and factotum/gofer in New York and England, which led to a permanent position as their personal assistant when the Lennons moved from London to New York in 1971.[5] Pang coordinated an art exhibition in Syracuse, New York, on 9 October 1971, for Ono's This Is Not Here art show at the Everson Museum.[6] Ono's show coincided with Lennon's 31st birthday, and a party was held at the Hotel Syracuse, which was attended by Ringo Starr, Phil Spector, and Elliot Mintz, among others.[6]

The Lost Weekend

Lennon called his 18-month relationship with Pang his "Lost Weekend", a reference to the film and novel of the same name.[7]

In summer 1973, Pang was working on the recording of Lennon's Mind Games album. Lennon and Ono were having marital problems and decided to separate, and Ono suggested to Pang that she become Lennon's companion.[4][8] Ono explained that she and Lennon were not getting along, had been arguing and were growing apart, and said that Lennon would start seeing other women. She pointed out that Lennon had said he found Pang sexually attractive. Pang replied that she could never start a relationship with Lennon as he was her employer and married. Ono ignored Pang's protests and said that she would arrange everything.[9] Ono later confirmed this conversation in an interview.[10] In October 1973, Lennon and Pang left New York for Los Angeles to promote Mind Games, and decided to stay for a while, living at the homes of friends.[2]

While there, Lennon was inspired to embark on two recording projects: to make an album of the old rock 'n' roll songs that inspired him to become a musician, and to produce another artist. In December 1973, Lennon collaborated with Phil Spector to record the oldies album. The alcohol-fueled recording sessions became legendary. Every musician in L.A. wanted to participate, but soon Lennon's drinking and Spector's erratic behavior (which included his firing a loaded gun in the studio control room) caused the sessions to break down. Then Spector, who claimed to have been in a car accident, took the sessions tapes and was unreachable.

In March 1974, Lennon began producing Harry Nilsson's Pussy Cats album, thus named to counter the "bad boy" image the pair had earned in the media with two drinking incidents at The Troubadour: the first when Lennon placed a Kotex on his forehead and scuffled with a waitress and, two weeks later, when Lennon and Nilsson were ejected from the same club after heckling the Smothers Brothers.[11]

Lennon thought it would be a good idea for the musicians to live under one roof to ensure they would get to the studio on time, so Pang rented a beach house in Santa Monica, for her, Lennon, Nilsson, Ringo Starr and Keith Moon to live in.[12] At this time, Pang encouraged Lennon to reach out to family and friends. He and Paul McCartney mended fences and played together for the first and only time after the breakup of The Beatles (see A Toot and a Snore in '74). Pang also arranged for Julian Lennon to visit his father for the first time in four years.[13]

Julian began to see his father more regularly. Lennon bought Julian a Gibson Les Paul guitar and a drum machine for Christmas in 1973, and encouraged Julian's interest in music by showing him some chords.[14][15] “Dad and I got on a great deal better then,” recalls Julian. “We had a lot of fun, laughed a lot and had a great time in general when he was with May Pang. My memories of that time with Dad and May are very clear—they were the happiest time I can remember with them.”[16]

In June 1974, Lennon and Pang returned to live in New York City. Lennon stopped drinking and concentrated on recording. As Lennon had previously had cats in Liverpool—while living at his aunt Mimi's house—he and Pang adopted two cats which they named Major and Minor.[17][18] In the early summer, while Lennon was working on his Walls and Bridges album, the couple moved into a penthouse apartment at 434 East 52nd Street, where Lennon and Pang claim to have seen a UFO on 23 August 1974, from their terrace, which had a panoramic view of east New York. To gain access to the deck Lennon and Pang had to climb out of their kitchen window.[19] On the night in question, a naked Lennon excitedly called Pang to join him on outside and they both watched a circular object silently floating less than 100 feet away.[17] Lennon called Bob Gruen—Lennon's "official" photographer—and told him what had happened. Gruen suggested Lennon should call the police, but Lennon laughed it off, saying, "I’m not going to call up the newspaper and say, 'This is John Lennon and I saw a flying saucer last night'". Gruen called the local police precinct which confirmed that three other people had reported a sighting, and the Daily News said that five people had reported a sighting in the same area of New York where Lennon and Pang lived.[17]

Walls and Bridges rose to the top spot on the album charts. Lennon achieved the only number one single in his lifetime with "Whatever Gets You Thru the Night". Pang's is the voice whispering Lennon's name on "#9 Dream". Another song, "Surprise, Surprise (Sweet Bird of Paradox)", was written about her.[7] Julian played drums on the album's last track, "Ya Ya".[20][21]

While recording Walls and Bridges, Al Coury, vice president of promotion for Capitol Records, got possession of the chaotic Spector session tapes and brought them to New York. Lennon would complete his oldies album, which would be called Rock 'n' Roll, with the same musicians he used on Walls and Bridges.

Pang received an RIAA gold record award for her work on Walls and Bridges and continued her work as production coordinator of Lennon's Rock 'n' Roll album, where she was credited as "Mother Superior". Pang also worked on albums by Nilsson, Starr, Elton John and David Bowie.[2]

While visiting Mick Jagger in Montauk, New York (part of The Hamptons area), Lennon and Pang saw a Scottish-style cottage that was for sale—which was close to the Montauk Point Lighthouse. Lennon asked a real estate broker to put in an offer for it in February 1975.[22][23] Lennon and Pang were also planning on visiting McCartney and Linda in New Orleans in February 1975, where McCartney was recording the Venus and Mars album, but Lennon reconciled with Ono the day before the planned visit, after Ono said she had a new cure for Lennon's smoking habit.[24][25]

Although Lennon would lament this period, he did not do so in private. Journalist Larry Kane, who befriended Lennon in 1964, wrote a comprehensive biography of Lennon which detailed the "Lost Weekend" period. In the interview with Kane, Lennon explained his feelings about his time with Pang: "You know Larry, I may have been the happiest I've ever been... I loved this woman (Pang), I made some beautiful music and I got so fucked up with booze and shit and whatever."[26][27]

Pang's books about Lennon

File:Loving John.jpg
The cover of Loving John.
File:Instamtic Karma Cover.jpg
The cover of Instamatic Karma (a title that combines "Instamatic" and "Instant Karma!")

After Lennon went back to Ono, Pang started working for United Artists Records and Island Records as a PR manager, working on albums by Bob Marley and Robert Palmer.

Pang published her memoir, Loving John, in 1983. It was later updated and re-named, John Lennon: The Lost Weekend. The original 500-page Loving John book focused more on Pang's role on Lennon's albums and sessions.[7] It was edited down to 300 pages, concentrating mostly on the sensational aspects of their relationship. It also included postcards that Lennon had written to Pang during his travels throughout the world in the late 70s. Pang claims that she and Lennon remained lovers until 1977, and stayed in contact until his death.[28]

Pang's book of photographs, Instamatic Karma, was published in 2008.[29][30] Besides the candid personal portraits, the book contains some historically important photographs, such as Lennon signing the official dissolution of the Beatles partnership, and the last known photograph of Lennon and Paul McCartney together. Cynthia Lennon also provided a back cover endorsement, acknowledging Pang's role in reuniting Lennon with his estranged first son, Julian.

Personal life

Pang married record producer Tony Visconti in 1989; the couple divorced in 2000.[1] They had two children, Sebastian and Lara. She remains in touch with some of the people from her time with Lennon, and was invited by Paul McCartney to the memorial service for Linda McCartney.[31] She was an invited guest at The Concert for George in 2002, and remains close to Cynthia Lennon, her husband Noel Charles, and Lennon's first son, Julian Lennon.[31][32]

Although having had no contact for 20 years, on 9 October 2006 Pang accidentally met Ono in Iceland, on what would have been Lennon's 66th birthday. Ono was in Iceland to unveil a sculpture in Reykjavík, and was staying in the same hotel.[7]

Pang is currently living with her children in upstate New York, and produces a line of stainless steel Feng Shui jewelry.[33] Pang is a volunteer for an animal shelter called Animal Haven in New York, and the owner of a dog rescued after Hurricane Katrina.[34]

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d "May Pang is a legend in the Rock n' Roll world". Asiancemagazine. 2003-09-01. Retrieved 2008-01-18.
  2. ^ a b c d Harry (1990) Cite error: The named reference "HarryLennonEncyclopedia" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Abkco web page". Abkco. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  4. ^ a b Grant, Peter (2005-04-04). "My love for 'lost' Lennon". Liverpool Echo. Retrieved 2008-01-08.
  5. ^ "1970s". The Liverpool Lennons. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  6. ^ a b James, Gary. "Gary James' Interview With John Lennon's Girlfriend, May Pang". Classic Bands. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  7. ^ a b c d White, Dave. "Lennon's "Lost Weekend" Lover". About, Classic Rock. Retrieved 2008-01-10. Cite error: The named reference "InterviewMayPang" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  8. ^ Williams, Precious (2002-05-19). "Eternal flame". Scotland on Sunday. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  9. ^ Brenda Giuliano, Geoffrey Giuliano. "Press Release Interview with May Pang". Google Books. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  10. ^ Kane (2005) p70
  11. ^ Hamill, Pete (June 5, 1975). "The John Lennon Rolling Stone Interview". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-08-29.
  12. ^ Gilmore, Mikal (December 5, 2005). "Lennon Lives Forever". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2007-09-07.
  13. ^ Lennon (2006) pp336-340
  14. ^ "Memorabilia: The Julian Lennon Collection". Lennon.net. Retrieved 2007-08-28.
  15. ^ Lennon (2006) p345
  16. ^ Brooks, Richard (2009-06-13). "Julian Lennon gives family peace a chance". The Times. London. Retrieved 2010-05-12.
  17. ^ a b c Warren, Larry. "There's UFOs Over New York and John Lennon Wasn't Too Surprised". UFO Evidence. Retrieved 2010-8-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  18. ^ "John Lennon and May Pang". kamasutra. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  19. ^ "A history of UFOs". Pilot online. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  20. ^ Gerson, Ben (1974-11-21). "Wall and Bridges LP". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2008-02-28.
  21. ^ Lennon (2006) p344
  22. ^ "Pang reveals her side of affair with John Lennon". Beatles Unlimited. 2007-11-21. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  23. ^ "Pang reveals her side of affair with John Lennon". 2007-11-19. Retrieved 2008-01-13.
  24. ^ Friedman, Roger (2001-09-05). "Beatles: Lennon planned to meet McCartney in 1974". Fox News. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
  25. ^ "Sweet Bird of Paradox". Angelfire. Retrieved 2008-01-12.
  26. ^ "Lennon Revealed". Retrieved 2007-08-29.
  27. ^ Kane (2005) p237
  28. ^ Lennon (2006) p379
  29. ^ Friedman, Roger (2007-08-07). "John Lennon: Pictures Without Music". Fox News. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
  30. ^ "Instamatic Karma". Amazon. Retrieved 2008-01-11.
  31. ^ a b Friedman, Roger (2001-09-25). "Lennon Planned to Visit McCartney In 1974:". Fox News. Retrieved 2007-08-16. Cite error: The named reference "fox news" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  32. ^ "Cynthia's New Bio Called "John"". Retrieved 2007-08-15.
  33. ^ "Feng Shui Jewelry by May Pang:". Retrieved 2007-08-28.
  34. ^ Haught, Lori (2006-12-15). "Getting Fifi to pay for abandoned mutts' care". Downtown Express. Retrieved 2008-01-11.

References

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