Julian Lennon and the giant banana
For some reason a conversation I had with Julian Lennon years ago came to mind recently. (Sometimes I wonder if events and places from your distant past flash before your eyes right before they fall off the edge of your memory bank forever. That also happens to me with random intersections in cities I used to live in.)
Anyway we were talking about crazy fans. I told him the story of when I accidentally picked a volunteer out of the crowd at a lecture I was giving, who when I asked their name turned out to be a crazy fan I was actually quite scared of.
But Julian went one better. He told me he was doing a live TV show once in NY, David Letterman or the like. This was not that long after his dad’s death. He was sitting at the piano and in the middle of the song (I think it was ‘Saltwater’) a giant banana came and sat next to him on the piano stool. He assumed this was part of the TV production. But at the end of the song the banana produced a notepad and asked for his autograph. It was just some fan who had walked straight in off the street past Security.
Good tip for rock festivals: nobody asks to see your wristband when you’re dressed as a piece of fruit.
Tell ‘em the Don Henley story you told us just before Ted, Tom
I’ve never been famous (at least never beyond the fleeting status of small town celebrity [pitiful but fun nonetheless]) but I did have one instance where I felt like a star surrounded by crazy fans…
I had just completed my first military tour (OF FOUR) to Iraq. We had flown out of Basrah, Iraq just after midnight and landed in beautiful Ayr, Scotland early in the evening. I had never seen such a beautiful place!! After the heat and dust of Iraq the cool and green of Ayrshire made me feel as if I’d died and gone to heaven! We arrived at our small hotel early in the evening still in uniform and completely exhausted from our tour. Passing cars continually honked at us as we were gathering our luggage from the bus; yet it never occured to me why. I thought they were honking at the bus because it was double parked, but I think the drivers were demonstrating support.
As we entered the hotel lobby we were greeted by cheers from scores of elderly Irish couples who were vacationing in Ayrshire and having drinks at the bar while they waited for their dinner tables to be readied. I hugged old Irish women for nearly an hour as their generous husbands bought us round after round while offering their congratulations. I was so touched by their reception…I truly felt like a hero…I felt like a celebrity–even if just for a short while. And though there were no old ladies in banana suits, I remember thinking to myself: “This is the closest I have ever been to being famous!” And it felt pretty good!
Sounds like that guy had gone completely bananas!!
sorry, just couldn’t pass that one up…
truly odd/scary story… and happening in the same city where your Father was shot dead on the sidewalk had to be pretty unsettling for Jules…
Thanx for sharing the story Thomas!!
C_C
It wasn’t a banana! I was dressed as a PLANTAIN!!!! Sheeeesh!
Dressing up as a banana: One to remember for this gig then
28th September 2010
12 Acklam Road, London W10 5QZ