E310. The Day I Met John & Yoko: Final Hours with a Legend

·1 hr 21 min·5 clips

Lori Kay recounts the day she interviewed John Lennon and Yoko Ono, hours before he was shot and killed.

Bridget Phetasy hosts Lori Kay on Walk-Ins Welcome to discuss her memoir about John Lennon's last interview. Lori explains that the interview with Lennon and Yoko Ono at the Dakota on December 8, 1980, was meant to be the best day of her life but turned into the worst after Lennon was shot hours later. She details how Lennon encouraged her to write a book by asking for an autographed copy. Lori describes the interview itself: Lennon was jovial, sat close to her, and joked about a toy dragon she brought for his son Sean. She reveals that decades later, Sean Lennon confirmed he received and loved the toy. Lori shares her guilt over the interview date being set by Yoko's astrologer based on their birthdays and a creepy man who followed her afterward, whom she suspects may have been the shooter. She discusses processing this guilt in therapy but still carrying it. Lori's background includes a difficult childhood with an abusive mother and stepfather, which led her to escape into music. She won Rolling Stones tickets from a radio contest, which sparked her career in radio journalism. Lori worked at RKO, created a Beatles special, and interviewed numerous rock stars like David Bowie, Mick Jagger, and Little Richard. She transitioned from radio to print and TV production, including work for Dick Clark. Lori talks about her current life in Los Angeles and Joshua Tree, promoting her book independently. The episode covers themes of trauma, creativity, and the analog-to-digital shift in music and relationships.

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