The Andy Warhol Diaries Netflix series features previously unseen 1978 footage of John Lennon. Although there have been several photos — including a contact sheet — of Lennon at Warhol's Factory on February 17th, 1978 — the new six-part series features the briefest clip of Lennon, laughing and posing with Liza Minelli.
Kevin Draper, one of New York City's most respected historians and the co-founder of New York Historical Tours, explained to us why the airing of the footage nearly 45 years after the fact remains so important: “So, if you look at New York City in the late-'60s, early-'70s, we were literally at the worst point in our entire 400-year history. But by 1977 going into '78 and the late-'70s, New York City was at the beginnings of the comeback that we're still seeing today, making us the greatest city in the world again. And a lot of that had to do with our art, and culture, and music. And there were no two bigger people living in New York City than John Lennon and Andy Warhol.”
Draper explained that although there have been home movie clips of the then-semi-retired Lennon on vacation in Japan and the Cayman Islands in Caribbean — seeing new footage, however brief, of the former-Beatle socializing in Manhattan is almost beyond belief: “The thing about a year like 1978 — even though Lennon was very much out and about — not sitting home in the Dakota all day long — he was hanging out with people like Andy Warhol. (Until now) there's no footage of it. No film footage of this incredible moment in New York City history. So, the fact that this has been found, it really is incredible, because it documents one of the most important times in the 20th century for New York City.”
Kevin Draper has led historical talks and lectures for top universities and Fortune 500 companies and is a respected historical consultant for major media and publications including CBS, ABC, Bloomberg, The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. For more info, log on to: https://www.newyorkhistoricaltours.com/