In His Life: The John Lennon Story
Encyclopedia
In His Life: The John Lennon Story is a television film produced in 2000 by Michael O'Hara Productions and NBC Studios (USA). The film was written by Michael O'Hara and directed by David Carson
.
(Philip McQuillen) as he struggles to become a successful musician in the embryonic stages of British rock and roll
. Lennon goes on to form a number of bands, widening his local audience as he develops, before later joining with Stuart Sutcliffe
(Lee Williams), George Harrison
(Mark Rice-Oxley), Pete Best
(Scot Williams), and Paul McCartney
(Daniel McGowan) to form The Beatles
. The band attract the attention of music promoter Brian Epstein
(Jamie Glover) who engineers their success and fame. However, Sutcliffe and Best are both dropped from the band, to be replaced by Ringo Starr
(Kristian Ealey).
The film focuses on eight years of Lennon's youth, from age 16 to 23, from his teenage years living with his aunt Mimi Smith
, to the early successes of the Beatles. It deals with Lennon's abandonment by his father, the double loss of his mother (first to another family and then to an accident), his introduction to McCartney at St. Peter's Church Hall, his courting and marriage to his first wife, Cynthia (Gillian Kearney), the loss of his best friend Sutcliffe, the birth of his son Julian, and the early popularity of the Beatles in Germany. It includes authentic Liverpudlian landmarks such as the actual house where Lennon grew up, St Peter's Church Hall (where he first met McCartney), the Liverpool Art College and Quarry Bank High School where Lennon was a student, as well as and numerous musical venues where the young Beatles performed.
Also shown are recreated scenes from the Quarrymen, the German era, and the Cavern Club performances. The film ends with the Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show
.
David Carson (director)
David Carson is a British television director. He has directed episodes of many TV series, including The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Smallville, Doogie Howser, M.D., and L.A. Law...
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Plot
Set in Liverpool in the 1950s, this movie concentrates on the early life of John LennonJohn Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
(Philip McQuillen) as he struggles to become a successful musician in the embryonic stages of British rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
. Lennon goes on to form a number of bands, widening his local audience as he develops, before later joining with Stuart Sutcliffe
Stuart Sutcliffe
Stuart Fergusson Victor Sutcliffe was a Scottish artist and musician, best known as the original bass player of The Beatles. Sutcliffe left the band to pursue a career as an artist, having previously attended the Liverpool College of Art...
(Lee Williams), George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
(Mark Rice-Oxley), Pete Best
Pete Best
Pete Best is a British musician, best known as the original drummer in The Beatles. He was born in the city of Madras, British India...
(Scot Williams), and Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
(Daniel McGowan) to form The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
. The band attract the attention of music promoter Brian Epstein
Brian Epstein
Brian Samuel Epstein , was an English music entrepreneur, and is best known for being the manager of The Beatles up until his death. He also managed several other musical artists such as Gerry & the Pacemakers, Billy J. Kramer and the Dakotas, Cilla Black, The Remo Four & The Cyrkle...
(Jamie Glover) who engineers their success and fame. However, Sutcliffe and Best are both dropped from the band, to be replaced by Ringo Starr
Ringo Starr
Richard Starkey, MBE better known by his stage name Ringo Starr, is an English musician and actor who gained worldwide fame as the drummer for The Beatles. When the band formed in 1960, Starr was a member of another Liverpool band, Rory Storm and the Hurricanes. He became The Beatles' drummer in...
(Kristian Ealey).
The film focuses on eight years of Lennon's youth, from age 16 to 23, from his teenage years living with his aunt Mimi Smith
Mimi Smith
Mary Elizabeth "Mimi" Smith was the maternal aunt and parental guardian of the English musician John Lennon. Mimi was born in Liverpool, England and was the oldest of five daughters. She became a resident trainee nurse at the Woolton Convalescent Hospital, and later worked as a private secretary...
, to the early successes of the Beatles. It deals with Lennon's abandonment by his father, the double loss of his mother (first to another family and then to an accident), his introduction to McCartney at St. Peter's Church Hall, his courting and marriage to his first wife, Cynthia (Gillian Kearney), the loss of his best friend Sutcliffe, the birth of his son Julian, and the early popularity of the Beatles in Germany. It includes authentic Liverpudlian landmarks such as the actual house where Lennon grew up, St Peter's Church Hall (where he first met McCartney), the Liverpool Art College and Quarry Bank High School where Lennon was a student, as well as and numerous musical venues where the young Beatles performed.
Also shown are recreated scenes from the Quarrymen, the German era, and the Cavern Club performances. The film ends with the Beatles' first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Ed Sullivan Show is an American TV variety show that originally ran on CBS from Sunday June 20, 1948 to Sunday June 6, 1971, and was hosted by New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan....
.
Cast
- Philip McQuillan as John Lennon
- Blair BrownBlair BrownBonnie Blair Brown is an American theater, film, and television actress. She has had a number of high profile roles, including a Tony Award-winning turn in the play Copenhagen on Broadway, as well as a run as the title character in the television comedy-drama The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd,...
as Lennon's aunt, Mimi Smith - Christine CavanaughChristine CavanaughChristine Cavanaugh is an American former voice actress who had a distinctive speaking style and had provided the voice for a large range of cartoon characters. She is best known as the voice of Babe in the hit film, Babe, Chuckie Finster on Rugrats, and Dexter for the original Dexter's Laboratory...
as Julia Lennon (Lennon's mother) - Gillian KearneyGillian KearneyGillian Louise Kearney is an English actress best known for playing Jessica Harrison in the long-running BBC television medical drama series Casualty, and her early role as Debbie McGrath in Channel 4's Liverpool-based soap opera Brookside and the spin-off mini-series Damon and Debbie.-Early...
as Cynthia (Lennon's first wife) - Daniel McGowan as Paul McCartney
- Mark Rice-Oxley as George Harrison
- Lee Williams as Stuart Sutcliffe
- Jamie GloverJamie GloverJamie Glover is an English actor, known for portraying Andrew Treneman in Waterloo Road.-Background:Born and raised in Barnes, London, Glover is the son of actors Julian Glover and Isla Blair...
as Brian Epstein - Christian Ealey (aka Kristian Ealey) as Ringo Starr
- Scot WilliamsScot WilliamsScot Williams , is an English actor, writer and producer for stage, film and television.As an actor, Williams made his film debut in the 1994 Iain Softley film Backbeat, in which he played the role of The Beatle's original drummer Pete Best...
as Pete Best (the original drummer of the Beatles) - Palina Jonsdottir as Astrid Kirchherr (Stuart Sutcliffe's German girlfriend)
- Michael Ryan as Rory Quinn
- Alex CoxAlex CoxAlexander Cox is a British film director, screenwriter, nonfiction author and sometime actor, notable for his idiosyncratic style and approach to scripts...
as Bruno - Anthony Borrows as young John Lennon
- Paul UsherPaul UsherPaul Usher is an English actor.He was educated at St John Plessington Catholic College, Bebington, and is best known for playing Barry Grant in Brookside, from the first episode until the last , and PC Des Taviner in The Bill from 2001 to 2004.He has also appeared in Liverpool...
as Freddie Lennon
Awards and nominations
The film was nominated for an award in 2001 for "Best Edited Motion Picture for Commercial Television", by the American Cinema Editors.External links
- In His Life: The John Lennon Story at the Internet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie DatabaseInternet Movie Database is an online database of information related to movies, television shows, actors, production crew personnel, video games and fictional characters featured in visual entertainment media. It is one of the most popular online entertainment destinations, with over 100 million...
- In His Life: The John Lennon Story at MoviefoneMoviefoneMoviefone is an American-based movie listing and information service. Moviegoers can obtain local showtimes, theatre information, film reviews, or advance tickets...
- In His Life: The John Lennon Story at Blockbuster Video