Reviving the 145;Lost Weekend146;

May Pang, the one-time girlfriend of John Lennon, presents unpublished photos in her new book

If there8217;s one thing May Pang has been fighting for the last 28 years, it8217;s the idea that John Lennon was depressed and out of control during the 18 months she lived with him, from the summer of 1973 to early 1975, when he reconciled with his second wife, Yoko Ono.

Lennon himself fostered that notion by referring to the time as his 8220;Lost Weekend8221; in interviews he gave in 1980, when he released Double Fantasy, a joint album with Ono that was his return to music-making after five years8217; silence.

But to Pang, now 57, the 8220;Lost Weekend8221; was a remarkably productive time, during which Lennon completed three albums8212;Mind Games, Walls and Bridges and Rock 8217;n8217; Roll8212;produced albums for Ringo Starr and Harry Nilsson, and recorded with David Bowie, Elton John and Mick Jagger. And having detailed these experiences in Loving John, her 1983 memoir, Pang has returned with the photographic evidence.

Her new book, Instamatic Karma is a 140-page collection of casual photos that Pang took during her time with Lennon. Apart from a handful included in Loving John she has kept them in a shoe box in her closet. 8220;I began to think about publishing them just in the last couple of years,8221; Pang said. 8220;It would get rid of that whole 8216;Lost Weekend8217; thing, where everyone says he was always down and looked terrible. I don8217;t think these photos appear that way.8221;

They don8217;t: in the pages of Instamatic Karma, the title is a play on Lennon8217;s song Instant Karma, Lennon looks relaxed and happy, and is seen spending time with his first son, Julian, as well as with famous friends, among them Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Nilsson and Keith Moon. He is shown working in the recording studio, swimming in Long Island Sound, clowning around in Central Park and visiting Disney World.

To her regret, she did miss a few famous moments in her book, but she did capture one momentous event: Lennon8217;s signing the agreement that dissolved the Beatles8217; partnership in 1974.

After four years8217; negotiation, the Beatles had agreed on the terms governing their split. Pang photographed him signing the document just beneath the signatures of Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Richard Starkey Starr8217;s real name, the shutter clicking between the 8220;h8221; and 8220;n8221; of his first name.

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8220;John had started this band that changed the world. And he knew that. So when he sat down to sign, he knew that this was it. His was the last signature. As he had started the group, he was the one to end it,8221; said Pang.
8211; ALLAN KOZINN NYT