by May Pang
Released: March 2008
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Purchase at: Amazon.com
There's simply no question, May Pang's first book 'Loving John' was a publication purposely printed to both shock and to tantalize. It was a powerful expos� which introduced the reader to a disturbing insight to Lennon's dark side.
As I was reading the book, I had this unnerving feeling that May was being overridden, either by the co-author or by the publisher's PR people. They needed to highlight the controversies in order to sell copies in considerable volume. I felt that May would rather have focused on the less controversial times... not to be endlessly carrying on about Yoko's schemes and Lennon's imperfections.
My suspicions seem to be borne out when May was interviewed by The Rip Post (May 2, 2008) regarding 'Loving John':
"But I think a lot of things were cut out. See, I wrote about 600 pages, and my co-author (Henry Edwards) was really the point man they went to.
"I was a novice, not the seasoned person. If I wanted something in, they didn't consult me. I may say it, but half the time it didn't go in... So in the end, I did not realize what was in or wasn't."
May has considered republishing 'Loving John':
"I found my 600 page original manuscript, and I'm considering putting back stories that didn't make it the first time."
With 'Instamatic Karma', I feel May had more control over the project. She clearly shows that the majority of the 'Lost Weekend' was a time of creativity and fun.
May actually owned a 35 mm Nikkormat and a Polaroid SX-70 camera, which John had bought for her. The name of the original Kodak Instamatic camera is used only as a play on words remembering Lennon's classic song, 'Instant Karma'.
Summary by May Pang
"There were times I was a bit reticent in taking out my camera, like when some old friends stopped by to hang out. I didn't want to intrude on these moments, but John insisted. He felt that I captured him in ways that no one else did because of his comfort level with me.
"For years, only my closest friends got to see these photos which were literally tucked away in a shoebox in my closet. They were surprised that these images did not convey the John that was portrayed in the press during our time together.
"In fact, they saw a side of John seldom seen."
