ÊDecember 8 1980: The Day John Lennon DiedÊ follows the events leading to the horrible moment when Mark David Chapman ä the paunchy mentally ill Beatles fan ä calmly fired his Charter Arms .38 Special into the rock icon realizing his perverse fantasy of attaining perennial notoriety.ÞÊNew York TimesÊ-best-selling author Keith Elliot Greenberg takes us back to New York City and the world John Lennon woke up to and we follow the other Beatles Lennon's family the shooter fans and New York City officials through the day. Once the fatal shots are fired the pace only becomes more breathless.ÞThe epilogue examines the aftermath of the killing ä the moment when 100 000 New Yorkers stood in silence in Central Park; the posthumous reunion of the Beatles in the studio with George Paul and Ringo accompanying recordings of their old friend ä and the undying legacy that persists to this day.