GIVE PEACE A CHANCE: JOHN & YOKO’S BED-IN FOR PEACE (Wiley, publisher), presents more than 80 photographs by renowned Life magazine photographer Gerry Deiter, many of which have never been published before.
Life magazine photographer Gerry Deiter was present for all eight days of the Bed-in, capturing both large, boisterous gatherings of journalists and celebrities, and the smaller, more intimate moments between John and Yoko. The result was an archive of almost 500 images, many of which were never published – until now.
The story Gerry Deiter was working on was bumped by Life in order to cover escalating events in Vietnam, and Deiter hid the photos for 35 years. His friend, and curator of the collection, Joan Athey has compiled them into an entertaining and moving portrait of the times. Deiter passed away in 2005.
The large format book captures candid shots of Tommy Smothers, Timothy Leary and his wife Rosemary, New York writer and jazz critic Nat Hentoff, pioneering New York DJ Murray The K, and the aggressive hostility of right-wing cartoonist Al Capp. Personal recollections include journalist Alison Gordon, rock entrepreneur Donald Tarlton (aka “Donald K. Donald”), record producer André Perry, DJ Chuck Chandler, Crawdaddy! rock writer Paul Williams and Capitol Records’ Richard Glanville-Brown.
In addition, Yoko Ono has contributed a personal statement that gives modern day relevance to the events in 1969 on the 40th anniversary of what has become an historic moment in rock music history.
Gerry DEITER (photographer) was a Brooklyn-born photojournalist and portrait/fashion photographer, teacher, and contributor to Life and Time magazines. He was present for all eight days of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s Bed-in for Peace at Montreal’s Queen Elizabeth Hotel in May 1969. Gerry Deiter was also the first photographer for Greenpeace and a peace activist. He died December 9, 2005.
Joan ATHEY (writer/curator) is a communications specialist, having worked for 21 years in public relations, marketing and promotion for the CBC and the Toronto Star. Athey resides in Victoria, BC.
Paul McGRATH (editor) was rock critic for The Globe and Mail and a reporter for CBC TV’s The Journal. He directed the documentaries John and Yoko’s Year of Peace (CBC, 2000) and Give Peace a Song (CBC, 2005), the latter about the recording of “Give Peace A Chance.” McGrath resides in Toronto.
Give Peace a Chance: John and Yoko's Bed-in for Peace
Wiley
April 2009
Hardcover - 120 pages
ISBN: 978-0-470-16044-2
US$24.95