John Lennon, who helped found — and name — the Beatles 50 years ago, was gunned down by a crazed fan in New York City, 30 years ago. The FBI’s J. Edgar Hover tried hard to deport him at the urging of President Richard Nixon. Yesterday, two days before Lennon would have turned 70, an FBI agent seized John Lennon’s fingerprints from an auction house that valued them at $100,000. Robert Hilburn, former music critic for the Los Angeles Times, is author of Corn Flakes with John Lennon: And Other Tales from a Rock ‘n Roll Life.
