I just saw a commercial for this on tv. It's a documentary coming out in October. Has anyone heard of this? It looks really cool. Here's some info I found:

The documentary covers the period 1966-1976 and tells the story of John Lennon's transformation from beloved musical artist to anti-war activist to iconic inspiration for peace, and recounts the story of the U.S. Government's efforts to silence him. The U.S. vs. John Lennon will also show that this was not just an isolated episode in American history, but that the issues and struggles of that era remain relevant today.

they did something like that on the history channel with his declassified fbi file

This is coming out in theaters though. I'm not talking about anything already released or some tv special.

that sounds really cool. It will be a nice antidote to the crappy Lindsay Lohan movie.

I can't believe Jared Leto is gonna play MDC.

Trailer here: The US vs John Lennon

Here is the Cover

Quoted from Bobber

Trailer here: The US vs John Lennon

Very cool. Thanks for that.

And a dedicated website here: http://www.theusversusjohnlennon.com/

Nixon was crazy being paranoid about Lennon in the first place at the time since he wasn't radical at all as an anti-war activist unlike Jerry Rubin & Jane Fonda. I saw the trailer for U. S. Vs. John Lennon on You Tube & t looks interesting but Gore Vidal is a far out liberal whack job.

The other day I saw a huge John Lennon mega-sized poster
on a building,
promoting the "US vs. John Lennon", ( I probably wrote the title wrong),
It was a shame how I didn't have the camera with me.
anyhow, I want to watch it,

hey wayne, hes not a nutjob, hes right. both nixon and bush have misinterpreted the constitution. we just dont have another lennon to fight back *growl*  

looks good, ill go see it

John Lennon documentary a hit at Venice festival

VENICE (AFP) - A new documentary about John Lennon has proved the hit of the Venice Film Festival so far, the singer-songwriter's rage against American involvement in Vietnam resonating with relevance to today's Iraq conflict.

Lennon's genius as an artist/activist shines through in "The US Vs John Lennon", by documentary makers David Leaf and John Scheinfeld, which was warmly applauded at its first screening in Venice.

The 99-minute film includes never-before-seen footage of Lennon and
Yoko Ono and traces the artist's transformation from pop star to anti-war activist. And it details the ways in which the tarnished administration of President
Richard Nixon tried to silence him.

Perhaps the film's biggest achievement, in garnering footage of anti-war demonstrations of the 1960s and '70s, is to place Lennon's words and activism in the context of the time.

Leaf insisted the movie was not made with Iraq specifically in mind, but said Thursday: "There's no way to watch this film without hearing echoes of the past with what is going on in the world today."

The film has obvious resonances with the current era and the war in Iraq. By its championing of Lennon's poetic pacifism and political activism, the film-makers silently point up the lack of such a charismatic figure around which the world could gather now.

"The older people are asking 'Where is our John Lennon? Where is he now when we need him?'" says Leaf. "I answer them by saying 'He's in the movie. He would say to us 'It is up to us to bring peace'."

The current US president is mentioned only once in the film, but the remark by US writer/historian Gore Vidal drew applause from the audience.

"The thing about John Lennon is that he represented life, and that is a good thing. Richard Nixon, and George Bush, represent death, and that is a bad thing."

Vidal is one of more than 30 intellectuals, activists and journalists, including Carl Bernstein, Noam Chomsky, former New York governor Mario Cuomo, Walter Cronkite, Tariq Ali featured in the film. Representatives of the Nixon administration who tried to silence Lennon, G. Gordon Liddy and John Dean, also feature.

That, and a soundtrack featuring Lennon's anti-war anthems like "War is Over, If You Want It," "Revolution" and "Imagine" make the film compelling.

The majority of the film's songs, 37 of the 40, come from his post-Beatles career and serve to advance the narrative and to offer commentary.

"We literally searched the world for every last bit of film of him. We wanted to make a movie that had no narrator, we wanted John to tell his own story. You have him telling you the story every step of the way," said Leaf.

The documentary features Nixon telling the nation that US troops would be pulled out of Vietnam as local South Vietnamese allies gradually grew stronger, but refusing to give a date.

"One cannot help but appreciate that we've heard that script before," Leaf told a press conference in Venice where the film is being screened in the "Horizons" section.

There are obvious parallels too with the present day, "illegal wiretaps, constitutional rights being trampled and a war that isn't being fought for the reasons the president (Bush) said," Leaf added.

Although Leaf and Scheinfeld -- makers of biodocumentaries on Frank Sinatra and Bob Hope -- have been kicking around the idea for years, they could not find a backer for the film.

"It took the events of a post 9/11 America to give people the idea that this was a story that had a resonance now."

"We should remember that John and Yoko didn't really have to do what they did. They were already the most famous couple in the world.

"We live in an age where celebrity and media are omnipresent but only in the presence of 'selling something'. What John and Yoko did was sell peace."

This will be one of those films that has a cult following. Unfortunately, I think it will stiff at the Box Office, but I think it will do well when released on DVD, in rentals, etc. Oh, and watch for the soundtrack-another compilation...

of course, its yoko. she'll put out 3 more just for this movie

It still worries me that soon John will be more famous for his John/Yoko thing than his John/Paul/George/Ringo thing.
His post Beatles stuff is rapidly becoming more well known than his Beatles stuff.

^And thank you Mrs Ono...

Quoted from Kevin

It still worries me that soon John will be more famous for his John/Yoko thing than his John/Paul/George/Ringo thing.
His post Beatles stuff is rapidly becoming more well known than his Beatles stuff.

How daft can you be? For the next week, go up to whoever and ask who John Lennon was. I'll bet no one says, "Oh yes, he made music and film with Yoko". Are you 12 years old, or what? Good God. Say to someone "Milk and Honey" or ''Abbey Road". Take a pick at what they'll say. And people get banned from this site for being to vitriolic--they should be banned for being mentally challenged, and Kevin, you are the leader of the pack.

Quoted from SallyG

How daft can you be? For the next week, go up to whoever and ask who John Lennon was. I'll bet no one says, "Oh yes, he made music and film with Yoko". Are you 12 years old, or what? Good God. Say to someone "Milk and Honey" or ''Abbey Road". Take a pick at what they'll say. And people get banned from this site for being to vitriolic--they should be banned for being mentally challenged, and Kevin, you are the leader of the pack.

I see you've got your angry pants on again. God bless you Duane. Everytime I read your posts it reminds me how grateful I am to be me.
And please note I said "will be", not "is"
You have a nice day now. And watch that ticker.

I agree with Kevin. When I ask kids my age who don't listen to oldies about John Lennon, they usually describe him as a long-haired guy with glasses who had a bed-in with a strange little Asian woman.

Quoted from Kevin

I see you've got your angry pants on again. God bless you Duane. Everytime I read your posts it reminds me how grateful I am to be me.
And please note I said "will be", not "is"
You have a nice day now. And watch that ticker.

It's a ridiculous thread. You should be happy with yourself, it's a beautiful thing, but you've got to let me know what the temperature is like on your planet. I don't think John Lennon runs the risk of being forgotten as a Beatle for the next few months or so. Try not to worry so much.

this is what we here in the animal kingdom call, "Duane 'o' Pause"...

I know these stories are boring, but I thought this one's kind of relevant to the conversation. I got a new bunch of second graders today. I havn't said one word to them about the Beatles yet, but I do have a shelf in my classroom with a bunch of Beatles stuff on it. One thing being the figures of the four from the cartoon. Anyway, we're passing the shelf on the way out the door, and one kid goes, "who are they?" So I say,"the Beatles!" And right away another kid says, "which one's John Lennon?" Anyway, I just thought that was interesting.

Quoted from SallyG

you've got to let me know what the temperature is like on your planet.

It's hot. Damn hot. And I think the sky is falling on my head.

Quoted from Sandra

I know these stories are boring, but I thought this one's kind of relevant to the conversation. I got a new bunch of second graders today. I havn't said one word to them about the Beatles yet, but I do have a shelf in my classroom with a bunch of Beatles stuff on it. One thing being the figures of the four from the cartoon. Anyway, we're passing the shelf on the way out the door, and one kid goes, "who are they?" So I say,"the Beatles!" And right away another kid says, "which one's John Lennon?" Anyway, I just thought that was interesting.

It is interesting.

John wasn't that crazy as a peace activist, because he made some sense with his comments, as well as making great music, with some nonsense as well.  I don't listen to talk radio anymore, because it's fading slowly & it's all a bunch of crap on the left & the right.  Nixon was a great president, which can't be disputed over 30 years later, despite Watergate hanging over his memory for baby boomers.  He was a little paranoid, as well as Strom Thurmond, thinking Lennon was going to disrupt the Republican Convention & cause lots of trouble, since he wasn't Abbie Hoffman.  

Quoted from Wayne L.

Nixon was a great president, which can't be disputed over 30 years later, despite Watergate hanging over his memory for baby boomers.  

Apparently, it can be disputed:

Quoted Text

Presidential scholars, both liberal and conservative, rank Richard Nixon near the bottom of the list because of the scandals, but most agree that he presents a special problem because his foreign policy and domestic policy successes stand in dramatic contradiction to the corruption of his top aides and Nixon himself.

(source: Wikipedia)

Richard Nixon's position in historial rankings of US presidents:

Murray-Blessing survey of 846 historians (#34 out of 36)
Chicago Tribune poll 1982 (#34 out of 38
Siena poll 1982 (#28 out of 39)
Siena poll 1990 (#25 out of 40)
Siena poll 1994 (#23 out of 41)
Ridings-McIver poll 1996 (#32 out of 41)
CSPAN poll 1999 (#25 out of 39)
Wall Street Journal poll 2000 (#33 out of 39)
Siena poll 2002 (#26 out of 42)
Wall Street Journal poll 2005 (#32 out of 40)

Still think it can't be disputed?

I'm not posting this because I'm looking for a confrontation or anything, I'm just trying to point out that your opinions are not always, as you seem to think, facts that can't be disputed.

You must be reading from the funny papers on Nixon BP, because he was a great president despite Watergate.  Maybe my opinions aren't facts, but neither are yours or other members & it's alright to have them no matter if you think they're wrong.

First of all, I don't think my opinion are facts. They're not. They're opinions. Second, I'm not saying you're not allowed to think Nixon was a great president.

I don't have a problem with your opinions and I also don't have a problem with the fact that your opinions usually aren't mine.

Who I do have a problem with is the way you always present your opinions like they're facts that can not be disputed. You said it LITERALLY: "Nixon was a great president, which can't be disputed over 30 years later."

Well, guess what: it very much is disputed. You can see it in the poll results. I didn't create these poll results, and neither did any other 'far left liberal wacko'. And if you don't believe me, here's my source:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historical_rankings_of_United_States_Presidents

Now if you still want to deny that it can't be disputed that Nixon was a great president, you could just as well sign up for the Flat Earth Society or something like that.

I don't want to make a big deal out of this very small issue (I actually don't give a damn about Nixon), I'm just showing an example of how close minded you can sometimes be in your posts here.

great...no, worst, no. if he was a "great" president than he wouldnt have had a scandel, he could still have been good but to consider him great doesnt work. had he not been a crook and liar and committed that whole watergate scandel than he wouldve been up there as a good president for his domestic and foreign triumphs (i mean seriously, without him, nothing would be made in china anymore) but he just had to much stacked against him to register him as great or even good. he's somewhere between dan qyale and dubya on the spectrum of worst president

Quoted from somedude210

had he not been a crook and liar and committed that whole watergate scandel

In addition to that he was also an antisemite, a racist and an NRA supporter.

What's wrong with being an NRA supporter Biscuit Power?  I'm not a member of the NRA, but I believe in the second amendment.  

Quoted from somedude210

great...no, worst, no. if he was a "great" president than he wouldnt have had a scandel, he could still have been good but to consider him great doesnt work. had he not been a crook and liar and committed that whole watergate scandel than he wouldve been up there as a good president for his domestic and foreign triumphs (i mean seriously, without him, nothing would be made in china anymore) but he just had to much stacked against him to register him as great or even good. he's somewhere between dan qyale and dubya on the spectrum of worst president

For coming off as such a know-it-all and being such and a** about everything, it's refreshing to see you prove your ignorance--which President exactly was Dan Quayle? He must have snuck in there when I wasn't looking.

sorry, i know hes not a president but hes the only other real recent dumbass in the white house than dubya. and technically he did run for president. but yes, i know he wasnt a president and i didnt mean to end up putting president on the end of that spectrum, it slipped my eye before i pressed post

Quoted from Wayne L.

What's wrong with being an NRA supporter Biscuit Power?  I'm not a member of the NRA, but I believe in the second amendment.  

And I believe in the fifth commandment: you shall not murder.

And since guns are designed specifically to kill with, owning a (loaded) gun makes you a potential killer.

And here's another thing:

Quoted Text

Gun control advocates argue that the strongest evidence linking availability of guns to injury and mortality rates comes in studies of domestic violence, pointing to the series of studies by Arthur Kellermann, although they suggest that other slightly different studies have similar results. In response to suggestions that homeowners were at risk from home invasions and would be wise to acquire a firearm for purposes of protection, Kellermann tabulated in home homicide figures in three cities over several years, and found that the risk of a homicide was in fact higher in homes where a gun was present; his study led to the conclusion drawn by some that the risk of a crime of passion or other domestic dispute ending in homicide when a gun was available was large enough to overwhelm any protective effect the presence of a gun might have against burglaries, home invasions, etc. In seeming confirmation of this conclusion is his little-remarked upon finding that almost all the risk was limited to homes where a handgun was kept both loaded and unlocked, and therefore available for immediate use; apparently, the amount of time and effort required even to just remove a loaded gun from a locked cabinet was sufficient to allow tempers to cool enough to prevent a shooting.

Yep. Violence begets violence--'Gotta have a gun because there's so many people out there with guns, what the hell is wrong with you?; For those who 'need' one, well, I guess it's your right. Hard to imagine  the Framers could fathom an automatic weapon. Bet it cleans out a deer pretty well though.

nixon was a great president....his foriegn policies are mostly intact today....without nixon there would be no relations with china...i think he was scapegoated...