#although implied mclennon

[with-eyes-closed]

Beatles Fic snippet

“You got the paper?” Paul asks, and George nods, scruffing about in the pockets of his school blazer for the folded up back page of The Liverpool Echo, the bit with the ads for odds and ends, because sometimes there’s somethin’ worthwhile in there – whole (although usually broken) instruments and catgut strings and old radios and records for bands they’ve never even heard of (and often that’s better, because it’s half the way he and Ian and George have learnt new chords).

Paul plucks the paper from George’s hands, snapping it open and holding it out so Ivan can read it over his shoulder too, even though he knows they won’t be looking for the same thing. Vaguely, he can see George’s friend lean in to whisper something in his ear, and Paul ignores him, gaze skimming over an ad for a typewriter and another seeking factory labourers, when he hears George say:

“Thought I’d see you lot at Garston on the weekend.”

The stretch of coast along the Mersey between Speke and Garston is a regular haunt for most of the kids on the estates, at least during the day before night fell and it becomes a home for the one-legged drunks spending their war pensions on prozzies, and it’s a game of sorts. To go down there on the weekends and look for salt-crusted bullet shells washed up on the shore or beer bottles to break against the coastal rocks. They’d found a girl’s knickers once, twisted up with hogweed and newspaper near translucent from chip shop oil, and taken turns playin’ their keeper until Willie Dreck’s mam had found them in his room and beat him for the crime of it.

Paul hasn’t gone lately though, not since his recent growth spurt left him able to slip into pubs and clubs alongside Ivan and Ian. Left him able to brush up against real girls with soft skin and wool skirts and smiles that were more knowing than Paul ever thought a girl’s could be.

“I was busy,” Paul offers, still distracted, but he feels both George and Ivan’s gaze on him, not heavy exactly, but present as he finds an ad for a pianola with a missing pedal. Briefly, he wonders if John could play it, then, just as quick, if he could play it better. The thought licks like a cat tongue, rough and real, and he folds the paper in half to centre the ad, to hold it one handed and use the other to push the last inch of his cigarette into his mouth.

There must be something in the moment of it – a look on George’s face or maybe one on his, because Ivan huffs out a breath, turns to George and gives him the answer Paul hasn’t:

“I took him to see that band I play in sometimes at Woolton. The Quarrymen. You heard of them?”

[mclennonlgbt]

Films that don't hide John's queerness

The problem with MOST biopic and Beatles/John Lennon documentaries is that they ignore John's bisexuality. As a rule, it's only talked about his interest in women.

Fortunately, there are exceptions to this rule <3

The Beatles Secrets: It's a docu about Beatles "dirty secrets" (ugh, what a cringe name): sex, drugs ect. 38:32 - Royston Ellis (a bisexual poet), talking about Hamburg years: "I took John back to the flat where I was living with a girl and she, myself and John, we spent the night together. And the reason for this was not just the sex side but I'd written a poem which John liked and in there was a line: "I long to have on black leather sheets and ride motorcycles between your thighs". Well, we didn't have any black leather sheets, we had to make with black polythene and black oil skins".

The Hours and Times: A 1991 drama film about John and Brian's journey to Barcelona in 1963. Christopher Münch (director and screenwriter) points out that this is his imaginary scenario. The main characters are presented in a very interesting and nuanced way. For example, Lennon is most likely queer and would like to try "something more" with Epstein, but ends up "only" kissing him, possibly due to internalized homophobia. He makes derogatory comments about gays also openly, which fits in with real John's 1971 statement : "The fag in me made me feel insecure".

3. Backbeat (kinda)

Backbeat is a 1994 film about the early days of the Beatles. The action takes place mainly in Hamburg, and the narrative focuses primarily on three characters: John, Stu and Astrid. John is played by Ian Hart who also played John in "The Hours and Times".

Although it's never explicitly stated that John has romantic feelings for Stu, it's implied. Astrid suspects a gay relationship between the two. For example, when Stu starts to have feelings for Astrid, John throws a tantrum. She sums it up:

Some time later, John treats Astrid arrogantly again. She says:

It could be interpreted that Astrid means platonic jealousy (because, for example, Stu has less time for John as a friend, less time for the band, etc.). But later on, Astrid's statement becomes clear:

Paul also suspects that John and Stu have something different than platonic friendship. He asks John what's between them two. John reacts aggressively.

At the end of the movie it's implied that John is in love with Astrid but decided not to make any moves because she fell in love with his best friend (Stu).

Some people see this as straightwashing John but I don't think so. When he suggested to Astrid that he was in love with her, she replied, "I love him, John. I do." And he said:

IMO this suggests (in the context of the entire movie) that John had romantic feelings for both Astrid and Stu.

But that's just my speculation. Everyone can interpret it differently.

Bonus: John in skirt and Paul in female top <3

4. Two of us

The film, whose director Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who knew the Beatles live, tried to present the Lennon-McCartney relationship in a nuanced way.

The elevator scene is very popular in the McLennon fandom: John and Paul tease by simulating a fight, and suddenly John grabs Paul and kisses him on the lips. Paul pushes John away and asks, "Is my name Brian?"

Earlier, I thought unequivocally that this scene depicts sexual harassment: a kiss without the consent. I still think so often. However, this can also be seen in a different way - the movie John and Paul flirt, touching, as the real Lennon and McCartney used to do. The kiss was part of this flirt. When Paul definitely showed he didn't want it, John didn't push. I don't know how to settle this.

That's why I prefer a different, more unambiguous McLennon scene. John and Paul consider accepting the SNL invitation. Paul isn't sure: "We haven't played together for ages!". John strikes him lightly with his fist: "Come on, it's like screwing! Once you've done it, you never forget it!".

This moment reminds me of this quote where Paul compares songwriting to sex.

ALSO:

@elementarypenguin9 wrote me about Birth of the Beatles, a 1979 biopic. This is what they claim: "I was watching Birth of the Beatles recently (the film where Pete Best was technical advisor), and couldn't help but notice that they did show a gay vibe between John and Paul, such as here: https://www.tumblr.com/blog/view/thecoleopterawithana/687283702231941120?source=share There's also a scene where Paul says to John "give us a kiss" and briefly leans in and holds his hand at the back of Johns head before then turning away. And another scene where they are sitting on a sofa together glued together like a couple, and there seems to be a moment where they look at each other in a flirty way and john has his hand on pauls thigh. Just makes me wonder if maybe Pete Best gave them a little hint about how close John and Paul really were??"

See this clip and this compilation of gifs.

AND:

Some believe that John is queer-coded in A Hard Day's night.

1

2

LAST BUT NOT LEAST:

@theoldmixer pointed out that Lennon was queer-coded also in Help! Here's John's conversation with Ringo.

Here are my suggestions! Do you know any other films where John's bisexuality isn't ignored?

[whenyourbirdisbroken]

Can you recommend mclennon fics based on unrequited love Or slow burn of any timeline

Hi anon! Sorry for the slow response, I have a few of these backed up and I'm trying to work through them. This one is tricky for me, I don't have a ton of unrequited love recs because I like a happy ending! I could give you good *pining* fics but you wouldn't be able to call those unrequited :)

Two total unrequited love fics I do like, though:

Where The Sailors Go by obstinatrix (@scurator): I am just an obstinatrix fan! This one is Paul/Ringo, really, but Paul is thinking about and in love with John. So it's sad, to me! But also, good Paul/Ringo smut and some good unrequited love! So maybe it will be what you're after.

And He'll Never Know by JuliaJekyll: This is a very short piece that is mostly just John ruminating on his unrequited love for Paul. Sad, but also might be the type of thing you're after!

As for slow burn, another tricky category. I personally struggle when there is a 10K fic marked slow burn! Meaning, I think people have different definitions!

i can only speak my mind by @paisanas: This is definitely a slow burn though! A burn so slow it might kill you! :) And it *could* even satisfy your unrequited love itch (although in the end it is not). John's diaries, including his feelings on Paul, are published in the press, and Paul reads them. As everything this author writes, it's just beautifully written.

Again, what is a slow burn? Two fics that I think are great, long fics, that really take their time to develop the story are Take a sad song, and make it better by @javelinbk and I Need You Darlin' (So Come Go With Me) by @beatlessideblog. I think they qualify! Both great stories that make you wait a bit to see how things play out but definitely worth your time.

tomorrow, i'll miss you by @pauls1967moustache: This one came to mind for both these categories for some reason, maybe I just love it so much. Again, not really unrequited love, but a long time of pining and waiting and although the story itself only takes place in a day, there's an implied burn of years and years. I dunno, just read it, ok?

only a northern song by stonedlennon: I never like to rec fics that aren't finished and may never be, but this is an excellent fic, even as written, and it's a slow burn that is worth the time investment!

As always, interested to hear if people have others!

[stonedlennon]

y'know sometimes i think people in the 60s have actually..unconsciously shipped mclennon? or at least noticed something happening there. i was watching the shakespeare skit and when john said "my love my love" there were A LOT of girls shrieking. plus the Beatles cartoons where there's a lot of mclennon, and that one magazine article about why Paul is a favorite beatle and someone said "His looks at John". idk pretty interesting to think about

honestly? i agree. mclennon has been A Thing for the fans definitely since the 60s. unfortunately there’s little on the specific relationship between john/paul from a fan’s perspective, not only because we’ve got few sources, but also because the development of beatlemania was characterized as an adolescent phase, one that had implications of sexual maturity but was largely concentrated on romantic feelings (”i want to hold your hand” is implicitly romantic but mainly innocent), so in the “craze” of beatlemania its likely that any discussion around inter-beatles relationships would have been considered a by-product of female adulation, i.e. anything untoward can be “explained away” by beatlemania. there’s obviously been so much done on beatlemania (might i suggest this book though for some interesting breakdowns; and this book for queer coding in contemporary [60s] music). it’s hard if not impossibly to classify the fans in the 60s as a “fandom” although it’s undeniable that there were elements of beatlemania that are reflected in the way we conduct a fandom today. i’ll also just briefly say that i’m not totally sold with the word “ship” as it implies fiction - and john and paul were together - however within the context of fandom i suppose it’s appropriate.

with regards to the examples you cited.. yeah, it’s really interesting to think that the fans - even if they didn’t necessarily articulate it as such - might have considered a “something” between john and paul. it’s unfortunate because a great deal of beatles books have been written by the old guard of white, largely heterosexual men, so “the beatles myth” has been shaped by their interpretation. i’d be interested to know if there’s been work done by gender or queer academics or writers. i’d say that the shakespeare skit can probably be written off as excitement: the crowd bawls whenever they do anything. you have to remember that the way bands, especially boy bands, are constructed is that it’s all around promise. your favourite beatle singing about love is great, but if they sing it together, to each other? there’s the meaning of the song (it’s to you, the fan, the object of desire and affection) in addition to the act of singing (not one beatle, but two!). i would actually suggest that if you wanted to consider queer readings of the beatles in contemporary culture, i’d look at the french fans. the vast majority were male, and a good number were cited as being queer. it’s tempting to only look at fandom from a female perspective, but when you have male gay fans listening to and interpreting the beatles’ music in a way that resonates with them (man/man, not man/woman), you can ask the question, well, are they attracted to the idea of a beatle singing to them, a man, or are they attracted to the beatles as a homogeneous male group, singing to each other, and by proxy to the audience? i suggest having a look at this excerpt for a further analysis of the gay male fans in paris, 64. there’s a fair bit of evidence that underlines the beatles’ ambivalence towards their gay fan base. note that in a hard day’s night, there are boys as well as girls in the crowd running after them. the subliminal message here is that the beatles are for everyone; another message is that the crowd, which was characterized by the media as one with romantic intentions towards the band, exists in a state of adolescent desire, be it male or female. and all of this, of course, isn’t even going into their fan base in liverpool, where there were rumors about john and paul being together right from the beginning.

a lot of john and paul’s lyrics are ambiguous. their use of pronouns are especially ambiguous. take the “my friend” in can’t buy me love, “darling” in words of love, or even i want to hold your hand, which only says “let me be your man” - a promise of fidelity, but one that is gender nonspecific. THERE ARE SO MANY EXAMPLES. a cynic might say it’s to allow for greater audience reception, although i would suggest that in addition to musical fluidity, it’s also a way for john and paul to express themselves in a manner that is 1. professionally lucrative; and 2. nonthreatening. i’ve spoken before about the gender ambiguity of the early beatles songs, but i can make a bigger post about it if you like. on a general note, i would say that the early beatles career is harder to read than what happened later (apple scruffs) because of the reasons i cited earlier, however it’s obvious that there are undercurrents of gender and sexual ambiguity within the relationship between the beatles and their fans. as for whether the fans consciously thought there was something going on.. we don’t know. i would hesitate to say yes, completely, although i do think that on a subconscious level it’s highly probable. basically, i do agree with you. i think though that the framework of what constitutes a “fandom” and what is/not acceptable (then and now) is a complex one. 

[mclennonlgbt]

My top 7 McLennon media/sources

Understanding Lennon/McCartney (YT series) - a wonderful piece of art. There are 6 parts, at least one hour each.breathless 345 focuses not only on the likely romantic feelings between John and Paul, but also examines other aspects. Must-watch.

Better than looking at the mirror (tumblr blog) - brilliant blog containing TONE of information about the Beatles that I didn't know before. The author writes essays in which they address the issues of trust in the relationship between Lennon and McCartney, they analyze the songs very precisely and much, much more.

mclennon was real (tumblr blog) - first McLennon blog I came across. It was there that I learned a lot of evidence and premises. The most important thing I read there was: "Nobody seriously considers the queerness of Lennon and McCartney's relationship, because 99% of Beatels scholars are middle-aged heterosexual men."

Another kind of mind (Spotify podcast) - the authors prepare very long episodes discussing both the Beatles and post-break up periods. They offer very interesting thoughts on the relationship between John and Paul, or John and Yoko, and discuss Lennon's bisexuality. I especially recommend their Pizza and Fairytales series.

One sweet dream (Spotify podcast) - they discuss what happened to the Beatles, year after year. You will think: Boring, it was already there. But no - they do it in an unconventional way. The episodes of "What Happened in '68?" were a revelation to me. They opened my eyes to many aspects of John and Paul's relationship. The only thing I don't like is their revolving around queerness. They give clear evidence of the non-platonic nature of this friendship, but insure themselves: "But we don't imply that their feelings were romantic / sexual!".

WALKUNTILTHEDAYLIGHT (tumblr blog) - reflections and analyzes written in a very interesting language. They talk about the overlooked aspects of the Beatles and especially the friendship of John and Paul. Although they dissociate themselves from the name McLennon, they believe that Lennon and McCartney's relationship was non-platonic.

Sakura (YT channel) - it's a new channel, but it contains a lot of valuable content. For example, I was surprised to hear John and Paul flirting with each other during Rubber Soul sessions, or to see the association of the songs "I know (I know)" and "Twice in a lifetime" with the first LSD trip together. Strong recommendation!