If murderabilia is your thing, you’ll be tickled bloody to know that the album John Lennon signed for his killer Mark Chapman, just hours before the murderous fan fatally shot him four times at close range, is currently under the hammer.
If you need a quick recap, as the blood-curdling story goes, Chapman approached Lennon outside his home at New York’s The Dakota apartment building on December 8th, 1980 and successfully got him to sign a copy of Double Fantasy, the rock legend’s collaborative LP with his partner, Yoko Ono.
Chapman waited there for five hours, and when Lennon returned home, he shot the Beatle dead.
The signed LP has spent years stashed inside an evidence locker from the NYPD’s murder investigation, but now, this macabre slice of murderabelia is going up for auction.
According to the listing by Goldin Auctions, police markings from the investigation appear on both the front and back of the record sleeve.
The listing reads:
“Offered here is arguably the most important Rock N Roll relic ever for sale, this is the Double Fantasy album that John Lennon signed for his soon-to-be assassin Mark David Chapman roughly 5 hours before Chapman murdered him. The Lennon’s had left around 5:00 PM to head to the Record Plant studio. It was not uncommon for fans to wait outside The Dakota for the chance to meet and/or seek an autograph from Lennon. Chapman had this Double Fantasy album signed before the Lennon’s left for the studio and the Lennon’s returned to The Dakota around 10:50 PM. According to the doorman and a nearby taxi driver via police reports, Chapman was waiting in an archway entrance and fired multiple bullets into John Lennon’s back after the couple had passed him on their way into the building. Chapman put this album in one of the giant planters on either side of the Dakota entrance where it was found that night by the original seller of the album who kept it under his bed for 18 years before selling it in 1998.
Lennon’s signature is in blue pen on the neck of the image of Yoko Ono on the front. Lennon also inscribed “1980” below his signature. The numbers above Lennon’s signature in black marker are police evidence markings. On the back of the album on the upper right corner to the left of the song listings, handwritten in blue pen are other police markings tat reads “Det M. Struk #7247 20 DET Sqd 1330 Hrs 12/9/80”. One cannot imagine a more historic, iconic and phenomenally important artifact. This historic piece comes with a letter of authenticity from Beckett Authentication for John Lennon’s signature and is housed in a Plexiglass holder for protection.”
The bidding is now open and, at the time of writing, one cashed-up sicko has already put their hand up for the starting bid of US $400K.
Meanwhile, Chapman was denied parole for an 11th time earlier this year. His next date with a parole board is in 2022.
