"Oh, I'm so curious what they look like." I said.
"You must have seen papers," she said looking a bit surprised at me.
"Oh, I only know them since er, last December." I said.
"Yes, and, that's three months to stare at posters," she answered. I got a bit angry. It all sounded so normal and calm, and this cool voice. I guess it was just a way to keep control over things as she was surely as nervous as me. Things opened up after that.
"Jeesh, I havent' got a penny to buy me own mags," I said. Again this accent. She started laughing and I looked away. That's what they always did, in the streets when I was playing outside, or walked through some lane with these rich large houses. "There she is, from the working class," some people always cheered.
"There you are, you talk just like them," Patty giggled. I figured "Them" could mean the same as "working class" but I just made some shut up sign and then the door opened.
"Ohmegawdness it's my turn," I sighed.
"Hey now, you get on well," Patty said while someone led me inside the door. "You sound just liKe George Ha...." I heard before the door slammed. then the questions started.
"Now what happens to you if you suddenly see Paul walking down the streets?" a woman asked. I held my breath. I really didn't know what would happen because I hadn't seen the whole face except for a glimpse on a poster. "I....er..." I stuttered. I figured I had to tell them I hadn't got a clue about this but it seemed to be enough. On it went with the other Beatles and all the time I set there thinking what the hell chould happen.
"Alright, I hadn't really seen them anywhere," I said, which made the girl and the director laugh.
"Of course not, but you've seen them in the papers and if you recognize that on the street then. And so what if not, if you can act then..." he said.
"I thought you had to be a fan," I said timidly. "Well there's fans and fans," the man said. "If you'd let me hear a clip of their voice, or showed me some video, then that might bring out something," I said. "I need a bit more, er reality of this scene around."
"That's the most original question I heard about wanting them to come around here," the woman said.
"Are they here!" I said, jumping up. That had the effect.
"No, but we got this tape," the girl said. The first thing that happened was a tape rolling with some interview. It started with some commments from the interviewer. "Will you sing a song for us?"
"No. Sorry, we need money first." I heard a voice reply...
It made me stare at the speakers. I knew that voice, it was so similar to....my dad's maybe? How could that be, the man hadn't talked to me all these days I had been at home lying in some ruined cot.
"John," I whispered. I didn't even really hear myself say it.
"Yes, that's him," the director said. He had a warm voice and a calm look on his face. I suddenly heard some words ring in my mind. "You're free...to decide what you want..." I tried to concentrate on the vague picture my mind formed along with it."Free as a bird actually...you can fly anywhere and no-one calls you back."
That was enough. I decided I had to go on this way and when Paul's voice came on (which again had a certian familiar ring, only more distant than John's) I pulled some face like these girls in the backrow and bounced up a bit. "Paul, wow, sounds great!" I said in one breath.
"O...if only." I said. And there I stopped. If only I would be in? There might be a chance that I'd be on one scene with them, and then I at least could see the face that belonged to that familiar voice.
"This looks great," the director said.
There was a lot more after that but not really the theater things like imitating a tree or something. It was more about the Beatles and what I knew about them. I found out I basically had to scream all the time and look startled when I passed them but that would be ok, the whole fact of being in a film with all of them might stir up all my feelings, if the rest of the fans didn't help out already! I rubbed my hands a bit when I came back.
"Fixed." Patty said. "He popped his head around and I'm sure he nodded. You're in." She hugged me and then I asked if she ever had met the Beatles before.
"No, not really, oh, only seven days and then I'll finally stand in front of George."
"Oooo, the main part?" I said. That was my first joke about it, and wouldn't forget about that.
"Gosh, no way, there's only one time I say something. I got the script to see if my name was anywhere.
"Well, you can easily learn that by heart then." some other girl said.
"But we're in the beginning!" she added, bouncing up and down.
"IF you get through, that is," Patty said.
It turned out I was also at the beginning of the film. No-one called me to let me know anything about it but three days before the thing started I got the same kind of paper sayning it all started on March 2 and on March 3 there were a few scenes with us so....you can imagine how fast I wanted the days to go by. I went to bed early just to make them shorter and it didn't work. Normally you might be lying awake until the normal bedtime had come but I just fell asleep, tired from all the excitement and curiosity.
How happy I thought it would be. It wouldn't be a total disappointment of course, but for one slide moment things would suddenly get as thin as threads of a spider web. We all stood on the train station and waited for the Beatles to come out. At one time when the director had passed me he had whispered that he wouldn't have time to count in the thing just started as soon as he started. It worked out the way he went. First we had some exercise. Everyone needed to test their voice and see how loud it was. I figured this might all be to bring in some good moods. Well that-one went good for me although I really had to cough after that. Patty just tapped on my shoulder.
"You'll get used ot it...." she started. Then her eyes went in the direction of a window.
"George," she whispered. "It's him, it's Geroge, finally!" she smileed all over.
"It was the driver, silly," I joked.
"It's not, it's George, and that's Ringo."
"And then comes the milkman," I said. I always finished like that if someone started on a nonsense story or something I just couldn't believe. It was a phrase I started with when I lived in that orphanage. Patty almost lost her balance.
"Right, here we go," a voice said. It was true, during the "Three, two" some girls already started to scream and in the middle of the "Action," word people really went waving around almost hitting me on my head.
The only thing that didn't get along was my voice. The doors had opened just before the last word and we where in the front row. It was the first face I saw. I looked straight in the eyes and for a moment they went my direction. I took a breath and held it, instead of screaming it out. Things got stuck. I swallowed some tears, back from where they came I didn't know, and then the word popped in my mind. "Strawberry Fields, Liverpool, the large garden and these few words the guy said when I told him I left the place. "London, O, I'll get there soon, very soon."
Patty gave me an elbow at once. "Scream fool, you need to scream," she said. "George!" she added when "George" came out after Paul who I had totally missed while thinking about all this. Thinking on about this and trying to stop it made me feel homesick at once. Some tears dripped from my eyes. It was the start of the most hysterical fit of crying I had ever had. John Lennon, it wasn't just one of the Beatles who happened to have the same name, it was THE John Lennon.
Meanwhile I saw them running past us and felt an arm of Patty around me.
"What's up?" she whispered close to my ear between some screams. I tried to pull myself loose. Right now the only thing I wanted was get away here and run after that taxi that went past him.
"Where are they going," I yelled right in Patty's direction, inbetween all my tears.
"Er.....away from the set."
"I wanna go after them," I whispered. Damn, I wanted it so badly at once, running toward that taxi, jump in right beside John, drop in his arms and say, "John you must know me, I'm that little girl from...." While Patty was busy waving around and trying not to spoil her part in the scene she did her best to fix me up a bit. She wiped away some tears, sang some song right in my ear and I just went on crying. Then we all moved on to the parking place where that cab was.
That's my chance, I thought I pulled Patty along which only looked better in the film and by the time we where near the taxi I tried to stumble inside. I heard some doors slam behind it and another car drove away. Patty almost fell over me with laughter. I set up straight and tried to hold my balance hanging half over the backseat.
"What a trick, they just went past this one and in that-one, it should look like they stumbled right through this one but...." She turned around while I was getting outside through the door.
"Awright, let's follow them," Patty giggled, running after me while I got more and more dizzy.
Meanwhile just one thought circled through my mind. "John, just don't go like this, and let this not be the one and only scene I have to be in with you, please don't leave me here, not again!" Inside I screamed it, while outside I tried to keep up with the few girls that were trying to follow the taxi.
For me it didn't work, I lost sight of the rest while they were
still close after me and as soon as the car drove faster I
simply tolled and tipped over. I fell right into some very
stingy bushes with all kinds of nettles but it couldn't be
possible that I felt anything. "That looks...too natural," I
heard a voice echo right beside me, and I floated away.
Written by Yvonne. May not be reproduced without the
permission of the author. Permission may be obtained by
e-mail.