Product Description

John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s two visits to The Dick Cavett Show stand out from their numerous television appearances as their most relaxed, in-depth interviews. Clearly they enjoyed being with Cavett. They even cast him in one of their films. The September 11, 1971, show is notable as the first American television interview John gave after the breakup of The Beatles. So comfortable were the Lennons that after the show was over they continued talking with Cavett. The additional portions of that first interview were shown as part of The Dick Cavett Show on September 24, 1971. During that visit they’d discussed coming back and giving a live performance. True to their word, for their appearance on Cavett’s show on May 11, 1972, they returned with Elephants Memory and each sang one song.

3 complete episodes of the legendary late-night talk show featuring John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s most candid interviews as well as rare live performances With New Episode Introductions and the Bonus Featurette Cavett And The Lennons

Three complete episodes: *September 11, 1971 – John & Yoko are Cavett’s only guests. They show clips from their experimental films Fly and Erection as well as promotional films for the songs "Imagine" and "Mrs. Lennon."

*September 24, 1971 – Cavett introduces the three additional segments from John & Yoko's appearance on September 11, 1971 and also welcomes Stan Freberg and Robert Citron.

*May 12, 1972 – John & Yoko perform live with the band Elephant’s Memory in their second visit with Cavett. John sings "Woman Is The Nigger Of The World" and Yoko sings "We’re All Water." Actress Shirley MacLaine is also on hand.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #42200 in DVD
• Released on: 2005-11-01
• Rating: NR (Not Rated)
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 2
• Running time: 30 minutes

Amazon.com
John Lennon devotees (and, to a lesser extent, Beatles fans in general) should be delighted with The Dick Cavett Show - John Lennon & Yoko Ono, which collects (on two discs) his three appearances on the TV talk show in 1971 and '72. It won't be because of the music; there's very little of that, and what there is, frankly, is not great. Of much more interest is the opportunity to see and hear Lennon, then in his early thirties, talk about matters both slight (his new haircut, the state of television in England) and significant (the Nixon administration's efforts to deport him, Lennon and Ono's battle for shared custody of her daughter from an earlier marriage). Always the most verbally agile of the Beatles, Lennon appears here with his rapier wit (on Yoko's chain smoking: "Every time I kiss her, I burn my chin") and penchant for punning (when Cavett appears without neckwear, Lennon calls him "tie-less in Gaza") intact. He also tirelessly plugs his and Ono's various activities, which gets a little old, but his passion for and commitment to their causes are undeniable. Don't expect much Beatles talk; while he evidences no bitterness about the band's demise, neither does he indulge in any sentimentality (although it's poignant, given his murder in 1980, to hear him say that he'd never want to be onstage singing "She Loves You" at age 50). As for the two live performances (there's also an "Imagine" film clip), both coming at the end of the third Cavett show, let's just say that the Lennons' collaboration with the New York band Elephant's Memory, which yielded the album Sometime in New York City and the two songs they play here (his strident "Woman is the Nigger of the World" and her "We're All Water"), wasn't exactly their creative zenith. --Sam Graham

Customer Reviews

Power to the People!
John Lennon and his wife, Yoko Ono were guests on the Dick Cavett show three times in 1971. Their first apearance was taped on Saturday, September 11, 1971 and was John's first interview after the Beatles had disbanded. The subsequent interviews were taped on Friday, September 24, 1971 and Thursday, May 11, 1972.

Viewers, Beatle fans and their counterparts will undoubtedly enjoy the natural conversational flow among Dick Cavett and his guests. John appeared to be in his element, happily chatting with the famous talk show host. It was a good thing John rightfully defends Yoko during this interview and makes it quite plain that she did not break up the Beatles. She has been wrongfully blamed for something that was bound to happen naturally - after all, the individuals who made up the Beatles needed to move individually; grow; develop their own individual styles. The group could not last forever.

Cavett gives John and Yoko equal time. He listens to them attentively; takes them seriously and at no time criticizes anybody or speculates about anybody. It is very easy to forget the interviews are taking place before a studio audience as viewers are easily lulled into the flow of the conversation.

Yoko is very animated during this first interview. She smokes; chats easily with her host about her undergraduate days at Sarah Lawrence and shows a film she made. John and Cavett are actually funny, sharing some humorous observations about clothing and coiffure.

Be sure to get this dvd collection. It is funny; interesting; serious; thought provoking and memorable. This is something for everybody and not just Beatle fans, Yokophiles and Lennonophiles. The bonus dvd will certainly bring many smiles to many faces.

Up Close and Personal With John & Yoko
The Dick Cavett Show-John & Yoko Collection is now available. The two dvd set includes John & Yoko's three appearances on Cavett's show. The first episode, taped September 11th, 1971 was John's first U.S. televised post-Beatles interview.

Fans of Lennon and Cavett will treasure these intimate conversations. The Lennon's are so comfortable with Cavett that you almost forget the show is being taped in front of an audience. Yoko Ono has been villanized a lot in the history of The Beatles. In this interview John declares that Yoko was not the cause of The Beatles break-up. "How can one woman break up The Beatles?" he offers. Yoko smokes a lot during the first episode, this is interesting to see because now a days people don't sit down and just light up while they are on a talk show. People curious about Yoko get to learn a lot about her as she is given adequate attention during the interview. She talks with Cavett about attending Sarah Lawrence and near the end of the first episode she shares a short film that she created. John and Cavett share in word play during the 9/11 episode and talk about a variety of subjects including hair styles.

The Dick Cavett Show-John & Yoko Collection features their three appearances that aired on-9/11/71, 9/24/1971 and 5/11/1972. Each episode features a brand new introduction by Cavett himself (who looks great), and all of the musical performances. The two disc set also includes a bonus featurette titled Cavett And The Lennons.

geniune, sincere, real
This interview with Dick Cavett is one of the best of Lennon and Yoko. They are unguarded, totally intelligent, quick, and positively wise in their analysis of rock, their lives, and world events. This interview shows them completely as they were: straight-shooters with very little bull. You can see how John and Yoko are so together with each other and how Yoko is so much better, intelligent, and caring than her frequent portrayal as a controller and puppeteer of John. A must for any Lennon and Yoko fan.