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Credit: Inside the MagicYou’ll never believe the strange connection between Walt Disney World and The Beatles.
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There’s no doubt that the Walt Disney World Resort is a crucial piece of American history. Since opening in 1971, the parks have welcomed millions of guests and hosted many world premieres and exclusive events.
The Beatles were and still are one of, if not the biggest, musical groups in the world. Made up of Paul McCartney, John Lennon, Ringo Starr, and George Harrison, The Beatles took over the world for decades until breaking up in the 1970s. But there’s a fact about The Beatles’ dissolution that may surprise you.
As reported in an older article from Ultimate Classic Rock, three of the four Beatles were ready and present to sign the official papers needed to end the group for good. George, Paul, Ringo, via phone, and several lawyers huddled around a table in the Plaza Hotel. Lennon claimed that “The stars aren’t right,” making everyone at the meeting furious.
John and his former girlfriend, May Pang, planned to spend Christmas in Florida that year, and both left New York for West Palm Beach.
After the vacation, a lawyer brought the massive contract for Lennon to sign while he was staying at Disney’s Polynesian Resort in Walt Disney World. Thus, as he picked up his pen, John Lennon officially ended The Beatles right then and there at Disney World on December 29, 1974.
In her book, “Instamatic Karma,” May Pang explained the moment that Lennon officially ended The Beatles at Disney:
When John hung up the phone, he looked wistfully out the window. I could almost see him replaying the entire Beatles experience in his mind.
He finally picked up his pen and, in the unlikely backdrop of the Polynesian Village Hotel at Disney World, ended the greatest rock ‘n’ roll band in history by simply scrawling John Lennon at the bottom of the page.
Though the breakup started around 1970, the group’s official termination happened years later at a Disney World Resort, of all places. The group’s ending was sad for fans, and the deaths of both John Lennon and George Harrison were heartbreaking, but The Beatles’ legacy has continued to live on.
The next time you stay at Disney’s Polynesian Resort in Walt Disney World, just remember you are in the place where John Lennon officially ended The Beatles!
Are you a Beatles fan? Did you know this shocking fact? Let us know in the comments below!