Dec. 8: Remembering John Lennon

1. On this date, Dec. 8, 1980, former Beatle John Lennon was murdered in front of his home at The Dakota apartment building on W. 72nd St. in New York City. Much of the nation heard the news during a "Monday Night Football" telecast, when Howard Cosell delivered the tragic bulletin. Lennon's killer, Mark David Chapman, remains imprisoned at Attica Correctional Facility.

2. Lennon had a pair of Number One singles in his solo career, but surprisingly, "Imagine" was not one of them. Perhaps his best-known solo recording, "Imagine" peaked at number three on the Billboard chart in 1971. Lennon's chart-toppers were "Whatever Gets You Through the Night" in 1974, and "(Just Like) Starting Over" in 1980.

3. Lennon is one of the few performers inducted twice into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. The Beatles were inducted in 1988, and Lennon's solo career was honored in 1994. Among the other two-time honorees are Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Michael Jackson, Neil Young, Curtis Mayfield and Paul Simon, while Eric Clapton is the only artist inducted three times (Yardbirds, 1992; Cream, 1993; solo, 2000).

4. Thursday will be sunny, with a high temperature near 43, according to the National Weather Service. Thursday night will see increasing clouds, and a low around 26. 

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