J. W. Lennon, Esq., M.B.E., Kenwood, Wood Lane, Cavendish Road, St George's Hill, Weybridge, Surrey.
Friday, 16 July 2010
3 Savile Row: 2 fireplaces.
The story of 3 Savile Row in the 1960s hinges upon 5 people. Showbiz magnate Jack Hylton, for whom it served as a base of operations throughout the first half of the decade, and you know who, for whom you know what.
The above shows John, probably in the main boardroom on the first floor (UK nomenclature; second floor US), engaged in a high level business meeting upon which hundreds of thousands of pounds rested. One wonders why they almost went bust. Also the fireplace, a mute witness to it all, as seen in its previous incarnation as...a fireplace. But this time, obviously, in Hylton House (as the Apple Building once was), from around the time John was failing to mug people in Hamburg.
Below, thrillingly, another fireplace, also in its Hylton and Apple phases. I have no idea where in the building this room is/was. It looks like reception. Mr Malcolm Evans, long suffering factotum, mans the phones:
These fireplaces, eh? The things they've seen. (Mainly coal.)
Many thanks again go to Julian Carr for his picture research, and to the City of London, London Metropolitan Archive for permission to use the Hylton-era pics.
Do you think that documentary evidence of the Beatles' years at 3 Savile Row might be similar to your experience with Kenwood, in that there is far more out there that has yet to surface? It would be great to see as many photographs of the interior rooms as possible gathered into one place.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good question. My feeling is that there will certainly be more out there, but Apple was a place of business (albeit generally insane business), with a bouncer on the door to keep the kind of people who would have taken these photos out. So, I think we've probably seen most of the internal Apple stuff that there is to see. I think that as far as Kenwood goes, there is certainly more, and maybe much more. I guess we'll find out.
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