On Dec. 8, 1980, John Lennon signs an autograph on his way out of his New York apartment building for a fan named Mark David Chapman — who would murder the iconic musician on this very spot when he returned home just a few hours later.
As Lennon made his way back into the building at about 10:50 p.m., Chapman stepped out of the shadows and fired four shots into his back. Lennon was pronounced dead at Roosevelt Hospital some 25 minutes later.
“He was very kind to me,” Chapman later said of their encounter earlier in the night, “very cordial and decent man.”
