1980: John Lennon shot deadFormer Beatle John Lennon has been shot dead by an unknown gunman who opened fire outside the musician's New York apartment.
The 40-year-old was shot several times as he entered the Dakota, his luxury apartment building on Manhattan's Upper West Side, opposite Central Park, at 2300 local time.
He was rushed in a police car to St Luke's Roosevelt Hospital Center, where he died.
His wife, Yoko Ono, who is understood to have witnessed the attack, was with him.
Shots heard
A police spokesman said a suspect was in custody, but he had no other details of the shooting.
"This was no robbery," the spokesman said, adding that Mr Lennon was probably shot by a "deranged" person.
Witness reports say at least three shots were fired and others have claimed they heard six.
There are also reports Mr Lennon staggered up six steps into the vestibule after he was shot, before collapsing.
Jack Douglas, Lennon's producer, said he and the Lennons had been at a studio called the Record Plant in mid-town earlier in the evening and Lennon left at 2230.
Mr Lennon said he planned to have some dinner and then return home, Mr Douglas said.
Fans at scene
The Lennons are said to have left their limousine on the street and walked up the driveway when the gunman opened fire.
It is unclear whether the man had been lying in wait in the entrance to the building for Mr Lennon, or whether he came up behind him.
Witnesses describe the gunman as a "pudgy kind of man", 35 to 40 years old with brown hair.
Other former band members, Paul McCartney, guitarist George Harrison and drummer Ringo Starr are thought to have been informed of Lennon's murder.
Fans have already begun arriving at the scene, many still unaware Lennon has died.
Mr Lennon is survived by his wife, their son Sean, and his son from a previous marriage, Julian.
As Lennon and Ono walked to their limousine, they were approached by several people seeking autographs, among them Chapman.[6] He silently handed Lennon a copy of Double Fantasy, and Lennon obliged with an autograph.[6] After signing the album Lennon asked him, "Is this all you want?" Chapman nodded in agreement. Photographer and Lennon fan Paul Goresh snapped a photo of the event. [7]
The Lennons spent several hours at the Record Plant studio before returning to the Dakota at about 10:50 p.m. Lennon decided against eating out so he could be home in time to say goodnight to five-year-old son Sean before he went to sleep. They exited their limousine on 72nd Street, even though the car could have been driven into the more secure courtyard.[8]

Police artist's drawing of the murder
The Dakota's doorman, Jose Perdomo, and a cab driver saw Chapman standing in the shadows by the archway.[9] Ono walked ahead of Lennon and into the reception area. As Lennon passed by, Chapman fired five hollow-point bullets at Lennon from a Charter Arms .38 Special revolver.[1] There was an isolated radio and newspaper claim at the time that, before firing, Chapman called out "Mr. Lennon" and dropped into a "combat stance",[10] but this is not stated in court hearings or witness interviews. Chapman has said he did not remember calling out Lennon's name before he shot him.[11] One shot missed, passing over Lennon's head and hitting a window of the Dakota building. However, two shots struck Lennon in the left side of his back and two more penetrated his left shoulder. All four bullets inflicted severe gunshot wounds, with at least one of them piercing Lennon's aorta.[12] Lennon staggered up five steps to the security/reception area, said, "I'm shot," and collapsed. Concierge Jay Hastings covered Lennon with his uniform, and removed his glasses; he then summoned the police. Outside, doorman Perdomo shook the gun out of Chapman's hand then kicked it across the sidewalk.[9] Chapman then removed his coat and hat in preparation for the police arrival to show he was not carrying any concealed weapons and sat down on the sidewalk. Doorman Perdomo shouted at Chapman, "Do you know what you've done?", to which Chapman calmly replied, "Yes, I just shot John Lennon." The first policemen to arrive were Steve Spiro and Peter Cullen, who were at 72nd Street and Broadway when they heard a report of shots fired at the Dakota. The officers found Chapman sitting "very calmly" on the sidewalk. They reported that Chapman had dropped the revolver to the ground, and was holding a paperback book, J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye.[13] Chapman had scribbled a message on the book's inside front cover: "To Holden Caulfield. From Holden Caulfield. This is my statement." He would later claim that his life mirrored that of Holden Caulfield, the main protagonist of the book.
The second team, Officers Bill Gamble and James Moran, arrived a few minutes later. They immediately carried Lennon into their squad car and rushed him to Roosevelt Hospital. Officer Moran said they placed Lennon on the back seat.[14] Moran asked, "Do you know who you are?" There are conflicting accounts on what happened next. In one account, Lennon nodded slightly and tried to speak, but could only manage to make a gurgling sound, and lost consciousness shortly thereafter.[15]