John Lennon’s “Lost Weekend” is a period from 1973-1975 in which Lennon mostly lived in L.A., estranged from his wife Yoko Ono, who remained in New York. He was romantically involved during that time with their personal assistant May Pang. Pang has compiled photos of that time and will be displaying them this weekend in Tampa.

The Lost Weekend — The Photography of May Pang opens this Friday at Tempus Projects in Ybor City. Friday: 12:00 noon – 7:00 p.m., Saturday: 11:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. and Sunday: 12:00 noon – 4:00 p.m.

WMNF’s Seán Kinane interviewed May Pang on Tuesday Café. A video and a partial transcript of the interview are below.

Listen to the full show here:

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May Pang in Tampa

May Pang is exhibiting her photos opening Friday, January 24 at Tempus Projects in Ybor City. The exhibition is called The Lost Weekend – The Photography of May Pang. it runs through Sunday, January 26. Tempus Projects is at 1624, East Seventh Avenue on the second floor, in Tampa’s Ybor City.

May Pang in Ormond Beach

You can also see her photo exhibition at the Ocean Art Gallery in Ormond Beach on Tuesday, January 21 and Wednesday, January 22.

The Lost Weekend: A Love Story

A film about May Pang and John Lennon is called The Lost Weekend: A Love Story.

A partial transcript of WMNF’s interview with May Pang

SK – By 1973 everyone was in New York — you and John and Yoko were in New York. But then John suggested leaving New York and going to LA, and he brought you. But this wasn’t at the insistence of Yoko? Is that how history somehow gets it wrong?

MP – “History, as I would always say, you know, that’s why I ended up doing the documentary, “The Lost Weekend: A Love Story,” only because I had to take back my narrative. It just got — everybody else was doing my narrative, and they were saying whatever they wanted and what they thought was actually happening. But what actually happened was John was having a moment where he was with his lawyer, and who happened to live in LA. Harold Sider was getting ready. And he looked at John, and he says, ‘Okay, we’re done.’ And, and John said, ‘Well, when are you going back to LA?’ And he said, ‘Tonight, I’m on a plane tonight, like six o’clock or seven o’clock,’ whatever it was. And he looked at him and he goes, ‘Well, May and I will be joining you.’ And he went, ‘Oh, okay.’

“And so there I was standing there, going, ‘We’re leaving. We’re going somewhere?’ I had to get everything and arrange for us to be on the same flight as Harold. And so, yes, it was John’s suggestion. He just wanted to get out of dodge. As I would say.”

SK – Once you got to LA, John was working on an album of cover songs, and the album was called Rock and Roll. It was being produced by Phil Spector. So tell us what those sessions were like.

MP – “Crazy. That’s all I’m going to say. I was not used to it, because we had been doing other albums and stuff, and in New York. So this was the first time, you know, you’re working with Phil Spector. Perfect person for cover songs from back in the 60s that John wanted to pay homage to all the people that represented his life. The songs He loved. And so, perfect person.

“So we thought. Until I realized that this man was carrying his guns. John and I really thought that when he was carrying his guns, that they were not real, that they were filled with blanks. And he was just showing, you know, ‘I’m Phil Spector, and here are my guns.’ And who would have thought in a million years that they were loaded. Until he shot it off one day when we happened to be in LA and we were listening to something. I was in one room, and John and Phil and Mal Evans, the original roadie for The Beatles, were in another room. And all of a sudden we heard this noise. And everybody that was in the room that I was standing in the control room, ducked. And I’m standing there going, ‘What is that sound?’ Everybody else is ducking except me. And I’m standing next to of all people, Phil’s mother, who happened to come by the studio. And I went running towards the sound, and I opened the door, and there’s Phil with the gun in his hand. And John has his finger in his ear because the pop was so loud it was affecting his eardrum. And he’s saying, ‘Phil, Phil, if you’re going to shoot, shoot me. But don’t mess with me ears, man, I got to listen. I got to use them.’

“And Mal goes over to Phil and says, ‘give me that you shouldn’t have this in your hand.’ And Phil’s going, ‘you can’t tell me what to do.’ And I’m like, I’m going, ‘Hey guys, come on, what’s going on?’

“You know here’s the youngest person. I am, the youngest person in this group, but seem to be the oldest person in this group. And I’m going, ‘what is going on?’ And Mal says, ‘you know, we’re just horsing around.’ And he was doing something — Phil was doing something that was hurting Mal. And, you know, Mal, as he was back then, gentle giant said, ‘can you not do that? It really hurts. You know that you’re, you’re hurting my nose, and I could feel it,’ And Phil didn’t take to it too well, and that’s when he went and he drew the gun out and it went off.

“Well, lo and behold, everybody calmed down. We all went back to the recording. The next day, John and I are having a peaceful dinner as so we thought, and I see Mal in this in the restaurant. He goes, ‘Mal?’ And he comes running, he goes, ‘Oh, I’ve been looking for you two.’ And he said, ‘what’s going on?’ He goes, ‘Well, I just wanted to show you the bullet from last night.’ And both John and I were stunned. ‘What bullet?’ You know, that’s how it was. ‘What bullet are you talking about?’ He goes, ‘there were real bullets.’ We were just so totally taken aback by that one.”