# Ringo Takes a Stand! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 14, 2008, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952 "2008-10-14T21:21:50Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![clnilsen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecccb3/32.png) [@clnilsen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/clnilsen)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/1 "2008-10-14T21:21:50Z")
So [Here on CNN](http://www.cnn.com/2008/SHOWBIZ/10/14/ringo.starr.fan.mail/index.html) Ringo comes out and says “No more fanmail” which isn’t particularly shocking since I’m sure even if he’s been signing things 24 hours a day since the beginning of time, he’s probably just gotten to reading letters talking about how great “Rubber Soul” is and looking forward to the next album with the Fab Four. Anyway, what I found odd here is the fact that he keeps repeating the “peace and love” thing, looking stoned, and then _gives a specific cutoff date?_ I found this odd; seems like he maybe signed a deal or something. So, wondering is there anything else going on here, or just Ringo being Ringo? ---
**Author:** ![Acorns.but\_not\_Bacon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3da27b/32.png) [@Acorns.but\_not\_Bacon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acorns.but_not_Bacon)\ **Post date:** [October 14, 2008, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/2 "2008-10-14T21:30:36Z")
I don’t know, Ringo always seemed like a reasonable Beatle, down to earth and the like. It reminds me of an episode of The Simpsons where he’s surrounded by fanmail and he’s reading or responding to every letter, is that what he’s renowned for doing? Maybe it’s got too much for him now. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/3 "2008-10-15T01:49:01Z")
> [@Acorns.but\_not\_Bacon](#): > > It reminds me of an episode of The Simpsons where he’s surrounded by fanmail and he’s reading or responding to every letter That’s what it reminds me of too. The joke there was that he hadn’t answered anyone’s fan mail since the '70s, but decided to start again, starting with all of the mail he recieved but never responded to. So maybe he actualy _does_ hate getting fan mail. “P.S. Please forgive the lateness of my reply.” ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/4 "2008-10-15T02:01:12Z")
> [@mobo85](#): > > The joke there was that he hadn’t answered anyone’s fan mail since the '70s, but decided to start again, starting with all of the mail he recieved but never responded to. I didn’t get that sense - I thought it was that the fanmail was in such great quantity, he had a 20+ year backlog. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 2:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/5 "2008-10-15T02:30:24Z")
Yeah, that’s what I meant- he hadn’t answered anyone’s fan mail since the '70s, so he decided to answer 20 years worth of fan mail in the order in which it was recieved. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/6 "2008-10-15T02:43:41Z")
Yeah, who cares if he played drums for The Beatles? If he won’t answer any more fan mail, he sucks! :p:p I suspect that he’s written letters to hundreds of fans over the years. The value of that correspondence has just gone up quite a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 4:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/7 "2008-10-15T04:38:22Z")
> [@mobo85](#): > > Yeah, that’s what I meant- he hadn’t answered anyone’s fan mail since the '70s, so he decided to answer 20 years worth of fan mail in the order in which it was recieved. I still don’t get your interpretation. Even if he had been answering mail continuously since the 1970s, it would quickly get away from him. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/8 "2008-10-15T04:49:28Z")
And as the last surviving Beatle, he must have even more catching up to do. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/9 "2008-10-15T04:49:48Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > I still don’t get your interpretation. Even if he had been answering mail continuously since the 1970s, it would quickly get away from him. That’s exactly it. Rather than starting with the most recent fan mail, he’s starting with the fan mail he _first_ got, which still means that he’ll probably never catch up. ---
**Author:** ![Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e47c2d/32.png) [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffy_the_Elephant_Shrew)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 4:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/10 "2008-10-15T04:59:54Z")
> [@mobo85](#): > > That’s exactly it. Rather than starting with the most recent fan mail, he’s starting with the fan mail he _first_ got, which still means that he’ll probably never catch up. I believe **Bryan** is correct–the cartoon Ringo had been answering his fan mail all along, but it was such a huge quantity that he was _still_ working on letters from the '60s. ---
**Author:** ![Cardinal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardinal/32/4000_2.png) [@Cardinal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardinal)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/11 "2008-10-15T05:20:19Z")
> [@JThunder](#): > > And as the last surviving Beatle, he must have even more catching up to do. Wait, are you saying that Paul IS dead? Wow, that’s a good imposter… ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/12 "2008-10-15T05:24:36Z")
Hell, in this day and age, if I was famous I’d encourage as much fan mail as possible. Then I’d install one of those wood chip/corn/refuse burning furnaces and use the stuff to heat my house in the winter. “Hey folks, I’m a big fan of wood and wood products. Feel free to send me your small crafts!” \ Maybe that’s what Ringo is doing. ---
**Author:** ![mobo85](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mobo85](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mobo85)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/13 "2008-10-15T06:12:38Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > I believe **Bryan** is correct–the cartoon Ringo had been answering his fan mail all along, but it was such a huge quantity that he was _still_ working on letters from the '60s. D’oh. You’re exactly right. ---
**Author:** ![Cicero](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cicero/32/3594_2.png) [@Cicero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cicero)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 12:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/14 "2008-10-15T12:15:36Z")
Yep- made millions from the folks he doesn’t want to hear from. What a tosser. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/15 "2008-10-15T12:24:03Z")
> [@Biffy\_the\_Elephant\_Shrew](#): > > I believe **Bryan** is correct–the cartoon Ringo had been answering his fan mail all along, but it was such a huge quantity that he was _still_ working on letters from the '60s. Yeah, that’s the sense I got, too. In the episode, he hadn’t just started answering it, but had been doing it all along and was still on the mail he’d gotten twenty years ago. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/16 "2008-10-15T12:54:15Z")
> [@](#): > > Wait, are you saying that Paul IS dead? Wow, that’s a good imposter… Naah – he just doesn’t want to answer his fan mail. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/17 "2008-10-15T13:55:44Z")
Anyone get the feeling that Ringo just doesn’t generate the fan-mail he used to, and he’s trying to cut things off at the pass? Like by saying he doesn’t want fan-mail any more the two or three cheesecake shots from women his own age will stop showing up in his inbox – thank Christ! And he probably doesn’t appreciate it when they send him those big ol’ granny panties either… ---
**Author:** ![mrpayday](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@mrpayday](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mrpayday)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/18 "2008-10-15T13:57:31Z")
I’m sure Pete Best is still available to recieve fanmail. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 2:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/19 "2008-10-15T14:24:04Z")
Who in the holy hell is still writing Ringo fan letters? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [October 15, 2008, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952/20 "2008-10-15T14:33:23Z")
Well, my 10 year-old son is a huge fan; I could see him doing it, maybe, but yeah, it’s not like you’d want to buy a patch of his hotel towel or anything anymore. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ringo-takes-a-stand/467952.md?page=2)