# Yoko Ono- why do I dislike her so much? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 16, 2009, 12:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635 "2009-05-16T12:34:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/21 "2009-05-17T13:12:58Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > She was a poseur. “Weird” does not equal “artist.” And I don’t believe for one second that she’d have been taken seriously at all had her audience not been completely stoned. > > For instance, one of her pieces was a real apple with the label “Apple.” Another was climbing a ladder and looking through a magnifying glass to read “YES.” Her music consisted of her standing on stage and screaming to feedback. Her poetry was nothing more than streams of consciousness. Don’t forget her famous film loop that consisted entirely of peoples’ naked asses. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/22 "2009-05-17T13:47:14Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > I’ve heard Yoko Ono was well off before she met Lennon, is this so? Did her family have money? Yes, she was from one of the richest and most influential families in Japan. ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/23 "2009-05-17T13:55:27Z")
> [@friedo](#): > > Don’t forget her famous film loop that consisted entirely of peoples’ naked asses. Yeah, she really hit bottom there. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/24 "2009-05-17T14:02:30Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > I always found it strange that Yoko received so much heat when Linda McCartney was “guilty” of many of Yoko’s so-called crimes–and Linda stood to gain a LOT more by hooking up with Paul. She was a professional photographer, after all. Of course, I think most of the “horror stories” came from Paul, and so he wasn’t going to say “Well, yeah, Yoko was always in the studio being a pain in the ass, but when Linda was there, it was like a tea party!” But both John and Paul had the same need/desire to have their new girlfriends/wives on hand at all times. Yes, at one point in the '90s, Paul, Linda and Wings came through Toronto. The specifics of what Linda did to piss off the sound man were never clear, however, he made a tape of her BG vocals and sent it to a local rock radio station, Q107. The vocals in question were as weird as anything Yoko ever did with the Plastic Ono Band. Linda was just as much a parasite, if not more, than Yoko ever was. Linda’s ego was certainly just as large. About her art, well, that’s what the dynamic was like in the '60s - remember Warhol? Jackson Pollock? Mark Rothko? Barnett Newman? It was a time when the concept was more important than the execution, and technical skill as an artist was seen as old fashioned. If you look at the Plastic Ono Band in the context of punk rock, she and Lennon were well ahead of their time. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Fight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Cat\_Fight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Fight)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/25 "2009-05-17T14:27:16Z")
> [@miss\_elizabeth](#): > > Personally, I love Yoko and always have. I never understood why people hate her. > > A feminist blogger I like a lot, who is also a Beatles fanatic, wrote an interesting piece about her, and how she was demonized by the media and whatnot. If you are serious about reconsidering your knee jerk reaction to her, you might find it informative. > > [http://imaginepeace.com/news/archives/5272](http://imaginepeace.com/news/archives/5272) Yikes. > [@](#): > > Later, Spitz notes an apparent competition among Beatles’ wives (at this point Cynthia Lennon, Pattie Harrison and Maureen Starr) over who could be the most submissive, doting doormat of a spouse - from Cynthia being not allowed to make a single peep until John woke up in mid-afternoon, to Maureen staying up until all hours of the morning to serve Ringo a hot meal whenever he decided to stroll in. They were never consulted on business decisions; the idea of seeking their opinions at all was generally unthinkable. And there are even numerous stories where a Beatle wandered off at a party without saying a word, leaving his wife/girlfriend to find her own way home, or on supposedly better nights leaving her to wait in the backseat of a limo for hours on end. Seemingly, apologies were never issued. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/26 "2009-05-17T16:34:14Z")
Rumor has it (meaning that I can’t remember the source) that Yoko was responsible for Paul McCartney getting busted for pot in Japan back in 1979. Now, technically, Paul is responsible for his weed, but the story goes that it was Yoko who tipped off the authorities. Fun times! ---
**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:** [May 17, 2009, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/27 "2009-05-17T20:51:56Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > All I remember of her was that John Lennon album, where one side was Yoko Ono’s-she screamed unmercifully for 16 minutes! THAT was horrible!:eek: [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/h9kgu71d81U/hqdefault.jpg "Chuck Berry & (John Lennon and Yoko Ono) - Memphis Tennessee") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h9kgu71d81U) Go to 1:15. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![Lochdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/edb3f5/32.png) [@Lochdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lochdale)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/28 "2009-05-17T23:51:23Z")
I don’t think she was particularly talented or even interesting. Probably doesn’t deserve the hate but she didn’t do herself any favours and is generally thought of as being a negative influnce on Lennon’s Beatle’s life anyways. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/29 "2009-05-18T00:34:13Z")
> [@PunditLisa](#): > > She was a poseur. “Weird” does not equal “artist.” And I don’t believe for one second that she’d have been taken seriously at all had her audience not been completely stoned. > > For instance, one of her pieces was a real apple with the label “Apple.” Another was climbing a ladder and looking through a magnifying glass to read “YES.” Her music consisted of her standing on stage and screaming to feedback. Her poetry was nothing more than streams of consciousness. > > The fact that she had the audacity to present herself an “artist” is a slap in the face to people who commit hundreds of hours into learning and honing their craft. That she felt worthy enough to contribute ANYTHING to a very successful, indisputably talented band is an indication of her chutzpah. She was a hack and doesn’t deserve the title “artist” any more than Linda McCartney deserves the title “musician.” > > Add this to the fact that she was a manipulative, jealous, ruthless bitch who tried to keep Lennon away from his mates, his wife, and his son and you’ll understand why she’s so universally disliked. > > Note: That doesn’t diminish Lennon’s share of the blame here. I agree. The Dopers of the tri-state area are united in their condemnation of Yoko Ono! And I don’t get the “she’s hot” bit either. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/30 "2009-05-18T01:53:13Z")
I don’t blame Yoko for breaking up the Beatles or contributing to the long decline of John Lennon. I have the same reaction to her as to any screechy talentless nonentity who gets attention for being a remora on a famous person. > [@Cicero](#): > > She has little talent for much as I can see but I see a video from the 70’s tonight with Lennon and her there with a blindfold with signs such as “hope”. There’s the problem. Blindfolds (and earplugs) should have been handed out to the audience. I know where to put the cork. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/31 "2009-05-18T02:43:48Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > Yes, at one point in the '90s, Paul, Linda and Wings came through Toronto. The specifics of what Linda did to piss off the sound man were never clear, however, he made a tape of her BG vocals and sent it to a local rock radio station, Q107. The vocals in question were as weird as anything Yoko ever did with the Plastic Ono Band. Linda was just as much a parasite, if not more, than Yoko ever was. Linda’s ego was certainly just as large. > > About her art, well, that’s what the dynamic was like in the '60s - remember Warhol? Jackson Pollock? Mark Rothko? Barnett Newman? It was a time when the concept was more important than the execution, and technical skill as an artist was seen as old fashioned. > > If you look at the Plastic Ono Band in the context of punk rock, she and Lennon were well ahead of their time. The difference being that Linda’s bad singing was hidden, whereas Yoko’s was way out front. Neither could sing on key or even close. I never thought that Yoko broke up the band, I just thought that there was no further they could musically go together. Paul was not going to sit still for the angrier direction that John was going, and John wasn’t interested in the softer direction Paul was going. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/32 "2009-05-18T03:52:19Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > The difference being that Linda’s bad singing was hidden, whereas Yoko’s was way out front. Neither could sing on key or even close. I never thought that Yoko broke up the band, I just thought that there was no further they could musically go together. Paul was not going to sit still for the angrier direction that John was going, and John wasn’t interested in the softer direction Paul was going. :dubious: The softer direction Paul was going? Really? What on **Abby Road** or **Let It Be** make you think Paul was heading in some soft direction that John couldn’t tolerate? Or for that matter **McCartney** , **Band on the Run** , or **Ram**? John was a prick. He was horrible to people–even the people who loved him. He made poor business decisions. He was a naturally angry person, prone to extended periods of depression which only made him more difficult to hang around with. Paul is a prick. He’s forever a frustrated perfectionist–one that is not ultimately happy with anything. He resented sharing John’s attention with Yoko. He began going into the studio and laying down tracks completely by himself with nobody’s input– **Why Don’t We Do It in the Road** is a good example of this. He recorded most of **McCartney** before the band even realized they were formally broken up. The resentment swirling between them wasn’t limited to them. George wanted to be an equal part of the band, not just recording one or two tracks per album. He was growing as a musician and experimenting with more and more Eastern influences. Now consider that they had been forced to live practically on top of each other for over a decade (some marriages don’t even last that long), and add the fact that since Brian Epstein’s death, they were rudderless and in serious conflict over who should be handling their money and rights. And that’s just a basic summary of some of the more surface tensions. None of which had anything to do with either John “getting angrier” or Paul “getting softer”–an assertion that isn’t borne out by their late Beatles-era or post-Beatles output. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/33 "2009-05-18T04:51:06Z")
> [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > John was a prick. He was horrible to people–even the people who loved him. He made poor business decisions. He was a naturally angry person, prone to extended periods of depression which only made him more difficult to hang around with. Paul is a prick. He’s forever a frustrated perfectionist–one that is not ultimately happy with anything. He resented sharing John’s attention with Yoko. Yep, and they pretty much put up with each other, but if you look at the music they put out, John’s music was continually edgier, and Paul’s more melodious. And they continued in those directions until the late 70s, early 80s until inexplicably, they each went in the other direction. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/34 "2009-05-18T05:11:07Z")
No, they didn’t “pretty much put up with each other.” They were extremely close and good friends for the majority of their time together. If you ever listen to candid outtakes from their recording sessions, or just watch the two of them interact with each other on the various documentaries, that’s pretty clear. And I think it’s a fool’s game to try to say one was more “edgier” than the other. For one thing, even in the later years when they had more solo compositions, they still contributed a great deal to each other’s work (with notable exceptions like Why Don’t We Do It in the Road). But when it comes down to it, they were both interested in a diversity of music, and they both experimented in their own ways, with and without each other. John was _not_ “edgier” than Paul, whatever that means. **Imagine** is pure treacle (and very melodious). Sure you could say **Happiness is a Warm Gun** is edgier than **Blackbird** , but that opens the door for **Helter Skelter** and **Why Don’t We Do it In the Road** compared to **Julia** and **Cry Baby Cry**. You want to look at **Let It Be**? Well we have **The Long and Winding Road** and **Dig a Pony** , but from the same session we have **Get Back** , which is a fun little rock and roll number, and **Across the Universe**. On Abbey Road, we have **I Want You (She’s So Heavy)** pitted against **Oh! Darling** , but then we’ve also got **Because** and **Maxwell’s Silver Hammer**. If you listen to the medly, the parts that genuinely rocked were mostly Paul’s compositions ( **She Came In Through the Bathroom Window** , **You Never Give me Your Money** , and **Carry That Weight** ). My point is that, ultimately, the “common knowledge” that Paul is one thing and John is the other might be oft-repeated, but it’s far from the truth. And that doesn’t even get into their solo work. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/35 "2009-05-18T06:15:38Z")
I just outright disagree with your post 34. Just about everything in it. Yes, they were good friends once, but barely spoke to each other for 10 years. Paul was writing Silly Love Songs, etc. including Helter Skelter, which should not be interpreted as Charles Manson did, but rather as a what it was, a goofy song about a playground. Paul was all about tender love songs. John was all against war and for peace and introspection, and most of late Beatles work and early solo work reflected this. It was outright angry. It is interesting to see someone who clearly loves both their works have such a different opinion of them than I do. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/36 "2009-05-18T07:47:39Z")
Our culture still isn’t comfortable with women in the spotlight as anything but pretty faces. She is subject to the same irrational hate as Hilary Clinton. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 2:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/37 "2009-05-18T14:21:45Z")
As I read the Beatles’ biography by Spitz (he is quoted earlier in this thread), I got the distinct impression that John was passive-aggressively trying to distance himself from the Beatles and used Yoko to do this - and she was a willing accomplice. Shenanigans like having her bed moved to the studio when she was sick so he could be with her while they recorded? Including her in band decisions, something no other Beatles’ wife/girlfriend could’ve ever imagined? Oy. Add to that her own personal/artistic idiosyncracies, which could be interpreted as pretentious or what have you in their own right and you have a recipe for reputation. Bottom line? John was acting out, but used a willing Yoko to do it and since she came across as an artsy-fartsy, pretentious counter-culture, cosmopolitan snob anyway - well, it was easy to re-direct any ill feelings her direction…and kinda still is. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/38 "2009-05-18T14:36:31Z")
I am reading that article now. Thank you to miss elizabeth for posting it. I never paid much attention to the whole situation at all and now I realize I have had the same opinion of Yoko Ono without even knowing it - just a knee-jerk “knowing” that has never been looked further into. ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/39 "2009-05-18T16:53:45Z")
\ ONO! Mean Mr. Mod is carrying that weight of a thread over to Cafe Society. Now let it be or Maxwell’s Silver Hammer will be your fate. 😃 Moved IMHO \> CS \ ---
**Author:** ![lissener](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lissener/32/6139_2.png) [@lissener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lissener)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2009, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635/40 "2009-05-18T19:06:47Z")
> [@Bootis](#): > > She was already a successful artist before she met Lennon. His fame certainly helped her career, but it didn’t create it. OK? Plus, [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A526wwXKo_g&feature=related) is one of the truly greatest songs of the 80s; unfortunately the only copy I can find on the web that isn’t a horrible, trancey remix is this odd video of the vinyl record playing on a turntable; presumably the sound was recorded on the video camera as it shot the spinning disc. Muddy sound, but it retains its general shape. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/yoko-ono-why-do-i-dislike-her-so-much/496635.md?page=3)