{"id":7298,"date":"2018-02-14T19:30:16","date_gmt":"2018-02-15T00:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thefest.com\/?p=7298"},"modified":"2018-02-14T19:30:16","modified_gmt":"2018-02-15T00:30:16","slug":"may-a-paul-fall-over-the-land","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thefest.com\/may-a-paul-fall-over-the-land\/","title":{"rendered":"May “A Paul” Fall Over The Land"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jude Southerland Kessler<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

IT happened just after the Superbowl.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

After four hours of knuckle-gnawing, hair-raising, supreme <\/em>gridiron action\u2026interrupted only by a halftime that piled choreography atop an incredible light show and special effects\u2026after four hours of superb athletic play dolloped liberally with hilarious (Danny DeVito as a brash, red M & M) and extremely touching commercials (such as Verizon\u2019s \u201cAnswering the Call\u201d tribute to first responders), I took a breather. To calm and unwind, I found my quiet computer and sat down to handle some business posts on Facebook.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

And there<\/em> I found them\u2026The Naysayers. They were alive and well, despite the joy of the evening\u2019s incredible offerings, and they were quite vocal:<\/p>\n

\u201cJustin Timberlake did nothing<\/em> for me!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe commercials were a big, fat yawn.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe refs were awful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe halftime show was the worst to date!\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not one bit impressed.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened to all the great commercials we used to have?\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I could barely believe my eyes. Had these people witnessed the same game<\/em> I\u2019d just seen? Had they watched the heartfelt Busch \u201cStand by You\u201d commercial? Had they taken a bathroom break during the brilliant \u201cWe Will Rock You\u201d Ford Ram Vikings ad? Had they not sat on the edge of their couches and shouted at the television as I had? Or had the worst finally transpired\u2026had we morphed into a world conditioned to gripe and grouse, 24\/7??<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

At that very moment, IT happened\u2026yes, indeed it did. This ardent John Lennon devotee was driven straightaway into the emotional camp of Paul McCartney! In the blink of an eye.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I\u2019m here to stand up and shout: The world needs more Pauls.<\/strong> The world needs more smiles, more \u201cthumbs up,\u201d more tact and kindness. The world need more brave faces. We need more \u201clet it be.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

From Day One, The Beatles recognized that Paul was a great asset, and not just as a musician. Of the four boys, McCartney was by far the best-equipped to handle their public relations, to smooth rough corners, to manage sticky situations. In his book, Beatlemania: The Real Story of The Beatles U.K. Tours: 1963-1965<\/em>, author Martin Creasy writes: \u201cMcCartney had an in-built sense of exactly the right or wrong thing for a Beatle to say at any given moment. Among all his other talents, Paul was the PR heavyweight who rarely, if ever, let slip anything that could damage the group\u2019s reputation. He soon realised that unguarded moments\u2026could result in unwelcome headlines.\u201d[i]<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But even before there were<\/em> headlines, Paul was busy making life rosy for the other Beatles. On their first tour with Johnny Gentle to Scotland (in May 1960), the Beatles minibus unfortunately rear-ended a car that was legally stopped at a four-way crossing. Two very startled and scared elderly ladies sat in the damaged car, shocked at this assault by a van of teenagers. The Beatles, for their part, were injured (especially drummer, Tommy Moore) and very afraid of the legal ramifications. Paul was immediately elected to get out and make everything right.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Now, I ask you, how does one explain careening into the back of a cautiously stopped vehicle? How does one make the officious ramming of a sedan driven by two sweet, old grandmas acceptable? I have no clue, but Paul did. He smiled and gestured and was his affable self\u2026and within minutes, the ladies were feeling sorry for the skinny, tired, young entertainer whose driver was falling asleep from an extreme dearth of rest. Paul made it all okay.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

On the few occasions when Paul wasn\u2019t at the \u201cHappy Helm\u201d of The Beatles, the center began to fly apart. No one is sure what miffed Paul into silence at the Cleveland press conference during the North American Tour of 1964, but miffed he was. He sat at the press conference table and doodled away, saying not a word to anyone. (Well, once he snarled at John when John suggested that their education in Liverpool wasn\u2019t the best. But other than this singular flare, Paul sketched and kept his head down.) And though easy-going Ringo tried his best to fill in the large gap left by the muted Gregarious Beatle, Ringo struggled. George and John, of course, were as honest and forthright as ever. It was a very tense, touch-and-go afternoon.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

You see, we need those who mend fences. We need those who bite their tongues, now and again. We need those who try to compromise or see the good in the opposite viewpoint. We need the Pauls who find something happy in every situation\u2026the Pauls who elect not to fight at every bend in the road, but who make life easier on all around, simply by refusing to complain.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

I thrive on John Lennon\u2019s biting satire and commentary. I love George Harrison\u2019s blunt honesty. I adore Ringo\u2019s mournful complaints when he\u2019s attacked with scissors or girls who steal his medals and rend his clothing. Like most people, I cherish the frankness of The Beatles, the brash sincerity that made them so trusted and thus, beloved.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

But every once in a while, I wish we could all take a large dose of Sir Macca\u2019s positive approach and \u201ccan do\u201d outlook. I wish we could all make an effort to say, \u201cGood Day, Sunshine\u201d and really mean it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

It seems to me, we could all <\/em>use that Macca miracle drug\u2026uh, yesterday. Seeing Sir Paul in concert, it\u2019s a cinch to observe his zest for living, his utter enthusiasm. No one would guess him a day over 50, much less 70! Why? Because being joyous defeats age; it reverses wear and tear. It invigorates and rejuvenates. It refreshes. (Exactly why Sir Mc was an ideal<\/em> Superbowl halftime performer in 2005!)[ii]<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So, I fervently pray that somehow \u201ca Paul\u201d may fall over our land, as it were. We need something to laugh about\u2026and it\u2019s that <\/em>(instead of money) that I want.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[i]<\/a> Creasy, Beatlemania: The Real Story of The Beatles U.K. Tours, 1963-1965, p. 290.<\/p>\n

[ii]<\/a> To see Sir Paul McCartney perform his full 2005 Superbowl Halftime Show, go to:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=9QWw0WM_dos<\/a><\/p>\n

\n
\n

Jude Southerland Kessler is the author of the John Lennon Series:\u00a0www.johnlennonseries.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Jude is represented by 910 Public Relations —\u00a0@910PubRel<\/a>\u00a0on Twitter and\u00a0910 Public Relations<\/a>\u00a0on Facebook.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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