Post by yerblues1968 on Feb 8, 2009 3:18:54 GMT -5
The Beatles Apple Boutique on 94 Baker Street, London.
THE BEATLES APPLE BOUTIQUE
The Apple Boutique was a retail store, located at 94 Baker Street, London, and one of the first business ventures made by The Beatles' fledgling Apple Corps.
Opened on December 7, 1967 (with John Lennon and George Harrison attending the grand opening, sipping apple juice, as the Boutique had no alcohol license), the Apple Boutique's primary advertisement (aside from the promotion given by the Beatles themselves, in the media) was an elaborate mural, painted on one whole outside wall of their location, designed by Dutch artistic trio The Fool, facing out into Baker Street. Inside the shop, clothing and accessories also designed (or handpicked) by The Fool were available.
The former Apple Boutique location on 94 Baker Street in London as it appears today.
Almost immediately, trouble broke out along both fronts; other local businesses objected to the psychedelically-painted wall, and petitioned for it to be changed or wiped out altogether, while indoors, shoplifting became the number one pastime. Would-be customers began helping themselves to the trendy items instead, and it was often too difficult for the staff to tell which things someone came in with, and which they picked up in the shop — plus, in the era of 'peace and love', nobody wanted to make an accusation, or cause someone to be arrested. The Fool's members also made a habit of taking their choice of the merchandise. The boutique soon began losing money at an alarming rate.
A blue plaque now hangs on the wall of the former Apple building for John Lennon.
Jenny Boyd inside the Apple Boutique.
Ultimately, the local businesses won on the outside, with the mural removed by civic order. Inside, after months of steady losses, it was decided to close the boutique. This happened on July 30, 1968. The Beatles, their wives and their girlfriends came the night before, to take what they wanted; then, the next morning, it was announced that all remaining stock was to be given away for free. Word got out quickly, and the store was empty within hours, the public (numbering in the hundreds) nearly rioting to get their share.
The Apple Boutique building then and as the building appears now
As a final gesture, Paul McCartney used the site of the closed shop to advertise their newest single, whitewashing Hey Jude in all the windows. At first, this backfired, with a few locals mistaking the title for anti-Semitic graffiti (Jude being German for Jew), but matters were soon explained, and the single appeared shortly after.
The Fool created posters for the Apple Boutique and one for John Lennon. Also, pictured is an Apple Boutique clothing tag.
The boutique's manager, long-time Beatles friend Peter Shotton, moved on to other jobs at Apple Corps. Another staffer, Pattie Boyd's sister Jenny Boyd, dated singer Donovan, and later married drummer Mick Fleetwood.
Pattie and Jenny Boyd
On 31 July 2008, the Apple Boutique mural was projected onto the building by BBC programme Newsnight as a celebration of the shop's closure exactly 40 years earlier.
The Beatles Apple Boutique. A Fab UK News item from 31st July 2008 on the
40th Anniversary of the Apple Boutique. Includes a recreation of the famous
psychedelic mural projected onto the building as it is now, and brief interviews with
Patti Boyd, Tony Bramwell and The Fool's Simon Posthuma. Part 1 of 2. (5:03 minutes)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9s9DLSyXNs
The Beatles Apple Boutique. A Fab UK News item from 31st July 2008 on the
40th Anniversary of the Apple Boutique. Includes a recreation of the famous
psychedelic mural projected onto the building as it is now, and brief interviews with
Patti Boyd, Tony Bramwell and The Fool's Simon Posthuma. Part 2 of 2. (7:17 minutes)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWGRmo1An9Q
www.strawberrywalrus.com/applestore.html
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_Boutique