Per Isaac's request to find the story of the 'Astrid' who was in love with John Lennon, here's what I found:
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| A self-portrait |
Astrid Kirchherr was a German fashion design student in Hamburg when she discovered a talent for black-and-white photography. In 1960 she a pair of friends heard rock-n-roll for the first time when they listened to a new group called 'The Beatles' play in a club in a shady part of town. Astrid became fixated with the band, and after they eventually met she asked if she could do a photo shoot with them at a fairground in Hamburg. These pictures of the Beatles have become iconic, showing the band in their early rough, 'greaser' stages. By 1960 Astrid and Stuart Sutcliffe (the band's drummer at the time) were together, becoming engaged. She was evidently close friends with John Lennon as well, and he wrote about her to his girlfriend frequently, but the relationship does not seem to have gone any further.
Kirchherr is often credited with creating the Beatles' famous 'mop-top' haircut, though she always said she only cut Stuart's hair into a style lots of German boys were already wearing. An artist at heart, Stuart left the Beatles to return to painting classes (apparently with Astrid's encouragement and without much animosity from the band), and died suddenly of a brain hemorrhage in 1962. Astrid became a freelance photographer in 1964 and was given specific permission to take behind-the-scenes photos of the Beatles filming 'A Hard Day's Night'. She gave up photography in 1967 as people were uninterested in any of her pictures that did not feature the boys from Liverpool. Astrid evidently lost touch with John Lennon in the '70's, but did stay in contact with the other members of the band.
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| John Lennon by Astrid Kirchherr |
She doesn't seem to have been as abrasive or assertive as Richard's Astrid, but is credited with a very strong presence and personality.
Wikipedia page
NPR interview with Astrid Kirchherr
Astrid's photos of the Beatles
John and Yoko, Astrid and Stu
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