On December 8, 1980, twenty-something rock journalist Laurie Kaye entered the legendary Dakota apartments in New York to interview her longtime idol John Lennon. It was the last interview Lennon would ever give— just hours later, outside that same building, Lennon was shot dead by a twenty-five-year-old man (Kaye refuses to name him) whom Kaye herself had encountered after finishing the interview and stepping outside. Kaye has beaten herself up ever since over her failure to recognize that the assassin posed a danger and should have been reported. Here Kaye recounts not just her unfortunate brush with history, but also her turbulent early years growing up in LA and her fascinating, star-packed journey from radio intern to acclaimed writer/producer. Plus interviews with such titans of the music industry as Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Talking Heads, the Ramones, David Bowie, and Mick Jagger.