Euronews spoke to Jude Kessler, author of myth-busting The John Lennon Series.
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December 8 marked the 40th anniversary of John Lennon's murder.
The Beatle legend died aged 40, after being shot by Mark David Chapman on the night of Dec. 8, 1980, as he and his wife Yoko Ono were returning to their Upper West Side apartment in Manhattan.
Lennon is widely regarded as one of the most influential and iconic musicians in rock 'n roll history, but who was he as a man?
"John today, in so many ways, is seen as a saint. Wearing his white suit with possibly a halo slipping over his shoulder. And John was anything but that," Jude Kessler, author of The John Lennon Series biography told Euronews Tonight.
"John was a northern English man. A drinking, swearing, laughing, whimsical, punning man that had no problem in joining rock and roll".
"He was a normal man. It also happened that he was a supremely gifted composer, and the writer of two award-winning books of poetry and prose", as well as "a peace activist who led 5,000 people through the streets of New York City to stand up for the rights of Ireland."
"He did everything in the art, but he was just a normal person."
(Watch the full interview in the above player).