I just learned that John Lennon and I share the same birthday, just 44 years apart. John Lennon, being the world famous singer-songwriter of Beatles fame, and I just being yours truly, Google has wished only Mr. Lennon a happy 70th birthday both today and tomorrow with an embedded YouTube video as the Google logo.
The logo is static at first load but if you press the play button that replaces the ‘e’ of the Google logo, it will begin playing the 32 second YouTube video including video and audio. You can watch it on YouTube for features like an interactive transcript.
Google had this to say from the Official Google Blog:
There’s a lot that can be said about John Lennon, one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Even more can be said about the individual experiences people have had growing up with his music. It seems like everyone has a Lennon story. The earliest memory I have of him is listening to his songs in the backseat of our old station wagon with my brothers, watching my mom and dad sing along on the cassette player. It’s a very simple memory, but rich with subtlety—the sunlight through the windshield, my mom’s smile—and so it’s stuck with me. And maybe that’s what John’s music is about. There’s an earnest simplicity to it, yet I’m sure any one of us, regardless of whether or not we were around during his time, could describe some way he has deeply enriched our lives.
Starting today and all day tomorrow, which would have been John’s 70th birthday, we’re celebrating him with our first-ever animated video doodle. The old saying, ”A picture is worth a thousand words” still rings true, so I hope a moving picture will help me adequately—and simply—thank John for the memories.
Happy birthday, John Lennon.
