Yoko Ono reflects on John Lennon's 70th birthday

LOS ANGELES — If John Lennon had lived to be 70, Yoko Ono thinks he would have been more relaxed about the milestone than he was about his 40th birthday.

Ono recalls the ex-Beatle fretting about reaching that number: "I can't believe I'm going to be 40!" she said he told her.

"I said, 'John, John — 40's not so bad, you know?'"

Sadly, it would be his last year. Lennon was shot to death on Dec. 8, 1980, almost three months after turning 40.

But in the three decades since, Ono has worked to keep his legacy vibrant, and continues to do so with the approach of his 70th birthday on Saturday.

Eight of Lennon's albums have been remastered and are being rereleased this week as single albums as well as two boxed sets. There is also a remixed version of Ono and Lennon's 1980 "Double Fantasy" album.

Other projects include a "Box of Vision" commemorative set featuring artwork and music; all-star concerts; a film about a young Lennon, "Nowhere Boy," out this week; and a screening of the documentary "LennonNYC" in Central Park on his birthday.

Ono will spend what would have been Lennon's birthday in Iceland, celebrating with a concert by her Plastic Ono Band and the lighting of the Imagine Peace Tower in his honor. In a recent interview, the 77-year-old artist and peace activist talked about her mission to keep Lennon's memory alive.

AP: John Lennon was a musician and an activist. Are enough musicians and artists trying to have an impact on social change?

Ono: Of course, they're all doing it. It's great. When John and I started doing it, you know, we were looking around — "Are we the only people?" It was a bit like that. But now I think there's so many musicians, they're very strong, strong sort of activists. All of them. It's great.

AP: What do you think would have been John's take on the turmoil in the world today?

Ono: He would have been totally angry. ... He would have felt like he wanted to run somewhere and just bang something or strangle someone, you know? But then I think, I'm sure he would have relaxed and decided he should still be an activist. We need to really do something about the world. Otherwise, we're all going to blow up together.

AP: What do you think of "Nowhere Boy"?