Respect Authority

Former Beatles drummer Ringo Starr said this week that after Oct. 20, he will no longer be accepting fan mail. After 45 years in the spotlight, or at least some kind of light, Starr told fans he won’t answer mail, send signed photos, or basically give a shit anymore. In fact, he plans to throw any fan mail he receives after the 20th in the trash.

Ironically, (The Beatles did have a song called “Don’t Bother Me”) Starr has been an otherwise out-and-about former pop prince: He still tours and often acts as front-man during musical performances. Plus, Starr appeared in a 1991 episode of The Simpsons, during which he was shown answering every piece of fan mail he received, sometimes a decade late.

In the end I don’t know which is more shocking: that Ringo Starr is culturally relevant enough to make the announcement in a Web video, or that he still gets fan mail.