If this clip was about 7 seconds longer, you would've seen Lennon ask the guy if he was hungry and then invite him inside to eat.

Should have shown the part where he invited him in and gave him something to eat. Very kind.

John's accessibility to his fans is what cost him his life in the end, but it's also what made him who he was, he wouldn't have it any other way I'm sure

John shows his softer side perfectly here. He knows this poor guy isn't well, but he doesn't condescend or insult him; rather he takes the time to speak to him with tact.

0:15 after having a conversation with John, that man went back to his home in 1991 in Aberdeen, Washington to write Smells like teen spirit

This poor guy just got back from Hell. I think John was deeply touched. Thanks John and Yoko for being so kind.

I love how John handled this with kindness and understanding.

that por guy.the look of being lost i his eyes is so heartbreaking.vietnam destroyed too many young lives

The Vietnam vet broke my heart looking at his demeanor and eyes. John Lennon spoke to him so honestly and directly.

Even now it’s so easy to forget, celebrities are just normal people trying their hardest to make stuff they’re proud of.

Cut it off at the best part, John then says "are you hungry?" then invites him in to eat, that part always makes me sob like a baby, anyone else would've pushed him away but John gathered him closer, it wasn't just for the cameras either, just a chance to be human

The fact that this was captured on film is amazing in and of itself

As most have said, Lennon was pretty cool on his handling of the guy, showed a lot of compassion and common sense. My mum saw the Beatles in 64 when they came to Belfast, her claim to fame is she screamed at John as they were leaving the stage and she got an "alright love" mouthed back at her! Still reminds us of it to this day!

This was kinda painful to watch - but it was heartwarming to see John's interaction...

John tried to be distant but friendly to the visitor. Great that he was so grounded, despite the fame.

John was a complex individual. He could at times be one of the most open and kind individuals, and sometimes he could be capable of being quite cruel, aren't we all?

John handled that the best way possible. Amazing human being.

First saw this in 1985 on the Imagine Video. I was 15 years old. Amazing how John invited the poor, lost man into his home for something hot to eat. RIP Lennon. Absolute legend!!!!!

"I had a good shit today" It's funny to keep it lighthearted, but John was also utilizing a psychological tactic here to remind the Vet that he's only a human being no different than him. Even people who aren't shell-shocked from war get star-struck and see celebrities as larger than life. With the Beatles, that's an understatement.

The Beatles had a lot of fans like this that read way too much into their lyrics and put them up on a pedestal as though they were gods or something. With the cameras rolling, I think John saw this as an opportunity to speak to all of them. It was also a very kind thing to do, I think most people would have had the police take this guy away.

John's compassionate and understanding side of his humanity is displayed here . It is a shame he was murdered for something as stupid as his celebrity. We're all just people , some have talent, riches and fame while others have less. I feel for the shell shocked young vet traumatized by an unnecessary war that killed way too many young kids .

You can see his empathy through his eyes. He was so down to earth.

That level of empathy and genuine concern for this young veteran, who was emotionally ruined by an unjust war speaks volumes about John's character. No wonder he was such a great writer, he let himself feel life, and turned what he felt into masterpieces for us to enjoy. He was a rare and gifted human being, and no one will ever take his place. RIP John. ✌🎸☮💔

John's combination of empathy and honesty was just the thing that damaged young man needed in that moment. I doubt most psychiatrists would have been as helpful in that situation...

I still don’t understand why somebody would want to hurt such a lovely talented man.

John Lennon was a regular guy with great talent and a hard childhood. This video shows John at his core.

This is one of the best things ever. The fact John invited him in for food at the end (not seen here) makes it even better.

How John didn't treat him as a threat is beautiful, poor guy is very sick. I wouldn't let him anywhere near me, John's a better man than I'll ever be.

When I see this, and how understanding John was and gave the guy time, it is heart warming. It is so tragic that later some other guy approached him for an autograph, and again John went along with it.... only to be shot for no reason. One of Johns quotes I remember from after the Beatles split was something like this ' It's only a rock group that split up, it's nothing important. You know, you have all the old records there if you want to reminisce.' Little did he know that 50 years after the Beatles split their songs would be being reworked with AI into many individual tracks and remixed. The Beatles and John Lennon are the gift that keeps on giving..... RIP John Lennon.

His name was Cesare Curtis Claudio, born in Alameda California August 28th, 1948, the grandson of Italian immigrants. According to my research he died in an ultralight aircraft accident on December 22nd, 1981, one year and two weeks after John Lennon.

After they cut this John had him over for dinner. He cooked breakfast for him, and the entire situation got much lighter. They talked and left as friends. Just a sign of how great this man was. ACTIONS not words. Like here John is trying to derail the importancy of his words, but all throughout his ACTIONS are demonstrating that his words are real.

This clip doesn't show it but in his time with this vet John asked him "Are you hungry" And John literally let him in to have breakfast with him. Which shows John's utter sweetness to another human being. Could you imagine another celebrity doing that ,I highly doubt it.

This is what made John great... Just real to the core.. Can speak to a total stranger and understand him completely

Seeing a veteran and a preacher of peace is so hard to watch. Both traumatized by their lives and searching for a way. Lennon was such a good person and I hope the young veteran had a good life after all these things he saw and especially this unique moment with John.

People are talking about empathy and compassion, but really at the root of this interaction is something people rarely do these days: pay attention. Simply being present 100%, fully focused, giving someone your attention is one of the most powerful things a person can do for another. Not being distracted, looking down at your phone or something - just THERE with your body, mind, and soul. It builds rapport and can be very healing. The compassion, kindness, and all that is superfluous or extraneous - they are branches on the tree of attention. The saddest part is that is that "paying" attention is free. It costs nothing, yet people won't "give" it away. Whenever I am in a queue or I am sitting at a restaurant, I am surrounded by disconnected people all looking at their phones, ignoring the person they are with for the virtual one one the other end, or the viral video or something. I remember when you could stand in a queue and have light, friendly conversation with the stranger in front or behind you. Those sort of moments are a glue for societies and with the addiction to phone use ubiquitous these days, the power of paying attention to people is dying out. A lost art form.

John was such a composite person being blessed with every good traits our creator can gift someone. He was highly creative, highly intelligent and articulate, and had an extraordinary empathy.

Man looks like he’s either about to break down crying or start hysterically laughing….God bless him

Unfortunately, this level of compassion and accessibility is what eventually got him murdered. He was not only very talented, but such a good guy. No good deed goes unpunished in this world.

So nice of John Lennon to speak to a man having troubles and try to help him. One of the most famous men on the planet and he never lost his empathy for a fellow human being. A sad loss to humanity.

He was a compassiinate man. Beautiful human being...

nice to see them practising social distancing 40+ years ago, always thinking ahead our john 👍

The craziest part to me is the fact that when I first clicked on this video, I was expecting without much thought that the "Vietnam Vet" was gonna be an older gentleman in his 40s or 50s. Then I realised, this was recorded when Vietnam was going on, and this is just a young lad! Obviously I should have realised that because of the math alone, but it really puts into perspective what Vietnam did to these men, having seen it new and fresh in 4k in this man's eyes, posture, and words.

This makes me so sad ,my older brother served two tours of duty in the Vietnam Conflict,he would come back a broken man,I’ve never seen this before,how wonderful for John to do this ,he was a gentle soul that many people hated be he was a pacifist and stood up for what he believed in ,what a lovely thing for him to do ,listen and speak to this young man who had been traumatized by war .

So compassionate here. Being a genuine human being goes a long way

"how could I be thinkin of you, man?" Lmao

The part about“radiate, indicate, syndicate” refers to The Beatles song, “I Dig a Pony”. Interesting to learn from this that Yoko had a hand in the writing of the song.

John Lennon was a loving human being,believing in peace.Sometimes the really good people in the world do die young.John was one of them,my mum also died young and she was also a lovely warm person.

What a top man John is, such a nice man, makes me proud to be from Liverpool.

John was so kind to this poor little angel ruined by war!

John said “I’m just a guy who writes songs” . Well, you were a bit more than that John. But he really was open with the man and felt a certain responsibility to him.

John Lennon was a person who people could relate to, he made a lot of sense , he was very truthful and not shy to express himself better than anyone

For lack of a better word at this moment, John Lennon has been canonized by his fans and colleagues…. He was just a guy, but what a fantastic guy! His empathy and humanity are evident here, but his honesty is what moves me.

John was so humble, so simple, so smart. Beautiful human being! Lovable guy! 33 years in this planet and I love the guy more and more!

He was so human in this moment, he grounded a young man who needed help in a very humble and genuine way. He could have easily let someone else take him away.

John was a truly gentle, lovely, kind man.How could anyone kill him?

John was murdered when I was 2 years old. I love the way he talks with confidence. He was so ahead of his time in every way. Still is. Humanity was robbed! RIP John.

John was so kind. I miss him.

I always wonder what John Lennon would have been like today.

Wow. I had an older brother like that. They'll look you right in the eye and claim all kinds of insane things. I wish John was still alive, I think he would of filled these years with his best work and the Beatles would have reunited again.

Just imagine someone so famous rich and talented as John Lennon is so down to earth and he's just an ordinary man like everyone not showing even the slightest bit of ego or pride is just amazing to me. Unlike today's celebrities who are full of ego and pride. Just see the difference

It's so nice to see John show kindness and understanding to this troubled young man. You can see that clearly in John's eyes. He does invite him in later to have something to eat. But there is one thing that took even me (a big fan) a while to realize, is that John was telling the absolute truth when he said they were just words with no particular depth when he put them together. We now know that most of the songs that John wrote started with just a random thought, or a line, which he took and just word-smithed to take on a reasonable form of a song. Nothing far more abstract than that. They all happened to turn out beautifully with a lasting effect, much like most of the other Beatles songs. A very serendipitous combination of the efforts of five individuals: John, Paul, George, Ringo and George Martin!

I saw this on the Image John Lennon documentary. He actually has him come in the house for food. Class right there!

“Has it ever struck you that life is all memory, except for the one present moment that goes by you so quick you hardly catch it going?”― Tennessee Williams..

What an incredible person Lennon was. I've never seen this before and it's amazing to watch and to hear his demistifying of songwriting and fame and just tuning in to being human.

Heartwarming moment indeed. That guy Claudio was totally lost

I respect him more now.

Poor lost soul had to listen to John tell him that I'm just an average guy, when the kid put him way up on a pedestal. Kinda crushing, but the kid needed to hear the truth. Good on you John.

This video stopped just before John asked him if he was hungry. He invited the Vet in and fed him. This portion of the film had me in tears, especially because of the sad irony of the end of his life.

Dear god what have we lost,God rest you John

that eye contact and the silence is so telling from john.

Such a beautiful thing. It seems so simple, he’s just talking to him, and yet, this is so heartwarming❤️

How many mega stars would do this, John was waying him up, he knew this guy had issues and could relate to some of them, what a legend he was

It's amazing how primitive mental health facilities were in those days. Having said that it's amazing how much common sense and empathy John shows this man in his time of need. Pretty mind blowing stuff

I have admiration for celebrities who take the time with people and show kindness.

If I was John.. I'd have been mighty concerned about the guy's left hand being buried in his pocket like that. 1:15 ... Lennon really trusted his fans... must have been such a shock to him when that lunatic shot him in NY.

A KIND WORD GOES ALONG WAY GOD BLESS THIS YOUNG MAN AND JOHN LENNON ♥️🙏🙏🇺🇲

At 2:53 when he says: "You can last your whole life on that dream, and then it's all over", he sounded so sad it broke my heart. I think he meant that The Beatles were over, and so his dream was over.

John was so cool & just said the right shit

cladio is a better interviewer than most and should of got his own chat show. he made john open up more than they could

I feel John was a little fearful of some on his fans(rightly so as it turned out), and also felt some responsibility for them, as this clip shows, I believe.

Lots of sincere compassion

You know, when I was a kid I heard about the shooting on John Lennon. I only knew his music and I was shocked ...with 11 or 12? These clips are giving me some more than only music. Personalitiy ... 40 years later. A gift. Thanks!

lol I love how John just cuts off Yoko at 2:00

The guy never said “are you thinking about me when singing the songs” but John said ‘How could I be thinking about you’

He's right he is just a guy who writes songs. John wasn't a perfect human but he strived to be better all the time. just before he died he said he was in a good place in life. All we can do is ask ourselves each day is this the person I want to be.

I used to imagine grandiose meanings behind lyrics, but then I'd hear the artist explain the song and it was nothing like I thought.

John was obviously taken back about the whole situation, and never really redirected the guy and the conversation to maybe, tell me about you and maybe what happened to you and where you are now.. That would have been a lot better conversation that I would have liked to see take place. Especially from that time period

For clarity, Claudio was actually found not to be a Vietnam veteran, he never served.

Thank you John for your humanity, this poor soul, It was a lonely time for us.

This makes me cry for so many reasons

How you gonna act when a long haired hippy trespasses on to your property? John was saintly here.

I like when he talks about dig a Pony and John smirks a little like the lyrics of that song is funny to him

Such kindness. Radiate love in the end.

Truly a kind man

Nice how he handled it so gracefully. He must of had to deal with a lot of letters and people directly over the years that had ideas of reference about him as well as stalkers and was frustrated about it. Maybe he knew the background of this guy and had sympathy for him.

“DUDE I AM FULL OF SHIT. STOP WORSHIPPING ME” -John Lennon

I just did a bit of research and if I'm mistaken this man's name is Curt Claudio who was 23 when this was filmed. His brother, Ernie Claudio, came forward about who he was and corrected some misinformation regarding him. "Hi Fans, my name is Ernie Claudio. I am Curt’s older brother. Curt was never in the military. He was a straight ‘A’ student in high school and earned a scholarship to University of California in Davis, California. Then he started using drugs and dropped out of school. He spent most of his life working on farms. We worked at Ford Motors in Milpitas, California until they closed the factory. Ford gave their employees $12,000 so could re-train for another job. I asked Curt, “What are you going to do with your $12,000?” Curt said, “I’m either going to buy a Harley or an ultra-light airplane.” He bought the ultra-light and that’s what killed him. He was flying too low and too slow and the plane stalled. It happened in Fremont, California. The plane came down, bounced off a carport roof, and landed in a tree, six feet off the ground. The high impact caused his aorta to separate from the heart. Death was instantaneous." I found this on a website called johnlennon.com and I don't know if it's official but there you go. He was not a Vietnam veteran and he died in 1981 but I don't think it should diminish his worth because of that, I'm just surprised that I have not seen anyone else mention this information and so I decided to that myself.

This footage is mesmerising

Shell shock is completely different from PTSD. Shell shock is a physical condition where the nerves are physically destroyed from close exposure to the concussion of hours of high explosives going off. PTSD is a mental disorder from exposure to traumatic situations. One can be treated with therapy. The other is incurable by any known medical treatment. People really need to stop conflating the two. They are not the same.