More popular than Jesus Sources More popular than Jesus "More popular than Jesus" was part of a longer remark made by John Lennon during a 1966 interview, in which he argued that the public was more infatuated with the Beatles than with Jesus and that rock music might outlast Christianity. His opinions drew no controversy when originally published in the United Kingdom, but when republished in the United States a few months later, angry reactions flared up in Christian communities. The full quotation was: The statement originates from a March 1966 article for the London newspaper the "Evening Standard". When "Datebook", a US teen
Fifth Beatle the "fifth Beatle", but over the years he and producer George Martin have clearly been recognised as the inner circle members who most profoundly affected the band's career. In an interview in the 1990s describing Epstein's involvement in the band's rise to fame, Martin declared "He's the fifth Beatle, if there ever was one." McCartney summarized the importance of Epstein to the Beatles when he was interviewed in 1997 for a BBC documentary about Epstein. He stated: "If anyone was the fifth Beatle, it was Brian." In 2013 Epstein was the subject of a graphic novel entitled "The Fifth Beatle"