Monday will mark the 45th anniversary of the death of Beatle legend John Lennon.

The rock 'n' roll star rose to fame in the early 1960s with Beatles bandmates Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr.

Lennon died aged just 40, after he was shot and killed by Mark David Chapman on the night of December 8, 1980, as he and wife Yoko Ono were returning to their Upper West Side apartment in New York.

Lennon had signed an autograph for Chapman on a copy of his recently released album, "Double Fantasy," earlier that day.

The death of Lennon still reverberates as a defining moment for a generation and for the music world.

A man who helped define rock 'n' roll, a leader of the peace movement, an icon of the Baby Boom generation, his sudden shooting death at the hands of Chapman inspired shock and mourning, and for many marked the end of an era.

Chapman was sentenced to 20-years-to-life in prison and was last denied parole in August 2025.

Chapman is now 70 years old. His next parole hearing is set for February 2027.

During his time as part of the Beatles, Lennon helped transform rock 'n' roll and pop with ground breaking records including "A Hard Day's Night" (1964), "Revolver" (1966), "Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (1967) and "Abbey Road" (1969).

After dominating the world's music industry, Lennon used his fame to raise awareness of causes he believed in.

Along with second wife, Ono, he staged an anti-war demonstration by staying in bed in a hotel room, with media invited to document the event.

After a series of increasingly acrimonious and public fallouts, the Beatles broke up in 1970.

Lennon continued writing songs and recording throughout the early-mid 1970s.

In 1975, after a prolific period working on his solo music, Lennon took a five-year hiatus to spend more time with Ono and the couple's son, Sean.

Lennon also had a son, Julian, with his first wife, Cynthia, whom he left in the late 1960s.

In 1976, Lennon won resident's status in the United States after a court fight against a deportation order stemming from a British drug conviction.

Following his murder in 1980, Lennon's remains were cremated and his ashes scattered in New York's Central Park.

But his legacy never seems to fade.

His music and life story finds followers among young music lovers as well as people who enjoyed listening to him in their youth.