Beatles Lend Songs to Film About Former Employee

The Beatles have given their blessing to a new documentary about their former secretary by lending their music to the upcoming film, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

100 Greatest Artists: The Beatles

Good Ol' Freda tells the story of Freda Kelly, who ran the Beatles fan club and spent 11 years working for the band. Director Ryan White secured the rights for four Beatles tracks, including "Love Me Do" and "I Saw Her Standing There," but won't reveal how much it cost. Beatles originals are notoriously difficult and expensive to license; Mad Men forked out $250,000 last season for a clip of "Tomorrow Never Knows."

Kelly is now in her late sixties, and the film will be the first time her story has been told. "Freda closed the Beatles' offices, so she left with truckloads of Beatles stuff and gave it all away to fans over the years," said White. Though Kelly has kept mum about her experiences, White says she is now opening up "for her two-year-old grandson – she sees it as a sort of home movie."

Good Ol' Freda will premiere March 9th at SXSW.

This article originally appeared on Rolling Stone: Beatles Lend Songs to Film About Former Employee

News for You

  • Museum starts night tours of signs from Vegas past

    LAS VEGAS (AP) — The junked signs that attracted throngs to old Las Vegas have for years gathered dust in a neon boneyard just a few miles from the sleek mega-casinos on the Strip.

  • A controversial victory lap for Lewis at Cannes

    CANNES, France (AP) — Jerry Lewis, so beloved in France, isn't quite overcome with emotion now that he's back at the Cannes Film Festival.

  • Latest 'Bachelorette' won't say if she's engaged

    NEW YORK (AP) — ABC's newest "Bachelorette," Desiree Hartsock, says it's not hard to keep the details of her experience on the show a secret from her friends.

  • Actress Bynes accused of bong toss out NYC window

    NEW YORK (AP) — Actress Amanda Bynes appeared disheveled in a long blond wig and sweats Friday in a criminal court where she was charged with reckless endangerment after police said she heaved a marijuana bong out the window of her 36th-floor Manhattan apartment.

  • Rare Superman comic found in house insulation

    MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — It's considered the Holy Grail of comic books: Action Comics No. 1 from 1938, featuring the debut of Superman. And David Gonzales found one mixed in with old newspapers insulating a house he was renovating in a small town in Minnesota.

  • Takei says Cho good choice for latest 'Star Trek'

    SINGAPORE (AP) — Portraying USS Enterprise helmsman Hikaru Sulu in the latest "Star Trek" movie comes with big shoes to fill, but the man who played the part in the TV series and six films has given his blessing to the actor currently playing the role.