Thursday, June 2, 2016

NANCY LEE ANDREWS : PHOTOGRAPHER MISTRESS OF RINGO STAR : MISTRESS OF THE MONTH

 NANCY LEE ANDREWS

Picture from Nancy Lee Andrews Photography...
(What a gorgeous "older" woman!)

Nancy was born May 14, 1947.
Nancy married Edwin Barnes in 1990.

CLICK HERE TO SEE A GREAT PHOTO OF NANCY ANDREWS FROM 2011


Like Beatlemate Paul McCartney's wife, Linda Eastman, Ringo Starr had a rock n' roll photographer in his romantic life, for several years. 

 
Nancy Lee Andrews published this book in 2008.  In some promos of the book, she is described as a "half Sicilian and half Cherokee" Ford model working in Manhattan in the 1960's and 1970's. Her relationship with the ex-Beatle's drummer gave her access to the rock and roll stars she photographed.  The pictures in the book were taken for a decade beginning in 1970. 

 
 
She also published this limited edition book of all Ringo photos taken in the mid 1970's.
 
*******
When their relationship was over, Nancy Lee Andrews went after Ringo Starr for Palimony, according to a new book, called "RINGO - With A Little Help" - and according to one interviewee in the book, Ringo did right by Nancy financially.  And you know, I expected that of Ringo.  I think he's a decent man. 
 

NO MENTION OF NANCY IN THIS ONE!
 
I looked all over the web for more information about the Palimony case. I even read this new book on Beatle's law suits trying to find out more, but there was nothing in "Baby You're A Rich Man," about lawsuits outside of the music business.
 
On the web, on Getty Images, there are pictures of Nancy and her famous Palimony Lawyer, Marvin Mitchelson, but I've been unable to verify that whatever money she got from Ringo was actually the result of that level of legal action, unlike the information previously linked to on this blog when I covered Ruth Tryangiel, the mistress of musician Bob Dylan, which was legally negotiated.  In the book one interviewee suggests that Nancy's real motive wasn't money but - how shall I say this - that she felt betrayed by Barbara Bach, a model she once thought of as friendly - and thought Ringo needed a wake up call. 


(I'll think on that!)

A woman is involved with a man long term.  She may be living with him.  If they don't live together, they are spending a lot of time together at his place or hers.  They go on vacations together.  They consider themselves to be a couple.  They hold themselves out to be a couple to others. Their friends, family, and business associates all know about them and go places and do things with them.  It's not a sneaky, secret relationship.  They may even be engaged to be married or at least talking about it.  Maybe there has even been a proposal and a ring that is worn.  Well, all their friends think they will marry eventually. 

No one is thinking this woman is a Mistress.

Then, one day the man meets someone else.  He suddenly feels he has met The One, and he will marry that Other Woman, as soon as he can.  Leaving his Ready Steady Go woman wondering what the hell happened, in shock, in pain, and maybe even in some serious economic need. Wondering what, if anything, she ever was to him, not wanting to consider that maybe he cheated before, maybe she was never the only one, what the hell.

After years of reading around the subject and writing this blog I no longer think that we can and should only apply the term "Mistress" to relationships that are occurring in adultery.   (The press should also stop calling a woman a "Mistress" when there is no relationship, like when she slept with a married celebrity and then told or got caught by the tabloids.)

So, was Ringo married when he and Nancy Lee got together?  No. And was she?  No. 

But then, why the Palimony suit against Ringo when he didn't follow through after their  years together that seemed to be headed towards marriage, but ended when he fell in love at first sight with Barbara Bach, who he has been with ever since...



PALIMONEY is actually rooted in the 19th century.


Breach Of Promise.

It may stun some of you, but a hundred and more years ago, when a woman was engaged to a man and he cancelled the engagement, it was considered a Breach of Promise.  She was to give back his ring. (She wore it but it wasn't really hers until the marriage was a done deal.  Though maybe no other woman would want to be the next to wear such a ring with it's bad vibes and association with another woman, engagement rings were not gifts but the way of confirming that Promise.)  The couple also were to RETURN EACH OTHERS LOVE LETTERS; there was no tacky revenge postings on the Internet.  People with class acted honorable. It was a much higher level of privacy expected and respected.  What they wrote and what they said was forever between them and it was expected that they would both keep their private business private.  No one with any manners who expected to be eligible to marry again would be so mean to rub salt into the wounds.

When the engagement had been announced in the papers or was known to the set of society one belonged to, the Broken Engagement had the potential to ruin a reputation.  Most of all it was assumed that during the period of loyalty and faithfulness prior to marriage that she (and he?) kept to, she had been OFF THE MARKET, a waste of her valuable time, when she should have been IN THE MARKET for MARRIAGE, that means meeting or being introduced to other men rather than tied up with one.  After all, unless you were an heiress, (and most inheritances were given to sons, especially the eldest son), you had to marry and be supported by a man, or waste away as a Spinster.  That time off the market was valuable time because while a woman was in the commitment that the engagement was, she could not date others.  There wasn't much one could do to save face when their Intended changed his or her mind so far into it and certainly it was better to have a broken engagement than a bad marriage but sometimes the man was banished from society, at least from the set he'd been associated with. 

These days Breach of Promise type lawsuits seem to occur only when the actual wedding is cancelled after a serious expenditure of non refundable money.  (You read about the wedding feast being donated to the homeless by the stood up bride.)

Nancy Lee Andrews, and other women, have asked their rich exes for money, or sued for Palimony when they took significant time off from their owns means of support, be that modeling or photography or whatever, or their ability to make a living suffered, but Nancy Lee at least turned her treasure of photographs into books she sold.  Ringo's Breach of Promise meant not being able to live the life of financial ease that she had become accustomed to as his girlfriend/fiancĂ©e/Mistress.

A Mistress, as a companion who sometimes travels on business or for pleasure with her man, can't be there for him and also be punching a clock or be expected to be at the office full time. Nancy Lee traveled with Ringo and she was there for him, but she was also behind the camera.

 
RINGO STARR DID RIGHT BY NANCY LEE ANDREWS
when he left their relationship
to be with Barbara Bach
according to this book which is a primary reference
for this months MISTRESS OF THE MONTH.
 
I thought the title of this book, was snide, though the author, Michael Seth Starr (no relation to Ringo), is well respected for his past and present writing.  Help as in "this guy needs it.  He can't do it alone." What is true is that, Richard Starkey, as the Beatles' loyal drummer and sometimes singer who, like the other three Beatles, found himself in need of a second and third act after amazing worldly success in that band at an early age, did go through a tough time.  
 
The story of Ringo's attempt to figure out what was next for him has its successes and failures, and mostly he has come out on top, with his long second marriage, to once upon a time James Bond movie actress, Barbara Bach, a music career solo and separate of the Beatles, a charity that he is devoted to, and even being the focus of a special show at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles. 
 
GRAMMY MUSEUM - RINGO STARR PEACE AND LOVE
I went and loved the show.
There was happiness in the air there.

I've always suspected that it was Ringo who was the peacemaker of the Beatles. Ringo is the one who all three others kept in touch with in the years after the band broke up and they all went their own solo-career ways.  His signature has become "Peace and Love." 

The Nancy Lee Andrews days were, however, not always his best days, though you can find many photos of the couple on Google Images and other Internet sources, with and with other musicians and Beatles, looking happy and having a great time.

Ringo took to hard partying with certain of his musician pals, mostly drink but drugs too, in particular cocaine, and Nancy, at the end of their relationship, even as he had met Barbara, was assigned to be his "minder," the term used here to mean, someone who travels and keeps tabs on an out of control addict, so that he won't get into any real trouble. 

Ringo, it's reported in this book, and elsewhere reported along with Barbara, did get rehab.  He must have been disgusted with his life at that point and hit the very scary rock bottom, because he has been sober successfully since and is even a Vegan!  All good things for Ringo, who prefers to be known as Richard Starkey, his family name before fame.

Nancy Lee Andrews proves to us that being a Mistress is not often a life long commitment  and that a woman can get back to having a career whatever her romantic status was.

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