Neil Aspinall was the 5th... or 6th or 7th... Beatle

A tinge of sadness touches the Rutlemania! opening in New York this week, as Neil Aspinall, The Beatles' original road manager and, for forty years, the man who ran their empire, died there last night at 66.

UPDATE: One of the more fascinating segments of Neil Aspinall’s obit is the revelation that he'd become friendly with the Beatles when he was a boarder at the house of their original drummer, Pete Best. Aspinall began a romantic relationship with Best’s mother, legendary club owner Mona Best, and later acknowledged paternity of her son Roag, who was born in 1962.

When we met Pete and Roag in Liverpool some years back, we wondered why Roag seemed to be so much younger than his brother Pete. Now we know.