Video: 'John Lennon on a Horse outside of Central Park (October 17th, 1974)'

(Thursday, October 17, 1974) — John Lennon was filmed across various New York City locations today for what was initially intended as a promotional video for his latest single, “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night.”

The filming, overseen by a BBC crew, spanned multiple sites in the city, including Central Park, though the footage would later take an unexpected turn in its use.

Though originally slated to air on the UK music program Top of the Pops, the promo for “Whatever Gets You Thru The Night” was never completed. However, parts of the footage were eventually repurposed for a different Lennon single, “#9 Dream,” which was released in early 1975.

Video: 'Whatever Gets You Thru The Night - Original 1974 Promo Film - Lennon Only Vocal'

This version of the video, though significantly shortened to just 1 minute and 50 seconds, aired on Top of the Pops in February 1975.

Much of the raw footage from today’s shoot was thought to be lost for decades, with only brief clips emerging over the years.

In 1992, Lennon’s widow, Yoko Ono, utilized some of the original footage for a new promo of Lennon’s song “Mind Games.”

Video: 'John Lennon - Mind Games'

It wasn’t until the early 2000s that nearly 40 minutes of the once-lost material resurfaced. Ono incorporated four minutes of it into a new version of “Mind Games” in 2003.

In 2018, more than 23 minutes of the raw footage surfaced on a bootleg DVD, although in subpar quality.

The original 1:50-minute promo for “#9 Dream,” aired in 1975, has never been fully bootlegged, leaving Lennon fans to speculate whether a full 5-minute version of the song’s promo ever existed.