Louise Harrison came to the United States from her native England in the 1950s. She settled in Illinois with her husband, a Scottish expatriate. She lived the unassuming life of a mid-Western housewife.
In the early 1960s, Louise’s younger brother George formed a rock band with two young men he had recently met. The pair — Paul McCartney and John Lennon — first called their band The Quarrymen and later The Beatles. They played small clubs in their hometown of Liverpool and eventually made a name for themselves.
Louise, as a proud sister does, began writing letters to local Illinois radio stations, singing the praises of her brother’s band. In 1963, one station in Illinois played “From Me To You,” becoming one of the first to play the Fab Four on American radio. Of course, the rest is — as they say — music history.
Louise remained close with her brother over the years. As a sort of “thank you,” George sent Louise a $2000 per month pension, a gesture he intended to last her lifetime. He said that, given his success and resulting financial situation, there is no reason Louise should ever be in need. However, in the 1990s, Louise gave her blessing to a bed-and-breakfast named “A Hard Days Night.” George did not approve of the business venture and he became estranged from his sister. They reconciled briefly just prior to George’s death in 2001. A short time later, at the behest of George Harrison’s widow and his son, Louise’s monthly stipend ceased. Louise’s name was also absent from her brother’s will.
In 2014, Louise published an autobiography to minimal success. She passed away in hospice care at a Florida assisted living facility in January 2023 at the age of 91.
This illustration was done for the Faces of Death Project, an internet-wide illustration project started by Michael Hambouz in 1997. This is my sixth year of participation.