Over the years the question about whether Ringo is right or left handed has come up frequently.  Even though he answered that question definitively on a Phil Donahue show and detailed for us how his handedness affected his drumming, the question continues to recur.  I had always taken this as being a result of new fans coming onto the Internet and asking old questions, but recently I stumbled across something that has made me realize why it has been so hard to pin down Ringo's handedness . . .

 It is a bizarre and shocking secret that I am about to reveal!!!

While capturing stills from "HELP!", I was going frame by frame through the snow scenes and discovered the amazing truth . . .

Look closely at this picture. . .  
Count the number of hands on the piano. . .
 Divide that number by two.

AHA!  Nine is not evenly divisible by two, the number of hands commonly allotted per person.  Nor is it evenly divisible by 4, the number of Beatles present in the photo.  Someone here has an extra hand!!!!!!

Looking closely we can see the additional appendage is between John and Ringo .

 This leads to the obvious question: Is the hand John's or Ringo's??   The answer to this can only be "Ringo's."  With the bathtub scene in Hard Days Night, the "Two Virgins" album cover, the nude photo of John on the White Album poster, the nude scenes in "Imagine" and the picture on the cover of Rolling Stone, we have clearly seen ALL of John's appendages and an extra hand is not in evidence.  John is clearly ruled out.  

Ringo, however, has never been seen in the nude.  Indeed, is it not possible that the hump on his back in "Candy" was simply this additional arm poorly hidden under his clothing?  That fur skin worn in "Caveman" was much bulkier and better at hiding his affliction.  

Having determined that Ringo does indeed possess an additional left hand ( and it is a left hand as evidenced in close up. Note the absence of a thumb on John's side of both hands), I moved further on in the film sequence and was again shocked by a new discovery . . .

The hand is now on Ringo's right shoulder!!!

 The arm that attaches this anomalous hand must be affixed with incredible mobility in the joints!  

Conclusion

With this latest discovery, it became quite clear to me why there has been so much confusion over Ringo's handedness over the years:  This additional hand, though a left hand in the conformation and placement of the thumb, is so ambidexterous due to its flexibility as to allow Ringo to use it either way in drumming!

Update 8/20/98   A couple of readers have sent me evidence that it may not be only Ringo who suffers a bizzare deformity.  I would do a video capture investigation of George's multitude of limbs but knowing how much he values his privacy, I'll just leave it with a single picture . . .

08/21/98