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Sydney Crawford

May 15, 2011

Block 3

Grade 9

Jim Morrison 1943-1971

James Douglas Morrison was born on December 8, 1943 to the proud parents of Admiral George

Stephen and Clara Morrison. When Jim was only four years old, his family was driving through a New

Mexico desert and came across a truckload full of Indians scattered on the highway bleeding to death.

That was the first time I tasted fear, Morrison said years later. Eventually, Jim moved to California and

completed his undergraduate degree at UCLAs film school and Theater Arts Department in 1965.

While at UCLA, Jim met Ray Manzarek and together they founded their band, The Doors. John

Densmore, the drummer and Robby Krieger, the guitarist, later joined the group. They were eventually

signed to Elektra Records in 1967 and released their first album, The Doors. Light My Fire became

number 1 on the Billboard. On September 17, 1967 The Doors performed on the Ed Sullivan Show

playing their hit song, Light My Fire. The producers wanted the band to change the lyrics to their song.

They went on with the show but played the song untouched. They were never invited to play on the show

ever again.

On December 9, 1967, during one of his concerts in New Haven, Connecticut, Jim was arrested

and charged for public obscenity. Jim was arrested again on March 1, 1969, in Miami, Florida, for

indecent exposure and profanity. After many tours, concerts, and legal problems, Jim gained weight,

grew a beard, and traded in his leather pants for jeans. In 1971, Jim traveled to Paris to write more poetry

and get out of the limelight with his common law wife, Pamela Courson. In the early morning of July 3,

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1971, Pamela found Jim in a bathtub not breathing and unresponsive. He was pronounced dead later that

day.

The first song I chose was The Ghost Song from their album, An American Prayer (1978). In one

line of their lyrics, Indians scattered on dawns highway bleeding, ghosts crowd the young childs fragile

eggshell mind, was based on a true incident when Jim and his family came across a truckload full of

Indians scattered all across the highway, bleeding to death.

The second song I chose was Queen of the Highway from the album, Morrison Hotel (1970). The

song was dedicated to Jims girlfriend, Pamela Courson. Jim and Pams relationship was a rocky one.

They often had arguments and long periods of separation. After her death in 1974, a probate court decided

Jim and Pamela should be considered as a common law marriage.

The third and final song I chose was Horse Latitudes from the album, Strange Days. It was

believed that the horse latitudes were located in the Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn. Spanish sailors

would bring in horses to the West Indies. Since the horses drank up to 4 gallons of water a day and the

sailors were running low on water, the sailors had no choice but throw the horses overboard.