jim morrison Essays (7695 words) - The Doors, Jim Morrison

Jim Morrison From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (Redirected from Jim morrison) Jump to: navigation, search For other persons named James or Jim Morrison, see James Morrison (disambiguation). Jim Morrison Morrison on a German postage stamp Background information Birth name James Douglas Morrison Born December 8, 1943(1943-12-08) Melbourne, Florida, U.S. Died July 3, 1971 (aged 27) Paris, France Genres Psychedelic rock, acid rock, blues-rock, hard rock Occupations Musician, Songwriter, Poet, Filmmaker Years active 1963?1971 Labels Elektra, Columbia Associated acts The Doors Rick & the Ravens Website http://www.thedoors.com/ James Douglas "Jim" Morrison (December 8, 1943 ? July 3, 1971) was an American singer, lyricist, poet, and amateur filmmaker. He was best known as the lead singer and lyricist of The Doors and is widely considered to be one of the most charismatic frontmen in rock music history.[1] He was also the author of several books of poetry[1] and the director of a documentary and short film. Although Morrison was known for his baritone vocals, many fans, scholars, and journalists have discussed his theatrical stage persona, his self-destructiveness, and his work as a poet.[2] He was ranked number 47 on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Singers of All Time".[3] Contents [hide] 1 Early years 2 The Doors 3 Solo: poetry and film 4 Personal life 4.1 Morrison's family 4.2 Women in his life 4.3 Death 4.3.1 Grave site 4.4 Estate controversy 5 Artistic roots 6 Influence 7 Books 7.1 By Jim Morrison 7.2 About Jim Morrison 8 Films 8.1 By Jim Morrison 8.2 Documentaries featuring Jim Morrison 8.3 Films about Jim Morrison 9 Further reading 10 References 11 External links [edit] Early years Morrison was born in Melbourne, Florida to future Admiral George Stephen Morrison and Clara Clarke Morrison. Morrison had a sister, Anne Robin, who was born in 1947 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and a brother, Andrew Lee Morrison, who was born in 1948 in Los Altos, California. He was of Irish and Scottish descent.[4] He reportedly had an I.Q. of 149.[5][6] In 1947, Morrison, then four years old, allegedly witnessed a car accident in the desert, where a family of Native Americans were injured and possibly killed. He referred to this incident in a spoken word performance on the song "Dawn's Highway" from the album An American Prayer, and again in the songs "Peace Frog" and "Ghost Song". Morrison believed the incident to be the most formative event in his life,[7] and made repeated references to it in the imagery in his songs, poems, and interviews. Interestingly, his family does not recall this incident happening in the way he told it. According to the Morrison biography No One Here Gets Out Alive, Morrison's family did drive past a car accident on an Indian reservation when he was a child, and he was very upset by it. However, the book The Doors written by the remaining members of The Doors, explains how different Morrison's account of the incident was from the account of his father. This book quotes his father as saying, "We went by several Indians. It did make an impression on him [the young James]. He always thought about that crying Indian." This is contrasted sharply with Morrison's tale of "Indians scattered all over the highway, bleeding to death". In the same book, his sister is quoted as saying, "He enjoyed telling that story and exaggerating it. He said h e saw a dead Indian by the side of the road, and I don't even know if that's true." With his father in the United States Navy, Morrison's family moved often. He spent part of his childhood in San Diego, California. In 1958, Morrison attended Alameda High School in Alameda, California. However, he graduated from George Washington High School (now George Washington Middle School) in Alexandria, Virginia in June 1961. His father was also stationed at Mayport Naval Air Station in Jacksonville, Florida. Morrison went to live with his paternal grandparents in Clearwater, Florida, where he attended classes at St. Petersburg Junior College. In 1962, he transferred to Florida State University (FSU) in Tallahassee, where he appeared in a school recruitment film.[8] While attending FSU, Morrison was arrested for a prank, following a home football game.[9] In January 1964, Morrison moved to Los Angeles, California to attend UCLA. Morrison attended Jack Hirschman's class on Antonin Artaud in