Jim Morrison and The Doors were wild from beginning to end, but there were a few memorable moments from the rock band’s past that became legendary. Let’s take a deep dive into Morrison’s wildest on-stage and off-stage moments!
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1. He Was Arrested For Inciting A Riot
Morrison was arrested a few times in his life. In 1967 at New Haven, he was arrested on-stage for the first time after an officer saw him passionately smooching a woman backstage. The cop, who didn’t know he was Jim Morrison, told him to leave. Morrison, in a very Morrison way, told him to “eat it.”
He was then maced by the officer halfway through his performance. He was eventually released and was able to finish his set. However, Morrison was not happy and began mocking the officer from the stage. The crowd got really rowdy, and police arrested him to prevent a riot from breaking out.
2. He Was Arrested For Exposure
One of Morrison’s wildest and most memorable moments has to be when he was arrested (again) in 1969 for “indecent exposure” connected to an alleged flashing of his junk on stage at Dinner Key Auditorium. Morrison denied that he exposed himself on stage, claiming that what appeared to be a certain appendage to the crowd was actually a microphone.
It’s still not clear what actually happened during that performance. However, Morrison was eventually released.
3. He Lied About His “Dead” Parents
When it comes to Morrison’s wildest moments, this instance might seem a bit tame. But really, who lies about having dead parents? Morrison grew up with extremely strict parents whom he cut contact with for the most part after leaving home to attend UCLA in the early 1960s. Instead of explaining his childhood trauma to everyone that asked, he just said that his parents (and siblings) were dead. Allegedly, his estranged parents didn’t even know he was in The Doors, nor did they know how fast the band was rising to stardom.
His father didn’t seem to have any ill will over it, either. “He knew I didn’t think rock music was the best goal for him,” George Morrison said in the book The Doors By The Doors. “Maybe he was trying to protect us.”
4. The Doors Got Banned From ‘The Ed Sullivan Show’
The Ed Sullivan Show was known for its family-friendly censorship, but that didn’t stop Morrison from doing what he wanted. The band was approached about a specific lyric in their hit song “Light My Fire”. That line was “Girl, we couldn’t get much higher”. They were asked to change the lyric for their set, as it could be interpreted as a reference to drugs.
The band agreed… and then Morrison sang the original lyric on camera anyway. The rest of the band couldn’t help but smirk when he did it. The Doors were then banned from the show.
Photo by Araldo Di Crollalanza/Shuttershock
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