In his memoirs Inseparable Stories (Singapore, 2001), the writer from Samoa Albert Hanover tells the enigmatic season he happened in Montevideo at the end of the twentieth century apparently working for the secret services of the British government.

Alerted to the possible pregnancy of Francophiles terrorist groups in certain alternative circles within the literary avant-garde and in reliance on the shabby elegance of his marginal aspect in his false identity as author of a book in progress that investigated the traces of Duchamp in poetry and the mechanics of the South American countries, he got to be welcomed in the apartment where the most heated debates had place between the arbitrary monotonous and the analogous, at the time two of the most vibrant literary trends of the Uruguay underground.

Even when, a few weeks later, he had the absolute certainty that no attack was being planned in this apartment, he kept going night after night, partly for fear of having left any loose ends—as he rarely understood what they were saying, he thought that maybe they talked on a secret key taken from a Borges story—and in part because there he was very well treated. His brief and bewildering interventions result only in part of the regular intake of illicit substances, had the dual effect that supporters of both groups unconditionally and immediately considered him one of themselves.

Along with a frame extracted from the film Performance where the head of Borges was reproduced, there was also a poster of Jim Morrison in the living room—the divinity of the Doors was one of the very few things that almost everyone seemed to agree at that house—and another that reproduced the French poster for Stranger Than Paradise, the second and admired feature by Jim Jarmusch. Everyone loved the name of the director of photography, Tom Dicillo, who was commented to have directed a very beautiful and whimsical film with Nick Cave as a supporting actor. One night he saw a whole roller coaster of altered states of consciousness the leader announced that Dicillo only could someday make a decent movie about the Doors. To everyone’s surprise, the monotonous nodded silently.

Maybe it’s the random product of the unconsciousness according to Duchamp. Or maybe some of those individuals he came to work with time in the film industry. But more than 15 years after Tom Dicillo received a phone call in which some producers offered him to direct a documentary they were preparing on the Doors. He accepted without hesitation. It’s called When You Are Strange, and has recently been released in several European countries.

Paul Oilzum

After watching it, it is difficult to resist the temptation of renting apartments in Paris, the city where he met his death, and approaching the Pere Lachaise cemetery to visit his grave and pay him homage. We will not recognize them, but maybe we coincide there with some of the attendees at those fabulous evenings.

Source: Metropolitan

This is now the fourth of the two-season Canadian series on famous deaths, shown in the States on the Biography Channel. The shows deal with infamous deaths in modern (1960s and on) times, using a specific formula that has the last 24 hours dramatized, and each historical segment filled with footage (still, film, and music in this case) and modern (2006 or 2007, depending on the show's release date) interviews with some key figures in the subject’s life.

Sometimes in the recreated vignettes, the actor looks nothing like the real person (such as when they did Janis Joplin), though Christian Skott does look a bit like him, but he overdoes Morrision’s slinking style of walk (perhaps it’s the tight leather pants?).

British narrator Danny Wallace (as listed on the box, though IMDB still gives credit to Dave McRae) somberly and often reminds the viewer of the time frame until tragedy strikes (e.g., “In just six hours, Morrison will be dead”).

The action jumps back and forth between the dramatized last day and documentary scenes of Morrison’s life up to that moment. Before each commercial break, the story takes us to a different period of Morrison’s life, whether it be childhood, forming the Doors, over-indulgences, girl friends, and the like. Mixed in – and this is one of the parts I like the best – are the real-person interviews, including his high school sweetheart (who explains how he was reading Allen Ginsburg’s Howl in 8th grade), road manager Vince Treanor, ex-Rolling Stone editor and rock historian Ben Fong-Torres, bodyguard (and drinking buddy) Tony Funches, and even one of the firefighters first called to the scene in Paris, Alain Raisson. A former VP at Elektra Records, Steve Harris, has quite a bit to say, and all of it interesting in a sort of smarmy way (such as “He had these masculine traits with the feminine wiles; that’s what made Jim unique”).

But my favorite is (Miss) Pamela Des Barres, who discusses her affair with him while he was still with his girlfriend, Pamela Courson (who would claim to be his wife and go by Pamela Morrison until her death in 1974, though for some reason this controversy and her passing via heroin OD are never mentioned). Des Barres talks more extensively about her relationships (rather than one-night stands) in her wonderful autobiographies; I recommend both I’m With the Band and Take Another Little Piece of My Heart.

There are other interviews I would have liked to have been added. For example, I remember seeing sensationalist (in part) local television show, Good Day New York, where reporter George Ciccarone interviewed actress/stripper Kitten Natividad, who described how Morrison would come into her bar every night and hit on her, but she always refused because, thanks to bad hygiene, he stank. Also, there is a great interview with Melody Patterson (“Jane,” female lead of F Troop), who discusses why back then she would rather go see Bobby Fuller than Morrison, in an issue of Miriam Linna and Billy Miller’s classic Kicks fanzine.

A central theme through the 60 minute program is that Morrison wanted to be known as a poet more than a musician, which caused him to move to Paris, where he died (I don’t believe I’m giving anything away here). But lots of controversy is what this series craves, so there’s mention of the infamous Miami concert where he allegedly exposed himself (Treanor has a point to make about that here) and the backlash, but they make sure to present the mysteries of his death, such as Courson’s role and the infamous “is he really dead?” theory (Harris makes the best statement concerning that).

In today’s world of Web gossip sites and overexposure of sensationalism on television, I’m surprised this show isn’t revived; I bet it would do a lot better now than just 3 years ago. And there’s always new fodder as stars and starlets veer ever closer to the final darkness.

Source: FFanzeen

Former members of The Doors have given Johnny Depp the green signal for his role in a new film about the legendary rock group.

The Pirates Of The Caribbean star will be narrating When You”re Strange: A Film About The Doors and reading Jim Morrison’’s poetry in the feature-length documentary, reports The Mirror.

Drummer John Densmore said of Depp: “He just got it, he is an icon, he understands Jim.”

Guitarist Robby Krieger added: “He has got this great voice and it sounds like he really cares about what he is saying.”

He said: “We tried a few other guys before Johnny Depp. It just didn”t work. But this was right on. I heard later that he was a big Doors fan. I said ”That’’s why he did so good.””

The forthcoming film features never-before-seen footage of the late Jim from an experimental film called HWY (Highway).

Keyboardist Ray Manzarek said of watching the footage: “Jim is alive again. It was fabulous. It’’s like he is not gone. There he is, man. He is right up on the screen.”

Source: Entertainment News

I grew up listening to great music in the late 60’s and early 70’s; they are the best of my memories today. Some I can’t always remember but there are certain songs and bands that were unforgettable. When the name Jim Morrison comes up the first thing I think of is “Light My Fire” by The Doors. The moment I hear it, my memories go back to my younger years, and to me that is always a good thing.

Jim Morrison was a great rock star, considered one of the most famous rock singers in the world. On July 2, 1971 was the beginning of Morrison’s last 24 hours to live but no one at the time knew that. He was living in Paris. He was losing a lot of weight due to his years of drug and alcohol abuse. He moved to Paris because he was tired of the rock star image that he had become. He really wanted to be taken more seriously as a poet so he thought being in Paris he would have anonymity and be able to work on his poetry in peace.

Within those last 24 hours Jim spent time with his close friend, Alain Ronay. Morrison appeared to be suffering tremors, and he seemed to be really weak. It was fairly clear that the man should have been in a hospital, not out walking around. That evening he went out partying with his girlfriend, Pamela Courson. It was the next morning at about 5:00 am on July 3, 1971 the 27 year old rock star was found dead in his bathtub where he lived in Paris. There are reports that apparently he had snorted heroin just before he died, claiming this was his first time.

Jim Morrison - His Final Hours follows details of how his last 24 hours of his life were like. It also gives highlights of his life before anyone knew who he was and how he managed to rise to fame. Jim was at war with his own demons. You will see archive footage, dramatic reenactment and interviews with some of his closest friends as they take you through the last hours of his life and of the details of the events that led him to his tragic death.

Jim Morrison - His Final Hours is part of the series called Final 24 Hours that unlocks the hidden secrets, psychological flaws and events that result in tragic deaths of famed notorious and the iconic. Every episode maps out the final 24 hours of a different famous person’s life. They weave through the star’s back-story with events from their last day, which lays bare the threads of fate that led inextricably from childhood to the moment of death. 

Source: Blogger News Network