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The man behind the legend

By GEORGE VARGAS by Frank Lisciandro, Morrison's Jim Morrison, 50 years after his death: An edgy rock icon, a close friend and collaborator. FEW rock *n' roll legends have had poet, beloved brother and web of contradictions. "I knew several Jinris," Lisciandro as enduring an impact on multiple writes in his introduction, ^The shy generations as Jim Morrison, whose was most assuredly not this former didn't set out to be a singer. He was thought he would never make loner who was my classmate at the death 50 years ago next month at 27 San Diegan's goal. always writing poetry and wanted enough money as a poet to get by.” UCLA School of Film; the rock per­ made him an even bigger culrural That point is repeatedly empha­ to go into film," said his sister, Anne Chewning, who wrote the pro­ former who was always raising the icon than when he was alive. sised in The Collected Works OfJ im Morrison Chewning, speaking from logue for The Collected Works, is the stakes on what was culturally Yiet, while his six-year tenure as Morrison: Poetiy, Journals, her home near Santa Barbaraf co-executor of her late brother's acceptable; the lyricist, poet and the deep-voiced front man in The Transcripts And Lyrics, a massive, California. personal estate. She devoted years writer who surprised me with note­ Doors created a quintessential tem­ nearly 600-page book published “I thought Jinx would be a poet, to compiling and guiding this com­ book pages of complex poems and plate for brooding, bad-boy rock recently by HarperCollins. like one of the Beat poets in San prehensive new book, which gifts of seltpublished books.” singers clad in leather and oozing "Getting to be in a band was kind Francisco. That's what I was expect­ includes a foreword by novelist primal sex appeal, musical stardom of an accident for Jim because he ing. And I was worried! Because I Tom Robbins and an introduction > TURN TO PAGE 3 The Star Section: Lifestyle Ad Value: RM 80,773 29-Jun-2021 Size : 1,605cm2 PR Value: RM 242,320

The man behind the legend (cont)

> FROM PAGE1 Collected Works. But what he It is juxtaposed with a Morrison was like as a boy? Accordingly; The Collected quote from a 1969 Rolling Stone "Jim was loads Works features a trove of previ­ interview. of ftin!" his sister ously unpublished material. It •'I think around the fifth or sixth recalled, laughing includes handwritten excerpts ^rade I wrote a poem called The heartily. from 28 of Morrison's recently dis­ Port)/ Express," he told Rolling ，1t started covered notebooks, recorded and Stone. when he was lit­ unrecorded lyrics (some with "That was the first I can remem­ tle. He would handwritten drafts) to more than ber. It was one of those baDad-type trade me his nick­ 1,500 photos and drawings (includ­ poems. I never could get it Togeth­ els for my dimes The definitive anthology of Morrison's writings ing rarely seen family photos). er, though. I always wanted to by telling me the tinued, while not­ with rare photographs. - HarperCollins The book also contains the script write, but I fi^fured ifd be no good nickels were bigger! He would do ing that the first and colour still photos from his unless somehow the hand just pranks and silly things, and he song her brother unreleased film HWY, a compan­ took the pen and started moving would get us into trouble on the ever wrote was a collaboration ly gying to protect his parents by ion piece to his experimental 1969 without me really having anything Navy base in Coronado." with their piano-playing father. claiming they were dead. film. The Hitchhiker: Art American to do with it. Like automatic writ­ Chewning laughed again as she “I think Jim knew what was Pastoral, which was shot largely in ing. But it just never happened.” recalled an especially colourful A complete lack of talent going to happen (with his rock the Mojave Desert. And it has some In fectf he self-published two example of her older brothers stardom)," said Krieger. "And he of Morrison's final writings from labour-of-love volumes of his poet­ mischievous ways. Matters were not helped by the thought, with his dad being an Paris, where he died on July 3, ry in 1969. And, rather than seek "When Jim was at UCLA, he fact that - after hearing The Doors' admiral that some of his antics 1971, from - depending on the to cash in on his stardom, he had came home for a visit in Coronado 1967 debut album - Morrison's would be embarrassing to him.” source - congestive heart failure, his full name - James Douglas and I assumed he'd been drink­ father wrote a letter urging his son Morrison was more correct than an accidental drug overdose, or a Morrison - embossed on the ing," she said. "to give up any idea of singing or even he could have realised. combination of the two. cover. "We went to the movie theatre any connection with a music "I only heard this later, but my And it includes his courtroom Following his death on July 3, on the base with my younger group because of what I consider Dad offered to resign from the notes from his 40-day trial in 1970 1971, the two volumes were for­ brother, Andy - tickets were just to be a complete lack of talent in Navy if what Jim was doing was in Miami, where -in the aftermath mally published by Simon & 10 cents. Before the feature film, this direction." upsetting to the Navy - and my of a charged Doors' concert at Schuster under the title The Lords they played The Star-Spangled Chewning - who was attending Dad lovR the Navy!" said which he allegedly exposed him­ And The New Creatures. More Banner. college in London at the time - Chewning. self -Morrison was convicted on posthumous books of his poetry "Jim stood up and sang the didn't even know her older sibling "It was really special to him and misdemeanor charges of profanity followed. whole thin^. And he was the only was in a rock band, let alone that he didn*t want anything (Jim did) and indecent exposure. He was The demarcation appeared to be one in the whole theatre who did. he was the singer in The Doors, to upset the apple cart with the posthumously pardoned in 2010. dear between Morrison's poetry We were just kids and we were all whose music the BBC radio net­ Navy. But, in the end, he didn't Members of Morrison's family and and the lyrics he wrote for such laughing. You can imagine the work was then regularly playing have to resign." the surviving members of The classic Doors songs as Break On reaction from the Navy people." on the air. "After my dad retired in San Doors demanded an official apolo­ Through, Hello, I Love You and Depending on his mood, "Someone told my mom about Diego, he studied ancient Greek. gy from the city of Miami and the Roadhouse Blues. Morrison could be an outspoken the album and she sent me a Jim's tombstone in Paris was being stale of Florida for having arrested That was not die case, though, rebel, both with and without a copy,“ said Chewning. vandalised and people were taking and prosecuted him in the first with other songs. cause. "I was like： *Whoa! ThafS my pieces of it. So, Dad had a new place. '"Had Jim not been into poetry The strict military family he brother!' It was amazing and tombstone for Jim made with the In one of his notebooks from the as much as he'd been at an early grew up in was definitely a factor, shocking and surprising. I never words, in Greek: True to his own trial, Morrison wrote: 'The joy of age, who knows if he'd have writ­ accordiig to Krieger, who noted:彳 got to see the band perform live. spirit." performing has ended. Joy of films ten songs later,“ mused Krieger. know his father wasn't happy But my mother kept all the maga­ “I think that's what Dad ulti­ is pleasure of writing? "A lot of the so俾 did come when Jim decided he would rather zine covers and newspaper clip- mately thought about Jim, and he from his poetry, songs like (1970s) be a hippie than a soldier." pin弟 about The Doors and I found wanted it immortalised on Jim's Peace 介够 for instance. I had “My dad just didn't understand them (after she died)." tombstone." - The San Diego *A more complete Jim' written the music for that and we Jim's poetry and he was dearly not During the height of his rock Union-TribunefTribune News "I wanted the book to be all-Jim, didn't have any words. I asked Jim into rock 'n' roll,“ chewning con- stardom in the 1960s, Morrison Service . —w with his poetry his thoughts, his if he could come up with some­ was so estranged from his parents song lyrics, his movie (script)," said thing and he couldn't. His mind that - when asked - he would say Chewning, a retired pubic school was kind of messed up at that time that both were deceased. In fact, teacher and librarian. because it was right after the his mother, Clara» lived until 2006 "I wanted people to see a more (1970) Miami coun trial. and his father, George, until 2008. complete Jim than what they knew "So, he went back and looked in Chewning and from his music or what they read one of his poetry notebooks and j Krieger both or heard about him." found this poem called Abortion ，/号contend that Those sentiments are shared by Stories, which became Peace —Morrison former Doors guitarist Robby FrogT 国虱was actual­ Krieger. His memoir, Sei The Night Krieger paused for a moment of On Fire, is due for publication this further reflection. % fall by Little, Brown and Company. "Another example is Light My Also coming this fall is an expand­ Fire, which I wrote,“ the 75-year- ed, 50th anniversary box set edi­ old guitarist continued, "But that tion of L.A. Woman. last line,由ht before the end of Ifs the final studio album the song, Jim changed 'Light my Morrison made with The Doors fire" to Try to set the night on fire.' prior to his death and stands as the I thought he'd just come up with band's most fully realised fusion of that line at the time. rock, blues and jazz. "I later found out it was fi?om a q think people will be amazed poem in one of Jim's notebooks by how much poetry was in Jim from years before. I am thinking a and that he wasn't just this crazy lot of the songs he wrote might rock star," said Krieger, speaking have first come from situations from his Los Angeles home. like that. So, I've always wanted “He always had a notebook with there to be a book of all of his him to write in. Unfortunately poetry" quite a lew of them were left in bars and hotel rooms so we'll never see all of what he wrote. An avid prankster And he was shy about it. He'd Morrison^ fame was rivalled - never show us what was in his and fuelled by-his notoriety. notebooks or say: 'Check this out., " A walking bundle of contradic­ Morrison wrote Pony Express, tions, he was larger than life on his first poem, in 1954 while stage whether enraptured by the attending Longfellow Elementary music or stumbling in a drunken School in Clairemont. He was 10 at haze. Off stage, he could be sen­ 川 the time. sitive or surly, charming or 4 Now on display at the Rock & sometimes combative, an B The Doors (from left) Morrison, John Densmore, Robby Krieger Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, unabashed hedonist or an w y and Ray Manzarek (seated), a band that has captivated genera- Pony Express is the first of his urbane aficionado of film, lit- 1 / tions of music fans. - Warner Music Group poems that appear in The erature and theatre.