So what? Morrison lied to Sullivan and was banned from the show as a result. The fact that it actually benefited The Doors more than it did Sullivan is beside the point.
Look, I think Jim Morrison was a huge jerk, but who cares if he thumbed his nose at TV establishment?
I wonder just how he died (and I know he died young)…
If you apply that logic to most of the threads here, this board might just dry up. 
The official cause of death is listed as heart failure and there was no autopsy. Friends of Morrison have stated that he had an accidental overdose of heroin. He snorted it, believing it was cocaine.
I read the curve to be Sullivan’s waning influence in the music industry, not Morrison’s lack of following instructions.
At the time, I was working for a cardiologist. He said that it was not suspicious and that getting into a too-hot bath can sometimes shock the system and cause heart failure.
I’ve always wondered if Ed Sullivan didn’t slither in through his bathroom window and smother him with a loofah.
Oh come now, simply not keeping your word isn’t the same as fraud. This was nothing but a battle of the douchebags: Morrison was a douchebag for making an agreement that he had no intention of keeping, and Sullivan was a douchebag for making the ridiculous demand in the first place. The show was in September 1967. “Light My Fire” had already been a huge hit over the summer. Everybody knew the words. Nobody cared about the double entendre in “higher.” The Doors had already performed (well, lip-synced) the song on nationwide TV (American Bandstand and Malibu U.*) without incident. If Sullivan couldn’t deal with the relatively innocuous lyrics of the band’s (then) sole big hit, he simply shouldn’t have had them on the show.
As for Morrison, I can easily believe that his use of the original lyric wasn’t even done out of malice. It didn’t go down the way it’s portrayed in the Doors movie, where Val Kilmer leans into the camera and emphasizes the forbidden word “higher.” I think it’s possible that Morrison was told not to use the word, said “Yeah, sure, whatever,” and promptly forgot about it. Then in the heat of live performance, he simply sang the song the way he always did.
- More Morrison douchebaggery: for the Malibu U. filming, the Lizard King was a no-show. Robbie Krieger’s brother was recruited as a stand-in, given Morrison’s shirt to wear, and told to keep his back to the cameras.
I’m not talking about malice, I’m talking about irresponsibility and immaturity. Morrison was old enough to know better. If I hired carpenters to work on my house and they agreed not to leave a mess in the yard when they quit for the day, and they go ahead and do it anyway, that is a flagrant breach of agreement. One of my yard customers dismissed a carpenter for this reason–I even furnished photos of the mess. (I once worked with a carpenter who always picked up after himself, every day. I always did so at my yards. I had respect for my customers–Morrison was damned immature.)
Morrison was known for doing that kind of thing – which Sullivan surely realized when he signed the band. Oh noes, he didn’t follow the rules by changing a lyric! Oh what a horrid person he was!!!
He was being a rebellious rock star. That’s what they do - he was living up to his image. Not saying that justifies it (although really, who cares?), but hey, bands like the Doors generally made it by breaking the rules and yes, “flouting” conventions. If Sullivan didn’t like that, he shouldn’t have signed them in the first place.
(Besides, it’s one word in a freaking song. Who cares? Jesus, you act like he punched Sullivan’s grandmother)
This.
He was a singer who sing the original lyric, people didn’t care, it’s not like he trashed the studio. I agree with you though, he didn’t respect Ed. But that added to his value as a rock singer.
If you want to talk about irresponsibility and immaturity, Morrison not showing up on gig or too drunk to sing, those are things that annoys an audience.
Oh, please. Unbunch your panties and relax. Morrison did a Bad Thing and was punished for it. What’s the problem here? You don’t like what he did? So fucking what?
Awwww, the big, bad rock star said a “bad word” on stage. Surely this is the End of Western Civilization!
Sullivan had been a dick to a lot of people, holding grudges and throwing his big show biz weight around. By then he was on the wrong side of history and took himself too seriously. He probably knew that at the time.
Living up to his image, Guinastasia? What if Sullivan–or the network–should decide to sue him? Would he present his rebellious nature in court, as a defense?
As I see it, there is a thin line between philosophy and ethics. Obviously Morrison never mustered the maturity to recognize that line and respect it.
Sue him? For what? Morrison singing the original lyric didn’t damage Sullivan. And it sure didn’t hurt the Doors any.
He’d be laughed out of court, most likely. And even if he hadn’t, it would’ve backfired in the Doors’ favor, because Sullivan would look like a butthurt whiner, and the Doors would look like badass rebels. “Hey stick it to the man, dude!” People love a rebel.
Like it or not, that’s how it was. Get over it. (Now this thread has given me an urge to go and listen to the Doors.)
It would have been an open-and-shut case.
flees
Would you say Morrison was a Door Knob?
