Sunday, March 18, 2012
Sunday, July 3, 2011
July 3, 1971 - Jim Morrison
While visiting Paris in 1984 with a couple of friends, it was decided we should visit Jim Morrison’s grave. Pere Lachaise Cemetery has the last remains of many well known names from the creative realm, but Morrison’s grave was the main attraction in ’84. Upon our arrival at the cemetery gates we were greeted by a guard. He stared at us for a few seconds then said, “You are here to see Jeem, yes?” I said, “Jim”? The guard nodded and replied, “Yes, Jeem More Ee Son.” We all nodded yes. The guard held a map of the cemetery, wrote ‘Jim’ in green ink on the gravesite location and handed it to me. I thanked him in French, handed him a few francs and we headed up the pathway.
Pere Lachaise is a huge cemetery, but it was easy to find Morrison’s grave due to all the graffiti in multiple languages around it. Other recognizable names we saw included: Isadora Duncan, Edith Piaf, Oscar Wilde, Balzac, Colette, Chopin, Proust, Moliere, Bizet, Delacroix, Modigliani, Magritte, Gertrude Stein, Alice B. Toklas, Simone Signoret, Yves Montand, and Georges Melies (early silent filmmaker).
Looking at the map photo, if you follow the crease that runs through the letter 'I' upward, you will see ‘Jim’ written in faint olive green. The photo of the gravesite is the best of the photos I took. I believe the stone sculpture is the original one, but I am not sure it is. I know there have been several over the years. I have taken other friends to the cemetery over the years, and Morrison’s gravesite has looked different each time.
Photos and text © B. Soto 2011
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