Jim Morrison and the Doors Trivia Quiz

Answer: New Mexico

On a family vacation in New Mexico in 1947, the Morrison's car came upon an accident involving a truckload of Indian workers. Seeing the scared and dying Indians affected Jim deeply - he said that the soul of one of them entered him - and he later incorporated the incident into the song "Peace Frog."

Answer: USS Bonhomme Richard

Jim's father, George Steven Morrison, a Naval Rear Admiral, commanded the Bonhomme Richard in the early 1960s, including in the Gulf of Tonkin in Vietnam. The "Bonny Dick," as it was known to the thousands who'd sailed on it, was decommissioned in 1971, and Admiral Morrison spoke at the ceremonies, which occurred in Bremerton, WA on July 2, 1971, a few hours before the death of his son.

Answer: George Washington

Jim graduated from George Washington High School in 1961, but did not attend his graduation ceremony. Ellen Cohen, later Cass Elliot of the Mamas and the Papas, attended the same school.

Answer: Economics

Ray Manzarek earned a Bachelors degree in economics from DePaul University before moving to California, where he earned a Masters degree at UCLA's film school and met Jim.

Answer: Rick and the Ravens

Ray Manzarek and his brothers had a band named "Rick and the Ravens." Ray and Jim, who'd known each other at UCLA, met again, and with the addition of John and Robby, formed the Doors.

Answer: American Bandstand

The Doors appeared on American Bandstand on July 22, 1967, lip synching "Crystal Ship" and "Light My Fire." Their Ed Sullivan appearance was September 17 of that year (interesting fact: the same night as the Who's epic performance on the Smothers Brothers, also on CBS).

Their first television appearance was on KTLA's Shebang show on January 1, 1967, but that was not a national broadcast.

Answer: Break On Through

"Break On Through" was their first single, but it failed to reach the charts. "Light My Fire," released as the second single, went to Number One.

Answer: London

The Doors' first European tour was in September 1968. They performed on "Top of the Pops" in London on September 5, then played four sold out shows the next two nights at London's Roundhouse.

Answer: Alabama Song

"Break On Through" isn't on any of the known recordings of the Doors' infamous Miami concert, but it was the first song they played that night. Speculation is that someone began taping when Morrison started ranting during the second song, "Backdoor Man."

Answer: Morrison Hotel

Numerous explanations for this exist; arguably, the most plausible one is that the song was not complete enough for inclusion on the "Waiting for the Sun" album.

Answer: Long Beach

Jim must have worked at keeping his nose clean at home. He was arrested for unknown reasons, possibly public drunkenness, in Tallahassee in 1963. The 1967 New Haven arrest is famous in rock history as the first time a singer was arrested on stage. In 1969, he and a friend were arrested in Phoenix for drunken behavior on an airplane, but the charges were later dropped.

Answer: Stronger than dirt

Jim can be heard saying the Ajax slogan, "stronger than dirt," at the end of "Touch Me."

Answer: frog

Although they have a song titled "Peace Frog," the word never appears in the lyrics, or in any other Doors lyrics. But we DO have "I am the lizard king, I can do anything... Ride the snake to the lake... There's a killer on the road, his brain is squirming like a toad," probably among other lyric references.

Answer: 12-12-70

The Doors' last two concerts with the original four members were in Dallas and New Orleans on December 11 and 12, 1970. No complete recording or even setlist is known to exist from the New Orleans concert. The most commonly-agreed on facts of the show are that the band quit early because Jim wasn't feeling well, and that they played Soul Kitchen, Break On Through, and Light My Fire.

Answer: According to his own spirit

In time for the 20th anniversary of Jim's death, his parents purchased a plaque for his grave, bearing the Greek words "KATA TON DAIMONA EAYTOY," which roughly translate to "According to his own spirit."