Jim Morrison died on 3 July 1971 in 4th arrondissement of Paris, aged 27. An American singer and poet, Morrison was the charismatic lead vocalist of The Doors, which he formed in Los Angeles in 1965 with the keyboardist Ray Manzarek, who had been a film school classmate. The band's blend of rock, blues and psychedelia produced hits such as Light My Fire, Hello, I Love You and Riders on the Storm. Morrison's brooding lyrics, influenced by poets such as Rimbaud and Blake, and his provocative stage presence brought both fame and trouble, including an arrest in Miami in 1969. He moved to Paris in 1971 and died there at 27; the official cause was heart failure. He is buried in the Père Lachaise cemetery.
Before and after
- 6 June 1971Launch of Soyuz 11
- 16 June 1971Birth of Tupac Shakur
- 28 June 1971Birth of Elon Musk
- 3 July 1971Birth of Julian Assange
- 3 July 1971Death of Jim Morrison
- 4 July 1971Release of Project Gutenberg
- 6 July 1971Death of Louis Armstrong
- 26 July 1971Launch of Apollo 15
- 28 July 1971Birth of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi
More in Art, literature & culture
- from 1960 to 1970The Beatles
- 1960Construction of Aswan Dam
- 1978Publication of Garfield
- 17 December 1989Premiere of The Simpsons
- from 24 September 2007 to 16 May 2019Premiere of The Big Bang Theory
- from 26 January 2021 to 27 November 2023Premiere of Go, Dog. Go!
The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.
