Jim Morrison: Frank Lisciandro Remembers

Jim Morrison: Frank Lisciandro Remembers

Frank Lisciandro was a close friend of Jim Morrison. He worked, traveled and partied with Jim for three years, photographing and filming the Doors at the height of their popularity. Last year (1982) Frank Lisciandro wrote a book about his experiences with Jim Morrison entitled "Jim Morrison, An Hour For Magic, Photo journal" (Delilah Books) We, at the Campus Advertiser, take real pride in presenting this very special interview with Frank Lisciandro.

Q - Why don't Morrison's parents speak out about their son?

A - His father is an ex-Navy Admiral, and they tend to be rather conservative, military people. I don't think they've ever realized Jim's greatness, and I think they've always been ashamed that he was busted in Miami, and busted in New Haven. It doesn't fit the image of a military man. In a sense, they would prefer that nothing be written about him. They don't like the way it reflects on them, believe it or not. They don't see the greatness in their son, rather they see the embarrassment it causes them. Because of that, they've been totally uncooperative with everyone. I did hear that they liked my book quite a lot. Although I didn't need their cooperation, it was nice to hear that. But, even his sister hasn't spoken up, or his brother. They would just rather cherish the kind of images they had of him rather than have a publicity thing go out. So they're not very sympathetic to the fans' needs or the people who really idolize Jim even to this day. There are young people and older people even, who find him a great innovator, a great rock singer, lyricist, poet. And these people want more and more Information about him. The parents and the family don't see that really. They just don't want the exposure, so, they haven't been generous with their information about Jim. Hopefully, that will change.

Q - Why is Jim Morrison so popular today?

A - When Jim wrote, he wrote from a universal standpoint. That is, he dealt with themes that are universal, and they are timeless. He dealt with love, death, sex, breaking away from one's family, mysticism, breaking on through to the other side. To see a new reality, he talked about rebellion and revolution. Those are things that are a lot different than "Sixteen Candles", boy meets girl, boy loses girl. Not only were his themes meaningful, but the way he addressed those themes, the way he treated them. He read deeply into philosophy, and psychology. He was a very learned and well-read person and he was able to talk about those things in a way that people responded then, and still respond to. I think people who listen to him are attracted now both by his physical image, his voice, and also the things he wrote and talked about because those subjects are always meaningful to people. 
© Gary James