Ed Sullivan Beats Jim Morrison With His Shoe

On this day, September 17, 1967, things went horribly wrong for Ed Sullivan.

Ed Sullivan of course, had the most popular TV show on CBS for over 75 years. He was the King of Sunday Night. His show first aired on TV during the Civil War. Needless to say, Ed was a little conservative, but he enjoyed the ratings that Rock Bands such as The Beatles and The Doors would provide him.

Production Weasels

On this particular night, everything was going along fine during rehearsals. 15 minutes before showtime, Ed, along with his production Weasels, visited The Doors dressing room. “Hello boys” smirked Sullivan “I’m going to need you boys to go ahead and change the lyrics to your song mmmkay?”

Sullivan’s flunkies explained they wanted Morrison to sing “Girl, we couldn’t eat more cookies” instead of “Girl, we couldn’t get much higher” when performing “Light My Fire,” because the line might be construed as referring to drugs.

Ed Sullivan Beats Jim Morrison — A Really Big Shoe

It was showtime. The crowd went crazy when the opening keyboard riff of Light My Fire filled the theater. Things however, took a turn for the worse when it came time for Jim to sing the controversial lines of the song. The rebellious, erratic, unpredictable, some might say insane, Jim Morrison, looked right into the camera and sang the original lyrics, with extra emphasis on “Higher”.

Ed Sullivan Vs Jim Morrison

After the band was finished, Sullivan went berserk. Ed bashed down the door to the dressing room with an axe. He then chased Morrison and The Doors out of the studio, bashing Jim over the head with his shoe. Morrison was laughing hysterically. Ed chased Jim all the way down Broadway vowing to kill him. Morrison ducked into a nearby peep show and hid in a booth until the threat subsided.

The Doors went onto have a huge career, and Jim Morrison was found dead in a bathtub in Paris on July 3, 1971 at the age of 27. Witnesses say, Ed Sullivan was seen leaving the room prior to Jim’s death. Having the last word was real big with Ed. Sullivan always got the last word.