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A significant fire broke out on December 26 in downtown Los Angeles, damaging the iconic former Morrison Hotel, a building that has garnered fame thanks to its connection to The Doors and their 1970 album titled after the hotel.
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The building, which has sat empty for over ten years, faced severe damage as it was engulfed in flames that raged for nearly two hours. More than 100 firefighters responded to the scene to bring the situation under control, according to reports from the Los Angeles Fire Department.
Originally, the Morrison Hotel gained notoriety for its association with The Doors, with a famous photograph taken by Henry Diltz in 1969 for the album cover. Diltz recounted how they had to cleverly circumvent hotel policies to capture the iconic shot, noting that a hotel clerk had initially prohibited photography inside the premises.
According to Diltz, the band made a swift move into the lobby while the clerk was distracted, allowing him to snap the photograph through a window, which prominently featured lead singer Jim Morrison.
Reflecting on the hotel’s character, Diltz described it as a charming old wooden structure with small, affordable rooms where transients could find a place to sleep. He expressed particular fondness for the hotel’s front window displaying “Morrison Hotel” in bold red letters, a detail he believed was also an important element for the band.
The album marked a pivotal moment for The Doors, representing a return to their artistic roots after Morrison’s controversial arrest for indecent exposure and profanity during a Miami concert.
Morrison and the group would go on to release one last album, L.A. Woman, prior to the singer’s untimely death in a bathtub in Paris in July 1971.
When firefighters initially arrived at the Morrison Hotel blaze, they discovered heavy flames consuming the upper floors of the building.
Thankfully, several occupants managed to escape unscathed, including three individuals who were rescued from the third floor by the responding firefighters. As a result of the fire, however, significant structural damage occurred, including a collapse of the building’s roof which raised concerns regarding its stability.
In the years leading up to the incident, the Morrison Hotel had been repurposed as a training facility for firefighters, further cementing its place in the community’s history.
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www.billboard.com