Jim Morrison Birthday Bash and Photography Exhibition by Jim Coke

Opening Reception:  Saturday, December 4, 2004   6—11PM

 read the press release

The entertainment had already begun:  Carlos Guitarlos was rocking out in the performance corner of the gallery, which fronted a large window that looked out on 4th Street in Long Beach.   There were assorted chairs, tables, and couches for the audience area.

The gallery walls were lined with close to two dozen black & white framed prints of The Doors at the festival.   There were two floor-to-ceiling photos of Jim only, which were essentially life-size, and two black & white photos accented with metal leaf ... a very interesting effect!   The famous scream sequence of Jim images were on display in several different sizes.  There were also two framed double-shot photos from color slides.

We easily picked out who the artist was, as he was usually surrounded and talking to visitors and explaining the photos, accepting lots of congratulations from well-wishers.  We hovered nearby and eventually we got our chance to talk with Jim.

Jim introduced us to Chris Boyle, who was a publicist for The Doors at one time.   He would perform later in the evening.  Chris told us that Jim gave him a pair of his worn brown leather pants, which he had paid $65 for.   Years later, Chris sold those leather pants through Sotheby's to Hard Rock for $47,000!   I told Chris about having seen brown leather pants on display at the Hard Rock Vault in Orlando, Florida last summer, which may have been the same pair. 

Doors friend and poet Michael C. Ford arrived;  he would perform next, accompanied by a bass player and a guitarist as he read poetry.

Following Michael, Chris Boyle took to the mic with acoustic guitar.  He led off with a reading of the full Celebration of the Lizard.  We were surprised to see Jim Coke climb into the corner to sit at the drums, where he then accompanied Chris for a few songs.   One of the songs Chris performed was titled "It's Another Day" about his friend, Arthur Lee.

Poet Raindog closed out the evening's entertainment with biting poetry and commentary on mostly current world events.  He began with Michael C. Ford reading a work while Raindog accompanied on digital Casio sax.

There were many hundreds of people who attended the opening reception last night ...  the rooms were filled at all times with people passing through, looking at the photos, patronizing the cafe decorated with items from Mexico, shopping the Mexican jewelry, and enjoying the entertainment.   As opening receptions go, Jim must have been very pleased with the turn-out.

Many of the photos can be seen on Jim's website at www.jimcoke.com     The story behind the photos taken that day can also be found there, at http://jimcoke.com/pages/thestory.html

The exhibit runs through December 31, 2004 at Viento y Agua Gallery, 4007 East 4th Street, Long Beach, CA 90814    (562) 434-1182      vientoyagua@verizon.net

  Photo by Ida