Why Jim Morrison Was Hiding in Paris (And What He Was Running From)

On March 11, 1971, Jim Morrison boarded a plane for Paris and told almost no one the real reason why. The official story was a sabbatical. A break. A chance to write poetry, lose the weight, find his footing again. That's what the press was told. That's what the Doors' management quietly distributed. Jim Morrison left for Paris with a prison sentence pending on appeal. Six months in a Florida jail. A $500 fine. And the real possibility that when the sabbatical ended, he was going back to a courtroom. He never came back. The appeal was never resolved.