No One Here Gets Out Alive [Paperback]

Jerry Hopkins (Author), Danny Sugerman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 14, 2006

Here is Jim Morrison in all his complexity-singer, philosopher, poet, delinquent-the brilliant, charismatic, and obsessed seeker who rejected authority in any form, the explorer who probed "the bounds of reality to see what would happen..." Seven years in the writing, this definitive biography is the work of two men whose empathy and experience with Jim Morrison uniquely prepared them to recount this modern tragedy: Jerry Hopkins, whose famous Presley biography, Elvis, was inspired by Morrison's suggestion, and Danny Sugerman, confidant of and aide to the Doors. With an afterword by Michael McClure.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Grand Central Publishing; Standard Edition edition (April 14, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446697338
• ISBN-13: 978-0446697330
• Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 1 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (155 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,492 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #35 in Books > Arts & Photography > Music > Musical Genres > Rock
  • #71 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Arts & Literature > Composers & Musicians

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars No Hero but a Little Worship July 1, 2003

By Jeff Richardson

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I first read this book in 1984 and I have re-read it several times in the intervening years. The story of how it came to be published is quite well-known. Jerry Hopkins is a journalist who interviewed Jim Morrison on several occasions during his lifetime. After Morrison dies, Hopkins began work on a biography. Following several unsuccessful years of attempting to get the completed biography published, Jerry Hopkins meets Danny Sugerman. Sugerman was a teenage admirer of The Doors and eventually wrangled an office job out of a sympathetic Morrison (a more complete story of Sugerman is told in his autobiography "Wonderland Avenue"). In any event, Sugerman adds his perspective and personal anecdotes to the story and, helped by the resurgence of interest in the music of The Doors, the book is eventually published in 1980.

I think the argument that the book is hero-worship is only partially true. Certainly Danny Sugerman had feelings for Morrison that were akin to idolatry and that comes across in the book. On the other hand, Jerry Hopkins was a working journalist and his professionalism and research is also evident. While reading the book it is in most instances possible to determine what was written by Hopkins and what was penned by Sugerman. I suppose this incongruity might be irksome to some but the narrative does flow and does not detract from the overall story of the life of Jim Morrison.

In the almost 20 years that have elapsed since I first read No One Here Gets Out Alive I have read everything I could get my hands on that in any way concerned Jim Morrison and The Doors. I have yet to read a more definitive account or one which largely contradicted anything contained in this book.... That's not to say that there aren't other good books or interesting perspectives, only that this is the wellspring of Jim Morrison-related literature.

This book is of obvious interest to any one who likes the music of The Doors and/or finds Jim Morrison fascinating. I fall into both categories. However, Jim Morrison was not a particularly admirable fellow. He did experiment with drugs, he often treated his friends badly, he was fairly promiscuous (even carelessly impregnating a girlfriend and then shirking responsibility), etc. Of course Morrison did have many good characteristics as well. His love of reading, sense of humor and displays of genuine affection are intermingled with his faults. I believe this book does a generally good job of portraying a reasonable facsimile of Jim Morrison.

For me this book sparked an even greater interest in Morrison and The Doors which continues to this day. At the same time, this book also provides a good antidote to hero-worship. As a cautionary note to those who choose to view Jim Morrison through rose-colored glasses, I suggest that you don't read the Hopkins/Sugerman biography. Those that do choose to read the biography carefully will have, as James Joyce wrote, "discovered to their vast discomfiture that their idol had feet of clay, after placing him upon a pedestal." Read more ›

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Teenage Hero-Worship Oozes From This Book August 21, 2005

By Ellie Reasoner

Format:Mass Market Paperback

This book isn't an objective look at the life of James Douglas Morrison, but who says it has to be? Danny Sugerman knew Morrison and the other Doors, when he worked at Los Angeles' Electra Records in the late 1960's. Sugerman obviously idolized the Lizard King and wrote this book as much as a tribute to his late friend and mentor as a straightforward biography and story of an influential band.

The three separate sections of this book "The Bow Is Drawn" "The Arrow Flies" and "The Arrow Falls" tell, respectively, of the youth and rise of Jim Morrison, the height of his fame as frontman for The Doors from 1967-1971, and finally Morrison's implosion after a half-decade of alcohol and drug abuse, personal neglect and probable psychological illness. The Morrison of No One Here Gets Out Alive is not a flesh and blood human being, but rather the shamanistic figure he clearly was to adolescent Sugerman. As evidence of this, consider once you've read it, how little space is devoted to details of Morrison's death.

This was the first and in some ways both the best and worst book about Jim Morrison. If it does not cover every aspect of his twenty-seven year life with total insight and candor, then it does at least expiate this by giving us a first-hand look at the rise and fall of one of the legends of twentieth-century music. After reading No One Here Gets Out Alive, you'll come away knowing most of what you probably wanted to know about Morrison, and your time will not be wasted. True, some of the darker aspects of the man's character are left out in this exercise in admiration, but I think Sugerman does a good job of getting the "flavor" of the late '60's right, and placing Morrison into it as a person who helped shape the mood and turmoil of that decade in time....

No One Here Gets Out Alive isn't quite the classic today it seemed poised to become when it was first released a generation back, but I think its cult status is assured. Read more ›

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Can't put the book down February 2, 2006

By Booklover

Format:Mass Market Paperback

You won't be able to put this book down. I fall asleep with it on my face! One thing I learned from it is that his massive intelligence, his beautiful, mature voice and the physical magnificance of Morrison were not enough to make me want to be around him after I learned about what he was like personally. He had so many offensive obsessions that you'll learn about. He had a brilliant mind and I love reading how he kept notebooks of thoughts and book passages, but he could be cruel and decadent, which turned me off toward him as a PERSON. This book will keep you riveted if you want to learn about Morrison as a person. You also learn about his relationship with his wife. He must've been a lot to put up with. As much as he is appealing, just as much of him is a turnoff. For such a beautiful, manly voice, he acted like an immature brat most of the time. I'm not one to look for the worst in a person, but this book sure opened up the light on Morrison as a person. Creative people are always self-destructive! You will love this book if you want to know more about JM, even if you don't like the PERSON that JM was. I also like LIGHT MY FIRE if you want some of the ideas behind their music, which is something that I like. Jim wrote the second verse of LIGHT MY FIRE right upon hearing the first verse (I think it was written by the guitar player, Robby). I heartily recommend this book.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars No One Gets Out of This Book Without Food for Thought February 11, 2001

By A Customer

Format:Mass Market Paperback

First I must tell you that although I like the Door's music, I am not a big fan, in fact I never bought one of their albums. I bought this book for my husband. He's the mega fan, but I'm the book reader. On a whim, I read the forward by Danny Sugerman and was immediatly captured. The rest of the book held me slave as well.

The writing is simply well done. And I believe that Danny Sugerman and Jerry Hopkins did their homework and presented the life of Jim Morrison in an unbiased manner. They write of Jim's dark side and addiction, yes, but they also reveal Jim's warmth, humor, and the tumultuous bright mind of a shy boy. What a storm of emotions! Who wouldn't drink to stop the endless flow of feelings and thoughts from a spigot that you can't shut off?

This is just one of many interpretations the reader might come away with concerning Jim's self-destructive lifestyle, his fluctuating moods, and his obvious talent for poetic metaphores. This book gives the reader much to contemplate: the struggle of the human spirit, the need for freedom, the desire to express one's thoughts and ideas, be understood, and therefore; be able to share your experience with others. A few previous reveiwers seemed disappointed that Hopkins and Sugerman did not delve into the psychological reasons for Jim Morrison's addiction, but why should they; they are writers not pyschologists? And I felt they tossed out plenty of bread crumbs as to why Jim seemed bent on self-destruction for the reader to think about and draw our own conclusions....

In defense of Danny Sugerman (someone commented that he was just the mail boy and a Jim Morrison wanna-be), who would be more privy to the personal exploits and be more qualified to write about your life than someone who opened your fan mail every day and worked in the midst of your busy office? Also, if you read the last inside page of the book, you will find that Mr. Sugerman has written other well-received material since. He's not a one hit wonder who writes only about the Doors. And also on behalf of Jerry Hopkins, aside from "interviewing nearly 200 of Morrison's relatives, friends, and associates" for this biogrophy, Mr. Hopkins has written biogrophies of Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, David Bowie and Yoko Ono. No slouch this guy. I honostly almost did not buy this book because of the negative comments made about the authors. I'm glad I ignored them because if I hadn't, I would have missed out on a wonderful book about triumph and tradgedy and the fascinating life of the tortured poet, James Douglas Morrison. Read more ›