Post by darkstar2 on Jul 31, 2008 21:39:36 GMT
Daily Telegraph UK
Jim Morrison's 'death benefits' card to be auctioned
The original "death benefits" card issued after The Doors singer Jim Morrison died is to go under the hammer at auction.
Last Updated: 1:14PM BST 30 Jul 2008
Death benefits card of The Doors singer Jim Morrison Photo: BNPS.co.uk
The American rock star perished in a bath in Paris aged 27 in 1971 after a suspected heroin overdose.
For sale is the "death benefit file card" stating that the beneficiary of any money should be his brother Andrew - not his common law wife.
Pamela Courson was Morrison's girlfriend long before he became famous and in the singer's will she inherited everything.
She died three years after him from a drugs overdose.
The auctioneer selling the card believes it was a type of social security payment, the policy for which was taken out by Morrison in 1967.
The card lists the controversial frontman's name as James Douglas Morrison, and his professional name as Jim Morrison.
The signature of the singer, in brown felt pen, appears to have been added several years after the policy was taken out - in 1970, just months before he died.
On his death the card has been stamped: DECEASED.
It states his date of birth and social security number and gives a Los Angeles address.
On the reverse it says that his brother should be the beneficiary of the state benefits.
The card is being sold by Cameo auctioneers in Reading, Berks, and has an estimate of up to £3,000.
Alan Pritchard, from the auctioneers, said: "This is a unique item.
"Morrison died in France and is buried there but this document is from Los Angeles.
"Jim Morrison still has a large fan base and this is something that collectors would be very keen to buy."
The Doors, who took their name from the Aldous Huxley book The Doors of Perception, was a band that formed in 1965.
Morrison was a charismatic and often drug-addled frontman whose performances were controversial.
The band's music is enduringly popular and they have sold millions of copies of their albums.
The sale will be held on Tuesday, August 5.
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/2474064/Jim-Morrisons-death-benefits-card-to-be-auctioned.html
Jim Morrison's 'death benefits' card to be auctioned
The original "death benefits" card issued after The Doors singer Jim Morrison died is to go under the hammer at auction.
Last Updated: 1:14PM BST 30 Jul 2008
Death benefits card of The Doors singer Jim Morrison Photo: BNPS.co.uk
The American rock star perished in a bath in Paris aged 27 in 1971 after a suspected heroin overdose.
For sale is the "death benefit file card" stating that the beneficiary of any money should be his brother Andrew - not his common law wife.
Pamela Courson was Morrison's girlfriend long before he became famous and in the singer's will she inherited everything.
She died three years after him from a drugs overdose.
The auctioneer selling the card believes it was a type of social security payment, the policy for which was taken out by Morrison in 1967.
The card lists the controversial frontman's name as James Douglas Morrison, and his professional name as Jim Morrison.
The signature of the singer, in brown felt pen, appears to have been added several years after the policy was taken out - in 1970, just months before he died.
On his death the card has been stamped: DECEASED.
It states his date of birth and social security number and gives a Los Angeles address.
On the reverse it says that his brother should be the beneficiary of the state benefits.
The card is being sold by Cameo auctioneers in Reading, Berks, and has an estimate of up to £3,000.
Alan Pritchard, from the auctioneers, said: "This is a unique item.
"Morrison died in France and is buried there but this document is from Los Angeles.
"Jim Morrison still has a large fan base and this is something that collectors would be very keen to buy."
The Doors, who took their name from the Aldous Huxley book The Doors of Perception, was a band that formed in 1965.
Morrison was a charismatic and often drug-addled frontman whose performances were controversial.
The band's music is enduringly popular and they have sold millions of copies of their albums.
The sale will be held on Tuesday, August 5.
www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/2474064/Jim-Morrisons-death-benefits-card-to-be-auctioned.html