Closing The Doors

A Los Angeles Superior Court judge issued a permanent injunction preventing The Doors founding members Ray Manzarek and Robbie Krieger from using the name “The Doors of the 21st Century” – the moniker they’ve been touring under for almost three years.

The ruling came at an awkward time for the group – in the middle of a tour. The band quickly adopted D21C, a popular nickname that also passes legal muster.

Reps for D21C said the band intends to appeal the ruling and continue performing.

“The appellate process takes time,” D21C manager Tom Vitorino told Pollstar. “There’s another legal procedure to go through before we can even file the appeal but, in talking to the band, the appellate process will go forward.”

Former drummer John Densmore won the injunction against the group when Judge Gregory Alarcon issued his ruling July 22nd, citing a “unanimity agreement” that essentially grants veto power to any member of The Doors’ partnership.

Densmore and the estates of the late Jim Morrison and Pamela Courson sued in 2003, charging a breach of contract over the name, and the judge agreed that the former band members had a unique “unanimity requirement” in which any one member could veto any group decision involving The Doors.

The band is currently touring in North America and the ruling took effect immediately, meaning the members had to cease using the name, selling merchandise, putting up flyers or even being announced from the stage as anything containing the words “The Doors,” Densmore attorney S. Jerome Mandel told Pollstar.

“Our intention isn’t to make life miserable for the promoters,” Mandel explained. “If a promoter has already got an ad buy out for a concert that’s tomorrow night, we don’t expect them to go to the newspaper and have them change the ad although, technically, they might have to. There’s a reality that we recognize.”

Though Densmore had reportedly been invited to join The Doors of the 21st Century, a severe hearing loss made it impossible for him to take his seat at the kit. The band instead recruited former Police drummer Stewart Copeland, who played with the outfit briefly before suing the group for replacing him. Copeland is also a defendant in the Densmore suit.

The group began touring in early 2003 with Manzarek, Krieger, Copeland and Ian Astbury, former frontman of The Cult. Densmore immediately filed suit.

“John has always held as his primary motive to preserve the legacy of the band,” Mandel said. “This wasn’t filed for economic reasons; it was to stop them from calling themselves The Doors.”

However, Vitorino pointed out that Krieger and Densmore toured Europe as “The Doors” as recently as 1998. “John used the name ‘The Doors,’ got paid for it and accepted the check for it,” Vitorino said.

But the issue to Krieger and Manzarek is the same as that for Densmore, according to Vitorino: How is the band’s legacy properly honored?

“There’s two ways you can uphold the legacy of a band. One, you can sue the other two band members because you don’t like them using the name, or you can go out and play the music that the band made,” Vitorino said. “Robbie Krieger and Ray Manzarek believe that you uphold a legacy of a band by going out and playing the music they created for the fans.

“The whole obligation that a musician has is to play their music live to their audience, not to pretend that you’re upholding the legacy of your band by not playing the music or licensing the music anywhere. Where is The Doors’ music heard? You’ve got The Beatles, The Stones, The Who (licensing their music). The Doors have fallen off that mantle because the legacy hasn’t been upheld properly for the last 10 years.”

— Deborah Speer