Jim Morrison's 'Cosmic Mate'

I wonder... is it something to be proud of or rather a lack of something? What I am talking about? To be known as 'the girlfriend/muse/lover of' instead of having your own talents that make you stand out. Pamela Courson - mostly just called 'Pam' - was one of those girls. She was one of Jim Morrison's many loves but most probably his dearest one. Pam spent most of her - short - life alongside Jim, and probably had to deal with the fact that the attention always went to her boyfriend. Though her life was pretty intense as well; she had a drug addiction and also joined the 27 club. Who is the woman behind Jim Morrison?

Pamela Courson was born in 1947 in Weed (California). She lived an average life - perhabs a bit more rebellious than most young girls, but still a normal life. She hated high school and so she left for Los Angeles when she was 16, to live with a friend. Her life became less and less average, especially when she met the talented Jim Morrison, who just started playing in his band The Doors. How they met, isn't clear. There's a great chance it was in L.A. and it was in the night time.

While reading Jim Morrison's biography, called 'No One Here Gets Out Alive (perfectly fitting title), it became crystal clear to me: Jim and Pam had a relationship that was filled with love, hate, love and hate again. In other words, passionate and dramatic. They had good periods, during which they did everything together, but they often saw other people as well. There's this scene in the biography when Pam and Jim are on the same party and Pam spots Jim making love to a friend of hers. Of course, those were the days of free love, sexual experimenting, alcohol of drugs but we all can imagine: must have been pretty painful for Pam.

On the other hand, Pam wasn't that innocent herself either. She used all sorts of drugs but while Jim loved psychedelics most, Pam was more interested in the hard stuff: coke and heroin. Her lifestyle was outrageous. She spent a lot of Jim's money and he even bought her her own fashion boutique. Well, you gotta do something with your time as a muse!

Pam was a great inspiration to Jim. Many of The Doors' songs are about her, one of my favourites 'Love Street' for example (She has robes and she has monkeys/lazy diamond studded flunkies/She has wisdom and knows what to do/She has me and she has you). Her style was very bohemian and if you search the internet for her outfits, you'll find that she's still a huge inspiration for today's hippie lovers (such as I).

But as flowery and sunny her clothes could be, as tragic her ending was. In the beginning of the seventies, Jim and Pim seemed to live a more and more peaceful life. They travelled together, to lovely Marrakech for example, and they even decided to move permanently to Paris. This was where they lived on the particular day that Jim was found dead in his bathtub. Pam was believed to be with him when he died, but everything around this moment is quite blurry for the press. No one knows exactly how Jim died (some even believed Pam helped him escaping, which would mean that he didn't die at all but is - or was - still living somewhere on this earth).

Pam was devastated by his death. Though they never married, she was named as his heir. Despite all the money she got, she was bound to a very poor life after Jim's death. Why? Because she used more and more heroin to kill the pain and mentally, she was very unstable. It is even said that she became a prostitute after Jim's death, to earn some money for her drugs. On April 25th, she died of a heroin overdose in her apartment in L.A. One of her friends said that she had already mentioned 'looking forward to seeing Jim again'. Her parents wanted her to be buried next to Jim in Paris (at the legendary Pere Lachaise Cemetery), but due to technical complications she was buried in California.

After her death, a painful battle began between Pam's and Jim's parents about the substantial financial state. To keep them both in honour, I think it's needless to talk about that crazy controversy. What's left to say, is that though Pam always was a mysterious woman - even more after her death - I am certain she didn't deserve the life she led. Sure, she must have had beautiful moments. With Jim, surrounded by music, people and fame, but it's insane how drugs can damage a person so badly. How intriguing it can be for other people (among whom I) to be the inspiration to all those beautiful songs - Neil Young's 'The Needle and the Damage Done' and The Eagles' 'Hotel California' are also said to be inspired on her life - it can never replace a peaceful and happy life. Hopefully heaven will help her on that.