From Siegman, Andy. Jim Morrison: Before The Fire

Morrison seemed to have had more of a personal attachment to, and affinity for, Barney's than with other watering holes in Hollywood. Banishment from establishments was nothing new to him, but he seemed unusually upset about his ouster from Barney's in 1970. Perhaps the most obdurate in all of Hollywood, management at Barney's remained steadfast. Unimpressed with celebrity in general, and Morrison's in particular, they ordered a ban that was absolute and lasted for months. Late in 1970 the rock world was shocked by the deaths of Jimi Hendrix and Janis Joplin. It was in his favorite booth that Morrison shouted the prophetic words to his entourage: "You're lookin' at number three!"

WebEditor: I have no idea who Mike Thomas is. This is from the book "Before the Fire" and the author of that says "Mike Thomas interview":

I would see him here (Barney's) quite a bit. He and his buddies would sit there (points to the northeast corner of the bar). There was not a cooler there back then, and they would take the booth for hours. When he came in alone he would sit at the bar and chat with strangers. This was around 1970 and a lot of folks did not recognize him, which I'm sure he did not mind.

He had grown a beard, put on weight, and stopped with all the leather stuff, too. He mostly wore overalls. I've heard the stories, but never witnessed any craziness myself. He just seemed mellow, friendly even. Maybe even lonely sometimes. He had a knack for conversation, and seemed to have a genuine interest in learning from others. A very curious type. He was quick to ascertain what someone's profession was, then glean whatever info he could.

He also had an amazing talent for being politely evasive. It seemed like the last thing in the world he wanted to talk about was himself. I never saw him cause any trouble.

The bouncers had this routine where one would engage an unruly customer near the doorway, while the other would take a running start and body slam the guy out to the pavement. It was a rougher place back then, and people would cheer and holler, but Morrison seemed put off by it. You could really read his face sometimes.

I never saw him angry or even raise his voice. Then again I was only there early in the day. He seemed content to joke around and tell stories. And as I mentioned, he was a good listener. I remember that he was a moderate football fan and would bet the Rams games with people and always paid up when he lost. But he never bothered to collect when he won. He was generous to a fault and left some large tips. He just seemed like he did not want to leave until all of his cash was blown.

At one point he was banned for something that I did not witness. He did however come in several mornings afterward to apologize and plead his case. He really did make an effort and seemed genuine, but they were not having it. I then saw Ray Manzarek come in a couple times to attempt to smooth things over, while Morrison waited outside sheepishly. He then shuffled slowly down Santa Monica Boulevard looking dejected. Kind of ironic when you consider that he could have probably bought the place with a good week’s wages. Then several months later I heard that he moved to Paris and that was it.

The above is from the "Before the Fire" book. You can get it from Amazon. If you're a Prime member, you can subscribe to Kindle Unlimited for like 9 bucks a month and get it for free. And a bunch of other books about the Doors and more, for free. You can download the Kindle app for free onto your cellphone, laptop, desktop and read whenever you want. Check it out.