THAT DAY

Filming of "HWY: "AN AMERICAN PASTORAL", April 1969

n April 1969, Jim Morrison, Paul Ferrara, Frank Lisciandro and Babe Hill traveled to the Mojave Desert to begin filming a 50-minute film entitled "HWY: An American Pastoral"...

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Inspired by an original scenario written by the young DOORS singer, Morrison himself will appear in front of the camera, also using his own car (the famous Ford Mustang Shelby GT500, nicknamed "Blue Lady").

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The film, very contemplative, relates the journey of a murderous hitchhiker, from Palm Springs to Los Angeles.

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The theme of the killer hitchhiker will be found again a few months later, in the track "Riders on the Storm". "Hwy" will also be a source of inspiration for director Robert Harmon and his film "Hitcher" (1986).

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The film was screened on only two occasions and in the absence of Morrison, one on March 27, 1970 in Vancouver, the other in 1993 in Paris at the Max Linder Cinema, in the presence of Frank Lisciandro.

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Despite the restoration of some shots, later included in the documentary "When You're Strange" by Tom Dicillo (2009), "Hwy" has never been officially released...

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(A pirated version, in which there is a large time code visible on the screen, is however known to fans.)