The Doors type Movie genre Biography

Ray Manzarek, the founding keyboardist for the Doors, passed away this morning in Germany, according to a statement from his publicist. The cause was bile duct cancer.

As a member of the legendary rock band that formed in 1965 in Los Angeles and effectively ended with the death of frontman Jim Morrison in 1971 (though the group continued to perform and release music in other iterations for many years), Manzarek became an enduring symbol of the era — he was portrayed by Kyle McLachlan in the 1991 Oliver Stone biopic The Doors, and wrote a best-selling memoir about his experiences, Light My Fire: My Life with The Doors, in 1998.

The Doors sold more than 100 million albums worldwide on the strength of hits like “Hello, I Love You,” “Riders on the Storm,” “Light My Fire,” and “Break On Through to the Other Side.”

Manzarek is survived by his wife Dorothy, son Pablo, and three grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Manzarek’s name to www.standup2cancer.org.

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