Daniel Stephen Sugerman (aka Danny; October 11, 1954 – January 5, 2005) was the second manager of the Los Angeles based rock band The Doors, and wrote several books about Jim Morrison and The Doors, including No One Here Gets Out Alive co-authored with Jerry Hopkins, and the autobiography Wonderland Avenue. Sugerman replaced the original Doors manager, Bill Siddons, shortly after Morrison's death in 1971. He helped film director Oliver Stone with the production of the 1991 movie The Doors.
Sugerman began working with The Doors when he was 12 years old, starting with answering their fan mail. As stated by The Doors' drummer John Densmore, Danny was "the manager and driving force behind The Doors" who "guided our career for over 30 years." He lived his life keeping the legacy of The Doors alive.
Sugerman also managed Iggy Pop, and produced his song "Repo Man." He also wrote Appetite For Destruction: The Days of Guns 'n Roses in 1991.
Sugerman married the former Fawn Hall of Iran-Contra fame in 1991 and remained married to her until his death. They briefly met MP3.com cofounder Rod Underhill while Hall was employed as an administrative assistant at the San Diego headquarters of the original MP3.com. Underhill, the founding Music Director of MP3.com, stated that "Sugerman was very interesting. He had appeared to go out of his way to appear visually like Jim Morrison. Same type of haircut, similar clothing. The similarity was uncanny."
Sugerman was interested in working out a distribution deal with MP3.com for a number of live Doors recordings that were yet unreleased. No deal was forthcoming, and Sugerman later determined that it would be practical to offer the recordings on CD to fans via the Doors' own official website.
Sugerman was a recovering heroin addict who found solace in Buddhism. He died on January 5, 2005 at the age of 50 after a prolonged struggle with lung cancer, and was interred in the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery in Los Angeles.
Books
No One Here Gets Out Alive (1980, with Jerry Hopkins)
The Doors (1983)
The Doors, the Illustrated History (1983)
Wonderland Avenue: Tales of Glamour and Excess (1989)
Appetite For Destruction: The Days Of Guns 'n Roses (1991)
Miss you Danny....I miss those phone calls of years ago and still have the letters you wrote me....I so wish your book Wonderland Avenuw had been turned in to a movie. It still deserves to be. Shine on You Crazy Diamond! You still do.....
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