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The two agreed that Page would write the music for the film. But the whole thing ended in arguments because Page wouldn’t deliver. Kenneth Anger needed 40 minutes' worth of music, but only got 20. The filmmaker went on to insult Page to the press.
It doesn't end there with Page. He also became completely obsessed with the British mystic and occult legend Aleister Crowley. It clearly affected Led Zeppelin’s choice of artwork and imagery.
Filmmaker Kenneth Anger had been working on ‘Lucifer Rising’ (1972) when he met guitarist Jimmy Page, who was by all means strung out most of the time.
In 1970, Page bought a house in the Scottish Highlands that was once owned by Crowley. It’s thought that Crowley would perform rituals and black magic there. It's even said that one of the rites was disrupted and caused spiritual unrest.
A Zeppelin groupie named Pamela Des Barres reported that during the mid-70s he would don a full SS regalia uniform and attend drag clubs in it. Pamela Des Barres also reported that he would do heroin in the clubs.
Jimmy Page is an unusual human being. That’s probably the price you pay for being one of the best guitarists of all time. Did you know, for instance, that he once played a gig in full Nazi SS uniform?
The story has never been denied, but it’s also often attributed to another band named Vanilla Fudge. Whether this one is a rumor has never been verified.
In LA in the early '70s, Page became interested in a young woman named Lori Maddox. While staying at the famed Hyatt House in Hollywood, he once sent for her to come to his room. She was 14 years old.
It could be that it was completely platonic. However, it’s very unusual for a grown man to want to be friends with a girl that young in the first place. There were never legal proceedings for statutory r ape. She was also rumored to be dating David Bowie at the time, too.
Jimmy Page was reported to worship the devil. He once said to Rolling Stone, "I don't really want to go on about my personal beliefs or my involvement in magic.”
Page stopped going to the house, speaking about the “bad vibes” there. Page claimed to have heard a ghost there. Malcolm Dent, a friend of Page's who was asked to look after the house, also reportedly experienced doors slamming and rugs and carpets piled up by themselves.
In Cameron Crowe's 2000 film ‘Almost Famous,’ a rowdy rock and roller rode a motorcycle through a hotel hallway. While it seems excessive, it’s based on a true story about Led Zeppelin.
At a concert in 1977, violence erupted at Cincinnati Riverfront Coliseum as fans with no tickets rushed the gates and began throwing bottles and rocks to crash the show.
John Bonham carried out one of the most famous events in the history of rock and roll while he frequented the famed Chateau Marmont hotel. He rode a motorcycle right through the lobby!
It got so bad that Page was once chained to a toilet (with a groupie to keep him company) to stop him from breaking things and racking up a big bill.
While on vacation in the Greek island Rhodes, Robert Plant's wife lost control of a car and hit a tree. Plant’s right leg was shattered and he broke his ankle and elbow, too. It was the beginning of a stretch of heartbreakingly misfortune events that ended with the death of his son.
Within 24 hours of his son being diagnosed with a (stomach) viral infection, his condition worsened and he was rushed to hospital in an ambulance, but sadly passed away before arriving there.
Sources: (Ranker)
Eight years after the infamous shark incident at Seattle's Edgewater Inn, the band returned, pledging to be on their best behavior. That night they threw five TV sets out the window. They were charged US$2,500 by the hotel for it.
Led Zeppelin invented trashing hotel rooms. It’s since become a cliché. Back when they were famous, there was so much money in music that they could basically afford anything, and hotel room repairs on top.
In July 1977, his son Karac Pendragon Plant died at the age of five while Plant was engaged on Led Zeppelin's concert tour of the United States. It was a devastating loss for the family.
The Inn sat right next to the water, allowing guests to fish straight from their rooms. And they did, catching a mud shark! After the room filled with groupies later in the evening, they performed adult acts on a young woman who was tied down, involving the shark.
He passed away on the same day of rehearsals with guitarist Jimmy Page, where he was drinking quadruple vodkas. He became sick in his sleep that night from alcohol and choked on his bile.
In the same year at a show in Tampa, Florida, a thunderstorm cut the show short and led to rioting, arrests, and more than 50 people injured.
Speaking about the whole ordeal, Kenneth Anger said, "He's a miser, which is a horrible thing. He wouldn't even pay for lunch. So I said: 'Isn't it preposterous that you're so cheap?' And that of course insulted him. He was on heroin all the time—I hate all those druggies because their eyes get glazed and what they say is meaningless because they don't follow through."
One of the most infamous stories involves a groupie, the band, and a shark. After a show at Seattle Pop Festival in July 1969, the band retired to the Edgewater Inn.
John Bonham was an alcoholic. He died from drinking in 1980, at the age of 32. It must not have helped to be living the way he was with the band.
One night Page and Bonham were bored at a hotel and hatched an outrageous plan to introduce Page to some female fans. The plan was to present him on a room service cart covered in whipped cream. Bonham played the role of a bellhop.
Led Zeppelin is arguably the first heavy rock band and one of the greatest bands of all time, period. Nine huge albums, legendary live shows, and hundreds of millions of records sold around the world. There’s really no overstating how influential and respected they were in music communities. But there was something else to the story, too.
Between vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham, they spent a lot of time on tour trashing hotel rooms, consuming unspeakable amounts of drugs, and much worse. To hear some of the most outrageous stories about Led Zeppelin, click through this gallery.
The craziest Led Zeppelin stories you won't believe
The wild, outrageous, controversial, and utterly heartbreaking stories
MUSIC Rock
Led Zeppelin is arguably the first heavy rock band and one of the greatest bands of all time, period. Nine huge albums, legendary live shows, and hundreds of millions of records sold around the world. There’s really no overstating how influential and respected they were in music communities. But there was something else to the story, too.
Between vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham, they spent a lot of time on tour trashing hotel rooms, consuming unspeakable amounts of drugs, and much worse. To hear some of the most outrageous stories about Led Zeppelin, click through this gallery.