Ray Manzarek

Raymond Daniel Manzarek Jr. ( Manczarek; February 12, 1939 – May 20, 2013) was an American keyboardist. He is best known as a member of the rock band the Doors, co-founding the band in 1965 with fellow UCLA Film School student Jim Morrison. Along with Alan Price of the Animals, Manzarek is credited for his abilities on organ-style keyboard instruments, thus pioneering new styles and sounds of playing key instruments in American popular music. Manzarek was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993 as a member of the Doors. He was a co-founding member of Nite City from 1977 to 1978, and of Manzarek–Krieger from 2001 until his death in 2013. USA Today described him as "one of the best keyboardists ever". Biography Early life Raymond Daniel Manczarek Jr. was born and raised on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois. He was born to parents of Polish descent, Helena Kolenda (1918–2012) and Raymond Manczarek Sr. (1914–1987). His grandparents emigrated from Poland in the 1890s.