Destructive Behaviour
Moon led a very destructive lifestyle. He laid waste to hotel rooms, the homes of friends and even his own home, throwing furniture out of high windows and setting fire to buildings. It has been estimated that his destruction of hotel toilets and plumbing ran as high as UKĀ£300,000 (US$500,000). These destructive acts, often fuelled by drugs and alcohol, were Moon's way of expressing his eccentricity; he enjoyed shocking the public with them. In Moon's biography, Full Moon, longtime friend and personal assistant Dougal Butler, observed: "He (Moon) would do anything if he knew that there were enough people around who didn't want him to do it."
According to Townshend, Moon cultivated his reputation for erratic behaviour. Once, while riding in a limo on the way to an airport, Moon insisted they return to their hotel, saying, "I forgot something. We've got to go back!". When the limo reached the hotel, Moon ran back to his room, grabbed the television, and threw it out the window into the swimming pool below. Moon then left the hotel and jumped back into the limo, sighing "I nearly forgot".
Moon's destructiveness led to The Who being banned from hotel chains around the world, including Holiday Inn, Sheraton, and Hilton Hotels, as well as the Waldorf Astoria in New York City. Moon's history forced The Who to stay outside of New York City when the band performed there; none of the New York hotels would accept them as guests.
In one case, The Who were due to perform at The Valley, (the London home of Charlton Athletic F.C.). The band members were waiting in the dressing room for Moon to arrive. A witness described the drummer's sudden entry to the building:
"Suddenly, there was a great crash and Keith Moon dropped through the ceiling, having smashed his way through the corrugated iron roof."
Moon even crashed a milk float vehicle that he had purchased on his own property.
Read more about this topic: Keith Moon
Famous quotes containing the words destructive and/or behaviour:
“It seems to me that we have to draw the line in sibling rivalry whenever rivalry goes out of bounds into destructive behavior of a physical or verbal kind. The principle needs to be this: Whatever the reasons for your feelings you will have to find civilized solutions.”
—Selma H. Fraiberg (20th century)
“When we read of human beings behaving in certain ways, with the approval of the author, who gives his benediction to this behaviour by his attitude towards the result of the behaviour arranged by himself, we can be influenced towards behaving in the same way.”
—T.S. (Thomas Stearns)