Random Fascinating Stories From Janis Joplin's Personal Life (14 items)

(#6) One Of Joplin's Producers Once Walked In On Her At A Sex Party

Although few people believed Joplin was a "committed" lesbian, she didn't place many boundaries on her experiences. In 1969, record producer Milan Melvin walked into Joplin's room to find an all-female party. When Joplin saw Melvin, she looked at him and said, "This is my life now."

To some, that might imply Joplin was decidedly a lesbian, but Melvin saw it as something different. He claimed she was "supersexual" and transcended typical labels.
(#13) One Of Joplin's Closest Friends Wrote A Movie Contract Specifying Their Relationship Could Not Appear Homosexual

Even though Joplin was known to have sexual relations with women, one of her closest female friends, Myra Friedman, wanted to ensure she was never portrayed as homosexual herself. In 1973, Friedman wrote a biography about Joplin's life titled Buried Alive, which she believed should be turned into a movie.

The book was never officially made into a film, though it was optioned several times. In one film contract, Friedman added a clause refusing to allow herself to be portrayed as a lesbian. She claims she didn't have a sexual relationship with Joplin, but her preemptive refusal of such a depiction is unusual.
(#11) She Almost Married A Drug Dealer

Joplin never did fully settle down, but near the end of her life in 1970, she flirted with the idea of committing. A few months before her death, she even told a Rolling Stone reporter she was considering getting married, presumably to Seth Morgan, a man she'd been seeing for a few months. They'd even gone so far as to get engaged.

But Morgan wasn't the kind of guy you'd bring home to meet your parents. He met Joplin while selling her cocaine. Morgan later went on to become a novelist, but only published a single book before he died in a 1990 motorcycle accident while high and extremely intoxicated.
(#8) Peggy Caserta Doesn't Think Joplin Overdosed

It's a little hard to believe, and it's tough to substantiate with any evidence, but Peggy Caserta - one of Joplin's lovers - doesn't believe a heroin overdose caused Joplin's death. Caserta understands Joplin had heroin in her system when she died in 1970, but she doesn't think that was the actual cause. According to Caserta, Joplin died because she tripped.

Caserta believes Joplin slipped on a shag carpet and fell face-first into the nightstand, breaking her nose. It knocked her out and caused blood to fill up her throat, asphyxiating her. This is not what the police determined, but Caserta did see the crime scene, and she didn't think Joplin looked like a woman who had overdosed on heroin.
(#2) Joplin Dated A Black Woman She Met In A San Francisco Gay Bar

The first time Joplin moved to San Francisco in 1963, she found herself in a gay bar playing pool. There she met musician Jae Whitaker, an African American woman. The two hit it off and swiftly became lovers. Joplin and Whitaker ultimately moved in together, and not just as roommates.

But their relationship didn't last long. Joplin continued to sleep with other people, and Whitaker couldn't handle Joplin's hard drug use. They eventually drifted apart.
(#1) She Was Arrested For Shoplifting

Celebrities sometimes hit rock bottom before making it big, and Joplin is a perfect example. After dropping out of school and moving to San Francisco in 1963, she was arrested for shoplifting. She'd only lived there for something like two months.

Before she got caught, Joplin made a habit of snagging baskets of damaged produce from the back alleys behind shops. She did whatever was necessary to keep going, and her drug habit further motivated her.