Don Henley, the 76-year-old Eagles rocker, appeared in a New York courtroom to testify about a dispute over 100 pages of handwritten lyrics that are now the subject of a criminal trial. Henley claimed that a former Eagles biographer did not have permission to keep these lyrics, which include songs like 'Hotel California.'
The biographer, Ed Sanders, had collaborated with the Eagles on a biography project in 1979, but Henley stated he never gave permission for Sanders to retain the lyric pages. Sanders later sold these pages to rare-book dealer Glenn Horowitz, who then sold them to memorabilia specialists Craig Inciardi and Edward Kosinski.
Prosecutors brought up Henley's 1980 arrest during the trial to address questions about his recollection of the events surrounding the lyric papers. In 1980, authorities found a 16-year-old sex worker suffering from an overdose at Henley's home, leading to his arrest on charges related to contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Henley testified that he called the sex worker that night to cope with depression following the Eagles' breakup. He expressed regret over the incident and clarified that he did not engage in sexual activity with the teen. Henley also mentioned that he was unaware of the girl's age until after his arrest.
Regarding the stolen lyric papers, Henley stated they were taken from his barn in Malibu years ago. He repurchased some of the pages in 2012 after they appeared at auctions, emphasizing that the lyrics were a personal and private part of the band's creative process.
Testimony from Eagles manager Irving Azoff revealed that Henley and his bandmate Glenn Frey were dissatisfied with the draft of the biography submitted by Sanders in the early 1980s.
