Martin A. Lee - Acid Dreams: The Complete Social History of LSD: The CIA, the Sixties, and Beyond

A fascinating social history... Makes connections between people linked with the CIA and the widespread availability of LSD during the 1960s.

Publishers Weekly

An important study of cultural history... The scholarship is exquisite and the methods sensible.

Allen Ginsberg

Excellent... Captivating... A generalists history that should replace all others.

San Francisco Chronicle

A landmark contribution to the sociopolitical history of the U.S.... Some of the liveliest, most absorbing, best-documented historical analyses to appear in recent years... A seminal contribution to understanding Americas most turbulent modern decade.

Choice

As splendidly written as it is fascinating... A remarkable history of an unforgettable time.

The Oakland Tribune

This funny and irreverent book brings it all back.

The Washington Post

Recounts some of the most bizarre incidents in the history of U.S. intelligence.The Boston Globe

A monumental social history of psychedelia.

The Village Voice

A blistering expos of CIA drug experimentation on Americans. Its all there.

John Stockwell

Highly readable... Well researched... Filled with entertaining and bizarre episodes.

The Detroit Free Press

THE COMPLETE SOCIAL HISTORY OF LSD:
THE CIA, THE SIXTIES, AND BEYOND

MARTIN A. LEE AND BRUCE SHLAIN

With an Introduction by Andrei Codrescu

Copyright 1985 by Martin A. Lee and Bruce Shlain
Introduction copyright 1992 by Andrei Codrescu
Afterword copyright 1992 by Martin A. Lee and Bruce Shlain

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in a review. Scanning, uploading, and electronic distribution of this book or the facilitation of such without the permission of the publisher is prohibited. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the authors rights is appreciated. Any member of educational institutions wishing to photocopy part or all of the work for classroom use, or anthology, should send inquiries to Grove/Atlantic, Inc., 841 Broadway, New York, NY 10003 or permissions@groveatlantic.com.

Published simultaneously in Canada
Printed in the United States of America

Due to limitations of space, permissions and acknowledgments appear on p. v, which constitutes an extension of this copyright page.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Acid dreams : the complete social history of LSD : the CIA, the sixties, and beyond / Martin A. Lee and Bruce Shlain.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN-13: 978-0-8021-9606-4

1. LSD (Drug) 2. Drug abuseUnited States. 3. United States. Central Intelligences Agency. 4. Social history1960-1970. 5. Social history1970- I. Shlain, Bruce. II. Title.

HV5822.L9L45 1992

Designed by Abe Lerner

Grove Press
an imprint of Grove/Atlantic, Inc.
841 Broadway
New York, NY 10003

Distributed by Publishers Group West

www.groveatlantic.com

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Permission to quote from the following sources is gratefully acknowledged:

The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley, Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc. Copyright 1954 by Aldous Huxley. Reprinted by permission of Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc.

The Yag Letters by William Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg. City Lights Books. Copyright 1963, 1975 by William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg. Reprinted by permission of City Lights Books.

Lysergic Acid from Collected Poems 1947-1980 by Allen Ginsberg, Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc. Copyright 1984 by Allen Ginsberg. Reprinted by permission of Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc.

Seeking the Magic Mushroom by G. Gordon Wasson, from Life. Copyright 1957 by Time, Inc. Reprinted by permission of Time, Inc.

High Priest by Timothy Leary, World Publishing Company. Copyright 1968 by Timothy Leary. Reprinted by permission of Timothy Leary.

The Brotherhood of Eternal Love by Stewart Tendier and David May, Granada/Panther Publishing, Ltd. Copyright 1984 by Stewart Tendier and David May. Reprinted by permission of Granada/Panther Publishing, Ltd.

This Timeless Moment by Laura Archer Huxley, Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc. Copyright 1968 by Laura Archer Huxley. Reprinted by permission of Farrar, Straus & Giroux Inc.

The Letters of Aldous Huxley, edited by Grover Smith, Chatto & Windus, Ltd. Copyright 1969 by Laura Archer Huxley. Reprinted by permission of Laura Archer Huxley.

Aldous Huxleys letter to Timothy Leary, 6 February 1961, excerpted from p. 186 of Moksha: Writings on Psychedelics and the Visionary Experience (1931-1963) by Aldous Huxley, edited by Michael Horowitz and Cynthia Palmer, Stonehill Publishing Company. Copyright 1977 by Michael Horowitz and Cynthia Palmer. Reprinted by permission of the Fitz Hugh Lud-low Memorial Library. All rights reserved.

Ken Keseys letter to Timothy Leary, October 1970. Reprinted by permission of Ken Kesey. All rights reserved.

Portions of Chapter One appeared previously in Mother Jones, May 1982, and Rolling Stone, September 1, 1983.

Many people helped to make this book possible. Above all, we wish to express our gratitude to Allen Ginsberg and Dr. Oscar Janiger for their counsel and generosity of spirit. And for their enduring friendship: Bret Eynon, oral historian and New Left scholar, and Jeff Cohen, who nurtured the manuscript in countless ways from start to finish.

Wed also like to thank James Grauerholz for encouraging us in the early going; Carl Oglesby, for his ever-articulate insight, and the other members of the Assassination Information Bureau,- Peter Berg and Judy Goldhaft, for sharing their perspective on Haight-Ashhury and the Digger experience; Robert Ranftel, Paul Krassner, and Steven Ben Israel, for their comedie genius; Beverly Isis and Liz Her, for their unwavering support; and Michael Aldridge, the curator of the Fitz Hugh Ludlow Memorial Library, an invaluable resource for sixties and counterculture historians. Very special appreciation to Michael Rossman, William Burroughs, Peter Stafford, Tim Leary, Bill Adler, Ed Sanders, Mark Dowie, Tim Scully, Jonathan Marshall, Bernard Ohanian, Dorianna Fallo, and the late Julian Beck.

In addition, wed like to thank Charles Allen, Eugene Anthony, Michael Bowen, Ann Charters, Allen Cohen, Ira Cohen, Jim Fouratt, Todd Gitlin, Abbie Hoffman, Michael Horowitz, Ken Kelley, John Marks, Eric Noble, Dr. Humphry Osmond, John Sinclair, David Solomon, Bill Zirinsky, Miles, and Ken Kesey. And a silent nod to those who preferred that their names not be mentioned.

Our heart-felt appreciation to Alana Lee, for coming through time and again. To Goodwin and Silva Lee, Marvin and Hilda Shlain, and Joe and Emily Krinsky, for providing the kind of support that only family can give.

And to Gayle, for her love and faith.

And finally, wed like to thank Geri Thoma of the Elaine Markson Literary Agency; Joy Johannessen, for her excellent copy editing; Fred Jordan, our editor; Laura Lindgren, Laura Kane, and the staff at Grove Press.