Lysergacide: A Savage Journey to the Heart of the American Dream
- Thread starter Whanztastic
- Start date
I've already mentioned many of my people ideas in the "Acid Jazz" thread, so I don't have much more to say there. I am interested in if "Whiteman" is Paul Whiteman, and if so what your plans are there ("Colonel Salt's Swinging Jazz Club Orchestra" perhaps 
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Bertolt Brecht, Ernst Junger, Tristan Tzara, André Breton, Marcel Duchamp, André Gide...
This looks really amazing. I have a soft spot for timelines featuring the early discovery of LSD.
Personally, I'd love to see the impact of the drug on the still very much nascent motion picture industry. What happens when, say, Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton decide to drop acid and make a movie? Interesting things, that's what. Also curious to see the broader public reaction to LSD. Great start, and I look forward to reading more.
Personally, I'd love to see the impact of the drug on the still very much nascent motion picture industry. What happens when, say, Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton decide to drop acid and make a movie? Interesting things, that's what. Also curious to see the broader public reaction to LSD. Great start, and I look forward to reading more.
I've already mentioned many of my people ideas in the "Acid Jazz" thread, so I don't have much more to say there. I am interested in if "Whiteman" is Paul Whiteman, and if so what your plans are there ("Colonel Salt's Swinging Jazz Club Orchestra" perhaps
Maybe
.For the record, I've already stated that LSD won't make the jump across the Atlantic for a great while or terribly powerfully. I guess it will make the jump but only to artists and the upper crust. I know less about European society during the 20s though so I would need to do some research first.
Well I have a soft spot for your TL so I appreciate the comment!
I've just had an idea for your later updates. The Marx Brothers. I don't even want to imagine what would result.
“A companion of mine, who I know from my days in Chicago, has sent me a telegram informing me that he has an interesting drug that may prove to have various implications for the field of psychology. I am very eager to receive a sample of this ‘lysergic acid’ soon.”
Dr. John B. Watson, May 12, 1918
Chapter Two: Through the Kaleidoscope [1]
Now that LAD had been invented, and it had been proven to be a potentially potent pharmaceutical product, the question was what to do with it? Between 1918 and 1921, dozens, perhaps hundreds, of people were exposed to LAD in a variety of different psychiatric tests. Nearly every person to test LAD found it to be a powerful drug with extremely interesting effects. The reader must be reminded that at this time, no body really knew what the drug was and with each dose, each test, each person had a different experience, a different ride. Some became very calm and euphoric. Others had seemingly very adverse reactions to LAD, being taken by a sweats, fits and terrors. It was very circumstantial, depending on the person’s own psyche and the environment in which the subject was dosed.
If the subject was dosed in a calm room with calm music playing, they seemed to be more likely to have a very enjoyable ride. But if they were dosed and were left to themselves in a very hostile room with a cacophony, their ride would likely be a terror. Immediately it became obvious that colors were very influential on the ride. Bright and vibrant colors which may have appeared a little gaudy to the sober eye became fascinating and inspiration when one took LAD.
Of course, many of the psychiatrists who were the early testers of lysergacide used themselves as guinea pigs. Arguably the most influential of these was the reputable Dr. John B. Watson [2] at John Hopkins University. A founder, if not the, of behaviorism, Watson would seem an unlikely candidate to take the soul-searching, mind-expanding LAD. But does he did, and the drug had an impact on even him, the strict behaviorist. LAD did manage to fit within the behaviorist philosophy, who did not see the drug as a way to see into the psyche but rather as an extreme chemical reaction which has an irreversible effect on a person’s behavior, including his thoughts and temperament.
This behaviorist approach to lysergacide became very influential in academic and upper society circles of those who took a ride. This academic, secular approach to LAD would be the opposite reaction from the majority of droppers, who found the entire experience to be extremely spiritual, or even religious. This highlights the extremely temperamental nature of lysergacide, being a drug that never affects two people the same exact way.
Watson was the first one to coin the word “kaleidoscopic” as the term of what exactly an acid ride is. The term is quite literal. As the story goes, Watson and his research assistant (and lover) Rosalie Rayner were taking LAD in his office. They both had a very pleasurable experience and agreed to try again. The next time, Rayner brought a kaleidoscope with which to view through during the ride. The variety of lights and colors seemed to enhance the entire experience, and both found the beauty to be very stimulating. Thus kaleidoscopic culture was born.
There are some detractors of the word, saying that its meaning, the observation of beautiful forms, is too earthly and ignores all the internal sensations of significance and wonder that accompanies a ride. Perhaps in a more spiritual person had first come across and popularized LAD that we would have a word with the apt ethereal meaning. But kaleidoscopic is what stuck and in fact has spread to well beyond its initial definition, experiencing a substantial semantic drift, coming to mean anything that is vibrant and abstract with multiple colors, as in what people believe is seen during a drug ride. Many spiritual and religious users of LAD prefer “entheogenic” as a descriptive term, derived from “entheogen” meaning “God inside us.” Of course, both serious followers of either kaleidoscopic or entheogenic culture find the term “hallucinogenic” as derogatory.
Watson continued to introduce fellows academics and other upper class peoples to LAD until his fall from grace. As mentioned above, Watson was having an affair with his research assistant Rayner. This was something that his wife, Mary Ickes, did not care for. Watson had also dosed with Mary, and her brother Harold Ickes , an active reform politician in Chicago who was not yet a national name. [3] But when news broke of his affair, it was an instant scandal in both Chicago and Baltimore. Watson resigned from John Hopkins University in October 1920, divorced Mary Ickes and married Rosalie Rayner. He then began writing and speaking about the positive implications of lysergacide and was even hired by Searle Pharmaceuticals as a promoter of the product and a consultant and in-house research, to find the best uses for the drug. Watson, who had a mild interest in advertisement, first developed the slogan first used to promote lysergacide saying, “Turn on, tune in, come out.” This slogan piggybacked on the growing success of the home radio, referencing it in “turn on, tune in” while “come out” was explained to mean that once taking LAD, one could stop fighting the aspects of themselves and come out as who they truly were.
It is with Watson’s departure from John Hopkins University that Searle began to introduce Lysergacide to wider audience. Prior to the beginning of 1921, a very few and select group of peoples had been introduced to lysergacide. Only psychiatric researchers, their test subjects and the friends they wished to share the drug with had taken a ride. Beginning in January 1921, Searle began marketing Lysergacide to the population at large. With two years of research to support their claims, it was decided, mostly by Searle and Watson themselves, that the drug could be a cure for depression, mania, shell shock, alcoholism and much more. Watson argued, from a behaviorist standpoint, that the powerful, reformative effect of a strong kaleidoscopic trip could positively effect those struggling with a wide variety of afflictions. But from a business perspective, it would be most profitable to focus on several concerns which were prevalent in the populace.
What stands out most of all from the chosen ailments that LAD could cure, were those of shell shock and alcoholism, certainly two hot button issues of the time. Prohibition had been on the books for just over a year and the dangers of alcohol were on the mind’s of the peoples. With continual LAD therapy, it seemed possible that one could be rid of their insatiable thirst for the deadly and destructive drink. Shell shock was also a national concern. The Great War had been over for two years but its scars were still present on the nation. But not all of those scars were physical. Some of the most painful wounds were those inflicted on the minds of those who had served in the trenches. Thousands of people would take Lysergacide for perfectly acceptable and legal reasons, as prescribed by their doctors. Not all of these people would become involved in the kaleidoscopic culture of the Jazz Age, although many would.
The floodgates were open. LAD was introduced to the people. Word spread of its qualities. Acid became a drug of recreation and diversion.
[1] My thanks to Emperor Norton I, again.
[2] I guess Watson can be considered TTL's Timothy Leary
[3] Foreshadowing?
Dr. John B. Watson, May 12, 1918
Chapter Two: Through the Kaleidoscope [1]
Now that LAD had been invented, and it had been proven to be a potentially potent pharmaceutical product, the question was what to do with it? Between 1918 and 1921, dozens, perhaps hundreds, of people were exposed to LAD in a variety of different psychiatric tests. Nearly every person to test LAD found it to be a powerful drug with extremely interesting effects. The reader must be reminded that at this time, no body really knew what the drug was and with each dose, each test, each person had a different experience, a different ride. Some became very calm and euphoric. Others had seemingly very adverse reactions to LAD, being taken by a sweats, fits and terrors. It was very circumstantial, depending on the person’s own psyche and the environment in which the subject was dosed.
If the subject was dosed in a calm room with calm music playing, they seemed to be more likely to have a very enjoyable ride. But if they were dosed and were left to themselves in a very hostile room with a cacophony, their ride would likely be a terror. Immediately it became obvious that colors were very influential on the ride. Bright and vibrant colors which may have appeared a little gaudy to the sober eye became fascinating and inspiration when one took LAD.
Of course, many of the psychiatrists who were the early testers of lysergacide used themselves as guinea pigs. Arguably the most influential of these was the reputable Dr. John B. Watson [2] at John Hopkins University. A founder, if not the, of behaviorism, Watson would seem an unlikely candidate to take the soul-searching, mind-expanding LAD. But does he did, and the drug had an impact on even him, the strict behaviorist. LAD did manage to fit within the behaviorist philosophy, who did not see the drug as a way to see into the psyche but rather as an extreme chemical reaction which has an irreversible effect on a person’s behavior, including his thoughts and temperament.
This behaviorist approach to lysergacide became very influential in academic and upper society circles of those who took a ride. This academic, secular approach to LAD would be the opposite reaction from the majority of droppers, who found the entire experience to be extremely spiritual, or even religious. This highlights the extremely temperamental nature of lysergacide, being a drug that never affects two people the same exact way.
Watson was the first one to coin the word “kaleidoscopic” as the term of what exactly an acid ride is. The term is quite literal. As the story goes, Watson and his research assistant (and lover) Rosalie Rayner were taking LAD in his office. They both had a very pleasurable experience and agreed to try again. The next time, Rayner brought a kaleidoscope with which to view through during the ride. The variety of lights and colors seemed to enhance the entire experience, and both found the beauty to be very stimulating. Thus kaleidoscopic culture was born.
There are some detractors of the word, saying that its meaning, the observation of beautiful forms, is too earthly and ignores all the internal sensations of significance and wonder that accompanies a ride. Perhaps in a more spiritual person had first come across and popularized LAD that we would have a word with the apt ethereal meaning. But kaleidoscopic is what stuck and in fact has spread to well beyond its initial definition, experiencing a substantial semantic drift, coming to mean anything that is vibrant and abstract with multiple colors, as in what people believe is seen during a drug ride. Many spiritual and religious users of LAD prefer “entheogenic” as a descriptive term, derived from “entheogen” meaning “God inside us.” Of course, both serious followers of either kaleidoscopic or entheogenic culture find the term “hallucinogenic” as derogatory.
Watson continued to introduce fellows academics and other upper class peoples to LAD until his fall from grace. As mentioned above, Watson was having an affair with his research assistant Rayner. This was something that his wife, Mary Ickes, did not care for. Watson had also dosed with Mary, and her brother Harold Ickes , an active reform politician in Chicago who was not yet a national name. [3] But when news broke of his affair, it was an instant scandal in both Chicago and Baltimore. Watson resigned from John Hopkins University in October 1920, divorced Mary Ickes and married Rosalie Rayner. He then began writing and speaking about the positive implications of lysergacide and was even hired by Searle Pharmaceuticals as a promoter of the product and a consultant and in-house research, to find the best uses for the drug. Watson, who had a mild interest in advertisement, first developed the slogan first used to promote lysergacide saying, “Turn on, tune in, come out.” This slogan piggybacked on the growing success of the home radio, referencing it in “turn on, tune in” while “come out” was explained to mean that once taking LAD, one could stop fighting the aspects of themselves and come out as who they truly were.
It is with Watson’s departure from John Hopkins University that Searle began to introduce Lysergacide to wider audience. Prior to the beginning of 1921, a very few and select group of peoples had been introduced to lysergacide. Only psychiatric researchers, their test subjects and the friends they wished to share the drug with had taken a ride. Beginning in January 1921, Searle began marketing Lysergacide to the population at large. With two years of research to support their claims, it was decided, mostly by Searle and Watson themselves, that the drug could be a cure for depression, mania, shell shock, alcoholism and much more. Watson argued, from a behaviorist standpoint, that the powerful, reformative effect of a strong kaleidoscopic trip could positively effect those struggling with a wide variety of afflictions. But from a business perspective, it would be most profitable to focus on several concerns which were prevalent in the populace.
What stands out most of all from the chosen ailments that LAD could cure, were those of shell shock and alcoholism, certainly two hot button issues of the time. Prohibition had been on the books for just over a year and the dangers of alcohol were on the mind’s of the peoples. With continual LAD therapy, it seemed possible that one could be rid of their insatiable thirst for the deadly and destructive drink. Shell shock was also a national concern. The Great War had been over for two years but its scars were still present on the nation. But not all of those scars were physical. Some of the most painful wounds were those inflicted on the minds of those who had served in the trenches. Thousands of people would take Lysergacide for perfectly acceptable and legal reasons, as prescribed by their doctors. Not all of these people would become involved in the kaleidoscopic culture of the Jazz Age, although many would.
The floodgates were open. LAD was introduced to the people. Word spread of its qualities. Acid became a drug of recreation and diversion.
[1] My thanks to Emperor Norton I, again.
[2] I guess Watson can be considered TTL's Timothy Leary
[3] Foreshadowing?
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Orville_third
Banned
Cool. The LAD popularizer is from my hometown!
Will Mary Ickes become TTL's equivalent of Mary Pinchot Meyer? Or will FDR's Mistress do? (I forget her name...)
Will someone get Henry Agard Wallace to take a Ride? (Perhaps Nicholas Roerich?)
And, of course, as I posted earlier, Crowley will try anything...Perhaps the same could happen to his disciple John Whiteside Parsons...who will introduce rocket scientists and SF writers to it...
Will Mary Ickes become TTL's equivalent of Mary Pinchot Meyer? Or will FDR's Mistress do? (I forget her name...)
Will someone get Henry Agard Wallace to take a Ride? (Perhaps Nicholas Roerich?)
And, of course, as I posted earlier, Crowley will try anything...Perhaps the same could happen to his disciple John Whiteside Parsons...who will introduce rocket scientists and SF writers to it...
There was far too much cross-pollination between inter-war Europe and the US for this to be the case. It will start with artists, I am sure (and will be a lone American contribution to the absinthe and cigarettes of the Paris scene) but will certainly spread from there.
Oh I forgot to post this with his chapter.
Up next we will have a small celebrity testimonial and then a chapter on the first acid jazz star
Up next we will have a small celebrity testimonial and then a chapter on the first acid jazz star
Orville_third
Banned
Would Cary Grant be as enthusiastic a supporter of LSD in TTL as he was in OTL? (Only earlier...)
Here is a little teaser to buy some time as I get some more writing down.
--------
An LAD Side Story: A Celebrity Testimonial on Her First Experience with LAD
“My first experience with the lysergic acid came just after the founding of the American Civil Liberties Union. Roger [Nash Baldwin] had invited some of us closest founders to his address to discuss future possibilities. Among the other people there was Felix [Frankfurter], Jane [Addams], Walter [Nelles], and Harry [Ward]. It was Felix who offered the elixir to the other people present. Apparently, Jane and Roger had already experienced the drug and spoke highly of its qualities.
“Walter, Harry and I all agreed to try it. They were curious what effect it would have on me, due to me being deafblind. Often people spoke of the hallucinations that one has when taking lysergic acid, but those were not possibilities for me. My friends were curious if I would still be filled with the same awe that other people experienced even though I could not experience the changes to sight or hearing.
“I was still very much so affected by my dose of lysergic acid. The feelings which swelled within me were simply amazing. It is very difficult to write what exactly happened to me. It was probably more of a spiritual event for me than any other person. I could not be distracted by the simple changes in the optical illusions that others see. Instead what I had to focus on was the senses that were swelling inside of me. I was drowning in an amazing connection with myself, my fellow people and my universe.
“From that day on I continued to look for that similar feeling and connection. I was lucky to find a church that knew what I felt and promoted the spiritual adventure that is lysergic acid.”
Light in My Darkness by Helen Keller
--------
An LAD Side Story: A Celebrity Testimonial on Her First Experience with LAD
“My first experience with the lysergic acid came just after the founding of the American Civil Liberties Union. Roger [Nash Baldwin] had invited some of us closest founders to his address to discuss future possibilities. Among the other people there was Felix [Frankfurter], Jane [Addams], Walter [Nelles], and Harry [Ward]. It was Felix who offered the elixir to the other people present. Apparently, Jane and Roger had already experienced the drug and spoke highly of its qualities.
“Walter, Harry and I all agreed to try it. They were curious what effect it would have on me, due to me being deafblind. Often people spoke of the hallucinations that one has when taking lysergic acid, but those were not possibilities for me. My friends were curious if I would still be filled with the same awe that other people experienced even though I could not experience the changes to sight or hearing.
“I was still very much so affected by my dose of lysergic acid. The feelings which swelled within me were simply amazing. It is very difficult to write what exactly happened to me. It was probably more of a spiritual event for me than any other person. I could not be distracted by the simple changes in the optical illusions that others see. Instead what I had to focus on was the senses that were swelling inside of me. I was drowning in an amazing connection with myself, my fellow people and my universe.
“From that day on I continued to look for that similar feeling and connection. I was lucky to find a church that knew what I felt and promoted the spiritual adventure that is lysergic acid.”
Light in My Darkness by Helen Keller
I just remembered a question I wanted to ask!
With the rise of the psychedelic and mind expansion, or at least that combined with a rising youth culture interested in the spiritual, many new terms came into the English language. Things that attempted to sufficiently relate things of the spirit and human soul (or, alternately, to be hip and cool youth slang). Words like "Vibe", and I believe terms like "Karma" were adopted into the language at that time.
The 1920's with acid would certainly go that route more or less as you've described (there appears more mainstream focus on the pretty pictures than the spiritual undertones), and the age was one of mystics, psychics and mediums and spiritualists. Granted, they were all BS (I especially hate mediums because I find it heinous for anyone to take money to pretend to talk to your dead loved ones; Can you please have Harry Houdini debunk them like in the OTL?) but there was a sense of spiritualism in the 1920's.
So what words would replace things like "Vibe"? A list of Psychedelic era slang terms linked here.
With the rise of the psychedelic and mind expansion, or at least that combined with a rising youth culture interested in the spiritual, many new terms came into the English language. Things that attempted to sufficiently relate things of the spirit and human soul (or, alternately, to be hip and cool youth slang). Words like "Vibe", and I believe terms like "Karma" were adopted into the language at that time.
The 1920's with acid would certainly go that route more or less as you've described (there appears more mainstream focus on the pretty pictures than the spiritual undertones), and the age was one of mystics, psychics and mediums and spiritualists. Granted, they were all BS (I especially hate mediums because I find it heinous for anyone to take money to pretend to talk to your dead loved ones; Can you please have Harry Houdini debunk them like in the OTL?) but there was a sense of spiritualism in the 1920's.
So what words would replace things like "Vibe"? A list of Psychedelic era slang terms linked here.
@ Emperor Norton I
Slang is something that I have thought about and I am trying to be cautious with that as well, making slight but important changes. We have ride instead of trip being the biggest change so far.
There will be religious ideas coming through, I just didn't want to speak of them yet. I am unsure of their wider presence in this alt-hippy culture.
Slang is something that I have thought about and I am trying to be cautious with that as well, making slight but important changes. We have ride instead of trip being the biggest change so far.
There will be religious ideas coming through, I just didn't want to speak of them yet. I am unsure of their wider presence in this alt-hippy culture.