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CAPTAIN TRIPS and the ENGINEER
SILICONE VALLEY
WAS BUILT ON ACID
This is the true story of Al Hubbard and Myron Stolaroff, two men who believed LSD could transform psychiatry and perhaps humanity itself. Hubbard, the mysterious “Captain Trips,” introduced more than six thousand people to psychedelics. Stolaroff, an engineer who helped develop audio and video recording at Ampex, left his corporate career to found the International Foundation for Advanced Study in Menlo Park. Between 1961 and 1966, they administered LSD to more than 350 participants under careful clinical conditions. Many were engineers and scientists whose insights helped birth the personal computer. The seeds planted at 1149 Chestnut Street grew into Silicon Valley.
I knew Myron Stolaroff in the final years of his life. We took LSD together, and I witnessed firsthand the passage through grief that preceded every one of his breakthroughs. Before he died, he gave me the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help that Hubbard had given him when IFAS was founded, the same image that hung on the session room wall and witnessed hundreds of transformations. This novella honors the memories of these two men and the pioneers who carried the light when carrying it was possible.
Finished! (At last …)
This is terrific. Fiction but also truth. I lived through the follow on time in the 70s in Silicon Valley. Heady days still. Fumes from the acid days still.
The side story of Tim Leary is also important. It’s important to realize though that Truth is hard. On one hand Tim stirred up the bee hive. OTOH, Myron gave 350 curated trips. Tim turned on millions (?). To determine a correct assessment, to find a balance … would take enormous effort and wisdom.
We don’t know. We can’t know. But this audio book clarifies an important point of view that many will not be familiar with.
Another data point: how the Dead were swamped by the Summer of Love.
Not to blame anyone but an important transition
https://youtu.be/326tgbl2DK4
Only on Chapter 3 but seems promising!
Will there be a piece on Sasha Shulgin? It’s a name I’ve heard but don’t really have an understanding of.
ps. Typo alert, it’s Silicon Valley not Silicone … unless that’s an intentional pun
That’s a good suggestion about Sasha. I’ll definitely put it on my ToDo list.
This book is as vital a component of the history of this pivotal moment in time as anything I have ever read. Lorenzo, you captured the whole scene, the vibes, the emotions, the intent and the truth of of this often overlooked pivotal period of all our histories. Thanks mate. X
Thanks for the kind words. I’m going to post a link to the PDF here also.