LSD (Drug)

Journalist Stephen Kinzer reveals how the CIA worked in the 1950s and early '60s to develop mind control drugs and deadly toxins that could be used against enemies. Originally broadcast Sept. 9, 2019.

A new documentary, Oliver Sacks: His Own Life, chronicles the late neurologist's efforts to understand perception, memory and consciousness. Sacks spoke to Fresh Air in 2012.

Dass, who died Dec. 22, was a practitioner of Eastern-inspired philosophy who became interested in the religious potential of LSD in the '60s and '70s. Originally broadcast in 1990.

After Jerry Garcia formed the Grateful Dead in the mid '60s, Hunter wrote most of the lyrics for Garcia's songs, including "Truckin'" and "Uncle John's Band." Hunter spoke to Fresh Air in 1988.

Stephen Kinzer's new book 'Poisoner in Chief' is about the CIA's secret experiments with LSD in the 50s and 60s in search of a drug that could be weaponized to control the minds of enemies. It's also about the man who who led it.

Award-winning novelist Robert Stone hung out for many years with Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters. He recounts the group's cross-country road trips and experiences taking hallucinogenic drugs in his memoir, Prime Green.

Writer Ken Kesey died Saturday 11/10/01 at the age of 66. Kesey was a leading figure of 60s counterculture. As the organizer of the Merry Pranksters, Kesey did as much as anyone to popularize the use of LSD and other hallucinogens. Kesey also wrote two of the most popular books of the era, Sometimes a Great Notion and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. He also the author of Demon Box, Caverns and other books.

Novelist Tom Robbins. His latest book "Skinny Legs and All," (Bantam Books) involves a young Virginia artist, Ellen Cherry, who moves to New York to pursue an art career and ends up a waitress at Isaac & Ishmael's, a restaurant owned by an Arab and a Jew which sits across the street from the United Nations. Other characters of note: Salome, the teenage belly dancer, and some magical objects: a conch, a stick, a sock, a can o'beans, and a spoon.

Writer Ken Kesey. Kesey was a leading figure of the 60's counterculture. As the leader of the Merry Pranksters, Kesey did as much as anyone to popularize the use of LSD and other hallucinogens. Kesey also wrote two of the most popular books of the era, "Sometimes a Great Notion" and "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest." In 1986, Kesey wrote "Demon Box," a look back at his life since the 60s. Kesey's latest book is called "Caverns." It's a novel he co-wrote with the 13 members of his University of Oregon fiction class.