The man who coined the classic counter-culture mantra "Turn on, Tune in & Drop out," Dr. Timothy Leary has influenced three generations of Americans. No stranger to controversy, he has nonetheless remained committed to psychological exploration and alternative thought since he began his career in the 1950s.
Receiving his doctorate in psychology from the University of California at Berkeley, Leary was one of the most respected leaders of the humanist psychology movement of the 1950s. He was an early proponent of such "radical" techniques as group therapy (now a standard psychotherapeutic practice), and wrote professional texts that are still used by thousands of clinics and research centers today. In 1959 he was appointed to the faculty of Harvard University as the Director of the Harvard Psychedelic Research Project.
Designed to introduce new methods of correcting behavior, the project involved such distinguished visiting scholars as Aldous Huxley, Arthur Koestler, Allen Ginsberg and Jack Kerouac. It also included Leary's clinical study of psychedelic drugs (which were perfectly legal until 1966). As word of the radical study spread, Leary became a target of the rabid opposition to the growing counter-culture movement. The publicity it generated eventually led to his dismissal from Harvard in 1963.
Establishing a new research center in Millbrook, New York, Leary became a beacon for free thinkers and protest leaders around the world. He sparked the growth and popularity of yoga and eastern religion. He was so influential that the Beatles wrote some of their most popular songs about him; "Come Together" was written as Leary's campaign song when he ran against Ronald Reagan for governor of California. A leading critic of the establishment, Leary was even called "the most dangerous man alive" by President Nixon.
In the 1980s, Leary became a pioneer of the "futurist" movement, working with interative computer software and virtual reality technology. Today, he is President of Futique, Inc., a company that designs interactive software for personal computers. His first program, MindAdventure, received rave reviews from The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Business Week and Omni. He also authored the best selling autobiography, Flashbacks, which was applauded as a cultural history of America during the last four decades.
