Jerry Beisler (1942–2020) was an American

cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae. The number of species within the genus is disputed. Three species may be recognized: ''Cannabis sativa'', '' C. indica'', and '' C. ruderalis''. Alternatively ...

breeder, poet, author and musician. He was known as the "Bandit of Kabul" for smuggling cannabis along the

hippie trail Hippie trail (also the overland) is the name given to the overland journey taken by members of the hippie subculture and others from the mid-1950s to the late 1970s between Europe and South Asia, mainly from Turkey through Iran, Afghanistan ...

in the 1970s.

Background

Beisler was born in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

in 1942. He was raised in the Miller Beach section of

Gary, Indiana Gary is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The city has been historically dominated by major industrial activity and is home to U.S. Steel's Gary Works, the largest steel mill complex in North America. Gary is located along the ...

. He graduated from Wirt High School where he was Class Vice President and a multi-sport athlete. Beisler's brother

Randy Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of the ...

played in the

National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...

for 11 years. Beisler attended

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana University and, with ...

(1961-1966),

San Francisco State University San Francisco State University (commonly referred to as San Francisco State, SF State and SFSU) is a public research university in San Francisco. As part of the 23-campus California State University system, the university offers 118 different b ...

(1968), and

Mexico City College Mexico City College was founded in 1940, as an English-speaking junior college in Mexico City, Mexico. In 1946, the college became a four-year Bachelor of Arts degree-awarding institution, changing its name to University of the Americas in 1963. ...

(1963). Beisler wrote editorial page commentary, Hawaiian history features and traveling articles for ''

The Garden Island ''The Garden Island'' is a daily newspaper based in Lihue, Hawaii, covering the islands of Kauai and Niihau. ''The Garden Island'' began publication in 1902. It was formerly owned by Scripps League Newspapers, which was acquired by Pulitzer in 19 ...

'' newspaper from 1989–1995 and occasionally contributed the same to the ''Honolulu Star Bulletin'' and the ''Kauai Times''.

Works

Beisler also created and produced ''The Cutting Edge'' Television show from 1999–2006. The show won the ''Best Entertainment'' award for the Public Access Television in 2002, beating over 500 entries for the prize. Beisler also produced hundreds of studio and live music recordings. He promoted shows in many musical genres exemplified by Jazz ( The Yellow Jackets) Rock (

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American rock band, formed in London in 1967. Fleetwood Mac were founded by guitarist Peter Green, drummer Mick Fleetwood and guitarist Jeremy Spencer, before bassist John McVie joined the line-up for their epony ...

Crosby, Stills, and Nash Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) were a folk rock supergroup made up of American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills and English singer-songwriter Graham Nash. When joined by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young as a fourth member, ...

) Americana (

Los Lobos Los Lobos (, Spanish for "the Wolves") are an American rock band from East Los Angeles, California. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex, country, zydeco, folk, R&B, blues, brown-eyed soul, and traditional music such as cumbia, ...

Rodney Crowell Rodney Crowell (born August 7, 1950) is an American musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music. Crowell has had five number one singles on Hot Country Songs, all from his 1988 album '' Diamonds & Dirt''. ...

) Blues (

Howlin’ Wolf Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910January 10, 1976), better known by his stage name Howlin' Wolf, was an American blues singer and guitarist. He is regarded as one of the most influential blues musicians of all time. Over a four-decade care ...

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...

) and Reggae ( The Iytals). For credits and business in music and television, Beisler was known as Jerry B. Beisler Published two books of poetry for Print Mint Press (Mother Asia and Cousin California and St. Elvis) plus one for Raindance Publishing (Hawaiian Life). Beisler also wrote video and music reviews for the ''Chico News and Review''. He is also the author of ''The Berkeley Years'', and three books of poetry: ''Mother Asia and Cousin California'', ''St. Elvis and Missionary Thought'', and ''Hawaiian Life and the Pink Dolphins''. Beisler also produced the CD Baby 34 song

double-album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

''The Art of the Single''.

Personal life and death

Beisler married his wife Rebecca in 1971, during a visit to

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...

, India. Beisler died of a heart attack in October 2020.

References

External links

Music Life Radio interview with Beisler about The Bandit of KabulVideo of interview with KCTV News in Kauai with Beisler about International Museum Cafe
{{DEFAULTSORT:Beisler, Jerry 1942 births 2020 deaths American male poets American poets American cannabis activists Cannabis researchers 21st-century American historians 21st-century American male writers American male non-fiction writers Indiana University Bloomington alumni San Francisco State University alumni American expatriates in Mexico Mexico City College alumni