Synanon is a US-founded social organization created by Charles E. "Chuck" Dederich Sr. in 1958 in
Santa Monica
Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...
,
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
, United States. It is currently active in Germany.
Originally established as a
drug rehabilitation
Drug rehabilitation is the process of medical or psychotherapeutic treatment for dependency on psychoactive substances such as alcohol, prescription drugs, and street drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The general inte ...
program, by the early 1960s, Synanon became an alternative community centered on group truth-telling sessions that came to be known as the "Synanon Game," a form of
attack therapy
Attack therapy was one of several pseudo-therapeutic methods described in the book ''Crazy Therapies''. It involves highly confrontational interaction between the patient and a therapist, or between the patient and fellow patients during group the ...
.
[''Helping People Change: A Textbook of Methods'', Page 508., Frederick H. Kanfer, Arnold P. Goldstein, , 1980, Pergamon Press] The group ultimately became a
cult
In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...
called the Church of Synanon in the 1970s.
Synanon disbanded in 1991 due to members being convicted of criminal activities (including
attempted murder
Attempted murder is a crime of attempt in various jurisdictions.
Canada
Section 239 of the ''Criminal Code'' makes attempted murder punishable by a maximum of life imprisonment. If a gun is used, the minimum sentence is four, five or seven ye ...
) and retroactive loss of its
tax-exempt status
Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...
with the
Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...
(IRS) due to financial misdeeds, destruction of evidence, and
terrorism
Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of criminal violence to provoke a state of terror or fear, mostly with the intention to achieve political or religious aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violen ...
.
It has been called one of the "most dangerous and violent
cult
In modern English, ''cult'' is usually a pejorative term for a social group that is defined by its unusual religious, spiritual, or philosophical beliefs and rituals, or its common interest in a particular personality, object, or goal. This ...
s America had ever seen."
Beginnings
Charles Dederich, a member of
Alcoholics Anonymous
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) is an international mutual aid fellowship of alcoholics dedicated to abstinence-based recovery from alcoholism through its spiritually-inclined Twelve Step program. Following its Twelve Traditions, AA is non-professi ...
(AA), was known to speak for hours uninterrupted at AA meetings.
Those suffering from addictions to illegal drugs were not always welcomed into AA because it was considered that their addiction issues were significantly different from those suffered by alcoholics. It is claimed that Dederich, after taking LSD,
decided to create his own program to respond to their needs. He was said to have coined the phrase "today is the first day of the rest of your life".
After his small group, called "Tender Loving Care", gained a significant following, Dederich
incorporated the organization into the Synanon Foundation in 1958.
[Ofshe, Richard. "The Social Development of the Synanon Cult". ''Sociological Analysis'' 41.2 (1980): 109–127. Web.]
Synanon is a word of his own invention integrating togetherness (“syn”) with the unknown (“anon”).
Synanon began as a two-year residential program, but Dederich soon concluded that its members could never graduate, because a full recovery was impossible. The program was based on testimony of fellow group members about their tribulations and urges of relapsing, and their journeys to recovery.
The Synanon organization also developed a business that sold promotional items. This became a successful enterprise that for a time generated roughly $10 million per year.
In 1959, Synanon moved from their small storefront to an abandoned
armory
Armory or armoury may mean:
* An arsenal, a military or civilian location for the storage of arms and ammunition
Places
*National Guard Armory, in the United States and Canada, a training place for National Guard or other part-time or regular mili ...
on the beach.
In 1967, Synanon purchased the ''Club Casa del Mar'', a large beachside hotel in
Santa Monica
Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing to ...
, as its headquarters and a dormitory for those undergoing treatment for drug addiction.
Later on, Synanon acquired a large building that had been the home of the
Athens Athletic Club
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, in
Oakland, California
Oakland is the largest city and the county seat of Alameda County, California, United States. A major West Coast of the United States, West Coast port, Oakland is the largest city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area, the third ...
, and then transformed it into a residential facility for Synanon's members.
[Janzen, Rod A. ''The Rise and Fall of Synanon: A California Utopia''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 2001. Print.]
Outsiders were permitted to attend the "Synanon Game" there as well.
Children were reared communally in the Synanon School.
Professionals, even those without drug addictions, were invited to join Synanon. The New York psychiatrist
Daniel Casriel M.D. visited in 1962, lived there in 1963 and wrote a book about his experiences. He later founded AREBA, the oldest surviving private addiction treatment centre in the United States, as well as
Daytop Village, one of the world's largest therapeutic communities.
Control over members occurred through the "Game". The "Game" was presented as a therapeutic tool, and likened to a form of
group therapy
Group psychotherapy or group therapy is a form of psychotherapy in which one or more therapists treat a small group of clients together as a group. The term can legitimately refer to any form of psychotherapy when delivered in a group format, i ...
; but it has been criticized as a form of a "
social control", in which members humiliated one another and encouraged the exposure of one another's innermost weaknesses.
Beginning in the mid-1970s, women in Synanon were required to shave their heads, and married couples were made to break up and take new partners. Men were given forced
vasectomies, and a few pregnant women were forced to have
abortion
Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregn ...
s.
The film director
George Lucas
George Walton Lucas Jr. (born May 14, 1944) is an American filmmaker. Lucas is best known for creating the ''Star Wars'' and ''Indiana Jones'' franchises and founding Lucasfilm, LucasArts, Industrial Light & Magic and THX. He served as chairm ...
needed a large group of people with shaved heads for the filming of his movie ''
THX 1138
''THX 1138'' is a 1971 American social science fiction film co-written and directed by George Lucas in his directorial debut. Produced by Francis Ford Coppola and co-written by Walter Murch, the film stars Robert Duvall and Donald Pleasence, wit ...
'' and hired some of his extras from Synanon.
Robert Altman
Robert Bernard Altman ( ; February 20, 1925 – November 20, 2006) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He was a five-time nominee of the Academy Award for Best Director and is considered an enduring figure from the New H ...
hired members of Synanon to be extras for the gambling scenes in his movie ''
California Split
''California Split'' is a 1974 American comedy-drama film directed by Robert Altman and starring Elliott Gould and George Segal as a pair of gamblers and was the first non-Cinerama film to use eight-track stereo sound.
Plot
In Los Angeles, ...
''.
[
]
Practices
Entrance into the Synanon community required a strong initial commitment. Newcomers were first interviewed by Synanon leadership to gain entrance into the community.
Upon their arrival, those newcomers were forced to quit using drugs
cold turkey
"Cold turkey" refers to the abrupt cessation of a substance dependence and the resulting unpleasant experience, as opposed to gradually easing the process through reduction over time or by using replacement medication.
Sudden withdrawal from dru ...
, going through
withdrawal
Withdrawal means "an act of taking out" and may refer to:
* Anchoresis (withdrawal from the world for religious or ethical reasons)
* ''Coitus interruptus'' (the withdrawal method)
* Drug withdrawal
* Social withdrawal
* Taking of money from a ban ...
for the first few days in the program.
[Sternberg, David. "Synanon House – A Consideration for Its Implications on American Correction". ''Journal of Criminal Law, Criminology, and Police Science'' 54.4 (1963): n.p. Print.] Furthermore, for their first ninety days in the community, members were expected to cease contact with outside friends and family.
During its first decade, Synanon members entered into a 1–2-year program in three stages aimed at preparing members to reenter greater society. During the first stage, members did community and housekeeping labor. During the second stage, members worked outside of the community but still resided within the community. Finally, during the third stage, members both worked and lived outside of the community, but still attended regular meetings.
After Synanon's transition into an alternate society in 1968, this program changed to a "lifetime rehabilitation" program, with the premise that drug addicts would never truly be well enough to return to society.
One of the most distinguishing practices of the Synanon community was a therapeutic practice commonly referred to as "The Game." The game was a session during which one member would talk about themselves and then endure intense criticism by their peers.
["Synanon: Toward Building a Humanistic Organization". Journal of Humanistic Psychology 18.3 (1978): 3–20. Web.] During this practice, members were encouraged to be critical of everything, using harsh and profane language.
The practice has been charactized as a form of
attack therapy
Attack therapy was one of several pseudo-therapeutic methods described in the book ''Crazy Therapies''. It involves highly confrontational interaction between the patient and a therapist, or between the patient and fellow patients during group the ...
.
Outside of The Game, members were required to act civilly to each other. While in The Game, members criticized each other, but left as friends and supportive community members.
[ The Game served not only as Synanon's most prominent form of therapy and personal change, but also worked as a way for leaders to collect the opinions of community members. Because there was no hierarchy in The Game, members could freely criticize Synanon's highest leadership, who would then take member concerns into consideration when deciding policy.][
The game turned into a 72-hour version and was admitted by Dederich to be brainwashing. The game was eventually used to pressure people to submit to Dederich's will, abort pregnancies, undergo vasectomies, and commit violence.]
Dederich eventually changed his way of thinking about Synanon and transformed it into something resembling a human progressive group. Synanon moved to create schooling for members, and Dederich wanted members to mentally change in order to improve society on the outside. The school was headed by Al Bauman, who believed in an innovative philosophy and aimed to teach children in the same manner to think differently. The school attracted lawyers, screenwriters, and business executives, all wanting to educate their children in a progressive environment.
Lifetime rehabilitation concept
Beginning in 1964,
, PDF of FBI file at governmentattic.org.
the legal authorities began to investigate Synanon's practices. The concept of "lifetime rehabilitation" did not agree with therapeutic norms, and it was alleged that the Synanon group was running an unauthorized medical clinic. Synanon expanded an old Trans-Pacific Marconi RCA
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
radio station in Tomales Bay
Tomales Bay is a long, narrow inlet of the Pacific Ocean in Marin County in northern California in the United States. It is approximately long and averages nearly wide, effectively separating the Point Reyes Peninsula from the mainland of Mar ...
now Marconi Conference Center State Historical Park. It was alleged that on remote properties in California such as at Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
in Marin County
Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is acros ...
and in Badger, Tulare County, Synanon had erected buildings without the legally-required permits, had created a trash dump, and built an airstrip. Taxation issues also arose. In response to these accusations, Dederich declared that Synanon was a tax exempt
Tax exemption is the reduction or removal of a liability to make a compulsory payment that would otherwise be imposed by a ruling power upon persons, property, income, or transactions. Tax-exempt status may provide complete relief from taxes, redu ...
religious organization, the "Church of Synanon".
Legal problems continued, despite this change. Children who had been assigned to Synanon began running away, and an "underground railroad" had been created in the area that sought to help them return to their parents. Beatings of Synanon's opponents and its ex-members, "splittees", occurred across California. Beatings occurred in Synanon basements. A state Grand Jury
A grand jury is a jury—a group of citizens—empowered by law to conduct legal proceedings, investigate potential criminal conduct, and determine whether criminal charges should be brought. A grand jury may subpoena physical evidence or a pe ...
in Marin County issued a scathing report in 1978 that attacked Synanon for the very strong evidence of its child abuse
Child abuse (also called child endangerment or child maltreatment) is physical, sexual, and/or psychological maltreatment or neglect of a child or children, especially by a parent or a caregiver. Child abuse may include any act or failure to a ...
, and also for the monetary profits that flowed to Dederich. The Grand Jury report also rebuked the governmental authorities involved for their lack of oversight, although it stopped short of directly interceding in the Synanon situation.
Though many San Francisco area newspapers and broadcasters covered the Synanon case, they were largely silenced by legal action from Synanon's lawyers, who made claims of libel. These lawsuits ultimately turned out to be a large part of Synanon's undoing, by giving journalists access to Synanon's own internal documents.
Criminal activity and collapse
Synanon is purported to have been involved in several criminal activities, such as the disappearance of Rose Lena Cole in late 1972, or early 1973. Cole had received a court order to enroll in Synanon before she disappeared. She has not been seen or heard from since. Initially Synanon did not support violence; Dederich later changed the rules to allow for violence in order to maintain control. Much of the violence by Synanon had been carried out by a group within Synanon called the "Imperial Marines". Over 80 violent acts were committed, including mass beatings that hospitalized teenagers and ranchers who were beaten in front of their families. People who left the organization were at risk of physical violence for being a "splittee"; one ex-member, Phil Ritter, was beaten so severely that his skull was fractured and he subsequently fell into a coma with a near-fatal case of bacterial meningitis.
In mid-1978, the ''NBC Nightly News
''NBC Nightly News'' (titled as ''NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt'' for its weeknight broadcasts since June 22, 2015) is the flagship daily evening News broadcasting#Television, television news program for NBC News, the news division of the NB ...
'' produced a news segment on the controversies surrounding Synanon. Following this broadcast, several executives of the NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
network and its corporate chairman allegedly received hundreds of threats from Synanon members and supporters. NBC continued with a series of reports on the Synanon situation on the ''NBC Nightly News''. The '' Point Reyes Light'', a small-circulation weekly newspaper in Marin County
Marin County is a county located in the northwestern part of the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 262,231. Its county seat and largest city is San Rafael. Marin County is acros ...
, would later receive the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service
The Pulitzer Prize for Public Service is one of the fourteen American Pulitzer Prizes annually awarded for journalism. It recognizes a distinguished example of meritorious public service by a newspaper or news site through the use of its journalis ...
for their covering Synanon at a time when other news agencies avoided reporting. Several weeks after NBC began receiving threats, on October 10, 1978, two Synanon members placed a de-rattled rattlesnake
Rattlesnakes are venomous snakes that form the genera ''Crotalus'' and ''Sistrurus'' of the subfamily Crotalinae (the pit vipers). All rattlesnakes are vipers. Rattlesnakes are predators that live in a wide array of habitats, hunting small anim ...
in the mailbox of attorney Paul Morantz
Paul Robert Morantz (August 16, 1945 – October 23, 2022) was an American attorney and investigative journalist.
He was known for taking legal cases alleging brainwashing by cults, self-help groups and for sexual misconduct by psychotherapist ...
of Pacific Palisades, California
Pacific Palisades is a neighborhood in the Westside Los Angeles, Westside region of Los Angeles, California, situated about west of Downtown Los Angeles.
Pacific Palisades was formally founded in 1921 by a Chautauqua, Methodist organization, an ...
.[Janzen, Rod A. ''The Rise and Fall of Synanon, A California Utopia'', Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001, p. 214.] Morantz had successfully brought suit on behalf of people who were being held against their will by Synanon. The snake bit him, and he was hospitalized for six days.[
] This incident, along with the press coverage, prompted an investigation by the police and government into Synanon.
Six weeks later, the Los Angeles Police Department
The Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), officially known as the City of Los Angeles Police Department, is the municipal police department of Los Angeles, California. With 9,974 police officers and 3,000 civilian staff, it is the third-large ...
performed a search of the ranch in Badger that found a recorded speech by Dederich in which he said, "We're not going to mess with the old-time, turn-the-other-cheek religious postures... Our religious posture is: Don't mess with us. You can get killed dead, literally dead... These are real threats", he snarled. "They are draining life's blood from us, and expecting us to play by their silly rules. We will make the rules. I see nothing frightening about it... I am quite willing to break some lawyer's legs, and next break his wife's legs, and threaten to cut their child's arm off. That is the end of that lawyer. That is a very satisfactory, humane way of transmitting information. I really do want an ear in a glass of alcohol on my desk."["Light to celebrate 25th anniversary of its Pulitzer", ''The Point Reyes Light'', April 15, 2004, by Dave Mitchell.] During the investigations researchers also came across multiple lawsuits and arrests against Synanon members.
Dederich was arrested while drunk on December 2, 1978. Two other Synanon residents, Joe Musico and Lance Kenton (son of the musician Stan Kenton
Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though K ...
) were also arrested and pleaded "no contest
' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense.
In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neith ...
" to charges of assault and conspiracy to commit murder. Lance Kenton was sentenced to a year in prison. While his associates went to jail, Dederich received probation because his doctors claimed that due to ill health he would most likely die in prison. As a condition of probation, he was disallowed from taking part in managing Synanon. Dederich died on 28 February 1997, at age 83, after a series of strokes; the cause of death was cardiorespiratory failure.
Synanon struggled to survive without its leader, and also with a severely tarnished reputation. The Internal Revenue Service
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory ta ...
revoked the organization's tax-exempt status and ordered them to pay $17 million in back taxes. This bankrupted Synanon, which formally dissolved in 1991.
Synanon's influence in the behavior-modification field
Mel Wasserman, influenced by his Synanon experience, founded CEDU Education. CEDU's schools used the confrontation model of Synanon. The CEDU model was widely influential on the development of parent-choice, private-pay residential programs. People originally inspired by their CEDU experience developed or strongly influenced a significant number of the schools in the therapeutic boarding school
A therapeutic boarding school is a residential school offering therapy for students with emotional or behavioral issues. Description
The National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs listed 140 schools and programs as of 2005. Therapeut ...
industry.
Father William B. O'Brien, the founder of New York's Daytop Village
Daytop, or Daytop Village, is a drug addiction treatment organization with facilities in New York City. It was founded in 1963 in Tottenville, Staten Island by Daniel Harold Casriel along with Monsignor William B. O'Brien, a Roman Catholic pries ...
, included Synanon's group encounters and confrontational approach in his research into addiction treatment methods.
The author, journalist and activist Maia Szalavitz claims to chart the influence of Synanon in other programs including Phoenix House
Phoenix House is a nonprofit drug and alcohol rehabilitation organization operating in ten states with 150 programs. Programs serve individuals, families, and communities affected by substance abuse and dependency.
History
Phoenix House was ...
, Straight, Incorporated and Boot Camps in addition to those mentioned above.
Popular depictions
'' Straight Life: The Story of Art Pepper'' includes several chapters (21 - 23) about living at Synanon from 1969 - 1971.
The 1965 Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
movie ''Synanon
Synanon is a US-founded social organization created by Charles E. "Chuck" Dederich Sr. in 1958 in Santa Monica, California, United States. It is currently active in Germany.
Originally established as a drug rehabilitation program, by the early ...
'', directed by Richard Quine
Richard Quine (November 12, 1920June 10, 1989) was an American director, actor, and singer.
He began acting as a child in radio, vaudeville, and stage productions before being signed to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in his early twenties. When his acting ...
, was set at (and filmed in) Synanon; it starred Edmond O'Brien
Eamon Joseph O'Brien (September 10, 1915 – May 9, 1985) was an American actor and film director. His career spanned almost 40 years, and he won one Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, and two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
O'Brien w ...
as Chuck Dederich, as well as Chuck Connors
Kevin Joseph Aloysius "Chuck" Connors (April 10, 1921 – November 10, 1992) was an American actor, writer, and professional basketball and baseball player. He is one of only 13 athletes in the history of American professional sports to have p ...
, Stella Stevens
Stella Stevens (born Estelle Eggleston; October 1, 1938) is a American former actress. She began her acting career in 1959 and starred in such popular films as '' Girls! Girls! Girls!'' (1962), '' The Nutty Professor'' (1963), ''The Courtship of ...
, Richard Conte
Nicholas Peter Conte (March 24, 1910 – April 15, 1975), known professionally as Richard Conte, was an American actor. He appeared in more than 100 films from the 1940s through 1970s, including '' I'll Cry Tomorrow'', ''Ocean's 11'', and ''Th ...
, and Eartha Kitt
Eartha Kitt (born Eartha Mae Keith; January 17, 1927 – December 25, 2008) was an American singer and actress known for her highly distinctive singing style and her 1953 recordings of "C'est si bon" and the Christmas novelty song "Santa Ba ...
.
The 1984 TV movie ''Attack on Fear'', directed by Mel Damski, written by T.S. Cook, an account of the journalists who exposed the abuses; it starred Paul Michael Glaser
Paul Michael Glaser (born Paul Manfred Glaser March 25, 1943) is an American actor and director best known for his role as Detective Dave Starsky on the 1970s television series, ''Starsky & Hutch''. In between his work writing and directing, Gla ...
, Linda Kelsey
Linda Jean Kelsey is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Billie Newman on the CBS drama television series '' Lou Grant'' (1977–1982), which earned her three Golden Globe Award nominations and five Primetime Emmy Award nom ...
, and Barbara Babcock
Barbara Babcock (born February 27, 1937) is an American actress who played Grace Gardner on ''Hill Street Blues'', for which she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress—Drama Series in 1981, She played Dorothy Jennings on ''Dr. Quinn, ...
.
Episode 22 of ''Mannix
''Mannix'' is an American detective television series that ran from 1967 to 1975 on CBS. It was created by Richard Levinson and William Link, and developed by executive producer Bruce Geller. The title character, Joe Mannix, is a private inves ...
'' depicts Synanon members involved with a fictitious 1945 Daily Clarion bombing that killed 14 men.
Synanon is referred to in Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...
's song "Lenny Bruce", from his album ''Shot of Love
''Shot of Love'' is the 21st studio album by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan, released on August 12, 1981, by Columbia Records. It is considered to be Dylan's last of a trilogy of Christian albums. Arrangements are rooted more in rock, ...
'' (Bruce "never made it to Synanon"). It is also referred to in the song "Opening Doors" from Stephen Sondheim
Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...
's musical '' Merrily We Roll Along'', which mentions it as a hypothetical song title in a satirical revue of the 1960s.
Synanon is mentioned in Joan Didion
Joan Didion (; December 5, 1934 – December 23, 2021) was an American writer. Along with Tom Wolfe, Hunter S. Thompson and Gay Talese, she is considered one of the pioneers of New Journalism. Didion's career began in the 1950s after she won an ...
's 1979 essay ''The White Album
''The Beatles'', also referred to colloquially as the White Album, is the ninth studio album and only double album by the English Rock music, rock band the Beatles, released on 22 November 1968. Featuring a plain white sleeve, the cover conta ...
''. Philip K. Dick makes several references to Synanon in his 1977 novel ''A Scanner Darkly
''A Scanner Darkly'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick, published in 1977. The semi-autobiographical story is set in a dystopian Orange County, California, in the then-future of June 1994, and includes an extensive ...
'' and 1981 novel ''VALIS
''Valis'' (stylized as ''VALIS'') is a 1981 science fiction novel by American writer Philip K. Dick, intended to be the first book of a three-part series. The title is an acronym for ''Vast Active Living Intelligence System'', Dick's gnostic vis ...
''.
Deborah Swisher, a former Synanon member, recounts her experiences growing up in several Synanon communes in her one-woman show ''Hundreds of Sisters and One Big Brother''.
''Hollywood Park: A Memoir'', by Mikel Jollett
Mikel Frans Jollett (born May 21, 1974) is an American musician and author. He is best known as the frontman for American indie rock band the Airborne Toxic Event as well as the author of the ''New York Times'' bestselling memoir ''Hollywood Park ...
(founder of The Airborne Toxic Event
The Airborne Toxic Event is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2006. It consists of Mikel Jollett (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Steven Chen (guitar, keyboards), Adrian Rodriguez (electric bass, backing vocals), Daren Ta ...
) was published in May 2020 and describes Jollett's life in, and escape from Synanon.
Daniel Gumbiner refers to this cult in his National Book Award-longlisted, ''The Boatbuilder''. The main character discusses a drug rehabilitation cult "The Church of Niebor," which is based on Synanon.
The group is featured in the 2021 book ''Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism'' by American linguist Amanda Montell. Montell's father was a member as a child and spoke freely to Amanda about his experience in Synanon.
In September 26, 2022, the TrueAnon
''TrueAnon'' is an American politics podcast hosted by Brace Belden and Liz Franczak. The podcast focuses on Left-wing politics, left-wing analysis of political issues and events, particularly those concerning deceased financier and sex offender ...
podcast also released a 5-part series on the history of Synanon called ''The Game''. Throughout the series, one of the show's hosts, Brace Belden
Brace Robert Belden is an American podcaster and union activist who volunteered to serve with the People's Protection Units (YPG), a Kurdish militia, in the Syrian Civil War. Belden is also widely known by his former Twitter handle, PissPigGrand ...
, talks about his childhood experience in a correctional, co-ed private facility called the Monarch School, which has been closed due to allegations of widespread abuse under the watch of its founder, Patrick McKenna, a Synanon disciple.
See also
*Attack therapy
Attack therapy was one of several pseudo-therapeutic methods described in the book ''Crazy Therapies''. It involves highly confrontational interaction between the patient and a therapist, or between the patient and fellow patients during group the ...
*Human potential movement
The Human Potential Movement (HPM) arose out of the counterculture of the 1960s and formed around the concept of an extraordinary potential that its advocates believed to lie largely untapped in all people. The movement takes as its premise the be ...
*Prop 36
California Proposition 36, the Substance Abuse and Crime Prevention Act of 2000, was an initiative statute that permanently changed state law to allow qualifying defendants convicted of non-violent drug possession offenses to receive a probationar ...
*Élan School
Élan School was a private, coeducational, and controversial residential behavior modification program and therapeutic boarding school in Poland, Androscoggin County, Maine. It was a full member of the National Association of Therapeutic Schools ...
*Cenikor Foundation
The Cenikor Foundation is a nonprofit drug rehabilitation and mental health organization based in Houston, Texas, operating residential treatment centers and outpatient services for adults and adolescents in Texas and Louisiana. They have faced se ...
* CEDU
* The Seed (organisation)
References
External links
A German offshoot of Synanon
{{in lang, de
Addiction organizations in the United States
Therapeutic community
History of California
New religious movements
Mental health organizations in California
Cults
Addiction and substance abuse organizations