Aldous Huxley's psychedelic Los Angeles life


 

Aldoushuxley_hollywood

Aldous Huxley is best remembered for his dystopian novel "Brave New World," depicting a future conformist society in which happiness is mandated and medicated. Huxley, who was born into a family of British intellectuals, was already an established critical thinker when the book was published in 1932.

So he might seem like an unlikely candidate for going to the Southern California desert to take a hallucinogen like mescaline -- but that's exactly what he did.

Huxley's Southern California adventures were the subject of a sold-out discussion this week at the LA Public Library's ALOUD series; as hundreds took their seats, more than 40 people waited fruitlessly in the standby line. Was all the excitement for Huxley? Maybe -- or maybe it was because John Densmore from The Doors was on the panel. And he brought a drum.

Director Mary Ann Braubach showed portions of her recent documentary "Huxley on Huxley" (available on DVD). In it, Huxley's second wife, Laura, talked about the role and influence of psychdelics in his life. Others featured in the film include Densmore and fellow panelist Don Bachardy, the artist and life partner of writer Christopher Isherwood.

Isherwood's 1956 diary included the passage "Aldous and Gerald [Heard] are having frequent lysergic episodes" (a reference to LSD, lysergic acid diethylamide). Braubach, who acted as moderator, asked Bachardy if he would describe Aldous Huxley and Christopher Isherwood as good friends. "They were certainly good friends, but not good enough friends, apparently, that Aldous and Gerald would share their LSD with Chris," Bachardy laughed.


Densmore had kicked off the panel with a familiar musical number -- The Doors' hit "Break on Through," enunciating the lyrics clearly so the audience could hear the psychedelic influence. As devotees know, Huxley had a lasting influence on The Doors -- they  got their name from his 1954 book "The Doors of Perception," which was an autobiographical account of a mescaline trip.

Not that Densmore does that kind of thing anymore. "Yes, I took LSD," he said, "but I quickly learned that it was very strong medicine."

Huxley moved to Southern California in 1937 for the same reasons many other writers did: to escape the brewing war in Europe and to work on scripts in Hollywood. Not surprisingly, he wound up doing literary adaptations; among the films he worked on were "Pride and Prejudice" (1940), "Jane Eyre" (1943) and "Alice in Wonderland" (1951).

Huxley came to Hollywood with his first wife, Maria ,and their son; their friend Heard often joined them. While in California, where Huxley also made a home in the desert town Llano, Huxley and Heard became deeply involved in the Vedanta Society, following Indian spiritual teachings and meditation practices.

"Another factor in his spiritual seeking was his near-blindness," scholar Ann Louise Bardach said at the library panel. "He was always fighting for the light and vision." Huxley's terrible vision was a third reason he'd come to L.A. -- for a Southern California doctor who he thought could help with his eyes.

Huxley's first wife Maria died in 1955 of breast cancer, and he married Laura the following year. Laura, Bardach explained, "was more partial to the psychedelics" than his religious inquiries, and he drifted away from Vedanta after their marriage. And he drifted toward drugs that a later generation would indulge in with enthusiasm.

In the clips from "Huxley on Huxley," and in her bestselling 1968 memoir "This Timeless Moment," Laura Huxley told the story of Aldous Huxley's death. In the last hours of his life, as he was dying of throat cancer, she maintained that he wrote a note asking for an injection of LSD. She gave it to him and sat beside him as he passed away, blissfully, on Nov. 22, 1963. Laura died at age 96 in 2007.

An audience member asked the panel, "Was Los Angeles an influence on Huxley?"

"Certainly," replied Braubach, referencing his history working for the movies and his move out to the desert. John Densmore jumped in. "Well, I just got into town about an hour ago," he sang as he picked up his drum, continuing with lyrics to "L.A. Woman." What that had to do with Huxley, exactly, wasn't clear, but it was nevertheless met with applause.

-- Carolyn Kellogg

Photo: Aldous Huxley, right with his wife Laura at their Hollywood Hills home. Credit: Rose Nys


http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/jacketcopy/2011/06/aldous-huxley-ps...

Views: 308

Comment

You need to be a member of 12160 Social Network to add comments!

Join 12160 Social Network

Comment by truth on April 24, 2013 at 10:21am

Comment by truth on July 13, 2011 at 7:21am
do tell nikki :)
Comment by Nikki on June 25, 2011 at 9:22pm
That was a good time to live in LA.

"Destroying the New World Order"

TOP CONTENT THIS WEEK

THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING THE SITE!

mobile page

12160.info/m

12160 Administrators

 

Latest Activity

Doc Vega posted a blog post

The Cancel Culture Vulture

  Better to shut them down than hear their point of viewCancel culture coming after youHelping to…See More
yesterday
Doc Vega posted a photo
Friday
Doc Vega posted a blog post

The Fingerprint

The Fingerprint On a dance with the unpredictability of the signals you sendA solemn pact with my…See More
Friday
Sandy posted a video
Friday
tjdavis posted a video
Thursday
Burbia replied to Burbia's discussion Trump Receives Marching Orders
Wednesday
Less Prone favorited Burbia's video
Wednesday
Less Prone replied to Burbia's discussion Trump Receives Marching Orders
"Bullets can be effective in reinforcing ownership."
Wednesday
Burbia posted a discussion

Trump Receives Marching Orders

Netanyahu has made 3 visits to the White house since Trump's second term as President of the United…See More
Wednesday
Burbia commented on Burbia's video
Thumbnail

Ben Shapiro Just LOST HIS MIND — There's No Coming Back From This

"Omg. The Ben Shapiro voice that Luke is imitating here couldn't be any more comedic to…"
Tuesday
Burbia posted a video

Ben Shapiro Just LOST HIS MIND — There's No Coming Back From This

Get the magnesium your body needs - https://wearechange.shop/product/magnesium-glycinate/Ben Shapiro Just LOST HIS MIND — There's No Coming Back From ThisHig...
Tuesday
cheeki kea posted photos
Tuesday
Doc Vega posted blog posts
Jul 7
Burbia posted a video

A few reasons I don’t like jews. It’s not complicated.

These are the reasons I became antisemitic. It’s not complicated. Sure, I could go on for days, weeks, months outlining everything, but I don’t need to. This...
Jul 6
Doc Vega commented on Doc Vega's blog post Unusual Discoveries and Headlines
"Less Prone, Thanks Buddy! I'd like to volunteer as a historical reconstructionist! "
Jul 6
Less Prone left a comment for t.me/TheIntelligenceLibrary
"Welcome to a revolutionary concept in public communication, the truth."
Jul 6
pohonemas33 team is now a member of 12160 Social Network
Jul 6
Less Prone favorited cheeki kea's discussion Tartaria
Jul 6
tjdavis's 2 blog posts were featured
Jul 6
Doc Vega's 7 blog posts were featured
Jul 6

© 2025   Created by truth.   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service

content and site copyright 12160.info 2007-2019 - all rights reserved. unless otherwise noted