synanon imperial marines

[15], Control over members occurred through the "Game". [21] Furthermore, for their first ninety days in the community, members were expected to cease contact with outside friends and family. Social scientists flocked to see for themselves, while Hollywood came out with the film Synanon in 1965, starring Edmond O'Brien as Charles and Eartha Kitt as Betty. ", Los Angeles police officer Richard Grotsley holds the rattlesnake that bit attorney Paul Morantz. In response to these accusations, Dederich declared in l974 that Synanon was a tax exempt religious organization, the Church of Synanon. A memo declaring it a religion asked a question that didnt need to be answered: Who will be God? (Gerstel, Paradise Inc.; Morantz vs. Synanon, IRS vs. Synanon) Dederich declared no more children (1976) as they take time away from Synanon goals. by | May 25, 2022 | why does kelly wearstler wear a brace | diy nacho cheese dispenser | May 25, 2022 | why does kelly wearstler wear a brace | diy nacho cheese dispenser These are real threats", he snarled. His successful prosecution of Synanon led to an attempt against his life, by means of a rattlesnake. Originally a nonviolent group, Diedrich created the "Imperial Marines" to maintain orderwithin and outside of the community. Dig Deeper Listen: The American Rehab podcast series Read: Reveal's reporting on All Work, No Pay. Its members believed in Synanon enemies and encroachment of spies, created their own words (synanese), sought isolation from outside contaminants and committed to its destiny. Robson wrote back the mission was accomplished (Garfield-Robson letters). By BRANDON MESSICK Bmessick@havasunews.com Dec 9, 2018 Updated Aug 21, 2022 2 Stay Informed.. But Synanon still remains the Granddaddy of all drug rehabs, the failure that launched an industry, its failure teaching us more than whatever its success had (Richard Ofshe, The Failure that spurned an Industry). Physically Dead. Morantzs name was mentioned in the tape along with threats to get the wives and children of adverse lawyers. The game was a session during which one member would talk about themselves and then endure intense criticism by their peers. This included taking vengeance against. Morantz's website says that babies were taken from their parents and raised in the so-called hatchery., Moms who wanted to spend time with their own kids were callously dubbed head suckers.. All Rights Reserved. [14], During its first decade, Synanon members entered into a 12-year program in three stages aimed at preparing members to reenter greater society. The game took on each unbrokens dirty rotten story with great brutality. Casriel went on to found Day Top in New York and thus came the birth of modern day drug rehabs (Casriel, So Fair a House). Copyright Paul Morantz. It is currently active in Germany. Dederich was familiar with Waldens Pond and the writings of Ralph Waldo Emerson and B. F. Skinner. If you do your best, you cant fail. (Tony Lang, Synanon, Morantz archives on Synanon). September 21, 1978 ex-member Phil Ritter, was severely beaten by two members, causing him to fall into a coma for a week. Beatings of opponents, alleged thieves and ex-members ( splittees) occurred across the country. The new drug rehabs that came afterwards followed the advice of Dr. Dan Casriel who wrote the first book on Synanon. After several inquiries into their practices and financial holdings, Board of Directors passed declaration which made Synanon . He volunteered for a Dr. Keith Ditman LSD experiment and felt he had a cathartic break through and now understood the world and that good and bad were the same. Bombs, he would say in l978 to news reporter Connie Chung (CBS NEWS l978), could go off in homes of critics (Deposition of Dederich, Synanon vs. Time, Inc.; Synanon vs. ABC). His life was saved by a neighbor who applied a . Returning to. Juveniles in the 70s were often sent to Synanon by juvenile agencies or by courts on juvenile officers recommendation. As full recovery for graduates was not happening sufficiently, Dederich proclaimed no one should ever graduate. Dederich called it an insight producing experience. Much of the violence by Synanon had been carried out by a group within Synanon called the "Imperial Marines". Publicly one was berated (haircut) for misdeeds and this was designed to carom off and affect behavior of those watching. The name was chosen when a member slurred the words 'Symposium' and 'Seminar', explains Paul Morantz, an expert on the cult. Was he an unreconstructed, imperial colonial racist who had the worst possible views on, not just people of color, but people who were not aristocrats? In response to these accusations, Dederich declared that Synanon was a tax exempt religious organization, the "Church of Synanon". In l977 in Santa Monica, Synanon took in a woman in a pre-psychotic break, and would not return her to her husband and transferred her to Tomales Bay. (Dave Mitchell, The Light on Synanon; Gerstel, Paradise Inc.. Synanon Holy War file memos on beatings, Dr. Doug Robson letters, various police reports). Paul Morantz, an American attorney and investigative journalist has written substantially about the cult - as he delves into brainwashing cases for victims. The Foundation had the wire, an internal broadcasting system that played 24 hours with repeated talk of getting the enemies. [17][18], The film director George Lucas needed a large group of people with shaved heads for the filming of his movie THX 1138 and hired some of his extras from Synanon. "He was beaten, he was hit in the head and then socked in the stomach.". One, Richard Marino, said they were handcuffed and beaten, and their heads were shaved. A third defendant, Synanon founder Charles Dederich, earlier was put on . It was also there that a luxurious complex known as the Homeplace was being constructed. According to court records, the group also formed a militant branch, known as the "Imperial Marines," to inflict violence against opponents of the organization - including former Synanon members. I really do want an ear in a glass of alcohol on my desk. A drunken Dederich was arrested on December 2 in Lake Havesu. It was first offered to the selected few as an honor, but the entire population was eventually targeted. They would adopt the Synanon family, said the board, or the fifth circle in Dantes hell, where tormented souls are terrorized and torn, awaited them. He and his family were represented by Paul Morantz and Ed Martin in a civil suit. Yet the Imperial Marines were named officially Her Majestys Imperial Marines, and she was often at their training and spoke of a militant Synanon (Wendell Stamps Imperial Marine diary). He gathered his own following in AA and after a time of meetings at apartments, they rented a small store in seedy Venice. 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. Their armed security was known as the Imperial Marines. He was passed out when he was arrested for the assault and attempted murder of Paul Morantz. Beginning in the mid-1970s, women were required to shave their heads (men did the same and bib overalls became the uniform). On June 13, 1977 it was decided that the Imperial Marines would help teach doctors martial arts. ; [36], Synanon struggled to survive without its leader, and also with a severely tarnished reputation. (Robert Jay Lifton, Coercive Persuasion, the Psychology of Totalism). (Tony Lang, Synanon, Morantz archives on Synanon). Childbirth said Dederich, was no more important than squeezing out a football. But he nearly lost his life as a result of his investigation into Synanon. Eventually, on September 21, 2008 the Marines tried to murder ex-member Phil Ritter, who was trying to get his child out and had gone to the authorities complaining of forced vasectomies in Synanon, by clubbing him over the head (Berkely Gazette September 1978; Mitchell, the Light on Synanon). [14] Upon their arrival, those newcomers were forced to quit using drugs cold turkey, going through withdrawal for the first few days in the program. The 'marines' retaliated by clubbing him over the head. The influence and culture of the Synanon organization, which was founded by Charles Dederich Sr., started as a drug rehabilitation program in the late 1950's. . The "Game" was presented as a therapeutic tool, and likened to a form of group therapy; 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. The board would spell out Emerson messages on self-reliance, but self-reliance was interpreted as the ability to make choices and the best way to end loneliness and suffering was through trusting in Synanon. Plus, control freak Dederich wanted even more power. On remote properties in California such as Tomales Bay in Marin County and Badger, Tulare County, the organization had built un-permitted buildings, a trash dump, and an airstrip. CEDU's schools used the confrontation model of Synanon. We will make the rules. Synanon is purported[by whom?] According to court records, the cult formed a militant branch, known as the "Imperial Marines," to inflict violence against opponents of the organization. George Orwells l984 had arrived early. The group is featured in the 2021 book Cultish: The Language of Fanaticism by American linguist Amanda Montell. He would never bond with kids again, including his own until they became adults. [19] Robert Altman hired members of Synanon to be extras for the gambling scenes in his movie California Split. This became a successful enterprise that for a time generated roughly $10 million per year.[13]. 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. Remarkably, the authorities refused to intercede. Restaurants near Hotel Imperial, Amsterdam on Tripadvisor: Find traveler reviews and candid photos of dining near Hotel Imperial in Amsterdam, North Holland Province. They are both true. Several weeks after NBC began receiving threats, on October 10, 1978, two Synanon members placed a de-rattled rattlesnake in the mailbox of attorney Paul Morantz of Pacific Palisades, California. Synanon wanted the kids to try to keep their tax free status and placed them in a militaristic Punk Squad (forerunner of Scared Straight and other failed camp programs). It left a droopy eye and a facial tick. In its 21-year history, Synanon's reputation has seesawed from selflessly charitable to kooky and even depraved Dederich founded the group in Los Angeles in 1958, after "trying to take control of his Alcoholics Anonymous chapter and failing." Mitchell related. In this chapter: After building a small fortune, Synanon's megalomaniac leader turns the revolutionary rehab into a violent cult, with mass sterilization, a paramilitary group and a rattlesnake in a mailbox. Men were given forced vasectomies, and a few pregnant women were forced to have abortions. Morantz spent six days in a hospital, news of which made national headlines. All had pain. Children were reared communally in the Synanon School. [47] Throughout the series, one of the show's hosts, Brace Belden, 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. [citation needed]. Men were given forced vasectomies, and a few pregnant women were forced to have abortions. Read More. [22] 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. Did Synanon betray me an wound me? The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. [37][38][39], Mel Wasserman, influenced by his Synanon experience, founded CEDU Education. Following this broadcast, several executives of the NBC network and its corporate chairman allegedly received hundreds of threats from Synanon members and supporters. He was found passed out on a kitchen floor and was told, Fatso, if you do not go to Alcoholic Anonymous you will die. (Dr. Dan Casriel, So Fair a House, Yablonski, The Tunnel Back: Guy Endore, Synanon; Charles Dederich tapes on history of Synanon.). Philip K. Dick makes several references to Synanon in his 1977 novel A Scanner Darkly and 1981 novel VALIS. That is the end of that lawyer. (Deposition of Charles Dederich, Morantz vs. Dederich; Morantz vs. Synanon, IRS vs. According to Department of Justice records, Dederich discussed the possibility of Morantzs assassination with Synanon Imperial Marines leader Doug Robson. (Tony Lang, Synanon, Morantz archives on Synanon). Curing dope fiends was what they wanted. Journal of Humanistic Psychology 18.3 (1978): 320. The snake bit Morantz but did not kill him. The husband hired attorney Paul Morantz, who had recently finished a case against persons who had kidnapped skid row alcoholics and kept them on thorazine in nursing homes in order to bill the State. Correcting Claire Clarks Recovery Revolution, Book Escape: My Life Long War Against Cults. Synanon claimed it had cured thousands but by 1967 Dederich turned the organization into a "lifestyle" by recruiting non-addicts ("Squares") and building cities in Marin County, then Tulare County and eventually Lake Havasu. Ultimately, it purchased an arsenal of high-powered weapons, developed its own security force and in an isolated concealed valley across its airfield called Depot Flats, it set up camp to train the Imperial Marines. (IRS vs. Synanon). This included taking vengeance against former Synanon members. Synanon disbanded in 1991[6] due to members being convicted of criminal activities (including attempted murder) and retroactive loss of its tax-exempt status with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) due to financial misdeeds, destruction of evidence, and terrorism. Marino said: "I thought they were going to kill us.". [26] Over 80 violent acts were committed, including mass beatings that hospitalized teenagers and ranchers who were beaten in front of their families. [25] Initially Synanon did not support violence; Dederich later changed the rules to allow for violence in order to maintain control. In l977 when Dederichs wife Betty died he married a volunteer to be his wife and decided to save others from pain of death or divorce by ordering all married couples to break up every 3 years and take new partners selected by Synanon (love matches). (IRS v. Synanon; Morantz vs. Synanon; Winn vs. Synanon; Renfroe vs. Golden State). (Tony Lang, Synanon, Morantz archives on Synanon). Fluid leaked into his spine causing a near fatal case of spinal meningitis. All thought the experience was beautiful. Vile Dederich declared that, "having an abortion is like squeezing a boil, nothing more.". A Synanon mob beat Gambini in front of his family. Synanon evicted by tossing people and belongings out of apartments (even off a roof). Synanon members bought stock in ABC and attended a stock holders meeting, and naming their names, the members, identifying themselves as former members of Murder Incorporated, asked if the board had protection for their wives (Synanon vs. ABC, AP Western Union Telegram; Pat Lynch, NBC segment 3). Ex-Synanon members heard from members inside Synanon, that they had Morantzs address and that he was next, While Morantz was meeting with the California terrorist unit and LAPDID (intelligence) for protection on October 10, 2008, Synanon Marines Joe Musico and Lance Kenton, son of band leader Stan Kenton, as part of conspiracy with Dederich and other top officials, placed a 4-foot rattle snake sans rattles in Morantzs mailbox. Episode 22 of Mannix depicts Synanon members involved with a fictitious 1945 Daily Clarion bombing that killed 14 men. Members were taught that if caught on a violent mission to go to jail and to not blame Synanon. Some rolled up on the floor in fetal positions. He aimed to ensnare patients to remain in Synanon forever, and create a utopian society of his own design. Sitting in comfortable green armchairs, they made the dope fiends tell their tales of drugs, rape, crime and beatings. By the late 1970s, he'd formed a small army called the Imperial Marines, which committed dozens of heinous crimes, like mass beatings against defectors, whom Dederich called "splittees." (Berkeley Gazette l978, Mitchell, Light on Synanon). Synanon became a Third sector within United States borders, seeking to have its Embassy in Washington, D.C. (People vs. Dederich, Synanon memos on incident). Synanon expanded an old Trans-Pacific Marconi RCA radio station in Tomales Bay now Marconi Conference Center State Historical Park. And there was no way that its leader was going to share any of that with the taxman. Some Trippers began to hallucinate, Dederich having achieved his LSD replicated altered state of consciousness. Newcomers were first interviewed by Synanon leadership to gain entrance into the community. Montell's father was a member as a child and spoke freely to Amanda about his experience in Synanon. I really do want an ear in a glass of alcohol on my desk.[3]. (Dederich, Act as If). In 1962 Dederich moved to an empty National Guard building on the beach in Santa Monica. It even invited professionals including non-addicts to join. And Synanon, which is to say Dederich, was not happy about being made to look foolish. Dederich appeared at a press conference and declared the city had fallen into the hands of Mad Dogs and Synanon would sue them all. He feared that Marines otherwise would have to work with untrained and undisciplined . Professionals, even those without drug addictions, were invited to join Synanon. Only the threat of violence was prohibited. Its ultimate doom came when Dederich and members tried to kill by means of a de-rattled rattlesnake in the mailbox, Pacific Palisades lawyer Paul Morantz who was battling Synanon in the court and trying to expose the Foundation for criminal conspiracies. "They are draining life's blood from us, and expecting us to play by their silly rules. Dederich and his wife sat on thrones and often wore robs. [clarification needed] Synanon moved to create schooling for members, and Dederich wanted members to mentally change in order to improve society on the outside. (White vs. Butler, Herb Caen column, Pat Lynch, NBC Synanon segment 3.). Former Synanon President Jack Hurst spoke out against Synanon and found his home door open and his dog hung. It was just weeks after Morantz had won a $300,000 judgment against Synanon, a shady drug rehab facility that opened in Santa Monica in 1958. Everyone bonded. Morantz did and the bill was defeated by one vote. Synanon organized groups called the "Imperial Marines" and the "National Guard," and called for "Holy War" against its enemies. Knowing away from the environment people were using, he closed the doors in l967 and ended the idea anyone should ever leave. Sternberg, David. In 1974 Synanon declared itself a religion and centered on middle-class searching for utopia rather than addict curing. Synanon is a word of his own invention integrating togetherness (syn) with the unknown (anon). Addicts behaviors and past lives were attacked viciously in games, members were told their lives depended on staying, contacts with family were prohibited, and a system of rewards and punishments was applied. Professionals, even those without drug addictions, were eagerly invited to join, provided they transferred their assets to the organization. The cops uncover a group of blind followers willing to do anything at their leader's urging, even murder. Soon, Synanon owned properties across America; at Tomales Bay, it had a fleet of ships, and at the Badger property hundreds of motorbikes and trucks, not to mention an airstrip and a private plane. [41], Father William B. O'Brien, the founder of New York's Daytop Village, included Synanon's group encounters and confrontational approach in his research into addiction treatment methods. (Reynolds memo, People vs. Dederich; IRS vs. Synanon). On September 21, 2008, the Marines tried to murder ex-member Phil Ritter. He was said to have coined the phrase "today is the first day of the rest of your life". Synanon, is the first ever self helpno doctors drug rehabilitation program, founded by Charles Chuck Dederich Sr. (19131997) in 1958 in Santa Monica, California. Recovering alcoholic Charles 'Chuck' Dederich founded Synanon in 1958 to provide substance abuse reform to drug users as well as alcoholics in Santa Monica, California. While the early Synanon has been declared a success by most observers, there were also early critics who claimed the success only applied to those who remained in the environment where no drugs was pushed by peers or in cases of old timers who had reached saturation point. All such notions Dederich declared were also a squeeze to get rotten fruit out of Synanon (those who will not obey). Increasingly-wacko Dederich also created his own "Imperial Marines," while hundreds of his cult followers were ordered to get vasectomies and divorces! Through a telehone call to Paul Morantz by the Marin County council, the Supervisors requested Morantz lobby to defeat the bill which was in its last committee for vote. In September 26, 2022, the TrueAnon podcast also released a 5-part series on the history of Synanon called The Game. Web. Dederich was arrested while drunk on December 2, 1978. Women removed all makeup and jewelry, a symbolic stripping of past selves. XHTML: You can use these tags:

. The Trip was so successful that in only its second year the lifestylers business contributed $500,000. As a rule, Synanon wasn't a violent place while my dad was there, but over time, Dederich grew crueler and more deranged. A hoop-a-la began (Synanons dance). Following its broadcast, executives of the network and its corporate chairman received hundreds of threats from Synanon members and supporters, including letters that said, Your actions place you in legal and physical peril and We are going to teach you a lesson you will never forget.. Synanon instituted containment which was disallowing contact with outsiders. Taxation issues also arose. Dederich refused all suggestions. Containment was instituted, which meant no contact with the outside world. (Gerstel, Paradise, Inc.). This included taking vengeance against former Synanon members. [42], The author, journalist and activist Maia Szalavitz claims to chart the influence of Synanon in other programs including Phoenix House, Straight, Incorporated and Boot Camps in addition to those mentioned above. Deadly Cults is back for a chilling second season, starting Sunday, April 26 at 7pm ET/PT on Oxygen. (Morantz archives on Synanon, People vs Dederich, IRS vs. Synanon). Violence was then permitted upon them, breaking for first time Synanons non violent rule. Children were struck across the face, knocked down, otherwise punished and then gamed. Soon the OK on violence would spread to splitees, suspected thieves and perceived spies and enemies. Dederich and Yablonsky acknowledged that the system was brainwashing (thought reform) as described by Dr. Robert Jay Lifton in Coercive PersuasionThe psychology of Totalism (Yablonski, The Tunnel Back). That is the end of that lawyer. "It was no secret that Charles Dederich wanted to at least hurt Paul Morantz if not kill him. He decided to move to Santa Monica and become a beach bum. 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.[45]. He flunked out of Notre Dame for lack of effort and worked for the Mellon family. They also beat a neighboring rancher, Gamboninni, who was helping children run away from Synanon and return to their parents (Light on Synanon; Dave Gerstel, Paradise Inc.; Marin County crime report on Gambinini beating, Synanon memos describing incident. After the rattlesnake incident, Mary Robson, wife of Imperial Marine leader Dr. Douglas Robson, went to a neighbor of Paul Morantzs mother and left her card so Morantz would know Synanon knew where his mother was. Synanon lawyer Howard Garfield ordered Marine head Dr. Douglas Robson to collect all Synanon memos describing their violence and transfer them to legal department so attorney client privilege would attach. A . Both were members of Synanon's 'Imperial Marines,' a security group within the drug and alcohol rehabilition organization. (Defendant's Statement of Material Facts at 68-74, 108-09.) They acted as "the punch" of the Imperial Starfleet. [23] Morantz had successfully brought suit on behalf of people who were being held against their will by Synanon. At age 8 his youngest brother died of influenza and Dederich felt guilty and responsible. By 1991 the community had essentially folded. His success in trapping so many people - at its height the cult had more than 1,300 members - resulting in a healthy bank balance, as its assets totaled about $33 million. [43], Straight Life: The Story of Art Pepper includes several chapters (21 - 23) about living at Synanon from 1969 - 1971.[44]. (Dave Mitchell, Light on Synanon; Dave Gerstel, Paradise Inc.; Marin County crime report on Cardineau beating.). Morantz and Synanon locked horns for 8 years. The medical board was to establish rules for Synanon but never did. The Internal Revenue Service revoked the organization's tax-exempt status and ordered them to pay $17 million in back taxes. At age 4, when his father died in an auto crash, his mother, an accomplished pianist, made him the family male figure and her favorite. Monetary donations came in from the rich and Hollywood, as guys like Robert Wagner, Leonard Nimoy and Ben Gazzra came to Synanon to play the game with ex-addicts and ex-hookers. imperial marines 1978 - It's Time for Morning Meeting Sharing our Synanon Stories Visit the post for more. But there was a catch: new members had to transfer their assets to the organization. The two other Synanon Imperial Marines, one of whom was Lance Kenton, son of musician Stan Kenton, pleaded no contest to charges of assault and conspiracy to commit murder. Tax issues arose. (Synanon Punk Squad Files; Deposition of Synanon school master, Morantz vs. Synanon, IRS vs. Synanon), Dederich was ahead of times in ordering aerobics, running, diets and non smoking. Though local newspapers and broadcast media covered the case, they were largely silenced by lawsuits from Synanon lawyers charging libel. In another terrifying experience, a former junkie wanted to visit the cult, but he took a personal security man, Jack Harding, in case things turned nasty. Synanon is referred to in Bob Dylan's song "Lenny Bruce", from his album Shot of Love (Bruce "never made it to Synanon"). This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. That is a very satisfactory, humane way of transmitting information.

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