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. You can get killed Dead. (Mitchell, the Light on Synanon). For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, In 1975-Oakland, CA- more than 500 women from Synanon communities throughout California shaved their heads, Members of Synanon have their head shaved in 1969, Synanon, poster: Richard Conte (cigarette left), Edmond O'Brien (top head), Alex Cord (arm outstretched), Stella Stevens (bare shoulder), Eartha Kitt (bottom right), 1965, Synanon founder Charles Dederich was arrested in Arizona on a California warrant charging suspicion of conspiracy and solicitation to commit murder in the rattlesnake attack of a Los Angles lawyer, The name was chosen when a member slurred the words 'Symposium' and 'Seminar', explains, Members of Synanon at the North Beach branch have a party to celebrate the 1,000 live-in member, April 4, 1968. spread throughout California, and Synanon became a counter-culture community by 1964. more than 1,300 members - resulting in a healthy bank balance, as its assets totaled about $33 million. Ofshe, Richard. Synanon evicted by tossing people and belongings out of apartments (even off a roof). Simon, not heeding what he wrote, later went to prison for destroying evidence unfavorable to Synanon (People vs. Simon). Her daughter died in Synanon and the husband split. The school attracted lawyers, screenwriters, and business executives, all wanting to educate their children in a progressive environment. [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. (Marin Grand Jury Report on Synanon l978). A . It was known for communal living, practices such as group "truth-telling" sessions they called "The Game," requiring married couples to split and take new partners and female members to shave their heads. Morantz had successfully brought suit on behalf of a woman abducted by Synanon, winning a $300,000 judgment, obtained release of children, gave information to the press and lobbied (defeating) another Synanon bill written by Herschel Rosenthal. The former compound of a notorious cult in the foothills of northeastern Tulare County will soon be vacation rentals. he rattlesnake lashed out too quickly for Morantz to react, and its fangs sank into his wrist. 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. "The Social Development of the Synanon Cult". During the first stage, members did community and housekeeping labor. He feared that Marines otherwise would have to work with untrained and undisciplined . His life was saved by a neighbor who applied a . Former Synanon President Jack Hurst spoke out against Synanon and found his home door open and his dog hung. The police told Synanon the kids were coming with them; the only question was how? Unsurprisingly, abused kids began running away, helped by an 'underground railroad', led by neighboring rancher Alvin Gambonini, who tried to reunite them with their parents. The name was chosen when a member slurred the words Symposium and Seminar. One of its early cardinal rules was no violence or threat of same. Dederich also created an armed wing within Synanon called the Imperial Marines, and ordered those within the unit to prevent any of the residents from leaving. It is also referred to in the song "Opening Doors" from Stephen Sondheim's musical Merrily We Roll Along, which mentions it as a hypothetical song title in a satirical revue of the 1960s. Synanon, is the first ever self helpno doctors drug rehabilitation program, founded by Charles Chuck Dederich Sr. (19131997) in 1958 in Santa Monica, California. AN ULTRA-violent cult brainwashed addicts into shaving their heads, and enforced mass sterilizations in "Gestapo-like" demands. In the 1970s, two men were run off the road near one of their properties. Dederich placed them in a 72 hour game (stew) and harangued them for not seeing his vision. ", Los Angeles police officer Richard Grotsley holds the rattlesnake that bit attorney Paul Morantz. Members were taught that if caught on a violent mission to go to jail and to not blame Synanon. [22] During this practice, members were encouraged to be critical of everything, using harsh and profane language. But he nearly lost his life as a result of his investigation into Synanon. The psychotic leader of Synanon, Charles Dederich, features in a new series of Oxygens Deadly Cults which examines how this tyrant wielded so much deadly power over his many besotted followers. Containment was instituted, which meant no contact with the outside world. Morantz was bitten and hospitalized for 11 days. Synanons ultimate biggest critic was Dederich himself. He was said to have coined the phrase "today is the first day of the rest of your life". "But it wasn't too long before I knew it was true," Morantz says. The Guides, all experienced game players, turned each group from enthusiasm to a depression and defeat, wallowing in its collective shame. The Galactic Empire trained these stormtroopers to board rebel warships. George Orwells l984 had arrived early. (Dave Mitchell, The Light on Synanon; Gerstel, Paradise Inc.. Synanon Holy War file memos on beatings, Dr. Doug Robson letters, various police reports). He had outsmarted Synanon and its team of lawyers. 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). Beginning in the mid-1970s, women were required to shave their heads (men did the same and bib overalls became the uniform). To keep people in, he posted and announced as a warning all reports of anyone who left and returned to drugs. Each person stripped and put on white robes. 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. Neighbors complained fearing Synanon would unleash non-recovered addicts into Santa Monica who came from other areas. These are real threats", he snarled. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. Julie Moncharsh recalled: "One boy, who was mentally retarded, was physically beaten because he did not do the 20 push-ups he was assigned. Synanon began as an addiction support group that gathered in a grimy Californian flat in the late 1950s. (Gerstel, Paradise Inc.) Beginning in 1974 the authorities began to question Synanons promises and practices. (West Magazine, l967, Morantz archives on Synanon) Subsequently, Synanon acquired a large industrial building in Oakland, California, transforming it into a residential facility for its members, outsiders were permitted to attend the Game there as well. (White vs. Butler, Herb Caen column, Pat Lynch, NBC Synanon segment 3.). A Los Angeles District Attorney search warrant led to a discovery of an audio tape wherein Dederich bragged of beatings that had occurred, the Imperial Marine training, and said one day the message would be delivered to everyone Dont mess with Synanon. Several weeks later, October 10, 1978, two Synanon members placed a de-rattled rattlesnake in the mailbox of attorney Paul Morantz in Pacific Palisades, California. Mitchell had tried to warn authorities, without success, that Synanon was going to try to kill Morantz. Members were to confess in games and no secrets were allowed. (Robert J. Lifton, Coercive Persuasion, The Psychology of Totalism; Dr. Edgar Friedman, The Nation 1965, a review of Yablonskis the Tunnel back The author fails to see the inhumanity he observesSynanon is a trade of one addiction for another..one day there will be a Synanon state of Mind more important than the club itself). All Rights Reserved. Synanon instituted containment which was disallowing contact with outsiders. The concept was based on law that even charities are taxed if they commit acts against public policy. [7] A state Grand Jury in Marin County issued a scathing report in 1978 that attacked Synanon for the very strong evidence of its child abuse, and also for the monetary profits that flowed to Dederich. Escape From Cielo Drive (A Tale of Three Charlies) The strange tale of Charlies Manson, Charles Watson and the suggested unknown forewarnings of an eventual murder attempt on my life through similar circumstance. It was also there that a luxurious complex known as the Homeplace was being constructed. The below Synanon 1, II and III are Synanons own designation of its history (Deposition of Charles Dederich; People vs. Dederich; IRS vs. Synanon, Morantz Synanon archives), Dederich was born in Ohio in 1913. Fluid leaked into his spine causing a near fatal case of spinal meningitis. Founder of Synanon House for drug addicts Charles Dederich, Chuck Dederich stands by his new wife, Ginny, at Synanon branch in Marshall, California, Founder of Synanon House for drug addicts Charles Dederich (centre) and staff members during rehabilitation session, Drug addicts at Synanon House for rehabilitation, Donald Trump announces enhanced counter-narcotics crackdown on drug cartels amid the coronavirus crisis, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO). Convicted, rather than move as condition of probation he chose to go to jail. to have been involved in several criminal activities, such as the disappearance of Rose Lena Cole in late 1972, or early 1973. This made him a public hero and Governor Edmund Brown, Sr. signed a save Synanon bill giving Synanon an exemption from Health licensing laws. He had outsmarted Synanon and its team of lawyers. [26] Over 80 violent acts were committed, including mass beatings that hospitalized teenagers and ranchers who were beaten in front of their families. The Imperial Marines had caught and caged rattlesnakes in training (Wendall Stamps, Imperial Marine diary) and the snake was from Visalia (expert testimony, People vs. Dederich). Yes, it is all true. Teachers, lawyers, doctors, police, politicians, all got hooked, many forming an allegiance previously not matched in their lives to the group and trainers that trained them. [14], During its first decade, Synanon members entered into a 12-year program in three stages aimed at preparing members to reenter greater society. September 21, 1978 ex-member Phil Ritter, was severely beaten by two members, causing him to fall into a coma for a week. In lessons, children were taught how to fight the Holy War" to defend their leader. California donated a block long building in San Francisco. 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. The game was a session during which one member would talk about themselves and then endure intense criticism by their peers. (Robson) suggested blowing me away with a shotgun, Morantz said. On October 10, 1978, Morantz was bitten by a rattlesnake which had been placed in his Pacific Palisades home mailbox by two members of the Synanon Imperial Marines, Lance Kenton and Joe Musico. Synanon mobs attacked teenagers and youngsters who got too close to the property. A reference point for the rest of your life. Everyone was to cop-out (confess to past sins). Escape From Cielo Drive (A Tale of Three Charlies) 0 December 26, 2010. The cult required mandatory abortions and vasectomies for its members, and married couples would accept new partners selected by Synanon every three years. Lance Kenton was sentenced to a year in prison. Mitchell developed a deep throat in the Sheriff department, Art Disterheft. He decided to move to Santa Monica and become a beach bum. 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. If you do your best, you cant fail. (Tony Lang, Synanon, Morantz archives on Synanon). Later the flies (Dederich trained youngsters) took over the attack. On the wall was a lifesaver called the U.S. So did Synanon member Steve Simon in his Harvard dissertation (the danger of being a participant observer is that you may be converted). Much of the violence by Synanon had been carried out by a group within Synanon called the "Imperial Marines". Its a feeling of closeness to each other we are after, the death of the ego. Dederich said freedom to think to a dope addict was like a gun to a baby, and they wash dirty brains. All such notions Dederich declared were also a squeeze to get rotten fruit out of Synanon (those who will not obey). Dederich appeared at a press conference and declared the city had fallen into the hands of Mad Dogs and Synanon would sue them all. Fighting to stay awake, defenses wiped away, the unbroken broke and asked for forgiveness. Teeth were knocked out. 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. Trade players like stocks: https://codes.jockmkt.com/?utm_campaign=BAWS-A9EE Come%20join%20Jock%20MKT.%20Use%20my%20referral%20link:%20https://codes.jockmkt.. 81.169.224.1 The concept of "lifetime rehabilitation" did not agree with therapeutic norms, and it was alleged[by whom?] Brainwashing is powerful enough to cure drug addiction while members remain subject to it. 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.. Two members of a Synanon security force known as the "Imperial Marines," Lance Kenton and. Synanon organized groups called the "Imperial Marines" and the "National Guard," and called for "Holy War" against its enemies. With its sudden fame, by early 1964 Synanon had also become an alternative community, attracting people with its emphasis on living a self-examined life, as aided by group truth-telling sessions known as the Synanon Game. With its new wealth, they started building its first city in Marin County (Tomales Bay). Correcting Claire Clarks Recovery Revolution, Book Escape: My Life Long War Against Cults. ; They played the game in which anyone was allowed to say anything, true or not, to someone to cause an effect. In 1967, Synanon purchased the Club Casa del Mar, a large beachside hotel in Santa Monica, as its headquarters and a dormitory for those undergoing treatment for drug addiction. [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. 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