Ken Kesey, writer, author of 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest', and Merry Prankster. Founder of the sixties, 'Acid Test', 'Can you pass the 'Acid Test'? LBJ, Lyndon Baines Johnson, our beloved sixties president. He stepped on his dick when he got us waist deep into the Vietnam War, then bailed out as president when the poop got so deep, you needed wings to stay above it. God bless the 'Draftee', that was old enough to be shipped to Vietnam, but not old enough to vote on who would send you to Vietnam. Lee Harvey Oswald, remember him, he shot JFK, he we was trained to shoot by the U.S. Marines, he acted alone, he was shot dead by Jack Ruby. Tim Leary, Harvard professor that advocated the use of LSD. His mantra was 'Tune In, Turn On, and Drop Out‘. After years of introspection, Leary finally admitted that he was a flake. He's dead, Leary died on the Internet, died of cancer, and bandwidth. Jack Kerouac, and Neal Cassady, beatniks, pals, writers. Kerouac's book, 'On The Road', became the bible of the Sixties Counterculture. It's a tale of wanderlust wanderings, Neal Cassady is the protagonist in the book, and his character name was Dean Moriarity. Before the sixties were over, Kerouac would drink himself to death and Cassady, dead before the decade was up. Cowboy Neal at the wheel on the bus to never never land, Neal Cassady hangs out with the Grateful Dead, and Kesey's mob of Merry Pranksters. Drugs and drink would fill his cup until he died of excess in Mexico. Charlie Manson killed the Sixties. The Manson Family would plant dead flowers, not flower power. The Manson murders would put an ending face of evil, and failure to the notion that the sixties counterculture would somehow evolve into a better way of life of peace, love, dope, drugs, and communal living.

Ken Kesey, born September 17, 1935 in La Junta, Colorado.

In 1956, while living in Springfield, Oregon, he meets and marries, Faye Haxby. They will go on to have three children, Jed, Zane, and Shannon. Note: Kesey would also father a child named Sunshine, born by Prankster Carolyn Adams, aka ‘Mountain Girl’.

While attending college at the University of Oregon, Kesey excels not only in scholastics, but athletics. He was an AAU Champion Wrestler, and gets his degree in 1957 which included receiving a fellowship award to participate in a creative writing program at Stanford University. While at Stanford, Kesey begins journaling what would become his acclaimed novel, 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.' Much of the novel is based on his experience 'moonlighting' as a janitor at a local VA Hospital in the psychiatric ward, and interacting with some of the patients while high on various hallucinogens. Kesey was introduced to these drugs when he volunteered for a CIA sponsored experiment on the effects of various psychoactive drugs which was conducted at the same VA Hospital.

In 1962, 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' is completed, and Kesey meets legendary beatnik, Neal Cassady. Note: The character , Dean Moriarity, and protagonist for the book, 'On The Road' was based on Neal Cassady, long time friend of famed beat writer, Jack Kerouac.In 1964, Kesey buys a 1939 International Harvester school bus (named 'Furthur' by Kesey and the Pranksters) while living in the mountain enclave of La Honda which is just south of San Francisco. It is here that Kesey begins throwing wild LSD parties where the participants are not only his bohemian friends from Stanford, but the Hells Angels as well. By now, Kesey has met the Grateful Dead which provides the musical backdrops to his parties, and ’Acid Tests‘. The bus is painted in wild psychedelic color, and design, and a road trip to New York is planned coinciding with the publication of his second novel, 'Sometimes a Great Notion'. The group assembled for this cross country trip, call themselves, 'The Merry Pranksters', with Neal Cassady assigned as the driver of the bus. When the Pranksters finally make it to New York, Cassady brings Kesey along for a visit with Jack Kerouac. Kerouac, at this stage of his life is in a state of depression that is worsened by his increased alcohol abuse, and is visibly bitter when he sees his old pal following the tutelage of Kesey and the Pranksters. Onward the bus travels to Millbrook in upstate New York to visit fellow psychedelic meteor, Tim Leary, then back to California. The entire trip was filmed by the Pranksters, in hopes that Kesey, some day, would make an epic film about the trip.

In 1966, Kesey is busted for possession of marijuana. In an attempt to avoid legal prosecution, he fakes his suicide, and sneaks into Mexico. After months on the run, he gets word from fellow prankster, Carolyn Adams (aka Mountain Girl), that the jig is up, the cops are on to him. Kesey proceeds to sneak back into the United States, appears at an Acid Test, and taunts the prosecuting judge for calling him a 'Tarnished Galahad'. Kesey is finally brought to justice, and serves a five month prison sentence in San Mateo, Ca.

After this riotous period in the Sixties, Kesey bought a farm in Oregon, and had an epiphany when some hippies nearly burned down his barn when he gave them a place to sleep one night. He finally realized there was a difference between enlightenment, and irresponsibility. In the 70's,'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest' would be made into a movie, and garnish five academy awards. The movie was bitter sweet for Kesey, he disliked the script, and wanted Gene Hackman to play the part of Randall Patrick McMurphy instead of Jack Nicholson. He got minimal accolades, and claimed he never watched the movie. 'Sometimes a Great Notion' would also be made into a movie starring Paul Newman, and Kesey continued to write, producing 'Kesey's Garage Sale', along with other short stories, and articles.

In 1984, Kesey would suffer major heart break when his son, Jed, was killed while on route to a college wrestling match. Jed was a wrestler for the University of Oregon, and the van that was provided by the university for transportation was poorly maintained, bald tires were attributed to the fatal crash. Onward into the 90's, Kesey produced a musical play called 'Twister' that toured with 'Pranksters' as the performing thespians. Also, Kesey splashed and noodled his art on the internet, at his site Intrepid Trips. (www.intrepidtrips.com)

Ken Kesey died on November 10, 2001. Stomach pains had sent him to the doctor, and an isolated amount of cancer was found on his liver. Surgery seemed successful but while resting in recovery, his heart inexplicably stopped beating. He was buried on his farm next to his son, Jed. His good pal, and fellow Prankster, Ken Babbs, recounted how he dug 43 shovels of dirt while digging his grave. He had had known him for 43 years, 43 fast, friendly, never to be forgotten years. Good old Ken Kesey, no strings, no hustle, he was giving, you were getting. Get it?

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Ken Kesey ‘Audio Blurb’

Ken Kesey - ‘Father Guido Sarduci’

Circa, sometime in the 80’s, New Years Eve. The Grateful Dead are about to begin their annual New Years Eve concert, at Midnight, in the Oakland Coliseum. Ken Kesey, is being interviewed by Don Novello, aka ‘Father Guido Sarduci’. As the clock ticks down to Midnight, rock promoter, Bill Graham is being wheeled into the Coliseum atop a float, Graham is dressed as ‘Father Time’. Listen to Kesey go off like a ‘roman candle’, musta been something in the water, eh Ken? But then again what do you expect from the Prankster some called ‘Senor Taco Loco’. ( ha ha)

( Ken, are you ok? )

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