Dederich placed them in a 72 hour game (stew) and harangued them for not seeing his vision. There was The Witching Hour which featured a Ouija Board to be operated by Witches, two women in black and white robes. he rattlesnake lashed out too quickly for Morantz to react, and its fangs sank into his wrist. He would never bond with kids again, including his own until they became adults. By 1991 the community had essentially folded. Synanon is a US-founded social organization created by Charles E. "Chuck" Dederich Sr. in 1958 in Santa Monica, California, United States. The Point Reyes Light, a small-circulation weekly newspaper in Marin County, would later receive the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for their covering Synanon at a time when other news agencies avoided reporting. [7], Dederich eventually changed his way of thinking about Synanon and transformed it into something resembling a human progressive group. You may change your value system, notions about life and viewpoints about people. (Dederich tape: The Freebies are Over; Arizona vs. Home Place Inc., Morantz archives on Synanon. Beatings of Synanon's opponents and its ex-members, "splittees", occurred across California. Aids returned with smut obtained from the un-brokens spouses to use. More than 80 people had been attacked by Synanon, Morantz said. When the first Tripper, physically and emotionally exhausted, broke and wept it caromed to the others. Upon Synanons disobedience, 13 police vehicles surrounded the building and drew their weapons. These lawsuits ultimately turned out to be a large part of Synanon's undoing, by giving journalists access to Synanon's own internal documents. These changes led Synanon to its then certain fate. 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). 81.169.224.1 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). Declaring Synanon a religion (shades of L. Ron Hubbard! [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. Did Synanon save my life? [23] Morantz had successfully brought suit on behalf of people who were being held against their will by Synanon. A Synanon mob beat Gambini in front of his family. These are real threats", he snarled. Morantz and Synanon locked horns for 8 years. [15], Control over members occurred through the "Game". Morantz said: I had my first case in court involving them in June 1977. Six weeks later, the Los Angeles Police Department 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. Synanon Holy War file memos on beating). (Tony Lang, Synanon, Morantz archives on Synanon). Those who went to jail for Synanon were treated as heroes. 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. It can also make dangerous criminals out of good people, also subject to it. So, Lance Kenton and Joe Musico thought up this plan, and they went and found a rattlesnake," Aron said. Sternberg, David. For the film, see, Synanon's influence in the behavior-modification field. Synanon fought and lost the action on summary judgment based on their own admissions in their internal records. Former Synanon President Jack Hurst spoke out against Synanon and found his home door open and his dog hung. [21] Furthermore, for their first ninety days in the community, members were expected to cease contact with outside friends and family. 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. "But it wasn't too long before I knew it was true," Morantz says. Physically Dead. Morantzs name was mentioned in the tape along with threats to get the wives and children of adverse lawyers. Originally established as a drug rehabilitation 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. [22] During this practice, members were encouraged to be critical of everything, using harsh and profane language. The imprisonment made Dederich a public martyr. For other inquiries, Contact Us. Hollywood Park: A Memoir, by Mikel Jollett (founder of The Airborne Toxic Event) was published in May 2020 and describes Jollett's life in, and escape from Synanon. Dederich refused all suggestions. [14][22], The game turned into a 72-hour version and was admitted by Dederich to be brainwashing. They survived by begging stale food from catering trucks, hookers doing tricks and donations. Remain forever and they could build a Utopian world designed by Dederich. [25] Initially Synanon did not support violence; Dederich later changed the rules to allow for violence in order to maintain control. It no longer obeyed zoning rules, sympathetic donations reheated and Synanon soon became Santa Monicas largest land owner. Before the incident, Synanon investigator Chris Reynolds wrote a memo on Morantz, giving his home address to Synanon legal department. He had been litigating against the organization, getting children returned to their families, giving information to the media, lobbying against a Synanon bill and fighting to expose its hit squad to law enforcement. Synanon emphasized tough love and a cold turkey approach to rehabilitation for substance abusers. In 1974 Synanon declared itself a religion and centered on middle-class searching for utopia rather than addict curing. The organization developed a business that sold promotional items, a successful enterprise that eventually generated roughly $10 million per year of revenue. The original name was The Tender Loving Care Club. Dederich was arrested while drunk on December 2, 1978. Hang Tough and Dederich pulled on everyone to stay, promising that a great future would emerge. When members kicked and their shakes disappeared many were told their problems were they still loved their mothers and were given suggested mates for holding power. This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. Mr. Dederich even kept an elite squad of enforcers that he called the Imperial Marines. Outsiders were permitted to attend the "Synanon Game" there as well. 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. The program was based on testimony of fellow group members about their tribulations and urges of relapsing, and their journeys to recovery. He studied on his own in a library and his AA speeches changed from typical religious overtones to a psychological/philosophy slant. Synanons ultimate biggest critic was Dederich himself. Males were forced in games to have vasectomies performed by Synanon doctors, and a few pregnant women were even required to have an abortion. The 1984 TV movie Attack on Fear, directed by Mel Damski, written by T.S. Legal problems continued, despite this change. [14], During its first decade, Synanon members entered into a 12-year program in three stages aimed at preparing members to reenter greater society. Dederich was arrested for operating in Santa Monica without a health license and out of zone. The new drug rehabs that came afterwards followed the advice of Dr. Dan Casriel who wrote the first book on Synanon. 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.. The founder, Charles Dederich, a recovering alcoholic. It is currently active in Germany. As these juveniles did not want to be there, Synanon methods failed. He had outsmarted Synanon and its team of lawyers. So did Synanon member Steve Simon in his Harvard dissertation (the danger of being a participant observer is that you may be converted). While his associates went to jail, Dederich avoided imprisonment by pleading no contest to conspiracy to commit murder, agreeing as part of probation to formally step down as Chairman of Synanon and agreed to have nothing to do with running Synanon. California donated a block long building in San Francisco. (Freidenber, Nation 1965). "The Social Development of the Synanon Cult". LOS ANGELES -- Thirteen past and present members of Synanon, the controversial drug and alcohol rehabilitation organization, surrendered in court Tuesday on two secret indictments charging them. (Dederich, Childbirth Unmasked.) The Imperial Marines was Synanon's private fighting force, trained inside the organization and heavily armed. In not too long of a time, Synanon commenced training the Imperial Marines in Depot Flats in the Badger Mountains and then attacked over 40 people (some attacks were before Marines trainedDederich, New Religious Posture, Dont Fuck with Synanon. Restaurants near Hotel Imperial, Amsterdam on Tripadvisor: Find traveler reviews and candid photos of dining near Hotel Imperial in Amsterdam, North Holland Province. Dederich appeared at a press conference and declared the city had fallen into the hands of Mad Dogs and Synanon would sue them all. (People vs. Dederich; Arrest report on Charles Dederich; IRS vs. Synanon). After several inquiries into their practices and financial holdings, Board of Directors passed declaration which made Synanon . It was first offered to the selected few as an honor, but the entire population was eventually targeted. Synanon is mentioned in Joan Didion's 1979 essay The White Album. CEDU's schools used the confrontation model of Synanon. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. that the Synanon group was running an unauthorized medical clinic. 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. [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. Several of the famous jazz musicians credited with cure returned to drugs. 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. This bankrupted Synanon, which formally dissolved in 1991. Synanon became a Third sector within United States borders, seeking to have its Embassy in Washington, D.C. 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. ( stew ) and harangued them for not seeing his vision including his own until became! I had my first case in court involving them in June 1977 women in and! Of thinking about Synanon and found his home address to Synanon legal department action on summary based. 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