Seattle Mystic Alfred M. Hubbard: Inventor, Bootlegger and Psychedelic Pioneer

by Brad Holden, Don Lattin (Foreword by)

Overview

Seattle has a long tradition of being at the forefront of technological innovation. In 1919, an eager young inventor named Alfred M. Hubbard made his first newspaper appearance with the announcement of a perpetual motion machine that harnessed energy from Earth's atmosphere. From there, Hubbard transformed himself into a charlatan, bootlegger, radio pioneer, top-secret spy, millionaire and uranium entrepreneur. In 1953, after discovering the transformative effects of a little-known hallucinogenic compound, Hubbard would go on to become the "Johnny Appleseed of LSD," introducing the psychedelic to many of the era's vanguards and an entire generation. Join author and historian Brad Holden as he chronicles the fascinating life of one of Seattle's legendary figures.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467148061
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	07/26/2021
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Brad Holden is an author, historian and finder of old things. When not searching for local historical artifacts, he enjoys writing about Seattle's past. His work has appeared in Pacific Northwest Magazine, and he is a contributor for historylink.org. Holden has been profiled in Seattle Magazine, Seattle Refined and various newspapers. His previous book, Seattle Prohibition: Bootleggers, Rumrunners & Graft in the Queen City, was released to much critical acclaim in 2019. He lives in Edmonds, Washington.

Table of Contents

Foreword Don Lattin 9

Preface 13

Acknowledgements 17

Act I

1 The Wizard of Portage Bay 21

2 Bootlegging and the Birth of Seattle Radio 29

3 The Last Days of Agent Hubbard 45

4 Dayman Island 55

Act II

5 Tripping the '50s Fantastic 65

6 The Tail of the Universe 77

7 When the Genie Escapes 91

8 The Death and Legacy of Captain Trips 107

Afterword: Who Was the Real Alfred M. Hubbard? 115

Sources 133

About the Author 141

Editorial Reviews

"Through this wildly fascinating story of Al Hubbard, Holden details a huckster, dreamer and iconoclast who prototyped the next generation of eccentric Seattle tech entrepreneurs and lifestyle gurus. But Holden is getting at so much more here: a place, a time, a mentality that has gotten us to where we are today." - Thomas Kohnstamm, author of Lake City and Do Travel Writers Go to Hell?


"Seattle Mystic Alfred M. Hubbard tells the story of a young Seattle tech wizard who used radio technology to help Northwest bootleggers during Prohibition, then played a key role in introducing LSD to Silicon Valley. This biography of an incredible, eccentric life is truly a mindblower." - Knute Berger, editor, TV host and author of Pugetopolis: A Mossback Takes on Growth Addicts, Weather Wimps and the Myth of Seattle Nice


"This is a captivating history of one of America's most colorful characters—Al Hubbard. Holden dives into the larger-than-life history of a man whose past intersects with rumrunning, spy rings, police informants and psychedelics. Brilliantly told, Holden brings Hubbard's enigmatic character to life." - Erika Dyck, PhD, professor at the University of Saskatchewanand author of Psychedelic Psychiatry: LSD from Clinic to Campus


"An engaging biography about the mysterious Al Hubbard, who helped pioneer psychedelic therapy and is credited by Stan Grof with developing the model of the high-dose inner-directed session to catalyze a mystical experience." - Rick Doblin, PhD, founder and executive director of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS)


"This is the remarkable story of Captain Al Hubbard—inventor, con man, secret agent, uranium entrepreneur and indefatigable LSD apostle—who saw the light while high on psychedelics in the early 1950s and never looked back."- Martin A. Lee, author of Acid Dreams: The Complete Social History of LSD: The CIA, the Sixties, and Beyond


"When Brad Holden first stumbled on "Captain" Al Hubbard a few years ago, he found a crafty Seattle rumrunner who'd achieved national celebrity during Prohibition. But Holden soon discovered that Hubbard's second act—as one of the key, hidden figures behind the psychedelic revolution of the 1960s—would prove even more extraordinary. In this groundbreaking attempt to peel back the many layers of myth and mystery that surround Hubbard's early life as a boy genius, bootlegger and spy, Holden lays out the epic life of a uniquely American character, a trickster who danced across the national stage for almost a half century. Holden, a dogged archaeologist of urban artifact and lore, performs an invaluable service by pulling together this compellingly readable introduction to "The Captain"—a man whose late-in-life dream to change the world with psychedelics is still reverberating through the culture today." - Ken Dornstein, Emmy-winning producer of Long Strange Trip and author of The Boy Who Fell Out of the Sky: A True Story

From the Publisher