October 11, 2024 • 40 mins
Tomales Bay, CA | What if the very institutions meant to rehabilitate and guide are the ones causing the most harm? Amidst egregious human rights abuses - mass sterilizations, institutionalized child abuse, violent threats and assaults on its critics - Synanon continues to get recognition from community leaders and tax dollars throughout most of the 1970s. What’s more shocking than that? Its many abusive practices are still very much alive today in the in the troubled teen industry.
But there are actions you can take to help change that. Visit stopinstitutionalchildabuse.com and unsilenced.org for resources and how you can help.
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Our top sources for this episode include:
-Katherine, Kubler (Director/Executive Producer). (2024). The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping. https://www.netflix.com/title/81579761
-The Sunshine Place (2022). [Audio podcast]. Executive Produced by Robert Downey Jr., Susan Downey, and Emily Barclay Ford for Team Downey, together with Josh McLaughlin for Wink Pictures. https://www.audacy.com/podcast/all.
-Janzen, R. (2001). The Rise and Fall of Synanon: A California Utopia. Johns Hopkins University Press.
-That’s So Fcked Up (2024, April 17). TRENDING TOPIC: Synanon- Drug Rehab Turned Dangerous Cult [Audio podcast episode]. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thats-so-fcked-up/id1508752329?i=1000652758034
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Previously, we saw Synanon, initially a drug
rehabilitation program,transform into a commune where
most of the members weren't evenformer drug addicts, With
members verbally tearing eachother apart in organized
sessions they called therapy.
It's no wonder the story willnot turn out well, and while you
will be shocked and appalled atthe details we will share with
(00:22):
you, you might still think thatthat wouldn't happen today.
But you would be wrong, becausethe core practices of Synanon
are very much alive and welltoday, and their targets are
underage kids.
This is Dark City Season 1, LosAngeles.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
I wanted to tell you about this new show that my
husband and I started watching.
What is it called From?
Speaker 1 (00:49):
It's called From All right, have you heard of it?
Okay, no.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
Did you ever watch Lost?
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Okay, did I watch Lost?
I thought you did.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
I may not have seen Mission Impossible or Jurassic
Park, but I watched Lost.
Sorry, guys, before we hoppedon here we talked about all the
famous movies literallyeverybody has seen except for
myself.
It's shameful.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Anyways, so do you remember?
I think his character wasMichael in Lost?
He had the little boy.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
Oh yeah.
Yeah, he was super annoying,but that was a really cute kid,
okay.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
Um, so anyways, he's the main character in this TV
show.
Well, one of the maincharacters in this TV show.
You know, I was sick lastweekend and I had my super long
nap on Saturday.
I woke up and my husband's likelook, there's this new show and
(01:51):
I'm two episodes in.
We have to watch it becauseit's going off of.
It was on Amazon prime.
It's going off of prime like bythe end of the weekend.
And I was like oh my God, okayby the end of the weekend.
And I was like oh my God, okay.
So the premise is like thisfamily's driving in their RV,
(02:12):
they're going on vacation andthey're driving down the road
and they get to this point inthe road where there's a fallen
tree in front of them andthey're like, well, crap, we got
to turn back.
So they turn back and it liketakes them into this town.
There's no way out of the town.
You either, I think, go back tothe tree or you go back in the
town and that's it.
Did you ever see wayward pines?
Speaker 1 (02:34):
no, I mean, it's just like a supernatural thing going
on kind of yeah it's like it'snot the road, because the road
reroutes you to something else.
Yes, yeah, okay.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah.
And so they get into this townand they're like look, this
sounds, you know, crazy, but youhave to come inside at night
because there are things outthere that will get us If, if
you don't, they'll kill.
You Are like are they vampires,are they zombies?
Whatever they are, like youcan't let them in, but they're
(03:05):
like outside the window and theylook like people and they'll
like say things to mess withyour mind, to like trick you
into letting them in.
Ew, it's like super creepy.
And they're like kind of likelost.
They're trying to figure thingsout and why are things the way
they are and how do we get outof here?
And like also, how do wesurvive in this community with
(03:29):
all these different people?
Speaker 1 (03:31):
and that sounds like a really cool premise.
I don't know if I can watchmore dark stuff, although it's
spooky month so it's kind ofobligatory, but we'll get into
it.
With Synanon I probably watchedlike eight hours of documentary
, maybe four hours of podcast,like plus reading the book and a
(03:51):
whole host of articles and it'sdepressing.
And then I have to bring thisup too.
I also just read the book theSecret History by Donna Tartt.
She wrote the Goldfinch.
That's how you would know her itis, so it's so good.
(04:12):
There's critiques about howit's unnecessarily long in parts
, among other things, but I justthink she's such an amazing
author.
The characters were incrediblywell-developed and it starts in
the fall, so like it really gotme into this fall mood that was
subsequently spoiled by our youknow, 95 degree plus heat wave
going on for the next week.
(04:33):
Oh yeah, it's like 112 here,but you're in Phoenix.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
I know.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
It'd be a premium to avoid that.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
Well, you're 95 instead of 112.
With humidity, it's actuallynot even that much more humid.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
Okay, yeah, but it just goes into like the
description of the seasons tooand the backdrop the winter
break in the book, described asthe coldest winter on record in
like something 25, 30 yearsvermont history, and I literally
felt like I was freezing andhaving pneumonia with this
(05:08):
character.
It was that vivid and it's sucha dark book in general, but
it's one of those things whenyou you listen to it, it just
gets under your skin and staysthere for a really long time.
Yeah, that's how it was, somaybe some Derry girls what we
do in the shadows, that's funny.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Oh yes.
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Halloween vibey, yeah , yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
Selling Sunset.
The latest season is out.
You could you know.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
Oh, that's the whole other level of scary I'm not
prepared to deal with.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
I think, oh it's super.
Well, there's a lot of drama,but it's like you get to see
these amazing houses and you getattached to, like some of the
main.
You know people on the show.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
I don't know, I haven't seen it.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
That's my guilty pleasure.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
I love selling sunset , I might be judging you a
little.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Let's talk about all those movies you haven't seen.
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Let's pass, all right .
Well, let's get into thisepisode.
Okay, guys, this is a reallyrough one.
There's really just no wayaround it.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
So first we're gonna do a little bit of a recap.
In the mid to late 1960s, chuckmade two dramatic changes to
Synanon.
First was the Squares, orLifestylers.
They were the individuals whodidn't have an addiction to kick
but just wanted to live in theSynanon community.
They are allowed to join.
(06:37):
For those joining to overcomeheroin addiction, chuck declares
actually there is no graduation.
You have to live herepermanently, otherwise you'll
get back into heroin and you'lldie.
That's the second one.
Each of these changes led to amajor exodus of members.
By the 1970s very few people inSynanon were former heroin
(07:03):
addicts.
Plus, one more key decision ledto another wave of departures.
From the very beginning, peoplewere allowed to smoke in
Synanon for free.
Synanon bought cigarettes forits members and Chuck was
smoking three packs a day.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
When he quit.
So much for addiction, I knowright.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
When he quit in 1970, he decided to ban smoking
completely.
Obviously, you know this isbetter for your health, but it
was also good for the bottomline.
According to an LA Magazinearticle, synanon spent $250,000
(07:45):
a year on cigarettes and a lotof people left with this change.
Speaker 1 (07:50):
This is obviously, in the grand scheme of things, a
really good change that Chuckmakes and then he asks the rest
of the community to make.
It's also going to establish apattern that is going to get
more and more outrageous throughtime, where Chuck says what's
good for me is good for the restof the communities.
This is like the last, one ofthe last stops of sanity before
(08:11):
we go into the deep end here.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Yes, and I feel like gosh with almost any cult.
Every time the leader decidesto change their mind, there's
new rules that everybody has toabide by.
In its first decade, synanonexpanded to additional cities.
One of these areas was TomalesBay in Marin County.
To give you a sense of wherethis is geographically, marin
(08:36):
County is on the other side ofthe Golden Gate Bridge from San
Francisco.
Tomales Bay is about 40 milesnorth of San Francisco.
Chuck decided to permanentlymove to Tomales Bay to make it
Synanon's headquarters in 1967.
Chuck thought that this wouldbe the best location to run his
(08:57):
social experiments.
It's a very rural area, so theydon't have eyes and ears all
over the place like they did inSanta Monica.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
So we're moving away from Los Angeles basically for
all of part two.
Right, I'm also kind of amazednobody's called us out so far,
even though our season is seasonone Los Angeles.
It's like season one Los Angelesand other cities close by.
Well, we mean like Los Angelesroughly, other cities close by.
I mean like Los Angeles roughlyBecause they were technically I
mean, they were based in SantaMonica on the beach.
(09:31):
But I mean, but also to likeinteresting though, because like
it was always rotten at thecore and that rot was present in
Santa Monica and everybody'slike, oh, yeah, it's fine that
they're sitting in groups andyelling at each other and, yeah,
tearing each other apart.
You know nothing to see here.
They're treating people.
But this is again where I justthink these abuses that kept
(09:54):
escalating and escalating.
It's like, well, the culturewas always horrifically awful
from the beginning, so, yeah, itdid help pave the way to toxic
culture.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Remember.
The one rule, though, when themembers played the game is no
physical violence.
That ends in 1973.
So here we go.
We're changing the rules again.
When, according to a formerSynanon member, phil Ritter,
chuck was playing the game withthe woman that Phil describes as
the type of person that justwill not let go once they think
(10:28):
they have something on you.
In this particular game, shewas really going after Chuck.
Chuck got so angry he walkedacross the room and poured root
beer over her head, and when Ifirst when I first was was like
reading about this part, I waslike, oh my God, what is he
(10:50):
going to do?
I thought he was going to likeknock her out or something, and
so root beer.
I was like, oh okay, that's notthat bad.
I was, I don't know.
I'd like built it up, I think,in my head.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
Yeah, he'll get worse , don't you worry.
But yeah, for now it's justchildish and also awful.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
Yeah.
So here's a quote from Chuck,kind of debriefing, after the
incident happened.
He said when you try topractice democracy, you get an
animal like that pure, halfcured, drunk, that menopausal
(11:30):
goddamn fool that was talkingwhen she should have been
listening.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
I mean, it's executive presence at its finest
, Lord.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Seriously, I just yeah, let that soak in for a
minute.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
This is why like this is who's?
Speaker 2 (11:43):
leading them.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
I know, and for the people who still like are like
the game was really liberatingreally.
Let me read you let me read youa few quotes.
I think you might need sometherapy from the game.
That was like if you felt likethat was liberating.
Something's gone wrongsomewhere.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
So after this he decides physical violence is the
policy as long as it works forthem and it's like feasible.
So it's just basically like ifhe deems it OK, it's OK.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
Yeah, so basically, physical violence is not banned
anymore.
It's the punchline.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
Here we go.
Like we're starting in again.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
Now, in regard to the woman he poured his root beer
on, chuck said that if his wifeBetty had not let her out of the
room, he would have thrown herout the window.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Which is much worse than the root beer.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
Correct.
Let's talk about Betty, becauseI don't think we've mentioned
this before.
Betty is Chuck's wife.
As I mentioned, it's his thirdwife.
She joined Synanon because ofher heroin addiction.
She was one of the earlymembers of the program.
She was also a former sexworker.
You know, from the perspectiveof treating her addiction,
(13:04):
getting away from that old life,she did really turn her life
around.
She is very well liked by thegroup and described as having a
very calming presence.
If someone got really upsetduring the game, she would be
the person to follow them outand make sure they were calmed
down and brought back into thefold.
The role Betty played in Synodonis a really common role in
(13:25):
cults.
There needs to be.
There's probably an officialterm, I just haven't come across
it.
I think of it as like Kool-Aidsweeteners.
They are like this calmingpresence, this balm that tempers
the cult leader and can makethem seem, you know, not that
bad.
I mean, she's nice and she'smarried to him.
But they become like thisemotional anchor for members and
(13:47):
they provide a sense ofnurturing and, you know, frankly
, cleanup crew on the leader.
They create a complex web ofloyalty where members might not
stay for the leader but for thewarmth and understanding
projected by this key figure.
Now they're not the face ofauthority, but they become an
indispensable part of the cult'spower structure.
(14:08):
I think it's interesting howtheir gentleness paradoxically
reinforces the very system theyseem to temper when you see the
vow.
You still have not seen the vow, have you I?
Speaker 2 (14:20):
have not.
Speaker 1 (14:21):
The NXIVM cult.
Everybody needs to see the vowbecause it's so good and so
crazy.
So good and so crazy.
The leader, keith Raniere.
He would have never.
He would never have had not thenumber of victims and the
severity of abuses that werecommitted if he hadn't had these
wing women who were surroundinghim the entire time, helping to
(14:43):
attract other attractive womenand bringing him in.
Yeah, you've got to see it, butit's like this Betty character
is like that they are.
I know cult mind control iscomplex, but I feel like there
is a level of guilt though thatthey have for making the damage
and dangerM case they made dealswith some of these women and
(15:03):
they got off on such lightsentences and it was like oh,
you know, they were all undercult influence and I definitely
can see that.
I can see that to a certainextent.
Betty, I think I think she was,she was just, she was such an
(15:25):
enabler.
I don't think she was aninnocent bystander at all.
And now we get to the part ofthe story I'm dreading the most,
and that is talking about thekids in Synanon.
Now, remember, it's communalparenting.
After your baby is six monthsold, biological mom and dad
don't see their children verymuch.
(15:47):
You're sort of turned over tothe responsibility of the group
because Chuck believes it'sunnatural to put such a priority
on your own child.
Now the repeal on the ban onviolence of course means you
have what essentially ends upamounting to institutionalized
child abuse.
(16:07):
Now, even before this, kidsparticipated in the game, which
is absolutely a form ofpsychological abuse, but now you
add in the physical abuse too.
There are so many examples,it's heartbreaking.
I can't stomach recounting allof, but just like to give an
example.
There was an instance of a kidthat didn't do their chores and
(16:27):
they were slapped and punched bymultiple other kids in front of
a whole group.
Oh my gosh, kids would try torun away from the group,
understandably, and if they werecaught they were severely beat
in front of the group.
We have a really harrowingstory about this coming up soon.
One of the kids that was inSynanon, at least until the age
(16:47):
of six, cassidy Arkin, is now adocumentary producer and
director.
She documented her experienceand reflection on Synanon in a
series called Born in Synanon.
When I started to watch thisand I saw a lot of the same cast
of characters I saw on theSynanon fix, which is what I
watched first, I rememberthinking I don't think I can
(17:09):
listen to these people talkagain about oh, this happened
with you know.
Little to no emotion.
Cassidy, like it's really clearat the very beginning, she's
still idealizing this group andshe still really loved her
experience.
She does bring in RichardOffshe, a sociologist.
He was a professor at Berkeley,might still be one of the
(17:32):
collaborators on a book calledthe Light on Synanon, and when
she tells him in the interviewthat she's filming, you know she
loved it, she had a greatexperience.
He challenges her and he tellsher look, talk to your friends
who lived through it and see ifthey feel the same.
Your impression of the group isfrom ages zero to six.
You're looking at it through achild's eye and she does do that
(17:56):
.
She really does invite herfriends and contacts that were
children and they tell her about.
Yeah, this was a really messedup experience, but one crucial
difference is that Cassidy's momsaw her more frequently than a
lot of these other kids.
Parents didn't, it probablylike, provided a little bit of
an oversight that those otherkids didn't get.
(18:18):
Finanon also created what theycalled the punk squad.
This was a boot camp for kidsthat had behavioral problems.
The abuses of the kids in thissquad are just horrific.
Again, cannot stomachrecounting all of them, but they
were full-on beat up by adults.
One of the members of Synanonrecounted in one of the
(18:42):
documentaries.
One of the first members of thesquad later in adulthood tried
therapy to recover from thetrauma and ultimately decided to
kill himself and overdosed onheroin.
Oh, that's so sad.
Juvenile agencies and theCalifornia court systems
continue to send teenagerslabeled juvenile delinquents to
synonyms.
Quote re-education campthroughout the 1970s.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Gosh, did they not have any oversight at this point
?
Gosh, did they not have anyoversight at?
Speaker 1 (19:11):
this point I mean, if they did, it was a joke, like I
said, still goes on today.
I'll talk about it Now.
One of the sit-in on members,buddy Jones.
He was one of the leaders.
He said, quote I didn't abusekids.
I wouldn't abuse a child.
(19:35):
The older I get I don't trulyknow if that's the right way to
treat kids, but I don't see aswat on the butt as a big deal.
Now a Synodon member, marshallCarter, had noted yeah, he
whacked me around a lot, but hedid say like he did seem to know
where the line was, but othersdidn't.
I don't think any of thesepeople know where the line is.
Buddy had a paddle, he calledhis assistant and okay, you're
(19:58):
on these documentaries decadeslater and you're still not sure
if what you did is child abuse.
Let's do a little palatecleanser.
I have to share this example ofdeep thoughts with Chuck
Diedrich.
Chuck loved to share his angryramblings of an asshole he
thought was genius philosophy inperson and over the wire, which
(20:18):
is Synanon's radio station,broadcasting all throughout
their locations.
He also made special tapes,broad jams and notes in the rise
and fall of Synanon.
A popular Synanon tape wasNaked Ape, where Chuck tells the
story of two hitchhikers whohad jumped onto the back of a
truck that was traveling at highspeed carrying a coffin.
(20:39):
When the coffin came open enroute and a hand was extended,
the frightened hitchhikersjumped over the side of the
truck and one died instantly.
It turned out that the handbelonged to sorry, I'm going to
have to keep a straight face.
The hand belonged to anemployee who was taking a nap
(20:59):
inside the coffin.
Diedrich used the story todemonstrate that reality is
sometimes deceptive, that theeyes may deceive the brain
sometimes deceptive that theeyes may deceive the brain.
I don't know what to say to that.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
That is the most random ass parable, I mean.
Okay, sometimes my eyes deceiveme in the dark as well.
Okay, sinanon had a practicewhere they would make people who
broke certain rules shave theirheads.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
I mean already right there, I'm out.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Yes, in 1974, everyone started shaving their
heads men, women, children.
So there are conflictingstories on how this practice
came about.
The one that seems maybe themost probable is this one
Synanon was redesigning aprefabricated building and the
(22:01):
architect decided not to removea beam that was about five foot
six feet high on a new mezzaninelevel.
The architect said people couldjust duck under it.
This comment royally ticked offChuck, who declared that anyone
who'd hire such idiots shouldhave their head shaved.
One guy took this literally andshaved his head.
(22:24):
I don't, I don't see the logic.
I I personally, would be like Idon't see the logic.
I personally would be like no,I'm good, I'm just going to sit
like this, I'm going to be themost boring person in the game
and I'm going to keep my hair.
Sometimes they went on extremediets too.
(22:44):
When Betty was diagnosed withdiabetes, there was a ban on
sugar.
Chuck held a fat-a-thon.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
That's a great name, so inspiring.
I don't feel insulted at all.
I feel really great aboutmyself, yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Shaming and punishments were intense if
people did not drop a set amountof weight.
Once life got really bad forthe kids, a number of them tried
to escape Synanon, which goodfor them.
One of the families that livedby Synanon's property, the
Gambaninis, started getting kidsshowing up in the middle of the
(23:21):
night.
Alvin Gambanini, who is a thirdgeneration cattle rancher,
tries to help however he can.
He would take them to the busstop and give them money so they
could go home.
The Synanon community figuresthis out.
One night in the summer of 1975,alvin drives up in his truck
with his wife and his three kidsand they're going to go check
(23:44):
on their neighbor's kid whilethe parents are out of town.
This neighbor lives on aproperty that also borders
Synanon.
All of a sudden a bunch of carsfilled with Synanon members
pull up.
30 people swarm the vehicle.
They're throwing punches atAlvin.
They're trying to pull him outof the vehicle.
Alvin's son, robert,miraculously gets out of the
(24:05):
vehicle and runs to theneighbor's house to get help.
Alvin has severe injuries tohis head but amazingly they all
get out of the situation alive.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
And I thought I read too that they'd even push their
car into a ditch.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So the fact that they were able to escape is just and
can you imagine his other kidswere in the car like how
terrifying watching this happento your parent and feeling like
people are trying to get you.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
oh my gosh and you have a mob of people doing this.
You know, not one person inthis mob is like Maybe this is
completely messed up, right?
Speaker 2 (24:46):
Yeah, we're still a few years away from any real
accountability for Chuck and theviolent group that he's now
cultivated.
In the fall of 1976, chuck andBetty got a personal invitation
to meet with Governor JerryBrown.
Betty gets invited to become amember of the California State
(25:09):
Youth Authority's Board ofDirectors.
1976 is also a year that Chuckdecides kids are a bad
investment and there will be nomore babies born in Synanon.
Men get vasectomies and a fewwomen who are pregnant get
abortions and a few women whoare pregnant get abortions.
One of the members of Synanon,phil Ritter, is extremely upset
(25:37):
by this and goes to the sherifffor help.
The sheriff calls Synanon andhe says he has one of their
crazies over here.
Synanon forces Phil to move out, but his wife and children
remain in Synanon, and after heleft Synanon the organization
severely limited how much hecould see his daughter, which is
kind of heartbreaking.
He tries to contest this.
(25:57):
A group goes to his house andbeats him with wooden mallets
and then I mean he lived,fortunately.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
But it's just all out insanity Forced sterilizations
attacking innocent people.
Synanon cannot completelyescape some attention and
questions and challenges fromthe government and the media.
When they reached astonishinglylow numbers of community
(26:27):
members that had drug addiction,the government questioned their
nonprofit status.
So Chuck was like that's easy,we're now a religion.
Now I don't have to answersilly questions like quote when
do they graduate?
And quote why do they have toobey?
He says nobody graduates from areligion or a cult or that.
(26:49):
And when do they graduate?
It's called, I don't know,basic accountability and is what
you're doing even worthwhile,chuck?
Yeah, in 1973, there was a grandjury investigation into
allegations of fiscalimpropriety and child abuse
which piqued the interest oflocal newspaper publishers, dave
and Kathy Mitchell.
(27:10):
They ran an investigativeseries through the early 1980s.
Their publication point raisedlight.
They even collaborated with theBerkeley sociologist I
mentioned earlier from Cassidy'sdocumentary, richard Offsheet,
and eventually they won thePulitzer Prize for the series in
their paper oh my gosh.
Which is why, guys, localjournalism is so important.
(27:31):
This was incredibly brave forsuch a small publication,
considering Synanod went afterany publication that challenged
them.
In 1972, the San FranciscoExaminer published an article
that calls them the biggestracket of the 20th century.
Now they do make good points,as they are not focused on drug
(27:51):
addiction treatment anymore andthey do fundraise under false
pretenses.
But some of the accusations dogo a little too far.
Plus, it does causereputational damage.
Synanon successfully sued thepaper for $600,000.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
It's more than two years worth of cigarettes Go
ahead.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
Sorry, it is also the largest libel lawsuit awarded
in US history.
Speaker 2 (28:17):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
Chuck pockets half of that and then he distributes
the remaining half $10,000 eachto 30 of the most tenured
members of Synanon.
Synanon becomes concerned withpotential outsiders attacking
members of their community,which isn't unfounded, because
there are instances of outsidersthreatening members, threats of
(28:38):
potential physical violence,and remember, this is a rural
community in Tomales Bay.
They're not assured protectionfrom the police department.
So Chuck organizes his ownprivate security force called
the Imperial Marines Aprosecutor would later describe
it as a quote combat-readyparamilitary unit trained in
martial arts, weapons,high-speed automobile chases and
(29:01):
the like.
They spend about $60,000 onguns and ammunition, which is
over $300,000 in today's dollars, which was the largest single
firearms purchase in Californiahistory.
The group, by the way, activemembership was always like
somewhere between 1,300 and1,700 people.
Another screwed up thing Chuckdoes his wife Betty dies of
(29:24):
cancer in 1977.
Being on the market, heliterally says I'm taking
applications to be my wife.
Six women apply.
He picks one.
Oh no.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
One who's in her, it just gets worse and worse and
worse.
Speaker 1 (29:38):
Go ahead.
He picks one that's in herearly 30s, he's in his mid-60s
Honestly, who cares?
Because, more importantly, heorders everyone to get divorced.
What?
Literally a mass divorce.
And also, guys, you've got toswitch partners every three
(29:59):
years.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Oh, here it comes Like first it's, you know,
attract everybody in with thesereally fun parties.
That's how it always is.
Speaker 1 (30:10):
You start doing this in and on dance.
Next thing you know you'reshaving your head and getting
divorced and getting vasectomies, I mean, and a new partner
every three years.
Speaker 2 (30:19):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
All right, Not all organizations that have dances
do this.
Also, not all organizations doattack therapy either.
So you know.
Also, Chuck decides to startdrinking again.
He's become a full alcoholicand everyone else can drink too,
so they have an open bar, whichis really great.
When you think about theammunition stockpile, oh no.
(30:42):
And that's also really awesomefor the former addicts, who also
have hep C and some die.
And that's also really awesomefor the former addicts who also
have hep C and some die, oh gosh.
The inventory of human rightsabuses committed by Synanon
continues to grow and there aremore challenges.
The attorney, Paul Marantz,especially, goes on a crusade to
bring down this organization.
(31:03):
He wins a $300,000 award forhis client, Francis Wynn, on
charges of kidnapping,brainwashing and torture when
they tried to keep her fromleaving the program.
When they found her she was justwalking on the beach.
They brought her over to theprogram and then just tried to
(31:23):
keep her.
How did she get out, do youknow?
Well, the lawyer intervened andI don't know all the details,
but imagine it wasn't astraightforward process.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Oh my gosh, that's awful.
Speaker 1 (31:36):
Now Paul Morantz in general, is going after Synanon,
and he's got clients, formerSynanon members, which means
he's living his life in fearbecause they are.
He is getting a lot of threats.
He has to carry a gun, he hasto check under his car for car
bombs, but the attack ultimatelycomes in a form you would least
(31:56):
expect.
One day he gets an irregularlyshaped package that looks like
it could be a scarf in the mail,so he opens it, but what he
finds is a four and a half footrattlesnake that bites him right
away.
He lives, he lives, but theyhad even removed its rattler so
(32:19):
it wouldn't make noise.
Chuck is not going to goscot-free on this one Almost
though, in my opinion, onDecember 2nd 1978, he is
arrested.
He's also totally wasted whenthe cops show up, so he avoids
jail by pleading guilty toconspiracy to commit murder and
promising to permanently removehimself from Synanon.
(32:40):
The attack itself was carriedout by two members one named
Lance Kenton he was a20-year-old who grew up in
Synanon and Joseph I think youpronounce it Museko, joseph
Museko, 28 years old.
He was a struggling heroinaddict and a combat veteran who
liked to tell everybody abouthow, when he was in Vietnam.
(33:03):
He would wear a necklace ofhuman ears.
Oh no, which makes you apsychopath.
The government.
Eventually they yanked theirnonprofit status and things do
fall apart and they close.
But it literally takes 13 moreyears for the organization to
fold.
Holy cow 1991, officially,synanon is no more.
(33:24):
So many former Synanon membersnote.
Synanon is no more.
So many former Synanon membersknow.
The host of the podcast, theSunshine Place, notes and many
other mainstream sources thatSynanon was a great thing until
Chuck ruined it.
Okay, guys, after readinghundreds of pages on this cult,
honestly I don't think you evenneed to do that.
I literally think you just haveto watch a session of the game.
(33:48):
Guys, this was never goodHearing so many people to talk
about it like oh you know, thiswas such a great time.
We're just not really seemingcompletely horrified and
traumatized by some of thethings that happened.
Maybe they are in their head, Idon't know.
I mean, I started to questionmyself what am I missing?
(34:08):
The attack therapy is so messedup so I go to other sources to
confirm I'm not crazy.
I found the best response to thedocumentary Synanon Fix from
Brian Talerico on the RogerEbert Review site.
It's fairly reflective of whatcultic studies professors,
experts and psychologists alsohad to say about this cult.
(34:30):
So direct quote from him cultsform because people ignore the
bad and focus only on the goodthat they're getting from that
organization.
When a gentleman speaks ofbeing forced into a vasectomy in
his 20s, during a time whenDiedrich thought their group
should be childless, women wereforced into abortions too
there's almost no anger in hisvoice.
It's startling to hear how manyof the people involved in this
(34:55):
organization still speak aboutits origins positively, noting
that they wouldn't be herewithout it.
And yet, watching the Synanonfix, one can see the rot at the
core of this approach tosobriety from the very beginning
.
It's noted in the book the Riseand Fall of Synanon that,
unlike most successful Americancommunes, synanon experienced
high defection rates throughoutits entire history, exceeding
(35:18):
95%.
That's not just true of heroinaddicts, but the lifestylers
throughout its histories.
Speaker 2 (35:26):
Or people that I feel like that's pretty telling,
yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (35:29):
People that, like they also organize games for the
community and people never cameback.
I found it very troubling onthe Synanon fix and the Sunshine
Place that neither one neitherone brought on any experts to
talk about and debrief cult mindcontrol.
Why attack therapy is sodamaging?
I mean the explicit goal of thesunshine place was they wanted
(35:53):
the people who are part ofsynodon to tell the story in
their own words.
Cassidy argadon, who producedborn in synodon, did this, but
it just for me, it just didn'tfeel like responsible.
It didn't feel like responsibledocumentary practices to not do
that, yeah, yeah.
Now, if we haven't completelydestroyed you by all of the
(36:18):
abuses of this cult, here is thekicker.
Synanon's method of attacktherapy and physical abuse is
still very much alive today inthe troubled teen industry.
The troubled teen industry is aseries of different schools,
wilderness programs, for example, that their goal is expressed
(36:41):
to help reform troubled youthTroubled youth, but troubled
(37:04):
youth is anything from.
It could just be.
Parents're highly unregulatedbecause they're private
institutions.
If you watch the documentarythe Program on Netflix, which is
about one of these programs,that used to exist.
The Academy at Ivy Ridge.
The people who run these thingsare often not trained no former
(37:24):
teacher credentials, orcredentials in psychology or
just anything so like.
Think of all the requirementsjust to go and teach in a public
school or to do mental healthservices.
In a lot of places.
They are literally taking whatthey say is like the most
challenging group of kids tohelp redirect or get on a better
(37:48):
path.
They've got literally nobackground in doing it.
Now there's estimated aroundprobably 100,000 kids in these
institutions today.
There is significant issue.
If you just Google troubledteen industry, you're going to
see there's so many reports ofso many deaths, so many cases of
(38:10):
abuse, and not just one.
A lot of them trace their rootsback to Synanon, because what
they do is they use attack,therapy and physical abuse to
get compliance from members.
Speaker 2 (38:23):
I didn't see the whole documentary of the program
.
That was really heartbreakingto watch, though, how they
described their day-to-day andhow they were treated.
Didn't Paris Hilton go to oneof these also?
Yes, okay.
Speaker 1 (38:42):
Yes, she did.
Is that in?
Speaker 2 (38:44):
her book?
I haven't read her book.
Speaker 1 (38:47):
I believe.
So I haven't read it either,and she's done a ton of advocacy
we will put in our notes andlink on social media.
There's a lot of organizedefforts.
She's part of them.
Other groups that are trying toget legislation to get at least
some accountability andoversight into this.
What's so tough about that toois that a lot of them they make
(39:10):
it impossible for the kids to goand tell their parents or
anyone what's really happeningbecause they can control so much
of their communication and alot of the kids are afraid to
talk because they're afraid thenthey won't graduate the program
Right and they just want to getout Exactly.
So it's like they're trappedthere.
(39:31):
These organizations exist.
They're out there.
Sometimes they take tax dollars.
Often, you know, parents paytuition fees for them.
But looking at just the academyat Ivy Ridge, 40 kids from that
program either committedsuicide or drug overdosed.
Oh that's so sad.
(39:51):
So that's some history from thepast that is still very much a
reality today.
So check out our show notes,Check out our social media.
There's something you can do tohelp change the situation and
we have resources there.
To conclude, stay away from thedark side, because if you don't
, you won't do what you can tohelp make this right.
(40:13):
Thank you.
Previously, we saw Synanon, initially a drug
rehabilitation program,transform into a commune where
most of the members weren't evenformer drug addicts, With
members verbally tearing eachother apart in organized
sessions they called therapy.
It's no wonder the story willnot turn out well, and while you
will be shocked and appalled atthe details we will share with
(00:22):
you, you might still think thatthat wouldn't happen today.
But you would be wrong, becausethe core practices of Synanon
are very much alive and welltoday, and their targets are
underage kids.
This is Dark City Season 1, LosAngeles.
Speaker 2 (00:41):
I wanted to tell you about this new show that my
husband and I started watching.
What is it called From?
Speaker 1 (00:49):
It's called From All right, have you heard of it?
Okay, no.
Speaker 2 (00:56):
Did you ever watch Lost?
Speaker 1 (00:58):
Oh yeah.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Okay, did I watch Lost?
I thought you did.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
I may not have seen Mission Impossible or Jurassic
Park, but I watched Lost.
Sorry, guys, before we hoppedon here we talked about all the
famous movies literallyeverybody has seen except for
myself.
It's shameful.
Speaker 2 (01:16):
Anyways, so do you remember?
I think his character wasMichael in Lost?
He had the little boy.
Speaker 1 (01:26):
Oh yeah.
Yeah, he was super annoying,but that was a really cute kid,
okay.
Speaker 2 (01:31):
Um, so anyways, he's the main character in this TV
show.
Well, one of the maincharacters in this TV show.
You know, I was sick lastweekend and I had my super long
nap on Saturday.
I woke up and my husband's likelook, there's this new show and
(01:51):
I'm two episodes in.
We have to watch it becauseit's going off of.
It was on Amazon prime.
It's going off of prime like bythe end of the weekend.
And I was like oh my God, okayby the end of the weekend.
And I was like oh my God, okay.
So the premise is like thisfamily's driving in their RV,
(02:12):
they're going on vacation andthey're driving down the road
and they get to this point inthe road where there's a fallen
tree in front of them andthey're like, well, crap, we got
to turn back.
So they turn back and it liketakes them into this town.
There's no way out of the town.
You either, I think, go back tothe tree or you go back in the
town and that's it.
Did you ever see wayward pines?
Speaker 1 (02:34):
no, I mean, it's just like a supernatural thing going
on kind of yeah it's like it'snot the road, because the road
reroutes you to something else.
Yes, yeah, okay.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah.
And so they get into this townand they're like look, this
sounds, you know, crazy, but youhave to come inside at night
because there are things outthere that will get us If, if
you don't, they'll kill.
You Are like are they vampires,are they zombies?
Whatever they are, like youcan't let them in, but they're
(03:05):
like outside the window and theylook like people and they'll
like say things to mess withyour mind, to like trick you
into letting them in.
Ew, it's like super creepy.
And they're like kind of likelost.
They're trying to figure thingsout and why are things the way
they are and how do we get outof here?
And like also, how do wesurvive in this community with
(03:29):
all these different people?
Speaker 1 (03:31):
and that sounds like a really cool premise.
I don't know if I can watchmore dark stuff, although it's
spooky month so it's kind ofobligatory, but we'll get into
it.
With Synanon I probably watchedlike eight hours of documentary
, maybe four hours of podcast,like plus reading the book and a
(03:51):
whole host of articles and it'sdepressing.
And then I have to bring thisup too.
I also just read the book theSecret History by Donna Tartt.
She wrote the Goldfinch.
That's how you would know her itis, so it's so good.
(04:12):
There's critiques about howit's unnecessarily long in parts
, among other things, but I justthink she's such an amazing
author.
The characters were incrediblywell-developed and it starts in
the fall, so like it really gotme into this fall mood that was
subsequently spoiled by our youknow, 95 degree plus heat wave
going on for the next week.
(04:33):
Oh yeah, it's like 112 here,but you're in Phoenix.
Speaker 2 (04:37):
I know.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
It'd be a premium to avoid that.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
Well, you're 95 instead of 112.
With humidity, it's actuallynot even that much more humid.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
Okay, yeah, but it just goes into like the
description of the seasons tooand the backdrop the winter
break in the book, described asthe coldest winter on record in
like something 25, 30 yearsvermont history, and I literally
felt like I was freezing andhaving pneumonia with this
(05:08):
character.
It was that vivid and it's sucha dark book in general, but
it's one of those things whenyou you listen to it, it just
gets under your skin and staysthere for a really long time.
Yeah, that's how it was, somaybe some Derry girls what we
do in the shadows, that's funny.
Speaker 2 (05:26):
Oh yes.
Speaker 1 (05:27):
Halloween vibey, yeah , yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:30):
Selling Sunset.
The latest season is out.
You could you know.
Speaker 1 (05:34):
Oh, that's the whole other level of scary I'm not
prepared to deal with.
Speaker 2 (05:37):
I think, oh it's super.
Well, there's a lot of drama,but it's like you get to see
these amazing houses and you getattached to, like some of the
main.
You know people on the show.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
I don't know, I haven't seen it.
Speaker 2 (05:51):
That's my guilty pleasure.
Speaker 1 (05:53):
I love selling sunset , I might be judging you a
little.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Let's talk about all those movies you haven't seen.
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Let's pass, all right .
Well, let's get into thisepisode.
Okay, guys, this is a reallyrough one.
There's really just no wayaround it.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
So first we're gonna do a little bit of a recap.
In the mid to late 1960s, chuckmade two dramatic changes to
Synanon.
First was the Squares, orLifestylers.
They were the individuals whodidn't have an addiction to kick
but just wanted to live in theSynanon community.
They are allowed to join.
(06:37):
For those joining to overcomeheroin addiction, chuck declares
actually there is no graduation.
You have to live herepermanently, otherwise you'll
get back into heroin and you'lldie.
That's the second one.
Each of these changes led to amajor exodus of members.
By the 1970s very few people inSynanon were former heroin
(07:03):
addicts.
Plus, one more key decision ledto another wave of departures.
From the very beginning, peoplewere allowed to smoke in
Synanon for free.
Synanon bought cigarettes forits members and Chuck was
smoking three packs a day.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
When he quit.
So much for addiction, I knowright.
Speaker 2 (07:25):
When he quit in 1970, he decided to ban smoking
completely.
Obviously, you know this isbetter for your health, but it
was also good for the bottomline.
According to an LA Magazinearticle, synanon spent $250,000
(07:45):
a year on cigarettes and a lotof people left with this change.
Speaker 1 (07:50):
This is obviously, in the grand scheme of things, a
really good change that Chuckmakes and then he asks the rest
of the community to make.
It's also going to establish apattern that is going to get
more and more outrageous throughtime, where Chuck says what's
good for me is good for the restof the communities.
This is like the last, one ofthe last stops of sanity before
(08:11):
we go into the deep end here.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Yes, and I feel like gosh with almost any cult.
Every time the leader decidesto change their mind, there's
new rules that everybody has toabide by.
In its first decade, synanonexpanded to additional cities.
One of these areas was TomalesBay in Marin County.
To give you a sense of wherethis is geographically, marin
(08:36):
County is on the other side ofthe Golden Gate Bridge from San
Francisco.
Tomales Bay is about 40 milesnorth of San Francisco.
Chuck decided to permanentlymove to Tomales Bay to make it
Synanon's headquarters in 1967.
Chuck thought that this wouldbe the best location to run his
(08:57):
social experiments.
It's a very rural area, so theydon't have eyes and ears all
over the place like they did inSanta Monica.
Speaker 1 (09:10):
So we're moving away from Los Angeles basically for
all of part two.
Right, I'm also kind of amazednobody's called us out so far,
even though our season is seasonone Los Angeles.
It's like season one Los Angelesand other cities close by.
Well, we mean like Los Angelesroughly, other cities close by.
I mean like Los Angeles roughlyBecause they were technically I
mean, they were based in SantaMonica on the beach.
(09:31):
But I mean, but also to likeinteresting though, because like
it was always rotten at thecore and that rot was present in
Santa Monica and everybody'slike, oh, yeah, it's fine that
they're sitting in groups andyelling at each other and, yeah,
tearing each other apart.
You know nothing to see here.
They're treating people.
But this is again where I justthink these abuses that kept
(09:54):
escalating and escalating.
It's like, well, the culturewas always horrifically awful
from the beginning, so, yeah, itdid help pave the way to toxic
culture.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Remember.
The one rule, though, when themembers played the game is no
physical violence.
That ends in 1973.
So here we go.
We're changing the rules again.
When, according to a formerSynanon member, phil Ritter,
chuck was playing the game withthe woman that Phil describes as
the type of person that justwill not let go once they think
(10:28):
they have something on you.
In this particular game, shewas really going after Chuck.
Chuck got so angry he walkedacross the room and poured root
beer over her head, and when Ifirst when I first was was like
reading about this part, I waslike, oh my God, what is he
(10:50):
going to do?
I thought he was going to likeknock her out or something, and
so root beer.
I was like, oh okay, that's notthat bad.
I was, I don't know.
I'd like built it up, I think,in my head.
Speaker 1 (11:01):
Yeah, he'll get worse , don't you worry.
But yeah, for now it's justchildish and also awful.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
Yeah.
So here's a quote from Chuck,kind of debriefing, after the
incident happened.
He said when you try topractice democracy, you get an
animal like that pure, halfcured, drunk, that menopausal
(11:30):
goddamn fool that was talkingwhen she should have been
listening.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
I mean, it's executive presence at its finest
, Lord.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
Seriously, I just yeah, let that soak in for a
minute.
Speaker 1 (11:41):
This is why like this is who's?
Speaker 2 (11:43):
leading them.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
I know, and for the people who still like are like
the game was really liberatingreally.
Let me read you let me read youa few quotes.
I think you might need sometherapy from the game.
That was like if you felt likethat was liberating.
Something's gone wrongsomewhere.
Speaker 2 (12:00):
So after this he decides physical violence is the
policy as long as it works forthem and it's like feasible.
So it's just basically like ifhe deems it OK, it's OK.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
Yeah, so basically, physical violence is not banned
anymore.
It's the punchline.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
Here we go.
Like we're starting in again.
Speaker 1 (12:25):
Now, in regard to the woman he poured his root beer
on, chuck said that if his wifeBetty had not let her out of the
room, he would have thrown herout the window.
Speaker 2 (12:37):
Which is much worse than the root beer.
Speaker 1 (12:40):
Correct.
Let's talk about Betty, becauseI don't think we've mentioned
this before.
Betty is Chuck's wife.
As I mentioned, it's his thirdwife.
She joined Synanon because ofher heroin addiction.
She was one of the earlymembers of the program.
She was also a former sexworker.
You know, from the perspectiveof treating her addiction,
(13:04):
getting away from that old life,she did really turn her life
around.
She is very well liked by thegroup and described as having a
very calming presence.
If someone got really upsetduring the game, she would be
the person to follow them outand make sure they were calmed
down and brought back into thefold.
The role Betty played in Synodonis a really common role in
(13:25):
cults.
There needs to be.
There's probably an officialterm, I just haven't come across
it.
I think of it as like Kool-Aidsweeteners.
They are like this calmingpresence, this balm that tempers
the cult leader and can makethem seem, you know, not that
bad.
I mean, she's nice and she'smarried to him.
But they become like thisemotional anchor for members and
(13:47):
they provide a sense ofnurturing and, you know, frankly
, cleanup crew on the leader.
They create a complex web ofloyalty where members might not
stay for the leader but for thewarmth and understanding
projected by this key figure.
Now they're not the face ofauthority, but they become an
indispensable part of the cult'spower structure.
(14:08):
I think it's interesting howtheir gentleness paradoxically
reinforces the very system theyseem to temper when you see the
vow.
You still have not seen the vow, have you I?
Speaker 2 (14:20):
have not.
Speaker 1 (14:21):
The NXIVM cult.
Everybody needs to see the vowbecause it's so good and so
crazy.
So good and so crazy.
The leader, keith Raniere.
He would have never.
He would never have had not thenumber of victims and the
severity of abuses that werecommitted if he hadn't had these
wing women who were surroundinghim the entire time, helping to
(14:43):
attract other attractive womenand bringing him in.
Yeah, you've got to see it, butit's like this Betty character
is like that they are.
I know cult mind control iscomplex, but I feel like there
is a level of guilt though thatthey have for making the damage
and dangerM case they made dealswith some of these women and
(15:03):
they got off on such lightsentences and it was like oh,
you know, they were all undercult influence and I definitely
can see that.
I can see that to a certainextent.
Betty, I think I think she was,she was just, she was such an
(15:25):
enabler.
I don't think she was aninnocent bystander at all.
And now we get to the part ofthe story I'm dreading the most,
and that is talking about thekids in Synanon.
Now, remember, it's communalparenting.
After your baby is six monthsold, biological mom and dad
don't see their children verymuch.
(15:47):
You're sort of turned over tothe responsibility of the group
because Chuck believes it'sunnatural to put such a priority
on your own child.
Now the repeal on the ban onviolence of course means you
have what essentially ends upamounting to institutionalized
child abuse.
(16:07):
Now, even before this, kidsparticipated in the game, which
is absolutely a form ofpsychological abuse, but now you
add in the physical abuse too.
There are so many examples,it's heartbreaking.
I can't stomach recounting allof, but just like to give an
example.
There was an instance of a kidthat didn't do their chores and
(16:27):
they were slapped and punched bymultiple other kids in front of
a whole group.
Oh my gosh, kids would try torun away from the group,
understandably, and if they werecaught they were severely beat
in front of the group.
We have a really harrowingstory about this coming up soon.
One of the kids that was inSynanon, at least until the age
(16:47):
of six, cassidy Arkin, is now adocumentary producer and
director.
She documented her experienceand reflection on Synanon in a
series called Born in Synanon.
When I started to watch thisand I saw a lot of the same cast
of characters I saw on theSynanon fix, which is what I
watched first, I rememberthinking I don't think I can
(17:09):
listen to these people talkagain about oh, this happened
with you know.
Little to no emotion.
Cassidy, like it's really clearat the very beginning, she's
still idealizing this group andshe still really loved her
experience.
She does bring in RichardOffshe, a sociologist.
He was a professor at Berkeley,might still be one of the
(17:32):
collaborators on a book calledthe Light on Synanon, and when
she tells him in the interviewthat she's filming, you know she
loved it, she had a greatexperience.
He challenges her and he tellsher look, talk to your friends
who lived through it and see ifthey feel the same.
Your impression of the group isfrom ages zero to six.
You're looking at it through achild's eye and she does do that
(17:56):
.
She really does invite herfriends and contacts that were
children and they tell her about.
Yeah, this was a really messedup experience, but one crucial
difference is that Cassidy's momsaw her more frequently than a
lot of these other kids.
Parents didn't, it probablylike, provided a little bit of
an oversight that those otherkids didn't get.
(18:18):
Finanon also created what theycalled the punk squad.
This was a boot camp for kidsthat had behavioral problems.
The abuses of the kids in thissquad are just horrific.
Again, cannot stomachrecounting all of them, but they
were full-on beat up by adults.
One of the members of Synanonrecounted in one of the
(18:42):
documentaries.
One of the first members of thesquad later in adulthood tried
therapy to recover from thetrauma and ultimately decided to
kill himself and overdosed onheroin.
Oh, that's so sad.
Juvenile agencies and theCalifornia court systems
continue to send teenagerslabeled juvenile delinquents to
synonyms.
Quote re-education campthroughout the 1970s.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Gosh, did they not have any oversight at this point
?
Gosh, did they not have anyoversight at?
Speaker 1 (19:11):
this point I mean, if they did, it was a joke, like I
said, still goes on today.
I'll talk about it Now.
One of the sit-in on members,buddy Jones.
He was one of the leaders.
He said, quote I didn't abusekids.
I wouldn't abuse a child.
(19:35):
The older I get I don't trulyknow if that's the right way to
treat kids, but I don't see aswat on the butt as a big deal.
Now a Synodon member, marshallCarter, had noted yeah, he
whacked me around a lot, but hedid say like he did seem to know
where the line was, but othersdidn't.
I don't think any of thesepeople know where the line is.
Buddy had a paddle, he calledhis assistant and okay, you're
(19:58):
on these documentaries decadeslater and you're still not sure
if what you did is child abuse.
Let's do a little palatecleanser.
I have to share this example ofdeep thoughts with Chuck
Diedrich.
Chuck loved to share his angryramblings of an asshole he
thought was genius philosophy inperson and over the wire, which
(20:18):
is Synanon's radio station,broadcasting all throughout
their locations.
He also made special tapes,broad jams and notes in the rise
and fall of Synanon.
A popular Synanon tape wasNaked Ape, where Chuck tells the
story of two hitchhikers whohad jumped onto the back of a
truck that was traveling at highspeed carrying a coffin.
(20:39):
When the coffin came open enroute and a hand was extended,
the frightened hitchhikersjumped over the side of the
truck and one died instantly.
It turned out that the handbelonged to sorry, I'm going to
have to keep a straight face.
The hand belonged to anemployee who was taking a nap
(20:59):
inside the coffin.
Diedrich used the story todemonstrate that reality is
sometimes deceptive, that theeyes may deceive the brain
sometimes deceptive that theeyes may deceive the brain.
I don't know what to say to that.
Speaker 2 (21:26):
That is the most random ass parable, I mean.
Okay, sometimes my eyes deceiveme in the dark as well.
Okay, sinanon had a practicewhere they would make people who
broke certain rules shave theirheads.
Speaker 1 (21:36):
I mean already right there, I'm out.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Yes, in 1974, everyone started shaving their
heads men, women, children.
So there are conflictingstories on how this practice
came about.
The one that seems maybe themost probable is this one
Synanon was redesigning aprefabricated building and the
(22:01):
architect decided not to removea beam that was about five foot
six feet high on a new mezzaninelevel.
The architect said people couldjust duck under it.
This comment royally ticked offChuck, who declared that anyone
who'd hire such idiots shouldhave their head shaved.
One guy took this literally andshaved his head.
(22:24):
I don't, I don't see the logic.
I I personally, would be like Idon't see the logic.
I personally would be like no,I'm good, I'm just going to sit
like this, I'm going to be themost boring person in the game
and I'm going to keep my hair.
Sometimes they went on extremediets too.
(22:44):
When Betty was diagnosed withdiabetes, there was a ban on
sugar.
Chuck held a fat-a-thon.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
That's a great name, so inspiring.
I don't feel insulted at all.
I feel really great aboutmyself, yeah.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
Shaming and punishments were intense if
people did not drop a set amountof weight.
Once life got really bad forthe kids, a number of them tried
to escape Synanon, which goodfor them.
One of the families that livedby Synanon's property, the
Gambaninis, started getting kidsshowing up in the middle of the
(23:21):
night.
Alvin Gambanini, who is a thirdgeneration cattle rancher,
tries to help however he can.
He would take them to the busstop and give them money so they
could go home.
The Synanon community figuresthis out.
One night in the summer of 1975,alvin drives up in his truck
with his wife and his three kidsand they're going to go check
(23:44):
on their neighbor's kid whilethe parents are out of town.
This neighbor lives on aproperty that also borders
Synanon.
All of a sudden a bunch of carsfilled with Synanon members
pull up.
30 people swarm the vehicle.
They're throwing punches atAlvin.
They're trying to pull him outof the vehicle.
Alvin's son, robert,miraculously gets out of the
(24:05):
vehicle and runs to theneighbor's house to get help.
Alvin has severe injuries tohis head but amazingly they all
get out of the situation alive.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
And I thought I read too that they'd even push their
car into a ditch.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So the fact that they were able to escape is just and
can you imagine his other kidswere in the car like how
terrifying watching this happento your parent and feeling like
people are trying to get you.
Speaker 1 (24:35):
oh my gosh and you have a mob of people doing this.
You know, not one person inthis mob is like Maybe this is
completely messed up, right?
Speaker 2 (24:46):
Yeah, we're still a few years away from any real
accountability for Chuck and theviolent group that he's now
cultivated.
In the fall of 1976, chuck andBetty got a personal invitation
to meet with Governor JerryBrown.
Betty gets invited to become amember of the California State
(25:09):
Youth Authority's Board ofDirectors.
1976 is also a year that Chuckdecides kids are a bad
investment and there will be nomore babies born in Synanon.
Men get vasectomies and a fewwomen who are pregnant get
abortions and a few women whoare pregnant get abortions.
One of the members of Synanon,phil Ritter, is extremely upset
(25:37):
by this and goes to the sherifffor help.
The sheriff calls Synanon andhe says he has one of their
crazies over here.
Synanon forces Phil to move out, but his wife and children
remain in Synanon, and after heleft Synanon the organization
severely limited how much hecould see his daughter, which is
kind of heartbreaking.
He tries to contest this.
(25:57):
A group goes to his house andbeats him with wooden mallets
and then I mean he lived,fortunately.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
But it's just all out insanity Forced sterilizations
attacking innocent people.
Synanon cannot completelyescape some attention and
questions and challenges fromthe government and the media.
When they reached astonishinglylow numbers of community
(26:27):
members that had drug addiction,the government questioned their
nonprofit status.
So Chuck was like that's easy,we're now a religion.
Now I don't have to answersilly questions like quote when
do they graduate?
And quote why do they have toobey?
He says nobody graduates from areligion or a cult or that.
(26:49):
And when do they graduate?
It's called, I don't know,basic accountability and is what
you're doing even worthwhile,chuck?
Yeah, in 1973, there was a grandjury investigation into
allegations of fiscalimpropriety and child abuse
which piqued the interest oflocal newspaper publishers, dave
and Kathy Mitchell.
(27:10):
They ran an investigativeseries through the early 1980s.
Their publication point raisedlight.
They even collaborated with theBerkeley sociologist I
mentioned earlier from Cassidy'sdocumentary, richard Offsheet,
and eventually they won thePulitzer Prize for the series in
their paper oh my gosh.
Which is why, guys, localjournalism is so important.
(27:31):
This was incredibly brave forsuch a small publication,
considering Synanod went afterany publication that challenged
them.
In 1972, the San FranciscoExaminer published an article
that calls them the biggestracket of the 20th century.
Now they do make good points,as they are not focused on drug
(27:51):
addiction treatment anymore andthey do fundraise under false
pretenses.
But some of the accusations dogo a little too far.
Plus, it does causereputational damage.
Synanon successfully sued thepaper for $600,000.
Speaker 2 (28:07):
It's more than two years worth of cigarettes Go
ahead.
Speaker 1 (28:11):
Sorry, it is also the largest libel lawsuit awarded
in US history.
Speaker 2 (28:17):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
Chuck pockets half of that and then he distributes
the remaining half $10,000 eachto 30 of the most tenured
members of Synanon.
Synanon becomes concerned withpotential outsiders attacking
members of their community,which isn't unfounded, because
there are instances of outsidersthreatening members, threats of
(28:38):
potential physical violence,and remember, this is a rural
community in Tomales Bay.
They're not assured protectionfrom the police department.
So Chuck organizes his ownprivate security force called
the Imperial Marines Aprosecutor would later describe
it as a quote combat-readyparamilitary unit trained in
martial arts, weapons,high-speed automobile chases and
(29:01):
the like.
They spend about $60,000 onguns and ammunition, which is
over $300,000 in today's dollars, which was the largest single
firearms purchase in Californiahistory.
The group, by the way, activemembership was always like
somewhere between 1,300 and1,700 people.
Another screwed up thing Chuckdoes his wife Betty dies of
(29:24):
cancer in 1977.
Being on the market, heliterally says I'm taking
applications to be my wife.
Six women apply.
He picks one.
Oh no.
Speaker 2 (29:35):
One who's in her, it just gets worse and worse and
worse.
Speaker 1 (29:38):
Go ahead.
He picks one that's in herearly 30s, he's in his mid-60s
Honestly, who cares?
Because, more importantly, heorders everyone to get divorced.
What?
Literally a mass divorce.
And also, guys, you've got toswitch partners every three
(29:59):
years.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
Oh, here it comes Like first it's, you know,
attract everybody in with thesereally fun parties.
That's how it always is.
Speaker 1 (30:10):
You start doing this in and on dance.
Next thing you know you'reshaving your head and getting
divorced and getting vasectomies, I mean, and a new partner
every three years.
Speaker 2 (30:19):
Okay.
Speaker 1 (30:20):
All right, Not all organizations that have dances
do this.
Also, not all organizations doattack therapy either.
So you know.
Also, Chuck decides to startdrinking again.
He's become a full alcoholicand everyone else can drink too,
so they have an open bar, whichis really great.
When you think about theammunition stockpile, oh no.
(30:42):
And that's also really awesomefor the former addicts, who also
have hep C and some die.
And that's also really awesomefor the former addicts who also
have hep C and some die, oh gosh.
The inventory of human rightsabuses committed by Synanon
continues to grow and there aremore challenges.
The attorney, Paul Marantz,especially, goes on a crusade to
bring down this organization.
(31:03):
He wins a $300,000 award forhis client, Francis Wynn, on
charges of kidnapping,brainwashing and torture when
they tried to keep her fromleaving the program.
When they found her she was justwalking on the beach.
They brought her over to theprogram and then just tried to
(31:23):
keep her.
How did she get out, do youknow?
Well, the lawyer intervened andI don't know all the details,
but imagine it wasn't astraightforward process.
Speaker 2 (31:33):
Oh my gosh, that's awful.
Speaker 1 (31:36):
Now Paul Morantz in general, is going after Synanon,
and he's got clients, formerSynanon members, which means
he's living his life in fearbecause they are.
He is getting a lot of threats.
He has to carry a gun, he hasto check under his car for car
bombs, but the attack ultimatelycomes in a form you would least
(31:56):
expect.
One day he gets an irregularlyshaped package that looks like
it could be a scarf in the mail,so he opens it, but what he
finds is a four and a half footrattlesnake that bites him right
away.
He lives, he lives, but theyhad even removed its rattler so
(32:19):
it wouldn't make noise.
Chuck is not going to goscot-free on this one Almost
though, in my opinion, onDecember 2nd 1978, he is
arrested.
He's also totally wasted whenthe cops show up, so he avoids
jail by pleading guilty toconspiracy to commit murder and
promising to permanently removehimself from Synanon.
(32:40):
The attack itself was carriedout by two members one named
Lance Kenton he was a20-year-old who grew up in
Synanon and Joseph I think youpronounce it Museko, joseph
Museko, 28 years old.
He was a struggling heroinaddict and a combat veteran who
liked to tell everybody abouthow, when he was in Vietnam.
(33:03):
He would wear a necklace ofhuman ears.
Oh no, which makes you apsychopath.
The government.
Eventually they yanked theirnonprofit status and things do
fall apart and they close.
But it literally takes 13 moreyears for the organization to
fold.
Holy cow 1991, officially,synanon is no more.
(33:24):
So many former Synanon membersnote.
Synanon is no more.
So many former Synanon membersknow.
The host of the podcast, theSunshine Place, notes and many
other mainstream sources thatSynanon was a great thing until
Chuck ruined it.
Okay, guys, after readinghundreds of pages on this cult,
honestly I don't think you evenneed to do that.
I literally think you just haveto watch a session of the game.
(33:48):
Guys, this was never goodHearing so many people to talk
about it like oh you know, thiswas such a great time.
We're just not really seemingcompletely horrified and
traumatized by some of thethings that happened.
Maybe they are in their head, Idon't know.
I mean, I started to questionmyself what am I missing?
(34:08):
The attack therapy is so messedup so I go to other sources to
confirm I'm not crazy.
I found the best response to thedocumentary Synanon Fix from
Brian Talerico on the RogerEbert Review site.
It's fairly reflective of whatcultic studies professors,
experts and psychologists alsohad to say about this cult.
(34:30):
So direct quote from him cultsform because people ignore the
bad and focus only on the goodthat they're getting from that
organization.
When a gentleman speaks ofbeing forced into a vasectomy in
his 20s, during a time whenDiedrich thought their group
should be childless, women wereforced into abortions too
there's almost no anger in hisvoice.
It's startling to hear how manyof the people involved in this
(34:55):
organization still speak aboutits origins positively, noting
that they wouldn't be herewithout it.
And yet, watching the Synanonfix, one can see the rot at the
core of this approach tosobriety from the very beginning
.
It's noted in the book the Riseand Fall of Synanon that,
unlike most successful Americancommunes, synanon experienced
high defection rates throughoutits entire history, exceeding
(35:18):
95%.
That's not just true of heroinaddicts, but the lifestylers
throughout its histories.
Speaker 2 (35:26):
Or people that I feel like that's pretty telling,
yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1 (35:29):
People that, like they also organize games for the
community and people never cameback.
I found it very troubling onthe Synanon fix and the Sunshine
Place that neither one neitherone brought on any experts to
talk about and debrief cult mindcontrol.
Why attack therapy is sodamaging?
I mean the explicit goal of thesunshine place was they wanted
(35:53):
the people who are part ofsynodon to tell the story in
their own words.
Cassidy argadon, who producedborn in synodon, did this, but
it just for me, it just didn'tfeel like responsible.
It didn't feel like responsibledocumentary practices to not do
that, yeah, yeah.
Now, if we haven't completelydestroyed you by all of the
(36:18):
abuses of this cult, here is thekicker.
Synanon's method of attacktherapy and physical abuse is
still very much alive today inthe troubled teen industry.
The troubled teen industry is aseries of different schools,
wilderness programs, for example, that their goal is expressed
(36:41):
to help reform troubled youthTroubled youth, but troubled
(37:04):
youth is anything from.
It could just be.
Parents're highly unregulatedbecause they're private
institutions.
If you watch the documentarythe Program on Netflix, which is
about one of these programs,that used to exist.
The Academy at Ivy Ridge.
The people who run these thingsare often not trained no former
(37:24):
teacher credentials, orcredentials in psychology or
just anything so like.
Think of all the requirementsjust to go and teach in a public
school or to do mental healthservices.
In a lot of places.
They are literally taking whatthey say is like the most
challenging group of kids tohelp redirect or get on a better
(37:48):
path.
They've got literally nobackground in doing it.
Now there's estimated aroundprobably 100,000 kids in these
institutions today.
There is significant issue.
If you just Google troubledteen industry, you're going to
see there's so many reports ofso many deaths, so many cases of
(38:10):
abuse, and not just one.
A lot of them trace their rootsback to Synanon, because what
they do is they use attack,therapy and physical abuse to
get compliance from members.
Speaker 2 (38:23):
I didn't see the whole documentary of the program
.
That was really heartbreakingto watch, though, how they
described their day-to-day andhow they were treated.
Didn't Paris Hilton go to oneof these also?
Yes, okay.
Speaker 1 (38:42):
Yes, she did.
Is that in?
Speaker 2 (38:44):
her book?
I haven't read her book.
Speaker 1 (38:47):
I believe.
So I haven't read it either,and she's done a ton of advocacy
we will put in our notes andlink on social media.
There's a lot of organizedefforts.
She's part of them.
Other groups that are trying toget legislation to get at least
some accountability andoversight into this.
What's so tough about that toois that a lot of them they make
(39:10):
it impossible for the kids to goand tell their parents or
anyone what's really happeningbecause they can control so much
of their communication and alot of the kids are afraid to
talk because they're afraid thenthey won't graduate the program
Right and they just want to getout Exactly.
So it's like they're trappedthere.
(39:31):
These organizations exist.
They're out there.
Sometimes they take tax dollars.
Often, you know, parents paytuition fees for them.
But looking at just the academyat Ivy Ridge, 40 kids from that
program either committedsuicide or drug overdosed.
Oh that's so sad.
(39:51):
So that's some history from thepast that is still very much a
reality today.
So check out our show notes,Check out our social media.
There's something you can do tohelp change the situation and
we have resources there.
To conclude, stay away from thedark side, because if you don't
, you won't do what you can tohelp make this right.
(40:13):
Thank you.
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