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Peyote to LSD - A Psychedelic Odyssey

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History Channel
Peyote to LSD
A Psychedelic Odyssey.
Airdate: April 19, 2008

Plant Explorer Richard Evans Schulte's discoveries of hallucinogenic plants revolutionized science and laid the foundation for the psychedelic sixties. Now his protégé, Wade Davis, follows in his footsteps to experience for himself the discoveries that Schultes brought to the western world. Watch native ceremonies and visit laboratories in Switzerland to explore the evolution of psychedelic substances from sacred plants to LSD. Join legendary authors, musicians and Beat Poets on an epic journey that spans decades.

Hey, something actually snuck onto the History Channel that's actually interesting and about
history -- a connection the channel often struggles to achieve. In this case, it's an intriguing look
at scientist Richard Evan Schultes -- who roamed the Amazon investigating the plants and
"magic mushrooms" used by local populations that became the hallucinogenic base for the
1960s. Explorer Wade Davis characterizes Schultes as a kind of mind-expanding Indiana Jones,
but the spec's most salient point is a broader view of drugs that provides welcome context in
contemplating the U.S.' "Just Say No" policies.

Shot in various locations, including the Amazon, Davis and filmmaker Peter von Puttkamer provide a
refreshingly nonjudgmental approach to drug use, while revealing plenty of interesting tidbits -- such
as the CIA's role in popularizing LSD as a recreational drug by studying its potential cloakand-
dagger applications.
Because of the emphasis on recreating Schultes' exploits, the doc gives relatively short shrift to the
juiciest parts of the story -- how artists, from the Grateful Dead to John Lennon to Aldous Huxley
(author of "The Doors of Perception" ), wove the consciousness-raising aspects of hallucinogens into their craft.
That said, the Dead's Bob Weir is among those interviewed in a project that also incorporates clips of
psychedelic pioneers Timothy Leary and Ken Kesey as well as Davis witnessing modern ceremonies
involving various kinds of exotic flora. The net effect reinforces man's enduring quest to get high
despite persistent attempts to stigmatize those efforts.
"Peyote to LSD" isn't perfect, but it does weave obscure history into a timely theme, as opposed to the
bastardized concepts ("Ice Road Trucker" comes to mind) that History has programmed in its flailings
to reach younger demographics. A bigger mystery is why the project is being buried at 10 p.m. on a
Saturday night -- unless the subject matter made someone a trifle uneasy.
If nothing else, it's a good question. Remind me to ask it again when the room stops spinning.

camera, Bill Mills, Randall Peck, Peter von Puttkamer; editors, Peter von Puttkamer, Donald J.
Paonessa; music, Michael Richard Plowman. 120 MIN.
Narrator: Wade Davis.
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