''Furthur'' is a 1939

International Harvester The International Harvester Company (often abbreviated by IHC, IH, or simply International ( colloq.)) was an American manufacturer of agricultural and construction equipment, automobiles, commercial trucks, lawn and garden products, household e ...

school bus purchased by author

Ken Kesey Ken Elton Kesey (September 17, 1935 – November 10, 2001) was an American novelist, essayist and countercultural figure. He considered himself a link between the Beat Generation of the 1950s and the hippies of the 1960s. Kesey was born ...

in 1964 to carry his " Merry Band of Pranksters" cross-country, filming their

counterculture A counterculture is a culture whose values and norms of behavior differ substantially from those of mainstream society, sometimes diametrically opposed to mainstream cultural mores.Eric Donald Hirsch. ''The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy''. Ho ...

adventures as they went. The bus featured prominently in

Tom Wolfe Thomas Kennerly Wolfe Jr. (March 2, 1930 – May 14, 2018)Some sources say 1931; ''The New York Times'' and Reuters both initially reported 1931 in their obituaries before changing to 1930. See and was an American author and journalist widely ...

's 1968 book '' The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test'' but, due to the chaos of the trip and editing difficulties, footage of the journey was not released as a film until the 2011 documentary '' Magic Trip''.

History

Kesey traveled to New York City in November 1963 with his wife Faye and Prankster George Walker to attend the Broadway opening of ''

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest may refer to: * ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (novel), a 1962 novel by Ken Kesey * ''One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' (play), a 1963 stage adaptation of the novel starring Kirk Douglas * ''One Flew Over the ...

'', which was based on his 1962 novel. Kesey also saw the

1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...

site under construction. He needed to return to New York City in 1964 for the publication party for his novel '' Sometimes a Great Notion'', and hoped to use the occasion to visit the Fair. This plan grew into an ambitious scheme to bring along a group of friends, turning their adventures into a

road movie A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of aliena ...

, taking inspiration from

Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian anc ...

's 1957 novel '' On the Road''. As more Pranksters volunteered for the trip, they soon realized they outgrew Kesey's station wagon, so Kesey bought a retired yellow school bus for $1,250 from Andre Hobson of Atherton, California. The license plates read "MAZ 804". Hobson had added bunks, a bathroom, and a kitchen with refrigerator, and stove for taking his eleven (11) children on vacation. Further-1a

The Pranksters added customizations, including a generator, a sound system (with an interior and external intercom), a railing and seating platform on top of the bus, and an observation turret coming out the top made from a washing machine drum fitted into a hole in the roof. Another platform was welded to the rear to hold the generator and a motorcycle. The bus was painted by the various Pranksters in a variety of psychedelic colors and designs. The paint was not day-glo (which was not yet common in 1964) but primary colors, and the peace symbol was not yet evident. The word 'Sunshine' was written in blue, but it was too early to have references to orange sunshine LSD or Kesey's not-yet-conceived daughter Sunshine. The bus was named by artist Roy Sebern, painting the word "Furthur" (with two U's, quickly corrected) on the destination placard as a kind of one-word poem and inspiration to keep going whenever the bus broke down. The misspelled name is still often used, as in Wolfe's book. The original bus's last journey was a trip to the

Woodstock Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held during August 15–18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, United States, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. ...

Festival in 1969. After its historic trips, the bus was gutted and used around the Keseys' farm in

Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of its eastern boundary with Idah ...

until at least 1983. It was mentioned and pictured in an article in the May–June '' Saturday Review''. It was eventually parked in the swamp on Kesey's Farm and gradually returned to the elements, until it was dragged out of the swamp with a tractor and stored in a farm warehouse.

Participants

The list of participants is undocumented. They took the general name "Merry Band of Pranksters" shortened to

Merry Pranksters The Merry Pranksters were comrades and followers of American author Ken Kesey in 1964. Ken Kesey and the Merry Pranksters lived communally at Kesey's homes in California and Oregon, and are noted for the sociological significance of a lengthy roa ...

, but many Pranksters chose not to go, and others became Pranksters only because they chose to go. Chloe Scott (founder of the Dymaxion Dance Group in 1962, age about 39) only lasted a day, because the chaos was too much for her. Cathy Casamo, friend of Mike Hagen, joined at the last minute, hoping to star in the movie they were supposedly making, but she was left behind in Houston. Neal Cassady showed up at the last minute and displaced Roy Sebern as driver, as far as New York state.

Ken Babbs Ken Babbs (born January 14, 1936) is a famous Merry Prankster who became one of the psychedelic leaders of the 1960s. He along with best friend and Prankster leader, Ken Kesey wrote the book '' Last Go Round''. Babbs is best known for his par ...

probably did not plan to venture past his

San Juan Capistrano San Juan Capistrano ( Spanish for " St. John of Capistrano") is a city in Orange County, California, located along the Orange Coast. The population was 34,593 at the 2010 census. San Juan Capistrano was founded by the Spanish in 1776, when St. ...

home. Merry Prankster and author

Lee Quarnstrom Lee Quarnstrom (1939 or 1940 – September 29, 2021) was an American journalist, executive editor of Larry Flynt’s ''Hustler Magazine'', and a Beatnik. He was a core member of the Merry Band of Pranksters, a group loosely led by novelist Ken ...

documents events on the bus in his memoir, ''When I Was a Dynamiter!'' Jane Burton, George Walker, Steve Lambrecht, Paula Sundsten (Gretchen Fetchin), Sandy Lehmann-Haupt (sound engineer, younger brother of Christopher, and important source for

's account ), Page Browning, Ron Bevirt (photographer and bookstore owner), and siblings Chuck Kesey, Dale Kesey, and John Babbs are also named as participants. The group decided to dress in red, white, and blue stripes (so they could claim to be loyal patriots), maybe with distinctive patterns so they'd be easier for future film-goers to tell apart. They brought a Confederate flag, too. Their haircuts were conservative; long hair came into fashion with the Beatles. Tom Wolfe's book gives the misleading impression he was a participant (he met Kesey the following year). Carolyn "Mountain Girl" Adams Garcia (not present) is often confused with Cathy Casamo. Kesey's wife Faye is sometimes included, and Furthur-painter Roy Sebern. Robert Stone met them briefly in New York city.

Drugs

Kesey had a generous supply of the then-legal psychedelic drug LSD, and they reportedly also took 500

Benzedrine Amphetamine (contracted from alpha- methylphenethylamine) is a strong central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is used in the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), narcolepsy, and obesity. It is also commonly used a ...

pills (speed), and a shoebox full of rolled

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in variou ...

cigarettes. They were stopped several times by the government, but explained they were filmmakers. Until 1965, drug use received too little media attention for officials to be suspicious.

The first trip

Beat legend Neal Cassady was at the wheel on their maiden voyage from

La Honda, California La Honda (Spanish for "The Sling") is a census-designated place (CDP) in southern San Mateo County, California, United States. The population was 979 at the 2020 census. It is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains between the Santa Clara Valley and ...

to New York (Sebern says he was their designated-driver before Cassady). They left on June 17, 1964, but because of various vehicle problems, it took them 24 hours to go the first . George Walker recalls, "We left La Honda on June 14, 1964, about 3pm First stop, on Kesey's bridge, out of gas! Made it about 100 feet." Their route took them first to

San Jose, California San Jose, officially San José (; ; ), is a major city in the U.S. state of California that is the cultural, financial, and political center of Silicon Valley and largest city in Northern California by both population and area. With a 2020 popul ...

, then

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

. Chloe Scott bailed in San Jose, and Cathy Casamo joined them. They spent two days at Ken Babbs' home in

, painting his swimming pool (one version claims he joined at that point.) Outside Wikieup, Arizona they got stuck in the sand by a pond, and had an intense LSD party while waiting for a tractor to pull them out. In Phoenix, they confounded the

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the United States Republican Party, Republ ...

presidential headquarters by painting "A VOTE FOR BARRY IS A VOTE FOR FUN!" above the bus windows on the left side, and driving backward through the downtown. Casamo apparently took too much LSD in Wikieup, and spent much of the drive from Phoenix to Houston standing naked on the rear platform, confounding truckers following Furthur down the highway. In

Houston Houston (; ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in Texas, the Southern United States#Major cities, most populous city in the Southern United States, the List of United States cities by population, fourth-most pop ...

, they visited the Houston Zoo, then author

Larry McMurtry Larry Jeff McMurtry (June 3, 1936March 25, 2021) was an American novelist, essayist, bookseller and screenwriter whose work was predominantly set in either the Old West or contemporary Texas.

's suburban home. Casamo's antics led to her being briefly institutionalized, so the Pranksters left her behind, and another friend drove her back home (Kesey's ''Further Inquiry'' wrestles with his enduring guilt about these events.) In

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Lake Pontchartrain Lake Pontchartrain ( ) is an estuary located in southeastern Louisiana in the United States. It covers an area of with an average depth of . Some shipping channels are kept deeper through dredging. It is roughly oval in shape, about from wes ...

. Their next destination was

Pensacola, Florida Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principa ...

to visit a friend of Babbs, then up the east coast to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the U ...

, arriving around June 29.

New York

In New York, they picked up novelist Robert Stone (who recounted his viewpoint in his 2007 book ''

Prime Green ''Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties'' is a memoir by novelist Robert Stone, published in 2007. The book is structured as a series of personal vignettes recounting Stone's global experiences covering approximately 15 years, from about 1958 to 1 ...

''). They reunited with Chloe Scott, and staged a party at her apartment, attended by

and

Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of the Beat Genera ...

. They also visited the World's Fair. Ginsberg arranged a visit with LSD enthusiasts

Timothy Leary Timothy Francis Leary (October 22, 1920 – May 31, 1996) was an American psychologist and author known for his strong advocacy of psychedelic drugs. Evaluations of Leary are polarized, ranging from bold oracle to publicity hound. He was "a her ...

and Richard Alpert in Millbrook, New York, but the West Coast style of partying was too wild for the Millbrook academics. Their route home, without Cassady to drive, took them through Canada. They arrived back in La Honda in August.

Aftermath

Kesey and Babbs took on the frustrating challenge of editing over 100 hours of silent film footage and separate (unsynchronized) audio tapes. They previewed their progress at regular open parties every weekend at Kesey's place, evolving into the ' Acid Tests' with live music from the

Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock music, rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, Folk music, folk, country music, country, jazz, bluegrass music, bluegrass, ...

(known first as the Warlocks). Tom Wolfe used the film and tapes as the basis of his book, but Kesey's edit was never finished or released, in part because Kesey was arrested in 1965 for

possession (LSD would not become illegal until 1966). Director

Alex Gibney Philip Alexander Gibney (; born October 23, 1953) is an American documentary film director and producer. In 2010, ''Esquire'' magazine said Gibney "is becoming the most important documentarian of our time". Gibney's works as director include '' ...

finally publicly released a major new edit in 2011 as the documentary '' Magic Trip''.

Other trips

Other ''Furthur'' trips included an anti-Vietnam war rally in 1966 and

and Texas International Pop Festivals, both in 1969 (without Kesey). A race between ''Furthur'' and three buses from

Wavy Gravy Hugh Nanton Romney Jr. (born May 15, 1936), known as Wavy Gravy, is an American entertainer and peace activist best known for his role at Woodstock, as well as for his hippie persona and countercultural beliefs. He has reported that his moniker ...

Hog Farm The Hog Farm is an organization considered America's longest running hippie commune. Beginning as a collective in North Hollywood, California, during the 1960s, a later move to an actual hog farm in Tujunga, California gave the group its nam ...

is recounted in the July 1969 ''

Whole Earth Catalog The ''Whole Earth Catalog'' (WEC) was an American counterculture magazine and product catalog published by Stewart Brand several times a year between 1968 and 1972, and occasionally thereafter, until 1998. The magazine featured essays and artic ...

''. More can be read about the adventures of the Merry Pranksters on ''Furthur'' in

's 1968 book ''

The Electric Kool Aid Acid Test ''The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test'' is a 1968 nonfiction book by Tom Wolfe. The book is a popular example of the New Journalism literary style. Wolfe presents a firsthand account of the experiences of Ken Kesey and his band of Merry Prankster ...

'', for which a movie directed by Gus Van Sant is in development.

Second bus

In 1990 Kesey created a second Further/Furthur, this one from a 1947

bus. The second bus is labeled "Further" on the front and "Furthur" on the back. It is not called Furthur 2, and is not meant as a replica, although confusion between the two buses is intentional. The bus was created to coincide with the publication of Kesey's memoirs about the 1964 trip, entitled ''The Further Inquiry'' (). The original 1964 ''Furthur'' was eventually dragged out of the swamp with a tractor and now resides in a warehouse at Kesey's farm in

, alongside the 1990 ''Further''.

Smithsonian Caper

The "Great Smithsonian Caper" was a prank perpetrated on the media. Reporters and journalists came to the farm while Kesey and friends were painting the new bus, and later, broadcast "Ken Kesey restored the original Furthur and is taking it to the Smithsonian." The next morning, a variety of national media were asking to "come along on the trip to the Smithsonian." The media rode along on Furthur for about a week, believing it was the original bus and it was donated to the museum.

Apple party

In 1993, Kesey drove the second bus to California to speak at a private party hosted by

Apple Computer Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company ...

. Apparently, the party producers claimed no knowledge of his history or politics, and after his drug references, they removed him from the stage. Then, they blocked the bus from leaving the parking lot, so Kesey schmoozed around the event until it ended.

Restoration

The second ''Furthur'' bus was refurbished and toured the country as part of a "Furthur 50th Anniversary Trip" in the summer of 2014.Ken Kesey’s original magic bus being restored
MSNBC (2006-01-20). Retrieved on 2012-07-15. This trip was documented for the 2016 documentary film ''

Going Furthur ''Going Furthur'' is an American-Canadian documentary film about taking Ken Kesey's bus '' Furthur'' back on the road in 2014 for a 75-day trip covering 15,000 miles, along with a group of new Merry Pranksters. Synopsis ''Furthur'' is a retrof ...

''.

Cultural significance

The cross-country trip of ''Furthur'' and the activities of the Merry Pranksters, with the success of Wolfe's book and other media accounts, led to a number of psychedelic buses appearing in popular media over the next few years, including in the Beatles' '' Magical Mystery Tour'' (1967 film), the '' Partridge Family'' TV show (1970), Paul McCartney's 1972 Wings Tour Bus, '' The Muppet Movie'' (1979 film), and later, ''The Magic School Bus'' books and

TV series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed b ...

. A similar bus was created for the 1990 film '' Flashback''. The bus appears as inspiration for the cover and in the Amazon short story "Existential Trips" by William Bevill. Both Kesey and original Prankster

released books in 1990 recounting their famous adventure (Kesey's was called ''The Further Inquiry'' () and Babbs' was ''On the Bus'' ()). In the 2007 film, '' Across the Universe'', a fictionalized version of the bus appears, this one a Chevrolet bearing the name "Beyond" in place of "Furthur". The bus also figures obliquely as a "technicolor motor home" in the Steely Dan song " Kid Charlemagne" (1976), about another LSD proponent,

Owsley Stanley Augustus Owsley Stanley III (January 19, 1935 – March 12, 2011) was an American-Australian audio engineer and clandestine chemist. He was a key figure in the San Francisco Bay Area hippie movement during the 1960s and played a pivotal role ...

. The G4 original television show '' Code Monkeys'' (2007) references the bus in the first episode of the second season: a character voiced by

Tommy Chong Thomas B. Kin Chong (born May 24, 1938) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian, musician, activist. He is known for his marijuana-themed Cheech & Chong comedy albums and movies with Cheech Marin, as well as playing the character Leo on Fox's ' ...

tells the legend of Chester Hopperpot, a psychedelic pioneer touring the country in a magical hippie bus called ''Farther''. Ken Kesey's quote "You're either on the bus or off the bus," as quoted by Tom Wolfe, is often repeated as a counter-culture slogan. In the Grateful Dead song "The Other One", Bob Weir sings the lyric "the bus came by and I got on, that's when it all began, there was cowboy Neal at the wheel of the bus to never ever land", an apparent reference to the original ''Furthur''.

References

''Furthur'' reading

* Ken Kesey, ''The Further Onquiry''. Viking, 1990. . * William Bevill, ''Existential Trips''. Amazon, 2020. .

External links

Original film of bus painting
(13:00-14:00)
Furthur Down the Road Foundation
{{Magical Mystery Tour Drug culture Individual buses Art vehicles Hippie movement Lane County, Oregon International Harvester vehicles