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''High Times'' was an American monthly
magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
(and cannabis brand) that advocates the legalization of cannabis as well as other
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 ...
ideas. The magazine was founded in 1974 by Tom Forcade. The magazine had its own book publishing division, High Times Books, and its own record label, High Times Records. From 1974 to 2016, ''High Times'' was published by Trans-High Corporation (THC). Hightimes Holding Corp. acquired THC and the magazine in 2017.


Overview

''High Times'' covers a wide range of topics, including politics, activism, drugs, education, sex, music, and film, as well as photography. Like ''
Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...
'', each issue of ''High Times'' contains a
centerfold The centerfold or centrefold of a magazine is the inner pages of the middle Folio, sheet, usually containing a portrait, such as a pin-up or a Nudity, nude. The term can also refer to the model featured in the portrait. In saddle-stitched maga ...
photo; however, instead of a nude woman, ''High Times'' typically features a
cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...
plant. (The magazine, however, often featured women—occasionally crowned as "Ms. High Times"—on the cover to help newsstand sales.) In addition, the magazine "published writers like Hunter S. Thompson, William S. Burroughs,
Charles Bukowski Henry Charles Bukowski ( ; born Heinrich Karl Bukowski, ; August 16, 1920 – March 9, 1994) was a German Americans, German-American poet, novelist, and short story writer. His writing was influenced by the social, cultural, and economic ambien ...
, Allen Ginsberg, and
Truman Capote Truman Garcia Capote ( ; born Truman Streckfus Persons; September 30, 1924 – August 25, 1984) was an American novelist, screenwriter, playwright, and actor. Several of his short stories, novels, and plays have been praised as literary classics ...
."


Publication history


Origins

Forçade's previous attempt—via the Underground Press Syndicate/Alternative Press Syndicate—to reach a wide
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 ...
audience of underground papers had failed, even though he had the support of several noteworthy writers, photographers, and artists. Through ''High Times'', Forçade was able to get his message to the masses without relying on mainstream media. Forçade was quoted as saying, "Those cavemen must've been stoned, no pun intended." ''High Times'' was originally meant to be a joke: a single-issue lampoon of ''
Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...
'', substituting marijuana for sex. Brainstorming for the first issue's contents was conducted by a group that included Forcade, Rex Weiner, Ed Dwyer, Robert Singer, A. J. Weberman, Dana Beal, Ed Rosenthal, the underground cartoonist Yossarian a.k.a. Alan Shenker, and Cindy Ornsteen a.k.a. Anastasia Sirocco. The first issue, 50 pages in total, with the tagline, "The Magazine of High Society," appeared in the summer of 1974. Advertising for the first issue had been pre-sold at that year's National Fashion and Boutique Show. "''High Times'' #1 made its debut at the June 1974 show and was an instant success, selling out its first run of 10,000 copies and getting reprinted twice." The magazine's first editor was Ed Dwyer, who had earlier written the text of the Woodstock music festival program booklet (as well as the '' Woodstock'' film program booklet). The magazine was initially distributed by Homestead Book Company and Big Rapids Distribution. ''High Times'' was at the beginning funded by drug money from the sale of illegal marijuana, But the magazine found an audience, becoming a monthly publication with a growing circulation, and the staff quickly grew to 40 people. Marijuana
hydroponics Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of #Passive sub-irrigation, hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral Plant nutrition, nutrient Solution (chemi ...
growers were a large part of the magazine's advertiser base.


Financial struggles and legal battles

''High Times'' founder Forçade committed
suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...
in November 1978. He bequeathed trusts to benefit ''High Times'' and the
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML ) is a social welfare organization based in Washington, D.C., that advocates for the reform of marijuana laws in the United States regarding both Medical cannabis in the United St ...
(NORML). (Forçade had been a supporter of NORML since the organization's founding in 1970.) Following Forçade's death, the magazine was controlled by "mostly by Forçade’s relatives" and lawyer Michael John Kennedy. Under the editorship of Larry Sloman (from 1979 to 1984), the magazine consistently struggled against marijuana prohibition laws, and fought to keep itself alive and publishing in an anti-cannabis atmosphere. Reflecting the time period, ''High Times'' began to feature positive coverage of
cocaine Cocaine is a tropane alkaloid and central nervous system stimulant, derived primarily from the leaves of two South American coca plants, ''Erythroxylum coca'' and ''Erythroxylum novogranatense, E. novogranatense'', which are cultivated a ...
as a recreational drug. The magazine's former associate publisher, Rick Cusick, said the only way ''High Times'' managed to stay in business and never miss a publication date for over four decades was, "Really, really good lawyers, even though everybody knew I was talking about just one—Michael Kennedy." Kennedy served as the general counsel and chairman of the board for ''High Times'' for over 40 years until his death in 2016, when his wife and board member, Eleanora Kennedy, took the reins.


Mainstream success and the Hager era

In 1987, ''High Times'' was audited by the Audit Bureau of Circulation as reaching 500,000 copies an issue, rivaling ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...
'' and '' National Lampoon''. In 1988, Steven Hager was hired as the magazine's editor. He changed the focus from the promotion of hard drugs (e.g., cocaine and
heroin Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a morphinan opioid substance synthesized from the Opium, dried latex of the Papaver somniferum, opium poppy; it is mainly used as a recreational drug for its eupho ...
), and instead concentrated on advocating personal cultivation of cannabis. Hager became the first editor to publish and promote the work of
hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest ...
activist Jack Herer.Cizmar, Martin
"The Story of One of the Greatest Cannabis Advocates Who Ever Lived and the Strain That Bears His Name: With the closure of Third Eye, the Potlander wanted to revisit the life of Jack Herer,"
''
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'' (April 18, 2017).
In 1988, under Hager's leadership, the magazine created the Cannabis Cup, a cannabis awards ceremony held every
Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...
in
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
that later expanded to a number of U.S. cities. He also formed the High Times Freedom Fighters, the first hemp
legalization Legalization is the process of removing a law, legal prohibition against something which is currently not legal. Legalization is a process often applied to what are regarded, by those working towards legalization, as victimless crimes, of which ...
group. The High Times Freedom Fighters were famous for dressing up in Colonial outfits and organizing hemp rallies across the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. One rally, the Boston Freedom Rally, quickly became the largest marijuana-related political event in the country, drawing an audience of over 30,00 to the Boston Common in 2013. The magazine advocated for the widespread use of
hemp Hemp, or industrial hemp, is a plant in the botanical class of ''Cannabis sativa'' cultivars grown specifically for industrial and consumable use. It can be used to make a wide range of products. Along with bamboo, hemp is among the fastest ...
in the 1990s, publishing a quarterly magazine called ''Hemp Times'' and operating a retail location in Manhattan called Planet Hemp. In 1991, the magazine began featuring celebrities on the cover of the magazine. Over the years, these included
Cypress Hill Cypress Hill is an American Hip hop music, hip hop group formed in South Gate, California in 1988. One of the first Latin groups to gain mainstream recognition in hip hop, they have sold over 20 million albums worldwide, and have obtained multi ...
, The Black Crowes, Ziggy Marley,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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,
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, Pauly Shore,
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Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...
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, and
Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. ( ; born October 20, 1971), better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg), is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Rooted in West Coast hip-hop, he is widely regarded as one of t ...
. In 1997, the magazine and Hager founded the Counterculture Hall of Fame, with inductions held annually on
Thanksgiving Thanksgiving is a national holiday celebrated on various dates in October and November in the United States, Canada, Saint Lucia, Liberia, and unofficially in countries like Brazil and Germany. It is also observed in the Australian territory ...
as part of the Amsterdam Cannabis Cup event. In the late 1980s Mike Edison began writing "Shoot the Tube," a featured column about television and politics for ''High Times''. In 1998 Edison was named the magazine's publisher, and later took control of the editorial side of the magazine as well. As editor and publisher, he caused a furor among staffers by putting
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler, and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. After adopting the Black Sabbath name in 1969 (the band ...
singer
Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead singer of the heavy metal music, heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which per ...
on the cover, and then leaking to the ''
New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative daily Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates three online sites: NYPost. ...
''s Page Six gossip column that thousands of dollars of pot had gone missing from the photo shoot. After taking the magazine to new heights in sales and advertising, Edison was instrumental in producing ''High Times'' first feature film, '' High Times' Potluck''. Edison left ''High Times'' in 2001. In 2000, the magazine established the Stony Awards to recognize and celebrate notable stoner films and television episodes about cannabis. Six ''High Times'' Stony Awards ceremonies were held in New York City beginning in 2000, before the Stonys moved to Los Angeles in 2007. Award winners received a
bong A bong (also known as a water pipe) is a filtration device generally used for smoking cannabis, tobacco, or other herbal substances. In the bong shown in the photo, the smoke flows from the lower port on the left to the upper port on the right ...
-shaped trophy. Starting in 2002, the Stonys presented the Thomas King Forçade Award for "stony achievement" in film.


Later developments

In 2003, Steven Hager was fired, and ''High Times''' board of directors shifted the magazine's focus from marijuana to more literary content, hiring John Buffalo Mailer as executive editor. As a result, the magazine "lost a third of the circulation in nine months." Mailer left the magazine within a year—a succession of editors followed, including David Bienenstock, Rick Cusick, and Steve Bloom. In 2004, ''High Times'' returned to its roots, releasing the CD ''High Volume: The Stoner Rock Collection''. Hager was rehired, first as the
creative director A creative director is a person who makes high-level creative decisions; oversees the creation of creative assets such as advertisements, products, events, or logos; and directs and translates the creative people who produce the end results. Creat ...
, and then in 2006, back to the position of editor-in-chief, but by 2009 he had returned to the role of creative director. In November 2009, ''High Times'' celebrated its 35th anniversary. In the period 2010–2013, the magazine put out a standalone publication that advocated for
medical marijuana Medical cannabis, medicinal cannabis or medical marijuana (MMJ) refers to Cannabis (drug), cannabis products and cannabinoid, cannabinoid molecules that are prescription drug, prescribed by physicians for their patients. The use of cannabi ...
. Hager was again let go by the magazine in 2013, eventually successfully suing ''High Times'' for defrauding him of his ownership shares in the company. Hager subsequently released a 20-part series on
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
, titled ''The Strategic Meeting'', showing the internal machinations inside the company. The video series asserts that Michael Kennedy stole the company from the rightful employees and subverted the original mission for his own private gain. In October 2014, the magazine celebrated its 40th anniversary with a party attended by celebrities such as Susan Sarandon.Coscarelli, Joe
"WEED-STAINED WRETCHES: High Times Hits Middle Age: How the Marijuana Magazine Stays Relevant,"
''New York'' (Oct. 17, 2014).
In 2014, the ''High Times'' website was read by 500,000 to five million users each month.


Relocation to L.A., sale

In January 2017, the magazine announced it would be permanently relocating from New York to Los Angeles. This followed the legalization of marijuana in several West Coast states, including California. In the summer of 2017, ''High Times'' was sold to a group of investors led by Adam Levin of Oreva Capital for an amount estimated from $42 million to $70 million. ''High Times'' acquired cannabis media company Green Rush Daily, Inc. on April 5, 2018. The deal was valued at $6.9 million. Green Rush Daily founder Scott McGovern joined the magazine as senior executive vice president.


Columns

* "Almost Infamous" by Bobby Black (2004–2016)—lifestyle and entertainment * “Ask Ed: Your Marijuana Questions Answered" by Ed Rosenthal (1980s–1990s)Zamora, Jim Herron
"Pot Growing Icon Takes Raid in Stride,"
.
San Francisco Chronicle The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of Northern California. It was founded in 1865 as ''The Daily Dramatic Chronicle'' by teenage brothers Charles de Young and M. H. de Young, Michael H. ...
. 2002-02-25. Retrieved on 2007-08-11. ()
* "Brain Damage Report" by Paul Krassner (late 1970s–2000s) * "Cannabis Column" by Jon Gettman * "Chef Ra's Psychedelic Kitchen" by Chef Ra ( 1988– 2003) * "Sex Pot" by Hyapatia Lee (from 2013) * "The Stoned Gamer" by Alana Evans (from 2014)— gaming * "Toasted Tweets" by Jessica Delfino (2016)—weekly cannabis-themed
Twitter Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
round-up * "The Stone Cold Cop List" by Jon Cappetta (2020) - monthly collection of newly released products


Comics

By 1976, ''High Times'' was publishing comics in its pages, by the likes of
underground comix Underground comix are small press or self-published comic books that are often socially relevant or satirical in nature. They differ from mainstream comics in depicting content forbidden to mainstream publications by the Comics Code Authority, ...
creators such as Gilbert Shelton (" The Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers"), Kim Deitch, Josh Alan and Drew Friedman,
Bill Griffith William Henry Jackson Griffith (born January 20, 1944) is an American cartoonist who signs his work Bill Griffith and Griffy. He is best known for his surreal daily comic strip '' Zippy''. The catchphrase "Are we having fun yet?" is credited t ...
("
Zippy the Pinhead Zippy the Pinhead is a fictional character who is the protagonist of ''Zippy'', an American comic strip created by Bill Griffith. Zippy's most famous quotation, "Are we having fun yet?", appears in ''Bartlett's Familiar Quotations'' and became a ...
"), Paul Kirchner ("Dope Rider"), Milton Knight ("Zoe"), Spain Rodriguez (" Trashman"), Dave Sheridan, Frank Thorne, and Skip Williamson (" Snappy Sammy Smoot"). Later, artists like Bob Fingerman and Mary Wilshire contributed comics to ''High Times'' as well.


Notable contributors and staff members

Andrew Weil was a regular contributor to ''High Times'' from 1975 to 1983. For a time, William Levy served as the magazine's European editor. In 1976, Bruce Eisner became a contributing editor for the magazine.
Chip Berlet John Foster "Chip" Berlet (; born November 22, 1949) is an American investigative journalist, research analyst, photojournalist, scholar, and activist specializing in the study of extreme right-wing movements in the United States. He also studie ...
was the magazine's Washington, D.C. bureau chief in the Seventies. Jeff Goldberg was an editor in 1978–1979. Kyle Kushman is a former cultivation reporter for ''High Times'' and has been a contributing writer for over 20 years. Bobby Black had a long association with ''High Times'', from 1994 to 2015, including being a senior editor and columnist. His involvement at ''High Times'' included production director and associate art director; writing the monthly lifestyle and entertainment column "Almost Infamous"; writing feature articles and interviews; creator and producer of the magazine's annual Miss High Times beauty pageant; producer and host of the annual High Times Doobie Awards for music; lead reporter, judge, and competition coordinator for the Cannabis Cup and the High Times Medical Cannabis Cup; and A&R, producer, liner notes and art director for ''High Volume: The Stoner Rock Collection'' CD (High Times Records). At age 19, Zena Tsarfin started as an intern for the magazine. She later returned to ''High Times'', serving as the magazine's managing editor until 2001 and then again from March 2006 to January 2007. From 2014 to 2016, Tsarfin was ''High Times''' director of digital media. Danny Danko is the magazine's former Senior Cultivation Editor. The careers of a number of writers/editors from the
comics a Media (communication), medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of Panel (comics), panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, Glo ...
industry overlapped with ''High Times'', including Tsarfin, Josh Alan Friedman (''High Times'' managing editor, 1983), Lou Stathis (''High Times'' editor, late 1980s), Ann Nocenti (''High Times'' editor, 2004), and most significantly, John Holmstrom, who began to work for the magazine as managing editor in 1987, was soon promoted to executive editor, and in 1991 was promoted to publisher and president. In 1996 he stepped aside to launch and oversee the ''High Times'' website, and left the magazine for good in 2000. Andrew James Parker, a.k.a. Chewberto420, is a cannabis photographer and author, based out of the Western United States (predominantly
Huntington Beach, California Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, United States. The city was originally called Pacific City, but it was changed in 1903 to be named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 as of ...
and Pagosa Springs, Colorado), who has made contributions to the magazine since 2016. Parker is known for his images based in macro photography. He discovered naturally occurring purple hash through experimentation with
anthocyanins Anthocyanins (), also called anthocyans, are water-soluble vacuolar pigments that, depending on their pH, may appear red, purple, blue, or black. In 1835, the German pharmacist Ludwig Clamor Marquart named a chemical compound that gives flow ...
within cannabis.


Book publishing

* * * * * * * * * * *


See also

* Cannabis Cup * '' High Times' Potluck'' * Counterculture Hall of Fame * Stony Awards * High Times Medical Cannabis Cup


Notes


Further reading

* *


External links

* {{Authority control Lifestyle magazines published in the United States Cannabis magazines Cannabis media in the United States Cannabis activism Cannabis law in the United States Counterculture Drug control law Monthly magazines published in the United States Magazines established in 1974 Magazines published in New York City 1974 in cannabis 1974 establishments in New York (state)