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Harold L. Humes

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458:; that he was an associate of (and had taken LSD with) Timothy Leary; that the government was spying on him; and so on. But, while he intrigued us, we thought, at first, that these were the ravings of a lunatic...though, an appealing one. Then, a roommate, Michael, started researching 'Doc" and, much to our utter amazement, we found out that most, if not all, of these "fantasies" were completely true. Active in the anti-Vietnam movement, we all found ourselves at an antiwar rally at Princeton U. on May 4, 1970. During the rally, the news came through of the Kent State shootings. As the crowd was told that one, then 2, 3 and 4 students had been shot dead by the US National Guard, the enraged crowd was all set to march en masse to, and burn down, the ROTC building at Princeton...and 'Doc' proved his ability to influence us. Without warning, he leaped up onto the speakers' stage and exhorted the crowd to: "Stop! Think! What you are about to do! Such an act will only demonstrate the shootings might be appropriate retaliation for that very sort of action." And, with a few words, he caused us to "think twice" and he restrained us from such violence. Some time after that day, by the end of the semester, 'Doc' "split" and we never saw him again!" 25: 768: 572:, May 25, 2011. Accessed December 10, 2018. "Harold L. Humes was born in 1926 in Douglas, Arizona. His father was a chemical engineer. The family moved to Princeton New Jersey where Humes attended high school and got the nickname 'Doc', based on the crazy scientist character 'Doc Huer' in the Buck Rogers comics." 439:
The novelist Paul Auster described him as "a ravaged, burnt-out writer who had run aground on the shoals of his own consciousness." Humes once camped on Auster's sofa and did not leave for some time until politely nudged along. He would "wheel around and start addressing total strangers, breaking off
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in the spring of 1970: "Three of us shared a 1-BR apartment while attending Monmouth College (now Monmouth University) that semester. We picked up 'Doc' when he was hitch-hiking, and took him back to our apartment because he had no place to stay...and that extended into him "crashing" with us for
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Humes also frequented the Princeton University campus in the Spring of 1970. He would entertain groups of students with elaborately wrought, delusional accounts of the F.I.D.O. computer system (a supposed underground maze of interconnected computers, run by the Government); disappearing and
225:, and he became paranoid and sometimes delusional. After this, he no longer published any writing. When he returned to the US in 1969, he reinvented himself as a "guru on campus", a self-appointed visiting professor, and spent the next 20-odd years living on or near-campus at 422:, emergency-massage techniques, flotation exercises and breath work, which he claimed - if done correctly - would lead to a 'rebirthing' experience over a 3-5 day length of time. He was practicing these techniques in what he termed 'crash-pad clinics' in Rome, Italy. 444:
reappearing "lenticular" clouds (claimed by Humes to be heat sinks for alien UFOs); and systems for decoding the supposed hidden messages embedded in the "snow" that would fill a television screen after a broadcast television station had signed off for the night.
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In 1964, Humes wrote a paper entitled "Bernoulli's Epitaph" espousing a theory of the shape of the universe as that of a spherical vortex, noting as an aside that a cross-section of a spherical vortex looks like a yin-yang symbol...
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months. He regaled us with stories about himself: that he had attended M.I.T.; that he had invented and promoted paper houses; that he was a published author; that he had founded
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literary magazine, author of two novels in the late 1950s, and a gregarious fixture of the cultural scene in Paris, London, and New York in the 1950s and early 1960s.
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revealed that the U.S. government had been spying on him from 1948 to 1977, perhaps implying his paranoia had more basis in fact than had previously been assumed.
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In 1954, he married Anna Lou Elianoff, daughter of the linens designer Luba Elianoff. They had four daughters. She divorced him in 1966; in 1967 she married
888: 863: 276:. It was there that he won his lifelong nickname, when his classmates dubbed him Doc after "Doc Huer", a brilliant scientist/nutty professor in 878: 838: 744: 608:
Bates, Benjamin J|The New World of democratic telecommunications - FIDONET as an example of the new horizontal information networks|page 2
883: 858: 208:(May 11, 1926 – September 10, 1992) was known as HL Humes in his books, and usually as "Doc" Humes in life. He was the originator of 793: 868: 823: 370:, a movie starring Ojo de Vidrio, and designed and built a paper house, which he hoped would be an affordable housing alternative. 432:
He was back in the United States by April 1969, which is when he gave away many thousands of dollars in cash on and around the
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in midsentence to slap another fifty-dollar bill in someone's hand and urge him to spend it like there was no tomorrow."
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He had one son in Italy in 1968, and another in 1977 with the cellist Glynis Lomonn: artist Devin Lomon-Humes, born in
273: 68: 559: 108: 657: 873: 708:"The New World of democratic telecommunications - FIDONET as an example of the new horizontal information networks" 245:, dependent on both his family and on students who were fascinated by his mixture of erudition and mental illness. 42: 385: 75: 334:, ultimately graduating with an Adjunct in Arts degree (equivalent to a standard baccalaureate degree) in 1954. 46: 57: 448: 310: 389: 218: 843: 487: 447:
Commercial mortgage broker Olen Soifer confirms Humes' presence as a "drop-in" at his apartment in
331: 196: 35: 513:. In later years on recounting his memories of MIT, he spoke especially highly of his professor 474: 269: 82: 833: 828: 230: 461:
After Humes's death, a Freedom of Information Act request on the part of Humes's daughter
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By 1968, he was in Paris in time to be jailed in the demonstrations that were part of the
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as literary editor, not knowing until much later that Matthiessen was working for the
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addiction that involved, in his terms, micro-doses of LSD, medical-grade
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Humes was reputed to have worked for several years as a meteorologist in
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After returning to the United States, Humes studied fiction writing with
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mayor—a campaign that was aborted by Mailer's stabbing of his wife.
24: 172: 257:. His father was a chemical engineer from Michigan who studied at 419: 415: 374: 728:
Celia McGee, "Burgeoning Rebirth of Bygone Literary Star",
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film perspective on the Life of HL Humes by his daughter,
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In Paris, Humes owned an English language magazine called
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By 1967, Humes had developed a detoxification method for
363:) as among the nation's most promising young novelists. 504: 16:
American novelist and counterculture figure (1926–1992)
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Conference of International Communication Association
305:, edited by Leon Kafka. Humes recruited the American 763: 789:reading a long passage about Humes from his memoir 49:. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. 581:Esquire|Gay Talese|Looking for Hemingway|page 153 815: 714:. University of Tennessee: 2; see Sackman, 1970. 396:'s campaign manager for Mailer's first run for 323:, who would remain its editor for fifty years. 564:on PBS: The life and fictions of Harold Humes" 721:, article about Doc's books in the anthology 700:From Hand to Mouth: A memoir of early failure 509:Humes was a passionate and early advocate of 349:(Random House, 1959). Humes was mentioned in 217:In 1966, in London, he took large amounts of 889:Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni 632:"Luba Elianoff, 96, Maker of Elegant Linens" 630:Thomas, Robert McG. Jr. (25 November 1998). 384:, the great spoken word artist; fought the 319:, a literary journal, and soon brought in 864:Princeton High School (New Jersey) alumni 702:; recounts his encounter with Doc in 1969 541:(Random House, 1959) (Random House, 2007) 535:(Random House, 1958) (Random House, 2007) 109:Learn how and when to remove this message 816: 682: 629: 705: 879:20th-century American businesspeople 505:Philosophical and/or political views 47:adding citations to reliable sources 18: 839:American psychedelic drug advocates 655: 590:Paul Auster, "Hand to Mouth", p. 42 313:at the time. Together they founded 293:, but left in 1948 to go to Paris. 13: 884:20th-century American male writers 859:Writers from Princeton, New Jersey 14: 900: 759: 407:He started a third novel, titled 766: 468: 23: 869:Harvard Extension School alumni 824:20th-century American novelists 656:Wen, Patricia (12 April 2009). 526: 386:New York City Police Department 34:needs additional citations for 706:Bates, Benjamin J (May 1992). 649: 623: 611: 602: 593: 584: 575: 552: 1: 676: 248: 854:People from Douglas, Arizona 449:West Long Branch, New Jersey 409:The Memoirs of Dorsey Slade, 221:, which was given to him by 195:, undergrad, not completed; 7: 10: 905: 849:American magazine founders 738: 683:Talese, Gay (July 1963). 517:, the author of the book 289:, and did a stint in the 282:, a popular comic strip. 188: 168: 150: 130: 123: 545: 488:Cambridge, Massachusetts 332:Harvard Extension School 197:Harvard Extension School 874:American male novelists 782:The Doc Humes Institute 685:"Looking for Hemingway" 411:but never finished it. 296: 206:Harold Louis Humes, Jr. 199:(Adjunct of Arts, 1954) 125:Harold Louis Humes, Jr. 497:at St. Rose's Home in 475:Nelson W. Aldrich Jr. 355:magazine (along with 337:He wrote two novels, 274:Princeton High School 272:, and graduated from 270:Princeton, New Jersey 533:The Underground City 477:, who had worked at 339:The Underground City 231:Princeton University 43:improve this article 434:Columbia University 303:The Paris News Post 239:Monmouth University 227:Columbia University 731:The New York Times 660:. The Boston Globe 658:"The healing arts" 636:The New York Times 427:student revolution 328:Archibald MacLeish 291:United States Navy 253:Humes was born in 243:Harvard University 235:Bennington College 154:September 10, 1992 511:medical marijuana 390:Cabaret Card Laws 366:He also directed 307:Peter Matthiessen 268:Humes grew up in 263:Christian Science 259:McGill University 203: 202: 164:New York City, US 119: 118: 111: 93: 58:"Harold L. Humes" 896: 844:The Paris Review 804:Independent Lens 776: 774:Biography portal 771: 770: 769: 746:Orlando Sentinel 723:Rediscoveries II 715: 692: 670: 669: 667: 665: 653: 647: 646: 644: 642: 627: 621: 615: 609: 606: 600: 597: 591: 588: 582: 579: 573: 556: 480:The Paris Review 455:The Paris Review 316:The Paris Review 255:Douglas, Arizona 211:The Paris Review 161: 159: 144:Douglas, Arizona 140: 138: 121: 120: 114: 107: 103: 100: 94: 92: 51: 27: 19: 904: 903: 899: 898: 897: 895: 894: 893: 814: 813: 772: 767: 765: 762: 741: 679: 674: 673: 663: 661: 654: 650: 640: 638: 628: 624: 616: 612: 607: 603: 598: 594: 589: 585: 580: 576: 569:Huffington Post 558:Teicholz, Tom. 557: 553: 548: 529: 507: 495:prostate cancer 483:as an editor. 471: 321:George Plimpton 299: 265:practitioners. 251: 183: 181:Editor-in-chief 179: 175: 163: 157: 155: 142: 136: 134: 126: 115: 104: 98: 95: 52: 50: 40: 28: 17: 12: 11: 5: 902: 892: 891: 886: 881: 876: 871: 866: 861: 856: 851: 846: 841: 836: 831: 826: 812: 811: 795: 784: 778: 777: 761: 760:External links 758: 757: 756: 753:New York Times 749: 740: 737: 736: 735: 726: 716: 703: 693: 678: 675: 672: 671: 648: 622: 610: 601: 592: 583: 574: 550: 549: 547: 544: 543: 542: 536: 528: 525: 515:Norbert Wiener 506: 503: 493:Humes died of 470: 467: 361:William Styron 298: 295: 250: 247: 201: 200: 190: 186: 185: 170: 166: 165: 162:(aged 66) 152: 148: 147: 132: 128: 127: 124: 117: 116: 31: 29: 22: 15: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 901: 890: 887: 885: 882: 880: 877: 875: 872: 870: 867: 865: 862: 860: 857: 855: 852: 850: 847: 845: 842: 840: 837: 835: 832: 830: 827: 825: 822: 821: 819: 809: 805: 801: 800: 796: 794: 792: 791:Hand to Mouth 788: 785: 783: 780: 779: 775: 764: 755: 754: 750: 748: 747: 743: 742: 733: 732: 727: 724: 720: 717: 713: 709: 704: 701: 697: 694: 690: 686: 681: 680: 659: 652: 637: 633: 626: 620: 614: 605: 596: 587: 578: 571: 570: 565: 563: 555: 551: 540: 537: 534: 531: 530: 524: 522: 521: 516: 512: 502: 500: 499:New York City 496: 491: 489: 484: 482: 481: 476: 469:Personal life 466: 464: 459: 457: 456: 450: 445: 441: 437: 435: 430: 428: 423: 421: 417: 412: 410: 405: 401: 399: 398:New York City 395: 394:Norman Mailer 391: 387: 383: 378: 376: 371: 369: 364: 362: 358: 354: 353: 348: 344: 340: 335: 333: 329: 324: 322: 318: 317: 312: 308: 304: 294: 292: 288: 283: 281: 280: 275: 271: 266: 264: 260: 256: 246: 244: 240: 236: 232: 228: 224: 223:Timothy Leary 220: 215: 213: 212: 207: 198: 194: 191: 187: 182: 178: 174: 171: 167: 153: 149: 145: 133: 129: 122: 113: 110: 102: 91: 88: 84: 81: 77: 74: 70: 67: 63: 60: –  59: 55: 54:Find sources: 48: 44: 38: 37: 32:This article 30: 26: 21: 20: 797: 790: 752: 745: 729: 722: 711: 699: 688: 662:. Retrieved 651: 639:. Retrieved 635: 625: 613: 604: 595: 586: 577: 567: 561: 554: 538: 532: 527:Bibliography 518: 508: 492: 485: 478: 472: 460: 453: 446: 442: 438: 431: 424: 413: 408: 406: 402: 382:Lord Buckley 379: 372: 367: 365: 350: 346: 345:, 1958) and 343:Random House 338: 336: 325: 314: 302: 300: 285:He attended 284: 277: 267: 252: 216: 209: 205: 204: 141:May 11, 1926 105: 96: 86: 79: 72: 65: 53: 41:Please help 36:verification 33: 834:1992 deaths 829:1926 births 787:Paul Auster 719:Alan Cheuse 696:Paul Auster 520:Cybernetics 380:He managed 357:John Updike 279:Buck Rogers 99:August 2010 818:Categories 808:Immy Humes 677:References 463:Immy Humes 392:; and was 368:Don Peyote 249:Early life 177:Journalist 169:Occupation 158:1992-09-11 137:1926-05-11 69:newspapers 734:, 1/13/07 501:in 1992. 388:over the 189:Education 436:campus. 173:Novelist 739:Sources 725:(1988?) 689:Esquire 664:13 June 641:13 June 539:Men Die 429:there. 420:hashish 352:Esquire 347:Men Die 184:Teacher 156: ( 83:scholar 691:: 153. 416:heroin 375:London 241:, and 85:  78:  71:  64:  56:  617:From 599:ditto 546:Notes 90:JSTOR 76:books 666:2021 643:2021 359:and 297:Work 151:Died 146:, US 131:Born 62:news 802:an 799:Doc 619:PBS 562:Doc 330:at 311:CIA 287:MIT 219:LSD 193:MIT 45:by 820:: 710:. 698:, 687:. 634:. 566:, 523:. 490:. 377:. 237:, 233:, 229:, 810:. 668:. 645:. 560:" 341:( 160:) 139:) 135:( 112:) 106:( 101:) 97:( 87:· 80:· 73:· 66:· 39:.

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"Harold L. Humes"
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Douglas, Arizona
Novelist
Journalist
Editor-in-chief
MIT
Harvard Extension School
The Paris Review
LSD
Timothy Leary
Columbia University
Princeton University
Bennington College
Monmouth University
Harvard University
Douglas, Arizona
McGill University
Christian Science
Princeton, New Jersey
Princeton High School

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