I am Wavy Gravy, Hippie Icon, Flower Geezer & Temple of Accumulated Error AMA!

What's your favourite Jerry Garcia story?

Once upon a time, Jerry was arriving late to a shoreline amphitheater concert when he ran into me in an iridescent costume illuminated by a portable black light and he thought he was hallucinating and rolled over backwards causing the producer to scream, "Dont give my headliner a heart attack"!

I came to Camp back in 1996 or so. It was the best summer of my life and a great thing for a 12-year-old to meet so many who were into having good, weird times.

My question is, what's the plan to keep Camp open for many, many decades to come? I'd love to send my own two kids soon. :)

We are currently registering the children of the children who have come to camp. Once again, it gives me nostalgia for the future.

Hiya, Wavy! Just popping in to say thanks for all you do in the world and particularly for kids at Camp Winnarainbow. My daughter's life was changed when she became a camper there and she found a kind of self-confidence and an awareness of good citizenship (among many other things) that continue with her today as an adult. The value of what she learned from you, your vision, and from the incredible people who teach at camp really can't be over-stated. Her years there were some of the best times of her life. Much love to you and Jahanara, and all the rest of the crew at Winnarainbow, always.

Thank you very much! Toward the FUN!

Do you think the pranksters changed culture? What are your thoughts on the medical uses of psychedelics?

Absolutely. The Prankster changed the culture by driving ac across the country in these painted buses. That was something no one had ever seen before. It was like the universe on wheels.

I think that psychotropics should be available to any ADULTS with psychiatrist spirit guide to help them over the rough patches on the quest to enlightenment.

back in the day this was applicable for Henry Luce, the publisher of Life magazine, as he was pictured conducting an orchestra of daffodils in his garden, Psychiatric at the ready.

What's it like working with Ken Hayes and the crew at Gathering of the Vibes? Been to the Fest the last couple years and I am totally in love with it.

Me too, in LOVE with it. the only time all summer I abandon Camp Camp Winnarainbow, is for the Gathering of the Vibes, where I get to do my thing. Dissolve the line between the stage and the audience. Or if Michael Lang sees fit, too see another Woodstock. The first one made me famous, the next two got me paid :o)

Thanks for the response Mr. Gravy! Look forward to seeing you next July my man!

See you there!

Wavy Gravy will be part of the Vibes as long as he wants (and his wife continues to let him attend :-) ). Next year is the 20th anniversary of GOTV, so his attendance will be extra special.

Gordon!!!!

Since my very early childhood, you have been a vast inspiration to me, with your seemingly undying positivity, kindness and devotion to helping others. However, you're also human and probably get overwhelmed sometimes.

What do you do to get yourself back on track when you find yourself in a down place? Besides putting noses on busts :)

First of all, I want to say Im in for the buzz. It really gets me high to do good stuff, that is a high that is not available in the pharmaceutical cabinet. I cant stand on my head anymore, but I can still breathe. I do a form of Tibetan breathing that ignites the molecules of my body and when they are fully charged, I just watch my breath. In fact, it is the breath inside the breath where true illumination occurs. Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk that Martin Luther King nominated or the Nobel Peace Prize taught me this practice that I share with the children of Camp Winnarainbow. "Breathing in, I calm my body. Breathing out, I smile. Breathing in, this supreme moment. Breathing out, I know its a wonderful moment and its right here right now. Give it to me!!!" Then the kids say to me YES YES YES! Those Yes's washing over me that enable me to deal with whatever life has to offer.

Wavy! How often do you stay in touch with the boys? Any chance of a fiftieth tour with you at the helm? How's Bobby doing? Thanks so much for doing this

Last I saw Bob Weir was at Session A this summer at Camp Winnarainbow. He brought his daughter Chloe for a full week. He hung out with me for over an hour driving around in my psychedelic golf cart. He is threatening to come to our Camp Winnarainbow Session for Adults as well. it is never too late to have a happy childhood.

me and Weir in the golf cart https://scontent-b-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-xfp1/v/t1.0-9/10411754_725397904185751_8054424170556868500_n.jpg?oh=4a96693dd2132802517d301f98386566&oe=54B12A79

Hello Mr. Gravy! Thanks for doing this AMA, I was really excited to see you were doing this on your Facebook page. I have a few questions if you don't mind

1. Can you tell us a little about the first time you met Kesey?

2. Can you share any interesting stories about some of the first acid tests? Did you know at the time how culturally significant those parties were to become?

3. How did it feel to speak in front of 400,000+ people at Woodstock? I could only imagine how surreal and incredible that experience must have been .

4. Any advice for a 20 year old college student?

Once again thanks for stopping by reddit, I've been very passionate about the music and culture of the late 1960s ever since i saw the Woodstock documentary when I was about 10, and you definitely played a key role in sparking my passion for the time period.

1. My chromosomes have amnesia, but ill take a crack at it. I was living in a house in Hollywood with the great Tim Hardin, when Kesey scooped me up to Watsonville to meet with Ken Babbs and the Merry Pranksters as they were screening film footage of their historic trip across America in the great bus Furthur.

2. My entire experience at the Watts acid test is well documented in my second book Something Good for a Change. Please check it out! I knew nothing, atleast I was trying to know nothing! Its a buddhist thing!

3. I never introduced any band, I only did life support announcements and I was so busy getting the word out that I didnt have time to think. Wavy Gravy says, "Thinking gets in the way of thought." My stage announcement "Good Morning, what we have in mind is breakfast in bed for 400,000" was selected by entertainment weekly as one of the top entertainment lines of the 20th century. I was simply trying to get granola in Dixie Cups handed out to hungry hippies meshed in mud in their sleeping bags at the front of the stage. This was accomplished by a multitude of hog farmers and many volunteers. Remember, youre not what you eat, youre what you dont poop!

4. As I keep repeating myself, put your good where it will do the most! I cant say that too many times as it is great advice that I got from a great advisor, and it works for me! And to qoute Laura Huxley, Aldus Huxley's widow, "It works if you work."

Please check out the documentary about my life and times Saint Misbehavin: The Wavy Gravy movie, as directed by Michelle Esrick. She worked on it for 10 years and it never ceases to blow my mind.

I recently saw you do a bit of spoken word at a Rock Collection show at Sweetwaters (super awesome show and I loved your bit in it!) You talked about when you helped run a pig for president in 1968. As a 29 year old, reading about the performance-art-heavy left politics in the late 60s and 70s sounds like great fun, but not like something that would really "work" in today's America. What role do you think art, performance-art, clowning, and just generally being a prankster still has in modern American culture?

Great question. After we ran the pig, we ran a NOBODY FOR PRESIDENT CAMPAIGN' (Nobody keeps all campaign promises etc). If you can laugh at a concept your defense go down and you are able to see the possibility of it. That maybe nobody is necessary. Time and energy can be devoted to peace, love and understanding. These days I have supported Barrack Obama, causing the anarchists to chide me. I reply to them. Nobody made me do it.

"If you can laugh at a concept your defense go down and you are able to see the possibility of it" beautiful and so true.

quick follow up, you're an alameda county resident yeah? the green party of alameda released their voter guide [pdf] suggesting people boycott all statewide partisan races due to prop 14 meaning there are no third parties (nor the ability to issue a write-in). In some ways, I see it as a desperate act of theatre that the vast majority of Californians will never hear about. In some other ways, it's the only choice that I feel I can morally support when talking to my daughters. What's your take on acts of demonstration/protest that have definite short-term downsides for moral reasons and hypothetical long-term gains?

I myself tend to go more in the moment, although I certainly honor those who are more vested in eternity. My cry to the universe has always been, "Eternity now!"

Hi Wavy. I live in Sunland/Tujunga, California. There is a piece of property for sale on a hilltop here that is said to be the original home of the Hog Farm Hippie Commune in the 1960's. Can you tell us any stories of the old days on the hog farm? Do you have any pictures you can share? Some people claim that Charles Manson was there. I find it hard to believe that you and Manson were ever friends. Can you clear that up? Thanks.

Absolutely! We were given this mountaintop rent free if we would tend to 50 hogs the size of a davenport. One of which we later ran for president. She was the first female black and white candidate for that high office. On Saturday nights, we would go to the shrine auditorium and do light shows for all the great bands of the 60s. On Sundays, we would have a free show on our mountaintop with different themes. Kite Sunday, no wind until night time. Mud Sunday, it poured..who could slide in the mud the furthest! The hog rodeo where we painted these giant pigs with temper paint and rode around on them, we showed film of this to Salvador Dali in Paris. He loved the hog rodeo. Many pictures and stories are in my first book the Hog Farm and Friends and beautifully documented in Avant Garde magazine back in the day.

Oh yes, Charlie Manson was no friend of mine and was asked to leave which he did. Thank heavens!

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Hi Wavy! You're awesome!

1) Do you agree with the oft-repeated notion that the 60's psychedelic movement "failed" or "fizzled out"? I've heard many people inside and outside the hippie culture repeat this or similar things. As a relatively young person (under 30) who is fascinated with the 60's and psychedelic culture, I personally believe that psychedelic culture is as strong as ever. Do you agree? What's missing today?

2) Are there any counter-culture people or groups of people (or cultural experiments) from the 60's/70's that you think are incredibly fascinating, yet are underrepresented or completely missed in the telling of the history of this time period? I love hearing about "obscure" people or groups of people or happenings... if you know of any, do share!

Thanks!

One of my personal heroes is Abby Hoffman, who's role at Woodstock, organizing the Medical Scene, Doctors, Nurses, Volunteers (the Big Pink it was called). Abby was an early Freedom Rider, and worked for Liberty House back in the day, later to use humor as a tool for change. From throwing money off the balcony at the stock exchange, people scrambling to grab the money and stopping the exchanges on the big board, to his wonderful books 'Revolution for the Hell of it', Steal 'This Book', and soon to be a motion picture. Jerry Rubin said it best. "Abby Hoffman would have made a great old person". Good grief.

Dear Wavy,

Wondering if you recall a group of Indians who visited the Hog Farm after they left the BIA takeover in DC in 1972 (following the Trail of Broken Treaties) ?. One of those who travelled from DC to the Hog Farm was my friend Lenny Foster (spiritual advisor to Leonard Peltier). Please share with us any memories you have of hippies standing in solidarity with American Indians and the Movement—and Lenny Foster would like to get in touch with you. Thanks for all you do to make this world a better place/bring out the best in people—Peter Clark

We wandered into the Native American siege of the bureau of Indian affairs and discovered a closet filled with video equipment which we trained indigenous filmmakers to aim at the approaching law enforcement, causing them to be careful in their encroachment.- Wavy

We heard during the BIA takeover, we heard the news and noticed that only one side of the story was being told. We knew that we had recording equipment and we went there in hopes of being able to tell their side of the story.- Mrs. Gravy

But what we were able to do was to allow them to aim the video equipment at the police and making them behave in a more mellow fashion. -Wavy

One of my friends is a huge fan of your work! He even has a framed Wavy Gravy poster prominently displayed by his front door. A few years ago, he got in touch with Michelle, worked some sort of magic, and managed to get his hands on a copy of Saint Misbehavin'. He had a living room screening party for some of his friends, and I was lucky enough to be invited. As someone who is a cynical pessimist by nature, I was completely and totally taken aback by how much love and compassion you seem to have for everyone, everywhere.

Since that day, I have wanted to ask you one question: How do you do it?

I Think (I hope) I have touched on your question in a few places on this thread. But I wanted to thank you for your kind words and support. I am glad you loved the film. Michelle did a great job!

Hello wavy , love ya! how do you stay so positive and happy??? I want to know your secret :)

Laughter is the valve of the pressure cooker of life. Either you laugh at stuff or you end up with your brains or your beans on the ceiling. My guru Harpo Marx says "If all else fails, stand on your head". I maintain that if you stand on your head long enough gravity will get you smiling. After one of my multitude of back surgeries I had my son paint the word 'SMILE' above my bed. It is the first thing I see when I open my eyes. No matter how much pain I am in, it never ceases to make me laugh.

Weren't you a Ben and Jerry's flavor?

I was a flavor for 8 years. All of the royalties went to send economically challenged parents to Camp Winnarainbow. When Ben and Jerry went public, they sold all stock to bedrock Vermonters, who immediately sold out to a Dutch corporation to Unilever, who immediately sold my flavor for not being cost effective. (imported Hazel Nuts). Ms Gravy knew I was not cost effective all along.

Ah... that's not exactly how it went down with Ben & Jerry's. Ben put a poison pill in to keep B&J from being acquired (he gave the Foundation stock higher voting rights), but when the board was told that they could be sued over it (and they could be), they had to sell out to Unilever.

We Ben & Jerry's "bedrock investors" had little say in the matter. Shares held by Vermonter individuals were pretty small potatoes by the time that all went down.

And I like B&J more when they were just in the converted gas station in downtown Burlington anyway.

Thanks for sharing the light! =)

Hey Wavy! First and foremost, thank you very much for making your time available with us! I have a few questions for you based on your music liking. Were you ever a fan of the group Pink Floyd? And have you heard of their new album coming out in a month? What are your thoughts on the group and what do you remember about them during their times in the late 60s/70s?

In 1970 we did what Warner Brothers hoped would be a sequel to the movie Woodstock. It involved a caravan of painted buses driving across America putting on shows. Sound familiar? Except this time Warner Brother would fly in their stable of amazing artists like BB King, Jethro Tull or Alice cooper, on tiny stages, or Joni Mitchel strumming around our camp fire. The tour ended with us flying Air India to England, where we did a concert outdoors with Pink Floyd. It was drop dead uber awesome and amazing.

Why hasn't this been released?

It was released. It was called "Medicine Ball caravan" with the sub title "We have come for your daughters".

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067414/

How did you feel about the looting and everything that went down at Woodstock 99? I was watching it on pay-per-view and it looked really crazy

It was Fred Durst from Limp Bizkits advice to destroy shit. I was back in my motel room when I saw a bunch of Limp Bizkoids torching a semi. I just couldnt believe it, so much of the festival was wild and wonderful but this was off the charts ugly and made me somewhat ashamed. They also were moaning about four dollar bottles of water. Hey, what about the free water that came out of the faucets! If you want french water, you gotta cough it up!

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Actually, I am quite delighted. Thanks to the Governor at the time, Howard Dean, my friends at Ben & Jerry and Roz Paine, a paralegal investigator, we were able to turn the land into a state park before the feds could seize it. You just cant go there and build a house and live in it for free. There is a beautiful boulder, and carved on the side reads "Earth Peoples Park, Free Land for Free People". The whole idea was to buy back the Earth and give it away so it would not be for sale anymore. I hope the embers of this idea will light up in young peoples hearts and the flame will be passed from generator to generation.

Wavy, is it true that your nick name came from B.B. King? (i am Big fan of the both of you!:))

Yes, he gave me the name at the Texas Pop Festival. That was shortly after our amazing experience at Woodstock. This was after one of my many many spinal surgeries, I was moving a bit slow. I was laying down right on the staget. I felt this hand touch on my shoulder, and this deep voice said, “You Wavy Gravy?” I looked up and it’s B.B. King! I say, “Yes, sir. Yes, sir.” I was getting ready to get up and out of his way, but then he said “Well Wavy Gravy, I can work around you.” He leaned me up against this speaker. Then Johnny Winter came out to play with him, and they played until sunrise. I have been Wavy Gravy ever since. It's worked pretty good so far, except with telephone operators. They usually get 'Gravy, first initial W.

Hey Wavy my man. Just firstly would like to say thank you for sharing love. Secondly, I love being warm and social with everyone but I really want to make things better like you did; any idea why protests now a days aren't being taken as serious?

Some are more seriously taken than others. A lot of demonstrations have gone electronic. I am amazed at how powerful a tool the computer has become and I am a self confessed luddite.

*Question,how did the name Merry Prankster come about?

I dont have a clue. My chromosomes have amnesia. :o)

Hello Wavy! First off I wanted to thank you for all the amazing camp experiences I got to share with you and the Winnarainbow staff. They were probably some of the most influential 6 summers of my life.

What was your inspiration for the labyrinth at camp?

Ok before the 49ers/Rams game gets going Im answering a few more.

I first saw the labyrinth at Sun Temple in Mesa Verde. A native American sacred site. I was with a Hopi elder who was showing me the site. I saw the labyrinth etched on the walls there and asked her what the meaning of it was. She replied "Oh Wavy, that's just the master plan of the universe". To that I replied "...Can I borrow your pen?"

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Wavy: On your Facebook Timeline, when you share the news of a friend's death (for example, Robin Williams) you often include the phrase, "Good grief." Do you have any strong personal beliefs or direct personal experiences about life after death?

Good grief. I took that phrase form Charlie Brown by Charles Schultz. It has stood me well over the years, beginning when I was a clown in the Oakland Children's Hospital. I think that instead of mourning death, we should celebrate the life of the person who has passed to the other side. And that's good grief. My friend Del Close said "Death is Patrick Henry's second choice".

What's your biggest regret?

A cliche and also the truth. Every cliche begins with a shared truth.... If I'd known I was going to live this long. I'd have taken better care of myself. In 22 years I will be 100.

Wavy Gravy, I had an online friend named Roderick Clayton who told me he had known you some years ago. If you knew Rick, you're probably aware that he died by suicide a few years back. I miss him a great deal. He was a great storyteller. I never met him in person, but he was an excellent friend, and meant a lot to me. If you knew him and remember him, could you share a memory you have of him with me, please? I'd deeply appreciate it.

I am sorry I am sure Roderick knew me but I do not remember him. Im getting up there in years.

What are you going to be for Halloween?

I usually wear a 3 piece suit, but im still open to anything.

Best AMA ever. Thanks Wavy!

Thank YOU!

Hi. You were a young man at Woodstock and yet you had no teeth. WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR TEETH?

Well, all those years as a beatnik, gargling with cherry soda and brushing with a snickers bar, well it had an effect. I had the rainbow bridge put in as a custom job from my dentist. At Camp, each night we have a tradition where before bed I tell all the kids "Brush em if you got em!" and I show my rainbow bridge.

Didn't you make some happenings at the Ash Grove Club in Hollywood?

My first slick club appearances were at The Ash Grove, with Lightening Sam Hopkins and Ramblin' Jack Elliot. Later in my standup career, I returned to NY and played at the Village Gate, opened the Bitter End on Bleeker St with Peter Paul and Mary. It was their first gig. Then on to Chicago and the Gate of Horn and the Renaissance club where I opened for Theloniouse Monk and recorded my first album 'Hugh Romney, 3rd Stream Humor on World Pacific Humor.

Hello Mr. Gravy!

If you had to choose a piece of gravy wisdom to live on after you, what would you tell us? What is the most important knowledge that you've gained in your lifetime?

Mr. Gravy eh? You must be from the New York Times!

However, not to evade your excellent question, I would have to say some advice that I got from my old friend and mentor Ken Kesey who said, "Always do your good where it will do the most."

Looking around at a changing America today, what are your biggest sources of optimism?

The children who come out of Camp Winnarainbow, 700 a summer, year after year, give me nostalgia for the future.

Thanks for doing this AMA. How can I become a counselor at Camp Winnarainbow?

The truth of it is almost all of our counselors were one time campers. Best way to land a spot is to spend some time with us and work your way up. Now the oldest campers we take are 14. So if that doesn't work out you can try emailing us at Camp Winnarainbow with the understanding that we get a lot of those requests.

Zane Kesey crossed the country, with Ken's second Furthur, to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the 1964 trip. Do you feel there is still a need to evoke a catalyst for elevating social consciousness, and might remembering the events of fifty years ago be conducive to a similar change?

Yes because there is a whole new crop of young people experiencing then as now.

What is Bob Dylan really like in person?

Dylan and I shared a room above the Gaslight in NYC, along with many other artists. Bob was hillarious fun and had an opinion on just about everything. We would swap stories and brainstorm for hours at a time but now and then when the rooms were full he would pull me aside and whisper to me 'Do you see that guy over there? That one", "Yeah....?" I would reply? "we wait until he leaves".... ok..... :o) He was a little paranoids even then. Maybe a hint of the fame that was to come and all the ways that that would change his life.

what inspired you & Jahanara to create camp winnarainbow?

My wife had asked me to come to a Sufi spiritual retreat. I was there and had to take care of my son, a baby at the time. We noticed all the other kids there, all who had had parents who were at this retreat for spiritual reason and I kind of just took them all on for the duration of the retreat. It went over very well and next year we rented a location to do the same in a more official capacity. The camp is now located in Northern CA on our property.

Hi Wavy. Do you have a favorite clown attire?

Also, a couple of years ago I saw you marry a nice young couple down by the water at Gathering of the Vibes in full clown attire. Seeing them so happy with their loving families was a real nice thing, and gave me a wonderful memory of Vibes that year. Thanks for that :)

I have several. My main selection would have to be one made of green hemp with satin stars, although these days I tend to wear a mix of batik and tye dye from Tye Dye 2 located in Laytonville CA. My original jumpsuit and tye dye rainbow patch jumpsuit were displayed in Cleveland in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alone with my rainbow bridge (teeth).

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can you remember, the highest you ever got? In an awesome way...

the highest I ever got was when we trekked up the side of Annapurna in Nepal, however the true answer would be the moment when I stood next to a surgeon in the Aravind Eye Hospital in Maduri India as he removed a cataract from the eye of the poorest of the poor. I am a founding member of the Seva Foundation, working to eliminate preventable blindness. 80% of the people in the world who are blind do not need to be blind. They can get sight back for just the cost of a night at the movies with friends. In the last 37 years Seva has helped to orchestrated over 3.5 million sight saving surgeries world wide. Our house band has always been The Grateful Dead, with big help from Jackson Browne, CSN&Y, Steve Earle, Bonnie Raitt and many more artists who have given generously of their time and talent.

Hello, and Thank you for all your visits to Gathering of the Vibes. Will you be joining us again next summer and is there anything special planned?

Yes I intend to attend :o)

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Still ever go to Calistoga, Wavy?

Yes!

Having grown up near Black Oak Ranch, I had occasion to visit the Hog Farm often when I was in high school (80s). I probably know quite a few people that you too are familiar with and even spent quite a few nights on one of the buses that used to be parked there (The ASP if I remember correctly). I was wondering, how often do you make it back to the Hog Farm in Mendo?

My son Jordan was born in that ASP bus. Yes of course I visit the Black Oak Ranch every year. We have Camp Winnarainbow there. I am usually up for a few months every year.