Rosemary helped Timothy create his most enduring slogans — «All my best lines come from Rosemary», Timothy once said. She sewed his clothes, edited his speeches, inspired some of his most audacious beliefs, sat in jail for him, ran for political office with him and, most importantly, helped orchestrate his infamous jailbreak in 1970. Here is an excerpt from the drama leading up to that fateful night that drove her underground and into the shadows.
On March 2, 1970, in Houston, Judge Ben Connally sentenced smiling psychologist and «hero of the American conscience» Timothy Leary to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine for marijuana possession. «He's preached up and down the country, and I'm inclined to think he would be a danger to society if he were released» — Connally said. Such a sentence stunned his wife Rosemary. Ten years meant no children. Ten years meant no home in the woods. Ten years was three times the length of their marriage, twice as long as they had known each other. A lifetime, really. Her legs gave a shake.
A reporter for the Associated Press, one of the many national news outlets now covering the trial, documented how depressed Rosemary looked.
Ten years …
Another shocking fact then followed: bail was not to be considered. The court based its decision on Timothy Leary's tenacious defense against drug charges, as well as his recent arrest in Laguna, and the drug-related double deaths of Charlene Almeida and John Griggs.
The report denying bail stated, «Whether or not Leary bears any responsibility in law for these deaths, these people, as a matter of causation, would most likely be alive today if Timothy Leary had not been at large in the latter part of 1969».
Outside the courtroom, Rosemary, in a long-sleeved black dress that hung off her body, wore a necklace with a beaded LSD medallion from the Spiritual Discovery League and pink sunglasses with button-down frames that emphasized the redness around her eyes. Her hands shook as she read aloud a statement Timothy had written on a torn-out sheet of notepaper.
«These are times that test the depth of our faith, trust, and patience. Love cannot be imprisoned» — he wrote, paraphrasing Thomas Paine, a British philosopher who supported the American Revolution. The word «faith» was almost unreadable, smeared with Rosemary's tears. A facsimile of the note appeared the next day in the underground press, with sections covered in her tears highlighted for added effect. The headline read: «Rosemary cried».
Five days later, the judge sentenced Rosemary to six months in jail with five years probation for possession of marijuana and LSD. She was released on bail on appeal. Jack was to undergo a mandatory ninety-day psychiatric evaluation at the California Institution for Men in Chino, a harsh place known for its harsh treatment of young inmates charged with possession of such substances. These sentences were lenient compared to what awaited Timothy Leary.
Timothy's sentence at Laguna followed. Groups of hippies responded to Rosemary's invitation and filled the courtroom. They decorated Timothy's defense table with pink and white carnations, red roses, and two orchids, held prayer and drum circles outside the hall, and chanted — creating a spectacle similar to the Manson Family trial. At various points, the judge threatened to kick the crowd out for being too rowdy. At least one person claimed to have been under the influence of LSD.
Orange County Judge Byron C. McMillan ruled Leary is a «supporter of pleasure-seekers, irresponsible and supporting the free use of LSD and Madison Avenue marijuana». He denied Leary's request for bail and sentenced him to the maximum term, an additional 10 years in prison.
Rosemary, looking at her face in miniature in puddles of Timothy's tears, was going through difficult days. After being denied visits due to her own criminal record, strikes by airline employees and then postal workers — causing Timothy's letters to be delayed for days — she finally managed to visit him on March 19, 1970, for the first time in two interminable weeks at the California Institution for Men in Chino.
In the visiting room, Timothy's face was distorted by the gray light of the fluorescent bulbs, and he seemed unhappy. His eyes were red, and for the first time she saw him cry. Rosemary grabbed the phone while they made funny faces at each other, even though their phones weren't plugged in yet.
They put their hands on the glass, fingertips touching each other. «Here you are with me always» — she wrote to him when she returned home. «I feel you inside me, in myself».
When the phone finally worked, she heard him say, «You have to set me free. You have to get me out of here».
Rosemary tried to tell him about lawyers, fundraising, and the media, but he interrupted her: «Don't trust the lawyers. You have to set me free. Do it».
Between prison visits, as well as concerted efforts to raise awareness, raise funds and mobilize grassroots support for Timothy's defense, there was an active information campaign. This included interviews with television shows, local radio stations and underground newspapers, as well as inquiries about Timothy's literary legacy and opportunities for new writing and film projects. An important part of the activity was overseeing the timely payment of utility bills for water and electricity, as well as caring for Timothy's children.
The aggravation manifested itself when the right side of Rosemary's face turned red from acne caused by long hours spent on the phone as she accumulated $400 in monthly phone charges. As a joke, she received the Stand By Your Husband Award (Stand By Your Man Award).
Because of Timothy's harsh prison sentence and Rosemary's acquired mediagenic abilities, most of the media curried Leary's favor. Newspapers published full-page appeals to Timothy's defense fund, with signatories including John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Allen Ginsberg, and actor James Coburn of The Magnificent Seven. She met with reporters at the Kennedy & Rhine law firm that handled Timothy's appeal in Laredo. The location of the interview reflected her revolutionary mood and attitude.
The 33-year-old red-haired attorney Michael Kennedy, a recognized leader of the leftist movement, shared Timothy's distrust of government and prided himself on attracting clients he called «people the government doesn't like». The New York Times called him «the advocate for lawyers of unpopular causes» and his philosophy was that if you don't annoy the government, you're not doing your job.
Rosemary became close to Michael's second wife, Eleanor, who was almost ten years younger than her but acted as godmother, giving out money and sisterly advice. Eleanor had previously worked as a shopper at Saks Fifth Avenue and helped Rosemary look elegant while traveling the country in search of funding.
The San Francisco Chronicle newspaper dubbed her «the surrogate monarch of psychedelics». In an interview with The New York Times, she said of her religious views, «Experimentation with new substances must take place in one's own body. You can't rape other people's bodies, whether they're the bodies of patients or test subjects. All Timothy has done in recent years is publish the results of his experiments on himself».
The male interviewers seemed pleased with the way Rosemary shaped her story. During one interview, she told a Berkeley Barb reporter what the headline of an article should be: «no time to get involved» or «saint in chains». (The choice was the latter). She learned from Timothy how to use her natural talent for witticisms to manipulate an audience and shape a media narrative. Timothy called her «the media heroine, the straw widow».
As Irving philosopher Irving Edman noted, «men are moved by myth, not order; by fable, not logic».
Rosemary's attention to fundraising and publicizing Timothy's case distracted her from her second, secret strategy, planning the prison escape, which had the most cinematic character. In the late spring and summer of 1970, a theater of the absurd unfolded in which the protagonists barely appeared on stage, hiding in plain sight, and their roles were played by understudies.
The first step toward freedom was Timothy's transfer from Chino Prison to the California Men's Correctional Facility (CMC), a minimum security facility for elderly, nonviolent inmates. After nearly two months of incarceration, prison psychiatrists allegedly used Timothy's personality test — the Leary Circle, developed back in his pre-psychedelic era — to assess his psychological state. Timothy understood what he needed to say to convince the experts that he was harmless — an elderly hippie who posed no danger. As a result, he was moved to a more comfortable CMC facility with golf courses and vegetable gardens and free visitation, allowing him and Rosemary to socialize freely.
Rosemary hitchhiked to the prison, wore a simple silk shawl to comfort her husband, and brushed off fears that the Zodiac killer might be in the neighborhood. Timothy immediately began whispering escape plans to her. He asked to hire a helicopter with a cat hook to get her out of the prison, or find a yacht waiting off shore, or even a submarine. Rosemary's role was to continue his legacy on the outside while trying to make the escape legal. She reminded him of the naval and army bases that surrounded them. «I was a strong woman living on carrot juice back then» — she said, «but I couldn't run those things. She still hoped they could accomplish the escape legally, without breaking the law.
Michael and Eleanor Kennedy later claimed they had no involvement in organizing or executing the escape. Close friend and co-counsel Michael Tigar noted in his biography that Timothy later implicated the Kennedys in inspiring the escape to seek revenge after future conflicts. At the same time, Rosemary remained silent about her relationship with Kennedy, although there are references to secret meetings in her letters.
The evidence shows that Michael Kennedy provided legal support to all the members of the escape organization — Leary, the Brotherhood of Perpetual Love (a.k.a. the Hippie Mafia) and Weather Underground — and is the liaison between them.
Bill Ayers, a member of Weather Underground, recalled that Kennedy acted as an intermediary between the Brotherhood of Eternal Love and Weather: «He once told us that these people were interested in helping Tim Leary get out of prison and asked if we would be interested in helping if opportunities arose».
The motivations of all involved were similar: they were drawn by the opportunity to riot, gain fame, prepare for future escapes, and get money — some $25,000 exchanged on the Santa Monica Pier through the Brotherhood group.
In early September, astrologically — under the sign of Aries, which was perfect for the Michael Kennedy code — Rosemary received a message from someone associated with Weather Underground to prepare for immediate departure. She was to pack her bags and wait for a call for a face-to-face meeting. The phone was tapped, so she made arrangements with contacts on demand: 'I need two pounds of hair henna from Kiehl’s.
After receiving her instructions, she contacted Bernardine Dohrn, whom she called Pam, and visited a wig store in San Francisco. There she tried on a fancy dress from Keith Richards that resembled the plumage of an exotic bird — too flashy. Then she chose a blond, curly and short wig, similar to the June Cleaver style typical of Eisenhower-era housewives. When she put the wig on and looked in the mirror, she saw her reflection, which reminded her of family and friends from the Midwest.
At the department store, a saleswoman helped her apply her makeup, including bright orange lipstick, dark brown eye pencil and false eyelashes — makeup she hadn't used since her modeling career.
She made up a story about her new look: she was a 28-year-old Catholic girl who had recently moved out of her parents' house, working as a secretary and having an affair with her boss. This helped her create a new identity. She then traveled to Chicago to get an ID in the name of Sylvia McGuffin, whose birth certificate had been provided by the band Weather Underground. The detail was particularly disgusting — it hid the fact that she had been delaying fertility treatments to leave the country with Timothy. A new name meant the complete disappearance of her former life.
With a birth certificate, it was possible to forge any kind of document: a student ID, a driver's license, a passport.
The culmination of this stage was obtaining a passport at the Chicago Federal Building. There, she filled out forms using her parents' birth dates and other clues to remember the answers. Inside, she felt a sense of definitive abandonment of her former identity. In that moment, she felt completely new — as if her entire former life had disappeared. «I am now a fugitive» — she wrote down.
The attendant at the passport office asked for a name. Cheeks flushed, sweat beaded on her forehead — she suddenly realized she couldn't remember her real name. In a panic, she started waving her arms as if to distract herself. A thought flashed through her mind — she had to remember. Gathering herself, she whispered: «I am Sylvia MacGuffin».
Later, to take a break from her dangerous life, Rosemary made an appointment with a dentist, a luxury unavailable on the run. She had already said goodbye to Timothy in person. His last letter contained the words, «Sunday — perfect...It's fun to see your mind in action...Your metamorphosis».
She responded with a coded message authorizing escape, covered by her infertility surgery:
There was no turning back now.
On September 12, 1970, Timothy, fit and flexible after months of yoga and handball, somehow climbed up a telephone pole, then wired through a 12-foot mesh fence surrounded by barbed wire. He made his way to a small parking lot off Highway 1, where a car pulled up twenty minutes later, turning on its right turn signal-as planned.
That was his new code name. Timothy got into the getaway car driven by a contact from Weather Underground. Inside he had his goggles, ID card and meditation rosary beads, and most importantly, letters to Rosemary.
He delivered a message that was directed to alternative and direct media, «I thank the brothers and sisters at Weatherman Underground who planned and executed my release. Rosemary and I are now with the Underground and we will continue to fight and lead the revolution. I am armed and consider myself a danger to those who threaten my freedom or my life».
On the other side of the country, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, the director of the FBI. Edgar Hoover launched a manhunt and investigation into the escape, telling reporters, «We will catch him in 10 days».