About
Ken Kesey, born September 17, 1935, in La Junta, Colorado, and died November 10, 2001, in Eugene, Oregon, was an American novelist. After studying at the University of Oregon, he won a fellowship to Stanford, where he participated in the CIA-funded MKULTRA experiments on psychedelic drugs. His first novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1962), inspired by his work in a psychiatric hospital, became a worldwide success. He then published Sometimes a Great Notion (1964) and led a countercultural life with the Merry Pranksters, becoming an iconic figure of the 1960s. He later taught at the University of Oregon.
* 1935-09-17 — † 2001-11-10
Major works
- One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1962)novel
- Sometimes a Great Notion (1964)novel
- Kesey's Garage Sale (1973)essay
- Demon Box (1986)short story collection
- Sailor Song (1992)novel
Key milestones
- 1958Awarded a Woodrow Wilson Fellowship to study at Stanford.
- 1964Embarked on a cross-country bus trip with the Merry Pranksters.
- 1990Co-wrote the novel Caverns with 13 students under the pseudonym O.U. Levon.
Themes
counterculturemental healthindividual freedompsychedelic experimentationnature and environment
Sources: britannica.com · archiveswest.orbiscascade.org · snaccooperative.org