[Archive]: A Collection of 19 Offprints Related to the Early Scientific and Psychological Study of LSD. Articles I-XIX

Offprints. Octavos. Paginated variously; averaging about 12pp., with several outliers. Printed wrappers unless otherwise noted. Each with the ownership stamp and signature of a noted American psychologist on the cover and the topic noted in ink along the spine. Staples with some modest oxidation, light wear, overall near fine. A group of 19 offprints related to the early scientific and psychiatric study of LSD, with pioneering (and CIA-funded) physician Harold A. Abramson involved in each of the experiments, two by him alone. Of the 13 co-authors, the most often cited are Murray E. Jarvik (12), M. W. Hirsch (9; five of the offprints are by these three), M. R. Kaufman (6), and A. Levine (5). Each experiment with a roman numeral in the title; these offprints are numbers I-XIX. Abramson, an allergist by trade, is best known for his connection to the secret CIA organization MK-Ultra. Ten of the offprints note that they were aided by a grant from the Geschickter Fund for Medical Research, a rather secretive organization that, in 1977, *The New York Times* reported had been used by the CIA as a conduit for distributing funds to medical researchers. Abramson gained some level of notoriety for being the physician associated with the death of Frank Olson, the scientist who fell from a hotel window under mysterious circumstances after earlier being dosed with LSD without his permission. (According to a 2019 article in *The Guardian*, a call went out from the hotel room to Abramson's Long Island residence around the same time. The telephone operator, who had reportedly eavesdropped, heard the caller say "Well, he's gone," to which Abramson replied, "Well, that's too bad.") In 2017, Netflix produced a six-part docudrama on the incident, *Wormwood*, with Bob Balaban as Abramson. The experiments cover several areas: tests on snails and fighting fish, interpersonal communication, effects of a placebo, the effects of LSD on performance in psychological tests, and effects on attention and reaction to stimuli. Several feature elements of psychotherapy, including ego enhancement, a theory of psychosis, and eliminating the fear of (one's own) homosexuality. The majority of the offprints thank Sandoz Pharmaceuticals, where LSD was first synthesized, for supplying the substance. A notable collection of rare offprints related to the early psychological and scientific study of LSD, with heavy ties to the CIA and their notorious MK-Ultra Program. We note one collection of Abramson's "bound reprints" at Columbia; otherwise, we locate single copies of only three of these offprints in *OCLC*, and none in the trade. A list is below: (N. B. Aside from number two, all of the offprints were published in *The Journal of Psychology*, and here as a separate edition by The Journal Press of Provincetown, Massachusetts, which appears to have been a publisher of psychological and sociological material. Articles are listed in order of the roman numerals given in the titles. Authors are given in the order listed; we’ve omitted initials for brevity’s sake. If no *OCLC* information is given, we were unable to locate another copy of the offprint.) 1. Abramson, Jarvik, Kaufman, Kornetsky, Levine, and Wagner. *Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD-25): I. Physiological and Perceptual Responses.* 1955. 3-60pp. 2. Abramson and Evans. *Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD-25): II. Psychobiological Effects on the Siamese Fighting Fish. Science,* Vol. 120, No. 3128, December 10, 1954. 990-991pp. 3. Abramson. *Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD-25): III. As an Adjunct to Psychotherapy with Elimination of Fear of Homosexuality.* 1955. 127-155pp. *OCLC* locates one copy (McGill). 4. Jarvik, Abramson, and Hirsch. *Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD-25): IV. Effect on Attention and Concentration.* 1955. 373-383pp. 5. Abramson, Jarvik, Hirsch, and Ewald. *Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LSD-25): V. Effect on Spatial Relations Abilities.* 1955. 435-442pp. 6. Jarvik, Abramson, and Hirsch. *Lysergic Acid D.…