We Are the Rock:

Torontos Rochdale College 1968-1974

Love came, love would be discovered, love was found,
love was made, love was broken and love was lost.

Wolf Sullivan

"Rochdale College" is a partially completed book about the notorious neo-hippie subculture
in Rochdale College located in Toronto. It was the last bastion of the 1960's hippie
movement which died in 1970, although Rochdale stumbled on as a hippie drug store until
1975. The book is an expos of the hicks, sleazy obnoxious phonies and "ugly American"
tourists who called themselves Rochdalians. It will prove there was no education in
Rochdale College, which was controlled and grossly mismanaged by bourgeois elitist pigs.
Virtually none of them were from Toronto, which they remained completely ignorant about.

The entries here are left-overs from the research of two of my other books, and they must be
rewritten as chapters. Currently they are written as Internet entries, sometimes deliberately
meant to shock, outrage and amuse. There is some profanity occasionally, and this will be
dealt with during the rewrite. That does not necessarily mean there will be less shocking
content and profanity, but it will be much more effective. No attempt will be made to make
the book conventional, bourgeois and polite, because Rochdale College was not. I'm working
on another book before this one, so the book will not be published until after 2014. In fact, it
may not be published for many years.

and get a degree!

Rochdale College diplomas began with "National Share the Wealth with Rochdale
Week" (April 1 to 7, 1970) which proclaimed, "You've got the money Canada we need it
please give it to us." Anyone could obtain a BA from Rochdale by donating $25 to the
college and answering a skill-testing question such as What is the capital of Canada? MAs
were earned by a donation of $50, and a skill-testing question of the applicants choice. A
PhD could be had for $100, no questions asked. About 1000 diplomas were sold, and they
were often the main source of money for Rochdale College. They were printed at Coach
House Press, the last two years by Dave Lawrence, the college printer. Stan Bevington said,
"Diplomas and degrees became a major source of income for the educational part of
Rochdale. We must have printed up about a thousand. They were hand-made and hard to do.
We made them that way because I deliberately didn't want just anybody to crank them out on
a photocopier. I actually wanted the degree to be worth something, and I think now it has
pretty good collectable value." In the fall of 1975 Stan Bevington smashed and destroyed the
diploma printing plates because he said, "I don't want to flog a dead horse."
Sell dope and make money

Rochdale College's internal bartering currency, the Rochdollar

Daily July 16, 1969

Lone Wolf Sullivan's non-fiction historical novel is completed but will not be published for a
few years because it is incompatible with Lone Wolf's current show biz image. There is a free
link to the theme song for the book in this Facebook Group.
A Wolf Among Sheep, the novel written by Lone Wolf, tells the story of John Sullivan's
adventures with bohemians from 1963 to 1978. It takes place in Gerrard Street Village,
Yorkville Village, Greenwich Village, Haight-Ashbury, Rock Festivals, and about one-quarter
takes place in Rochdale College. Much of the book is about music at Rock Festivals and
concerts, but the Rochdale part is mostly character development.

An Idiot's Guide to the History of Rochdale College

http://idiotsguidetorochdalecollege.blogspot.com

Google has stolen hundreds of photos from this website to put on

Google Images for other assholes to steal. Unless Google deletes all of
my stolen photos, this website will be shut down permanently at the end
of 2013.

In 1958 Howard Adelman was hired by the University of Toronto's Campus Co-op to solve
the growing need for student housing at the U of T. Adelman convinced Campus Co-op to
acquire additional properties and form Co-operative College Residences Inc., a non-profit
off-shoot. Later, while a Lecturer in Philosophy at the U of T, Adelman was one of the
principal founders of Rochdale College. After obtaining federal mortgages, Campus Co-op

incorporated Rochdale College in 1964.

The other founder of Rochdale was U of T English Professor Dennis Lee, who wanted to start
a college that would be an experimental avant-garde "free university". With the backing of
Campus Co-op, Rochdale College was constructed as an 18-floor highrise student residence
at 341 Bloor Street West. The building could accommodate 840 tenants. Around the same
time Neill Wycik College on the Ryerson campus and Pestalozzi College in Ottawa were also
constructed along the same lines. Unfortunately, all three so-called colleges were located in
fascist and corrupt Canada, so the rotten mortgage structure was unworkable. It was
impossible to pay off the mortgages with rental income. Furthermore, Adelman's plan to
have Rochdale declared an educational institution as a tax dodge failed. The City of Toronto
concluded Rochdale was merely a student residence and not eligible for a tax exemption.
This decision meant Rochdale College had no budget for education, and therefore could not
function as a college.
Rochdale College opened in September 1968, although it was not yet completed. The
elevators did not work, so Stan Bevington of Coach House Press had to walk up the stairs to
his apartment on the 18th floor. Residents first learned about Rochdale by word of mouth.
Many idealistic people moved in, such as science fiction writer Judith Merril and sculptor Ed
Apt. There were no classrooms or teachers, only "Resource People" who had reduced rent in
exchange for sharing their knowledge. As Judith Merill said, Rochdale was "dedicated to a
concept of education that had everything to do with learning and almost nothing to do with
teaching." But the sad fact is that most "education" in Rochdale was U of T students studying
their U of T textbooks, and secondarily, the educated residents having casual intellectual
conversations. There was a library, but never any formal education whatsoever at Rochdale
College.
Unfortunately, Rochdale was located just a few blocks from Yorkville Village, Toronto's
version of bohemian Greenwich Village in New York and Haight-Ashbury in San Francisco.
Speed freaks, crashers and street people soon discovered Rochdale and moved in a large
percentage of them as non-rent paying residents. However, their numbers have been greatly
exaggerated. There were far more American draft dodgers in Rochdale than deadbeat
Canadians from Yorkville. Furthermore, Yorkville hippies had contempt for empty, sterile,
institutional and plastic Rochdale College. Not until 1970 did wannabe hippies begin
moving into Rochdale. Eventually the speed freak and crasher problems were solved, but
Rochdale became a hippie Mecca and school to learn how to be a hippie. This was not what
Dennis Lee wanted, so he divorced himself from Rochdale. He did not have to move out,
because he never lived there.
From the beginning some Rochdale residents were dissatisfied with the external management
of the building by Toronto Student Management Corporation, so by September 1969
Rochdale College successfully ousted external management and administrators. This was
done primarily by Paul "Destructo" Evitts, a member of Rochdales Governing Council, and a
fascist "practicing anarchist". This shithead motherfucker also had earlier removed the main
front door lock, which created disastrous consequences such as the speed freak and crasher
problems. He sabotaged and destroyed the very expensive buzz-in intercom system at the
same time to ensure the lock was not replaced.
Yes, a fascist teeny bopper "practicing anarchist" with a grade 11 education fundamentally reorganized Rochdale with the inmates running the asylum and an open door policy that suited

his anarchist beliefs. This explains the origin of the anarchist element that was thereafter
always part of Rochdale. It also explains why Rochdale turned into a hippie drug store and
why the college was destroyed by the government. Paul "Destructo" Evitts did it. Period.
He quickly moved out and then blamed others for the consequences of his fascist crimes.
The building was now controlled by the college, which was the biggest blunder in Rochdale's
history considering the astonishing mismanagement of the building that was to follow. For
example, drug dealing began on a spectacular scale and nothing was done to curtail it.
Rochdale was publicized by the media as the largest drug distribution center in North
America. This free "advertising" attracted countless hippies from everywhere, more drug
dealers, huge crowds of drug customers and the police.
At this time the U.S. Vietnam War was ongoing, and many young American men fled the
draft to Canada. Many of those who came to Toronto ended up in Rochdale because they
were actually advised to go there by Canadian immigration authorities. Soon Rochdale was
Toronto's American enclave as well as illicit drug store. There were always far too many
American residents, and they didn't have a clue about Toronto or Canada. Many of them
rarely left the building. These ignorant Americans tended to make the decisions about
Rochdale while high on drugs. For example, "ugly American" King Bill became the
General Manager in 1970, and he is largely responsible for turning the college into an illicit
drug store.
Probably the worst aspect of Rochdale being an American enclave was its total isolation from
Toronto and the rest of Canada. The Americans were fugitives who didn't care much about or
understand Canada, and they considered Rochdale to be their sovereign autonomous
"country", accountable only to themselves. They did not believe Canadian laws applied in
Rochdale, which led to much criminality by the drug-crazed foreigners. In fact, the Security
desk at the entrance had a sign: "Rochdale Customs Immigration Security". Furthermore, the
overwhelming majority of Canadians in Rochdale were not from Toronto but from small
Ontario towns and their attitude about the city was the same as the Americans. This complete
isolation meant that the Federation of Metro Tenants' Associations and other organizations
could never help Rochdale when the inevitable closure of the building began.
Rochdale became a very unpleasant place because of the druggies, so in 1970 Merril,
Bevington, and Apt moved out along with most of the scholarly and artistic tenants. The
college quickly degenerated into a hippie drug store with bullshit educational pretensions.
For instance, the entire entire east wing of the sixth- floor was a "dealing commune". It was
converted into an ugly fortress with its own security guards.
The hippie movement died in 1970. It relied entirely on Rock Stars for its ideology, but the
Rock Stars abandoned hippyism. For evidence of this, you only have to listen to hit rock
songs from that time. John Lennon sang, "The dream is over", Joni Mitchell sang, "They
won't give peace a chance. That was just a dream some of us had.", and the Who sang, "Take
a bow for the new revolution...But the world looks just the same, And history ain't
changed...We don't get fooled again, Don't get fooled again." Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and
Jim Morrison died, and the Beatles broke up. The Sixties were over.
But for the truly hip, it was over long before 1970. On October 6, 1967, those remaining in
Haight-Ashbury staged a mock funeral, "The Death of the Hippie" ceremony. But it's
important to know that this event was a parade of "Diggers", because the word "hippie" was a

media pejorative that hippies never used for themselves. They called themselves "heads",
"diggers", and "freaks" if anything, but never "hippies". In the 1960s I always cringed with
embarrassment when anyone referred to me as a hippie.
Hippyism continued in Rochdale on a large scale like nowhere else in the world. The Rock
was an anachronism. Although it had all the trappings of hippyism such as communes and
recreational drugs, it was a perverted version. For the idiots, I won't confuse you with all the
details except one. Yippie Jerry Rubin, the American activist and founder of the Youth
International Party said, "Don't trust anyone over 30. This was a fundamental rule for
hippies. However, in Rochdale there were very many people well over the age of 30. A good
example is Syd Stern, an almost elderly convict who learned about Rochdale while in prison.
In Rochdale he dressed like a silly teenybopper and ran a large drug dealing franchise.
Obviously he thought he was ultra hip, but he looked foolish and talked about ancient
suburban Jewish topics that nobody could understand or relate to. His thinking usually
seemed illogical to me.
Compared to the genuine hippies of 1966 and 1967, Rochdalian hippies were sleazy,
obnoxious phonies. They were not hip, they were the sleaziest motherfuckers on Earth, and
their bell bottom jeans and tie dyed T-shirts were just a facade to hide their phoniness.
Probably the sleaze came from their poverty and drug dealing, and the obnoxious behaviour
came from alcohol and the punk movement which had replaced hippyism. There were very
few punks in Toronto at the time, but the punk ethos was definitely part of Rochdalian
behavior in the 1970's. Most Rochdalians were assholes. The sardine can environment
meant lots of hick-town gossip, confrontations, and invasion of personal privacy. For
example, a woman who was a complete stranger wanted to have sex with me. I told her
truthfully I was celibate, and she actually asked if I jerked off. With a contemptuous look I
walked away. Another virtual stranger on an elevator started to interrogate me about my food
budget. I told him to "Fuck off and mind your own business."
In the 1960s authentic hippies hated alcohol, which they considered the older generation's
recreational drug. However, in Rochdale alcohol was possibly more popular than cannabis
and psychedelic drugs. There were many booze cans in the building and very many
alcoholics. The alcohol situation was so severe that one tenant actually made his living by
collecting empty beer bottles in the building.
Because of the enormous crowds of drug customers and the inevitable problems with the
police, Rochdale started its own security force. Basically Rochdale Security was working for
the drug dealers, or more accurately it owed its existence to the drug dealing situation. They
were unlike any security officers anywhere. Their job was to screen visitors, especially drug
customers, and keep undesirables out. They knew which visitors were drug customers, and
allowed "cool" customers to visit "cool" dealers. There are photos of Rochdale Security
guards in black uniforms holding guns and working with their attack-trained dogs, which
they claimed, of course, were not attack-trained. All of this para-military crap was an entirely
American image. It was an image they changed around 1972 to a casual and friendly one, but
nothing else changed about them or the drug dealing.
Although I was born in Toronto and grew up in the Rochdale area, only a tiny percentage of
Rochdalians were from Toronto. There was the large population of Americans, plus the
mostly Canadian hicks from small cities and towns. They learned about Rochdale from the
media, and imitated what they read. The media complained about drug dealing in the

building, so they sold drugs. Many of them considered Rochdale to be a school to learn how
to be a hippie. Believe it or not, the nickname "The Rock" came from "Time" magazine
originally. A reporter made it up, and Rochdalians began using it. What Rochdale College
evolved into was largely determined by media reports. Politicians and ordinary Canadians
believed the bullshit, of course. And although Rochdalians distrusted the media completely,
they loved being interviewed and were absolutely fascinated by media reports of Rochdale,
which they inevitably imitated.
Frankly, I would never have even visited Rochdale if it were not in my neighbourhood.
Therefore, it always amazed me that some people made the pilgrimage to Rochdale from
thousands of miles away. They learned about it in the media and had to go. The situation
was similar to the 1967 John Phillip's hit song "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in
Your Hair)" that prompted thousands of kids to visit Haight-Ashbury.
The tenants in Rochdale were of three types: Rochdalians, the elite, and the filler.
Rochdalians were neo-hippies whose main goal was to have a good time. The elite were
motherfucking power trippers who believed their bourgeois upbringing made them superior
and entitled them to run the building. Basically the elite were what later became known as
Yuppies (young, upwardly-mobile professionals). Filler were students and workers who did
not have time to get involved in Rochdale, but there were very many and they paid their rent.
Rochdalians referred to the elite and filler as "Tightasses", and the elite called the
Rochdalians "Sleazes". The social structure of Rochdale was essentially like George Orwell's
"Animal Farm". Bullishit rhetoric was egalitarian, but in reality the elite were despicable
swine who behaved like the pigs in "Animal Farm". If Rochdale was really "The dream that
turned into a nightmare", it was the elite who converted the utopia to a dystopia by their
disastrous mismanagement of the building.
In 1972 the Canadian government was under much pressure from fascist Toronto City Hall to
close Rochdale. This they did by foreclosing the unworkable mortgage. They did the same
with Neill Wycik College and Pestalozzi College. All three colleges had paid what they
could towards their mortgages, but it was never sufficient. Neill Wycik and Pestalozzi
continued to attempt paying off their mortgages, but Rochdales Governing Council decided
on a different suicidal route. They stopped mortgage payments.
This was actually done by the greedy elitist members of the Governing Council (GovCon) for
themselves. It created Rochdale's so-called "Golden Age", with the mortgage money used as
an education budget, that is, money for the Govcon members. They bought a farm in Perth
County, a "Boogie" bus and lots of other toys for themselves. Kevin O'Leary started up a
video studio that cost over $10,000. It was Kevin's studio, just as the "Boogie" bus was
Kevin's bus. The video studio did not record anything whatsoever regarding Rochdale, so
there is virtually no video of Rochdale College despite its expensive funding of the studio. If
you are looking for the villains who destroyed Rochdale, just find out which GovCon
members decided to stop paying off the Rochdale mortgage. They did it.
There was also the Educational Council (EdCon), which didn't function very well because
there was no budget except during the so-called "Golden Age". Meetings were less popular
than Govcon meetings but usually interesting. EdCon had control of most of the east wing of
the sixth floor (the former "dealing commune") and the Ashram on the fourth floor for
educational projects. These projects included a pottery studio, a publishing office, an
inventors work shop, a radio station, a video studio, and the Alternative Press Center. I had

an indoor vegetable growing space with Kim Foikus, the former Town Fool of Vancouver, as
my partner. He lived in the "educational" space, which was common, but it was counterproductive for our project.
Due to the foreclosure, the college increasingly lost control of the building to an external
management company worse than the one it had removed in 1969. Clarkson, Gordon and
Company were appointed the interim receivers for the building. On September 15, 1972,
outside security guards arrived whom the residents called "Greenies" because of the colour of
their uniforms. A joint security program was set up in the lobby with one Rochdale Security
guard to "offer advice", and the Greenies were at first not allowed above the second floor.
Although Clarkson initially had "token possession" of the building, it used its security force
to gather information to proceed with a "planned program of eviction".
The Rochdale Farm near Killaloe was sold to over a dozen Rochdalians just before the end of
Rochdale College's existence. It was just a run-down farmhouse on crappy land in the middle
of nowhere, hundreds of miles from Toronto. The Rochdale Farm was never anything like
Rochdale. From the beginning of mortgage problems there was the idea of moving Rochdale
to another building. They did not understand that Rochdale was all about location, location,
location. Rochdale College could not be moved to another location and remain the same, or
even be similar.
Neill Wycik still exists because they attempted to pay their mortgage and took legal action
regarding the impossible mortgage structure. Pestalozzi continued until the end of the 1970's
by doing the same thing. Otherwise, how were they different from Rochdale? Neill Wycik
was simply a boring and sucky student residence, whereas Pestalozzi was more like Rochdale
with one major difference. Pestalozzi was very gay, long before the slang term came into
common use. Rochdale, on the other hand, was the most homophobic place on Earth. The
residents of Rochdale despised gays, and their hipper-than-thou attitude was included in this
prejudice. Of course there were gays in Rochdale, but they were all completely in the closet,
and the homophobic atmosphere has kept most of them there to this day. I could include a
long list of Rochdale gays here starting with Reg Hartt and Don Holyoak, but there's no point
because they will deny being gay. They will deny it with lisps and limp wrists.
By the end of 1974 the unprecedented mass eviction of tenants from Rochdale was in full
swing. The elitist swine who created the eviction situation fled the building first. None of
these arrogant motherfucking scumbags had the courage to be evicted. In September 1975
the last tenant of Rochdale College, David Lawrence, was evicted. The building was allowed
to cool down for a few years, then was renovated into the subsidized senior citizen residence
known as the Senator David A. Croll Apartments.
Do I have anything good to say about Rochdale College? Yes, I had a good time and
Rochdale was infinitely superior to the boring and fascist shit hole of Toorotten, Rottentario,
Canacaca.

The "Unknown Student" sculpture at Rochdale College

http://unknownstudent.blogspot.com

(Much of this entry is excerpted from The Life and Art of Edward Apt, a picture book
biography researched and written by Kamill Apt and Wolf Sullivan 2011. It is available
for sale on Amazon.com and there is a free sample of the book on the Internet.)
One of he most famous outdoor sculptures in Toorotten is Rochdale College's giant hulking
bronze statue known as the "Unknown Student". Sitting in a yoga position with its head
tucked down, it is a great work of art expressing innocence, strength, and mystery. It is sad,
meditating, or navel-gazing perhaps, definitely withdrawn into itself, and originally
positioned with its back turned against society. The massive statue with a weight of 500
pounds and about 10 feet tall on its pedestal was created in 1969 by the Rochdale College
Sculpture Shop.
The Rochdale Sculpture Shop was started in Rochdale College soon after it opened by

Edward Apt. He was a Hungarian born in 1934 who went to Vancouver in 1957 with 196
other students from the School of Forestry at Sopron University in Hungary after the 1956
Hungarian Revolution. Sometimes Ed would show people the tank machine gun bullet scars
he received during the revolution as a Freedom Fighter. Ed's father Edmund was a professor
specializing in Entomology and Forest Protection, and was persuaded by two delegations
from UBC to join the UBC faculty. The School of Forestry was re-established at UBC, then
Ed changed his focus from forestry to Fine Art at UBC between 1957-61. After graduation Ed
worked as an artist in British Columbia. Over 60 of Ed's works are located in Vancouver,
Victoria, Toorotten, Venezuela, Hungary, and elsewhere in North America.
On September 18, 1963, Ed flew to Colombia to attend the wedding of his brother Kamill,
and spent a few months with him before joining his parents in Jusepin, Venezuela where his
father was teaching forest engineering at the University of Monagas state. Ed spent a year
there and another year in Caracas, sculpting and enjoying life before flying to Toorotten on
March 24, 1965. In Toronto Ed continued to sculpt and have a good time. He was involved
with Campus Co-op, where he lived and had his sculpture shop.
Ed was one of the first people to move into Rochdale College. In fact, Ed Apt was the first
person to fuck in Rochdale. According to his brother Kamill Apt: "He says he inaugurated the
place, when one evening he and a girlfriend went to see the view from the top floor of the
unfinished windowless concrete monster. There, inspired by the twilight over Toronto, they
performed the very first of the many, many thousand acts of fornication ever to take place in
'Crotchdale' College."
It must be mentioned that Ed was totally unsympathetic rtoward hippies. He thought they
were flakey, and did not like their freaky, eccentric, and bizarre neo-conformism. However,
he did like artistic hippies and there were many of these in Rochdale. As a bohemian himself,
he understood hippies, but he also saw how the basic idea behind the movement the
younger generation's genuine need for change got lost behind appearances, social
superficialities, and how it eventually was corrupted into the highly profitable drug culture.
He never was part of any of it, just observed it from the outside. Ed was nonexclusive,
sociable, kind, helpful, lovable, but an absolute individual. He was a complete unit unto
himself and needed no one. Because Ed was at least a decade older than most Rochdalians,
he called himself "Uncle Ed" in his many contributions to the Rochdale newsletter. In one of
his entries he wrote, "The only thing I have in common with you, hippies, is our common
enemy: the squares. I am grossly unimpressed by you and them but all in all I marginally
prefer you. Hence our alliance."
In March 1969 Ed was listed in "The Rochdale Curriculum":
* SCULPTURE: With the guidance and participation of craftsman/sculptor, Ed Apt, the
group has created a cooperative sculpture for the front plaza, now being cast in bronze, and
due for unveiling in April. Student-members of the group are now going ahead to individual
works.
* PATIO AND TERRACES COMMITTEE: Also under the direction of Ed Apt, this group is
planning for the last stages of the building of Rochdale: the designing of the front plaza and
the terraces on the 2nd and 17th floors for summer use. A Crafts Fair, where Rochdale
artisans will make and sell leather goods, candles, batiks, carvings, ceramics, posters, etc.,
and a refreshment stand featuring hot dogs and crepes suzettes are planned for the main

entrance. The 2nd floor is to have a small stage and music shell for open air concerts and
performances. Up top, they plan for an adult/children's playground, with small and large size
swing, slides, and boxes, etc.
Ed wrote in the Rochdale newsletter: "I was living in the organization 'Campus Co-operative
Residences', 'a free school' in which the idea of Rochdale was conceived. I soon realized that
interior design school at Ryerson was anti-art, so I honourably finished my first year and
didn't bother going back. Instead I joined 'the Rochdale thing' with the purpose of trying to
organize a really interesting sculpture school. One that would operate on my recently ripened
principles:
1) There is no such thing as an art student, everyone is a full-fledged artist.
2) Art criticism and art teaching are but legal crimes.
3) There is no reason why there should be any gap between the artist and the world."
The first meeting of the Rochdale Sculpture Shop took place at 8 p.m. on Wednesday,
October 9, 1968 in the basement parking garage. Originally it was scheduled for the second
floor coffee shop, but about 80 people showed up, so it was re-located. Judith Merril helped
Ed organize it. Ed sat at a large table close to a wall and outlined the Sculpture Shop course
and his role as a technical aide instead of a traditional instructor. He said the first project
would be a large piece for the college plaza created by all students, and explained the
difficulties of creating a big sculpture.
Next, about 25 in attendance went to the Rochdale Sculpture Shop in the garage behind the
Hassle Free Clinic at 252 Dupont St., just east of Spadina Road. The shop was approximately
one mile from Rochdale, and was rented by the Rochdale Registrar's office. There was also a
Welding Shop in the garage at 403 Huron Street, just three houses south of the college. Ed
promised the students they could be "making a living by spring". The first project undertaken
was to be "a big piece mutually beneficial to everyone". Ed explained more about creating the
large sculpture and gave everyone interested in the project some plasticine clay to make
models to bring to the next meeting.
At the second meeting, the "Unknown Student" by Derek Heinzerling was selected after six
secret ballots. Ed gave his support to this design because it would be relatively easy to create
because of its shape. The two men were good friends, but that was probably irrelevant to the
project. There was a group within the group who wanted an odd abstract design, but it was
not chosen, mostly because it would be too difficult to make. This small group quit the
Rochdale Sculpture Shop.
Ed titled the statue "Unknown Student" possibly because cenotaphs to "The Unknown
Soldier" are found in many cities, and it might refer to anonymous students in large
universities who are unknown to their professors. It's also obvious that the sculpture's face is
hidden, and therefore the student is "unknown". Although Ed usually is given credit for the
"Unknown Student", the designer is traditionally given the credit, so it would normally go to
sculpture student Derek Heinzerling, a 22-year old draft evader from Garrett, Indiana.
However, because Ed made changes to Derek's design and did much work on the sculpture,
Derek has said, "The sculpture is Ed's." Probably the most unusual fact about "Unknown
Student" is it was originally planned to be translucent, not bronze, and it was going to be
illuminated from the inside.

According to a Toronto Star article in April 1969 Derek said, "The way the statue got his
name was really beautiful. We were sitting in the Rochdale Cafeteria and we showed the
drawing to this guy he was pretty unhappy. He said it looked like the unknown student. The
sculpture suddenly became meaningful to me." However, Derek denies ever saying this and
found other errors in the article. Perhaps the quote is from Ed Apt. In both David Sharpes
and Brian Grieveson's books on Rochdale, Derek is incorrectly named Dale. Derek still
wonders if he should hire a PR man to deal with all the misinformation.
At first the Sculpture Shop had a female model. But she quit, and Ed wrote in the college
newsletter, "Our model-to-be decided to leave us, after failing to fight off her inhibitions
about being naked in public. A successor is wanted. She ought to be 'sculpturesque', at least
for this current project." However, there were no more models for the Rochdale Sculpture
Shop.
Work on the statue was done in the hearse garage of the nearby Thompson Funeral Home.
Supplies to make the enormous sculpture were expensive, and Ed Apt wrote in the Daily,
"presently we are waiting for replies of manufacturers from whom we are trying to bum stuff
again. They better be generous because our money is down to a disturbing 36 cents."
Fortunately, industrial firms donated $2000 of material required to build the sculpture. Ed
reported, "Domtar and Canadian Gypsum companies delivered twelve hundred pounds of
moulding plaster to our shop, free. Thanks! The establishment is very good to us. All it takes
is a phone call and the donations just pour in by the tons. (Remember Toronto Brick Co. last
month?)" Toronto Brick Company had donated bricks to support the huge mold for the
sculpture, although Ed and student Alan Reed had to go there and pick them up.
A clay figure was made for the plaster mold. Then the statue was made of polyester resin
mixed with bronze powder. No recipe was used, which is why there is so much variation in
colour. Heinzerling's original concept was, "an homage to Rodin with much obvious
references, including texture, agony of flesh, visceral empathy, etc." However, Ed talked
Derek into making changes to his design, such as enlarging the abdomen and head. He also
convinced Derek to give the sculpture a brick-end texture by pounding the clay model with
the end of a brick. Derek didn't want that texture, but did as he was instructed by the master.
His best friend Alan Reed in the group was with him for help and support during the texture
process. "Unknown Student" was made by Ed Apt, Derek Heinzerling, Dan Kelly, Brock
Fricker, Alan Reed, Sylvia Martin, and others.
It took four months to complete and was unveiled on Good Friday, April 4, 1969 before noon.
Originally the advertised plan was for a parade at 2 p.m. to accompany the sculpture down
Spadina Rd. for the unveiling at 3 p.m. The Rochdale Open-Hearted Marching Band was to
escort the sculpture with people making music with kazoos, coffee cans, baby rattles, horns,
drums, bells, and recorders. Unfortunately, Rochdale could not get a permit for a parade,
which was to be part of the Rochdale Spring Festival.
The Spring Festival was organized largely by Judith Merril to celebrate the unveiling of the
"Unknown Student" sculpture and the coronation of King James I of Rochdale.
Schedule of Events
Friday April 4
2:00 Parade of Unknown Student down Spadina to the College

3:00 Unveiling of Unknown Student

3:30 Coronation of the King of Rochdale.
8:00 ?? Patio Dance
9:00 "The Ballad of Crowfoot", Movie by Willam Dunn plus singing and open forum on Red
Power.
10:00 and midnight Amateur film festival.
Saturday April 5.
2:00 Repeat of the "Ballad of Crowfoot"
afternoon informal fashion show
8:00 Folk Concert 2nd Floor Lounge.
Sunday April 6
2:00 Repeat of the "Ballad of Crowfoot"
4:00 Poetry Reading Tom Ezzy
FRIDAY MONDAY continuous
Arts and crafts, poetry folk music, etc, in the front patio.
Films being shown in the cafeteria including Flowers on a One Way Street, Powwow at Duck
Lake and many others beginning Saturday. Watch for announced schedule on the 2nd floor
Bulletin Board.
Beginning Saturday, Exhibition of the photography of resident photographer Tamio
Yakayama held in the storefront by the bank.
As there was to be no parade, the sculpture students gathered at the studio and moved the
"Unknown Student" to Rochdale in the morning. Ed was in a good and happy mood. The
sculpture was moved from Dupont Street down Madison Avenue with a tarp over it. It was
loaded onto a pallet on the side rails of a pick-up truck, turning it into a flatbed. At the front
plaza of Rochdale the tarp was removed while on the truck and the sculpture was christened
by pouring champagne over it. Then six students lifted the pallet off the truck and onto the
cast-concrete base which had been prepared beforehand by Hank Wood. They tilted the
sculpture up, and pulled the pallet from underneath and set the piece back down. Gravity
alone kept it in place, according to Derek Heinzerling, until it was moved and the pedestal
destroyed after Rochdale College was closed.
However, Brian Williams, who never lived in Rochdale, also helped install the sculpture. He
is certain there were holes in the pedestal and rebars on the bottom of the sculpture. Brian
saw Ed pour concrete cement in the pedestal holes to anchor the sculpture. For what it's
worth, Derek designed and helped make the sculpture and has a better memory than Brian.
But student Alan Reed also vaguely recalls Ed using cement.
One thousand invitations were mailed out for the unveiling, and hundreds of people attended
the ceremony. Both Derek and Brian describe the crowd as, "Hundreds of hippies." There was
a crush of people surrounding the students, looking on but not helping. Derek Heinzerling
was toasted with chocolate chip "herbal" cookies after the loading and unloading of the
sculpture. The statue was positioned facing the building, so residents could see its head from
their apartments, and its backside was basically mooning straight society. This position was
part of Derek's design, and Ed Apt remarked that it "faces in the right direction". Some time
later a plaque was attached at the base of the sculpture, but it eventually disappeared. The
Unknown Student was installed near the far west end of the front plaza close to the sidewalk,

then in 1971 it was moved about 30 feet closer to the college entrance without changing its
"backside" position.
On April 2, 1969 Rochdale became a monarchy when Governing Council declared the
college a constitutional monarchy, with the powers of the monarchy derived from the elected
council. Jim Garrard, the founder of Theatre Passe Muraille and a member of Governing
Council was elected King James I of Rochdale. The college operated as a monarchy for a
while and King James helped speed things up by avoiding excessive decision-making by
consensus. Because of the time change of the sculpture unveiling, the coronation ceremony
took place directly after the unveiling. King James wore street clothes covered with a white
cloak and carried a sceptre.
On the front patio King James began his lengthy acceptance speech: "There are a great many
people in this building who have something to say and a lot of ideas. Without meaning to be
repressive or to suppress these processes, I feel we have to set up a climate where people can
come together and discuss those projects and problems which concern them...You can't try to
be a great king because something tragic happens to you and you can't be a weak king or
something terrible will happen to you. But if one is a mediocre king, one can rule for a long
time that's been proven historically. Now another thing to be taken into consideration..."
The king was interrupted by a heckler who shouted, "Who the fuck are you?"
King James replied, "You can get away with that kind of thing today, but I wouldn't try it
tomorrow. We are going to put punishment stocks in the main lobby and people will be sent
to them starting with Bernie Bomers."
The crowd responded with, "Yeah Yeah Yeah...Hah Hah Hah!"
King James continued, "They might think it's a joke but after 10 or 15 minutes they will say,
'Okay now, let me out of here.' Three days they'll change their minds and maybe you get
what's coming to you. I only mention this to explain why the powerful have done this to
you..."
Another heckler shouted, "Jim Garrard sucks!"
The king replied, "Take his name. Now we're going to set up a throne room, and I hope by
early next year each of you will have had occasion to visit that room. Of course, there will be
other opportunities to deal with my ministers and me..."
After the speech King James climbed on the shoulders of the "Unknown Student" to cheers
from the assembled crowd, and dangled his legs on both sides of the sculpture. The sculpture
students were feeling the effects of the "herbal" cookies, not very interested in the coronation,
which they felt was irrelevant to their accomplishment.
This was the first time anyone had climbed onto the sculpture, and Alan Reed was concerned
about King James damaging it. Prophetically, Ed Apt told him, "Only bricks thrown off the
roof of Rochdale could break the Unknown Student." After the coronation, everyone went
elsewhere to celebrate, and the "Patio Dance" scheduled for 8 p.m. was canceled. Members of
the Rochdale Sculpture Shop had a private party in the building.

Ed wrote in the Rochdale newsletter: "Dear Folks, The sculpture we are mounting today on
your front patio is the product of your sculpture shop. We thought that if the city hall can
have its statue, Rochdale can too, and we have done it. The city paid $125,000 for the Moore,
you paid virtually nothing for yours. This goes to show that 'the home made' is 'better' than
the one you get. Conclusion: make your own children yourselves! Love, Uncle Ed."
In another issue of the Daily he wrote: "Of course, the formation of the Rochdale sculpture
program coincided with the completion of the Rochdale building, so it was obvious that
Rochdale should make its own sculpture, so the big commercial project the product of
which is the "Unknown Student" was organized. Around the time of the unveiling it became
obvious that Rochdale would not be able to subsidize an expensive school the self-supporting
commercial sculpture policy admitted. Advertising hadn't even begun yet when the first
prospective customer appeared on the scene. Construction company owner A.C. Murphy
called me to see him...He told me he wanted us to make a piece for Tartu that he would
donate to the owners of the building."
Everything suggests that Ed Apt designed and built the "music shell" dome stage that was
located at the east end of the second floor terrace for several years. It was his plan to create it,
and he certainly had the skills and ability to do so. But at this time neither he nor Derek
remember if he did it. The stage was used during the July 1969 Rochdale Summer Festival
and Allen Ginsberg read his poetry on the same stage in September 1970. On January, 1972
Governing Council "resolved that the General Manager disassemble the dome on the second
floor patio." It was dismantled in July 1972 because the City of Toronto was concerned it
would be used as a musical stage and disturb the neighbours.
Ed's Sculpture Shop had a "weld up" competition on the front patio during the 1969 Summer
Festival, and followed it with the "unhatching" of Brock Fricker's "Giant Toad". It was not
art, just a commission for a garden ornament and it looked like one. Alan created the statue of
a man in the style of Alberto Giacometti, when Ed let his students use left over material to
make their own sculptures. Brock liked Alan's statue so much he greedily asked for it and
Alan foolishly gave it to him as a gift. That's pretty sleazy, getting paid for a trashy ornament,
and expecting genuine art for free. In March 1970 Jerry Ofo of the Sculpture Shop designed a
sculpture of eight jumping men, but it was never completed due to lack of funding.
While in Rochdale Ed created "The Businessman", a five-foot tall statue. He was very happy
with it and later told his brother Kamill that it looked so disgusting after one of his students
threw it out an eighth-floor window. The crazy idiot thought the philosophy of the sculpture
represented a threat to the people in Rochdale. Fortunately it did not fall on anyone but it was
damaged beyond repair. Ed also created "Earth", "Mermaid", "Elk", "Fountain", "Dolphin"
and other sculptures while living in Toronto.
After a year in Rochdale, Ed became weary of it. He wrote in the Daily: "Rochdale Has
Exploited Me: The theory used to be (and still is) that Rochdale is an island of brotherhood in
the sea of rotten corruption 'out there'. And I, foolish idiot, believed this and took Rochdale
seriously. I believed, because I wanted to, that in this place the revolution of innocence and
kindness would prevail and set itself aside from the outside world of politics, cliques and
exploitation. Hence I didn't play politics and got duly screwed. Serves me right. Meanwhile
all the other resource persons played the game of lobbying at the 'right' places and 'fighting'
for their budget. I did none of these and got nothing. 'Rochdale is a learning experience' says
the only truth telling slogan about this organization, and what I learned here is that it isn't

different from the outside world. Uncle Ed"

Ed was part of the mass exodus of scholars and artists from Rochdale College in 1970. He
left Toorotten for Vancouver in 1970 and continued sculpting, creating "Downtown Goddess"
and others. In the Fall of 1971 he entered UBC to become a Spanish teacher. Tragically, Ed
was involved in a near-fatal motorcycle collision in 1972. His accident happened at the
intersection of 10th Avenue and Sasamat Street on March 10, 1972. He was left half blind
and partially paralyzed. During his long recovery he befriended his nurse, Ruth Richmond,
who was his lover until the accidental end of her life in 1977. Ruth and Ed never married, and
visited Toronto together and met with Derek Heinzerling a few times. Ed is now living at the
James Bay Lodge in Victoria, B.C. and he is not very mobile. But aside from having
difficulty walking, which he insists doing unaided, Ed is fine and quite happy.
On June 10, 1971 Rochdale Governing Council voted to approve the closure of the Rochdale
College Sculpture Shop's bank account with the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.
In Rochdale Ed was a handsome, intelligent, talented, energetic and charming artist with a
notorious reputation as a ladies man and seducer. According to Ed's brother Kamill, Ed
thought of himself as part Don Juan. Kamill said, "It was part of him which he never hid and
never flaunted. Women just stuck to him like flies to sticky paper." Ed was romantic, not a
womanizer, and women pursued him. It probably helped that he was known to be wellendowed. He could work miracles, such as creating the magnificent "Unknown Student"
sculpture with no budget.
Dianne Lee Coyle, the wife of Derek Heinzerling and the mother of his three sons, worked as
a bookkeeper at Rochdale. She grew up in Indianapolis and now lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Dianne married Derek on February 14, 1970 at a Unitarian Church in Toorotten. It was a
double wedding with Judith Merril's daughter Ann Pohl marrying Alan Reed. Alan worked at
the Hassle Free Clinic with Ann, who ran it. He also worked on the "Unknown Student"
sculpture and was friends with Derek before Canada. Reed attended art school and also hails
from Indiana. Alan and Ann later divorced and she married Walter Weary. Ann's father was
Frederik Pohl, the famous science fiction writer, and Judith Merril was Pohl's third of five
wives. Ann and Walter's daughter is writer Emily Pohl-Weary.
Derek Heinzerling said: "When I designed it, I was unhappy and discouraged. I could never
do anything like that anymore, because I'm not so discouraged now. I found the place to be a
dirty hole, for the most part. We moved to Sullivan Street and then Kensington Market. Then
the Beaches, then Kingston Road. In 1975 I went back to art school at N.S.C.A.D. University
in Halifax. Before coming across the border I lived in New York City after my first year of art
school everybody in the Village was going west. I left Canada in 1982 to take my kids to
my hometown in Indiana. They grew up and I followed the sun. After my second year of art
school, I moved to Boulder, from there to San Francisco and the Art Institute there. I'm in
Albuquerque these days.
"I had seen Ed on irregular occasions after his accident. He was t-boned at an intersection on
his motorcycle and nearly killed. Ed had severe head trauma, all busted up, and was
hospitalized for months. He wasn't the same, but after I left town I never heard a thing about
him. He had a lot of sculpture in Victoria and maybe Vancouver from his years pre-Toronto."
Because the "Unknown Student" was a group effort, it is difficult to assign the artist credit.

Ed Apt considers it to be a group effort. Derek Heinzerling considers it to be Ed's sculpture,

even though Derek should get the credit as designer. He says, "This whole group effort: the
concept, the premise, the process, the conceit, was absurd. Sounds like a description of
Rochdale College. Ed's personal touch is all over my sculpture, so much so that it is Ed's
sculpture. The sculpture is Ed's. I thought it was obvious this is not a generosity of spirit,
this is why I walked away."
Derek is very bitter about the changes made to his original design. Although it was a group
effort, Derek inexplicably imagined that Ed and his students should have worked their asses
off to create his imitation Rodin sculpture with no changes whatsoever. He was just a kid
with no art education nor understanding of the technical difficulties involved to create his
intricate original design.
He said: "I hate the name of the sculpture, and I hate the brick-end texture of the piece. All
that and the toxic fumes in a closed garage forced me to walk away in rage and frustration,
plus dizzy. It was the ruination of my piece. I had lost control of my own creation. Still, I
claim the original design it was vibrant with the spirit of the times. The model is long gone,
and what we're left with is Ed's interpretation. My sculpture had fingers and toes, facial
features, spinal column, ears, butt cheeks. The surface had clay modeling and tooling texture
a Rodin, impressionism kind of thing. Sinews, muscles, details, feeling. My sculpture was
not an imitation of Rodin, it was wholly mine with references and homage to Rodin. It was
not realistic, at most impressionistic re: Rodin. It originally had its back turned to the street
my idea and consistent with the design and concept turning it's back on society."
"The sculpture is cracked from bricks thrown off the top floor of Crotchdale."
Yes, the "Unknown Student" was cracked and re-positioned facing society, significantly, after
Rochdales demise. In 1975 Rochdale College was closed and allowed to "cool down" for a
few years before it was renovated into the Senator David A. Croll Apartments as a subsidized
seniors' residence that opened in 1979. Early in the 21st century bricks were thrown off the
roof of Rochdale onto the sculpture causing fairly large cracks in the shoulder areas. Water
damage would have destroyed it during freezing winters. The current owner of the sculpture
is Toorotten Community Housing Corporation, a fascist "company" owned by the City of
Toronto, and they were responsible. TCHC had the sculpture repaired in 2011. There is now
no evidence of the damage. However, there are as many as a dozen hairline cracks, mostly in
the middle of the back where they are long. Otherwise, the "Unknown Student" still looks
great.

Unknown Student on front plaza, installed April 4, 1969

Ed Apt 1969

Derek Heinzerling

Unknown Student cast

January 1969

Ed Apt

Dan Kelley, Ed Apt, Derek Heinzerling, Alan Reed

Unveiling Ceremony April 4, 1969

Front Patio April 26, 1969

Rochdalians around Unknown Student with effigy

Funk helps burn effigy

Ed Apt's personal Sculpture Shop located on Huron Street just south of Rochdale
and close to Coach House Press. It became the Rochdale College Welding Shop.

Rochdale College Ideology

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_51_Ideology.html

Ideology is the science of ideas. There are many different kinds, such as political, social,
economic, and ethical. Ideologies are systems of abstract thought applied to public matters,
and a collection of ideas is an important concept in politics, groups, social classes, and
individuals. A set of ideas may include: philosophy, visions, myths, expectations, goals,
plans and actions.
The first modern bohemian movement was the "Beat Generation", introduced by Jack
Kerouac around 1948 to describe his social circle. Out of it came the Beats or beatniks who,
like all bohemians, relied on artists for direction. Beats were influenced by writers, poets and
folk songwriters. Major Beat writings include Jack Kerouac's On the Road, Allen Ginsberg's
"Howl" and William Burroughs' Naked Lunch. The central ideology connecting the Beat
writers was their complete rejection of middle class values and lifestyle. Three main things
they wanted were pacifism, respect for nature over technological development, and expansion
of individual consciousness.

Their viewpoint was rooted in the radical romantic philosophy of William Blake, Walt
Whitman and Henry David Thoreau. They believed in Thoreau's radical idealism, which
rejected the industrial civilization, and they wanted to return to a natural idyllic life. Like
Whitman and Blake, they admired all creatures and advocated purity, simplicity, and
originality. Beats rejected American bourgeois values and had contempt for the comfortable
but dull lifestyle of the middle class. They compared it to "a pool of the stagnant water"
which stifled the breath of individual freedom to death. Their unconventional exciting life
full of adventure and surprise rejected conventional morals. Beats considered themselves as
champions of liberty, but their violation of social norms provoked angry slander and
condemnation from many critics.
Beats believed the American tradition of respect for individuality had been corrupted by the
industrial civilization. They lived in solitude, created their work in tranquility, and found the
quiet life was a good way to break away from moral restrictions. When they embraced
society's excluded values they were banished to a vagrant life. They roamed everywhere
around the world as an effective way to escape from the uproar, and they had no conception
of family, career or community. Most Beats generally believed in anarchism. They hated and
attacked the corrupt government and compared it to a "cancer cell". William Burroughs
believed that mainstream society was controlled by a handful of political gangsters who
plotted to set up a centralized state to intrude on the freedom and privacy of the public.
In their latter period, many Beats studied Buddhism and spent much time meditating. The
Beats' resistance against corrupt morals gradually shifted from abuse to reclusive
introspection. For many "Beat Generation" writers, the Buddhist philosophy became the
ballast on their souls, which could balance their inner turbulence and free them from a
corrupt society.
After the Beats died out by the mid-1960's, they were replaced by a much larger bohemian
social group: the so-called hippies. They inherited Beat values and chose a gentle and nondoctrinaire ideology that favored peace, love, and personal freedom. Their ideology came
entirely from rock stars, the leaders of the youth revolution. In the late 1960s all the major
Rock bands were composed of hippies. John Lennon said he took LSD over 1000 times.
Jimi Hendrix did the same, and in his entire three years of superstardom never even had a
home. Psychedelic musicians gave voice to hippie ethics. Rock music lyrics not only
brainwashed the hippies but was also a hippie indoctrination course for all youth. Bohemians
require artists to guide them, and without psychedelic rock there would have been no hippie
movement.
Hippies rejected established institutions and middle class values, opposed nuclear weapons
and the Vietnam War, embraced Eastern religions, championed sexual liberation, promoted
the use of psychedelic drugs, and created alternative communities. They used art, street
theatre, and psychedelic rock music as part of their lifestyle, and as a way of expressing their
feelings, protests, and their vision of the world and life. Hippies opposed political and social
orthodoxy. They perceived mainstream society as a corrupt, monolithic entity that exercised
undue power over their lives.
Hippies freed themselves from societys restrictions, chose their own way, and found new
meaning in life. Traits and values that hippies tend to be associated with are altruism,
mysticism, drugs, honesty, joy and nonviolence. One expression of hippie independence was

their choice of clothing and grooming, which made hippies instantly recognizable to one
another, and served as a visual symbol of their respect for individual rights, so opposite to the
wider society. They may have looked similar, but through their appearance, hippies declared
their willingness to question authority, and distanced themselves from the conformist
"straights" and "squares". Furthermore, their ragged clothes and long messy hair expressed
their rejection of materialism. Some hippies disagreed with the idea that the way a person
dresses could be a reliable sign of who he was especially after criminals such as Charles
Manson adopted superficial hippie characteristics. Plainclothes undercover policemen also
dressed like hippies in order to crush the subculture.
A historian of the anarchist movement, Ronald Creagh, believed the hippie movement was
the last large resurgence of utopian socialism. For Creagh, a characteristic of this is the
desire for the transformation of society not through political revolution, or through reformist
action pushed forward by the state, but through the creation of a socialist counterculture in
the midst of the current system, which would be made up of ideal communities with a
libertarian social form.
It is a fact that the hippie movement died around 1970, and this was perhaps best summed up
by Peter Townshend of The Who in his 1971 song "Won't Get Fooled Again". It tells of a
"revolution of revolutions" in an endless cycle, where "the change it had to come, we knew it
all along" but each new regime turns out to be just like the old one. Townshend explains,
"There's nothing in the street looks any different to me" and "The world looks just the same
and history ain't changed." Also in 1971 Joni Mitchell's song "California" mentions "They
won't give peace a chance. That was just a dream some of us had". In 1970 John Lennon
wrote "The dream is over". Lennon in his 1970 song "I Found Out" is angry, bitter, and
disillusioned: "I told you before, stay away from my door / Don't give me that brother,
brother, brother, brother / The freaks on the phone won't leave me alone." The hippie dream
and its movement was over. The Beatles broke up; Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Jim Morrison
were dead.
As the hippie movement was in its final phase, Rochdale College opened in the Fall of 1968
in Toronto. It was planned as an avant-garde experiment in alternative education. There
were no classrooms, curriculum, exams, courses, or teachers only "Resource People" who
had reduced rent in exchange for sharing their knowledge. One of the resource people was
Judith Merril who said, Rochdale was "dedicated to a concept of education that had
everything to do with learning and almost nothing to do with teaching." Rochdale was
almost unique in its educational approach with no classes, teachers or competition, but an
emphasis on interest and community, rather than a standardized inflexible curriculum.
Founding father Dennis Lee wrote, "Rochdale College would provide an idealized Oxbridge
education immersion in the subject, testing conclusions against the mind of a tutor, reimmersion in the subject by which that initial liberation could be repeated and extended as he
pushed into new disciplines or deeper into one which became his vocation. What Rochdale is
all about is having a system flexible enough to fit people, all kinds of people, rather than
trying to make people fit a structured system inherited from somewhere and someone else. It
is a place where people must create their own environment, make their own decisions, learn
to face themselves because the basic truth everyone must face is about himself and learn
to live as complete, rounded people."
Unfortunately Rochdale College quickly used up its budget for education and then had no

money, so it could not function as a college. By mid-1970 virtually all the respectable and
responsible members moved out and the "college" degenerated into a hippie drug store. The
educational aspect of Rochdale continued for those who were interested. It evolved into a
system of free "educational space" mostly in the east wing of the sixth-floor. Previously the
sixth had been a fortified "dealing commune" which was trashed beyond repair by the dealers
and could not be rented out. Members of the college applied to Edcon for rooms on the sixthfloor, and successful applicants then had to finance their educational projects themselves. For
a short time when the elite stopped mortgage payments in 1972, money was available for
education. However, this "Golden Age" benefited mostly the elite, who bought a bus, a farm,
over $10,000 worth of video equipment, etc., for their own personal projects. Presumably,
the ideology of Rochdale education was spaces for existing and proposed projects were
granted with a do-it-yourself philosophy, and learning was largely by trial and error. All the
resource people" were gone. Unfortunately, too many people lived in their free
"educational" units on the sixth-floor as drug dealers and this was counter-productive to any
form of education.
The college is usually referred to as an alternative and idealistic "experiment" in education.
That was founder Dennis Lee's position, but co-founder Howard Adelman saw education as a
tax dodge, although he also wanted a liberated "free university". Unfortunately, the City of
Toronto refused to give Rochdale a tax exemption which meant there was no budget for
education. Therefore there was no education. I did not learn anything whatsoever in
Rochdale College, and I was granted educational space on the sixth-floor. Nobody learned
anything in Rochdale that fell into the category of education. There was no idealistic
alternative to formal education and no experimentation with education. All the talk and
propaganda about education at Rochdale College was complete bullshit. The only real
education in Rochdale was student "filler" who studied their University of Toronto
coursebooks in the building. The worst aspect of the"education" at Rochdale was that it was
basically a "front" for large-scale drug dealing. Rochdale College president Jimmy Newell
wrote, "I get the feeling that all I've become is a front for the drugstore owners." So the
ideology of education at Rochdale was bullshit. And the sad fact is Rochdalians believed
their own bullshit.
The social structure of Rochdale was elitist, a variation of Orwell's "Animal Farm". There
was no real social equality, just a schism between the "filler", tightasses, and sleazes. The
largely tightassed elite based their social superiority on their bourgeois suburban upbringing,
and the sleazes were considered inferior because of their working class background.
Education and intelligence had nothing to do with it. Elitism in education is the teacher vs.
student structure and the concentration of attention to the best students, or students who rank
highest. Rochdale could not use its educational status as an excuse for its elitist hierarchy,
because the college existed at a time of "Student Power", which was completely opposed to
elitism in education.
Except for its U of T tenants, there were no authentic students in Rochdale College.
Furthermore, Rochdale rejected institutional education, and should have dispensed with
elitism, which asserts that some people are fundamentally superior to others. Instead
Rochdale embraced its aristocracy! On April 4, 1969 Jim Garrard, founder, playwright and
director of Torontos cultural landmark Theatre Passe Muraille in the College, was crowned
King James I of Rochdale. Rochdale actually functioned as an aristocracy to help speed
things up by avoiding excessively lengthy decision-making by consensus. Jim Garrard said,
"Council accepted the monarchy as a good way to govern. They became, voluntarily, dukes

and earls or whatever." On May 19, 1969 Paul Evitts moved that Judith Merril be made
Queen of Rochdale at a GovCon meeting. The motion was passed, but Judy declined the
position because she was not an elitist. She said, "The Council can't make me fucking
Queen."
Some believe elitism is a biological necessity for communal animals, because anarchism
means animals are not living communally. They argue that every society is composed of a
ruling class or elite and a usually larger subordinate class. The elitists are parasites, but it's
difficult to have a society without a hierarchy. American political scientist Murray Edelman
believed elites manipulate an ignorant public with symbolism, and later in his career he
suggested that elites become puppets to their ideologies. However, ideologies stand or fall on
the quality of their ideas, not on those who support or oppose them. In other words, all
ideologies must be judged on their merits, because the tactics of their supporters are just a
distraction.
Opponents of elitism believe in anti-elitism, egalitarianism, populism and the political theory
of pluralism. Torontos Yorkville Village, San Franciscos Haight-Ashbury, and New Yorks
Greenwich Village were never elitist. In Rochdale sculptor Edward Apt was appalled by the
elitism and complained, "Those of you who evidently expect me to come bottom kissing, I
have disappointing news: I never did it for the Communists in Hungary, for the mighty
Anglos in Vancouver, for the Spanish aristocracy in South America, and for the powerful in
Toronto. Then I certainly shan't start it with the Rochdale Hip Hierarchy."
Doug Hutchings wrote: "This elite is not bothered by the fact that the vast majority of
residents in this building have absolutely no voice in the government of our collective home.
It is far more comfortable for them to skulk off to unadvertised meetings in a chilly library,
surrounded by those so-familiar faces, discuss trivia, then make important decisions
individually, after consulting no one."
Politically, Rochdale was very left-wing, communal, with a heavy dose of anarchy. The
ideology was internal and unique, because unlike Yorkville and Haight-Ashbury, it was in an
18-storey high-rise building and included education. It did not depend on artists for
guidance, largely because there were few bohemians in Rochdale who wanted it. They were
elitists, phonies, drug dealers, druggies, alcoholics, draft dodgers, hicks, artists, bobos, and
neo-hippies. Much ideology in Rochdale came from media reports on the college, or reaction
against it. Rochdale ideology was initially based on founding father Dennis Lee's confusing
ideas, but quickly became an organic manifestation of the beliefs of the disparate types of
residents. One thing is certain, Rochdale ideology had very little to do with hippyism or any
other bohemian belief system. For starters, authentic hippies hated alcohol, which was
arguably the most popular drug in Rochdale.
Sleaze was the overwhelming characteristic of Rochdale. The word means cheap, vulgar,
immoral, degenerate, sordid, and corrupt and using all those elements to take advantage of a
situation for ones personal benefit. However, for many in Rochdale sleaze was a virtue. It
was the greatest virtue for Walt Huston and some others. The sleazes in Rochdale had
nothing to learn from the bourgeois, tightassed elite, but the elite learned a lot about sleaze.
For example, they stopped mortgage payments in 1972 and kept the rent money for
themselves. Their selfish logic was they would enjoy the rent money and then move out by
the time the building was closed for not making mortgage payments.

I could write a much larger book just about sleaze in Rochdale. In fact, whenever I think
about specific Rochdalians, the first thing that usually comes to mind is an incident involving
sleaze. Often it went beyond sleaze and was really crime. Of course a large percentage of
Rochdalians were never sleazy, but sleaze defined the place. I have traveled around the world
and Rochdale College was without a doubt the sleaziest place on Earth by far.
Like the Beats, most Rochdalians wanted to return to a natural idyllic life. This was evident
in their relatively sleazy environment that one person described as a "DP [displaced persons]
camp". One reason for this deliberate dilapidated look was because the building when new
was sterile, antiseptic and institutional. I certainly preferred the dilapidated Rochdale to the
plastic one. Beat poet Allen Ginsberg complained that, "It was kind of bewildering, because
it was modernistic and yet everybody was trying to live in a primitive way. Some of the
rooms were quite messy." Yes, "everybody was trying to live in a primitive way" just as the
Beats wanted to return to a natural idyllic life. It's certainly strange and hypocritical that Beat
poet Allen Ginsberg could not comprehend it.
Bullshit was the second most prevalent characteristic. Rochdale College ran on bullshit and
phoniness. Any Rochdalian reading this truth will be enraged, because they were raised on
bullshit and believed it. They lived a bullshit lifestyle and their ideas about Rochdale were
bullshit. All publicity emanating from Rochdale was bullshit. Most of what I heard in the
building was bullshit. Rochdale was bullshit and many Rochdalians believed their own
bullshit. The bullshit existed because of the phoniness of Rochdale College. It was not a
college and there was no real education. The so-called hippies were phonies, just alcoholic
druggie deadbeats. They considered themselves to be ultra-hip and were very smug about it,
but they were just assholes who didn't have a clue. Rochdalians were by definition phonies,
and the phoniest thing about them was their friendship. Perhaps the ideology of phoniness
inspires the creation of new realities. But theyre still not real.
Most Rochdalians were smug assholes. It was a defining characteristic that became part of
Rochdale ideology. The word is vulgar slang for the anus to describe a person who has
nothing but crap to contribute, just as the anus is a source of nothing but shit. An asshole is a
stupid, irritating, and contemptible person who doesn't treat other people with respect. U of T
students generally regarded Rochdalians as assholes according to their Varsity newspaper. I
certainly considered them to be assholes. For example, King Bill was always a complete
motherfucking asshole with me. He took great pleasure in treating me like shit. The same
was true for Kevin O'Leary and dozens of other elitist swine in Rochdale. They were
assholes, sleazy obnoxious phonies who created nothing but shit and treated others like shit.
There were many well-mannered ladies and gentlemen in Rochdale College, but the majority
of Rochdalians were unpleasant, annoying, hurtful, and infuriatingly confrontational
assholes. The source of the assholiness was alcohol, drug dealing, phoniness, and sleaze.
Rochdalians were proud to be assholes, although they considered themselves "honest" and
"real" in their mistreatment of others. Yes, they were honestly real assholes.
People were given a second chance when they fucked up or ripped off in Rochdale. Then
they were given a third chance. A fourth chance. Unlimited chances after fucking up and
ripping off. An example is Syd Stern, an prison convict relatively elderly when compared to
the scene, who operated a large drug dealing franchise in Rochdale. Countless times the
administration tried to evict him, but they always failed because he had the backing of the
many drug dealers in the building.

The use and sale of "soft" recreational drugs was symbolic of the set of values endorsed by
the neo-hippies in Rochdale. Jock Young in his book The Drugtakers suggested that unlike
most drug-using subcultures, there were "pronounced ideological overtones associated with
recreational drug use" by hippies. He explained that there was a "fit" between "bohemian
subterranean values of freedom" and hedonism, spontaneity, anti-materialism, consciousness
expansion, marijuana and LSD. Others have argued that drug dealing is important for
revolution. However, in Rochdale most drug dealing was merely a capitalist enterprise that
made the sleazy criminal deadbeats feel "hip" as they earned a living selling illegal drugs.
The Rochdale College position on recreational drugs was that "soft" drugs such as marijuana,
hashish, LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin were not only tolerated, but promoted and sold to
outsiders. Supposedly when Rochdale opened, the police assured the college that "soft"
drugs used by tenants would be tolerated, but drug dealing would not. Hard drugs such as
heroin and speed had zero tolerance in Rochdale. Everybody considered them to be
dangerous and evil anyone using them was quickly evicted. It was basically the same for
cocaine and also prescription drugs that were abused: barbiturates, amphetamines,
benzodiazepines, quaaludes, and so on.
Alcohol was legal and was one of the most popular drugs in Rochdale. Its use was one of the
main differences between Rochdalians and the original hippies, who hated alcohol and
considered it the recreational drug of the despised older generation. They thought it was
unhealthy, harmful, and would lead to violence. To quite an extent Rochdale was a drug
subculture with an ideology that considered "soft" drugs to be beneficial and alcohol was
harmless. LSD guru Timothy Leary wrote: "Hey! Canada! Wake Up! Who's brainwashed
you that way to think that alcohol, the dangerous, narcotic, addictive intoxicant, is
something that should be consumed, and a holy sacrament such as marijuana and drugs like
LSD which have been used for thousands of years by spiritual seekers should not be used?"
Hedonism was a large part of Rochdale College ideology. Most people wanted to have a
good time. That was their top priority. It wasn't as noble as the ideology of the Beats and
authentic hippies, but Rochdalian "hippies" were simply deadbeats and not bohemians. Very
few in Rochdale contributed to the college, and too many were destructive. However, there
were hundreds of admirable people who lived in Rochdale College, especially in the
beginning.
Authentic hippies were nonviolent, but Rochdalians were confrontational to the point of
violence due to the sardine can environment. For example, Alex MacDonald attempted to
strangle me to death in Rochdale's 15th Floor Commune. A couple of weeks later he said in a
newspaper interview, "Rochdale taught me how to relate to people." There in one short quote
you have evidence of three characteristics of Rochdale College ideology: elitism, violence
and bullshit.
One thing Rochdalians had in common with real hippies was homophobia. They hated gays
(in fact, that term had not yet entered common use), considered them to be sick, and believed
they could be "cured" with LSD. King Bill thought gays were suffering from an "arrested
sexual development". Of course there were homosexuals in Rochdale as everywhere else but
they were all in the closet. Hippies and Rochdalians were part of the sexual liberation
revolution, but for them it did not include gays. It was sad to hear "fag" and other insults, but
hippies and Rochdalians did not mince words when condemning gays for their sexual
orientation.

Actually, the majority of people in Rochdale College had no real ideology. About half were
student and worker "filler" who lived there because of the convenient location and "no silly
rules". Most of the so-called hippies were small-town hicks who learned about Rochdale
from sensational media reports: "Another Drug Bust in Rochdale College". Over the years
thousands moved into the "college" to learn how to be a hippie and after a month or so
believed they were, but they didn't have a clue. They succeeded in becoming hippie
stereotypes: dirty, lazy, long-haired drug abusers. There were virtually no authentic hippies
in Rochdale, only phonies who were less convincing than plainclothes undercover cops. The
hippie movement was dead, and they somehow didnt get the memo. They grew their hair
long, lived in filth and squalor, and sold drugs. In their stoned minds they believed those
things made them hippies. For many Rochdalians, education at the college meant learning to
be a hippie.

The elite were like the privileged bosses everywhere they wielded political and economic
power, set the general tone for what is right or wrong, and made all the important decisions.
In other words, elite ideology is fascist. There was no real egalitarianism in Rochdale, only
bullshit rhetoric.

Rochdale Handbook 1968

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_45_Handbook-Catalogue.html

Rochdale College Catalogue September 1968

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_45_Handbook-Catalogue.html


Rochdale College By-Laws 1968

Money and Fund-Raising 1968

Rochdale Catalog 1969

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_48_Rochdale-Catalog-1972.html

Rochdale College Catalog 1972

Rochdale College Security

http://rochdalesecurity.blogspot.com

When Rochdale College opened in 1968 there was an electronic security system which was
coupled to the locked entrance door. Only residents had keys. A commonplace feature
allowed visitors to contact residents with a speaker system to be admitted. This electronic
system very quickly became completely broken and useless. A teenage "practicing anarchist"
named Paul "Destructo" Evitts removed the main front door lock, which created disastrous
consequences such as the speed-freak and crasher problems. He probably sabotaged the buzzin intercom system at the same time to ensure the lock was not replaced.
Security guards were used instead of replacing the lock and repairing the electronic system.
This was a good course of action at the time because of the many crashers, speed-freaks, and
other undesirables who occupied the building. The speed-freak and crasher problem was
eventually solved, but the security guards remained. Why? Because Rochdale was becoming
the Torontos pharmacy for illicit drugs.
By 1970 Rochdale was a major drug distribution centre for "soft" drugs (cannabis,
psychedelic chemicals), and the countless dealers required Rochdale Security to protect them
from the authorities. In 1970 a referendum with about 300 people voting made dealing illicit
drugs to outsiders an evictible offense. But it was not enforced. According to James Newell,
"We compromised by letting 'cool' dealers continue here, until now we have 80 dealers and
the same problems with the police as we did in 1970. The answer is 80 dealers is too many
dealers, no matter how cool they are."
The Rochdale Security force was there to screen visitors and keep undesirables out.
Unfortunately, Rochdale Security's main purpose was to screen drug customers. They knew
which visitors were drug customers, and allowed "cool" customers to visit "cool" dealers.
Billy Littler said, "My role as I perceived it was to throw out the hard drug dealers and the
ones who were a little crazy those literally open-door marijuana dealers." James Newell
wrote in Rochdales Tuesdaily, "The dealers in this building have a sweet lobby. Security
protects them from the police, Rentals rents them stash rooms, Lionel Douglas argues for
them at Council meetings."
Rochdale Security was originally headed by Ed Walsh, then Billy Littler until 1972. Musician
Rudy Hierk became head of Rochdale Security in 1972. Rochdale Security was composed of
a maximum of 20 guards; over the years dozens of men worked full- or part-time for
Security. The guards included: Ed Walsh, Billy Littler, Funk, Zip, Friar Tuck, Don Ferguson,
Mike Vance, Mike Franklin, Prince, Charlie, Charlie Taylor, Bear, Mickey Russell, Francisco,
Alaska, Tommy Howison, Dave Marco, Little John, Samson, Rod Humel, Al Masy, Jeff
"Shades" Snider, David Bond, Bob Naismith, Mark "Slim" Smith, Tony Zenker, Tom
Houston, Larry Claypool, John Panter, and Army.
You have probably seen the photos of Rochdale Security guards with their black uniforms.
And also the photos of them posing with guns along with their attack-trained dogs (which, of
course, they claimed were not attack-trained). All of this para-military crap was entirely
American--an American kid's fantasy about macho fascist cowboy/biker assholes with guns.

American security guards carry guns, but Canadian security guards (with the exception of
Brinks, etc.) are not allowed to. In other words, the guns and macho crap was just their
image, an American image. It suited an illicit drug distribution centre, but was completely out
of place in an educational College of learning. But Rochdale was in reality the American
enclave in Toronto and an illicit drug distribution centre, so that explains the mind-set. The
macho outlaw image was changed around 1972 to a casual and friendly one, but nothing else
changed about Rochdale Security and its protection for drug dealing.
Other duties of Rochdale Security involved evicting people. They did it illegally and like
motherfucking stormtroopers, which is what they were. Some of the accounts I have read and
heard about their illegal evictions turn my stomach, so I won't elaborate.
So basically Rochdale Security was working for the dealers in Rochdale, or more accurately,
it owed its existence to the drug dealing situation. Without drug dealing, security could have
been handled by tenants association Toad Lanes voluntary security guards. Dealing to
outsiders destroyed Rochdale College, and the dealers could not have survived without
Rochdale Security.
The bottom line belongs to James Newell: "You're going to have to choose between Rochdale
and dealing."

Rochdale Security

Main Lobby of Rochdale College with Rochdale Security

Main Lobby of Rochdale College. Dave Draper of Rochdale Security.

Billy Littler Rochdale Security

Al Masy Rochdale Security

Rochdale Security in the Sub-basement

Rochdale Security outside building on Bloor Street

Tuesdaily February 29, 1972 clip

Rochdale College Murals by Laurie Peters

http://rochdalecollegemuralslauriepeterrs.blogspot.com

Laurie Peters
It's hard to imagine the Rochdale College entrance lobby without the painted murals by
Laurie Peters. They were the showpiece of Rochdale and gave its first impression to both
residents and visitors. The entire lobby was painted by Laurie Peters from August to
November 1971. On a few occasions I watched Peters painting the lobby very quickly, with a
paint brush in one hand and a cigarette or cup of coffee in the other. There was always an
audience watching her paint, but she was oblivious of them, completely focused on her work.
Her art was basically over 100 portraits of Rochdale faces painted in oils and acrylic. The
style was distinctive and many faces resembled religious icons, but the execution of some
varied from almost photorealism to the abstract and everything in between. Peters' murals
reached from the floor to the ceiling and included abstract designs with the faces, as well as a
few symbols and objects such as musical instruments. They looked original and good, but
also dark, gloomy, and somewhat reminiscent of primitive frescoes in ancient Roman
catacombs. However, they were also psychedelic, some were colourful, and there were many
bright scenes. But except for daytime sunshine, the lobbys lighting was inadequate for
Lauries art.
The murals made the Rochdale lobby look much less institutional and plastic, but too dark,
especially at night. However, since the building was becoming run-down and dirty, they gave

it considerable character and charm. Rochdale suddenly looked unique. One change was that
public notices were no longer posted on the lobby walls, and the bulletin board and elevator
doors were used more for notices. Laurie received a grant from the College plus money from
Rochdalian "entrepreneurs" (if you get my drift) for her work.
A large stairway led to the second floor, where there was the Rochdale Library, administrative
offices, the small "Sooper Store", a short-order cafeteria run by Mike Elesner, and a large
outdoor terrace. And there was the second floor lounge, which over the years was used as a
lounge, a venue for Govcon meetings, parties, and, for five years, it served as Reg Hartt's
screening room for his cinema. Laurie also painted murals in the second-floor lounge, and she
considered them superior to the lobby murals. They were mostly large and bright abstract
landscapes and designs, with big flowers and some objects such as a railway train. There
were few portrait faces, but one prominent black guitar player in exotic robes. Reg Hartt
claims he commissioned Peters to paint the lounge murals.
Unfortunately, Bob Allen of Rochdale Maintenance removed Lauries lounge murals and
painted over them. She despised him for destroying her art. Bob was my next door neighbour
in the 15th-floor Commune for a couple of years and I understand why he did it. It's simple:
he was an unsophisticated asshole. Every day at lunch he watched "The Flintstones" cartoon
show on TV, his idea of culture. Just the kind of asshole to destroy genuine art. Bob didn't say
much. When he spoke publicly it was always the nice platitudes everyone wanted to hear.
However, countless times the arrogant wannabe elitist said and did extremely nasty things to
me. He betrayed me in the worst possible way more than once. I wanted the motherfucking
"ugly American" foreigner deported. I still do.
In late 1974 another artist painted over some of Laurie Peters' work in the first floor lobby
area. The design was a graphic beige strip with brown silhouettes of people holding hands or
something. It was about three feet high and ten feet long, located on the top of the north
lobby wall, and the intention was to continue re-painting some of the lobby. However, the
strip looked incompatible and amateurish in comparison with Peters' art, and Rochdalians
hated it. President Mike Randell put his foot down and assured everyone that no more of
Laurie Peters' art would be destroyed. It was tragic enough that her mural art in the second
floor lounge had been so senselessly removed.
There was another mural artist in Rochdale named Sharon Blanchfield. She is most famous
for starting the booze can and afterhours key club located in Gnostic unit 711. Sharon painted
the large room in Bar 711 to look like a "Camel" cigarette package, and painted a "Big Ass"
cartoon on the window facing Bloor Street. It was the last window painting in the building
and a photo of it was published in the Canadas Globe and Mail newspaper in an article about
the "irreverent attitude of the inhabitants being displayed by this painting mooning Bloor
Street." There were pinball machines in the second room and Sharons kitchen was a
Jamaican beach bar.
Partly because of her friend Bobby Leytus, Sharon eventually sold Bar 711 to Mitch, Stanley
and "Big Boogie" (7'2" tall) from Michigan who painted over her art and turned it into a
"Black Pit". It was dark, sleazy, and a home away from home for some. Sharon only visited it
again once, and the loss of her art made her decide never to paint on walls again ever.
Sharon's art, including a photo of the "Big Ass" cartoon can be found on her website, which
also has bronzes by Lorraine Darling. Also on the site is a photo of a large mostly blue-green
painting of Rochdale that was sold to Rosie. There is a yo-yo in the top left and Eric the cat is

looking at the painting. In the yo-yo the red curtains spell "fuck off" and the same is repeated
in the cat's eyes.
Sharon lived in 1118 and 1105 and also painted the elevator lobby of the 11th-floor with a
large blue cow and other animals "partaking in the consumption of cannabis". Motherfucking
asshole Bob Allen was then at it again! He tried to remove the blue cow art in the 11th floor
lobby. However, residents on the 11th-floor had a big argument with him and the mess was
cleaned up. Then Sharon repainted it.
On the east side of the main floor lobby, Sharon painted above the elevator doors. Her small
painting was of large balls sectioned off in crescents in an attempt to do something that
appeared three-dimensional. She did not paint over any of Laurie Peters' work, and the very
idea was repugnant to her. Sharon said: "I only went back into 711 once after selling it.
Seeing all my work painted over in black was too much for me. I told myself at the time I'd
never paint on walls again and I never have. I painted more than one wall in the Rock and
also painted a number of doors with various Alice in Wonderland creatures. As for the lobby,
99% of it was done by Laurie and I would never paint over another artist's work. Rochdale
gave me the time and place to learn to paint which is what I do today, and I am ever grateful
for that."
Another artist who created something of a mural was Cindy Lei. In 1974 she protested the
institutionalized painting of Rochdale walls by Clarkson. On the 10th-floor in the elevator
lobby, she and others started a collage of magazine and newspaper cutouts on the pastelpainted walls. I had created much the same thing just inside the entrance to the 15th-floor
Commune, so maybe I inspired Cindy. However, the residents of the 10th-floor were upset
and scraped off her collage. Cindy apologized for not consulting them.
Cindy wrote in the Tuesdaily: "A small group of people (from building) protested verbally
while riding up to the 10th floor about the institutional look of our halls, of how Clarkson Co.
were painting OUR walls the way THEY wanted, without consulting the people who were
paying rent, whose money went to hire outside paint crews, without even giving us a chance
to make a choice from THEIR charts for color. We looked at the yellow pastel paint as the
elevator door opened on the 10th floor and decided to do something about it. Some
newspaper with interesting titles found its way into our hands and we started to tear words
out, sticking them on the fresh paint. They were not the fuck suck cock asshole etc. type of
graffiti. It was to be the start of a collage protesting the situation at hand. Another group of
people came along within a few minutes (after Security came, rapped, and left). They started
to scrape the newspaper and magazine cut-outs the first group had carefully laid out on the
tacky walls. Both groups were organized. Both groups were right. Both groups were
changing the appearance of the walls. Both groups were wrong (?). I apologize to the people
of the 10th floor for not consulting them before starting a collage on their walls, the newly
painted 10th floor lobby, for the manner in which I protested, but not for protesting. At least
we got together and found out some things. Some other alternatives for forms of protest were
discussed. And, finally, I got a chance to rap a little with some people I've seen only as fellow
10th floor occupants on their way in and out....What do you think?.... Cindy"
Etherea Natural Foods Restaurant, located on the ground floor with an entrance onto the front
patio and Bloor Street, had a lovely large mural over the food and cashier area. Somewhat
abstract, it depicted a mountain scene with some trees at the base and the mountains
resembled frozen waves. The restaurant was staffed mostly by Rochdalians and replaced the

original cafeteria that always lost money. Etherea Family Commune opened Etherea and the
adjacent Nature's Way Natural Food Store in 1971.
In 1975 Rochdale was closed and allowed to "cool down" for a few years before it was
renovated into The Senator David A. Croll Apartments as a subsidized seniors' residence
which opened in 1979. Virtually all of Laurie Peters' murals were destroyed. However, the
very top 15 inches of the art in the elevator area was left intact and illuminated with a
wooden light fixture. Strangely, a photo of the lobby of The Senator David A. Croll
Apartments with this fragment of Peters' art is used as the introduction to the so-called
"Rochdale Museum" website: https://files.nyu.edu/spores01/public/rochdale.html. Wake up,
Stuart Spore! That's not Rochdale College. It's a sickening and disgusting photo of the
destruction of Rochdale College and Laurie Peters' art. Shame on you! All you motherfucking
Yankee tourists in Rochdale never understood the place. Get your fucking travesty and
misrepresentation off the Internet!
Soon after Rochdale College closed I met Laurie Peters where she lived with her boyfriend at
95 Madison Avenue in a fairly large low-rise apartment building a few blocks north of
Rochdale. Syd Stern, Ruth King, True, and other Rochdalians also lived there. I noticed a
very large canvas Laurie was working on titled "Pender Island", depicting two people at a
campsite in the woods on Pender Island located in British Columbia's Gulf Islands. I bought
the unfinished oil and acrylic painting off Laurie, and when it was completed hung it over the
mantlepiece in my bedroom--the same antique mantlepiece that once decorated the 15th floor
Commune lounge. Laurie had suggested that I frame it with old barn wood, but I left it
unframed so it looked like a mural.
Unfortunately, Laurie had painted a fish being cooked over the camp fire and this was
unacceptable for a strict vegetarian. Laurie paid a visit one day and quickly painted out the
fish. She took photos of the painting before and after the change. Her good quality camera
and expertise suggested she took photos of all her work, including her murals in Rochdale. I
vaguely recall she told me that she received permission to enter Rochdale to photograph her
lobby murals, and had done so or was going to. She was quite business-like for an artist,
intelligent, articulate, sincere, honest, easy to get along with, and attractive. Unlike most
Rochdalians she did not gossip or mention others unless it was relevant. The only time she
was agitated was when I mentioned Bob Allen. She said, "No! Don't ask about Bob Allen.
He's the one who destroyed my murals in the second floor lounge. They were better than what
I painted in the lobby." I joked to her about the "servant problem" in the large house I was
living in, but Laurie didn't get it and seemed to think I was an arrogant elitist or something.
Otherwise, we got along quite well.
Laurie was very confident and proud of her artistic talent and accomplishments. Like me, she
had no false humility. She had studied art in Mexico, where many of her murals are located.
Some are elsewhere, including Montreal. Where is Laurie Peters now? Unknown. She seems
to have disappeared with no discernible presence on the Internet. I wrote to her in the 1980's,
but there was no response and I suspect she had moved. However, there are many "Laurie
Peters" on Facebook and a few artists (male and female) listed on Google as artists named
Laurie Peters. Let's hope she resurfaces.


Laurie Peters Murals in the 2nd Floor Lounge of Rochdale College below:

Daily clip August 24, 1971

Tuesdaily November 2, 1971 clip

Main Lobby

Rochdale Communes
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_47_Rochdale-Communes.html

There were many communes in Rochdale College and the first was the "Utopian Research
Institute" on the 13th-floor started in October 1968. Plans for the "Naked Ashram" included a
meditation and yoga room, a public coffee shop, a musical instrument-making workshop, and
a 24 hour educational program. In late Spring 1969 a commune was started in the 16th-floor
East wing and quickly folded. The 14th-floor Commune was the most enduring and famous,
and it began in July 1969 in the East wing. Ashram communes on the eighth- and ninthfloors started in the fall of 1969. Over the years communes existed on the third-, sixth-,
eighth-, ninth-, 12th-, 13th-, 14th-, 15th-, 16th-, and 17th- floors. Usually they were in the
Ashrams, although on the 14th- and 15th- floors Communes were the entire floors in the East
wing, including Ashram, Kafka and Gnostic units. Rochdalians lived in them because they
wanted to live communally and also to pay cheaper rent.
There were 16 floors in the East wing, usually with five Kafka units and six Gnostic units per
floor, numbered one to 11. The L-shaped Ashrams had four single rooms and four double
rooms with a large shared washroom, large lounge, and kitchenette. Rooms were numbered
12 to 19. In the 18-floor West wing there were usually six Aphrodite apartments and one twobedroom Zeus apartment on each floor. the Zeus was #26 and was located at the far west end
facing Bloor Street. Apartments were unfurnished, more expensive, and the West wing was
almost like a separate building. The halls were more quiet and empty with less traffic, and the
residents tended to be conservative "filler" with more money. Units were numbered 20 to 26,

and no communes ever existed in the West wing.

Generally the communes were groups of compatible Rochdalians with common interests
living together to share responsibilities, work, resources, and, to some extent, possessions.
Ron E. Roberts in his book, The New Communes, described them as being a subclass of the
larger category of utopian communities. He listed three characteristics: egalitarianism,
human-scale (generally with fewer than 20 people), and consciously anti-bureaucratic. Dr.
Bill Metcalf in his book Shared Visions, Shared Lives defined communes as having the core
principles of "the importance of the group as opposed to the nuclear family unit, a 'common
purse', a collective household, and group decision making in general. Sharing everyday life
and facilities, a commune is an idealised form of family, being a new sort of 'primary group'.
Commune members have emotional bonds to the whole group rather than to any sub-group,
and the commune is experienced with emotions which go beyond just social collectivity."
A Rochdale brochure explained: "The Gnostic unit is designed for three. It has a single room,
a double room, a kitchen-dining area and a bathroom (toilet, bath/shower, sink). The Kafka
unit is designed to house three people. It has a single room, a double room, and a bathroom.
If you wish to cook you may use the kitchen in the Ashram. Some Kafkas have been
converted to bachelor suites, with fridge, hot plate, table, chairs & countertop in a single area.
The Ashram has four single rooms and four double unit rooms. Up to twelve people share
kitchen, bath and lounge. This unit is designed to promote co-operative living. Ashram,
Kafka and Gnostic rooms are equipped with bed, mattress, and desk. The Gnostic kitchen is
provided with a table and chairs. Furniture is optional."
Floor plan drawings of Gnostic and Kafka units gave room dimensions. A Kafka single was
10' 2" by 9' 3". The double was 14' 7" by 10' 5". A Gnostic single was 11' by 9' 5". The
double was 13' 6" by 11' 2". Units in the East wing and Ashrams were also equipped with
white-metal swivel lamps on the desks, and two long wedge-shaped vinyl cushions for the
beds to be used as couches. All curtains were red, with vertical stripes of various shades of
red.
In the early 1970s a list of rent for various units was published in the Tuesdaily:
"Below is a list of the new rents, that does not include special exceptions that were set up
already.
Zeus: $240
Aphrodite: $150
Gnostic large: $80
Gnostic small: $70
Kafka & Ashram large: $70
Kafka & Ashram small: $55
Kafka unit regular: $110
Kafka Bachelor Units: $120
Ashram units 12 & 13: $65
Block rented Ashrams will be charged a standard rent of $430 except for the 17th floor, which
has a small Ashram and will pay $360. The seventh floor, of course, is paying nothing, and
the 15th because it is block-rented with some rooms on the 16th, will pay at the rate of $10
off the regular rent per room." (Perhaps "seventh floor" was meant to refer to the EdCon
space in the sixth-floor East wing.)

Third-Floor Ashram Christian Commune

The Jesus Freak commune located in the third-floor Ashram was called "The Jesus-Forever
Family" and they began in Rochdale in January 1971. They had a chapel and a meeting
room, but weren't really Christians, just a twisted and perverted version of something or
other. These so-called Christians were isolated, kept to themselves and eventually were hated
and avoided by Rochdalians for cooperating and collaborating with the receivers who were
closing the building.

Rochdale College Catalog 1972

Sixth-Floor Ashram Commune

Gina Hoakes (#612)
Martin Burns (#613)
Frank Cox (#614)
Adrith Noakes (#615)
Steve Marvis (#616)
Susan Rogers (#617)
Tan B L. (#618)
Peter Young (#619)

Anna, Martin Burns, Peter Young, Tays Ludescher, Ian MacMillan, Susan Rogers

Eighth-Floor Ashram Krishna Commune

Mathuranatha Das
Pasupati devi Dasi
Jeri Luczyk
Baktimati Dasi
Rochan
Suchna Dasi
Urajadevi Dasi
Mathuranathna
Amsu Dasa
Elizabeth Boyadiecen
Jugah Desi Dasi
Krishna Candra Devi Dasi

13th-Floor Ashram Commune 1973

by Walter Dmytrenko 2012
(edited by Wolf Sullivan who will re-write it eventually and take all credit to annoy Walter)

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_21_13th-Floor-Commune.html

Jane Barnett and Ceildh of the 13th-Floor Commune

Jane Barnett of the 13th-Floor Commune evicted May 30, 1975

Mike Donaghy of the 14th-Floor Commune & 13th-Floor Commune

Mike Donaghy, Michael Burns, Jane Barnett, Ceildh, and Cathy Johnson of the 13thFloor Commune

Mike Donaghy, Michael Burns, Jane Barnett, Ceildh, and Cathy Johnson of the
13th-Floor Commune

Jane Barnett, Ceildh, Michael Burns, Walter Dmytrenko, Marti Scheel, Art Jacobs,
Kathy Martin

Over the years there were a few communes on the 13th-floor of Rochdale College. The 13thfloor's Utopian Research Institute was active in 1969. In 1970 the 13th-Floor Commune
opened an apartment-based restaurant, "The Rochburger". The last commune on the 13thfloor started in 1972 and lasted three years, until May 31, 1975.

Jane Barnett, Ceildh, Michael Burns, Walter Dmytrenko, Marti Scheel, Art Jacobs,
Kathy Martin, 1973

Cathy Johnson of the 15th-Floor Commune & 13th-Floor Commune

Heather MacFarlane of the 15th-Floor Commune & 13th-Floor Commune

Walter Dmytrenko
Ernie Fusco
Lucy Katzberg
Marti Scheel
Michael Bernhardt
David Peters
Linda VanNatta
Greg Swanson (1319)
Heather MacFarlane (1318)
Art Jacobs (1314)
Kathy Martin
Michael Burns
Jane Barnett
Ceilidh
Cathy Johnson
Christopher Adam
Mike Donaghy

13th-Floor Ashram Commune six-month lease: August 15, 1973 to February

15, 1974
Unfortunately I don't have a copy of the lease we signed with Rochdale Corporation to form
the 13th-Floor Ashram Commune, but in 1972 the genesis of the formation was that the space
had been cleaned out of its former tenants: uncooperative drug dealers. New tenants were
needed. I was sharing an apartment with Alex MacDonald, an old friend, and Alex knowing
the workings of Rochdale had us introduced to one another.
The initial group of people included my stateless self, three U.S. expatriates, Art, Kathy and
Linda with the Alternative Press Center working out of the sixth-floor; Ernie and Lucy
another couple of Americans; Canadians Heather, a librarian, and David the urban planner
who moved in later. I knew Lucy Katzberg from earlier days when we were publishing
Guerrilla.
We had agreed beforehand to be a vegetarian and shared-work commune. When we were
forming the 13th, we had as examples the other communes: the 17th, the 15th, the 14th, the
Hare Krishnas, the Sixth, and the Christians on the third. I think we were more like the Sixth
because I knew Martin Burns to be a normal person who left for work down at the
government tax office every morning Monday through Friday at 8:30. I wasn't into the
Christians or the Krishnas. The 15th-Floor Commune was just beyond me it was just so
big and went on forever. The 14th was OK, but sometimes they would take over the East
wing. The 17th-Floor Commune was a good space as they certainly were high in the sky.

Rochdale the building at this time was still controlled by Rochdale College and we as the
initial group entered into a lease with the college as the 13th-Floor Ashram. As the college
was "under siege", we were not sure how agreements in the future would work, but we were
hopeful and willing to work.
Most of originating founders of Rochdale had left - exhausted, emotionally battered,
frustrated, or simply to get on with their lives. A new administrative group led by Jay
Boldizsar had worked to put the building on a stable financial footing.
We received the Ashram after Rochdale Maintenance had cleaned up the apartment unit.
Rochdale Maintenance was at this time under the supervision of Brian Lumley, one of the
new group of administrators who was making Rochdale work. New carpets had been laid in
the common areas, basic furnishings were installed, the kitchenette was made functional.
Our Ashram like the other Ashrams consisted of the main large common room that had a
dining table and lounge area with a kitchenette behind two doors; an L-shaped hallway took
us past doors to each of the rooms (1312 - 1319), past the communal bathroom, past a phone
closet where we had our shared phone line (no cell phones back then), and a closet.
The kitchenette, off the main room, was about one-metre deep and two-metres wide when the
doors were open. There were installed cupboards and drawers for kitchen items, a double
sink, and a countertop with an electric stove on one side and fridge on the other. There were
no dishwashers or microwaves back then, and we probably wouldn't have had them anyway we could be so Stalinist in our thinking. No microwave ovens, nor auto-coffeemaking
machines, toaster ovens, or rice cookers. A dishwashing machine would have been really
good. I did have a stainless steel pressure cooker that was great for fast cooking beans, etc.
and tomato-based recipes. Otherwise, the kitchen was pretty spartan, always clean (by
Ashram members on a schedule).
We would have the evening dinner sometime after 6 p.m. Preparation might take an hour and
a half, with some done ahead of time if we were good. I remember making curries because I
had learned from a couple of Pakistanis how to do my own garam masalas, or I might make a
meatless Ukrainian style borscht. I did do bean salads and also a casserole of rice, cheese,
black olives, peas and tomatoes. One of our colleagues wryly described it as anything tastes
good when you put tomato sauce on it.
Diet for a Small Planet, Frances Moore Lappe's book, had just come out and we used that a
lot. I believe I worked one recipe that subbed eggs for beans with tacos, but tacos were hard
to find in Toronto back then. One of us was allergic to peanuts, so we had to be careful in
screening out peanuts and products out of the food system. As a group I think we were great
in our handling of the food, the shopping, and the daily dinners. This allowed us to
concentrate on our work.
Entry to the Ashram was through one of the two hallway doors, with a third door off the main
room leading to the East Wing corridor being permanently closed. For a number of months
after taking possession of the old drug dealing den, we would get the request by persons
knocking and looking, but by then Rochdale Security had limited that at the front door.
In the Ashram there were eight bedrooms, four of "single" size and four "doubles" for a

couple or someone who wanted or needed extra space.

The communal bathroom was entered by a door with a cat-door in the bottom half. There
were three sinks set in a counter below a large mirror. One one side of the room was a
bathroom with a small bathtub and a shower stall. On the other side of the room were two
toilet stalls with the half-doors. A cat litter box would be somewhere, too.
Our Ashram came with some "furniture". There was a huge dining room table that would seat
10 easily. There were benches around the wall for seating and a free standing bench for the
other side of the table. In the lounge area there was a built-in sofa and bench area.
Each of the rooms came with a wooden captain's bed (twin size) with two drawers
underneath, and a desk area, as after all, we were in an educational institution. Sometimes a
couple might take one of the four large rooms of the Ashram and push the beds together.
Besides deciding to be a vegetarian commune, we also set up a schedule for individuals to
cook and for someone to clean up dishes, etc., afterwards. At any time during the commune's
existence, there were about seven people living there, so everyone took a day for cooking and
a day for cleaning the kitchen and dishes. Sometimes a person might cook and clean, but that
was a tough slog, so we found it easier to split the work.
We each contributed an equal amount of money to a basic food budget and food was bought
down at Kensington Market and walked-and-streetcar back with wire carts to the building. I
thought it a real stroke of luck that I had met the Alternate Press people as they were as
skilled as myself it seemed, in setting up co-op work structures whether at home or work or
whereever. In the Ashram, four of us were members of Karma Food Co-op up on Dupont
Street, where we would do volunteer labor and get the co-op discount in return plus get good
food, fruit and vegetables. Generally we would walk the eight blocks to Karma and lug our
stuff home. (Karma Co-op still lives in Toronto with some old friends who are now
grandparents.)
Rochdale itself never had a food co-op although it did have the stores, the cafeteria, Etherea
and the boozecans or bootleggers. I suspect we could have ordered bags of rice from Etherea
or Mike Eleser, but co-oping is a different trade from that of the street or the hallway.
However, Steve Grant recalls: "Rochdale did indeed have a food co-op. It was around 1969,
and had a room on the second-floor. I remember stocking shelves. It only lasted a year or so
because virtually none of its members did their 'volunteer' tasks. In those early days, the
kitchen units on each floor were stocked almost daily, by building management, with bread,
peanut butter, milk, etc. Rochdale also had a very nice residence-style cafeteria at the time.
Each day, an elevator would be stuffed with food for distribution to the Ashrams. Eventually,
people started hijacking the elevator and stealing all the food. They also stole the toasters to
sell. The whole food service operation collapsed."
I remember remnants of food service equipment on the second-floor, but by the time I was
there in 1971 it was all gone. And again from a Neill-Wycik College perspective, there was
no collective food service. I think some lessons were learned.
In the Ashram, we would cook for around nine people at any given time. If we were not
going to be home to eat dinner, we would call in our regrets. And certainly, if we were unable

to do our day's cooking or cleaning for whatever reason, then we would have arranged with
someone else to do the work. But a person would have to be careful, because should a person
put another person into servile wifely duties of doing the dishes even if she didn't mind, then
they might find themselves the subject of a meeting. We also had weekly maintenance task
such a vacuuming and cleaning the bathroom which we rotated among us.
Over the almost three years of the Ashram's existence, there was hardly any interruption of
meals and day-to-day tasks even despite the klaxon of false fire alarms related or unrelated to
spurious incidents happening outside the Ashram doors in the Rochdale building. Inside the
Ashram, it was home, where you could sit and read, listen to music and be a person.
Where we might have crossed from being a regular Ashram to an Ashram Commune was
when we had to resolve some early food and kitchen problems. While all of us worked, we
nevertheless were on limited budgets, and Ernie Fusco could not get beyond "rich" French
cooking when it was his turn to do the cooking. Ashram members complained that they
could not afford this "rich" French cooking even if one member could as we had a shared
food budget. But more sinful was Ernie allowing his ladyfriend Lucy Katz to regularly do his
turn at dishes, putting her into a "wifely" dishwasher mode which was even worse than
French cooking. Lucy was happy to do the dishes, but both were asked to leave for violating
the commune's "labour laws" and we looked for new commune members.
Two new members joined the commune. One was Jane from Sarnia, visibly pregnant, and
who had known Alex MacDonald in Windsor. We were also joined by Greg Swanson, a
young Canadian actor, but he stayed with us only a couple of months because he was so
freaked out by the constant fire alarms in the building as he had a fire phobia. Then when
Greg left, we took on David Peters who was clean, friendly, well-spoken, had a job and was
an all round nice guy who we never knew anything about. He was a Canadian, maybe from
someplace like Rosedale as he had those manners, and he worked for the city's Toronto
Housing Corporation.
Heather MacFarlane left room 1318 for the 15th-Floor Commune (1509 double) in
September 1973.
Over the years, people would rotate through the Alternate Press third person position. First
we had Linda and her German Shepherd dog from Florida, then there was Marti from
Milwaukee, then Michael from NYC whose grandfather had designed the Bernhardt typeface back in 1922.
There was a lot of reading going on, so much so that I held the conceit that we were a literary
commune. While some of us enjoyed grass, hash, acid and mushrooms, it wasn't big in the
commune. I do think we were seriously into reading with some good music.
In the living room we had a large shelf made from rough timbers, and nestled in the shelf was
a section of wall, removed for the TV studio somewhere in the building, that had a mural of a
Viking-like boat sailing on a sea going over a waterfall.

Rooms with a south view looked out over the university campus, to the downtown towers
with Lake Ontario and the islands. In the summers the canopy was green. In winter the
contact mist would rise in plumes off the lake surface.

With over half our commune being Yanks, it was not unusual for us to host parents or even
visiting friends. One time when parents were visiting, one of the commune members opened
the fridge and found a package of meat. A meeting was called. In no uncertain terms we
advised the parents that we were a vegetarian commune and would not have meat in the
commune. The mother protested saying that the meat was for the husband who was a
diabetic. I remember looking at Kathy and she gave me the look too, that we knew enough
about nutrition, and we told that mother that meat has nothing to do with diabetes. Boy, were
we tough or not when it came to food! We did recycling too and got better as we grew
older.
I didn't know about the sauna. Neill-Wycik had a sauna and to keep things from degenerating
into something like Rochdale, you had to wear a bathing suit in it. Patty Chilton was a chief
executive at Neill-Wycik and knew all the tricks of a place going weird; but if you were in
with Security, and you were in with Patty, and you weren't offensive, you could sauna naked!
We didn't have a sauna, but we did have a pot garden. One member put together a project for
growing in the hallway storage closet. It was hardly bigger than a meter by a meter and a
meter deep of soil. There were fluorescent lights in the corners and it was run 24 hours. We
never got the plants to flowering stages like we do nowadays.

When Ceilidh was born and being nursed at night, after about day eight, Jane was going
bonkers not being able to sleep a solid six hours, so we would send Jane upstairs to stay at
another commune where she would not hear the baby and be able to get a solid long sleep.
Ceilidh would cry her poor heart out but soon she got into a good food rhytym. Being able to
put moms in another space helped out quite a few young mothers in Rochdale.
The toilet and bath facilities in the 13th-Floor Ashram, like the other Ashrams throughout
Rochdale, were "communal". There was the main room that had three sinks in a row with
mirrors above; two toilets separated by a partition and with a short doors; and there was an
offshoot room that held a small bath and a tiled shower. There was a main door to the
bathroom/toilet and as we had a cat, its toilette was inside too, so we removed the grill from
the bottom of the door to allow the cat in and out.
One time we had some parents visiting. They were cosmopolitan New Yorkers, but when it
came to bathroom/toilet time, I remember Mrs. Mom visitor going up to the bathroom door,
bending down, getting on all fours to look through the cat door to make sure there was no one
in the bathroom before she went in!

Love came, love would be discovered, love was found, love was made, love was broken and
love was lost.

When the courts appointed the Clarkson Company the receiver of the assets of the Rochdale
Corporation, the receiver initially carried on rental policies including the handing out of
leases. However, the stage was being set to evict all the tenants from the building. No further
leases would be handed out, all residents were to become month-to-month tenants with little
security. Eviction notices started going out.

Yet we were stuck having to do it if the mess was left there, as our job was defined. The
original intention by whatever group organized this had simply been that we would sort of
make sure everything was mopped up and standards of hygiene efficiently maintained (not

unlike out jobs in the elevator lobbies and public hallways). There were a couple of the
Ashrams where the people (some of them just young university students out on their own for
the first time) were willing enough to live in slovenly fashion, but were quite happy with the
idea that a work force came in daily and cleaned up. The bathrooms of a couple of Ashram
units I won't even mention!
On the other hand, it was a difficult situation for even the most ethically astute Ashrams,
because it meant that they couldn't simply and easily have a nice long evening into the later
hours, and leave the dishes for somebody to do in the early afternoon - which often might
have been been quite fine with them, but if there was no one there to say leave it be, we were
stuck, and had to clean up.
It sounds like a crazy situation, I know, and rather poorly thought out I guess, in the idealistic
lights in which it was all planned out. There were a lot of communication breakdowns, I
realize now, between tenants, workers, Rochdale management and others. But it was
maddening then. It led to an unpleasant altercation occasionally, as well as sincere efforts
between some tenants and maintenance workers (janitors) to discuss the situation and work
out a mutual understanding. A couple of times things maybe went too far in the case of less
cooperative floors - though I acknowledge that I still remember with great pleasure the early
afternoon (on a Tuesday, I believe) when, after repeat instances of trying to reason with the
residents there, and several times believing (until the next day, anyway) that things were
going to work out, I lugged from the 11th-floor Ashram kitchen almost all of their dishes,
pans, utensils, etc, which they owned, all of it dirty from cooking, eating, and so on, out to
the garbage room, and threw them all down the chute.
Not a terribly mature response, I admit, but maturity did not seem to be working out very
well. And remarkably, in the semi-anarchy that reigned, none of them ever complained to
Rochdale management. They sure as hell did to me, of course, and this story could go on
awhile, but the final result was that they got new kitchenware and all, and cleaned up their act
to a bearable level. There were pests on occasion - cockroaches, nothing in the way of mice but that happened when other nearby and adjacent apartment units were not maintained or
made vacant or fumigated during the emptying of Rochdale.

Walter Dmytrenko of the 13th-Floor Commune in Rochdale main lobby with two
police officers

14th-Floor Ashram Commune

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_22_14th-Floor-Commune.html
Gue Van Helborts
Steve Mulholl
Ginn Mulholl
Henry Polard
Steve Grant
Allen Booth
Francois Roesch
Eyre Dann
Carolyn Czarorsky
Thomas Vikander

14th-Floor Commune 1970: Nicky Morrison, Brendan, Mike Donaghy, Ian Argue

Tuesdaily April 6, 1973

Penny, Carol, Norbert, Robin, unidentified, Alex, Ken, Hugh, Tom Vikander, Kathy,
Gary, Big Eddie

Nicky Morrison: "We met once a week to discuss problems, we cooked together, we had

rules and expected that everybody would participate. If you didn't agree to participate, you
just didn't live there. That was basic. We had 25 to 30 people and it was like a rooming
house with meals. So, obviously, we had to be organized. For instance, shopping was a big
thing. We bought a van and people took turns driving it to Kensington Market or Knob Hill
Farms to buy bushels of potatoes or what have you."
Ian Argue
Brendan Donaghy
Mike Donaghy
Steve Grant (1402)
Johnny Potter
Big Eddie
Stuart Spore
Margaret Spore
Odessa Spore
Sharon Prendergast
Roger Ramalhele
Mussamo Sun
Andy Adach
Steve Chalastra
Diane Fish
Bob Jeffries
Ken Brown
Wayne Howell
Ray Kosan
Brian Amey
Maryann Fergusson
Boldheart Fergusson
Chris Hall
Malcolm Taylor
Jennifer Taylor
Tom Vikander
Lloyd McDougall
Chris Hall
Syd Stern
Ruth King
True
T.C.
Jake
Peter Young
Jake
Mary Stephens
Suki Wrench

Mike Donaghy, Nicky Morrison, baby Brendan, Ian Argue, and others in the 14thFloor Commune

Kathy, Gary, Big Eddie, John Potter, unidentified, unidentified, Mike, unidentified,

Penny, Carol, Robin, another unidentified

Penny, Carol, Norbert, Robin, unidentified, Alex, Ken, Hugh, Tom Vikander, Kathy,
Gary, Big Eddie

Daily April 9, 1969 clip

Thursdaymaysay May 15, 1969 clip

Daily July 10, 1969

Daily July 24, 1969 clip

Daily July 24, 1969 clip

Daily July 30, 1969 clip

Daily February 13, 1970 clip

Daily February 24, 1970 clip

Daily April 17, 1970 clip

Tuesdaily September 1, 1970 clip

Tuesdaily September 10, 1970 clip

Daily October 30, 1970 clip

Tuesdaily November 20, 1970 clip


Tuesdaily March 16, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 22, 1971 clip

Daily June 22, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 27, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 30, 1971 clip

Daily June 29, 1971 clip

Daily June 29, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 9, 1971 clip

Daily August 10, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily December 21, 1971

The Naked Grape March 23, 1973 clips

Tuesdaily April 6, 1973 clip


Tuesdaily June 15, 1973 clip

Undated Daily paste up clip

Undated Daily paste up clip

15th-Floor Commune
http://15thfloorcommunerochdalecollege.blogspot.com/2011/06/click-photo-toenlarge-15th-floor.html

Half of the members of the 15th-Floor Commune in 1974: Sunshine, Rob

Higgins, Susan Rogers, Frank McGarret, John Taylor, Simon Liston, Mike
Randell, Margot Cross, John (Wolf) Sullivan, Heather MacFarlane, Trish Flint,
Coco Cromwell, Cathy Johnson, John Panter, Alex MacDonald, Sam Field,
Bob Allen, Nickie Ashley, Sammy Ashley
The 15th-Floor Commune Lounge, with about half of the members of the commune in
this 1974 photo. The others were at work, at the U of T, or "away". Plus, for some
reason, photographer Alex MacDonald would not allow Shirley Claydon to appear in
the group photo of commune members.

15th-Floor Commune 1974: Frank McGarret, John Taylor, Simon Liston, Mike
Randell

15th-Floor Commune 1974: Rob Higgins, Wolf Sullivan, Susan Rogers,

Margot Cross, Heather MacFarlane

15th-Floor Commune 1974: Trish Flint, Coco Cromwell

15th-Floor Commune 1974: John Panter, Tim Allen's girlfriend, Alex

MacDonald, Sam Field

15th-Floor Commune 1974: Nickie Ashley, Sammy

Pam Berton

Beverly Ernenbacher

Bill Granger

Ira Rushwald
The 15th-Floor Commune evolved in mid-1970 with no special rental agreement. By
January 1971 the 15th-floor advertised for new tenants in the Tuesdaily. In April the
floor had a large banquet and it was named the "15th-Floor Commune" in the June 1,
1971 Tuesdaily. It was started by those living on the 15th-floor, who discussed the rent
situation with the Rentals Office in July 1971 and reached an agreement after a week
of negotiations. The commune included the entire East wing and the Ashram, making
it the largest commune in Rochdale. Eventually it expanded to include the 16th-floor
Ashram. The first commune meeting under the block-rental scheme happened at
midnight July 7, 1971. Among the first residents were Mike Randell, Nickie Ashley,
John Panter, Beverly Ernenbacker, Tim, Tanya, Rod, Britt, Bob, Sandie Bishop, and
Sunshine (Suzanne McDougall Pederson from Denmark). Pam Berton moved into the
15th-Floor Commune in September of 1970 and lived in Kafka unit #1508. Karen
Johnson, Rochdale rentals manager, suggested that she apply for membership in the
15th-Floor Commune.
Pam, the daughter of Canadian historian, author and journalist Pierre Berton, lived in
Rochdale College from 1968 until 1972, although she left each summer. She had lived
on the eighth-floor and the 11th-floor (#1110) previously. Mike Randell started out on
the eighth-floor according to Pam. Margot Cross also lived on the eighth-floor in
1970, in Kafka #810. Pam's sister Patsy also lived in Rochdale College for a short
time. The standard routine for joining the 15th-Floor Commune was to personally
meet each of the many members, then at a meeting the communards would decide if
the applicant could join the commune. The decision had to be unanimous.
The 15th-Floor Commune had a total of 27 units with potentially 42 beds. These beds
were the standard wooden captain's beds with foam mattresses and two drawers
below. In the commune, double occupancy rooms tended to be used as single occupant
large rooms, which meant there were many fewer than 42 beds. Two units were
converted for communal use. The kitchen of Gnostic unit #1505 had two refrigerators
and was used by those in Kafka units, who would otherwise have used the Ashram
kitchen. A TV room was in the double of #1505 and the single was used for storage, a
workshop, and a couple of refrigerators. The washroom had its toilet and sink
removed and contained one refrigerator, with the bathtub covered over and cupboards
installed. Up on the 16th-floor. one of the singles was used for storage and other
purposes.
At first the 15th-Floor Commune was a genuine commune. For example, there were
communal dinners for 14 people. The cost was five dollars per week for six dinners.
Food was organized into teams of two. Two would take a bundle buggy to Kensington
Market to shop for food, two would cook the food, and so on. All 14 took turns doing
these tasks.

By the time I joined the commune in 1973 it had degenerated into a messy Yuppie-like
co-op of relatively conservative young adults. Individual rooms were clean and tidy
but common areas were not. The main hallway was filled with abandoned
refrigerators, stoves and TVs, gathering dust. I thought they were pigs. It was not
egalitarian. Some merely lived in the commune and were not actively involved, and a
few were just the romantic partners of genuine members. Most worked at respectable
jobs, some were students, and some of were Yuppies well ahead of their time.
Librarian Heather MacFarlane left the dogmatic 13th-Floor Commune and joined the
15th- the same time I did. She told me, "I hate hippies."
I personally met all the tenants, who then voted to accept me at a meeting. One of the
first communards I met with was John Panter, who worked for Rochdale Security. He
was tall and thin, with long black hair and a beard. A biker type from the suburb of
Scarborough, he wore all black clothing, including black underwear. He was living
with Nickie Ashley and her son Sammy at the time in #1501. I explained to them that
I had lived in Rochdale before, starting in 1969. Nickie sarcastically asked, "Were you
one of the founding fathers or something?"
It took a few months, but I learned that Nickie's remark was based on the fact that
almost everybody living in Rochdale then had never heard of the place when I first
lived there. They deeply resented anyone like me who had lived there before them. I
heard about Rochdale by word of mouth, but they learned about it from the mass
media. Rochdalians from the past made them feel inadequate and less "hip", so they
basically did not want people like me in Rochdale. They did pay lip service respect to
people like Dennis Lee, Peter Turner, and Ed Apt. But they definitely wanted them to
stay away. For example, when Mike Donaghy returned to Rochdale in 1974, dozens of
people groaned. The groans that greeted Fergie's return were understandable, but Mike
deserved a returning hero's welcome.
This was the only negative comment Nickie ever made to me. She was somewhat
intolerant and narrow-minded in a self-righteous "politically correct" way. If she ruled
the world we would be living in the Dark Ages, and she would muzzle outspoken
people like me. However, Nickie was actually very sweet, intelligent, beautiful, and
well-respected by everyone. But she didn't do or accomplish much in Rochdale. Her
popularity was all based on her good looks, pleasant personality, and the elite she
associated with. Nonetheless, she contributed much to the Tuesdaily newsletters and
was an important influence.
In #1509 Heather MacFarlane's roommate was Zan Willitts, a lovely redhead with
very high ideals and convictions. Although Heather had contempt for her, she should
have been an inspiration--not a target for her redneck insults. Zan was a strict
vegetarian and worked at Etherea, the natural food restaurant on Rochdale's ground
floor. Her favorite musician was Donovan [Mellow Yellow Leitch] and she collected
all his records. She later paired up romantically with Bob Johnson, who was also a

vegetarian living in the commune.

Did Heather have any redeeming qualities? Only from a bourgeois point of view. For
her to say, "I hate hippies, is enough evidence to prove that she did not belong in
Rochdale. She once arrogantly chastised me for saying something about her silly
views on ballet. "What the hell do you know about ballet?" she snarled. I replied, "I'm
sorry. I forgot you just arrived from the Yukon, home of the renowned Royal Yukon
Ballet Company."
Heather often sniggered at comments I made. I appreciated that she got my humor,
because not everybody did, but I wished she had a decent-sounding laugh. A
newspaper reporter came to the commune, and when she asked me my occupation, I
replied, "I'm retired." Only Heather laughed. Heather could be amusingly clever at
times. For example, at a commune meeting she was explaining something to Simon
and said, "It's simple Simon". Everybody laughed. Heather loved the outdoors and
sometimes went on trendy wilderness trips. She smoked cigarettes, but didn't drink
much or use drugs. However, she mentioned that the first time she smoked hash, it
was opiated. Once I asked Heather MacFarlane to trim the end of my hair at the back
of my neck. I sat at her kitchen table in #1509 and she hacked away and made a mess
of my hair. When I complained, she just smiled and said, "It'll grow back."
Bob Allen in #1504 was a short and skinny draft dodger from New York state,
supposedly with a degree in Accountancy, which would account for his boring
personality. He was soft-spoken and usually didn't say much, which was good because
of the chronic halitosis caused by his rotting teeth. Bob was a janitor and quite wellrespected by everyone in the building. It amused me that Bob would habitually watch
"The Flintstones" cartoon show in the Commune TV room during his lunch breaks. It
was Bob's idea of culture. He never used drugs, and never smoked marijuana,
although he admitted to once drinking a cup of marijuana tea. He lived in #1504 alone
with his cat.
At the end of the hall in #1502 lived Carol Tabuchi and her very quiet German
boyfriend nobody got to know. Carol was a beautiful Asian with long black hair. She
worked in a bank, her passion was horseback riding, and she was perpetually happy
and cheerful. Carol and I eventually shared the same communal kitchen and had an
ongoing tongue-in-cheek discussion about plans to rob a bank. Basically Carol was
"filler" living in the so-called commune, because she was rarely around.
Tim Allan in #1506 was a professional musician who wasn't around much either. His
music was not rock, mostly stringed instruments like acoustic guitar and banjo. He
had a dreadful girlfriend who joined the commune, left Tim, and erratically jumped
from one lover to another, complaining all the while. One who lived in the commune
with her was a tall fallen Hare Krishna devotee named Hari Kunj. We got along well
together because we were both vegetarian and had lived in India. Hari Kunj moved

into #1511 when Dellard moved into the Ashram. One day he borrowed my toilet
plunger and I told him a scatological joke about it. In 1977 I met some fallen Hari
Krishnas in London's Portobello Road area who knew Hari Kunj.
Then there was Margot Cross in the #1508 double. She was almost 30, a little too old
and conservative to live in Rochdale. She was there primarily because of the
building's proximity to the U of T where she worked as a librarian. Of Huguenot
descent, she was originally from Edmonton where her father was a judge. She had
traveled around the world and sometimes we discussed our adventures in India.
Basically she was a book-worm intellectual, never used drugs or alcohol, but smoked
cigarettes. Margot loved classical music, Cat Stevens, and some rock songs such as
Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven". She complained too much, often rudely and
inappropriately. Margot got along very well with Heather and other intellectual types,
and although she was a very decent person, she sucked and was in the wrong place.
For one thing, she was a pseudo-intellectual and social snob. Another thing, she was
much too critical and mouthy for someone who would break down like a whimpering
little girl in times of crisis.
Her roommate was first Rob Higgins from Parry Sound, a U of T student. Rob had to
move out because on his way to classes one morning the police nabbed him, planted
drugs on him, and charged him with trafficking in narcotics. A "Rob Higgins Defence
Fund" was set up to help this victim of Toorotten police. Rob was replaced by Mike
Wong who moved from #1502. Mike was a gentle, polite and scholarly U of T student
who sometimes volunteered for Toad Lane Security on weekends. He definitely
moved out but now claims he did not, although he can't remember where he lived or
anything else. Unfortunately there are many people who mistake their imagination for
their memory. Mike was replaced by a tall and beefy U of T student with long hair
who loved live symphonic classical music more than anything. He had a season ticket
to the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. This certainly endeared him to Margot. He was
impressed by Jay Boldizsar because he witnessed Jay sweeping up the front plaza
after a police raid and riot.
Across the hall from Margot was Gnostic unit #1505 that had been converted into a
communal area. Those in Kafka units used the kitchen, the bathroom was part of the
kitchen, there was a work shop and storage room, and a TV room. The 25-inch color
TV was huge for that time period and was leased in Bill Granger's name. Every
weekday it was crowded with fans of the Star Trek series at 5 p.m., and was also very
popular with tenants throughout the building when there were news reports about
Rochdale. There were three Rochdale trundle beds with their long black vinyl wedgeshaped cushions for viewers to relax on and it was quite comfortable.
Next door to Margot in #1510 was Coco Cromwell, a gorgeous shapely black lady
with an afro hairdo. She was a model and was having the time of her life in Rochdale.
Nobody could party like Coco. I sometimes saw her in the very late hours at night

alone, having a great time partying by herself. She was an inspiration. Coco lived
alone in #1510 until eventually her boyfriend John Musgrave moved in with her, but
he was rarely around the commune. He seemed to spend much of his time elsewhere
in the building. Dozens of times I passed John in the hall and said, "Hello John" and
he replied, "Hello John".
Across from Coco in #1507 lived Bill Granger. He worked at IBM as a computer
expert. Before that he taught computer science as a high school teacher, but was fired
for some reason. Bill was a very fine person, basically a Yuppie before the attitude
existed, and was always friendly and easy to get along with. Unlike almost all
Rochdalians in the East wing, he did not use the captain's trundle bed that came with
his bedroom, but had a large waterbed. Occasionally he would play the Guess Who's
"American Woman" on his stereo full blast. Many of Bill's teeth were capped and he
had a big toothy smile to show they were capped. The message was clear: "I'm so rich
I have most of my teeth capped." His roommate was Ira Rushwald, an American postgraduate student at the U of T, who was kept occupied with his studies. Ira enjoyed
listening to Radio Rochdale, but complained about the dynamics of the music. "They
should use a compressor," he said, "because they're going to blow out my speakers."
I n the hallway just outside their unit #1507 was the communal telephone listed under
the fictitious name of Joe Wertz. He was a student at the U of T and the commune's
lifeguard. The phone was on a telephone table bench Margot, Bob Allen, Heather, and
I had rescued from some houses being torn down on Yonge Street to make way for the
Toronto reference library. When we explored one old house in complete darkness, Bob
said it was like spelunking or potholing, like exploring cave systems. But it became
extremely spooky for some reason, so we were frightened and fled the building.
Near the main entrance to the commune was a bulletin board, fairly long and made of
dark cork. It was filled with posts of public messages, advertisements, upcoming
events, information, but mostly items about Rochdale, especially newspaper reports.
After living in the commune for a few months I began pasting the Rochdale
newspaper clips to the wall below and beside the bulletin board. Then I used various
watered-down food-colouring in areas to stain the clips in patterns so it looked more
decorative, like an art collage. With the passage of time it became an interesting
archive of the print media's perception and persecution of Rochdale. One day King
Bill was looking at the news clips and noticed one of my letters to the editor. In it I
mentioned that Rochdale was a "microcosm of society". Bill was surprised and asked
me, "Did you write that?, in a very condescending and patronizing way, as if I were
an idiot child. "Can't you read my name?" I responded. "I was working for the Toronto
Star when I moved in here, you know." Then I walked away.
The first unit opposite the main entrance was #1511, the home of Casey Eaton, an
intellectual American draft dodger from Fort Lauderdale, Florida; his sister Gayle also
lived in the commune. Gayle was a beautiful blonde who talked like a California

"Valley Girl". Casey lost his girlfriend during the transition of moving into the
commune. He drank gallons of Coca-Cola at night and enjoyed reading science
fiction. His favorite song was Sly and the Family Stone's "I Want to take You Higher"
and he worked in an Encyclopaedia Britannica warehouse. Casey's roommate was
Dellard Lebrosse from Parry Sound. He worked in "Ushers", Toronto's very worst
food store. It was a bargain basement place that sold mostly ancient cans of food that
had been stored for years in warehouses. He must have eaten food from his store,
because he had a pasty complexion and acne. Ironically, Dellard eventually started the
the biggest natural health food operation in the Parry Sound area.
There was the main lounge and kitchenette that was supposedly numbered #1500.
Newspapers delivered every day were kept in the lounge along with a large collection
of board games such as "Monopoly". The lounge also was a passageway that led to the
Ashram rooms. Half the occupants were from the hick town of Parry Sound. Just
inside the Ashram was a bright red aquatic lifesaver hanging on the wall at the
entrance to the commune's fictitious swimming pool. It was actually a very small
closet with a window in the door, originally intended to be a communal phone booth.
Sometimes the lifesaver hung inside the booth, and could be seen through the window
when the light was on.
In the Tuesdaily a notice appeared regarding the swimming pool: "Anyone knowing
how to assemble a pool water filter pump is welcome on the fifteenth floor. We just
paid out $35 for a second hand pump and filter unit. The filter is together and looks
like it should work, but the pump came in a bushel basket, and we can't figure it out.
Apart from that the pool is going great. We've got the water in, but until we get the
pump fixed, we have to put in new water ever couple of days, and in a big pool, that's
a drag.
p.s. Joe Wertz has been hired as lifeguard."
Apparently the pool was so popular with Rochdalians as a later Tuesdaily announced:
"The 15th floor will not open its swimming pool for use by other members of this
college this summer. They've taped all of the windows and doors airtight and can
sometimes be found in room 1512 where they keep the oxygen tents. Their
habituation is beginning to treat air pollution similar to how middle class families
treated radiation around 1960."
The first Ashram room #1512 was occupied by Frank McGarret, a long-haired man in
his forties. He really didn't belong in Rochdale because of his age and his bourgeois
baggage, but was well liked by everybody. He said, "The women in Rochdale are as
beautiful as any I've ever seen." Frank was sad and angry about marriage, and said
that once married with children a woman has little interest in her husband. He was
once a sailor and worked in the Rochdale Printing Shop for some time, but later was
kept busy with construction work outside the building. Frank was quite
knowledgeable and told me about the Canadian governmnent's policy of forcing

Canadian subsistance farmers into towns and cities. The Fund for Rural Economic
Development of 1966 targeted rural communities by buying small farms and starting
retraining programs to force marginal farmers to other jobs.
Susan Rogers was a very beautiful English lady, a little too old for Rochdale, although
she fitted in very well. As a child in England she attended a vegetarian private school
and was awakened each morning by the gentle sound of tinkling bells. She told me
that she was married in Toronto with three children and sometimes her husband would
drive by Rochdale and mock it. One day she simply abandoned her husband and
children and moved into Rochdale. Her idea of the place was that it was strictly for
having fun. She had no interest whatsoever in education, Govcon, or anything else
that might involve work. Susan would never do anything that interfered with her
pursuit of pleasure. Basically her notion of Rochdale was based on media reports and
what she experienced living in the building. She had a habit of visiting me in my room
whenever I had guests. It happened so often it could not have been a coincidence.
Most likely she was just being nosey. By 1974 Susan developed an ambition to be a
rock singer. She used my room and stereo equipment a few times to practice and
improve her vocal chops. In early May 1975 she sang with a band on the 17th-floor
roof patio at the so-called "last General Meeting".
Then there was Sam Field from Parry Sound, the very jolly postman for Rochdale. His
job was to sit in a small room in the first-floor lobby area near the rear exit and give
incoming mail to residents. He was also a petty drug dealer. Although drug dealing
was strictly banned in the commune, he was able to discreetly sell marijuana with
impunity, largely because the commune was not egalitarian in practice. It was
hierarchical, with a pecking order ranging from the president of Rochdale College to
silent nominal members, who were there merely as the significant others of genuine
members.
Mike Randell had lived in room #1512 and elsewhere in the Ashram over the years.
He was sometimes president of Rochdale College and was often absent for short
periods. Mike had long brown hair, was average in height, quite thin, with handsome
fine features reminiscent of David Bowie. Often he wore auto mechanic overalls
because he enjoyed working on his car in the basement parking garage. A former
"Army brat" and son of a medical doctor, he had dropped out of the University of
Toronto after one year to experience Rochdale. He was a very intelligent in-charge
leader type, very respected by everybody because of his integrity, sense of humor, and
charm. But his charm was often phony, something he could turn on and off like a
water tap. Strangely, he was very conservative, more conservative than some other
tenants who were almost evicted for their conservative views. Mike was a monarchist,
seemed to support Canada's Conservative political party, and admired conservatives
such as Henry Kissinger. Eventually I concluded that Mike was a phony, but he wasn't
even aware of it.

Mike's worst fault was that he would often bluff. Whenever he was caught in a
situation where his position was proven to be wrong, he would start bullshitting,
usually by obfuscating and turning everything into a joke. Some thought his tactics
were charming, but I thought he was a phony. In fact, I regarded him almost as the
enemy, and wondered if his frequent absences were to visit those who were closing
Rochdale. Mike drank a lot of beer, although neighbours said he started out as a
pothead. We got along fairly well, but there was a gap of mistrust and disapproval
between us. Eventually I realized that Mike's courtesy to me was just part of his job as
college president. He didn't like me at all, because I was the authentic real thing, and
Mike was a phony armchair revolutionary, all rhetoric with no substance or action.
But he was amusing. When arguing with me about vegetarianism he supported the
eating of chickens by saying, "A chicken is just a fast vegetable." Mike would liven
things up with spontaneous events such as a bicycle race through the halls of the
commune. He and his good friend Simon both had a wicked Monty Python-type
humor. Mike moved into #1519 when Bob Johnson left. He asked me to water his pot
plants while he was away, and I did so. The next time Mike went away, he didn't ask
but Cathy Johnson told me Mike said to water his plants, but I didn't. I refused to be
treated like a servant errand boy. So Cathy did the chore.
At the end of the Ashram hall in #1519 was Bob Johnson, a stereotypical hippie who
was straight out of a Cheech & Chong movie. Bob was exactly like Tommy Chong in
appearance, behavior, and speech. He was vegetarian, very mellow and laid-back, and
only said anything negative when someone was not being mellow, laid-back, and
tolerant. His original name was Harold Snowden and he was known as Weird Harold
for a while. Bob was also a drug dealer. He generally left his door open and the
adjacent stairway door open to allow his marijuana customers quick and discreet
access to his room. Sam Field probably benefited from the open stairway door for his
customers as well. Bob always had a bushel basket filled with organically grown
apples. Eventually he left the commune, lived in an apartment with Sam Field, then
became Zan's boyfriend and they traveled around in a van. Room #1519 was taken
over by Mike Randell when Bob moved out.
Upstairs on the 16th-floor was the Ashram that was part of the 15th-Floor Commune.
Most of the people living there did not interact much with the communards below,
although they always came to important meetings. One couple were inseparable and
only communicated with themselves. Why were they living in a commune? The way
they had cut themselves off from everybody was absolutely unbelievable. When I
moved in, I was the only communard from the 15th-floor who visited the 16th-floor
every day. There was a single room for storage there where I grew vegetables.
Sunshine (Suzanne McDougall Pederson) who came from an island off coastal
Denmark was one of the nicest people in the commune, always friendly, cheerful and
smiling. Interestingly, she did not have an accent. Sunshine lived in #1517, then
moved up to 16th-floor Ashram into room #1619. A pleasingly plump blonde, she

visited the 15th-floor almost every day. One evening she was watching television with
me in the TV room and Sam Field came in. Sunshine told Sam that she had been
trying to seduce me without success. I had not noticed, because I was celibate and
most sexual advances went over my head. Plus I was watching the TV program.
Trish Flint was a plump young woman who looked much like Cathy Johnson. Trish
and I sometimes discussed rock music. We were both fans of the Ugly Ducklings,
Mick Jagger's favorite Canadian band. Trish explained how the formerly-named
Strolling Bones imitated the Stones. One of her favorite types of music she referred to
as "cock rock". Trish had a live-in lover who rarely spoke. I couldn't understand what
she saw in him, until one day he came out of the washroom in the nude. He was very
well endowed, and that explained everything. Eventually Trish found a new boyfriend,
who became my roommate. He was just Trish's boyfriend, never smiled, and didn't
really belong or fit in Rochdale. Although he was nominally my roommate, we didn't
speak and I cannot remember his name, if I ever knew it.
There was also a technician for a TV cable company in the 16th-floor Ashram. He was
tall, thin, and handsome, and well-liked. However, he worked hard all day outside the
building, so we didn't see him very often. Casey Eaton's ex-girlfriend and her new
lover also lived up on the 16th-floor. Like most of the residents of the 15th-Floor
Commune, they were essentially "filler" in a self-contained area of the building. This
was especially true of the "Parry Sounders" concentrated in the 15th-floor Ashram.
These hicks felt superior to everyone else and all they talked about was Parry Sound.
Why the fuck didn't they stay there or go back to their mosquito and black-fly infested
hick town if it was so wonderful? What were they doing in Toronto? They actually
made people like Mike Randell "honourary Parry Sounders". It was sickening for me
to be looked down upon and criticized by phony, uneducated hicks.
On a typical weekday there would be considerable activity in the early morning. When
most people left for work or the U of T, the commune tended to be empty. After 5 p.m.
things picked up with supper preparations, Star Trek in the TV room, and socializing
in the lounge. There might be a game of chess, poker, or Monopoly on the diningroom table, while over by the fireplace would be a group conversation. Communards
would be sitting on the plush antique chairs and couch listening to Mike Randell
explain why the Jason and the Argonauts fantasy movie has the best special effects by
Ray Harryhausen. Or Mike would mention that Rochdale was one of the last highrises
in Toronto to be made with real plaster applied over lath, not dry wall.
Meetings of the 15th-Floor Commune were conducted in the lounge on the 15th-floor.
Usually the main thing on the agenda was the discussion and vote to decide if an
applicant was suitable to move into the commune. Other issues varied widely.
Communal feasts and parties were decided upon and planned. John Panter suggested
we supply expensive wine at parties first. When everyone was drunk, the cheap wine
could be used, because nobody could tell the difference. The annual Morgravia-

Boulognia Embassy Ball was held each December 4th. It was dreamed up by
President Mike Randell and former commune member Pam Berton, daughter of
Canada's most famous author and TV personality. The idea was that the 15th-floor
would host a royal ball for the fictitious country. Invitations were printed on quality
paper and sealed with red sealing wax using the official Morgravia-Boulognia
soapstone seal. Although there were originally speeches at the Ball, this ended. And
although there was also an official national anthem composed, singing it also ended
after two Balls. The annual Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball was by far the largest
and most popular party in Rochdale College history.
After I was voted in, I paid my first and last month's rent into the communal bank
account, along with the five dollars per month communal fee for the telephone,
newspaper delivery, TV rental, party refreshments, and so on. I moved into Gnostic
unit #1503, with two bedrooms and a shared kitchen and bathroom. For the first
month I was the only tenant in the unit and painted my single bedroom, the kitchen,
and the bathroom white. A white cloth rice bag was hung over the stove for
decoration. For my bedroom I also did the ceiling which originally had a cloud
painting. When my next door neighbour Bob Allen noticed I had painted the ceiling,
he complained, "I thought you said you liked the cloud ceiling." This comment
immediately alerted me that Bob was an asshole. Every person I had met in my life
who said, "I thought you said..." turned out to be someone to avoid. I replied, "Yeah, I
liked it, but after staring at it for a few weeks I didn't like it. This is my territory, my
room, and what I do to it does not concern you." Bob left after I glared at him for a
minute. I was working for the Toronto Star when I moved in, but after a few months I
quit my job at Canada's largest newspaper. Bob Allen complained about this, and I
wanted to throw him out the window, or at least have the motherfucker deported.
Instead, I patiently explained to Bob that I was an adult, made my own decisions, and
didn't give a shit what a janitor thought about me. Bob was very self-righteous, but he
lost all credibility with me when he and another man were in hot water for allowing
two under age teeny-boppers stay with them overnight.
Then I was joined by my roommate Cathy Johnson, a former "army brat" who moved
into the double. She was a pleasant sociable lady who was pregnant and very easy to
get along with. The father she had carefully chosen was Ian Argue. When the baby
was born she named it Christopher, then Christopher Adam because I had suggested
Adam. She had the baby circumcised, which I tried without success to discourage.
Cathy did not understand that it was best to allow Christopher Adam to make that
decision himself when he grew up. We had a disagreement about the use of
insecticides for cockroach control. Cathy said, "They can survive on a diet of dust."
One of our frequent visitors who came to see Cathy was Bob Naismith. He mentioned
one evening that there was a person in our commune he wanted to have sex with. "Is it
Susan Rogers?" Cathy asked. Bob shook his head and said, "No." Then he changed
the subject and we never found found out who it was.

Like virtually everyone in the commune, Cathy was not a hippie or bohemian in any
way. She was just a conventional "army brat" young woman who was very sociable,
and wanted to meet everyone who was anyone. Cathy gossiped too much, which I
hate. She told me about our mutual friend Ian who was her boyfriend in Ottawa. Ian
worked as a gay hustler according to Cathy. After I heard this I never told her
anything I did not want repeated to others. She obviously had absolutely no discretion
regarding the affairs of others she befriended. I never trusted her because she proved
to me many times she could not be trusted. However, as a biographer I'm a gossip
myself, and I was very fond of Cathy because of her many good qualities.
I bought a stereo system, then upgraded to a better stereo. Christopher Adam's father
Ian Argue bought my original stereo system, and when he noticed my new stereo he
said, "Nice nice." It was a great stereo that I used for a couple of years. When the
building was closed I sold it to Cathy Johnson, which was a mistake because I had
difficulty finding another good one. Cathy also gave me a very hard and unpleasant
time about the stereo sale. Frankly, Cathy was nothing to me. By nothing, I mean she
had no ideas or talents that interested me, and she gossiped like a hick. But the
majority of people in Rochdale did, including myself occasionally.

One evening Cathy Johnson, Ira Rushwald, and I went for a walk in the Annex. On
Bedford Road we "crashed" a fancy party that Ira knew about. It turned out that Ira
was a friend of the host, so we were not crashing after all. Later we walked further up
Bedford Road and ran into James Newell, the former Treasurer and President of
Rochdale. Sitting in his wheelchair, he explained that his apartment on St. George
Street was decorated with Rochdale furniture he had bought: the trundle-bed and desk,
plus the striped red curtains. James had fond memories of Rochdale, but never
returned to see old friends. I had noticed James in the building and at Rochdale
meetings in the past, and finally met him. We met quite a few more times, but never in
Rochdale. Usually it was at a building where I was a lifeguard/pool manager and Jim
was there to attend a Christian meeting.
When I first moved into Rochdale, the college was known only by word of mouth. But
the numerous drug busts made lurid front-page headlines in newspapers across the
country. This news destroyed Rochdale's reputation and was free advertising for
druggies and drug dealers to move into Rochdale. They believed what they read and
saw on TV, and that's basically what Rochdale became: what the media claimed it
was. In the 1960s alcohol was avoided by hippies who considered it to be the inferior
recreational drug of the despised older generation. But by the 1970s alcohol,
especially beer, was extremely popular in Rochdale. It was a sign of the times, but was
largely because of the druggie hicks and aging teeny-boppers who moved into the
building after reading about it in newspapers. Most Rochdalians thought and talked,
but did not act much. Their drug-induced grandiose schemes remained fantasies to
discuss.

The main hallway was still littered with many abandoned refrigerators, stoves and
televisions. It was an obstacle course to walk down the hall. After I quit my job at the
Star, I removed all the old appliances. The other major thing I accomplished was to
gradually turn the lounge into an impressive showplace. Eventually the windows were
covered with antique stained-glass windows. A huge antique fireplace mantel with a
screen, logs, and fireplace tools was set against a wall covered with old gray panels of
barnwood. It looked like the real thing. The two stock light fixtures in our parlour area
were replaced with antique black fixtures that hung down about a foot from the
ceiling. Oil paintings, antique furniture, an oriental carpet, plants, a large vintage hi-fi
console, and an antique clock on the fireplace mantel made the lounge look like it was
located in an old mansion. Henry Pollard from the 12th-Floor Commune and I bought
the furniture at a secondhand store. The mantlepiece and stained glass windows were
rescued from buildings being demolished. One of my outside visitors was astonished
by the lounge, and commented, "It looks like a movie set."
There was a large umbrella plant by the stained-glass windows, and a healthy white
trillium growing on the large coffee-table. Mike Randell remarked that it is very
difficult to grow trilliums indoors, and it is illegal because Ontario's official flower and
symbol is protected by law. Everyday I went cycling and in season I brought back
large quantities of lilacs and yellow forsythia flowers. Frank McGarret said the
forsythias were actually flowers of yellow wisteria. Fresh flowers went in a large vase
atop the vintage hi-fi console and I liked the smell lilacs gave the lounge. The clock on
our white ornate antique mantel was electric, and was originally in the kitchen. One
day Mike Randell and I were driving in his car down a laneway and I noticed an
abandoned very old mantel clock. We stopped and took it back to Rochdale. The next
morning I transferred the guts of the electric kitchen clock into the shell of the antique
mantel clock. It was a perfect fit that looked authentic. Frank McGarret peeked into
the kitchenette to see the time and looked puzzled. I pointed to the mantel and he did a
double take when he realized what had happened.
Also in the lounge was a very large Rochdale wooden dining-room table. It had some
chairs, and there was a long black vinyl banquette seating bench that was attached to
the walls by the table. A large electric lamp hung fairly low above the table. It was like
a gambling or billiards pendant fixture of white crochet material in an inverted bowl
shape. When I moved into #1506, I prepared my food in #1505 but ate it at the lounge
dinner table.
On the barnwood wall above the fireplace mantel was a crucifix that John Taylor
always hung upside-down or had the corpus of Christ arranged in strange positions.
He also attached paper dialogue balloons to it that read "I'm dead" or "Om dead". This
was one of the phrases that John and Simon often said, and they pronounced it, "Om
dead." A newspaper reporter was interviewing commune members one day and he
also took photographs. The upside down crucifix with the dialogue balloon appeared
in the Globe and Mail. Presumably the readers of the conservative newspaper

concluded that we were irreverent satanists, because that is thought to be the meaning
of an upside-down crucifix. A simple cross upside-down refers to St. Peter, who was
crucified upside down. In fact, the Pope's throne has an upside down cross engraved in
it as a symbol of St. Peter's humility and death.
As I didn't want to live in a pigsty, I cleaned and tidied up the communal lounge each
morning. It took about five minutes unless there was a party the night before, when it
could take as long as an hour. Once a week I vacuumed the main hallway in the
commune. One day I was vacuuming while the commune was vacant. The doorbell
rang repeatedly, but I ignored it. Finally Cathy Johnson stormed in with her baby in a
rage and kicked over the vacuum cleaner. She screamed at me for not opening the
door. Cathy was too angry to reason with, but eventually I explained to her that it was
her responsibility to have a key, and I was not obligated to answer the door. I was not
the doorman, not her servant, not expecting any visitors myself, and she should have
been grateful to me for keeping the commune clean without pay. Rochdalians were the
most ungrateful assholes I ever met.
My very best friend Allan Brison visited sometimes, but he did not feel comfortable in
Rochdale because like me he was vegetarian and did not drink alcohol, smoke, or use
drugs. We continued to sunbathe in the nude on the roof-top patio on the 17th-floor,
and I visited him and his family who lived nearby in the Annex. Allan eventually
stopped sunbathing with me on the roof because he believed it was healthier to
sunbathe around 5 p.m., whereas I preferred the bright sunshine around midday. I was
like the line from a Nol Coward song: "Mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the
midday sun."
After six months in the commune I moved directly across the hall into the double
Kafka room in #1506 after Tim moved out. Basically I wanted southern exposure to
see Lake Ontario and have more sunshine. I painted the room white and hung a huge
antique stained-glass window from Quebec with a fleur-de-lis design over my
window. Visitors, including King Bill, often commented about how large and clean
my room looked. Coco Cromwell wiped her fingers along one of my shelves and
exclaimed, "No dust!" About six months after moving in, Trish Flint's new boyfriend
moved into the single room, but he was basically "filler" who only associated with
Trish. I now had to use the communal Gnostic kitchen, and shared a refrigerator with
Margot Cross in the former washroom of #1505.
From my window I saw the final construction of the U of T's brutalist architectural
monstrosity called the Robarts library, and also the entire construction of the
obscenely phallic CN Tower. One day I was sitting on my desk and the ledge of my
window, and in the laneway down below Kevin O'Leary was looking up at me for far
too long. He obviously disapproved, and I wanted to throw a brick or something at the
bossy motherfucker. My good friend David Lawrence told me Kevin accosted him in
the lobby and interrogated him for being "one of the biggest drug dealers in

Rochdale". David was a nave and very impressionable teeny-bopper and didn't
understand, so I explained that Kevin was a fascist parasite trying to intimidate him.
One day I looked out my window and saw David throw hundreds of sheets of paper
out his window from #1608 or #1610. Dave was the very last tenant evicted in late
September 1975. When he graduated as a medical doctor, he threw his tons of study
notes up in the air. Habitually throwing paper in the air is crazy, so of course David
Lawrence became an incompetent psychiatrist. I visited him countless times in
Rochdale, but he never once visited me. When the building closed, David visited me
over 100 times, but I never visited him.
Around the time I moved across the hall, Cathy Johnson and Christopher Adam
moved into the 13th-Floor Commune. Cathy was much happier there and her
personality was noticeably improved. The first time I visited Cathy in her new home
she was listening to a Frank Sinatra record, cheerfully singing along and dancing a bit.
Ceilidh, the baby daughter of Jane Barnett, was lying naked on the floor smiling,
looking somewhat provocative, yet innocent and intelligent. Not long afterwards
Cathy and I danced together at a 15th-Floor Commune party in the lounge. It seemed
to turn her on, because she began flirting with me. I mentioned this to her and she
backed off, so I said, "Now you're being coy." "Yes," she said, "I'm being coy." We
both laughed and danced some more.
Jim Washington eventually moved in, too, into room #1618. He was a black American
from Chicago, probably a draft dodger because he hated the USA. Jim had lived in the
building for some time, and had educational space on the sixth-floor because he was
an inventor. One of his creations was a bicycle that looked more like a torpedo-shaped
car. When I mentioned to him that I had lived in Rochdale in 1969, his reaction was
identical to Nickie Ashley's: insecure and defensive hostility. I learned not to mention
my previous history with the building. He was a decent and ethical man, although
Margot Cross once said, "Jim is sometimes less than honest." Jim became the lover of
Susan Rogers, but she dumped him. He was heartbroken, and Susan complained at a
commune meeting that Jim was swinging out of a 16th-floor window on a rope to get
into her Ashram room on the 15th-floor. Jim was an experienced airplane pilot as well
as inventor, so apparently he had no fear of heights.
When I moved directly across the hall my room in #1503 was taken by Joel Scott
from the suburbs. He was somewhat overweight, a vegetarian, and had very long
brown hair. His fingernails were very long. And his toenails were also very long. You
could say he was eccentric. Joel had an overblown unrealistic opinion of himself and
his accomplishments. He was basically an armchair revolutionary too lazy to get out
of the chair. Joel had a position with the Toad Lane Tenants Association, and sat
behind a desk in an office on the second floor. There were no visitors because nobody
was interested. The entire scenario was simply useless window dressing. Dawn
Golden was his roommate.

Dawn Golden was about 18, thin, with long brown hair, and a bad case of acne. She
got her name from her Rosicrucian father who worked as a doorman at an exclusive
downtown private club. He raised Dawn by giving her hashish that patrons at his job
gave to him as tips. Dawn was more than a little crazy and the only teeny-bopper in
the commune. One day she suddenly hugged me in the hallway and said, "I love you
so much." When I related this incident to Casey, he was envious because of her youth
and lovely body. But I was turned off by her acne, forwardness, and I was celibate
anyway.
For some strange reason Joel was reluctant to allow any new members to move into
the commune at a time when there were vacancies. When Farouk Yourossie from
Kabul, Afghanistan was attempting to move into the 15th-floor Ashram, I had to argue
with Joel for 10 minutes to accept Farouk. Later Joel and Farouk became good
friends, and played chess most evenings in the lounge. Farouk had worked in Egypt
and other exotic countries. He was a gentle soft-spoken man who like so many
Rochdalians did construction work. We often talked about Afghanistan and Iran,
countries I had visited twice.
At one commune meeting Joel was giving another applicant a hard time. I said, "Joel,
if everybody was a roadblock like you are, you would not have been allowed to move
in here. Why do you give every applicant a hard time?" Joel became angry and said,
"That's not true. Just name one person I tried to block." I replied, "Farouk. I had to
argue with you for ten fucking minutes to allow him in." Joel completely denied this.
However, Cindy Lei corroborated my version and Farouk never spoke to Joel again.
During another meeting the disastrous state of the kitchenette for the lounge was on
the agenda. Although I habitually kept the lounge clean and tidy, the kitchenette was
strictly for Ashram residents and their job to keep clean. Usually it was, but on this
occasion there was a tremendous amount of garbage, old rotting food, and all the
dishes, pots, pans, and everything needed to be cleaned. But it was such a gigantic
mess it seemed an impossible task, like cleaning out the Augean Stables. There was an
emotional discussion then a boisterous argument about it. Finally Mike Randell solved
the problem by turning off the kitchenette lights, closing its double doors and locking
them shut.
Beverly Ernenbacker was one of the very few former members of the commune to
return for a visit. She bought a farm north of Toronto with her boyfriend in the
commune, and she sometimes came to Toronto. Beverly was a practical Jewish
woman with many close friends in Rochdale. In the #1505 kitchen we had an
interesting discussion about the outer leaves of the cabbage. She read a study that they
contained more insecticide residue than the inside leaves, and I had been using the
outer leaves in my juice extractor. There was a tremendous amount of hick gossip in
Rochdale and I heard plenty from Beverly. She told me about a surprising revelation
announced by Reg Hartt at a GovCon meeting. He told everybody that he was gay.

However, Reg denies it and says Beverly was his former girlfriend. His words were, "I
don't believe in gay. Huh? As for Beverly being his girlfriend, she was already in a
relationship with another man at the time.
Cindy Lei moved from the 10th-floor into the commune as John Panter's lover in
#1501. For a time they were a threesome with Nickie Ashley. But soon Nickie left and
hitched up with Bill King for a while. Cindy was an American of Chinese descent who
came to Canada in 1972. She was extremely active and important in Rochdale, an
exceptional dancer who taught modern dance. Her dancing injured her back and she
was often in pain. She owned a black male cat that sometimes sprayed it's scent in the
communal hallway. One of the most respected people in Rochdale, Cindy was
definitely the most impressive person I ever met in the building. She wore a ring that
was given to her by Hugh Hefner of the Playboy empire. That's how she did managed
to have a free advertisement about Rochdale published in Playboy magazine where
she once worked.
From 1973 until 1975 Cindy was an essential member of both the Rochdale
Educational Council and the Rochdale Governing Council, where she was Treasurer.
She took the minutes at meetings of both councils. Among her countless contributions
to Rochdale was chief organizer of the Summer Solstice Fair on the front patio of the
building so "noise would reverberate north and west onto buildings where few people
live." The Fair included dance, theater, and Tai-Chi, and a dramatized story of
Rochdale. Then there was live music, which caused hundreds of neighbours to
complain to City Hall about the noise.
It was said that Cindy Lei was not her original name, but that is true of most women.
She was in her late 30s but looked 10 years younger. An Asian in a predominantly
Caucasian society, she was exotic and special. Once a visitor mistook Carol Tabuchi
for her and Cindy said, "You think we Orientals all look alike, don't you?" She also
said, "The Chinese are the Jews of the Orient." When I mentioned this to Nickie
Ashley, she was surprised and asked, "Did she really?" Nickie was very concerned
that her son Sammy would overhear the somewhat anti-Semitic remark.
Overprotective perhaps, but she was trying to muzzle me once again.
Cindy was quite modest, but sometimes told me stories about her impressive
background. As a young teenager in Chicago she was the next door neighbour to her
friend, Marilyn Monroe. What she told me about Marilyn would be front page news
even now. I bought vegetables for Cindy and John Panter twice a week at Kensington
Market for about a year. I cycled around the city everyday, whereas Cindy was
preoccupied with her Rochdale work and had a bad back. When I took two
correspondence art courses, I did very well in one, but with the other course the
instructor was an asshole. He insisted that I draw a border around my art, which I
refused to do. As an artist I hated the draftsman border and it was my decision to
make. The instructor was adamant, but I simply sent in more of my work without

borders until he kicked me out of the course. Cindy was an accomplished artist, so I
asked her advice on the matter but she remained silent and inscrutable on the subject.
Cindy rarely interfered with other people's affairs. This intelligent, idealistic, honest,
and very helpful marvel literally worked herself to death to save Rochdale College.
Doug Hutchings also moved into the commune on the 16th-floor from elsewhere in
the building. He was a very educated tall and handsome man from Calgary, although
he lived in NYC for some time. Doug also spent much time in the Caribbean. His wife
was Patsy, a delightful small black lady from Alabama originally, and they had one
child named Georgia. Doug said that when he and Patsy flew from NYC to Toronto,
he explained his situation to an airport official who suggested he go to Rochdale. He
had never heard of it, but moved in right away. Georgia was born in Rochdale around
the same time as Kareem. When Doug moved into the commune his relationship with
Patsy was over, and neither Patsy nor Georgia visited much. Doug was truthful,
honest, and spoke his mind. He did not hesitate to talk about racism and race relations,
and this got him branded as a "racist" by some in the building, including Nicky
Ashley. Unbelievable. Doug's favorite musician was Steve Wonder. His only real fault
was sleepwalking in the nude throughout the building, including the lobby entrance.
Doug shared my contempt for Alex MacDonald, who also moved into the commune,
and called him an "arrogant mouthy asshole".
Alex MacDonald moved in the commune for a brief time and took Zan's room in
#1509 shared with Heather MacFarlane. However, he definitely never lived in the
commune, because his real home was Neill-Wycik College. He just needed to be a
Rochdale resident to qualify to be BOSS of the place. However, he had lived in
Rochdale previously with Walter Dmytrenko. Alex was a "blind" photographer. His
vision was impaired in enough ways to qualify him as legally blind, but Alex never
behaved like his vision was impaired. Actually his photos were quite good, probably
because he used expensive cameras, but they were all black-and-white and looked too
arty. Alex only wanted to be THE BOSS of Rochdale, and to some extent he
succeeded. He was once President of Neill-Wycik College at Ryerson University like
Simon Liston, but Simon did not like him. He was a complete bullshitter, phony, and
swine noted for his boring bourgeois parties he held outside the building. At
Governing Council meeting he always sat in the same place on tall filing cabinets six
feet above everybody else. It was the throne of this egomaniac fascist motherfucker.
He was always shooting off his mouth, as if he loved the sound of his own voice. Alex
would babble on and on and on as if his mouth was not connected to his brain, and
seemed to think his boring rhetoric was entertaining and enlightening. He was also an
exhibitionist, which annoyed everyone in the commune. Nudity was not acceptable in
the common areas, and trying to impress people with a mediocre cock was obscene.
During one of his rare visits to the commune he nominally belonged to, Alex asked
me if I would exchange bicycle pedals with him. There was nothing in it for me, but I
agreed. Alex removed the steel rat trap type pedals from my bike and replaced them
with the rubber pedals from his bike.

I had afternoon naps and placed a "Do Not Disturb" notice on my door during this nap
period. One afternoon I was awakened by Alex MacDonald. When I opened the door,
Alex grabbed me roughly by the throat with both hands and screamed, "Did you send
that notice to Karen Johnson? Did you? Tell me now because I'm going to strangle
you to death with my bare hands!" I did not know what he was talking about. It was
almost impossible to speak, but managed to say I did not. Alex yelled, "It's a good
thing you said that or you would be dead now!"
Several weeks later there was a newspaper article about Rochdale, and Alex
MacDonald was quoted as saying, "Rochdale taught me how to relate to people". I
hated Alex because of the vicious criminal assault. My neck was badly bruised and
required medical attention. After this Alex was unwelcome on the 15th-floor where he
was essentially banned.
Cathy/Catherine/Kate (she kept changing her name) was a chain-smoking nurse whom
Bill Granger brought to Rochdale from Montreal. She should have stayed there
because she was an insufferable bitch, very obnoxious and hyper-critical. She stayed
with Bill in #1507 for a while, then took the room in #1509 vacated by Alex
MacDonald. For some inexplicable reason she hated me intensely and did not respect
the pecking order of the commune. She just parachuted in and felt she was equal or
superior to everyone else, whereas in fact she was merely an unwanted guest, an
outcast not even part of the established order.
Simon Liston was formerly the President of Neill-Wycik College on the Ryerson
campus, and he had an easy time moving into the 15th-Floor Commune. Mike Randell
escorted him from room to room and simply said, "This is my good friend Simon who
wants to move into the commune." And that was it. Simon didn't have to say a word,
and was voted in. He was likable, but he completely sucked and did not belong in
Rochdale. His overbearing arrogance, self-importance, total lack of integrity, and
bourgeois values sickened me and turned my stomach. When he moved out in a
cowardly act, he became increasingly bourgeois and unbearable. The enemy. He was a
construction worker with John Taylor, and when in the commune he was often
amusing with his Monty Python-inspired humour. In the weekday mornings Simon
and John Taylor would usually leave the commune singing the "Snow White" tune "Hi
ho, Hi ho, It's off to work we go."
Shirley Claydon was a very happy and bubbly strawberry-blonde vegetarian from
Thunder Bay, where her father owned a large construction company. So she had
money and a classic 1964 blue Thunderbird car, known as a Flair Bird. It looked
stylish and unique, and the interior was elaborate and complex with four bucket seats
and a dazzling "flight deck" dash board with an array of toggle switches and flashing
lights for air conditioning, power windows, power locks, power seats, a radio, and
heater. Her car was parked underground. The Rochdale basement and sub-basement

could accommodate 157 cars. Shirley was sociable in the 15th-Floor Commune and to
some extent in the building, but did not get involved much with the college except for
being Vice-President of the Toad Lane Tenants Association. Like many people from
hick towns, she had some contempt for Toronto, especially its artistic scene. It was
probably a defense mechanism to compensate for being from the sticks. She was in
Rochdale strictly to have fun, and like most did not contribute much. One night a
group of us drove in her sporty luxurious Thunderbird to the 99 Roxy Theatre to see
the Beatles' Magical Mystery Tour. It was mediocre, basically Paul McCartney's home
movie except for the big budget climactic scene where the Beatles dressed in white
tuxedos descend a grand staircase singing "Your Mother Should Know". Eventually
Shirley hitched up with John Taylor when he moved in. She claims she lived with me
in #1503 briefly, which is not true, and then moved into #1502 which is questionable
since Mike Wong and then Carol Tabuchi lived there. But she did live somewhere in
the commune.
Shirley told a few of us that she used to love Janis Joplin's singing until someone told
her Janis was not opera, so Shirley stopped liking her. At one of our parties I put on
the Otis Redding at Monterey Pop LP. After a couple of songs Shirley complained to
me that it was "stale", and I told her I was not the DJ and to put on some music she
liked. Later I put on some 1950s rock 'n' roll and Henry Pollard told me he liked
contemporary music better. I told him I was not the DJ and to put on some music he
liked. One night I used the word "cunt" and Shirley was outraged. Eureka! "Cunt"
then became my favorite four letter word because "motherfucker" was becoming a
compliment from overuse. Shirley told me she wasn't feeling very well. I asked her,
"Don't tell me you're pregnant again?" This was something I said to many women.
One evening I told Shirley "I'm going to bed. Alone." She laughed hysterically.
Another night she stumbled out of Bill Granger's unit laughing and a little tipsy. She
said how much she enjoyed his water bed, and went down the hall towards #1502, so
maybe she did live there. When we acquired the wooden fireplace mantel, Shirley said
at a meeting she wanted to strip the paint off. I would not allow it because it looked
great white and my experience was people usually don't finish such projects. Shirley
took a vacation in Florida and came back with a large bag of oranges she had stolen
off trees in an orange grove.
John Taylor was from Parry Sound and was a husky, very happy man who lived in the
15th-Floor Commune Ashram. He was a perfect match for Shirley Claydon. John
became very good friends with Simon Liston and for a while they worked in
construction together. Simon, John, and Shirley eventually moved out of the commune
and lived together in a nearby house. Shirley always wanted to be in show biz, and a
few years later she and John Taylor became entertainers and performers before they
broke up.
The only time I went to church was on Christmas Eve. On the evening of December
24, 1973 I took Shirley Claydon across the street from Rochdale to Bloor Street

United Church. Shirley didn't like it at all. However, one of the traditions of Bloor
United is for the congregation to light sparklers at the end of the service and parade
outside. The sparklers fascinated Shirley. They were located in boxes near the
entrance, and Shirley "stole" a couple dozen of the largest ones. I was shocked at her
behavior, and saw that she was very happy about it. She was smiling in a strange way
and seemed to be in a child-like trance. The service had not begun, but we left and
walked back across the street to Rochdale. Shirley handed out about a dozen sparklers
to those in the main lobby. Everybody lit them up, waved them around and smiled.
The entire lobby was transformed by the brilliant showers of sparks from the many
handheld fireworks. It felt like Christmas. Then we returned to the 15th-Floor
Commune and Shirley distributed the rest of the sparklers to our fellow communards.
Jim Brennan lived in Bob Allen's room in #1504 for a few months while Bob was
staying at the Rochdale Farm for about four months in 1974. Jim was the secondyoungest member of our commune, a handsome man with very long blond hair from
Trenton, Ontario. He always went bare-chested, wore blue jeans and his occupation
was Primal Scream patient. Jim only socialized with one friend outside the building in
his Primal Scream group and me. He didn't like our neighbours and had an insulting
nickname for Margot, although he was polite to her face. When he visited me he was
always in a state of regression, usually imagining he was a child and behaving
accordingly. For example, he habitually drank milk from a baby's bottle. Primal
Scream Therapy was all the rage, and Heather tried it out. She complained that Jim
was always bragging at the Primal Scream sessions that he was a hippie living in
Rochdale College. Jim was not like that with me. We listened to old blues records
together and usually discussed childhood development. My basic advice to Jim was to
grow up, and not wallow in a forgotten childhood because it would reinforce any
psychological problems, not cure them.
Directly below us was the 14th-Floor Commune. It was the entire East wing and had
degenerated into drug dealer Syd Stern's territory. I only visited to deliver Tuesdailies.
TC, a tall thin man with curly blond medium-length hair lived in Gnostic unit #1411
and Peter Young also lived there or in #1409. Syd Stern, Ruth King, and baby True
were in #1405. The first time I passed by I witnessed the sale of a stolen bicycle for
$40 outside Syd's door, which was too criminal for me to stomach. Down the hall in
Kafka unit #1404 or #1402 lived an older couple, Jake a hard-working construction
worker and his girlfriend Mary Stephens.
Peter Young was a bright young man who moved from the 14th-Floor Commune to
the 15th-floor. He was originally from Hamilton, and had a good job at the U of T
despite his limited formal education. He had short dark hair and in Yorkville he would
have definitely been considered a "greaser". However, at one time he had long hair. He
was easy-going, quite popular, and always wore brown Mexican huarache sandals.
Peter owned a house and also had legal entitlement to another unit in Rochdale which
enabled him to be one of the last Rochdalians evicted.

Syd Stern visited the 15th-Floor Commune lounge one evening to attend a meeting for
all Rochdalians about a common issue. He knew it was hostile territory and he was
vulnerable, looking uncomfortable, intimidated and quite wary of how he would be
received. Syd relaxed when he realized he was welcome, and was polite, serious, and
said very little, but listened. In one of the bullshit books about Rochdale, Alex
McDonald is quoted as saying that the 15th-Floor Commune was, "the single most
powerful political group in the building". No. We were isolated, self-contained and not
political, whereas the 14th-Floor Commune in its heyday was political and
aggressively influential. Rochdalians viewed us as relatively bourgeois and tight-assed
large but not very important. Half the people in our commune were like the "filler"
in the West wing, and everybody knew that. We didn't feel superior, only different,
and did not throw our weight around. Syd Stern probably thought his commune was as
powerful as ours, and maybe it was. Political power didn't interest us. It's only a
concern for bossy egomaniacs like Alex McDonald, which is one reason he didn't fit
in our commune. If he chose to move into our commune because of its non-existent
"political power", he made a big mistake. Political power in Rochdale was primarily
in the hands of GovCon and a few very popular "leaders". Toad Lane Tenants
Association, EdCon, Rochdale Security, and all the communes were impotent
compared to GovCon.
There was also the 14th-Floor Ashram Commune comprised of mostly U of T
graduate students. Henry Polard, a short overweight blond American Jew was trying
for a second time to obtain a PhD. Francois Roesch from Paris was also a U of T
student and a very good friend of Margot Cross. He often visited the 15th-Floor
Commune and charmed us with his French accent. Eyre Dann was an elderly retired
Anglican priest. It's very easy to describe him. He attended a costume party on the
15th-floor dressed in a white suit as Colonel Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken. Eyre
Dann was not merely a look-alike, he was Colonel Sanders! Members of the 14thFloor Ashram Commune visited our commune frequently, but those in other
communes never visited our commune socially. They only came to our parties. This
was true of most Rochdalians. We had surprisingly few visitors, except when we had a
party everybody in the building came.
Heather MacFarlane opened the door of the 13th-Floor Ashram Commune smoking
with a foot-long cigarette holder when I first met her. I was looking for a commune to
move into and she suggested the 15th-floor where she was moving. In the 13th-Floor
Commune were very serious and dogmatic intellectual types. Art Jacobs and his
girlfriend Kathy Martin had moved from the USA with the Alternative Press Center
which was relocated on the sixth-floor. Michael Burns also worked for the Center. He
was serious, hyper-critical; his pride was to have three bowel movements each day.
Jane Barnett was a very energetic woman with a baby girl named Ceilidh, and there
was also Walter Dmytrenko, a self-assured media type from Winnipeg who never
hesitated to lecture others. Obviously this was a genuine commune and dogmatic to

prove it. Cathy Johnson, her baby son Christopher Adam, and Mike Donaghy also
moved into the 13th-Floor Commune.
At the top of the building was the 17th-Floor Commune. It was in the smallest Ashram
in the building and half of the members were nudists, including Peyton Brien and
Johnny Potter--a very fine idealistic but spaced-out gentleman who owned a huge
marijuana plant that supplied all his drug needs. Martin Heath was an English
projectionist who did experiments in which "film and theatre were the principle
experimental media for creating new kinds of awareness." The college librarian
Charlotte Von Bezold also lived there along with a young couple, Candace and her tall
bearded cab-driver boyfriend named Bruno. They owned a dog that always humped
my leg when I visited. I only laughed, but the dog's master was angry and chastised
the dog every time. Susan Rogers once visited while the dog was humping away at my
leg and she was outraged at its inappropriate display of affection.
And now for something completely different. On the 15th-floor, Mike Randell
organized a bicycle race in the commune one night. The bike racers were Mike,
Simon, John Taylor, Margot, and me. We started at the end of the Ashram (#1519),
cycled through the lounge to the end of the West wing hallway (#1502) and back. We
repeated it a few times and there was no clear winner because the racecourse was too
unconventional and unsafe to cycle quickly. But it was a lot of fun while it lasted and
typical of Mike and Simon's imaginative sense of humour.
Mike told us enthusiastically about one of his brainstorms that was rejected by
Govcon. He wanted a huge gaudy neon sign installed on the roof of Rochdale facing
Bloor Street. The sign would flash "Rochdale College" on and off
We had a Thanksgiving feast in 1974 and invited the other communes, so it was huge.
The lounge was rearranged with many large tables to accommodate everybody. There
was a tremendous quantity and variety of food donated by over a dozen people. My
contribution was a large amount of vegetarian turkey" drum sticks. I prepared a
mixture of ingredients for the "flesh" and used twigs for the "legs", then baked them in
an oven. It's not the sort of thing I ever eat, so I didn't even taste them. But they must
have been good, because Henry Pollard from the 12th-Floor Commune raved about
them and ate about half a dozen. Our commune had no proper carving knife for the
real turkey, so I borrowed an expensive stainless steel carving knife and fork set from
some friends in the Annex. Mike Randell carved the turkey and was impressed with
the cutting tools. He mentioned that the turkey needs at least 15 minutes resting time
after cooking and a good carving set is required.
I did much work for the Tuesdaily, and one of my contributions was a crossword
puzzle I created that was mostly Rochdale in content. For some of the entries or
"answers" I solicited input from others. An example was "Iago", a fictional character
in Shakespeare's Othello. The "clue" was "villain in King Lear". Margot Cross told me

there were five in King Lear: Edmund, Cornwall, Oswald, Regan, and Goneril. When
the crossword puzzle was published Margot was annoyed at me for using "Iago". She
told me I should have changed King Lear to Othello in the clues. One of the entries
was "rim" and I decided "perform analingus" would be the sexiest definition. But I
was unsure how well known it was. I asked Bob Naismith when he was visiting Cathy
Johnson, and he gave the correct answer instantly. So I used it. Mike Randell was
impressed that I knew "Ed Apt" for "sculptor of 'Unknown Student'". Some time later
I created a second crossword puzzle for the Tuesdaily. The strange thing is I have
never filled in a crossword puzzle in my life, yet I created two.
One day Kim Foikus, the former Town Fool of Vancouver, and I gave a pair of
newspaper journalists a tour of the building. Kim was my partner in "Vegetable", an
EdCon indoor gardening project in #602. Everything went well except when we
visited Animal Dick where the reporters were turned off by the smelly filth and
squalor. When we visited the lounge of the 15th-Floor Commune, even I was
impressed by Kim. He was a great showman, and I was amazed at what a
convincingly phony academic he was. Usually he was down to earth and a bit of a
clown, but during the press tour Kim behaved like a serious professor or scientist. He
caressed the leaves of the umbrella plant in the lounge by a stained glass window and
said, "This is a dwarf umbrella tree, Schefflera arboricola, and we should treat it for
aphids." I looked concerned, caressed the leaves, and said, "Yes, Kim, you're right.
Maybe we can try some nicotine tea." Kim agreed, then we took the reporters to the
next location in the building.
Many people moved out of the commune, and to fill up the vacant rooms I suggested
at a meeting that the commune advertise for new tenants. John Panter said, "We've
never done that before." I countered with, "We've never been in this situation before."
The ad was approved and posted on the front lobby bulletin board as well as one in
Etherea. A small ad in the Tuesdaily read, Wanted: responsible people to join the 15th
floor commune. drop by." The ads attracted quite a few applicants, some of whom
merely wanted a new home without rent. One of the applicants who read our ad was
C.J. Feeney, also known as Lee Van Leer. He was a musician who had lived in
Rochdale previously. In the mid 1960s he was in The Sparrow with John Kay, and the
band later morphed into Steppenwolf. I saw The Sparrow at the Penny Farthing in
Yorkville Village in 1967, and I saw Feeney fronting Neon Rose on March 26, 1970 at
the Toronto Rock Festival. He sat on a chair and played remarkable lead guitar using
only his thumb. Unfortunately for C.J., Mike Randell did not like him. "He makes my
skin crawl," Mike said. And that was the end of C.J. Feeney's attempt to join us.
Near the end of Rochdale College's existence, many people moved into our commune.
However, the commune and building were virtually dead and the new "members"
were not really communards. Basically they were guests, and we were giving them
sanctuary after they were evicted from their own units. One of the new "members"
was Marcia Whitford, who moved into the 16th-floor Ashram of the 15th-Floor

Commune. She was an older teeny-bopper swine from California, girlfriend to Peyton
in the 17th-Floor Commune, and they had a baby boy named Kareem. She had lived
in the building for a couple of years and imagined she was the hippest person on
Earth. Marcia had a beautiful body and very long red hair framing an angular face that
had a perpetual smirk of hip smugness on it. She worked for Rochdale maintenance as
a "charwoman". Even when not working she was constantly sweeping the floor in the
16th-floor lounge.
Marcia was a kleptomaniac, and confused criminal activity with hippyism and
revolution. She was the worst gossip-monger in the building, always malicious, cruel
and evil. Her neighbours called her Marcia Shitword. I had learned how to deal with
gossip mongers and simply "put her on". I told her outrageous and obvious lies and
she never once got it, or the humour, but gossiped about the bullshit, which always
came back to me. I just laughed. Once I overheard her enthusiastically telling another
woman that Fergie planned to "liberate" the 15th-Floor Commune and allow anyone
to move in. Marcia thought that was great. A complete druggie, Marcia once said, "I
take acid regularly. It's very healthy, because it clears the cobwebs out of my brain." I
imagined her vacuous and cavernous empty head festooned with cobwebs. Listening
to Marcia babble on about her idiotic ideas made me dizzy. But her son Kareem was a
lovely boy, and I used to watch him crawl along the floor at all-night parties to find
bottles of beer to drink. Less than three years old, and he was already on the road to
alcoholism. What kind of shithead criminal takes a toddler to all-night parties and
allows the baby to drink all the alcohol it can find?
George VandeBunte also moved into the commune about this time. He was an
American closeted gay with a well-paying job and an expensive car. But George was a
slimy sleazy scumbag who lied to join the commune. He was evicted from an
apartment in the West wing where he was "filler" and made a deal with the receivers
to simply move out. Instead he applied to the 15th-Floor Commune and did not
mention that he had sold out. I for one would have voted against him if I had known
the truth. Gay capitalist George definitely never belonged in Rochdale and was there
primarily because the building was the American enclave in Toronto. He didn't say
much, but when questioned he did tell the truth, and my reaction was always, "What
the fuck is this bourgeois square doing in Rochdale?" It makes me nauseous to think
about him.
There were over 100 other members of the 15th-Floor Commune over the years not
mentioned here for obvious reasons. At the end when the commune's days were
numbered there were many vacancies filled by anyone who wanted to move in, mostly
Rochdalians evicted from their homes. There are too many names for me to
remember. When researching my nonfiction historical novel A Wolf Among Sheep, I
contacted many former Rochdalians merely for names I could not remember. It was a
very unpleasant task and only a few helped me. Shirley Claydon was the best source.
Many were obnoxious and ignorant. Nickie Ashley could have helped very much, but

the ultra-discreet bitch responded to my list of questions by merely giving me the

name of her son Sammy. Thanks a lot, Nickie, or whatever the fuck you call yourself
now. If all scholars shared her paranoid extreme prudence we would know nothing
about history, biography, or anything. That's why I write that if Nickie Ashley ruled
the world we would be living in the Dark Ages. Shame on her! A typical Rochdalian I
contacted was Mike Wong, essentially "filler" in the commune. His memory was
completely shot but he imagined otherwise. I told him his memory was gone and he
was wrong about everything. Without my permission, he sent a "train" of my email to
a dozen Rochdalians, not to help me, but to attempt to prove he had an excellent
memory. I ordered the motherfucker to retract the "train" he had sent and to drop
dead--and I meant it!
When I moved into Rochdale I was warned by a few of my neighbours that Rochdale
was in a precarious situation, and its days were probably numbered because of
financial, political, and media problems. What I did not expect was that I would soon
have to join the fight for Rochdale's survival. Simon Liston, Shirley Claydon, John
Taylor, Sam Field, and many others did not fight. They fled the building because it
was an impossible situation. Rochdale was hated by mainstream society, and the
Canadian Mortage and Housing Corporation had foreclosed on the mortgage. To
make matters worse, the elite of Rochdale had decided to stop mortgage payments
completely, using the specious logic that since it was clearly impossible to pay off the
four mortgages, there was no point in making any payments. The logical recourse was
to attempt to pay off the mortgage and take legal action regarding the impossible
situation created by the colleges incompetent planners. Instead the Rochdale elite
kept the rent money for themselves. They received good salaries, bought a farm, and
some of them like Kevin O'Leary bought a "Boogie Bus" and expensive audio/video
equipment for his essentially private studio. With a budget, Rochdale College entered
its "Golden Age" for the elite. But for ordinary tenants there was no gold, only
evictions.
With the arrival of 1974, the end of Rochdale was clearly in sight. Most residents
continued partying and selling drugs like there was no tomorrow. The 1970s was "The
Me Decade", and having a good time seemed to be the priority of most people.
However, the Rochdale elite on the Governing Council had to deal with the reality
that the building would soon be closed, and all assets would be seized. This included
the Rochdale Farm, a 360-acre retreat about 300 miles from Toronto near Killaloe,
Ontario. It was decided to sell the farm to Rochdalians. On the 15th-floor, a small
group including me, Bob Allen, and Margot Cross were possibly interested in buying
it. We drove up to Killaloe and spent a weekend at the farm to make a decision. The
residents there were hospitable, but it was clear that they were saddened by the
situation. Gord Clee, an overweight Rochdalian lived in a tent, and Jocelyne Rouillard
lived in a dome she had built. The others lived in the farmhouse.
There was an attractive macho woman there who was once Mike Randell's girlfriend.

She was quite bright, but very overbearing. One night she said something that I
thought was brilliant. Although she was never vegetarian, she said that it was better to
eat larger animals, because it meant fewer animals had to be slaughtered. However,
she forever earned my wrath by violating my privacy in the outhouse. The small
building had three toilet seats, and she entered while I was relieving himself. When I
protested, she said, "We share everything here, including the toilets." I glared at her
and sternly said, "Listen you crazy cunt, I'm a guest here and possibly one of the new
owners of this farm. I don't care what you think. Scram! Get the fuck out of here
before I rip your fucking face off!" She quickly left, slammed the door, and we never
spoke again.
In early May 1975 well over a dozen Rochdalians visited the Rochdale Farm and at a
meeting became members and part-owners of the farm. I remained in Rochdale and
did not attend. It didn't work out for most, but Jocelyne Rouillard, Gord Clee, Johnny
Potter, Peyton Brien, Marcia Whitford, and a few others lived there for some time. I
visited the farm three times and did not like it, the surrounding area, or most of the
residents. When the building closed I spent the summer of 1975 on a private island in
a large private lake north of Kingston. The lake water was clean enough to drink. I had
my own motor boat, canoe and catamaran to use. There was a large vacant farmhouse
on the lakeshore I sometimes stayed in. My companions were my very best friend
Allan Brison and his wonderful family. Why the fuck would I waste my time at the
shitty so-called Rochdale Farm?
I interviewed Mike Randell for the Tuesdaily in early 1974, and the last thing he said
was: "Our worst option is not being able to put a deal together by November 8. If we
dont, Revenue Property gets the building. By the end of July or early August we'll
know fairly definitely which of these deals is going to come through and which
purchase offers are worthwhile. It is important to maintain and preserve a community
until that time. Keeping up the spirit--continuing to function as if we were in a normal
state because once you start not giving a shit then the whole thing disintegrates.
People should be very careful about not jumping before they have to. People
individually should make sure they have a lawyer to fight the NTVs."
At the end of March 1974, the court granted permission to empty Rochdale College of
all tenants. Evictions began and quickly escalated. In May, 87 notices were served and
in June, 151 more. Usually ten to 12 officials, six or seven Sheriff's officers, police,
and the receiver's staff did the dirty work. Sledge hammers were generally required to
open the door, and the tenants would be peacefully evicted. The doors were
padlocked, but many were soon broken into and the room was re-occupied by another
"tenant".
On July 30, 1974 there was a major riot at Rochdale. There was a drug bust in the East
wing of the 10th-floor and some dealers and many tenants blocked the exit of two
policemen, who were trapped inside. Margot Cross and I went down the stairs to

investigate. Electricity had been turned off on the floor and the elevators did not work.
A crowd of about 25 Rochdalians including Margot and me were in the elevator lobby
of the 10th-floor. A policeman came to rescue his colleagues and pointed his gun at
everybody. He was visibly scared shitless, and pointed the gun at Jackie Halliday's
face. She was frozen as the cop held his gun and long metal flashlight in front of him
and yelled, "Get the fuck out of the way, bitch!" Jackie didn't move fast enough and
the cop slammed her head with both gun and flashlight. She turned a complete
sideways somersault from the force of the hit. Apparently the police were trying to
provoke a riot by assaulting women so they could use deadly force. The lights were
out and it was a terrifying experience.
In the bravest act I ever witnessed in my life, Tony Osbourne who collected admission
money for Reg Hartt's porn film screenings calmly walked right up to the armed
policeman and said, "We're not going to harm you, and you're not going to shoot us.
Put your gun away. Now!" The policeman backed down to some extent, lowered his
gun from Tony's face, but still held the gun. In the most cowardly act I ever
experienced in my life, Margot Cross began crying hysterically with fear. She actually
stooped down and hid behind me as if I was her shield against bullets. At this point I
forevermore had contempt for my neighbour, considering she seemed like a strong
woman who never hesitated to criticize others about anything.
I went to the stairways and passed my beautiful neighbour Coco Cromwell. Blood was
pouring from her mouth because a policeman had punched her in the face and
knocked out her front tooth for no reason whatsoever. Actually he probably did it
because she was black. Eventually Coco tried to take legal action. However, it became
impossible because all her many photos and negatives at the modeling agency where
she worked mysteriously disappeared.
Up on the 15th-Floor Commune, everybody was very concerned about the ensuing
riot with Rochdalians trashing things and forcing the Greenie security guards out of
the building. President Mike Randell was quite upset. Cindy Lei to the rescue! She left
and went downstairs to end the riot. But instead she got caught up in the mob and
trashed a lot of stuff herself. Cindy returned very happy about her accomplishment,
and everybody was absolutely flabbergasted.
One morning Pauline Conquay of the Rentals office came to the main entrance of the
commune and served Margot Cross and me an eviction notice for the entire
commune. She was politely hostile and interrogated us. Pauline pronounced Margot's
name Mar-got instead of the proper Mar-go. "Are you Mar-got Cross?" she asked.
Every little detail she questioned. "What do you mean by 'we'?" she asked me. I said,
"Do you think I was using the majestic plural to describe myself? Obviously I was
referring to the members of the commune."
On Christmas Eve 1974 I took Margot Cross to the Church of St. Mary Magdalene

located about a mile from Rochdale. Margot wanted to hear their choir sing Handel's
Messiah, which is associated with Christmas. She discussed Mary Magdalene with her
friend Eyre Dan, a retired Anglican priest in the 12th-Floor Commune. He said it was
the highest Anglican church in Toronto, influenced by a heritage both Anglican and
Catholic. The religion was a form of Catholicism without papal control, or
Protestantism with more elaborate liturgy and ritual. Some of its Catholic elements
were controversial for the Anglican Church of Canada. We cycled over to the church
and went inside to watch the show.
The church stage known as a chancel was crowded with priests in ornate vestments.
One of them had an incense burner called a thurible, a large metal container dangling
by chains. Incense smoke poured out of it and he swung it around. A couple of other
priests held on to him because he was in a stoned trance from the clouds of incense,
and they led him around the chancel for a few minutes to spread the incense
everywhere. Margot and I looked at the congregation and unlike us they were all
dressed up for church and obviously wealthy. I was enjoying the show on stage, but
Margot felt very uncomfortable so we left early and returned to Rochdale.
Most residents stopped paying rent, including the 15th-Floor Commune. This was not
a unanimous decision, because Bob Allen often said at commune meetings, "Pay your
rent." Nobody listened. The situation was worsened when many tenants voluntarily
moved out because of the very unpleasant situation. Sam Field, the Rochdale
mailman, passionately bitched to Margot Cross and me about the constant police raids
and other unpleasant things. I told him that all Rochdalians were victimized by the
fascist persecution, we didn't want to hear him bitching about it, and since he was so
upset, he should shut up or move out. He quickly moved out.
In early 1975 Margot approached me in the communal kitchen in #1505. She was
concerned about John Panter working long hours without pay for Rochdale Security in
the lobby. John was looking sad and run down from the situation and I sympathized. It
was completely Margot's idea and she had decided that we should donate $10 each for
John Panter's work. This is the only thing Margot ever did for Rochdale! Because I
never approved of Rochdale Security and I was never paid for the many hours of work
I did for the commune and college, ordinarily I would have declined. But to please
Margot I told her as Toad Lane Security was voluntary, it was inappropriate to have a
fixed donation amount, and I would offer five dollars. She grudgingly accepted it and
scolded me for not giving $10. Because John Panter was involved I said nothing.
Otherwise I would have demanded she return my five dollars and given her a lecture
on Rochdale Security, the etiquette of canvassing for donations, and her belated
unprecedented activism that reeked of self-righteousness.
A few of the Rochdale elite bought a co-op house in the nearby Annex at 243 Albany
Avenue. Jay Boldizsar, Mike Randell, Kevin O'Leary, and a few others were the
owners. It was "The House of Swine" because it was strictly for the Rochdale elite,

and their plan was to gain legal control of Rochdale College. To do this they needed
enough owners of their house to be members of Rochdale College Governing Council
to form a quorum. They were one member short. So they had Bill Granger elected to
GovCon. Bill Granger was Yuppie "filler" in Rochdale and he never attended GovCon
or EdCon meetings and never had anything whatsoever to do with the college. For
him to become a GovCon member was evil considering it was done only to transfer
power from Rochdalians to "The House of Swine". When I learned that rentals
manager Karen Johnson had also moved into 243 Albany Avenue, I realized that these
elitist swine were fascist motherfuckers worse than Clarkson, the federal Minister of
Housing, and the Toorotten Police combined. Their house should have been burned to
the ground while they were trapped inside. That would have given Rochdalians
something to celebrate.
Michael McLachlan was the 15th-Floor Commune's lawyer. He conveniently lived in
the West wing of the 15th-floor and graduated in 1974 specializing in criminal law.
During the eviction process, when our commune went to court, Michael unexpectedly
chose me to go on the witness stand to represent the commune. He should have let me
know in advance, because it was an unpleasant surprise for me. I was wearing my
eyeglasses, which I rarely wear, to look serious and nerdish. When I was on the
witness stand the eyeglasses made me feel self-conscious and phony. I was asked
many stupid questions by the prosecutor and at one point I responded with, "What's
your point? What are you getting at? That's irrelevant." The judge sternly admonished
me by saying, "I decide what is relevant in this court room. Answer the question."
Like everyone else in the building, we lost. They were all show trials.
The 15th-Floor Commune was approached by Ken Danson, a lawyer and the son of
Ted Danson, who was the federal Minister of Housing shutting down Rochdale. Ken
Danson offered to represent the commune for free and because he was obviously
acting under the orders of his father, he was offering a deal regarding the $20,000 the
commune owed for back rent and legal fees. Many communards had left the
commune, but some were still legally tenants and/or they were responsible for rent
they stopped paying while tenants. Bill Granger for example, was forced to move out
quickly and sever all ties with the commune because he was being sued for over
$10,000. Therefore many sucks thought this deal was a great idea and most other
tenants went along with it. Simon Liston, who moved out of the commune the year
before but owed rent money, was the very worst suck, extremely eager to make a deal.
He praised Ken Danson and urged everyone to sell out. Simon should have been
banned from the meeting because he was not a member of the commune, just a sleazy
scumbag who didn't want to pay his rental debt. Some including me were appalled and
nauseated by the situation. Those of us who disagreed with the Danson deal had a
meeting in my room. Cindy Lei, Nickie Ashley, Coco Cromwell and a few others
discussed the situation and we finally reluctantly agreed to join our fellow
communards. A meeting was scheduled in the communal lounge to meet with Ken
Danson.

For some reason, Kevin O'Leary attended the meeting, and blatantly sucked up to Ken
Danson. Kevin had nothing whatsoever to do with the 15th-Floor Commune and very
rarely visited. He had been evicted and was not even living in the building at this time.
His presence was not merely grossly inappropriate. The private meeting was very
important and for commune members only, yet the most parasitic egomaniac in
Rochdale history crashed our meeting, interfered and took complete control of it for
his own ambition. During the entire meeting Kevin O'Leary stood right beside Danson
and behaved like a lackey advisor and assistant. For example, when Coco Cromwell in
sexy blue jean shorts went up to Danson to sign a document, Kevin told Danson about
the police knocking out her front tooth on July 30, 1974. Coco didn't want her missing
tooth advertised publicly. We didn't want outsider Kevin O'Leary in control of our
private commune meeting and sucking up to the son of the motherfucker who was
evicting us. Everything about the Ken Danson representation and meeting was
sickening. It was certainly a contributing factor in Cindy Lei's later suicide.
Everybody signed a deal with Ken Danson to leave by May 15, 1975 and thereby
avoid paying back rent and legal fees of $20,000. The one exception was Bob Allen
who had a flimsy idea that his unit was somehow separate from the commune. Perhaps
he paid his rent in an escrow account, but I can't remember the details. The legal flaw
in his position was that he was living at the Rochdale Farm and not living or paying
rent in #1504 for about four months in 1974.
The last meeting of the 15th-Floor Commune took place in early May, 1975. It was for
practical purposes to bring a proper closure to our commune, such as deciding what to
do with the communal bank account. Heather MacFarlane cheerfully wondered what
"we" were going to do with "our" antique items in the lounge. I criticized her
"vulture" attitude and reminded her that I was largely responsible for almost all of the
stuff, and I would take care of them. Heather never forgave me for the "vulture"
remark. Peter Young helped me move the fireplace mantel to the house of my very
best friend Allan Brison--where I was moving to. One of the stained-glass windows I
gave to Bill Granger, and he installed it in the front window of the co-op house at 243
Albany Avenue. The mantel clock went to the co-op house at 138 Albany Avenue and
was placed on their fireplace mantel. What was left I gave to the 13th-Floor Commune
because I thought they were remaining for a long time. But they were evicted a couple
of weeks after us, and moved to Brunswick Avenue. Many months later I noticed that
one of our lounge oil paintings was hanging on the wall of Syd Stern's room at 95
Madison Avenue.
On May 15, 1975, seven Sheriffs officers with sledgehammers backed by 25
policemen used a key to enter the 15th-Floor Commune. Everybody was escorted out
while a policeman videotaped everything. Before we left, I hugged Coco Cromwell
and could sense her deep sorrow. Then Cindy Lei came up and embraced me. She was
trembling inside, and it was frightening to feel Cindy's profound negative feelings of

bitterness, despair, and icy cold death. All the communards left peacefully in small
groups and were escorted outside the building. Bob Allen was evicted separately and
harshly escorted outside by several police officers. Only Peter Young remained in the
building because he was legally a tenant in a unit somewhere else in the building with
no eviction order. His case was before the courts and Peter could not be evicted
without an eviction order.
In hindsight, I see the 15th-Floor Commune as a phony commune filled with phonies
located in a phony college that sold phony diplomas and drugs. But I had a great time.

Indoor gardening in the 15th-Floor Commune

Daily July 7, 1970 clip

November 20, 1970 clip

Daily clip of January 26, 1971

Tuesdaily March 16, 1971 clip

Daily clip of April 13, 1971

July 6, 1971 Daily clip

Fridaily clip July 9, 1971

Tuesdaily August 30, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily November 23, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily November 30, 1971 clip

15th Floor Commune dream Swimming Pool

Notice: "Trespassers in the 15th Floor Swimming Pool will be drowned on sight." Joe Wertz

The 15th-Floor Commune dream Swimming Pool. The 16th-floor Ashram

balcony on the top left was used as a diving board.

Tuesdaily June 1, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 1, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 8, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 22, 1971 clip

Daily June 29, 1971 clip

Daily April 17, 1971 clip

Daily April 18, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily May 11, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 15, 1971

Tuesdaily July 20, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily October 17, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily October 19, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily July 25, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily April 13, 1973 clip

17th-Floor Commune
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_24_17th-Floor-Commune.html
At one time the 17th Floor Commune operated a week-end pizza and soft drink service.
Johnny Potter (#1713)
Charlotte Von Bezold
Peyton Brien
Martin Heath
Candace
Bruno
Bruno's dog
R. McNaughton (#1718)

17th-Floor Commune Ashram kitchen door painted by its initial occupants the
Institute for Indian Studies.

Wilf Pelletier, head of the Institute for Indian Studies in the 17th-Floor Ashram 1969

Daily Planet January 9, 1969 clip

Charlotte von Bezold


Peyton Brien

Johnny Potter (#1714)

Tuesdaily February 23, 1973 (Charlotte von Bezold to Ernst von Bezold)

Tuesdaily October 12, 1973 clip

Daily Planet April 29, 1974

Rochdale College 17th Floor Roof Patio

http://rochdaleroofpatio.blogspot.com

Rochdale College 17th Floor Roof Patio

One of the first people to move into Rochdale College was Ed Apt, an artist who was the
Director of the Rochdale Sculpture Shop from 1968 to 1970. His Sculpture Shop created the
"Unknown Student" for the front plaza, which was unveiled on April 4, 1969. Ed was also the
Director of the Patio and Terraces Committee which was listed in the March 1969 "Rochdale
Curriculum" brochure:
PATIO AND TERRACES COMMITTEE: Also under the direction of Ed Apt, this group is
planning for the last stages of the building of Rochdale: the designing of the front plaza and
the terraces on the 2nd and 17th floors for summer use. A Crafts Fair, where Rochdale
artisans will make and sell leather goods, candles, batiks, carvings, ceramics, posters, etc, and
a refreshment stand featuring hot dogs and crepes suzettes are planned for the main entrance.
The 2nd floor is to have a small stage and music shell for open air concerts and performances.
Up top, they plan for an adult/children's playground, with small and large size swing, slides,
and boxes, etc.
In the Daily, Ed wrote, "The Patio meeting concluded thus: Based on the various proposals,
plus the information collected at City Hall and from the architects, we can do these things:
1) Hot dog and refreshment booth and arts and crafts booths on the street level.
2) Stage for concerts and plays on the second floor.
3) Playground and physical fitness equipment on the 17th floor roof (with a high 'anti-climb'
fence all around it)."
In another Daily, Ed clarified the situation: "Seventeenth floor: The wire fence and the
playground equipment are on the move. We commissioned the fence maker and physical
educator Johnny Johnson (1718) is designing the playground equipment."
Ed's next Daily announcement on April 19 was, "The seventeenth floor patio is now
surrounded by an 'anti-freak-out' fence which gives it an exciting, concentration camp-ish air.
(By the way, the fence was not built to save him who would jump but on whom he'd fall.) So
now as the area is there, useably, let us decide what would it be used for. Do you still want it
to be a playground and sun deck or not? Also: we need a 17th floor patio manager, no matter
what will happen to the place."
In the summer Ed wrote: "The main media taught by the the Rochdale Sculpture Shop this
summer is metalwork. (Remember last winter it was clay, plaster and plastic.) As we did last
winter, combine learning with producing something for the college so shall we again this
time, at least in the beginning. No, the project is not to make another sculpture but to weld up
the playground and recreational equipment for the 17th floor 'toy prison camp'.
Our resource persons are:
1) Johnny Johnson, 'product designer' (1718)
2) Andy Raney, 'master welder' (625; 964-0980)
3) Bryan Liboriron, 'assistant professor' (685 Spadina)
4) Andy Scorer, 17th floor patio manager 'customer'
5) Uncle Ed (Apt), 'chief organizer' (964-0356)
By the time the playground is done many folks will have learned the basics of
welding...Welding is playing with fire, so some strict shop regulations will have to be set and
cruelly enforced (sorry)."

Around this time Ed Apt became preoccupied with creating sculptures for a suburban site
where Ed's sculptures served as centerpieces for four new blocks of a townhouse
development constructed by Cadillac Development Corporation. Creating "Cat", "Mermaid",
"Elk" and "Dolphin" left him no time for Rochdale so he resigned as Director of the Patio and
Terraces Committee on May 11, 1969. He also felt "exploited" by Rochdale and in the
summer of 1970 he moved out of the building to a house on Huron Street, and soon returned
to Vancouver.
The patio on the roof of the East wing of Rochdale quickly evolved into a quiet and peaceful
oasis for Rochdalians and outside visitors to lie around in the sun in the summer. Wooden
floor pallets were added to the roof in May 1971, there was a wading pool for the kids, and
containers around the walls filled with plants and flowers. It was very pleasant, with almost
no noise and rarely any music. When there was loud music, it could be heard for blocks in the
neighbourhood, so complaints kept the roof quiet. On a hot summer night there could be as
many as 25 people sleeping on the roof. Some Rochdalians, such as Jack the Bear, basically
lived on the roof in the summer. Once in a while there was a barbecue or a beer keg party on
a Friday. Before Reg Hartt used the second-floor lounge for his cinema, he experimented with
projecting his movies onto a large white cloth screen on the roof.
In the summer it was primarily a place for nude sunbathing. Very few people wore clothes.
Since there was nothing like this in Toronto, many outsiders sunbathed on the Rochdale roof,
where they were quite welcome. One regular was a tall young man who was disabled. He was
spastic or something, walked with difficulty, and could only speak with unintelligible grunts.
Instead he communicated with a small blackboard he carried with him. One day I was
sunbathing on the roof with my very best friend Allan Brison. He never lived in the building,
but ate at Etherea nearly every day and used the roof for nude sunbathing frequently. When I
said something to Allan about the disabled man, he uncharacteristically criticized me for it.
Allan said, "He can hear and understand everything you are saying."
I told Allan, "You know, that man is a pervert. He writes 'Do you want to fuck?' on his
blackboard and shows it to women up here. So I don't care that he can hear what I say about
him." Rochdale women didn't like this man's bold approach, but he must have had some
success considering he had the biggest cock by far on the roof. The last time I saw him was in
the 1980s when I was listening to King Bill talk at me in Kensington Market. The man came
up and began grunting at us, and I told Bill he used to sunbathe on the Rochdale roof. Bill
remembered.
Allan told me, "I have a memory of the roof of a fairly thin woman with small breasts saying
to a friend loud enough to be heard that she thought men and women were pretty much the
same except for 'different plumbing'. This was a thought I had for many years, but now I
reject that theory completely. Having children changed my mind." Allan did not believe in
evolution, vaccinations, medicinal drugs, and so on.
Walt Huston ran a concession stand and booze can on the roof to sell refreshments, wine, and
beer out of his fridge. He would wake people up in the morning screaming, "Ice cold
Heinekens at outrageous prices!" Walt did not use drugs and was usually lying on his
hammock in the nude. Supposedly Walt also made a living by collecting empty beer bottles in
the building.

In February 1973 Philip Hunter, a 24-year old Rochdalian either jumped or was thrown off
the 17th-floor roof.
When the end came in 1975 there was a major party on the roof in the spring for hundreds of
Rochdalians. Weather was warm and it was probably early May, although there are claims
that it was March. It has been erroneously referred to as "the last General Meeting", but it
was merely a party that lasted all day and all night. Everybody was very happy, but Rochdale
College was finished and would soon be dead.

Photos of the last roof party in Rochdale College 1975

Toad Lane Tenants Association

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_34_Toad-Lane.html
In March 1973 the Toad Lane Tenants Association was formed and had an office on the
second floor. In July 1973 the Association asked tenants to "Support the Toads in the fight
against the Green Lizard oppressors!" "From a position of strength" it immediately started a
successful rent strike. In two days $2,600 was paid to Toad Lane, and only $700 to
Clarkson. Most rent was paid directly to the Association, but the receiver charged in an
affidavit that it was "created for the purpose of intercepting rent payments to permit the
association to withhold rent collected and to bargain." Clarkson president John L. (Jack)
Biddell notified tenants that his company would not accept rent from the Association. By
1974 Toad Lane claimed members of two-thirds of all tenants plus 50 children. The
association published the Toad's Breath newsletter for members.

Tuesdaily March 30, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 6, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 13, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 13, 1973 clip

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Tuesdaily May 11, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 11, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 18, 1973 clips

Clarkson letter May 22, 1973

Tuesdaily May 31, 1973 clip

Toad's Breath June 11, 1973 clip


Daily July 5, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily July 27, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily November 15, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 5, 1974 clip

The Edge April 24, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily April 29, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily May 1974 clip

Tuesdaily June 1974 clip

Tuesdaily July 10, 1974 clip

Rochdale Daycare

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_28_Daycare.html

Rochdale children and Nicky Morrison in #626, a huge Zeus apartment Acorn
acquired in October 1972.
The "Rochdale Nursery School" started out in Zeus #426 in 1968. Unfortunately, the
Rochdale Nursery School was shut down by provincial authorities for contravening some rule
or regulation. But with all the kids in Rochdale, daycare continued with Acorn.

Rochdale Children in Acorn 1972

Mondaily March 3, 1969

Daily November 1969 clip

Daily February 10, 1970 clip

Daily February 24, 1970 clip

Daily February 27, 1970

Daily March 3, 1970

Tuesdaily March 10, 1970

Rochdale College minutes clip August 28, 1970

Tuesdaily September 1, 1970 clip

Tuesdaily September 1, 1970 clip

Fuck da Fridaily September 10, 1970 clips

Tuesdaily May 11, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 15, 1971

Tuesdaily July 25, 1972

Tuesdaily August 2, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily October 24, 1972 clip

Rochdale College Catalog November 1972

Tuesdaily March 9, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily August 14, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily September 14, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily October 5, 1973 clip

Undated Daily clip

Rochdales Free Clinic

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_32_Medical.html

Dr. David Collins

Rochdale pamphlet 1968

Daily November 1968 clip

Rochdale pamphlet 1968

Daily Planet January 20, 1969 clip

Daily February 10, 1969

Daily February 13, 1969

Daily April 21, 1969 clips

Daily July 14, 1969 clip

Daily February 2, 1970 clip

Daily March 27, 1970

Daily March 31, 1970

Daily April 21, 1970 clip

Rochdale College minutes clip November 2, 1970

Daily November 20, 1970 clip

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Tuesdaily June 22, 1971 clip

Daily June 29, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 15, 1971 clip

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Ghetto News October 29, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily November 2, 1971 clip

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Rochdale Catalog 1972

Saturdaily February 26, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily February 29, 1972 clip

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Tuesdaily January 23, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily January 30, 1973 clip

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Tuesdaily September 27, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily October 26, 1973 clip

Govcon - Rochdales Governing Council

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_29_Govcon.html

Rochdale Regulations September 1968

Very first issue of the Daily, October 1968

Daily January 29, 1969 clip

Daily January 29, 1969 clips

Daily February 7, 1969 clip

Daily February 14, 1969 clip

Da Da Daily February 19, 1969 clip

Daily March 11, 1969 clip

Petition May 1969

Maysay May 12, 1969

Da Daily July 31, 1969 clip

October 19, 1970

Tuesdaily January 18, 1971 clip

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Tuesdaily January 26, 1971

Daily February 1971 paste up clip

Tuesdaily February 16, 1971 clip

Daily March 1971 paste up clip

Daily May 1971 paste up clip

Fridaily July 15, 1971

Daily August 1971 clip

Daily August 1971 paste up clip

Rochdale College minutes September 14, 1971

Tuesdaily July 30, 1972 clip

Rochdale College Catalog November 1972

Tuesdaily, February 13. 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 30, 1973

Da Daily July 13, 1973 front page

Daily August 24, 1973 front page

Second floor Lounge Govcon meeting 1973

Tuesdaily January 17, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily May 1974 clips: John Sullivan (me) interviews Mike Randell. Many
thanks to printer Dave Lawrence for once again making my contribution to the
Tuesdaily unreadable.

Tuesdaily May 1974 clip

Tuesdaily July 10, 1974 clip

Edcon - Rochdales Education Council

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_30_Edcon.html

CURRICULUM 1969
Education at Rochdale is

 happening, in flux, multi-level, unpredictable, dynamic, continuing, many-sided.

You discover tomorrow what you learned yesterday. Nothing is extra-curricular.
yours to make, take, find, give, design, improvise. If that sounds like freedom,
remember it's also the heaviest load of responsibility you've ever carried. You
have to start by learning what it is you want to learn: you may be surprised
at the answer. A lot of us have been.
comprehensive. 341 Bloor St. W. is a living articulate cross-section of contemporary
society different only in being genuinely self-(often un-)determined, and in the
openness with which it citizens act out both their joys and troubles. You may have
trouble distinguishing between the academic, the therapeutic, and the vocational.
inexpensive, mostly. Rents are higher than in some student residences in Toronto,
but lower than comparable high-rise apartment buildings. "Tuition" is nothing more
than your annual membership fee unless, of course, Your Own Thing needs equipment
we don't have or money from a bare Education Budget cupboard, in which case the
first thing you learn is fund-raising or equipment design or that it was really
something else you wanted to do.
confusing, painful, difficult, and exciting. Nobody is ready for what's happening
here: nothing in your past experience or any of ours' could prepare you for it.
Nothing quite like Rochdale ever happened before. We don't know anywhere else it's
happening now.

THE ROCHDALE CURRICULUM

Nobody knows exactly how many Education Things are going on here. Seminars come and
go
before anyone has thought to write them up for the Daily. (Average life-expectancy
for the formal seminar: 6-8 weeks. Average attendance for the more enduring ones:
6-8 persons.) Workshops, projects, formal and informal tutorials throw up brief structures
faster than the mind can boggle. Quantitative measurements will get you nowhere, and all
descriptions are on their way to being out of date as soon as formulated.
Still, a College Catalog has to have a Curriculum: This one is a selective, subjective,
statement about some of the learning structures available at Rochdale during the first
half of March 1969.
S is for Seminar; S* means it has lasted 4 months or more.
W is for Workshop; Wp means it's motivating purpose is a pragmatic one.
LL is for Living Laboratory, the Rochdale specialty.
A is for Affiliate: a group or organization with its own distinct structure, operating
as part of Rochdale.
* PRIMITIVE CULTURE & SURVIVAL SKILLS (LL): Dalton McCarthy, Headman.
Conducted on the Rochdale Land Company & Agronomistics Institute's 410-acre tract in
northern Ontario, this continuing seminar of (currently) 12 members offers elementary and

advanced training in: Logging and logging construction; Subsistence farming; Primitive
plumbing; wiring, and building repairs; maple-tapping; the anthropology of the rural
community; social dynamics of farmer-priest-student relations; driftwood and soapstone
carving; dressmaking and bone needle invention; cooking by woodfire and solar battery;
bushmanism. Special courses available in esoteric transport (mud-driving, snowshoe
manipulation, etc.), and in the socio-psychologics of isolation and communality. Auditors,
part-time participants, tourists, etc. welcome by arrangement.
* CENSIT: Centre for the Study of Institutions and Theology (A): Brewster Kneen and
Philip McKenna. "Our methodology is dialectical-based on the assumption that social
analysis must lead to existential questioning and the conscious understanding of the operative
assumptions of the society. Conversely, theological study must lead to consideration of the
social and political and economic consequences of personal faith. Social analysis and
theological study carried out together should expose contradictions and provide the basis for
the handling of these contradictions, either by changing the convictions or the society. This
cannot be done abstractly. Members of the Centre are involved with church groups, political
parties, the police, government departments, the university psychiatric and psychoanalytic
groups, theological faculties and media." The Centre has conducted a number of seminars of
which the most successful currently is Phil McKenna's "Violence".
* NEW STRUCTURES (Wp) (formerly Admissions Workshop): meets 1-4 times weekly,
with 3-8 people, to study re-design of membership, residence, rental structures which have
proved inadequate or inappropriate to the unique circumstances, in the light of the experience
to date. Makes recommendations to Council.
* HOTEL AND BUILDING MANAGEMENT (LL): Andrew Raney, craftsman/designer
in metal work, and brewmaster extraordinary, Director. A continuous seminar and laboratory
course with 12 student/instructors under the supervision of Property Manager Raney, plus an
indefinite number of specialist, part-time, and temporary participants. An 18-story high rise
building in downtown Toronto with a hyper-active shifting 24-hour population of 1000 or
more has been secured for laboratory facilities. Typical projects include: The Otis Trip
elevator and overworked computer maintenance; Garbage compression and chute clearance;
Locksmithing and master key control in an individualistic society; bulletin board theory and
practice; Plumbing for overcrowded Ashrams; Fire alarm suppression; Supplies: theory,
distribution, and control furnishings, cleaning equipment, linens, light-bulbs, etc.; Property
management in the co-op and/or communal and/or chaotic society. This course has been
particularly popular with draft resisters, and has had notable success with vocational training
of philosophy, poli-sci, art, and poetry students.
* SCULPTURE (W): With the guidance and participation of craftsman/sculptor, Ed Apt,
the group has created a cooperative sculpture for the front plaza, now being cast in bronze,
and due for unveiling in April. Student-members of the group are now going ahead to
individual works.
* DRUGS (S): Tuesdays, 8pm, main lounge, conducted by Dan McCue, with frequent
guest speakers, films etc. Intense discussions of effects of drug use and abuse, and varied
aspects of the 'drug culture' by people who know and people who want to know. Guests have
included members of the Alcohol and Drug Addiction Research Foundation, Community
Services Organization, etc., and U.of T. faculty biochemist, Deba Sinha.
* SUPERSCHOOL (A): Based on the same educational orientation as Rochdale itself,
Superschool offers a unique learning and living experience to 36 students (11 resident)
between the ages of 3 and 20. Students plan their own classes and are largely responsible for
housekeeping and maintenance. All decisions are by consensus: the 'Resource Person', as
teacher and human being, earns student respect rather than demanding it. The school is in an
old house on Beverly St.

 * THEATRE PASSE MURAILLE (A, W, Wp, LL): Jim Gerrard, the director, is also a
member of the Rochdale Governing Council; The group's oblectives are three-fold:
performance, education, and community interaction. They function in and out of the Bloor St.
building with a startling combination of professional standards and amateur excitement. The
weekly drama workshop welcomes all Rochdale members on Monday evenings in the large
living room of Jim's Zeus suite. Improvisations are likely to occur anywhere in the building at
disconcertingly likely times. The group's first production was a 3-night (till the fire marshals
heard about it) sub-basement production of Tom Paine; their second one was a production of
Futz at the Central Library Theatre, which made Toronto legal history, when the Morality
Bureau decided to serve obscenity summonses on the entire cast as well as director and
producers at each performance. The play was greeted as "an impressive performance" by
first-night pre-bust critics, and as the "arrival here in Toronto of the new theatre" afterwards.
* DRAMA FOR MEDIA (LL): Required course for all Rochdale residents making use of
public parts of the building. Learning-by-living techniques. Journalist-jousting, mediamalfeasance, rhetoric, ad-lib, guerrilla theatre, stage management of seminar sets, contradirection, over-lighting, interview skirmish tactics, producer-hassling; the Fishbowl
Philosophy. Special tutorials when necessary for building bureaucrats and resource persons in
particular demand. Additional training facilities for exceptional students at CHUM-FM
studios. Establishment of Radio Rochdale in the near future will undoubtedly deteriorate the
situation.
* COACH HOUSE (S*, A, Wp, LL): Coach House Press accommodates a Heidelberg
press, an A.B. Dick offset press, a linotype, hand press, process camera, plate-maker, and
assorted smaller machines, as well as steel-rimmed red-bearded post-literate Stan Bevington,
and half a dozen to a dozen Rochdale apprentices and journeymen. Courses offered formal
and otherwise include: Bureaucracy-baffling; Hand-binding; loft building; Do-it-yourself
book publishing; a seminar called Teach!; Techniques of the reduction wheel. Coach House
does all Rochdale publishing, and also publishes some books (latest, Bill Hutton's History of
America).
* PATIO AND TERRACES COMMITTEE (Wp): Also under the direction of Ed Apt, this
group is planning for the last stages of the building of Rochdale: the designing of the front
plaza and the terraces on the 2nd and 17th floors for summer use. A Crafts Fair, where
Rochdale artisans will make and sell leather goods, candles, batiks, carvings, ceramics,
posters, etc, and a refreshment stand featuring hot dogs and crepes suzettes are planned for
the main entrance. The 2nd floor is to have a smail stage and music shell for open air concerts
and performances. Up top, they plan for an adult,/children's playground, with small and large
size swing, slides, and boxes, etc.
* THE INSTITUTE FOR INDIAN STUDIES (A): An educational/residential centre where
Indian people can study and teach their own languages, history; and culture in their own way,
and where Indians and non-Indians can develop a cross-cultural exploration and dialogue.
Offices and workshop centre of the Institute are in the 17th floor Ashram Lounge at
Rochdale. A variety of seminars and workshops are offered through the year.
* LASERS (S): Sundays at 2 in the 6th floor Ashram Lounge, led by Etienne of the 6th
floor, and/or guest speakers (with or without lasers). Currently exploring DNA.
* MUSIC DEPT. (S,W): Less than two months old, the Dept. offered its first concert
(medieval, baroque, and modern music) in February. Classes in musical notation, harmony,
ear training, solfeggio, history of western music, jazz, blues, folk & rock. Workshops in
clarinet, recorder. sax, piano, strings, and composition. A Spring Festival Concert is
scheduled to present a full day of classical, folk, and jazz. Instructors: Michel Roy, Paul
Wexler, Mark Berger, Frank Rhys, Byron Wall. (Rochdale does not forbid 'classes' and
'teachers'.)

 * CHESS (W): Various times and places. Chess ladder posted weekly.
* GOVERNMENTAL AND SOCIETAL DYNAMICS (LL): Mon, Wed, Fri, 3.30, Room
202; alternate Wed's, 8.30, main lounge. Attendance, l0-l00, usually including a quorum (6
out of 12) of the Rochdale Governing Council. (Non-Council members are all, in theory,
auditors.) The 1; #return true planned curriculum includes: Fiscal management;
Intercorporate relationships; Government by General Manager; Government by discussion;
Tourism and immigration; Population dynamics; The microcosm as a state. Spring semester
extras, to date: Public Health (making a clinic, & corridor cat-shit control); Donation
acceptance techniques (making a library); Security: crime control, police control, firearms
control, theft control, vigilante control; Penology in the unstructured society (Is banishment
the ultimate punishment or the only available one?), The media making overexposure pay;
Inter-institutional relations making sociology surveys pay; N-dimensional space-time
allocation.
* HOUSE OF ANANSI (A, LL): Publishing house presently managed by Dennis Lee
Rochdale Resource Person, poet ("Civil Elegies", etc.) journalist and editor ("T.O. Now",
This Magazine is about Schools, etc.). Proximity of Anansi provides unusual opportunities
for manuscript typing and book collation (no fee). Latest publication: "Cape Breton is the
Thought Control Centre of Canada".
* REVOLUTlON (S*): Mon, 9.30, with Jim Beckman. "The purpose is to provide a setting
to study and discuss the processes of rapid social change at work in the contemporary world,
and to get clear about possible strategy by critically analyzing the existing revolutionary
alternatives and strategies."
* MODERN DANCE THEATRE OF CANADA (A): Elizabeth Swerdlow, artistic director.
Professional ballet training. Hours by arrangement with Robert Swerdlow, 904 Younge St.,
Toronto 5
Rochdale Printed Curriculum, March 1969


Rochdale College student ID cards

Rochdale Weekly October 27, 1968 clip

Sunday Supplement January 9, 1969 clip

Daily April 30, 1969 clip

Daily December 20, 1969 clip by Johnny Potter

Daily January 13, 1970 clip

Daily February 10, 1970 clip

Fridaily June 4, 1971

Tuesdaily July 11, 1972 clip

Daily August 24, 1971 clip

Rochdale College Catalog November 1972

Tuesdaily November 1972 clip

Tuesdaily December 12, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily March 23, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily (published on Friday) July 27, 1973

Tuesdaily October 5, 1973 clip

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Tuesdaily January 13, 1974 clip

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Tuesdaily February 7, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily May 1974 clip

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Tuesdaily February 26, 1974 clip

The Edge April 24, 1974 clip

The Edge April 24, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily May 21, 1974 clip

Edcon Projects
In February 1970 most Edcon projects moved the to 6th floor East wing.

O Handmade paper 601 and 602 double (Andrew Smith)

Leather Shop 602 single (Mark Smith)
Vegetable 602 (John Sullivan, Kim Foikus)
People's Institute of Aviation 605 (Jim Washington)
Charasee Press 607 (Brian Grieveson)
Radio Rochdale 607 then 4 rooms in 4th floor Ashram
Alternative Press Center 611 (Art Jacobs, Michael Burns, etc.)
Puppetry 610 (Allen Booth)
Acorn 626
Hydroponics 604 & 606 (Joe Vencl)
Bookbinding 201 (Sagar)
Art Room 203
Pottery Studio 206 (Sheelagh Carpendale)
Music Department 513
Weaving Studio 6th floor (Tom Ward)
Audio Video Resource Centre 4th floor (Kevin O'Leary)
Theatre Passe Muraille 1826
Ceramics 206
Modern Dance/Ballet 1426 (Jude Major)

Art Jacobs in the Alternative Press Center 611

Jim Washington of the People's Institute of Aviation (#605)

Tom Ward teaching weaving

Rochdale College Video Studio

Rochdale College Catalogue 1967-68


Daily October 1968 clip

Daily November 2, 1968 clip

Daily November 5, 1968 clip

Daily undated 1969 clip


Daily Planet January 6, 1969 clip

Daily Planet January 9, 1969 clips


Daily Planet January 16, 1969 clip


Daily February 1, 1969 clip


Daily February 4, 1969 clip


Mondaily February 17, 1969 clip

Daily March 6, 1969 clip

Daily March 14, 1969 clip

Daily April 30, 1969 clip

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Daily May 26, 1969 clip

Daily December 16, 1969 clip

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Daily clip April 13, 1971

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Tuesdaily clip July 20, 1971

High Times Sportz December 17, 1971 clip

Ghetto News May 18, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily August 2, 1972 clips

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Tuesdaily November 14, 1972 clip

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Tuesdaily October 26, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 1974 clip

Rochdale Maintenance
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_36_Maintenance.html

Daily January 30, 1969 clip

Infrarochdale February 12, 1969 clips

Daily February 24, 1969 clip

Daily February 28, 1969 clip

Daily March 4, 1969 clip

Wedaily March 12, 1969 clip

Daily clip from March 12, 1969

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Daily April 21, 1969

Daily June 20, 1969 clip

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Daily April 7, 1970

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Daily September 29, 1970 clip

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Tuesdaily June 1, 1971 clip


Tuesdaily June 22, 1971 clip


Fridaily July 23, 1971 clip

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Fridaily, July 27, 1971 clip

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Tuesdaily October 26, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 5, 1974

Tuesdaily April 24, 1974 clip

Daily Planet April 29, 1974 clip

Eating Out in The Rock

http://etheriavegetarianrestaurant.blogspot.com/2011/05/etheria-restaurant.html

Sci-Fi writer Judith Merril in The Same

Starting in late 1968 outside Rochdale College on the front plaza at ground level in the West
wing was an entrance to "The Same", the college's restaurant, also known as a cafeteria.
There was also an entrance inside down a hallway from the main lobby. The restaurant was
open 24 hours a day and always lost money, largely because advertising was prohibited.
There were fears of CHMC reprisals if it was considered to be a public restaurant. The
restaurant kitchen was expected to turn $4,000 profit each month. However, the operation
actually lost $2,000 each month and by the spring of 1969 had overspent its budget by
$13,000.
There was also a cafeteria on the second floor of the college managed by Wu (#1621), who
was also the cook. Wu was a master chef and a Rochdale College "Resource Person" who had
created the "Wu Tea House" in Toronto. For the first two months of its existence, the
Rochdale cafeteria provided 600 TV dinners a day because the kitchen was not finished.
About 41,000 TV dinners were served before the kitchens were functional. Meal tickets were
issued for the first few months, and could be included with the rent. Kafka tenants had to pay
$45 per month for meal tickets, but Sundays were not included in the meal ticket deal.
Unfortunately, there was widespread meal ticket fraud and unpaid-for meals. The solution
was to appoint custodians who punched the tickets. Two of the door women complained in
the Daily, "Playing meter-maid is no fun but an unfortunate necessity here. The punching
tickets regime is for you who bear the cost of food eaten by assholes who don't care (10% by
the way). You don't eat without a ticket no matter who you are. You put me in an
uncomfortable and embarrassing position when you expect me to let you through because
you are my friend." It was reported that the kitchen chef gave out free tickets to those who
said they needed them.
Freeloaders and mismanagement were largely to blame for The Same's problems. Art Roberts
was the incompetent Manager who went on to become a third-rate geography professor. In
the Daily a tenant asked, "Why should we run out of all too infrequent desserts before we run
out of all too frequent TV dinners? Eating an entire meal with only a soup spoon, however
challenging, soon loses its thrill. Having to use a juice glass for coffee is not our idea of fun."
The Same had a chrome bar booth design and featured "19 kinds of honey, including linden,
rosemary, and mellona; caviar at 40 cents a portion; 25 kinds of coffee, from straight
Canadian to dandelion; 23 kinds of tea; 10 varieties of smoked meats; 22 variations on the
theme of jam; and 23 flavors for milk shakes, including anise, bilberry, and tamarind (a rare
Indian date)." The kitchen often ran out of eggs, and the two days' worth of milk delivered at
one time was too much for the size of the refrigerator, and had to be stored on other floors.

A tremendous amount of potatoes were served, because Art Roberts gave 50 huge potato bags
to the Rochdale Sculpture Shop, and this contribution was enough for The Same to be
mentioned in the Sculpture Shop's 1968-69 Winter Program.
At Govcon meetings on Februrary 26 and 28, 1969 the future of the restaurant was discussed.
On February 26 Art Roberts resigned as Manager and was replaced by Wu, who promised
changes in pricing, menu, and organization. By September 1969 tenants considered that "the
restaurant and cafeteria had been franchised to an outfit that had little experience and
produced the most sterile food imaginable, while down the street one of Toronto's newest and
most imaginative restaurants, Meat & Potatoes, was started by former Rochdalians."
The Same was closed in the Fall of 1970. In May 1971 Etherea Natural Foods vegetarian
restaurant opened in the space. However, it seems there was an interim restaurant, because in
the Rochdale Governing Council minutes of January 20, 1971 there are two mentions of it.
One discussion was about a petition signed by 130 people asking that bylaws regarding noise
from the restaurant band after midnight be enforced. A motion to instruct Rochdale Security
to "remind the first-floor restaurant at midnight weekdays and 2 a.m. weekends to stop the
band" was defeated.

Rochdale Cafeteria December 1968 Meal Ticket

Daily November 1968 clip

Daily November 9, 1968 clip

Daily November 1968 clip

Daily November 28, 1968

Daily December 3, 1968 clip

Daily Planet December 23, 1968 clip

Daily Planet December 30, 1968 clip

Daily Planet January 3, 1969 clip

Daily Planet January 9, 1969 clip

Daily January 20 1969 clip

Daily Planet January 20, 1969 clip

Daily February 28, 1969 clip

Daily March 2, 1969 clip

Daily March 3, 1969 clip

Daily May 14, 1969 clip

Daily July 11, 1969 clip

Rochdale minutes clip of August 4, 1969

Rochdale minutes clip of August 25, 1969

Daily December 16, 1969 clip

Daily February 24, 1970 clip

Daily March 27, 1970 clip

Rochdale College minutes clip June 4, 1970

Rochdale College minutes clip June 11, 1970

Rochdale College minutes clip December 22, 1970

Rochdale College minutes clip May 13, 1971

Tuesdaily February 12, 1971 clip

February 19, 1971 clip

Clear Light March 5, 1971 clip

Daily April 9, 1971 clip

April 13, 1971 Daily clip

April 18, 1971 clip

Next to The Same and located closer to the main entrance was the Peoples Gallery, intended
to showcase the work of artists in Rochdale College. In late 1970 Yossarian Records moved
into the Peoples Gallery from their location in the second floor lounge. It was a great record
store with a large selection of recorded music. Yossarian sold records with a mere 20 cents
added to their cost. A sign on the door read: "This store is an attempt to stop some of the
record industry rip-offs. So please don't rip us off or we'll rip you off." Records there sold
with a 5% mark-up, compared to Sam the Record Man's 35%. "Woodstock" for example, was
$12 at Sam's and $9.35 at Yossarian. Dylans "Self Portrait" was $6.90 and all Mothers of
Invention albums were $3.90. The retail record industry used greedy exploitative
discrimination regarding youth music. If you were buying "Strauss Waltzes", even
department stores like Eatons or Simpsons would give you a fair deal. But those were not the
places to buy rock music.
One of the proprietors said, "We're trying to turn people on to the fact that they don't need a a
lot of money to live on. Our salaries are $35 a week and we are not lacking." There was,
however, a shoplifting problem at Yossarian's and when the owners tried to arrange a record
consignment, several of their friends went along. An owner explained, "When we got inside
there were stacks of albums all over. The three of us went in to talk to the manager. Then he
discovered one of the guys with us had ripped him off for $40 worth of records. The whole
deal was off."
At first there was a counter just inside the door to conduct business and there was no access
to the store. Later Yossarian evolved into what looked like a drop-in centre, with posters on
the walls, dogs playing on the floor and makeshift furniture. At the desk sat a guy in blue
jeans and an old suede jacket with a fringe. The store had its own phone: 920-6128. Health
Food was sold in a section of the store called Fat Daddy's. It was supplied by the originators
of the Golden Ant health food store, a small place on Spadina Avenue south of College Street
on the Torontos east side in 1970. It was too idealistic and often there was no staff in the
store. Patrons paid for their purchases themselves at the self-serve cash register! Yossarian
also functioned as a Goodwill or Salvation Army supply centre for hippies with new and used
shirts for $1.40, hand made beads, crocheted dresses, and a sign that read: "Could people
bring in blue jeans and other pants they don't want. We will repair them and give them away."
Needless to say Yossarian Records went out of business.

Daily April 20, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily May 11, 1971 clip

Govcon Minutes June 10, 1971

Rochdale Catalog November 1972 clip

Tuesdaily November 28, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily February 13, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 20, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 27, 1973 clip

In early 1971 Etherea Natural Foods Restaurant moved into the space vacated by The Same.
Rochdale Governing Council had approved a plan by Etherea Family Commune and it was
granted the space rent-free until the restaurant was on its feet financially. For a few months
many people spent long hard hours cleaning and renovating the place. Then a few dozen
people put up the money to finance the opening expenses.
The grand opening was on Friday May 7, 1971. It was leased by the Etherea Family
Commune and managed by Chipper, who lived in Rochdale. There were 25 members in the
immediate Etherea family and some lived on a 100-acre farm in Ajax, where they grew
organic vegetables. The restaurant duties of cooking, serving, and dishwashing were shared
by all staff. Each made $50 per week for 40 to 45 hours work.
On June 1, 1971 Yossarian Records was replaced by The Rochdale Free Clinic for a few
months. When the medical facility closed, it was soon replaced by Etherea's Nature's Way
Natural Food Store. The store was located in the same Peoples Gallery space vacated by
Yossarian and the Clinic. Nature's Way operated with a 30% markup and they bragged,
"Come and see what we're doing. It's a better trip than Dominion is on." It had the typical
food, supplements and books found in most health food stores, and I personally only bought
engevita nutritional yeast there. Eventually a large sloping awning made of light colored
wooden shingles was added to the front of the store. Hours were Monday to Saturday 11 a.m

to 9 p.m. and on Sunday noon until 8 p.m.

I visited Etherea restaurant quite a few times but never ate in the place. That's because I fled
to India soon after becoming a vegetarian. In India there is an attitude that food should be a
gift of love, not something mercenary. Restaurants are therefore avoided by upper-caste
vegetarians, and this influenced me.
Etherea was the best vegetarian and health food restaurant in Toorotten and had very high
standards. For example, the Toorotten Health Department insisted that Etherea peel their raw
carrots before making fresh carrot juice. Because the outside area of the carrot contains the
highest concentration of nutrients, Etherea refused to comply and simply stopped selling
carrot juice. Smoking was prohibited and there was no coffee, sugar, white bread,
preservatives, meat, fish, or eggs. They served a delicious and nutritious tomato, cheese and
sprout sandwich. Another favorite with patrons was the Cosmic Blues sandwich which
included avocado and alfalfa sprouts.
Ethereas soups were very popular, and my very best friend Allan Brison who ate there nearly
every day said, "I never had two soups that tasted the same." Allan loved Etherea and it was
one of his main places to hang out. It was only a short walk or bicycle ride from his home in
the Annex. In the early 1970s most of the politically active radicals he identified with were
still consuming huge amounts of coffee, cigarettes, and junk food of all types. He liked
Etherea's buffet style. Rather than dealing with a waiter, he preferred looking at the food and
making his own choices. Usually he went alone, bought a meal and would then read or
write. Allan rarely met anyone new there and was solitary unless he had prearranged to meet
someone. Meetings with friends were often set up and it was the ideal place for his small
vegetarian group. There was plenty of room to have privacy for himself or in a group.
Etherea had a variety of salads, cooked food, baked goods, pastries, desserts, and drinks such
as freshly-made fruit juices, smoothies, yogurt-fruit shakes, and naturally carbonated Perrier,
the French champagne of bottled mineral water. I knew the manager Chipper, and also Zan
Willitts who worked there and lived in the 15th-Floor Commune in #1509. Pam Atchison
was one of the partners in Etherea Natural Foods and did all the baking when the restaurant
first opened. Her former husband Graham Beattie was the fast order chef who made all the
sandwiches as the orders were turned in.
The restaurant had a modern but rustic design. Its floor was ceramic tile, the walls were
wood, and there were at least half a dozen large and thick wooden tables with matching
chairs and benches. The food and cashier area looked like a modern cafeteria, and above it
was a lovely large painted mural. It depicted a mountain scene with a lake and some trees at
the base of the mountains that resembled frozen waves. The restaurant was managed
efficiently, staffed entirely by vegetarians, most of whom lived in Rochdale, and there was a
great bulletin board outside the entrance of the adjacent health food store. Sometimes the
restaurant featured live entertainment.
Etherea helped improve Rochdale's public image very much, considering that most patrons
were not Rochdalians. They were educated adults of all ages who were vegetarian or very
health-conscious. Many were faculty and students from the University of Toronto. On
September 12, 1974 Etherea Natural Foods Restaurant was shut down and padlocked, owing
over $4000 in rent. By mid-1974 almost everybody had stopped paying rent in Rochdale
College.

Rochdalians
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_17_Rochdalians.html
http://thumbnailsketchesofrochdalians.blogspot.com/

Over 100,000 people passed through Rochdale College from 1968 to 1975. Only a tiny
percentage were from Toorotten, most stayed only a brief time, but a few lived in Rochdale
from its beginnings until its end. The original tenants were mostly U of T students, and the
remainder were largely Rochdale College students attracted by Dennis Lee's experimental
approach to education. The "Faculty" (known as Resource People) included writer Judith
Merril, sculptor Ed Apt, and printer Stan Bevington. However, for the first year most of the
building was vacant for a variety of reasons. There was some advertising at the U of T for
tenants, but Rochdale was known largely by word of mouth.
By November 1968 the virtually empty Rochdale building had been discovered by homeless
speed freaks, crashers, and other undesirables who hung out in the nearby Yorkville Village
area. Many of these came from the Drop-In Centre at Saint Paul's Avenue Road United
Church, a sleazy place on the periphery of the village. Very few became Rochdale tenants,
and most were eventually evicted.
After the summer of 1969 the building began to fill up. Unfortunately, an army of American
draft dodgers had moved in. They were mostly pampered arrogant cowards who were
patriotic but did not want to fight in the Vietnam War. Virtually none of them were hippies,
most only stayed a while, and those who remained were influenced by the neo-hippie
environment. There were far more draft dodgers in Rochdale than deadbeat Canadians from
Yorkville. Some have estimated that at least 25% of the population of Rochdale was
American. If you discount the "filler", the Americans were about 50% of the Rochdale
population. Rochdale became the American enclave in Toronto.

July 7, 1969 Rochdale minutes clip

Why offer so much help and support for American draft-dodger cowards? And why offer no
help and support for Canadian neighbours who needed a place to crash? Why help
foreigners and evict Canadians? Frankly, my opinion is there were so many arrogant
Americans in Rochdale who were ignorant and contemptuous of Canada, that the place was
essentially anti-Canadian. There were so very many of the foreigners in Rochdale that I
cannot make a generalization about it, only state my opinion.
"Filler" were boring students and workers who did not have time to get involved in Rochdale,
but they composed about half of the building's residents and they paid their rent. They lived
in Rochdale because it was "hip", conveniently located and had no "silly rules". Filler were
tolerant and tolerated in the building, yet they were superfluous and their only real function
was to pay rent.
Then there were the drug customers. Hundreds of thousands of visitors over the years greatly
outnumbered the tenants. The strange thing was very few tenants in Rochdale were from
Toronto. They were mostly American draft dodgers and Canadians from hick towns. But
virtually all the drug customers lived in Toronto and its surrounding suburbs.
Rochdalians were neo-hippies who called themselves hippies, something authentic hippies in
the 1960's never did. Compared to them, Rochdalians were sleazy obnoxious phonies. They
were assholes, the sleaziest motherfuckers on Earth and their bell-bottom jeans and tie-dyed
T shirts were just a facade to hide their phoniness. Probably the sleaze came from their
poverty and drug dealing, and the obnoxious behaviour came from alcohol and the punk

movement which had replaced hippyism. Although there were very few punks in Toronto at
the time, the punk ethos was definitely part of Rochdalian behavior in the 1970's. These
Rochdalians had a unique characteristic for befriending people, especially strangers. They
could be disarmingly intimate in an extremely friendly way I have never experienced
anywhere else on Earth. But it was phony. Many were friendly enemies.

The elite in Rochdale were motherfucking power trippers who believed their bourgeois
upbringing made them superior and entitled them to run the building. Basically the elite were
what later became known as Yuppies. They were the enemy within. Mostly they ran the
Governing Council and took all the important job positions in the building. The social
structure of Rochdale was like George Orwell's "Animal Farm". Bullishit rhetoric was
egalitarian, but in reality the elite were despicable swine who behaved like the pigs in Animal
Farm. Rochdalians referred to the elite and filler as "Tightasses", and the elite called the
Rochdalians "Sleazes". The worst aspect of the "Animal Farm" situation was that it was
entirely based on straight society's social structure: the elite were bourgeois and the "sleazes"
were working class. It had absolutely nothing to do with intelligence or education.
The strangest thing was the disparate groups considered themselves superior to the other
groups. Sleazes felt superior to tightasses, and vice versa. Actually the sleazy Rochdalians
had nothing to learn from the bourgeois elite. Most people are bourgeois, and the sleazes had
contempt for everything middle class. The elite, however, had much to learn from the sleazes
specifically how to be sleazy, less tightassed, and "hip". Of course, it was not entirely a
black and white situation, and some Rochdalians were both elitists and sleazes. They were a
type of "bobo", which means a bourgeois bohemian.
The hierarchical social structure in Rochdale was somewhat based on the building's
educational pretences. Universities are like that. The academics have status and students are
treated like shit by everybody else in and outside the educational institution. In Rochdale it
was just as much due to the incompetent elitist bureaucracy who ruled and mismanaged the
building. It also reminded me of the few high schools I attended. The guy with the biggest
dick always became President of the Student Council. You could actually determine the
outcome of a high school election with a measuring tape.
In Rochdale the male "leaders" all had big cocks. You didn't have to sunbathe in the nude on
the roof to see this phenomenon. If a guy has a big dick, he will make sure you know about
it. For once I'm not going to mention names, but several high-ranking Rochdale elitists made
sure I saw their impressive endowments, and it was not on the roof. As an aside, I will
mention that photos of my endowment are all over the Internet, and the Rochdalians who
exposed themselves to me did not intimidate me because "nature's been good to this here
boy".
Very few Rochdalians did anything but have a good time. They did not formally protest
against the receiver and never did anything constructive for the college. However, they
would riot if angered by police drug busts that interfered with their partying. Everything
Rochdale was rightly proud of was done by a few individuals. Ed Apt created the "Unknown
Student" sculpture and Laurie Peters painted the main lobby murals. Without them Rochdale
was shit. Cindy Lei worked herself to death for Rochdale, but most did absolutely nothing
unless they were on salary. The elitist Rochdale staff were criminally incompetent, and their
decision to stop mortgage payments so they could keep the money for themselves is an
example of their intrinsic evil.

There were a tremendous number of drug dealers in Rochdale who sold mostly cannabis and
psychedelic drugs. A large percentage of the neo-hippies sold drugs, and there were also
greedy capitalists who moved in strictly to sell drugs on a large scale. The big time dealers
often used the cover of a community-oriented enterprise, and some did not live in the
building because they didn't like it. Rochdale was just their workplace.
With the drug dealing on a spectacular scale came drug busts from the police. This made
front page news across North America, which completely defined Rochdale's reputation, and
it also attracted crowds of more drug dealers, drug customers, and phonies. The situation
became worse and worse, so that by mid 1970 Rochdale was unbearably "heavy" and
unpleasant because it was nothing but a hippie drug store. Often the main lobby was jampacked with drug customers waiting for an elevator, and they wandered through the building
asking everyone they came across where they could buy drugs. Fire alarms day and night
and constant police raids were intolerable.
The drug bust media reports were free advertising for the tens of thousands of phonies who
moved into Rochdale College. Too many were hicks from hick towns who didn't have a clue
what a bohemian or hippie was. They regarded Rochdale as a school to teach them to be
hippies. After a few weeks they considered themselves hippies because they were living in
notorious Rochdale College, evidence that they were hippies.
The behavior of Rochadalians was sleazy, obnoxious, phony, and confrontational. They were
assholes who invaded each other's privacy, and Rochdale was very much like a high-rise hick
town. To feel hip, they rejected others to make themselves feel superior. Rochdale was the
most homophobic place in the world by far. The Rochdalians were completely intolerant of
gays, and they based their attitude on their smug hipness. People such as King Bill believed
gays were sexually immature, suffering from an arrested sexual development and could be
"cured" with LSD. However, countless gays took LSD and it did not "cure" them. Toronto
was not multi-cultural at the time. Over 95% of the residents were Caucasian, with very few
blacks or Asians. The building was sleazy because of low rent, drug dealing, criminal and
ex-con residents, and everybody was given unlimited chances. Not just a second chance if
they screwed up, but unlimited chances. Another important reason for the sleaze is that in the
1970s it became possible to collect welfare while living in Rochdale.
Socially, the high-rise hick town aspect of Rochdale was one of its worst characteristics. It
was like that because there were very many genuine hicks in the building, and also because of
the sardine-can environment and social structure. What did most Rochdalians discuss in their
"college"? Metaphysics, existentialism, and great literature? No. It was almost entirely hick
town gossip. They gossiped about each other constantly, which required the gossip-mongers
to invade the privacy of others for more intimate and private details to tell everybody. Of
course much of it was untrue rumors and trivial sensational bullshit. It was invasion of
privacy and slander. I've always hated gossip and it's one of the reasons I've always hated
Rochdale College. Basically I'm a nonfiction writer and biographer, so how is gossip
different from biography? Gossip is sleazy casual conversation about other people, typically
involving details of their private lives which are not necessarily true, whereas biography is an
accurate account or history of a person's life written by another.
There were some interesting people in Rochdale, but only Ed Apt and Cindy Lei impressed
me. Some of the characters such as Dirty Dan McCue, Captain Hook, and Animal Dick

could be amusing, but most Rochdalians were conformists. The Rochdalian "sleazes"
habitually drank alcohol, smoked cannabis, and devoted themselves to having a good time
partying. They were all the same. Elitists, on the other hand, mistakenly believed they were
"hip", but they were no different than their middle-class parents. When Rochdale was closed
due to the mismanagement by the elitists, they just moved on to respectable homes and jobs
exactly like their bourgeois suburban parents.

Rochdale College tenants November 1968

Daily December 9, 1968 clip

Daily Planet December 18, 1968 clip

Undaily February 5, 1969

Infrarochdale Februrary 23, 1969 clip

Daily July 11, 1969 clips

Rochdale Occasionally December 10, 1969

Daily March 27, 1970 clip

Daily November 17, 1970

Tuesdaily January 26, 1971

Rochdale College Tenants Association

Partial list of members 1972

Tuesdaily February 23, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 9, 1973 clip

Rochdale College tenants 1973

partial list
* paid membership to Toad Lane

Tuesdaily January 17, 1974

Americans in Rochdale College

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_52_Americans.html

Beginning in 1969 an army of American draft dodgers invaded Rochdale College. Soon
thereafter at least 20% of the residents of Rochdale were American, which was considerable
considering that 50% of the building was "filler" that is full-time workers and students who

only lived in Rochdale for its convenient location and "no silly rules". If you discount the
"filler", the Americans were almost 50% of the active Rochdale population and the building
became the American enclave in Toronto. There were far more American draft dodgers in
Rochdale than the few deadbeat Canadians from the Yorkville area.
A total of 8,615,000 men served in the U.S. military during the Vietnam era and 2,150,000
served in the combat, with fewer than 540,000 draftees in Vietnam. Only 30,000 of the
210,000 Americans accused of dodging the draft left the country. More than 30,000 deserters
and draft evaders combined went to Canada. Eventually the Canadian government welcomed
them because draft evasion was not a criminal offense in Canada. The issue of deserters was
more complex. Desertion from the U.S. military was not a crime for which a person could be
extradited under the treaty between Canada and the U.S. However, desertion was a crime in
Canada, and the Canadian military strongly opposed condoning it. The Canadian
government maintained the right to prosecute these deserters, but left them alone and
instructed border guards not to ask questions about the issue. They were not formally
classified as refugees but were admitted as immigrants. They should have always been called
immigrants, and never "draft dodgers", which greatly stigmatized them. There is no official
estimate of how many draft resisters and deserters were admitted to Canada during the
Vietnam War, but it was between 30,000 and 40,000.
Eventually tens of thousands of deserters found refuge in Canada, and to a lesser extent in
Sweden, France, and England. In 1971 and 1972 Canada received more immigrants from the
United States than from any other country. Some of these Americans returned home after the
Vietnam War ended, but most stayed in Canada, making them the largest group Canada had
ever received. Draft resisters were usually college-educated sons of the middle class who
could no longer defer induction into the Selective Service System in the U.S.
It's interesting how the American rock stars avoided the draft. Claiming to be gay was very
common. John Densmore of The Doors pretended to be gay, and so did Jim Morrison who
also feigned insanity. Ted Nugent puked on himself and shit in his pants at the induction
center. Iggy Pop stripped naked in a lineup and started jerking off his huge cock for all to
see. Meatloaf gained 68 pounds in four-and-a-half weeks. Arlo Guthrie claims he beat the
draft by acting crazy and also for a littering offense. His Alices Restaurant is probably the
best-know draft dodger anthem of the time. In 1965 Phil Ochs wrote "Draft Dodger Rag"
which used these excuses to avoid the draft: poor vision, flat feet, a ruptured spleen, allergies
and asthma, back pain, addiction to multiple drugs, college enrollment, a disabled aunt, and
carrying a purse. Others used medical reasons and obtained deferments to military service
through loopholes and technicalities.

In Canada many draft evaders received emigration counseling and assistance from locallybased groups. Typically they were American emigrants and their Canadian antiwar
supporters. The Manual for Draft-Age Immigrants to Canada was published by the Toronto
Anti-Draft Programme and the House of Anansi Press, and it sold 100,000 copies. It was
read by well over half of American Vietnam War emigrants to Canada. In addition to the
counseling groups was a Toronto-based political organization, the Union of American Exiles,
better known as "Amex" or "UAE" that claimed to speak for American draft dodgers in
Canada. For example, it lobbied and campaigned for universal, unconditional amnesty, and
hosted an international conference in 1974 opposing anything less than that.
Ra Mintz at the July 7, 1969 Rochdale Govcon meeting proposed: "There has been a

temporary agreement with the Rental Office for the last month whereby American exiles
(draft dodgers and deserters, processed through the UAE and me) are given free
accommodation for one or two weeks in presently vacant rooms. There have been very few
hassles involved and there need be no financial expense to Rochdale. We propose that room
for perhaps six exiles be set aside on a semi-permanent basis, possibly in an Ashram above
the ninth floor since they are not too rentable. I would be willing to administrate the scheme
and act as liaison with UAE."
In Rochdale the largest number of Americans were draft dodgers. In fact the largest number
of draft dodgers who fled to Canada started out in Rochdale as it evolved and immigration
and other government officials actually advised American newcomers to go to Rochdale.
Soon Rochdale was Toronto's American enclave as well as its illicit drug store. There were
always far too many American residents, and they didn't have a clue about Toronto or
Canada. Many of them rarely left the building. These ignorant Americans tended to control
Rochdale and make the decisions while high on drugs. For example, "ugly American" King
Bill became the Rochdales general manager in 1970, and he is responsible for turning the
college into an illicit drug store.
The basic question is why the young Americans chose to be draft dodgers. If I had been in
their position, I would have been a conscientious objector, and refused military service on the
grounds of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion.
Very few draft dodgers were hippies and they generally moved out after a few months. They
found homes elsewhere or moved to the small village on Baldwin Street that was mostly a
draft dodger community. Those who remained were influenced by the neo-hippie
environment. There were almost as many female Americans in Rochdale of two types: those
who came with the draft dodgers, and hippies who moved in because Rochdale was the last
large bastion of the hippie movement. There was no other hippie community for them to go
to and all of them learned about Rochdale from media reports. The Americans had far too
much power and influence for their numbers in Rochdale. It was a form of American
imperialism that Yankees practice all around the world. They can't just visit a country and
observe it from the sidelines like other tourists. No. They must force their vastly superior
ideology, politics, and culture down the throats of everybody. Coca-Cola, Campbell's Soup,
Hollywood movies, and representative democracy are known everywhere around the world
because American cultural imperialism. Although the Americans in Rochdale may have been
too greedy for power, all nationalities were treated on an equal basis, including Canadians.
Canadians, Americans, the few English, and over a dozen other nationalities in the building
were indistinguishable from each other. Nationality, race, religion, gender didn't matter at all,
and in this regard Rochdale College was completely egalitarian; in retrospect, all these
disparate denizens also did not try to remain separate and all communicated in English.
American Judith Merril played an important part in the beginnings of Rochdale College.
She was a science fiction writer, editor and political activist who lived in England for a year
in the late 1960s. Appalled by the suppression of anti-war activities by the U.S. government,
she moved to Canada in 1968. Merril became a Canadian citizen in 1976. As a resource
person in "Writing and Publishing" in Rochdale, her contributions include starting the
Rochdale Library and the Pub office plus organizing the 1969 Rochdale Summer Festival.
Of course, the large city of Toronto on the American border attracts a percentage of American
emigrants regardless of wars, drafts, economics or anything else. When people leave their

home countries, they tend not to look back and concern themselves with why they left. Many
of these Americans have become Canadian citizens. Some have dual citizenship. In
Rochdale there were many American women and they were not avoiding the draft. There
were also many American U of T students such as Ira Rushwald and Henry Polard. They
were there to pursue an education. The term "draft dodger" or anything like it was never ever
used in Rochdale by anyone. Therefore, it's impossible to know why each individual
American was in Rochdale. It's where they wanted to be.
Although Canadians and Americans are superficially identical, there are differences.
Canadians know everything about the USA, but most Americans are largely ignorant about
Canada. Both nationalities love guns, but Canadians shoot at wild animals and Americans
shoot each other. Canadians have a strong British aversion to handguns. Canada is a colony
of a kingdom, not a republic. The U.S. is a melting pot, whereas Canada was quite British in
the 1970s until Pierre Trudeau created a fragmented multi-cultural society. It was a divideand-conquer tactic against Canadians, and created a multi-colonial society that brutally
solved the "Canadian identity crisis". American culture rules the world and it is not
controlled, but Canadian culture is seen to be basically American in other countries.
Otherwise it is mostly fabricated by government bureaucrats who go to ridiculous extremes to
make Canada different from the U.S. in small ways simply to make it different from the U.S.
Canadians and Americans have fundamentally different histories. Canada inherited from
Britain an evolutionary approach to government and rejected the American revolutionary
approach. For Canadians, jobs are the most important national issue, but Americans
emphasize international affairs. The number one objective for Canadians is building the
economy, whereas Americans stress promoting the family. Voters in Canada are motivated by
liking a candidate or party and disliking the opponent, but most Americans prefer a candidate
with a personality they support and don't really consider the opposition. Significantly more
Americans go to church, pray and read the Bible than Canadians. More than twice as many
Americans say religion influences their political thinking.
Canadians speak English, but Americans speak American. Spelling and pronunciation can be
different, but there's not much difference, especially for the northern American states.
Canada has two official languages: English and French. Canadians pronounce "ou"
differently than Americans and Americans pronounce our zed" as "zee". Canadians also use
"eh?" and slang Americans don't. But people in Maine use "eh" constantly and there is no
difference between Ontario accents and the northern American accents. Canadian English is
very crisp and clean, with almost a British intonation, but American English tends to be less
precise, with a lot of dropped "t"s and lazy consonants.
Americans are helpful and friendly, whereas studies show Toronto is the unfriendliest city in
North America and the unhappiest place in the country. In the U.S. Americans ask "How are
you?" all the time, but Canadians consider asking about someone's health to be intrusive.
Americans don't hesitate to say "Hello" or offer help, but Canadians leave others alone.
Europeans consider friendly and helpful Americans to be shallow. In the U.S. if you smile at
a stranger, they usually smile back, but in Europe they just stare back and think you're weird.
Exactly like they do in Toronto now.
Surely Americans are among the most generous people in the world. On an individual level it
stems from the free enterprise system in the U.S. Americans know that homeless people will
not be helped much by inadequate social welfare, so they give them money. They also know

that waitresses work for the minimum wage, so they tip them generously. The U.S. also gives
many billions of dollars in financial aid to countries around the world. It may be
humanitarianism, politics, or a way to create foreign markets for American companies.
Canadians are far less generous because their country is more socialist. They expect the
homeless to be helped entirely by government social welfare programmes and waitresses to
receive a salary sufficient to live on.
The similarities are many. Canada is much like a carbon copy of the U.S. Both countries
have the same values, the same land management system, the same money, similar laws and
practices, similar accents, the same food, the same houses, with the same clothing and much
else. Each country has a similar amount of regional diversity. The states in the United States
are not as united as most people think, and the same holds true for Canadian provinces.
During the time period when Rochdale College was active, Canadians were obsessed with
their "Canadian inferiority complex" and also the "Canadian identity crisis". Canadian
newspapers wrote about this virrually every day. What it meant was Canadians felt they were
actually inferior to the Americans and British, and they suddenly realized they had no unique
identity to call their own. Canadians ruminated about their inferiority and identity for about
ten years. They didn't seem to notice that their vast wasteland was underpopulated with
mostly uneducated hicks. How could they be so stupid? Perhaps worse than inferior, they
sucked! Canada was a gigantic colony of a tiny island kingdom inhabited by human sheep
wearing horse-blinders. The blinders came from their government and media masters who
didn't want them to see the obvious. Canada was and is a rotten shithole that is covered with
pure white snow. It looks great on the surface, but underneath is corruption, scandal,
exploitation, crime, and megatons of bullshit. Maybe the Americans in Rochdale noticed
how rotten Canada was and hated it for that reason. They must have noticed that Canadians
suck because it's one of their defining characteristics. That's why Canadians did not reject
England as did the Americans. Canadians suck.
At the same time there was a serious "brain drain" in Canada. That is, large numbers of
intelligent and educated Canadian professionals with technical skills and knowledge were
emigrating from Canada for better opportunities in other countries. Between 1960 and 1979
over 17,000 Canadian engineers and scientists emigrated to the U. S. "Brain drain" or
"human capital flight" was also a problem for Europe after WWII, when many scientists and
technologists relocated to North America. For Canada, an influx of tens of thousands of
educated and sophisticated young American draft dodgers was a partial solution to the two
problems of the Canadian "inferiority complex" as well as its "brain drain". The beauty of
this situation is Canada was perceived as humanitarian for stealing the cream of the crop of
Americans.
Probably the worst aspect of Rochdale being an American enclave was its total isolation from
Toronto and Canada. Most Americans were fugitives who didn't like or understand Canada,
and they considered Rochdale to be their sovereign autonomous "country", accountable only
to themselves. They did not believe Canadian laws applied in Rochdale, which led to much
criminality by the drug-crazed foreigners. In fact, the Security desk at the entrance had a
sign: "Rochdale Customs Immigration Security". Furthermore, the overwhelming majority
of Canadians in Rochdale were not from Toronto and their attitude about the city was the
same as the Americans. This complete isolation meant that the Federation of Metro Tenants'
Associations and other organizations could never help Rochdale when the inevitable closure
of the building began.

Most of the American draft dodgers were arrogant, largely because most Americans are
arrogant. Secondly, most were "ugly American" tourists, because most Americans who
"travel" away from their comfort zones become stereotypical ugly American" tourists.
That's one reason Americans are hated everywhere around the world. No nationality has a
worse reputation for arrogance and imperialism than Americans. In fact, they are proud of it,
although from their point of view they are simply the greatest country by far that ever
existed. However, the Americans in Rochdale didn't seem at all patriotic. I don't ever recall
seeing an American flag in the building and the U.S. was rarely a topic of discussion. Many
of the Americans, such as Jim Washington, were very anti-American.
Another characteristic of many Americans in Rochdale was an ignorance and contempt for
Canada. Most really didn't want to be in Canada, they did not understand what the country
was like beneath its American facade, and they made no attempt to learn anything about the
country. This is the main reason Rochdale College was completely separate and different
from Toronto. It is why there was a "Rochdale Customs Immigration Security" desk at the
entrance and why large-scale drug dealing was a growth industry. A sign in the lobby read:
"Note: You must clear through Customs before entering Rochdale." The place was
essentially anti-Canadian.
Very early in Rochdale's history a member of Govcon, Paul "Destructo" Evitts, a "fascist"
teenage "practicing anarchist" with a Grade 11 education removed the main front-door lock.
He also sabotaged and destroyed the very expensive buzz-in intercom system at the same
time to ensure the lock was not replaced. This created disastrous consequences such as the
speed-freak and crasher problems. By 1970 Rochdale was finished as a college and "ugly
American" King Bill became its GM and turned the building into a hippie drug store.
Because of the enormous crowds of drug customers and inevitable problems with the police,
Rochdale started its own security force. Basically Rochdale Security was working for the
drug dealers, or more accurately it owed its existence to the drug-dealing situation. They
were unlike any security officers anywhere. Their job was to screen visitors, especially drug
customers, and keep undesirables out. They knew which visitors were drug customers, and
allowed "cool" customers to visit "cool" dealers. Billy Littler said, "My role as I perceived it
was to throw out the hard drug dealers and the ones who were a little crazy those literally
open-door marijuana dealers."
Rochdale Security was originally headed by Ed Walsh, then Billy Littler until 1972. There
are photos of Rochdale Security guards at that time posing in black uniforms holding guns
and working with their attack-trained dogs, which they claimed, of course, were not attacktrained. All of this paramilitary crap was entirely American an American kid's fantasy
about macho fascist cowboy/biker assholes with guns. American security guards carry guns,
but Canadian security guards (with the exception of Brinks, etc.) are not allowed to. In other
words, the guns and macho crap was just their image, an American image. It suited an illicit
drug distribution centre, but was completely out of place in an educational learning
environment. But Rochdale was in reality the American enclave in Toronto and an illicit drug
distribution centre, so that explains the situation. The macho outlaw image was changed
around 1972 to a casual and friendly one, but nothing else changed about them or the drug
dealing. James Newell wrote in the Tuesdaily, "The dealers in this building have a sweet
lobby. Security protects them from the police, Rentals rents them stash rooms, Lionel
Douglas argues for them at Council meetings."

Why was there so much help and support for American draft dodgers? Why was there no
help and support for Canadian neighbours who needed a place to crash? Why help
foreigners and evict Canadians? In 1969 there was a "speed-freak" problem in Rochdale, and
it was primarily Americans who evicted these Canadians who were desperately in need of
help. For example, "ugly American" tourist King Bill was very proud of the fact that he
personally evicted many "speed-freak" Canadians.
In August 1970 Peter Turner, the American president of the college, evicted 150 American
crashers who arrived after the Strawberry Fields Rock Festival. Turners reason was the
Americans had thrown bottles and stones at police who conducted a drug raid on August 15.
If these Americans had been draft dodger tenants, not transients, they would have been
commended for their violence and not evicted.
In a 1970 Daily newsletter Friar Tuck wrote: "How To Be An Anti-American. I've been
watching with mixed feeling the migration of Americans in my home for several years, and
while I welcome the people themselves with an open heart I feel dismayed at the fact that
they not only bring themselves across the border, they also bring their preconceptions of life
with them. This is alright until they cross the border but this is Canada, not the States, and
we don't live the same way. The point I'm trying to make is: that not all our politicians are
rotten, not all our police are pigs (at least they weren't until May 9: they must have taken a
crash course in Chicago) and not everyone is trying to shaft you for a buck. This is Canada,
home of the free, not Pig Nation, so to all my brothers from across the border, when you get
here, try and see how things are not as you think they'll be and not as they were when you left
Pig Nation. Canada is a beautiful country and is not nearly as fucked up as people think so
give Canada and Peace a chance."
Mike Randell wrote a complaint in a 1972 newsletter about violent and destructive American
behavior in Rochdale: "I wish I knew what game these people are playing. There seems to
be a group of people who have nothing to lose, and are determined to lose it. I feel 90% of
the people here have something to lose, and nothing to gain by confrontation. If you believe,
we need you. If you don't believe in Rochdale, kindly stop fucking the rest of us up, and get
the fuck out of here. Go fight your guerrilla war in Amerika. This isn't the United Snakes.
We don't need nihilist philosophy. "
Those who fled the U.S. military draft faced imprisonment or forced military service if they
returned home. The U.S. continued to prosecute draft dodgers after the end of the Vietnam
War. In September 1974, President Gerald Ford offered an amnesty program for draft
dodgers who applied that required them to work in alternative service occupations for periods
of six to 24 months. Then in 1977, one day after his inauguration, President Jimmy Carter
fulfilled a campaign promise by offering pardons to anyone who had evaded the draft with no
action required. Some returned to the U.S. from Canada after the 1977 pardon, but about
half of them stayed on. Rochdalians who remained in Canada included Alan Reed, Jay
Boldizsar, Bob Allen, Peyton Brien, Mike Sandberg, Bob Naismith, and many others.

Rochdale Summer Festival

July 12 to 27, 1969
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_35_Rochdale-Summer-Festival.html

Judith Merril late 1968

The Rochdale Summer Festival from July 12 to 27, 1969 was organized by sci-fi writer
Judith Merril. It was titled an "Inner Space Oddysey" to celebrate Neil Armstrong's first step
on the moon as part of the Apollo 11 spaceflight. In January Merril had chaired a "Space
Workshop", a Rochdale group formed to decide who used which space in the building. The
group dissolved and Merril became focused on opening a Rochdale library. Originally she
planned a two-day event to celebrate the Grand Opening of the Rochdale College Library on
the second floor. Then it was expanded into a two-week Summer Festival. Merill wrote:
"The library opened spectacularly during the first Rochdale Summer Festival, which was held
specifically to coincide with the first landing on the moon, and which featured a group of
science fiction writers who had come from various places. And not just writers, but also Ed
Emshwiller who was an artist and filmmaker. We had a big event on the night of the moon
landing. Leading up to the landing we had a big seminar with four science fiction writers and
four astronomers from the University of Toronto discussing the landing." In a letter to poet
Tuli Kupferberg of the Fugs in New York, Merril confided that the Festival was "largely a
publicity and money-raising gimmick".
In March 1969 the Rochdale Governing Council approved a Library Committee. It operated
from a room on the second floor and was given $300 to purchase books and periodicals.
Then Judith Merril offered to loan thousands of books from her science fiction collection.

Others also loaned and donated books. The library was opened in July 1969 in a large room
located on the second floor on the South side in the West wing fairly close to the elevator
lobby in the space sometimes called the South Cafeteria.
The Grand Opening of the "Spaced-Out Library" was held on July 12, 1969. A poster stated:
"Reading Room and Circulation Shelves of more than 10,000 titles, specializing in student,
co-op, protest & underground publications, education, psychology, Eastern thought,
psychedelia, poetry, philosophy, and the largest publicly available collection of science
fiction, fantasy & associated literature in Canada (or probably, anywhere). A co-op library,
made up of donations and contributions of Rochdale members and friends, including prints,
posters, publications, by Rochdale artists, writers, etc. Victor Coleman, Tamio Wakayama,
Dennis Lee, Judy Merril, Barry Charles, and others."

The gala opening attracted a stream of people all day to see the books, drink Jim's sauterne
punch, and lounge on mattresses. At 5 p.m. everybody interested went to the second floor
lounge and decorated it with balloons, streamers and other ornaments. 70 people enjoyed a
communal feast of chili, cabbage rolls, pies, and lots of wine. There was also squaredancing. The gala ended back in the library with the fantasy story by French aristocrat
Antoine de Saint-Exupry, le Petit Prince.
The budget for the Festival was $1,727.50 and there was a very optimistic expectation that it
would generate $15,000 in income. In fact, the organizers expected to "fill the building at
relatively high rates". Everybody had to register for the event, but members of the college
did not have to pay to register. Nicky Morrison, Bill King, and Jean Sullivan did the
registration in Room #111, and also at a desk in the main lobby from 8 to 10 p.m. Bill King
and Jean Sullivan were the co-chairmen of the Festival and paid $35 per week.
Coach House Press printed two fairly large posters to advertise the Festival. They were
designed by Peter Turner. One was in red ink and titled, "Who's Who". It mentioned some of
the participants such as filmmaker Ed Emshwiller and sci-fi writers Fritz Leiber and Thomas
Disch. Kim Foikis was described as "the self-appointed Vancouver Town Fool, a donkey-

driver, flute player, happy disturbance creator, general joy-bringer, and therapist to the world.
His visit to Toronto will include participation in the Festival, and a command appearance in
the Police Court." The poster also included a "Rate Schedule". For one day the cost was
from $2.50 to $10 depending on the type of accommodation or lack thereof. Registration for
the entire 15 days ranged from $25 to $100. The registration included admission to all events
and (possibly) a place to sleep. A few events were open to the general public such as the live
music concerts, but "most of the Festival happenings will be for Rochdale Members and
Festival Registrants only".
The second poster was in blue ink and focused on Rochdale's Spaced-Out Library Grand
Opening. The poster title was, "Theatre of: Stage, Street and Studies and Science and
Sanity". Events were listed in a general way such as "Seminars" and "The Politics of
Education". Details of some events were also included, such as "Drugs and the Drug
Culture: A many-headed colloquium: Films, Panels, Multi-Media, Dialogue 2 p.m. July 18
till ? Addiction Research Foundation, Trailer, Digger House, University Researchers,
Rochdale's 'Aunty Flo's Parlour', and others."
For Sunday, July 13 there were exhibits and displays with books, magazines, art,
photography, and poetry readings in the lobby, library and second floor lounge. Science
fiction luminaries such as Fritz Leiber, Clifford Simak, Judith Merril, Samuel Delaney,
Thomas Disch, Carol Emshwiller, Theodore Cogswell and Terry Carr were joined by
astronomers from the McLaughlin Observatory for discussions in the second floor lounge and
library.

On Monday, July 14 there were film screenings of mostly short films by Ed Emshwiller
throughout the day. Edmund Alexander Emshwiller was an American visual artist famous for
his science fiction illustrations, experimental films, and documentaries. He created covers
and interior illustrations for dozens of science fiction paperbacks and magazines, won many

Hugo Awards, and had been inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. His footage of
Bob Dylan singing "Only a Pawn in Their Game" in his 1963 documentary, The Streets of
Greenwood, and in D. A. Pennebaker's 1967 documentary Don't Look Back. Ed was married
to award-winning sci-fi writer Carol Emshwiller with whom he had three children.
Ed Emshwiller's films were repeated on Tuesday, July 15 with other events in the second
floor lounge. Speakers and presenters were Ed Emshwiller, Australian artist Bob Jacks,
Bang, Susan Lest, and Dr. James V. McConnell who spoke about "Psychology and
Awareness". McConnell was an unconventional American biologist and animal psychologist
who also wrote science fiction, the best-known of which was Nor Dust Corrupt. He
published his paper "Memory transfer through cannibalism in planarians" in the Journal of
Neuropsychiatry concluding memory and experiences can be transferred by consuming
another animal. There was a "Man in Space" seminar featuring poet Dick Allen, authors Cliff
Simak and Samuel Delaney, cosmologist Bob Roeder, astronomer Bob Garrison, and systems
analyst Bob Bellis. Discussion ranged from conventional modes of space travel to
teleportation and dealt with the immediacy of a moon landing as well as the probability of
travel to other solar systems. The major topic of discussion was man's motivation for space
travel and the projected reaction to his discoveries provided the most debate.

The next day there was a rally for Vancouver Town Fool Kim Foikis on the front patio
beginning at 8 a.m. Joachim (Kim) Foikis was famous for receiving a $3,500 Canada
Council grant in 1968 to be Vancouver's Town Fool. Kim wore a jesters cap and bells, and
strolled around warning of impending nuclear destruction at anti-war demonstrations.
Vancouvers Town Fool gave rides in the downtown area to anyone who asked in his wooden
wagon, pulled by two donkeys named Peter and Pan. His court jester antics were so
successful that he was even profiled in the New York Times. Kim used the last $500 of his
grant to throw a Gala Party in Gastown for Skid Road residents. Although Kim was only a
guest visitor at the Festival, he did move into Rochdale in early 1974. I had educational
space in #602 to grow indoor vegetables. Kim became my partner and crashed in #602 until
all Edcon space was lost in early 1975. Our "Vegetable" project was a great success, and we
grew all types of edible plants. The last time I saw Kim Foikis was on the evening of
December 3, 1977 at the last 15th-Floor Commune Embassy Ball. I was working the lights
for the live blues band, and when I looked down, Kim was lying on his back on the floor
beside me laughing and moving his legs in the air like he was rapidly pedaling a bicycle.

On Wednesday, July 16 there was a busy schedule that included a film discussion by Patrick
Spence and Thomas France, a Psychology Symposium with Dr. McConnell and some others,
plus "Confucian Thought and Chinese Cooking" by Terry Walker in Room #1224. There was
a workshop in printing, graphics and photography hosted by Stan Bevington, Tom
Wakayama, Coach House staff, and also a Rochdale Photo Workshop. Kite-making was
taught by Robert Beng at 11 a.m. in the third floor lounge, then kites were flown "somewhere
up there" at 5:30 p.m from the roof terrace. Dr. McConnell gave his second lecture on
"Psychology of Awareness". Most events were in the second floor lounge, but the moon
launch was televised on a TV in the Rochdale Library. Apollo 11 was launched at the
Kennedy Space Center at 9:32 a.m. and entered orbit twelve minutes later. The crew traveled
240,000 miles from the Earth to the moon in 76 hours.
The schedule for July 17 included a seminar and workshop on filmmaking by Morley
Markson at 10:45 a.m. He is best known for his documentaries about the trial of sixties
radicals accused of conspiring to incite riots during the 1968 Democratic national convention
in Chicago. Breathing Together: Revolution of the Electric Family (1971) follows the trial as
it takes place, and Growing Up in America (1988) revisits the subjects of the first film,
including Allen Ginsberg, Jerry Rubin and Timothy Leary. Next the third session of the
"Psychology of Awareness" was given by "Dr. Jim" at 1 p.m., followed by communications
therapy for the Admiral Road community at 3:30 p.m., films at the nearby McLaughlin
Planetarium at the same time, music by Kim Foikis on the front patio at 8 p.m, and a preview
of Home Free a play by Langford Wilson at Theatre Passe Muraille at 11 p.m. Throughout

the day films were shown: 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Curious Habits of Man, and The
Cat and the Canary.

In the July 18 Daily, Bob Naismith wrote: "There are damned few of us who have not had
our heads changed by attending the various seminar and discussion groups, particularly those
by visiting psychologists. I shared an evening with Kim Foikis and a lot of other people last
night. Wow! It's corny, but correct. Wow. To the uninitiated it might have been cocaphany,
but to the rest of us, it was total, good, sound. Two more beats to the bar and I know that I
would have joined Dan on the piano, but what the hell, I figured I was laying down a good
beat, we were all laying down a great beat."

On Friday, July 18 there was a Filmmaking Seminar in the second floor lounge at 10:30
a.m. Then from 2 p.m. until 2 a.m. there was a seminar on "Drugs and the Drug Culture"
followed by lectures and a panel discussion on "Drugs and Biochemistry". Lawyer Clayton
Ruby spoke about "Drugs and the Law". Ruby was and still is a high-profile media sensation
specializing in constitutional and criminal law and civil rights. He always wins in court, and
it often makes front page news. From 7 to 8 p.m. the rocket in transit to the moon was shown
on TV in the library. The schedule for information on drugs was advertised as "of interest to
High School Teachers" and promoted Richard Needham's July 24 talk on his philosophy of
education. "How to Stay Human in a Man Made World" (July 22 to 24) and "The Politics of
Education" (July 25 to 27) were also aimed at high school teachers.

I was living in Rochdale College in July 1969 in Kafka #604 and had zero interest in
academic or scholarly lectures. In fact, I had a strong aversion to formal education and was
disappointed that Rochdale became much like the U of T for the duration of the Festival. The
building was mostly empty and there was little evidence of a "Rochdale Summer Festival".
There were some posters in the building and sometimes signs or flyers, a desk was in the
main lobby, plus there were some unusual looking people and apparatuses. But there were no
crowds of attendees, certainly nothing like the drug customer crowds that filled the main
elevator lobby the following year. Those interested presumably went to the library, lounges
and rooms where the lectures, seminars, films, workshops and presentations were held. But
the significance of the Festival has been blown out of proportion with the passing of time and
the reports of it written by people who were not there. Except for the music concerts on the
second floor terrace there was little evidence of a Rochdale Festival happening at the time.
There were many lectures and events but they were semi-private affairs and not visible like
the music concert.
On Saturday, July 19 Ed Apt's Sculpture Shop had a "weld up" competition on the front patio
around noon, and followed it with the "unhatching" of Brock Fricker's "Giant Toad"
sculpture. It was not art, just a commission for a garden ornament and it looked like one.
Then came a free concert of live music and dance performers on the second floor terrace. It
was titled "Varieties of Pop" that included "rock, folk, blues, jazz, and country" and began
around 1 p.m. Most acts used the "music shell" half-dome stage. It was a warm and sunny
perfect summer day. People were mainly on the terrace but many watched from their Ashram
or Kafka rooms. The music could certainly be heard well, and some U of T neighbours were
not appreciative.
There were too many folk singers, including Tom Jordan, Marie Harvey, Darlene Collinson,
Larry Chvertkin, and Jim Slavin. Gary Disch played solo piano and guitar, Ra'anan and Rae
played guitar and flute, and Jerry Howitt played sitar. A better sitar player named Bhaskar
Mujherjee also performed. He studied with Ravi Shankar and he and his younger brother
Dipankar had some fame. Howard S. Moscovitz played his original electronic music on a
Moog synthesizer. "Mosc" was influenced by John Cage and his compositions were

interesting, carefully constructed, textured, and easy to listen to.

Elizabeth Swerdlows dance group performed on the terrace around 3 p.m. Elizabeth
Swerdlow (ne Szathmary) was born in NYC where she performed with the Metropolitan
Opera Ballet. A ravishing beauty with long black hair and beautiful blue eyes, Elizabeth was
a powerful, mysterious presence and a charismatic performer. In Europe she danced with
companies such as Les Ballets Classique de Monte Carlo and Les Ballets Contemporains de
Paris. She married Canadian Robert Swerdlow and in 1969 he built the Global Village
Theatre in Toronto where the couple created a new wave of provocative, political, and issueoriented theatre. Her theatrical dancing also included music, text, mime, clown, ritual and
mask. She founded the experimental Inner Stage Theatre and was a writer, director, dancer,
choreographer, and actor. It was an honour for Rochdale to have Elizabeth Swerdlow dance
modern ballet on the second floor terrace. She and her group were soon followed by the
Bianca Rogge Dance Theatre and they were also excellent. Bianca Rogge was an Eastern
Europe refugee and her European-influenced modern dance style had a major influence on
dance in Toronto as she became increasingly famous.

However, both Elizabeth Swerdlow and Bianca Rogge were blown away by 17-year old
Rochdalian Don Holyoak who gracefully sailed around the terrace, constantly leaping
effortlessly into the air in an impressive display of his freestyle dancing talent. As usual he
wore nothing but bell-bottom blue jeans pulled down to show the crack of his ass. Don had
star quality as a youthful male beauty with a muscular physique and a shock of long curly
blond hair. His dancing was like a homo-erotic satyr possessed by something magical. But
he was untrained and wild, not in Fred Astaire's league, and most of his appeal was that he
was a good-looking teeny-bopper with a vulgar and indecent "costume". If gorgeous
Elizabeth Swerdlow had displayed her tits while dancing, she would have annihilated Don
Holyoak. He danced too much in Rochdale but was never known as "the dancer" because
many resented his gay homo-erotic schtick that condescendingly treated neighbours like an
audience. If he had been in his twenties with average looks and proper clothing, his amateur
dancing would have been laughed at. I always considered his dancing to be pathological, an
obscene manifestation of a childish screaming queen. Ironically, Don's sexy dancing was one
of the most memorable highlights of the music concert. My next door neighbour John in
#602 started the band "Cognopious" that he bragged would be "bigger than the Beatles". Don

Holyoak was the dancer in Cognopious, and some of the musicians from the band performed
at the Festival concert.
In the evening the rock band Slum Goddess performed their witty, eccentric, and sarcastic
music. They were similar to the Mothers of Invention and the Fugs. In fact, "Slum Goddess"
is a Fugs song by Ken Weaver and they sang it at the Festival:
"Sherry ran away, come to live in the slums
Her parents hired detectives, they were posing as bums
Taking acid in a crash pad again
Slum Goddess from the Lower East Side
Slum Goddess won't you please be my bride
She organized a commune on Avenue A
She swears the revolution's just a pamphlet away
One Big Union with peacock feather dues
Dope sex revolution pretty paisley hues
Slum Goddess from the Lower East Side
Slum Goddess won't you please be my bride
It was the Summer of Love, 1967
She said, come lie with me and we'll check into heaven
There were 16 mattresses, a candle-wax floor
And posters from the love-in on her day-glow door"
However, Slum Goddess was blown away by one song from the unadvertised Rochdale rock
group "Teenage Dance Band". They were a quartet of young musicians who played in the
second floor lounge and elsewhere in the building. The band did a killer rock version of
Jimmy Reed's blues song "Going to New York". It was one of the best live songs I have ever
heard in my life. They were not ambitious, their repertoire was quite limited, and none of
their other tunes were nearly as good. But "Going to New York" should have been recorded
because their exciting rendition was first-rate.
Well after midnight the last act was the Downchild Blues Band, a well-known Toronto
electric blues and boogie band. Their name came from a Sonny Boy Williamson song. It
was co-founded and fronted by the two brothers Donnie ("Mr. Downchild") Walsh on guitar
and "harp" and singer Richard ("Hock") Walsh. Jim Milne played bass with Cash Wall on
drums. Downchild put on a great enthusiastic show with Hock's gruff vocals complimented
by Donnie's inspired guitar playing. The band had just formed that year and their songs
included: Just A Little Bit", "You Dont Have To Go", "Rock It", Thats All Right",
"Messin With The Kid", Dont You Bother My Baby", "Change My Way Of Livin", and
"Next Time You See Me". Donnie said, "At the time Downchild Blues Band was born,
Rochdale was pretty much walking distance from where we lived and where we played at
Grossman's Tavern on Spadina Avenue. It was a unique place, the likes of which you'll
probably never see again." In 1971 the Downchild Blues Band recorded their first LP album
at Sound Horn recording studio located in Rochdale's sub-basement. Titled "Bootleg", it was
recorded in three nights. Over 35 songs were recorded, including the ones performed at the
Rochdale Summer Festival.

Unfortunately, because neighbours such as the University of Toronto frat houses complained
about the loud amplified music, the police came and stopped that Downchild Blues Band
performance. It was Saturday night and there should not have been complaints. To some
extent it was a great way to end a long music concert. But it also meant that loud live music
could not be performed on Rochdale's "music shell" stage on the second floor terrace in the
future.
On Sunday, July 20 at noon there was a "Vietnam Peace Vigil" at Toronto City Hall. At 1
p.m. Howard S. Moscovitz had a seminar about the Moog synthesizer in #1302. An hour
later there was a two hour radio tape-recording of "The Star Pit" in the library followed by a
discussion. Dome building workshops began on the second floor terrace. At 6:30 p.m.
another tape "You and Me and the Continuum" was played in the library and discussed. A
TV in the Rochdale Library was on all day to allow Rochdalians to watch all aspects of the
historic moon landing. I watched it on a small TV in the 6th-floor Ashram lounge along with
Don Holyoak. The Lunar Module "Eagle" landed on the moon in the Sea of Tranquility at
4:17 p.m. "Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed," Armstrong reported. At
6:30 p.m. another tape "You and Me and the Continuum" was played in the library and
discussed. Then at 9 p.m. there was a discussion of "Witchcraft, then and now".

At 10:56 p.m. Neil Armstrong became the first man to step on the moon. He climbed down
the ladder and proclaimed, "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."
Starting at 11:15 p.m. Buzz Aldrin joined Armstrong to explore the moon for about two-anda-half hours outside the spacecraft, collecting samples and taking photographs. They stayed a
total of 21 hours and 36 minutes on the moon. The astronauts left behind scientific
instruments, an American flag and other mementos, including a stainless steel plaque with an
inscription that read: "Here Men From Planet Earth First Set Foot Upon the Moon July 1969
A.D. We Came in Peace For All Mankind." At 9:30 p.m. some people walked over to the U
of T's Department of Astronomy to look at the moon trip through a telescope. Finally at 11
p.m. there was a seminar and workshop titled "Myth-making for Moderns". It was a
discussion on "the symbols, symbologies, myths and myth-materials of surrealism, the 'new
science fiction', the 'underground press', and other efforts at meaningful contemporary
communication." At 1:30 a.m. the TV was moved to the second floor lounge to allow
registrants to watch more of the moon landing and first walk on the moon. Judy Merril
wrote, "It was a big event on the night of the moon landing, and it occurred fairly late so as to
happen simultaneously with the actual event."
The next day on July 21 the TV was still on in the second floor lounge and around 1:30 p.m.
people could watch the astronauts blast off from the moon at 1:54 p.m. to return to Earth. At
2:30 p.m. in the library was the second part of "Myth Making for Moderns" by sci-fi writers
Samuel R. "Chip" Delaney and Judy Merril. At 5 p.m. many people watched the Apollo 11
"rendezvous in space" on TV, with the lunar module docking with the Command Module
"Columbia" at 5:34 p.m. It was piloted by astronaut Michael Collins. Back on Earth at 8

p.m. there was a light show in Rochdale. Then at 9:30 p.m. many people went to the U of T's
Astronomy Department for a look at the moon through a telescope. Bill King had a
"Pornography Seminar" in the second floor lounge at 10:30 p.m. At midnight there was a
raffle hosted by Kim Foikis, Jean Sullivan, Bill King, and Judy Merril. After this there was a
"Psychodrama" session somewhere in the building presented by Kim Foikis.

On Tuesday, July 22 the 13th-floor's Utopian Research Institute hosted a "Cosmology" lecture
by Ted Folkman. Howard S. Moscovitz had his second seminar about the Moog synthesizer
in the third floor lounge. At 2 p.m. there was a group discussion of "Information Retrieval:
The Real Revolution in Education" in the second floor lounge. After this some registrants
walked over to the McLaughlin Planetarium to watch "Strange Stars". Dr. David Crombie
gave a lecture on "Politics in Toronto" at 4 p.m. in the second floor lounge. He was a
professor of political science, an urban reformer, Mayor of Toronto from 1972 to 1978, and a
federal MP from 1978 to 1988 serving in several cabinet positions. Following Crombie
was a lecture on "The Theology of Play" by Philip McKenna from the Center for the Study of
Institutions and Theology. Dr. McKenna was from Australia, and studied at the Australian
National University, the Dominican House of Studies, and at the U of T received his Ph.D. in
1968 with his thesis "The Logic of Religious Language". He has worked as a priest, as a
lecturer in philosophy and interdisciplinary studies, and as a psychotherapist.

Bill King gave another "Pornography" seminar at 10:30 p.m. He was a serious unpretentious
intellectual, not the type you would expect to be interested in sex, but he loved talking about
it. Once he told me about a Rochdale man who could fuck for hours without coming, and
Bill thought that was a great talent to please the ladies. The TV was available at 9 p.m. to
watch the astronauts returning from the moon. At midnight there was another raffle and Kim
Foikis hosted another "Psychodrama" session. Films were shown in the second floor lounge
all evening, between the lectures, seminars, and TV broadcasts.
The Festival continued on Wednesday, July 23 at 10:30 a.m. with the Utopian Research
Institute's second session. Shortly after noon there was an "O.C.E Protest Rally" on the
second floor patio. At 1 p.m. Judy Merril played a recording of her interview with Dr. James
V. McConnell in the library. McConnell had given a talk on "Behavioral Modification" on
July 15 in the second floor lounge. Terry Walker gave another talk on "Confucian Thought

and Chinese Cooking" in #1224. At 2:30 p.m. Ra'aan took 25 people from the main lobby to
Toronto City Hall to tour the Data Centre. Then at 3:30 p.m. Judy Merril and Reshar Gool
discussed "James Bond: Hero" in the second floor lounge. At 5 p.m. Dr. I. H. Menoa talked
about the "Vedanta Society" in the third floor lounge. This was followed at 7 p.m. by a taped
BBC program "New Science Fiction" played in the library. At the same time Richard Kerr
used a computer program for a group discussion of problem solutions in the second floor
lounge. Next at 8 p.m. Calvin C. (Kelly) Gotlieb led a discussion on "The Right to be an
Individual: The Computer as Big Brother" in the second floor lounge. Dr. Gotlieb was a
pioneer in computer manufacturing and education, founder of the computer centre at the U of
T in 1948. In 1950 he created the first university course on computing in Canada and in 1951
offered the first graduate course.

On Thursday, July 24 Ted Folkman had his third "Cosmology" session in the 13th-floor
Ashram at 10:30 a.m. At noon the two-hour "Star Pit" tape was replayed in the library. "How
to Stay Human in a Man Made World" was explained by "John" in the second floor lounge.
At 2 p.m. Robert Cohen from York University lectured on "Urbanization in South Africa" in
the second floor lounge. Jane Jacobs spoke about "Urban Poverty" at 3:30 p.m. Jacobs was
was an American journalist, author, activist, and expert on urban studies who fought to keep
developers from destroying her neighborhood in Greenwich Village. In 1968 she was
unjustly arrested at a meeting in NYC for inciting a riot and criminal mischief, so she moved
to Toronto to continue her good work, frequently asking whether we are building cities for
people or for cars. She was central to activism canceling governments plan to divide Toronto

by a Spadina Expressway in the West city much as the Don Valley Expressway in the East.
After Jacobs spoke, there was a slide show by Eli Kassner at 7 p.m. Richard Needham talked
about "Education" at 8 p.m. Then finally Ed Apt, Director of the Rochdale Sculpture Shop,
gave the last lecture of the Festival. Ed lectured on the "Artist and Man in Modern Society"
at 9:30 p.m. in the second floor lounge.

Also on July 24, the astronauts returned safely to Earth, landing at 12:51 p.m in the Pacific
Ocean about 900 miles from Hawaii and 15 miles from their recovery ship, the USS Hornet.
At 12:44 p.m the modules parachutes were deployed and seven minutes later struck the
water. The module landed upside down but was righted within 10 minutes by flotation bags
triggered by the astronauts. "Everything's okay. Our checklist is complete. Awaiting
swimmers," was Neil Armstrong's last official transmission from the Columbia.
The Apollo program was designed to land humans on the moon and bring them safely back to
Earth. Six of the missions (Apollos 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, and 17) achieved this goal. Twelve
people have walked on the moon but since 1972 no person has been either on the moon or in
lunar orbit. This magnificent accomplishment for humanity happened over 40 years ago.
Have we progressed? In 2013 humanity does not have the capacity to land a man on the
moon and return him safely to Earth. The missions were so incredible that there are
conspiracy theories surrounding the moon landings and this inspired the 1977 film Capricorn
One and is alluded to in R.E.M.'s 1992 catchy song "Man on the Moon":
"If you believed they put a man on the moon, man on the moon.
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve, then nothing is cool."
Studies show 20% of Americans believe that man never went to the moon that the lunar
landing was a government hoax. One of the biggest theories is that film director Stanley
Kubrick was hired to stage the entire event. However, in 2012 NASA released an up-to-date
high resolution photo of the lunar landing site that even shows remnants of Armstrong and
Aldrin's first steps on the moon.
In the July 30, 1969 Daily, Ed Apt wrote: "Summer Festival? That's all gone, but I would
like to see a fall and winter and a spring festival. And I want to hire Judy Merill to start
doing them NOW." The Rochdale Summer Festival was an ambitious success, but if the
Festival had been free there obviously would have been more people attending. Nonetheless,
the Rochdale Summer Festival was one of Rochdale College's greatest achievements.

The Daily did not publish much on the Festival because in the Wednesday, July 30 issue was
this entry: "Special issue of Image Nation now being put together on what happened, who
did it, who dug it, and if not why not. A lot of stuff on hand already about the first week's
main events (which doesn't mean you can't add your reactions) but we need stuff short
paragraphs would be beautiful, but longer is OK on seminars, workshops and second-week
events. Or just your gripes or greats about the conduct of the whole thing. Catch is, we need
it now, NOW like Wednesday night? In the PUB please (#205) marked for Judy Merril."

Image Nation was a small magazine that the PUB published irregularly. Unlike the Daily it
was more literary and most entries were not about Rochdale. It was a mistake to put the
Festival information in Image Nation because even 40 years later most Rochdalians never
even heard of it. The only issues I've seen are mine, from late 1968 and early 1969. Derek
Heinzerling and George Cervinka gave them to me. I don't recall seeing any in the Rochdale
collection at the U of T's Fisher library and I won't be going back there until 2014. Until an
early August 1969 issue of Image Nation is found, this chapter on the Rochdale Summer
Festival will remain incomplete.

June 1969

Daily July 2, 1969 clip

Daily July 7, 1969 clip

Daily July 7, 1969 clip

Daily July 14, 1979 clip

Daily July 18, 1969 clip by Bob Naismith

Daily July 30, 1969 clip

Daily July 30, 1969 clip

July 18, 1969

Ashram Lounge 1969 Probably Rochdale Summer Festival

Gospel Concert - The Soul of Christmas

Saturday, December 20, 1969
Convocation Hall, University of Toronto

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_49_Gospel-Concert.html

Dirty Dan McCue presented "The Soul of Christmas" on December 20, 1969 at Convocation
Hall, located just a few blocks from Rochdale College. It featured two gospel choirs and the
cast of the stage musical Hair. The Lucylle Lemon Gospel Choir of Detroit and the Var-Son
Community Choir of Buffalo performed at the concert. A third choir was scheduled to
perform but could not make it due to the winter blizzard. With a single piano and two choirs
the production went on before an almost packed house, over 1000 people. It was organized
by Dan McCue and was a success. Bob Naismith helped Dan and said, "It was the greatest
night of gospel I have ever experienced in my entire life. Dan was the person who made the
whole damn thing happen." All singers with both performing choirs arrived by bus and
stayed overnight in Rochdale College.

Convocation Hall, University of Toronto

Dirty Dan McCue presents The Soul of Christmas 1969

Daily clip December 4, 1969

Daily clip December 10, 1969

Daily December 16, 1969

Daily clips January 6, 1970

Rochdale College minutes clip January 15, 1970

King James I of Rochdale

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_43_King-James-I.html

King James I of Rochdale Coronation on April 4, 1969

April 2, 1969 Rochdale College Governing Council Meeting transcript:

Jim Garrard: "Proposal: set Rochdale up as a monarchy, everyone is then subject to question.
It must be realized we would not be recognized by the outside, it will take time to become
established. A king cannot be appointed, he must emerge. If we have a king we may still
have a Council. A king cannot be hassled; therefore, it will solve Rochdale's problems, this
way it would be possible to get things done."
Paul Evitts: "If we support the king it should succeed. This would separate Rochdale from
the outside."
Perry: "Then Rochdale could only work if it became a nation? This would be a fine piece of
theatre."
Nelson Adams: "It would give Rochdale a chance to become financially independent."
Jim Garrard: "Sanctions would be set up. Council could meet me soon as possible whenever

needed to deal with problems as they arise. Example, Jack will be put in the stocks for not
raising enough money. We can make money from this. We can get foreign aid. Try
universities particularly Harvard. Film rights to fiasco. The king must have a court. We
need a bomb. Rochdale would now be a game, a good game. We must have beheadings in
the beginning but only figurative ones, but as the outside world was more receptive to the
idea perhaps we could have a real beheading."
Paul Evitts: "Proposed that Jim be the absolute king."
Richard Kerr: "Paul must be Queen."
Paul Evitts: "Only at Jim's request. What are they doing? Ministers would be paid."
Molly Strayman: "Problems are not being solved now because people don't know their
responsibilities."
Jim Garrard: "All positions should be decentralized for greater effectiveness with a central
focal point, namely the king. It was decided by consensus that a monarchy would be
permitted. A money system should be established. Parliament. But first must come the
Magna Carta. Of course, no country is complete without a Bill of Rights: 'All freaks are
created equal.' It is a fallacy to think it would not work because a good king would never
institute anything the people did not want. Audiences would be granted at 11 each morning.
Order of priority would exist a hierarchy with a Minister of State would have priority over
the Minister of Plumbing."
Nelson Adams: "Trying to regain reality, David wants Council to fire Bernie. Brochures
have not been given to any universities in Canada. Five or six people have been hired to go to
the universities. The people have been selected and they are ready to leave. David found out
and thinks it should go through Council and because he acted out of his jurisdiction Bernie
should be fired. I don't think that will happen."
Richard Kerr: "We are only now discovering how employees are actually performing in their
jobs and the errors which have been made in the description of their jobs and it is now up to
Council to re-evaluate these jobs and decide on new descriptions. If we had a king he would
define to administrators and advise the conditions and concerns of their job and if they do not
comply to these conditions they would be recalled. Administrators and advisors would then
be forced to solve problems."
(to be continued)
(Formal invitations were prepared for a Speech from the Throne by King James I at the
meeting. Ministers were named for Finance, Mythology, Health and Welfare, and Security.
A Court Jester was appointed as well as Captain of the King's Guard, Maintenance Head, and
Rental Agent/Spiritual Advisor.)

Coronation Speech of King James I of Rochdale on April 4, 1969 after the

unveiling of the "Unknown Student" sculpture:
"There are a great many people in this building who have something to say and a lot of ideas.

Without meaning to be repressive or to suppress these processes, I feel we have to set up a

climate where people can come together and discuss those projects and problems which
concern them...You can't try to be a great king because something tragic happens to you and
you can't be a weak king or something terrible will happen to you. But if one is a mediocre
king, one can rule for a long time that's been proven historically. Now another thing to be
taken into consideration..."
The king was interrupted by a heckler who shouted, "Who the fuck are you?"
King James replied, "You can get away with that kind of thing today, but I wouldn't try it
tomorrow. We are going to put punishment stocks in the main lobby and people will be sent
to them starting with Bernie Bomers."
The crowd responded with, "Yeah Yeah Yeah...Hah Hah Hah!"
King James continued, "They might think it's a joke but after 10 or 15 minutes they will say,
'Okay now, let me out of here.' Three days they'll change their minds and maybe you get
what's coming to you. I only mention this to explain why the powerful have done this to
you..."
Another heckler shouted, "Jim Garrard sucks!"
The king replied, "Take his name. Now we're going to set up a throne room, and I hope by
early next year each of you will have had occasion to visit that room. Of course, there will be
other opportunities to deal with my ministers and me..."
Jim Garrard: "Council accepted the monarchy as a good way to govern. They became,
voluntarily, dukes and earls or whatever. They weren't really puppets. We had breakfast
meetings and Wu would cater them. His idea was we'll do this up properly; we'll ship up the
very best of food and good wines. It never came to that. Instead of Council meetings we'd
have get-togethers. It was legitimized because a monarchy can operate that way behind
closed doors. You have a select group who were probably elected anyway and if necessary,
you'd use an edict, but a clever monarch doesn't make into an edict something that's
indefensible, that's going to take the power away from him."

"The funniest part I think was when we decided to have a constitutional, parliamentary
monarchy, because I always thought monarchies were kind of fun. So we stage this little
number, but it was taken seriously. We actually operated as a monarchy for a while, and I
was the king. I'm still the King of Rochdale, but I don't know how many would take that
seriously now. What it entailed was to convince governing council that we established royal
protocols and had a monarchy, the powers of the monarchy would derive from the duly
elected council. In that way they could be taken back again."

On May 19, 1969 Paul Evitts moved that Judy Merril be made Queen of Rochdale at a
GovCon meeting. The motion was passed, but Judy declined the position. She said, "The
Council can't make me fucking Queen." Merril also pointed out that she had already been

made Queen by Ed Apt on her return from England. Ed was asked why nobody was aware
that Judy was Queen, and he replied that he had announced it to all his friends but "the people
of Rochdale never seemed to realize that they were living under the domination of Queen
Judy."

Govcon Minutes June 15, 1971

Govcon Minutes June 22, 1971

Fridaily July 15, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 15, 1971 clip

Jim Garrard was born in Northern Ontario in 1939. He was founding Artistic Director of
Theatre Passe Muraille and a President of Rochdale College. He taught theatre at Simon
Fraser University and the University of Toronto and has written extensively for film and
television. His play Cold Comfort was released as a feature film film by Northstar
Entertainment. He was also the Artistic Director of Salon Theatre Productions and Director of
the Kingston Summer Festival.
Not everybody in Rochdale College approved of the college having a king. To many, Jim

represented the elitism in the building. American residents especially hated the notion of a
monarchy rather than a democracy. The students of the Rochdale Sculpture Shop hated
having the unveiling of their "Unknown Student" ceremony upstaged by Jim Garrard's
coronation ceremony which followed it. Garrard did absolutely nothing, whereas Ed Apt and
his students created a great sculpture for the college.
Jim Garrard also represented the extreme greed of the elitists. His Theatre Passe Muraille
constantly received large sums of money from Govcon (where Garrard was conveniently the
King). Thousands of dollars were given to Theatre Passe Muraille by Rochdale when the
college did not even have a library. It couldn't afford one. Theatre Passe Muraille had
absolutely nothing to do with Rochdale College. It was located outside the building and
never had any connection whatsoever to Rochdale except for big handouts of money. The
theatre could not have survived without Rochdale's money. In other words, Govcon was
corrupt and its elitist members took Rochdale's money for themselves. This is the opinion of
Ed Apt, who never received money from Rochdale. In 1972 the elitist Govcon motherfuckers
stopped mortgage payments and kept all the rental money for themselves. The King is dead.
Death to all Kings.

Rochdale Peace Centre FestivalMarch 1, 1970

http://rochdalefestivalallenginsberg.blogspot.com

Electric Circus, Queen Street East

Convocation Hall, University of Toronto

Bruce Cockburn

Mother Tuckers Yellow Duck

Luke and the Apostles

Luke Gibson at Peace Concert

Rabbi Abraham Feinberg with John Lennon at Montreal "Bed In"

Lighthouse
On Sunday, March 1, 1970 Michael Donaghy of the 14th-Floor Commune's Rochdale Peace
Centre organized a Festival. The main event was a rock music concert at the University of
Toronto's Convocation Hall. Dirty Dan McCue and others organized the concert. Dan had
organized the "Soul of Christmas" concert on December 20, 1969 with two black American
gospel choirs at Convocation Hall, a grand domed rotunda a few blocks from Rochdale. The
gospel concert was reasonably well attended, but the rock concert was sold out, with over
1,500 in attendance to enjoy the top bands in Canada. It was intended to be one of several
concerts to lead up to John Lennon's Strawberry Fields Pop Festival at Mosport Park planned
for the summer. John and Yoko were in Montreal at the time and it was partly an effort to get

them to come to Toronto. Mike Donaghy wrote in the Tuesdaily newsletter, "Please can we
celebrate peace together this Sunday at Convocation Hall? Have faith in peace as the way,
give it all that you possess--your heart, your soul, your respect, your time, pray from the
depths of your mind that it can succeed."
The Festival began at 4 p.m. at the Electric Circus at 99 Queen Street East, with some local
rock bands. I did not attend because I didn't like the place. Nobody did. It was plastic and
phony, and bands like the Jefferson Airplane complained about the terrible acoustics in its
Arena. The place was a cheap copy of New Yorks Electric Circus in the East Village. It was
a teenage nightclub on three levels with a Graffiti Room, Meditation Room, Restaurant, large
Arena, The Great Expectations (a large room made entirely of foam rubber), and the
Kaleidoscope Room made of mirrors. Jugglers and trapeze artists performed between musical
sets, and a light show with multiple projectors flashed images and footage from home
movies. But by this time the Electric Circus was becoming run down. Toronto was in the
middle of a snow storm so travel was difficult, which also had an impact on the music concert
at Convocation Hall.
At 8 p.m. the Festival continued at Convocation Hall and lasted until 2 a.m. I attended with
my American draft dodger roommate Ken; we sat in one of the balconies near the stage.
CHUM-FM DJ Reiner Schwarz was the MC and he underplayed his role and tried to help the
concert run smoothly. However, because of the delays between acts, Schwarz disappeared for
long periods. Most of the Rochdalians didn't mind because they were high on drugs, which
had become the custom at live festival concerts. At the Monterey Pop Festival in 1967 most
of the audience was high on "Monterey Purple" Owsley acid made specifically for that
festival. Orange Sunshine LSD was the most common drug at the Woodstock Festival in
1969. The Brotherhood of Eternal Love distributed an estimated 10 million doses of Sunshine
that summer, and it was brand-endorsed by Timothy Leary. At the Rochdale Music Concert
most Rochdalians were high on yellow tabs of mescaline that was exceptionally good.
There was a light show throughout most of the Rochdale concert projecting colourful designs
on the walls, ceiling and audience. It began with six Hare Krishna devotees from the Rama
Krishna Temple leading a chant for 20 minutes. Lights were on and fragrant incense filled the
hall. Three bare-chested young men and several women danced up and down the aisles, and a
chain of hand-holding people also snake-danced through the hall. Long threads were passed
through the audience, held delicately by hundreds of hands. Then came the rock bands, with
the inevitable delays between acts. Mike Donaghy was kept busy running in six directions at
once. Some people later complained about the loudness of the music. But it depended on the
location of the speakers for the audience. Where I sat in a balcony the quality and loudness of
the music was perfect.
The Hall lights went out and folk singer/songwriter Bruce Cockburn appeared alone on stage
with his acoustic guitar. He was an appropriate warm up act and sang some of his gentle
lovely songs to an appreciative audience. The songs were from his first album and included
"Going To The Country", "Thoughts On A Rainy Afternoon", "Together Alone", "Musical
Friends", "Change Your Mind" and "Man Of A Thousand Faces". Probably "Bicycle Trip"
was Cockburns musical best. His lyrics featured rural and marine imagery, Biblical
metaphors, and the belief that heaven is close despite hardships.
Luke and the Apostles were stuck somewhere in the snow and an act named Some People
from Rochdale performed in total darkness, followed by a long performance by Plugging in

the Amps. They were good musicians, and included three guitarists from the 14th-floor along
with a singer. But the sound-mix was off, with the bass overpowering the lead instruments
and musical structure, making them seem somewhat amateurish. A naked baby kept running
up to them on stage, which was distracting.
Mother Tuckers Yellow Duck appeared next. They were a psychedelic rock band from
British Columbia with John Patrick Caldwell as frontman lead singer and Roger Law on
guitar. The quintet was formed in 1967 by Law and drummer Hugh Lockhead. They wrote
their own songs and were very influenced by the San Francisco sound, with fluid guitars,
mind-melting distorted guitar solos, and vocal harmonies. Some of their tunes were bluesrock, jazz-rock, and a few numbers had a country flavour, which was the latest musical trend.
Their country-rocker "One Glass for Wine" included enthusiastic participation with the
audience. The band put on an impressive show and their dynamic 1969 hit song "One Ring
Jane" was very well-received. They also played the melancholy "Funny Feeling", "I", "Little
Pony", "Starting a New Day", "Somebody Think", and others. Mother Tuckers Yellow Duck
manager Cliff R. Livingstone helped form the band. He lived in Rochdale in 1969 and knew
Judy Merril, Mike Donaghy, and others quite well.
I was very impressed by hard rock band Luke and the Apostles, whom he had seen open for
Johnny Winter at Massey Hall on February 15. Mike McKenna, surely Canada's greatest
blues guitarist, sat on a chair and played extraordinary slide guitar while Luke Gibson sang
his songs and danced around the stage. They performed about ten songs, including a few
blues standards such as "Good Morning Little School Girl" and "You Cant Judge a Book By
the Cover". But most were their own songs such as "You Make Me High", one of the best
Canadian recordings of that era, and "Not Far Off", which sounded much like Led Zeppelin
with some tasty guitar interplay between McKenna and second lead guitarist Danny McBride.
The basic problem with Luke and the Apostles was their old-fashioned name. It sounded like
a left-over from the early 1960's, not hip. In fact, their name was greeted with laughter when
they were announced at the Strawberry Fields Pop Festival on August 8, 1970 at Mosport
Park. Their manager Bernie Finklestein wanted to change their name to "Apostles Blues
Band" and said, "They could have really happened."
Rabbi Abraham Feinberg appeared at 11:30 p.m. in a black suit under a huge 20-foot
projected blue peace symbol. He gave an inspiring eloquent speech about the importance of
peace, freedom, love, and the problems of war and drugs for youth. The 70-year old rabbi had
a reputation as a peace activist. A few years earlier he had visited North Vietnam as part of an
interfaith delegation and befriended Ho Chi Minh, which earned him the nickname Flaming
Red Rabbi. He carried a cane given to him by Ho Chi Minh. Feinberg's activism started with
the rise of Nazism in the early 1930s, when he gave up a successful singing career with his
own NYC radio show to fight fascism. Rabbi Feinberg was also present at John Lennon's
Montreal "Bed In" and can be heard on John & Yokos Give Peace a Chance hit single.
When he first met Lennon he said, "We have to find a way to give peace a chance", thus
inspiring Lennon to write the song. "Why don't you record it with me?" Lennon asked him.
"Maybe we can bill ourselves as John Lennon and the Flaming Red Rabbi." Word of the
session got out, and the hotel room became filled with many celebrities joining in on the
song. Feinberg told the audience, "No one who can make music would kill, would destroy the
world." About long hair he said, "In ancient times the shorn head was the sign of a slave. The
free man did not cut his hair." Regarding drugs he asked, "I'm not for legalizing marijuana,
but what would you do with it? Any boy, any girl who uses pop music or any kind of drugs as
a retreat, as an escape from reality, is a deserter from the world." He ended his moving speech

by urging everybody to find a life long partner and "go out and explore the universe
together".
The cast of the hit musical stageplay Hair made a surprise appearance, and their entrance was
quite dramatic. Dancers nimbly and gracefully crawled over the seated audience to reach the
stage. It was like magic to watch, and when they climbed up on stage, they burst into a
rousing version of "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In". They performed a medley of the songs
from their show, and ended with John Lennon's "Give Peace a Chance". The song turned into
a 15-minute chant with the audience. They went crazy, and loved it partly because some of
the cast lived in Rochdale. "Hair" had just opened in Toronto's Royal Alexandra Theatre on
January 11, and the musical explored the themes of the hippie movement of the 1960's.
Lighthouse appeared as headliners at 12:30 a.m., half an hour after the concert was scheduled
to end. The MC introduced them as "Toronto and Canada's ambassadors of peace". They
were a jazz-rock orchestra composed of 13 members with cellos, violas, an array of horns and
a full percussion section. They did not sound like Blood, Sweat & Tears or Chicago. Their
sound was unique, at its best impressively big, lush and orchestral. But I found it
cacophonous because the instruments often didn't blend well together, making them sound
disjointed and out of tune. Also lead singer Vic "Pinky" Dauvin, although competent, didn't
suit the band. They played tunes from their first two albums written by band leader and
drummer Skip Prokop such as "Could You Be Concerned", "If There Ever Was the Time",
and "Life Can be So Simple". Lighthouse then began several rock and jazz jams and solos to
"educate a new audience" according to Prokop. There were also cover versions of the Band's
"Chest Fever", a great rendition of the Byrds' "Eight Miles High", and the Beatles' "A Day in
the Life". They ended with a medley of more Beatles songs close to 2 a.m. I had heard their
performances several times at Toronto City Hall Square and elsewhere, and thought they
were a deja vu drag. However, the crowd loved them.
After the Convocation Hall concert there was a "come down" reception party at the Global
Village Theatre at 17 St. Nicholas Street for about 250 people who couldn't get enough of the
Rochdale Peace Centre Festival. Some local rock bands entertained them until dawn. It is
estimated that 2,000 people attended the Festival.
The Convocation Hall music concert was a great success artistically, critically, and
financially--until the Rochdale Peace Centre received the bill from the Toronto Police
Department. Although the event was entirely peaceful and required no security, the police
considered it necessary to have dozens of police to provide security, so in the end the concert
actually lost money.
In March 1969 the Peace Centre sponsored a poorly attended benefit concert at the St.
Lawrence Centre that included the Hare Krishnas chanting, plus performances by Leather,
Mother Tucker's Yellow Duck, and the Perth County Conspiracy. The printed promotion for
this concert stated: "All we are saying is give peace a chance, War is over if you want it." The
concert lost $1,000 and the Peace Centre was in debt for $10,000.

Allen Ginsberg Poetry Reading at Rochdale College on September 12, 1970

Allen Ginsberg at Rochdale College

Allen Ginsberg at Rochdale College

The "Music Shell" Dome stage on the second floor terrace used by Allen Ginsberg
On the night of September 12, 1970 hippie icon and LSD guru Dr. Timothy Leary escaped
from a U.S. federal prison. That same night famous Beat poet Allen Ginsberg gave an
impromptu poetry reading at Rochdale College. He was at a coffee shop across the street and
some Rochdalians invited him over to tour the building. In the front lobby two notices were
posted near the elevators. One was news about "Brother Timothy Leary" escaping from
prison, and the other was a notice that Allen Ginsberg was in the building and would read his
poetry on the second floor terrace at 8 p.m.
The poetry reading began on schedule and Ginsberg appeared on the music shell dome stage
at the East end of the terrace. There was a fairly large reverent audience of about 300.
Ginsberg sat on a bench to recite and sometimes sing his poetry while accompanying himself
on a small harmonium. The instrument provided just a simple background drone, not a true
musical accompaniment. Sometimes he chanted, since he was a practicing Buddhist. Because
it was a "reading" or public recital, much of the time Ginsberg was a little hunched-over
looking at a book, not facing the audience. His seriousness was sprinkled with humor and his
poems came alive as he performed them.
Ginsberg's earliest poetry was written in formal rhyme and meter, but he switched to mostly
free verse, a form of poetry that rejects consistent metric patterns and rhyme. He developed
an unconventional style with an irregular meter and structure without punctuation, riffing on
rhythm and meter in one long line. The structure was meant to be heard rather than read, and
reading his poetry aloud gave the audience a better understanding of its conversational
nature. It was like jazz, with a poem skipping from subject to subject with little relation to
each other. Information was densely maximized in a condensed form and there were few
articles ("a" and "the") in his lines. The poetry seemed spontaneous and conversational,
confessional, emotional, honest, and spiritual in a stream of consciousness. It was a
monologue that was sometimes confusing and seemingly incoherent.
Ginsbergs subject matter was occasionally controversial and included sexuality, drug use,

aberrant behavior, libertarian beliefs, and worldly experiences. Some of the poetry was
passionate about the betrayal of democracy, the importance of sex, and the spiritual search for
the truth of our existence. A few poems were very influenced by India, and in fact Ginsberg
presented himself on stage as a guru. There was a tall young man, probably a gay groupie,
who stood beside him to turn the pages of his poetry books.
It was an interesting performance, but I never thought much of Ginsberg's poetry. His
celebrity status was the main asset of this unattractive, overweight, over-rated, balding writer.
What really annoyed me was Ginsberg's patronizing arrogance. At one point he lectured the
Rochdalians about "getting it together" like a bitchy guru. One of the public toilets he
attempted to use was broken, and he interpreted this as a major problem for Rochdale.
Perhaps "plumber" is not in a poet's vocabulary. Or maybe he was comparing Rochdale to a
broken toilet. Ginsberg was staying at the nearby expensive Park Plaza Hotel, and probably
in his artsy world of the rich and famous plumbing problems are rare. Despite his impeccable
reputation with the counterculture, I regarded him as basically a phony.
Unlike the evening concert on the terrace at the 1969 Rochdale Summer Festival, U of T frat
house neighbours did not complain to the police about the noise made by the legendary
literary superstar. They were as astonished and delighted as everybody in Rochdale to hear
the world's most famous poet read his work. A tape recording of Ginsberg's Rochdale poetry
reading is owned by Steve Grant from Rochdale's 14th Floor Commune. However, since
magnetic tape has a shelf life of 25 years, it is questionable whether we will ever hear it.
Ginsberg talked about his poetry in an interview: "I've never actually sat down and made a
technical analysis of the rhythms that I write. They're probably more near choriambic Greek
meters, dithyrambic meters. ... The difference is between someone sitting down to write a
poem in a definite preconceived metrical pattern and filling in that pattern, and someone
working with his physiological movements and arriving at a pattern, but arriving at it
organically rather than synthetically. ... At the time, writing "Howl" for instance like I
assumed when writing it that it was something that could not be published because I wouldn't
want my daddy to see what was in there. About my sex life, being fucked in the ass. Imagine
your father reading a thing like that, was what I thought. ... Even the supposedly avant-garde
poets write, you know, in a very toned-down manner. ... You have many writers who have
preconceived ideas about what literature is supposed to be, and their ideas seem to exclude
that which makes them most charming in private conversation. ... Analytically, ex post facto,
it all begins with fucking around and intuition and without any idea of what you're doing, I
think."
Years later in an interview, Ginsberg expressed mixed feelings about Rochdale College,
especially "the general sense of both confusion and attentiveness" of the Rochdalians. He
said: "It was kind of bewildering, because it was modernistic and yet everybody was trying to
live in a primitive way. Some of the rooms were quite messy. It seemed to be organized, but I
couldn't figure out the organization mostly some sort of anarchist, communal thing. There
was some indecision about what kind of education was going on there, but the people were
quite familiar with my work. They were very much up on that."
Ginsberg understood the building quite well for a brief visit, especially his astute observation
that the Rochdalians were living in a modern high-rise building but their ideal was an
uncivilized pastoral farm in the country. But his viewpoint was very bourgeois, and his belief
that Rochdalians were "quite familiar" with his poetry was completely wrong. He was a very

famous counterculture celebrity and icon. Period. Virtually none of the Rochdalians were
familiar with his poetry, or anyone's poetry except for Bob Dylan, Jim Morrison, and other
rock stars. In fact, even the very next day I could not remember any of Ginsberg's poetry,
only his bitchy complaining about a broken toilet. What I dislike about poetry is that it is not
direct communication; it is trying to put in words that which cannot be put in words. As Jim
Morrison said, "Listen, real poetry doesn't say anything; it just ticks off the possibilities.
Opens all doors. You can walk through any one that suits you."

Rochfestival
May to September 1971
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_44_Rochfestival.html

Home Free April 2, 1971 clip

Home Free April 2, 1971 clip

All clips from Home Free April 2, 1971

Tuesdaily May 3, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 15, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 22, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 2, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 9, 1971 clip

Fridaily July 15, 1971 clips

Tuesdaily July 20, 1971 clips

Tuesdaily July 27, 1971 clip

Summer Solstice Fair

June 21 to 24, 1973

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_41_Summer-Solstice-Fair.html

Cindy Lei was chief organizer of the Summer Solstice Fair from June 21 to 24,

1973 on the front patio of the Rochdale College building so "noise would
reverberate north and west onto buildings where few people live." The Fair
included dance, theater, and Tai-Chi, and the story of Rochdale dramatized.
There was also lots of live rock music, which caused hundreds of neighbours
to complain to City Hall about the noise.
Eventually I will add more text information about this event. However, I was
living in India at the time and could not attend. If you attended, and can
remember the musical groups, their type of music, perhaps some songs,
please contact me at lonewolfsullivan@yahoo.com. We can correspond or
speak on the phone about the Summer Solstice Fair so I can write something
worthwhile that does the event justice.
Don't be shy. If you attended the Summer Solstice Fair, write to me and tell
me everything you can remember. Don't worry about spelling, grammar,
punctuation or anything. I just need information.

Tuesdaily February 23, 1973 clip


Tuesdaily April 6, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 13, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 23, 1973

Tuesdaily May 25, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily June 15, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily June 22, 1973 clip

Daily June 29, 1973 clips

Tuesdaily July 20, 1973 clip

The PUB printing office at Rochdale College

http://pubprintingrochdalecollege.blogspot.com/2011/11/pub-printing-office-atrochdale-college.html

Frank McGarret, Mike Randell, & Don Romanoli

The Rochdale College PUB was set up in January 1969 for printing internal publications and
was initially located in Room #313 of the third-floor Ashram. PUB then re-located to Room
#219, then to Room #205 in an office on the second floor in the East wing designated for
administrative purposes. One of the first to become involved with the PUB was Judith Merril.
She said: "My role at Rochdale was supposed to be resource person in publishing and
writing. And there were two institutional ways in which I started things moving in regard to
that. One was establishing a space; we used two rooms on the second floor called the
"pub"--"pub" for "publishing"--which contained typewriters and mimeograph equipment and
various pieces of low-tech things to do with getting something on paper that was in your
head, and which anyone in the building was welcome to use, including the resources of
myself and others."
Basically the PUB in #205 was a Gnostic unit with no separate rooms or walls. It was a
spacious room with various tables, shelves, filing cabinets, equipment, and supplies. The very
large, black offset printing press was almost in the middle of the room and was intimidatingly
complex to look at. It worked very well and nobody touched it but the printer. There was a
large "Printing" sign in the window as an advertisement for pedestrians on Bloor Street.
The PUB published posters, flyers, brochures, small books, and so on. However, its main
purpose was to create and publish Rochdale newsletters. The first Rochdale College
newsletter began as the Bulletin in September 1967 before the building was open. Over the
years these newsletters had a variety of names including: the Daily, the Daily Planet, the
Bulletin, Infra-Rochdale, MaySay, the Naked Grape, the Hourly Madness, the Ghetto News,
the Fridaily, Da Daily, the Da Da Daily, and Toad's Breath. Eventually Tuesdaily became the

standardized name, although the newsletter wasn't necessarily published on Tuesday. The
format was usually several letter or legal size papers printed on both sides and folded like a
small magazine in bulletin-board style. Sometimes they were stapled, and for about a year
around 1969 the Daily was on sheets of very large paper with a professional style layout.
"The New Daily Format" was described: "This twice-the-size kick is rather good from a
visual point, but expensive on a limited budget. So we can only do it if we save up one
Daily. And as copy seems to be coming in at a rate that doesn't really justify a daily a day, it
seems a good idea to publish for the time being every other day."
There was usually no fixed schedule for publishing newsletters, and the staff and contributors
were constantly changing. Over the years many Rochdalians worked on newsletters
including: Judy Merril, Victor Coleman, Mike Randell, Nickie Ashley, Dan Dickie, Pam
Berton, Johnny Potter, Jerry Rooney, Mike Sandberg, Mark Kennedy, Lyla Smith, Cam
Kcotnil, Stuart Roche, Margaret Way, Frank McGarret, Cindy Lei, Nina Dionne, Dorothy
Robertson, Dale Grant, Bob Naismith, Julian Dubuque, Don Romanoli, Zelda Glutz, N. Sert,
Marzovsky, Ernie Fusco, True Light Beaver #18, Andy, Brunet, Ruth Messacar, Kathy
Lawrence, Harris, Kathy Stymeist, Helen Gooderman, Susan Buck, Margot Cross, Bernard
Davis, Don Tylke, Ding-a-ling, Camel B. Shank, Babs Trainor, Nik Ash, Doc, Bai-Ben-En,
Maggie T., Jacob, Thatch Bui, Aleen Davis, Bob McKelvie, Strider, D.M. Price, Cathay,
Heart 88, Black Elbows Baby, Flash Oates, Zappo, S. Maddox, Sunshine Pederson, Bambi,
Rod Lambert, Horrors Growly, Auline, Harold, Sally Doherty, Stupid Eyelean, Honey
Nadine, Ma Fletcher, David Lawrence, Candy Kane, Peyton Brien, John Sullivan, Cathy
Johnson, Julian DuBusque, Walter Dmytrenko, Angelo, Ed Cohn, Nigel MacDonald, Randy
Tikkala, Nemo Nemesis, Larry Taylor, Charlotte von Bezold, Cheyenne, The Dragon Lady,
and many others. Even more contributed letters, writing, announcements and queries.
The number of contributors was well over 1,000, and more than 500 newsletters were
ultimately published. Content included news, information, articles, Edcon and Govcon
reports, letters, announcements, advertisements, artwork, cartoons, and photographs. First the
submissions were typed up on a large electric typewriter. Sometimes it broke down and Mike
Randell repaired it. He remarked that when he finished there were usually some small parts
left over, but the typewriter worked perfectly.
Next the layout of the newsletter was done, pasting the entries onto paper using rubber
cement. Light-sensitive chemicals and photographic techniques were used to transfer the
layout to printing plates. Then the separate pages were printed on an offset printing press. The
inked page was transferred (or "offset") from the plate to a rubber blanket, then to the
printing surface. Over the years many newsletter pages were printed twice: once with text,
and secondly with art work or photographs that almost always made the text impossible to
read. It seems the printers thought it looked artsy, but they must have noticed the text could
not be read, so I suspect it was sometimes done deliberately as a form of censorship or a
display of disapproval for the content.
When the newsletters were finished they were then collated and folded, or occasionally
stapled together. In the beginning Dailies were available in many areas of the building, then
they were usually distributed immediately to each door in the building by volunteers. I
delivered Tuesdailies countless times. It was a monotonous chore, and there's nothing to
remember. But on the evening of December 12, 1974 I recall distributing them with Bob
Naismith and Cathy Johnson. Right after the Rochdale College Corporate Meeting in the
second floor lounge, Dave and I went to the PUB to put out a Tuesdaily on a Thursday night.

Dave and I quickly wrote a report of the meeting and it was fun to write. I took a jab at Dirty
Dan, Dave made fun of Jane Barnett, and we both criticized the noisy verbosity of everybody.
There was other material for the issue to work on, then Dave printed everything, including a
large purple photograph over the corporate meeting article. It covered 90% of the text making
it very difficult to read. The issue was not the typical format--it was stapled and not folded.
Bob, Cathy and I distributed the Tuesdailies and I remember going by an Ashram room where
Skye was listening to Blue Cheer on his stereo. Skye was probably the only authentic hippie
in the entire building.
Some printing was connected to Coach House Press, located in the laneway behind Rochdale,
especially in the beginning when the Daily was printed at Coach House Press. During the last
two years David Lawrence was the printer, and he also printed the Rochdale College
diplomas at Coach House Press. Resident silk screeners also did some work for the PUB.
Peter Turner went over $2000 in debt to set up a silkscreen shop, and his total income from
the enterprise was $6.
Things I had printed in the PUB included invitations for the 15th-Floor Commune's annual
Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball, forms for the Rochdale Tribunal (including Nullification
Certificates) and art labels for wooden boxes of matches. In July 1974 I organized an art
project for Rochdalians with Edcon's blessing. The project was funded by profits from my
"Rochdale Let It Be" buttons. A few dozen people submitted their art and designs for the
match boxes, and David Lawrence printed them using many colours on adhesive paper.
Yellow was the predominant colour. I bought 4000 East European boxes of matches with a
"Pipe" design at Kensington Market, and stuck the Rochdale labels on them. One of my
favorites was by Johnny Potter that referred to Rochdale as a "Government of Canada
Project" and included a quote from a U of T student that Rochdalians were assholes who
threw beer bottles out the windows. Coco Cromwell's favorite was done by me. It was titled
"Beaver Matches" and had two drawings, one of a beaver and one of a pussy. They were all
great, especially the ones by Charlotte von Bezold, and they sold out very quickly.
The Rochdale newsletter often encouraged submissions: "You need only stop by for a minute
and write anything you want to be published--or present it in any form. We can print
anything. If you have access to a typewriter, type out any copy in a 3 inch column on any
kind of white paper--illustrate it if you like--and it will be printed exactly as is." Another
newsletter bitched about phone calls demanding changes to submissions: "Who do you think
runs the Daily? This is the sort of shit that pisses us off. Can't the guy come to the Daily
office in the third floor Ashram and type it himself? You want it--put it in yourself." One
entry explained the bulletin board-like format with typographical errors: "The reason for the
Daily's inconsistency and fragmentation has been but a reflection of the uncertainty pervading
Rochdale. We are not on a campaign to establish certainty. That must come through us, from
you."
Rochdale newsletters were somewhat like underground newspapers, but for a targeted
readership in the building. Otherwise the ethos was exactly the same: a counterculture
periodical that was non-commercial, radical, informal, obscene, controversial, and promoted
recreational drugs, peace, sex, and subversion. It had contempt for the dishonest and stagnant
establishment press that published outright lies, failed to report much important news, lacked
objectivity, and had the audacious goal of actually creating events out of thin air. There was
some bullshit in Rochdale newsletters, but readers knew that it was essentially the truth. It
was an organic form of community news, not a plastic product comprised mostly of

advertisements with some biased articles that supported the establishment. In January 1974
the PUB's collection of Dailies was moved to the college library. When the building closed
Johnny Potter donated the Rochdale College newsletter collection to the University of
Toronto. Over the years others have added to the collection.

Daily November 27, 1968 newsletter clip

Daily December 1968 newsletter clip

Daily Planet December 23, 1968 clip

Daily Planet January 6, 1969 clip

January 29, 1969 Daily clip

February 4, 1969 Daily clip

Daily February 7, 1969 clips

Daily February 10, 1969 clips

da da Daily February 19, 1969 clip

Daily March 4, 1969 clip

Daily March 16, 1969 clip

Infrarochdale March 19, 1969 clip

Daily November 27, 1969 clip

Daily December 10, 1969 clips

February 1, 1904 [sic] Daily paste up clip

Tuesdaily clip

The Hourly Madness clip

Daily February 6, 1970 clip

Daily February 10, 1970 clip

Fridaily February 20, 1970 clip

Tuesdaily February 24, 1970 clip

Daily February 27, 1970

Daily March 27, 1970 clip

Daily April 7, 1970 clip

April 10, 1970 clip

Daily April 13, 1971 clip

Daily April 17, 1970 clip

September 10, 1970 Daily front page

Tuesdaily March 20, 1971 clip

Daily clip of April 20, 1971

June 8, 1971 Tuesdaily clip

Fridaily July 27, 1971 clip

Daily August 24, 1971 clip

Daily April 11, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily July 30, 1972 clip

Rochdale November 1972 Catalog clip

Tuesdaily February 16, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily June 15, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily September 21, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily January 13, 1974 clip

Rochdale Rogues

Howard Adelman

Registrar Rick Waern at Rochdale construction site

Nickie Ashley

Stan Bevington 1968

Stan Bevington

Jay Boldizsar

Bernie Bomers Building Manager 1969

Jack Dimond College Registrar 1969

Mike Donaghy

Lionel Douglas

Donald Hugh Fergusson (Fergie)

Craps

Fuzzy (Chris Ringler)

Don Holyoak 1969

Bill King

Dennis Lee

Alex MacDonald

Bob Naismith Pierre Berton

Kevin O'Leary or Brian Lumley

Mike Randell

Peter Turner Lionel Douglas

John Bradford, Jack Jones, Wilfrid Pelletier, Paul Evitts

Walter Dmytrenko Cindy Lei Syd Stern Jay Boldizsar Rosie (Robert W.
Rowbotham III)

Rhythm Rockets Second floor Lounge

Rochdale College basement dance 1968

Outside Nature's Way Health Food Store (front patio)

Rochdalians celebrate on front patio after police raid 1970

The Greenies invade Rochdale on September 14, 1972

Riot

July 30, 1974

Mike Randell Jay Boldizsar (protester Emma Kauffman)

Henry Polard, Bill King, Syd Stern, Animal Dick Barnes

Wolf Sullivan, Chuck Cassity, Cindy Lei, Cathy Johnson, Ceildh

Xaviera Hollander

Jean Genet

Norman Mailer

Alice Cooper

Steve Miller

Free

Donnie Walsh Downchild Blues Band

1970 article about diplomas and Rochdollars

345 Bloor Street West circa 1909, the location of Rochdale College. The house was
owned by Dr. A. R. Gordon and the architect was F. S. Baker.

Bloor Street West location of Rochdale College in the mid 1960's. The white building
is a pharmacy.

The Building
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_39_The-Building.html

Rochdale College Floor Plan. The room and apartment numbers are accurate

Daily October 16, 1970

Rochdale under construction

Music Shell stage on East end of second floor terrace

Dome building on second Floor Terrace

Looking down at 2nd Floor Terrace November 4, 1968

April 22, 1969

Rochdale at night

First Floor Lobby entrance

Store in the Main Lobby

First Floor elevator lobby

First Floor Lobby elevators Winter 1968-69

Rochdale College Desk

Rochdale College bedroom East wing

Don Bell & Elizabeth Smaller
December 1968

Rochdale College bedroom East wing

Margaret Reid with guitar visits Elizabeth Stewart in her room, December 5,
1968.

Rochdale Office October 1968

A Rochdale office on November 4, 1968

Painting second floor Lounge (North Cafeteria)

Second floor Lounge 1968

Second floor Cafeteria 1968

Second floor Lounge Cafeteria October 1968

Second floor Lounge 1969

Second floor fast food cafeteria 1972

Sooper Store in second floor elevator lobby across from the second floor Lounge

Second floor kitchen 1973

Second floor Lounge after mass evictions

Crashers in the hallway November 1968

Disturbance outside Rochdale College August 16, 1970

from A Rochdale Handbook 1968

Daily October 1968 clip

Daily November 11, 1968 clip

Daily November 28, 1968 clip

Daily December 9, 1968 clip

Daily Planet January 1, 1969 clip

Daily Planet January 9, 1969 clip

Daily Planet January 16, 1969 clip

Daily Planet January 20, 1969 clip

Daily January 29, 1969 clip

Daily February 10, 1969 clip

Daily February 13, 1969 clip

Infrarochdale February 16, 1969 clip

Mondaily February 17, 1969 clip

Da Da Daily February 20, 1969 clip

Satdaily February 22, 1969 clip

Infrarochdale February 23, 1969 clip

Daily February 26, 1969 clip

Thursdaily February 27, 1969 clip

Rochdale Supplement March 1, 1969 clip

Daily March 2, 1969 clip

Mondaily March 3, 1969 clip

Daily March 5, 1969 clip

Daily March 6, 1969 clip

Daily May 1, 1969 clip

Maysay May 4, 1969 clip

Maysay May 7, 1969 clip

Daily May 16, 1969 clip

Daily May 23, 1969 clip

Daily May 27, 1969 clip

Daily June 9, 1969 clip

Daily June 9, 1969 clip

Daily July 2, 1969 clip

Daily July 5, 1969 clip

Daily July 28, 1969 clip

Daily July 28, 1969

September 1969

Daily November 22, 1969 clip

Daily April 7, 1970 clip

Daily April 10, 1970 clip

Daily April 21, 1970 clip

Rochdale College minutes July 24, 1970

Daily April 21, 1970

Rochdale College minutes August 7, 1970

Daily September 29, 1970 clip

Daily November 10, 1970 clip

Tuesdaily January 5, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily March 2, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily March 23, 1971 clip

Daily April 2, 1971 clip

Home Free April 18, 1971 clip

Home Free May 14, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily May 18, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 8, 1971 clip

Fridaily June 11, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily June 22, 1971 clip

Fridaily June 25, 1971

Fridaily July 9, 1971 clips

Thursdaily August 19, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily August 30, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily November 9, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily December 7, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily December 21, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily March 22, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily July 25, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily January 30, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 23, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 25, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily October 26, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily November 15, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily November 19, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily November 30, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily December 21, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily January 19, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily January 29, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily February 19, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily April 24, 1974 clip

Rochdale in quotes

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_37_Quotes.html

Dennis Lee: "Rochdale College would provide an idealized Oxbridge education immersion
in the subject, testing conclusions against the mind of a tutor, re-immersion in the subject by
which that initial liberation could be repeated and extended as he pushed into new disciplines
or deeper into one which became his vocation. What Rochdale is all about is having a system
flexible enough to fit people, all kinds of people, rather than trying to make people fit a
structured system inherited from somewhere and someone else. It is a place where people
must create their own environment, make their own decisions, learn to face themselves
because the basic truth everyone must face is about himself and learn to live and complete,
rounded people. This new student doesn't really believe anything before 1945 because the
combination of his own affluence and the total shambles that history has produced. He works
intuitively, in fits and starts without much method. He moves sideways not backwards and
forwards like the rest of us. Sometimes he explodes and takes up 31 vantage points
simultaneously. Often he is the most brilliant or most interesting mind about."
Judith Merril: "There were a number of things about the group ethos that were different from
the outside world. One of them led to the biggest problem Rochdale had that year, which was
you couldn't refuse a crasher who came looking for a place. You couldn't turn away someone
who needed a place to stay in 1968-69. Of course, it was the year of the great youth migration
across Canada. It was long hair time you could tell who your friends were by the length of
their hair. Every long-haired kid who hit Toronto at the outskirts would wait until he saw
another long-haired person, and he'd say, 'Where can I crash?' And that person would say
'Rochdale'. ... There was confusion in everyone's mind about whether Rochdale was an
intentional community, or whether it was a school. I believe it was an effective school, but
once you had reached the point where you knew what you wanted to do, and had started to
train yourself in it, you had to get out of Rochdale, because you could no longer function
there."
Ed Apt: "The only thing I have in common with you, hippies, is our common enemy: the
squares. I am grossly unimpressed by you and them but all in all I marginally prefer you.
Hence our alliance. Straightism is constipation, Hippie-ism is diarrhea."
Derek Heinzerling: "Wolf, you were living at crotchdale when my wife and I were there. She
was a bookkeeper in the office. I found the place to be a dirty hole, for the most part."
Alan Reed: "Derek runs hot and cold."
Diane Heinzerling: "A motion was made in Council that an honorarium of $450 be made to
Lionel Douglas. No one seconded that motion. Why? In the past you have shown your
willingness to give money away for impractical causes. Lionel has worked his ass off for you
for nary a penny. A grand show of appreciation you have made, my friends. I ask you, where
is your sense of priorities? Upon what standards do you base your decisions? I don't
understand where are you at?"
Jim Garrard:"I always thought one of the key early things that happened at Rochdale was in
1968 when Paul Evitts wanted to take the lock off the front door. That meant there wasn't
anyway of saying, 'There's enough people in here now, so let's close the doors,' or 'You can't
come in unless you have a key.' Anyone could come in and there were thousands and

thousands of people who wanted to pay a visit to Rochdale."

Stan Bevington: "Rochdale should install turnstiles in the lobby and have people pay for the
amount of time they spend in the building, like parking meters. ... Dennis Lee saved us from
slum clearance at Dundas and Bathurst and invited us to Rochdale. And we got to this coach
house with Denniss help. When we got here we were able to expand a little bit. We bought a
bigger offset press, and got in our bigger copy camera, and chugged along in a similar way
for a number of years until we suddenly bought a whole set of binding equipment all at
once. ... We had some playfulness. It was a time when a choice between doing drugs or
working included both, to me and to people who worked here. It was appalling for many,
many people to think you could do both."
Victor Coleman: "I lived at Rochdale for two years and there was a lot of stuff happening.
Coach House got a lot of printing jobs although not as many as expected. We did the annual
Rochdale calendar. That was always a psychedelic experience. So it was a lot of weirdness. A
lot of people, a lot of straight people would come and observe, and the question always was,
Well, how do you get anything done? But as you can see, if you go back to the early
production, there was a fair amount being done. ... I can remember being at a meeting with
Dennis and Judy Merrill where they had put their heads together and proposed a Paris
Review-style periodical. And I just laughed out loud. I said, Come on, look at your
constituency, what are you talking about?"
Peter Turner: "For every bottle that's thrown out of the building, for every bust that's
successful, dope is found...we're one step closer to foreclosure."
James Newell: "The Governing Council was the ultimate body. It had a board of 12
directors; like any co-op corporation, the board was elected by the membership. The Council
was responsible for giving the building a direction, some kind of leadership. It was like
being a politician in a small town. Then you had the administration, which handled rentals,
accounting, maintenance, security. That was the structure, which in some ways was a front of
interfacing with the outside world. They represented Rochdale to the community outside
world. A lot of it was irrelevant to the general population."
Mike Donaghy: "Rochdale is essentially family and should be kept informal whenever
possible. Spontaneous conversation should be desired and the chairman should interject only
to assist and not to stunt. The inflexibility of the closed-mouthed hands-up speaking policy
was shown when those who adhere to it decided to physically remove those who do not."
Johnny Potter: "I get tired of people griping about things because they are not perfect.
Criticism for the sake of improving things should continue, but let us stop driving away
people on the pretext of error when it is our own petty games that we are interested in."
Jay Boldizsar: "Rent has been coming in at a greater rate than I anticipated for the holiday
season. Nevertheless, there is a small matter of $7,000 in uncollected rent tends to make me
unhappy; because the Goon Squad has to go door to door and see the recalcitrants about that
embarrassing subject: MONEY."
Tony Smart: "The building has undoubtedly contributed towards the apparent social failure of
Rochdale. Many of the problems including the present financial crisis could be attributed to
this underlying social failure. Until this problem is corrected Rochdale can only progress

from one crisis to the next."

Rick Waern: "The kind of cohesion used in the article (Nobody is doing anything at Rochdale
except these semi-straight high school students) is both ineffectual (do you expect thousands
of people to rush down and do things because you tell them how bad they are?) and not very
accurate (almost everyone at Rochdale spends time trying to make himself more
comfortable)."
B. Ross Ashley: "To refuse to accept rents through the Association is illegal and may
constitute grounds for your removal as receiver just as may your obstinate insistence on your
right to squander funds on a fantastically expensive and unproductive outside security
service."
Mark Kennedy: "What we have in Rochdale is a collection of pseudo-Bohemians who play
at art, because they are like the rest of the pseudo-radicals of today, they toy with education,
revolution, and (this is the big one) mumble the appropriate peace slogans at each other and
the outside world, without any real conception of what peace and co-operation are all about.
Why does doing one's own thing have to entail living in a pig-pen? ... Incidentally, could Ed
Walsh please explain to us why it is an evictable offence to press the emergency stop button
in the elevators? This is the only method I know of that saves literally hundreds of
Rochdalians from having to make unnecessary trips to the basement."
Shelley Shaw: "All is not well in Rochdale for some time now. The people are very tired of
all not being well. It makes me very sad. It makes me angry, even. Like...cool it, you crosseyed cross makers."
Andrew Deane (Turtle): "This is to notify Council that a lawsuit is presently being drawn up
against Rochdale College. I request payment at the rate of $1.35/hr. for a 40 hr. week to cover
the past eight weeks which I have had to be idle due to a broken jaw. I feel this is only fair
because I was never dismissed, fired or notified of my termination from the position of
nightwatchman at Rochdale."
Bruce Bell: "That a knock on your door is a friend, and not some blue meanie making
undesirable use of his opportunity to be in the building. The minor hassle you go through at
the door also may be the price you pay for keeping rip-offs and the number of destructive
crashers at a minimum."
Cindy Lei: "Most of us love the old place. All we have to do is learn how to love it, in our
own way (myself included). ... I apologize to the people on the 10th-floor for not consulting
them before starting a collage on their walls, the newly painted 10th-floor lobby, for the
manner in which I protested, but not for protesting."
Bob Allen: "Where are the people who expressed an interest in providing an urban alternative
to 341 Bloor Street West? Where are Jay Boldizsar and Karen Johnson? Have you changed
your minds?"
Mike Randell: "I still can't believe the things that have gone down. If someone had asked me
yesterday exactly how we could go about destroying our own community, and how to make
sure that Clarkson would take as hard a line as possible, (I don't know why people want to do
that. Maybe they want to be martyrs), I would have been unable to conceive of the things that

have happened. ... Since the fiasco and general fuck up politely called the General Meeting, it
has become obvious that there is a lack of communication among the membership and with
Council."
Henry Pollard: "I don't want to see Rochdale become another Tartu [co-op student housing
near Rochdale, on the opposite side of Bloor Street West]. I want to do my all to keep
Rochdale a dynamic experiment in lifestyles and education."
Edward Walsh: "The Great Pumpkin will come and change and cherish thoughts and ideas.
But beware of the Anti-Christ Pumpkin for he will not appreciate the tone of the vegetables.
It is written."
Wendy Wulff: "I'm tired of seeing bad news about people having bad things happen all the
time. Some things lose so much meaning when they are behind locked doors with patrols in
the halls."
Pete Harris: "This morning the fire alarm bell woke me up. The two others in our apartment
were cackling like mad witches and I must admit that I ignored the alarm too. I suggest that
we all declare a moratorium on using the alarm system for any other than its real purpose."
Ralph Belbin: "I am vitally concerned that misinformation and/or nonsense should not be
printed in the Daily or in any other way be distributed within Rochdale.
Clayton C. Ruby: "I want to write just a short note to state to you that it is my opinion that
whenever doors are broken by R.C.M.P. officers or Metropolitan Toronto Police officers in
executing search warrants or in searching Rochdale College, that civil suits should be laid by
the College for the amount of the damage."
Andy Raney: "Idiots are throwing garbage onto the second-floor terrace from the Kafkas and
Ashrams. This is dangerous, stupid and irresponsible. The terrace is not going to be cleaned
by the maintenance crew; you'll have to do it."
Nickie Ashley: "Clarkson is already in here, paying a bunch of security guards a fortune to
take down and report the routine activities of ordinary, above-board members of staff. We
really don't need you, Metro Police. You should quit and join the Community Guardian: they
have a softer job."
Sarah Spinks: "The men instrumental in the project were guilty of the same naivete that the
hippier types were. They thought they could do a job and then leave, without making sure
that there were others in the building who would carry on."
J.E. Stobie: "People with great contributions to a worthwhile Rochdale project have to
withstand cross examination when they should only have to state their needs and have them
satisfied."
Dirty Dan McCue: "Some of the people will do some of the work all of the time. Now is the
time for all of the people to do some of the work some of the time. National Rochdale Week
is our week. National Rochdale Week needs total commitment. You can raise $2500, your
group or floor. Youre anything and everything. Together we can raise the million. Together
we are Rochdale. Organize inner Rochdale. Bake a cake. Save a bottle. Make your next party

a fundraiser. We have raised all eyebrows in the country now let's raise some money. Have a
floor meeting. Invite your co-ordinator. If I won't do there are six others."
Reg Hartt: "There's been a lot of talk around here about lack of communication. The real
problem is not the lack of, but the inability. It's a two way street and you have to give the
other man his turn."
Jack Jones: "To pretend that we are not in the revolution is not to be with it. To pretend that
Rochdale is a refuge is to be unprepared. Rochdale is for criminals. Straight people should go
away. Semi-straight people don't exist. They are the side-liners.
Bill King: "Ho hum, Rochdale was busted again September 12, 1970. Seventy cops, ten
arrests, nine damaged cop cars, one thousand kids, no broken windows. That's the agreed
upon facts."
Lawrence M. Bedder: "As far as I am concerned, if we were to color and decorate our walls,
less unappealing graffiti would appear and Rochdale would become a more pleasant
community, rather than the prison that Sheila Morrison and friend would have us live in."
J.R. Thompson: "I have been evicted from this building, this Rochdale, for giving a speech, a
sermon, a lot of noise, call it what you will, at six o'clock in the morning on July 2, 1969 on
the Patio well, well, well."
Bruce Maxwell: "Students of life are not elitists, but they must have the power to decide how
they want to live, who they want to live with, and on what terms. To refuse to respect that
power is to oppose the central concept which justified the existence of this peculiar but
possibly revolutionary and necessary institution."
Ken Nelson: "No, Rochdale does not give a degree, but Rochdale gives to everybody the
opportunity to experiment, himself, in different fields and in different circumstances. To be
morally qualified to be in Rochdale, I would say to enter inside the building, you have to be
active people, or Rochdale is going to make you lost."
Noe Goldwasser: "What is this shit? What kind of community can you have around here
when every time you get something creative going, it gets snuffed out by some boobocrat
who is uptight about getting his hands dirty with the community outside?"
Thom Gordon: "Let's face it, nobody really knows if the government is going to foreclose on
the mortgage or not. If someone around here knows they sure ain't talkin'. One thing for sure
though public opinion of Rochdale will have a lot to do with the eventual outcome. The
majority of people only know what they read."
Ray Saintonge: "It is not without dismay that I greet the report by one often much-maligned
non-resident of his encounter with the revered maintenance staff of this establishment. At
one point last Saturday he became disgusted with the prevailing condition of the garbage
rooms of the building. (I might add that this disgust was not without justification.) He then,
unsolicited, undertook to clean out these areas without any thought of direct compensation.
After having cleared several floors, he was confronted by a member of maintenance who
stopped him from continuing on the grounds his job was threatened. Too fucking much! ...
To that member of maintenance who felt that his job was imperilled I can only say 'Your job

never should have existed in the the first place. Quit worrying about trying to justify yourself
in a non-job, it is bad enough you should be employed to perform the responsibilities of those
who have shirked their duties.'"
Stuart P. Hertzog: "To every situation there is another side. Each right has a wrong, or each
wrong is equally wrong, because it doesn't matter at all."
Jim Washington: "I got a degree in revolutionary engineering. It is the only degree I care to
have."
Robert Morrison: "But what really pisses me off is having to wade through pages of drunken
soliloquies, speed-freak scribblings, and universal truths garnered from someone's last acid
trip to get to the one or two tid-bits of useful knowledge that justifies the rest of the bullshit."
Peyton Brien: "Any of you in the building who write poetry I'd like to get together with
you to talk about a reading sometime maybe Thursday next week. Try to come see me in
#1423 around 8 or 9 night time this Wednesday tomorrow."
Tony Rybak: "Dealers crying because Council votes against an alarm system. As a resident
and member of Rochdale I support Council 100 percent. If the dealers want a warning device
against police raids, let them install alarms in their own rooms (at their own expense)."
Andy Wernick: "We are getting to the point when we are going to have to define Rochdale
more consciously than before. For instance, whether or not we become a conscious
cooperative housing experiment, or a straight student housing scheme, or an experimental
educational institution."
Paul Evitts: "I was a practicing anarchist, and the idea that we were going to have a lock on
the front door struck me as beyond consideration. So I single-handedly went down stairs
when the building was up to about twelve or fourteen floors. And the lock stayed off the door
for six months. ... In my typical fascist way, I recently attempted to keep Jack Diamond, our
venerable ex-Registrar, from occupying the 18th floor Zeus suite."
Wolf Sullivan: "Paul Evitts the teenage fascist practicing anarchist removed the front door
lock permanently and destroyed (or helped destroy) the very expensive buzz-in intercom
system at the same time to ensure the lock would not be replaced. His open-door policy was
the cause of the crasher, speed-freak, and drug dealing problems in Rochdale College. Paul
Evitts did it."
Joe Wertz: "Trespassers in the 15th-floor swimming pool will be drowned on sight."
Roger Carter: "If Rochdale is raided and I see a policeman uncontrollably clubbing some
poor freak, would I be evicted for throwing a brick, or anything else for that matter, at the
policeman or his car?"
Joel Kerbel: "The people who were arrested in the Saturday demonstrations and who wanted
to contact me, please leave your name and room number on a piece of paper and slide it
under my door in Room #1123, or see me personally on Saturday."
Alexis Buckley: "Dave Draper would like it to be known that Lionel Douglas was not on duty

the day the alarm was adjusted, as the Tuesdaily reads. He, Dave Draper, was on duty and he
left the alarm room open. Dave says that the 'security device is an asset to Rochdale and that
Council is wrong to remove it.'"
Pat Evans: "Rochdale is a place of intense power concentrated in the hands of a few. This
power hasn't been used to its fullest extent. Now the bureaucrats of Big Government and Big
Business own what was our home before, our home and that of thousands before."
Dan Dickie: "I came back for food, people and equipment. It looks likeI'll be staying for the
festival myself. In Halliburton after a week's delay, because of the loan from Rochdale being
late and frost, we are finally tapped in. Bruce Maxwell phoned yesterday and said it was
flowing like mad and the syrup should be ready today."
Steve Grant: "Because of the RSM's stupidity, as exemplified by the errors in their article, I
vote for them only because they appear to be the lesser of two evils."
Bob Droine: "What would happen to Rochdale if nobody threw out all their old Dailies and
other papers that happened to be slipped under their doors?"
Ken Mason: "Rochdale is too small for a basically representative form of democracy to
work, although there may be a place for some government of this type. We can see this just
from observing the whole sham of Council. We must decide. Otherwise a creeping
totalitarianism will fill the vacuum."
Rev. C.T. Walker: "Mom made some poignant observations on Rochdale from the semistraight world. 'There are a hell of a lot of draft-dodgers here.' and 'You're going to have to
learn how to wipe your rear ends off before you can build this into a real college.' I'm sure we
will all benefit from these words of wisdom."
Pam Berton: "One of the things I liked about Rochdale to begin with was it was a small
community with an outrageous mix of people. And you'd meet these people in the elevators.
The elevators were overused but they were the main communication channel at Rochdale.
My grandmother and mother quite liked being at Rochdale because nobody looked at them
weird when they talked to people on the elevators. They're the kind of people who talk to
others in elevators, which isn't really socially acceptable."
Patsy Berton: "There were all kinds of different people in the elevator, with bare feet and
long hair and bellbottoms. There was a lot of heaviness around those elevators that was scary
for me."
Nicky Morrison: "We met once a week to discuss problems, we cooked together and we had
rules and expected that everybody would participate. If you didn't agree to participate, you
just didn't live there. That was basic. We had twenty-five to thirty people and it was like a
rooming house with meals. So, obviously we had to be organized. For instance, shopping was
a big thing. We bought a van and people took turns driving it to Kensington Market or Knob
Hill Farms to buy bushels of potatoes or what have you."
Ron Squire: "Bernie Bomers wants to stop the vandalism in the building and to put an end to
the obvious kind of trafficking that could get us into trouble with the police. He says that
Rochdale has a reputation among the weekend kids as a good place to buy and take drugs."

Bart Schoales: "So let's admit that there is not yet a lot going on in Rochdale which is of
interest to the outside world, and that nothing is ever going to go on here until we discard all
of the model situations which we have chosen to remain ignorant of and must therefore
progress through on our intellectual ability."
Nelson Adams: "We need some better way of solving disputes between people who are being
asked to leave their rooms or the building and those who are doing the asking."
Dianne Lawrence: "The main problem about crashers is not crashers but the two attitudes that
exist. One being the attitude of fuck you, throwing them out, locking up the Ashram doors
and general disconcern of [other] human beings (except for ourselves) and complete
negativity. The other way is by realizing that each crasher has a problem and their problems
are obviously our problems and to help them would obviously mean we were helping
ourselves."
Jack Diamond: "Useful innovations in education are easy to discuss but difficult to produce.
The problem of a meaningful liberal arts education and the integration of this with
professional courses is central to anyone's concern about current university life. Too often
discussion about the structure of universities has obscured the real problem of quality and
direction which directly affect students and teachers. Rochdale College is engaged in a
variety of programs which allow individual student and faculty members a great deal of
freedom in constructing their own curricula."
Tom Ezzy: "Earlier this year I lent (I think) an expensive copy of Yeats' Collected Poems to
someone still in the building (I hope), but I've forgotten who. Please return it, since I need it
for an exam Tuesday."
Carson Foster: "In October (1968) I saw a beautiful picture on the wall of the third-floor
stairway. See it yourself."
Mike Lennick: Our Rochdale culture has prided itself on being an eighteen-storey monument
to the alternate society; a culture which preaches understanding and a straightforwardness
among its citizens. Most Rochdalians can grok this, but there are obviously ones who can't."
Ralph Bendahan: "In a place like Rochdale, there is a great deal of emphasis placed on the
creative. This Saturday night we will be fortunate enough in having both a poetry reading
and several hours worth of good amateur films. I hope to see you in the second floor lounge
Saturday night at 9:00."
Tom Cunningham: "When Tom Cunningham was arrested on the 18th-floor after he stated to
Hank Woods that he would be a witness for Hank in court, several people saw the cops
immediately grab him, without telling him why. Anyone willing to testify to this would be of
value in illustrating that the police arrested Tom because he saw them attack Hank and not
vice-versa and their case against Tom is ridiculous."
Brittain Johnson: "Why in the world do people want tochuck shit out the windows at passing
cars? Who could be so completely thoughtless as to the consequences of such foolery?
Surely there is a maniac in our midst: what else would bombard so callously? What kind of
karma would make you want to throw shit at cars anyway?"

Andrew E. Gibson: "The Gallery is open from Wednesday the 10th of December until a few
days before Christmas. During this time I would like to appeal to your charity and interest in
donating a piece of work to the theme of 'TOYS'".
Bob Naismith: "Today's Daily is the result, primarily, of Bernard and Daleen Davis. They did
not launch a coup, nor did they overthrow the present decadent regime. They used the Pub
facilities, which come to think of it, is not such a bad idea. Any takers? ... Some of us are too
caught up in the wonder of our own unstructured existence, others have equated freedom with
licence. This is unfortunate and dangerous. Rochdale is a structure, it is an environment, it is
a new approach to the inevitability of a continuing education, formal or otherwise. To
accomplish this most advantageously, we can tolerate no conduct which is obviously
prejudicial to the maintenance of a free environment. In short, there is no room here for
thieves, rip-off artists, and pigs who are content to let themselves and others wallow in their
own personal refuse."
Chris Coggon: "If you are manning the Communication Centre, please keep the message box
only for messages not shit like the lost and found and past issues of Hawkman and the
Fantastic Four."
Bruce Maxwell: "Maybe 30% of the people here want us to stay somehow. If we get
organized, we can make it a majority."
George Cervinka: "While hitchhiking from London to Istanbul and back in 1968, I found
myself both lost among the Paris student riots, jubilant with family in the Prague Spring and
jumping into a roadside ditch as Soviet planes at tree-top level raced to drop troops into an
outraged city and outgunned country. A couple of weeks later, as a second year U of T
Engineering Science student I was living in newly-opened Rochdale in unit #1508. Energy,
idealism, hope, anti-war anti-police themes, audacious sexual expressiveness, new mixed
living arrangements and soft drugs were our daily fare. A year later I moved out to
Kensington market. So Rochdale represented for me social experimentation and pushing the
envelope on what could be done in a cooperative context. It was my first in my face exposure
to the clash of nave idealistic energies with the many active and passive faces of entropy.
What heroic efforts by so many simply to keep the place clean, safe, sufficiently well
maintained and balance the books! How inadequate the pleas to act responsibly and
cooperatively! How unprepared to defend against actively evil forces both hidden within and
encroaching uninvited! The chaos of Paris and the dumb horror of Prague were shrinkwrapped for 1968 Rochdale. It took me years to recover from the life-sapping craziness and
even more to put its attractive idealism into perspective. Almost all the people I met
disappeared from the rest of my life. What we shared during that brief time had no substance:
nothing with which to build a life. There is no desire to reconnect, to remember nor to forget.
We are also shaped by our mistakes. I was not equipped to help Rochdale succeed but I was
too dumb and self-centered to know that. My mistake."
Thom Schofield: "To help subsidize Rochdale Crafts and Craftsmen, I propose that we plan a
street fair for the warm summer months. If it is legal, and if the Rochdale community is
agreed, we could build a series of open air stalls on the front plaza."
Bernie Mehl: "As I see it, everybody who has had anything to say about the situation at
Rochdale is out to eliminate ignorance and cultural poverty, and in the name of this crusade

all of science and and religion will be employed."

John Sullivan: "We pride ourselves on being a bastion of the counter-culture. But how can we
function with a bureaucracy ruled by apathetic and self-important elitists?"
B. Phlar: "Why does it stink? Why does Rochdale stink? Because, yes because, there is
always a because or a but or a maybe. This time it's because. Because when be began we
thought idealistically at that we would be different. We would shelter ourselves in a
concrete edifice from the grey peoples concrete thoughts."
Russel Day:
"Rochdale College Lives
The idea is somewhere,
and the name keeps hanging around
Wouldn't it be a gas? If we asked all declared
students hippies freaks and compatriots,
to refuse to live in 341 Bloor under the
auspices of the paper people?"
Jeffrey Arnold: "In every situation in Rochdale where I am forced into a hairy situation, I will
refrain from violence until violence has been brought down upon someone else or myself."
Larry Claypool: "I knew Fergie as well as anyone since we lived together several times, and
all I can say is he didn't have the conscience of a normal human being and for all that, was
in his own way, an extraordinary larger-than-life kind of guy. ... Billy Littler passed away
three to four years ago, I think. I was down in Central America at the time so I actually didn't
know that myself until one of my fellow Rochdalians told me that both he and Jay Boldizar
had passed on. I was quite shocked to hear the news as we had always been good friends. He
had moved up to the Sunshine Coast so I didn't see him as often as before when he lived in
Vancouver."
Dave Witton: "I shared #1111 in Rochdale with "Doc" Call in 1971. Rudy and April were in
#1103, Danny in #1101, and several dozen Czechs were in #1105."
Chris Hall: "But something happened as I sat there. I began thinking about Nickie Ashley,
Tom Houston, Kareem Rather, black Pat from the radio station, Kevin O'Leary, Friar Tuck
and all of the others who had opened their arms to me and allowed me into their daily lives.
As I said, having come from an abusive family, this type of unconditional love was
something that I had never experienced before."
Christine Hall: "I had educational space on the fourth-floor from about 1973 until Clarkson
evicted all EdCon projects. These were four Ashram rooms, Radio Rochdale, which I
inherited after Pat (from Trinidad) left. For the last year or so, after the mass evictions began,
I lived in the Radio Rochdale office. Radio Rochdale, we assigned ourselves the call letters
CRUD, could be picked up for about a mile away from the building at 92mhz. Also on the
fourth floor, in an East wing Kafka, was Kevin O'Leary's video project. There was also the
biofeedback project, which I think was Kevin as well."
Molly Strayman: "Rochdale College, by virtue of locale and emphasis has come to function
much like a huge adolescent drop-in centre. We have found ourselves responding, in a

meagre fashion, to the needs of these adolescents by sharing the facilities intended for our
residents and members."
Anne Rogol: "What I'd like to suggest is that we try to deal with very basic and primarily
internal problems instead of looking for big terrifying major situations to use as excuses for
not being ready or able to decipher realities like out own messy kitchens."
Arthur Leader: "I am fed up with having to plough my way through crowds of unwanted
louts in the first floor lobby and second floor halls every evening. It's time to do something."
Tom Saask: "Okay, Cinderella speed-freak, we'll fix your pumpkin toys, but please don't lay
your midnight on us, please don't make our fairy godmother a virgin again."
Bernie Bomers: "I am looking for older houses to rent in the area close to Rochdale for those
who because of space and temperamental requirements wish to become non-resident
members."
Don Black: "A number of people have expressed an interest, even enthusiasm, in the idea of a
Spring Festival, to begin Friday March 21, 1969 and end three or eight days later. Basically it
would involve cleaning house a little, then using our facilities and displaying our talents in a
concentrated way for the duration of the festival."
Dolores Dios: "It was my observation in the recent Toad Lane Tenants Association election
that the Krishna people did not vote. I found this a bit disturbing, considering they ran three
people for office in the last election and almost every member of their ashram and fringe
areas voted. It seems to be an extremely self-oriented way to get involved in the community."
Kathryn McGlyn: "Rochdale exists as a community first, and as such we need personal action
and interaction. In recent weeks a great number of people here at 341 Bloor West have seen
themselves compelled to keep their apartment and ashram doors closed because of constant,
curious, incessant supervision by your friends and mine, the Greenies. In my view, the
Greenies are not protecting our quiet enjoyment of our premises, but in fact, are a direct
threat to that right."
John Haanel: "It is estimated that a person who smokes one-and-a-half packs a day, consumes
over 2,000 fatal doses of nicotine per year. Tests have show that tobacco smoking reduces
mental efficiency by at least 10%, and up to 22%."
Patric Evond:
"When the chips are down
The dealer cuts high
Speed, grass, dope
Of all sorts for your mind
Just leave your rest behind
And come fly with me
Because I'm the dealer
I'll cut you so high
You'll wish you were down."
Bill Travers: "I need witnesses. I was busted Saturday night on a charge of obstructing the

police. I was wearing a red-and-white checked shirt, I have long brown hair. If you saw me
get busted, please contact me at 923-6641."
Pat Shafer: "Rochdale seems divided into two categories, the pushers and the pushed. I went
to Friday nights council meeting and saw a pusher filibuster the democratic process. I saw
two self-declared pushers exploit and rape a meeting of the Rochdale Community which was
attempting to solve the problems pushers have created by centering their capitalistic
exploitation of Rochdale. ... If the college faces this present crisis and stands firm against the
capitalistic money culture that puts rent payments before people, then it will grow stronger.
If it succumbs to the CMHC pigs, not only will Rochdale fail but the Rochdale principle of
people over property will suffer a death blow in Canada."
Larry Taylor: "To some they may be just pigs, but I've a sneaking suspicion that Raymond
Chandler always made his hero an ex-cop, rather than a cop present-tense, because you can't
allow a character wearing a police badge to display more than a limited range of emotions.
And the one I've usually come up against has been animosity."
Doug Hutchings: "This elite is not bothered by the fact that the vast majority of residents in
this building have absolutely no voice in the government of our collective home. It is far
more comfortable for them to skulk off to unadvertised meetings in a chilly library,
surrounded by those so-familiar faces, discuss trivia, then make important decisions
individually, after consulting no one."
Martin Burns: "Dear beautiful, peace-loving hippie friends: On Sunday, February 6, 1972,
there was not a single rape, mugging, beating, robbery, murder or suicide at Rochdale.
Congratulations, one and all!"
Matt Cohen: "It was my opinion that 90% of the crashers were addicted to one form or
another of amphetamines. And certainly 90% were using some sort of drug heavily."
Karen Johnson: "The summer of 1969 was Speed Summer in Toronto. The people who were
left in Rochdale saw themselves as a force that should be helping. They weren't assholes and
didn't turn people away. They saw their duty and role to help where possible, and a lot of
speed freaks were taken in. As a result there was an enormous amount of damage sustained
by the building that summer. Rooms were totally devastated."
Keith McClary: "I conclude that we are being fucked over not by Clarkson and Co. but by
their groovy Rochdalian employees who also dominate GovCon which is supposed to be
protecting our interests from Clarkson Co. Or am I just being paranoid?"
Andrew J. Smith: "Rochdale will never have a sense of direction until every committee like
EdCon is dissolved and entrusted to a qualified individual. This revolutionary step against
bureaucratic capitalism would abolish the duplicity of positions and moreover the misuse and
exaggeration of power. It is easier to remove one big tyrant than a lot of little ones.
Bureaucrats blame each other for their irresponsibility; if only one person were responsible
there would be no one else to blame."
Valerie Frith: "When I was selling degrees I was called the external affairs co-ordinator and
registrar. The degree-selling was by far the most successful of our money-raising schemes."

Lionel Douglas: "Active members of the college are the baby-sitters to the 14- to 18-year old
kids who flow through the building constantly, especially the screwed-up ones. We are trying
to learn and at the same time teach these kids the idea of 'enough'. In other words, a true and
functional sense of proportion. ... Rochdale is not dead. Rochdale has not failed."
Billy Littler: "My first contact with Rochdale, although I didn't officially move in till much
later, was in November of 1968. I knew many of the people there, in fact a friend of mine
was 'head of Security' that is, he walked around with a construction helmet on his head with
the word Security printed on it and a baseball bat in his hand. ... My role as I perceived it was
to throw out the hard drug dealers and the ones who were a little crazy those literally opendoor marijuana dealers."
Jim McGowan: "People who want to buy dope in this building should either move into the
building and share the heat or go buy it someplace else."
Syd Stern: "Well, do you want dealers or don't you? Make up your minds."
Frank Cox: "I don't want to throw out all the dealers in the building. What I want is a finer
place to live. There is a problem of heavy traffic in terms of people coming in to cop dope.
Solutions: Discontinue people dealing in the building that don't live here or discontinue stash
and dealing rooms."
Ernie Fusco: "The rent arrears situation, due to the fact that persons far in arrears are being
evicted, is improving. Improving? As of July 11, 1973 the residents of the building not being
evicted were $11,731.74 in arrears. This is down $3,000 from last month."
Mike Sandberg: "A few days ago Sid Smith asked me to move elsewhere in the building. I
asked why. He said I could do whatever I like. He would like to improve three floors by
tiling and refurbishing. Then OHC inspectors will look at the areas and if it passes their
standards they will rent to students."
Jay Davis: "All you do is say you don't understand anything about why you're here or why
you stay when you can see the confusion and everything it's for and you just want to leave
but you don't know what for and you want someone you can talk to but you've pushed all
your friends away and they go on living and make it anyway."
Art Jacobs: "With the current monetary crisis in the world today, gold will soon be worthless.
Therefore, we must make Clarkson aware of this fact and that what they are collecting is
worthless. The sooner they realize this, the sooner our financial problems are solved. One
thing we have in our favour is that Clarkson are capitalists and they know that money talks. ...
The tax case is now in the courts. From this a decision will be forthcoming which could have
a very decisive effect as to the future of Rochdale College. In view of this I am not surprised
at the increased police surveillance outside the building in the past weeks, and the resulting
increase in busts. Once again, Rochdale gets its name in the news, which 52 Division wanted
and is delighted to see."
Hiranya Garbha Das: "If we still think that Rochdale can be a hashish Utopia, then we haven't
learned the big lesson that this educational institution has taught us, that hash dreams don't
come true, that material bubbles always burst."

Brunet: "Where the fuck are you people's heads at, those who throw bags of paint and water
out of the window while members of the press are outside about to give us a fair deal in the
wake of a demonstration initiated by a sexually-frustrated attention seeker."
Alex MacDonald: "There will be no significant dope dealing past August. Either Rochdale
cleans it up or the police clean it up. Jack Ackroyd has told us that if he has to come in here,
it will be with 180 cops and get it over fast. The end of dealing is inevitable. I propose that it
be because Rochdale cuts of the trafficking. People will see that trade is no longer viable and
split, not because there are five cops in every hall."
Walter Dmytrenko: "Since the management of Rochdale College was taken over by the
receiver we have seen misallocation of rental revenues by Clarkson Company Limited in
defiance of master's court instructions. We have seen gross insensitivity on the part of the new
management and its personnel when working with the tenants of this building. We have had
duplicity in the office of the Property Administrator with respect to rental conditions and the
honouring of lawful leases. We have seen and heard in the media and in your offices a
consistent campaign by yourself and the President of Clarkson Company limited to malign
and discredit the responsible residents of Rochdale College."
Mother Fletcher: "I think that the fear of dealers losing their jobs has seeded a mass paranoia
in the building. Those who think the Greenies are all cops or pigs are fools. I think the
Greenies will be used as scapegoats for a lot of confused anger. The enemy is in fact are first
those who started the building with a built-in financial failure. A time bomb."
Housing Minister Robert Andras: "We are foreclosing on a financial basis. This action
directly involved the owners and not the tenants. It is not intended to make a statement about
young people and their lifestyles." (Why stress a dishonest statement about persecuting
young people that is very obviously your only motive? You would never evict 1000 elderly
citizens because your CMHC fucked them with an impossible mortgage structure.)
Marshall McLuhan: "Rochdale College has the makings of a utopian flop. They're all
heading backwards into the past as fast as they can go."
Allen Ginsberg: "It was kind of bewildering, because it was modernistic and yet everybody
was trying to live in a primitive way. Some of the rooms were quite messy. It seemed to be
organized, but I couldn't figure out the organization mostly some sort of anarchist,
communal thing. There was some indecision about what kind of education was going on
there."

Reg Hartts Rochdale Cinema

http://regharttrochdale.blogspot.com/2011/05/reg-hartt-cinema.html

Reg Hartt in Rochdale College photo

Daily Planet January 16, 1969 clip. Note that the college Registrar and others rejected
Reg Hartt for being a capitalist, and the college removed the many ads Reg posted in
Rochdale

Daily March 8, 1969 clip

Reg Hartt wants a licensed bar to replace the college library.

Reg Hartt wants a licensed bar to replace the college library.

November 21, 1972 Rochdale Tuesdaily clips

Rochdale Tuesdaily January 30, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily February 13, 1973 clip. Mike Eleser simply did not want Reg to
completely monopolize the second floor meant for all Rochdale residents to
use. Reg wanted to create a "community centre" on the second floor that
already existed.

Reg Hartt is an eccentric projectionist who showed Hollywood entertainment in the second
floor lounge of Rochdale College for five years beginning in 1970. It was just a place for him
to make a living as a projectionist, and he did not have to pay rent. Before using the second
floor lounge as his screening room, he experimented with projecting films onto a large white
cloth screen on the 17th-floor roof patio. He claims to have screened some films in Rochdale
before 1970, but there is no evidence of this. The documented evidence is he attempted to,
but twice was stopped by the administrators "smelling a rat" who "wanted to show films for
money", a "blatant capitalist" with a reputation as "devious and unreliable".
Reg also screened films in Yorkville Village, Bathurst Street Church, the Spadina Hotel,
Sneaky Dee's, Queen Street West, Mirvish Village, and elsewhere. In the 1980s he had his
own very small movie theater. He showed his films at places around Toronto during the time
he had his small operation in Rochdale, such as at the U of T, Neil-Wycik and the "Hall", an
unheated barn-like building.At the Hall I watched Lawrence of Arabia in below freezing
temperatures. It was strange watching the hot desert movie in the cold, and I had to leave
after half an hour because my hands and feet were becoming frostbitten. For this I had to pay
admission.
In Rochdale the typical films Reg showed were Performance, Barbarella, Metropolis, and
Fritz the Cat. He used a 16mm film projector and a medium-size viewing screen. General
admission was usually $1 or $1.50 for double bills. This was slightly more than the 99
Roxy Theatre, a genuine movie theatre with a gigantic screen, better sound, comfortable seats
and 1000 times more movies than Rochdale. Before screenings, Reg kicked people out of
their lounge who would not pay up. Joel Scott of Toad Lane Tenants Association and others
hated him for this. Alex MacDonald of GovCon charged Reg with "gross capitalism".
Considering that Reg Hartt did not live in Rochdale and did not pay rent to use the second
floor Lounge for his mercenary cinema, Alex and Joel were justified in their criticism of Mr.
Hartt. He was an outsider, and the space should have been used by other projectionists as it
was before he took it over.
Hans Shuster, Mike Hersh, Bob Huber, Dan McCue, and others used to show films there
before Reg Hartt monopolized it. De Fat Daddy Cinema (Room #205) operated mostly in the
South Cafeteria on the second floor in 1968, then changed its name to H. G. Noxzema
Presents (Room #202) and screened films in the second floor Lounge in 1969. Open Films

was run by Ralph Bendahan in the second floor Lounge and there was the Rochdale 8mm
Film Co-op (John Webb) as well as Libre Films presented by projectionists from a Colorado
commune. The Rochdale Maintenance Department also showed films in the second Floor
Lounge using the name "Aquarian Goat Films" until the Fall of 1970. All these
projectionists showed mostly documentary, avant-garde, amateur, experimental, and old
classic films for free or a donation, whereas Reg Hartt screened commercial Hollywood
products that were profitable. When Reg persisted and finally took over, all other
projectionists disappeared forever from Rochdale and he had a lucrative monopoly with a
captive audience.
Previously, Dirty Dan McCue did a much better job managing the second floor Lounge with
live music concerts, seminars, and film screenings. For example, the Teenage Dance Band
performed in the lounge in July 1969 for free and it was infinitely better than watching Fritz
the Cat for money. The lounge should have been a venue for live rock bands because there
were several good movie theatres within walking distance of Rochdale. In fact, Rochdalians
saw most of their movies elsewhere. The two hottest films in 1974 in Rochdale were The
Harder They Come and Janis. Reg Hartt did not show these movies in Rochdale.
There were some uncomfortable chairs in the lounge but most people sat on the carpeted
floor. I often used my jacket as a pillow and flaked out on the floor, and it was very
comfortable. Barbarella is one of my favorite films, and I first saw it in the second floor
Lounge in 1970. The same for Polanski's The Fearless Vampire Killers I watched in the
summer of 1970. When the film ended Mike Donaghy commented that it was a great movie
that he loved. The Beatles' Let it Be was incredibly boring, and only the loud music kept me
awake. I thought Fellini's 8 was autobiographical, specifically Fellini's dick size. But it
was so boring I actually fell asleep. One of the worst aspects of this cinema was that the
same movies were shown over and over and over again for years. Reg must have screened
Metropolis hundreds of times. Fortunately as the years passed Reg showed fewer and fewer
Hollywood movies in Rochdale. In the last two years there were very few. He concentrated
on his four porn films that made him a lot of profit when he screened them at Rochdale, NeillWycik College, the U of T, and elsewhere.
Mr. Hartt sometimes gave rambling monologues before the films But he never talked about
films, and it was like an amateur version of a Lenny Bruce stand-up routine. A typical
monologue was about his reverse swastika ring and the reaction it got from Jews. Reg is not
Jewish and a mirror image of a swastika is still a Nazi swastika. It is extremely offensive to
the many millions of good people who suffered from Nazism. Reg mainly talked about
himself in his monologues, so it usually was an irrelevant jerk-off, although some enjoyed the
live performance.
When hardcore porn became somewhat legal in the USA, Reg showed four porn films
repeatedly for years: Deep Throat, Behind the Green Door, Bijou, and Boys in the Sand. The
last two were gay, although Rochdale was extremely homophobic. There was a complete
aversion to his gay porn, but Reg was gay, which he announced at a Rochdale GovCon
meeting. To be able to see hardcore porn for the first time was a real treat. Linda Lovelace in
Deep Throat had small tits, and the guy in Bijou had a monster cock. I saw Deep Throat
three times, Behind the Green Door was a scratched poor quality print, and I never watched
Boys in the Sand, although Bill Granger told me it was good. Xaviera Hollander, the famous
Happy Hooker, gave Bob Naismith a blowjob during the Canadian premiere of Deep Throat
in 1972. Admission was $10. One night in 1974 I overheard Reg talking to Walt Huston

about a home movie of Fergie's Great Dane dog "Craps" fucking a chick. Walt said it wasn't
so great to watch, but Reg was interested. Reg certainly had balls to be the first projectionist
in conservative Canada to openly show hardcore pornography to the general public. But
frankly, I believe he did it for the money.
I was very surprised that straight men were so tolerant of the two gay movies in homophobic
Rochdale. Probably they watched them out of curiosity and it was the only hardcore porn
available. It helped that Wakefield Poole directed both, because his artsy porn has been
compared to David Lynch in its innovative visual style and strange logic. Simon Liston, who
studied Film at Ryerson, told me he hated Bijou because of the porn star's giant dick. In
Simon's case I can assure you it was strictly penis envy.
It was a complicated and expensive process to see the porn movies. A paid membership was
required. But this membership could not be bought during porn film screenings. It had to be
acquired when regular films were shown. There was a desk outside the second floor Lounge
where Tony Osbourne, Paul Peters, or Paul Skura checked membership cards and collected
admission money. Unlike men, most women do not like porn. This was certainly true of
Cathy Johnson who complained, "It's so boring. All you ever see is suck fuck. Suck fuck."
Candy Kane invited me to see a "smut movie" with her. I declined.
Apparently Reg Hartt did not live in Rochdale. There is no evidence of it and he did not
respond when I asked him several times, yet another example of his deviousness. Possibly he
lived there briefly, but Rochdale was just another place for him to earn a living as a
projectionist. No wonder Reg has such a bizarre misunderstanding of Rochdale. He
imagines it was a genuine college where he taught "Cinema Studies" by charging admission
to a captive audience to watch Deep Throat.
The second floor Lounge was the closest thing Rochdale had to an auditorium, and that was
its main function. But it was used mostly for the cinema. Reg didn't refer to it as the second
floor Lounge, he always called it my screening room" and often advertised it as the second
floor North Cafeteria, even though that was a separate space. I watched Barbarella in the
second floor Lounge, which was advertised as the second floor Cafeteria. The official "Main
Lounge" was the public lounge for all tenants to be used for socializing, meetings and other
events.
Usually Reg did not advertise his film screenings in the Rochdale newsletters. Instead he
attached his fly posters to walls all over the building, on all 18 floors. Nobody else ever did
this because it was not allowed. There were many complaints about this to the management
and he was ordered to stop. But Reg did not stop. This fly poster advertising continued when
Rochdale was closed and Reg plastered more illegal posters on Toronto lampposts than
anyone in the city's history.
When the building closed Reg wrote an autobiographical pamphlet titled "The Night They
Raided Rochdale College". It's a tribute to gay icon Mae West, apparently with nothing about
a police raid on Rochdale College. For some inexplicable reason, this projectionist who
didn't live in Rochdale considers himself an authority on Rochdale. But I never ever saw him
anywhere in Rochdale except for the second floor Lounge: never at a party, meeting, on the
elevator, or anywhere. His pamphlet states: "Rochdale was also the only place on the face of
the earth where one could legally do hashish, LSD, marijuana and mescaline." No. These
drugs were very illegal in all of Canada, which is why Rochdale was constantly raided by the

police and eventually closed. However, in Nepal and parts of India, these drugs were legal.
Reg is not qualified to write about Rochdale.
Today Reg uses the pretentious title "Director of Cinema $tudies" for his projectionist job at
Rochdale, although at the time he called it "Cinema Archives" on rare occasions. Reg never
went to university or had any formal education in film.He claims that Peter Turner gave him
the position and title. So what? Mr. Turner was merely one of dozens of presidents of
Rochdale College, accountable to GovCon and not the college dictator. He was president
during Rochdale's lowest period, when it was only a hippie drug store with no education. He
moved out in 1971 and never came back. Turner had no authority to make Reg Hartt the
permanent projectionist in Rochdale forever. Nobody had that authority.
Cinema Studies is an academic discipline that deals with various theoretical, historical, and
critical approaches to the cinema. It is concerned with exploring the economic, cultural,
political, and artistic implications of the cinema. Screening Hollywood movies for profit is
not Cinema Studies, it is a form of capitalist entertainment. In November 1972 Reg wanted
to turn the second floor College Library into a licensed bar! Is that the behavior of an
academic educator? No, it's the crazy idea of a capitalist in the entertainment business with
contempt for education. Reg conferred with the Greenies about his licensed bar plan, and
they approved it.He didn't understand that the Greenies were the enemies of Rochdalians.
Reg Hartt has now re-invented Rochdale as a genuine college where he was an academic. But
he is just an uneducated projectionist who has some notoriety because he has plastered more
illegal ad posters on Toronto lampposts than anyone else in the entire history of Toronto
probably more posters than all others combined some years. For over 30 years Reg Hartt has
attached tens of thousands of his posters to lampposts in the downtown area.
The fly posters were always self-promotion ads about Reg and his films. Some were not
selling anything except himself. He posted an announcement that his name was no longer
Reg, he was "Bear" and he had abandoned projecting movies to become a film producer and
director. Soon came another public confession poster that complained about the LSD he had
taken was not the same drug he had used ten years earlier. Children on their way to school
read this shit, as well as his ads with graphic descriptions of his gay porn films. He did not
care or consider how his ads could harm children, because he is a sociopath.

Reg Hartt was reported to the Toronto Advertising Hall of Shame and the Licensing and
Standards Committee. Shortly afterwards, Hartt was notified by the City that his Cineforum
must close, but it survived. Cineforum is an amateurcinema Reg has in the living room of his
house where he charges patrons to sit on lawn chairs and watch movies. Reg has earned his
living this way for almost 20 years. He shows "The anarchist surrealist hallucinatory film
festival", "The sex and violence cartoon festival", Triumph of the Will and Salvador Dal
prints. His Cineforum seats 20 and patrons bring their own food and drinks. Sometimes Reg
has guest speakers, mostly artists and writers. He charges from $20 to $100 for each customer
to sit on lawn chairs in his living room to watch films and listen to his monologues, such as
"What I Learned from LSD". The average price for a movie ticket is currently $8. Reg does
not advertise his exorbitant admission prices, and he does not show movies if enough people
do not show up.
Recently he has been showing countless digital 3-D movies, and owns a 3-D camera he used
to create the silent film Toronto Bleeds 40 minutes of unedited footage of the aftermath of

the G20 riots. What do people think of him? On the Internet "kerouacdude" wrote: "He hosts
movies in his living room and apparently he's a bit of a nut before the film he'll go into a
self-involved, somewhat paranoid rant about the film, critics, or whatever's on his mind.
Conventional advice is to go as close to start time as possible."
In a Varsity interview he said, "I love Toronto. And the city loves me." No. At the end of this
Internet entry are two comments. One is from "Grant" who wrote, "This guy seems pretty
thick-headed with his comments about Canadian film. I think the kind of pessimism he spouts
off is part of the problem with our film culture." The other comment was not published but
the editor wrote "bagel breath's comment was not acceptable within our terms of use and has
been removed."
My take on this is movie screenings are an anachronism now that we have home video. Film
projectors are as relevant today as the horse and buggy. However, Reg Hartt's cinema in
Rochdale ranks with the "Unknown Student" sculpture, Laurie Peters' murals, the Rochdale
Library, and Etherea Restaurant as one of the most positive, stable, and enduring facets of
Rochdale College. But the operation mainly benefited Reg Hartt. If his cinema was
"educational", it was a kindergarten compared to the 99 Roxy Theatre, which was like
Oxford University in comparison.
As for Reg himself, he was an outsider in Rochdale, misunderstood what it was, and nobody
knew anything about him because he did not live in the building. He looked very out of place
in hippie Rochdale, like a conservative suburban Jewish nerd, with his short hair and strictly
business aloofness. Strangely, Reg had a very low profile in Rochdale, was not sociable, and
his ads in the college newsletter did not mention his name. However, when the building
closed, his name was the most important thing on his countless fly posters in Toronto. It
wasn't just a movie, it was a film presented by the world famous Reg Hartt. His shameless
self-promotion with fly posters has given him some minor local fame or notoriety, but it will
pass because he has not created anything. It will backfire on him, because karma is a bitch!
Without his illegal posters Reg would be almost unknown. I cannot comprehend how anyone
can take him seriously, although he is a one of a kind. Superficially Reg gave the impression
that he was normal, conservative, and not eccentric. But he is eccentric, erratic, and has an
inflated opinion of himself. The projectionist as auteur. An anachronism who uses 16mm
and 8mm film formats for his cinema. Reg was outraged and "shocked" at my views on him,
his movie operation, and Rochdale College. However, I don't give a shit what he thinks or
imagines about Rochdale College or himself.
He told me he doesn't care what people say or write about him. I thought he was like George
M. Cohan, who said, "I don't care what you say about me, as long as you say something about
me, and as long as you spell my name right." No. Reg expects people to write their
interpretations of his bullshit he tells them, and nothing else. It would be dishonest and
irresponsible reportage to pander to him. I attended his cinema in Rochdale, I can smell
bullshit a mile away, and I only write the truth. So he insulted me in emails for writing the
truth about him. He does not want people to know that he did not live in Rochdale College
and announced at a Rochdale GovCon meeting that he is gay. Later he denied "coming out".
But there is no question about it. One of the countless fly posters he polluted Toronto with
was mostly a photograph of Arnold Schwarzenneger's cock. The text was not selling
anything at all, it was simply Reg drooling poetically over Ahnold's cock.

Unfortunately, Reg cannot seem to tolerate criticism. After I repeatedly told Reg Hartt to
leave me alone, he sent me more emails to insult me personally. Reg is not very good at it
because he does not know me at all. Yet he posted at least half a dozen blogs on the Internet
specifically about me. In the blogs and the emails his insults were the psycho-analytic type
coming from a notorious eccentric. Genuine celebrities never attack "bad press", especially if
they claim they don't care what is written about them. This ordeal proved to me that there is
something seriously wrong with Reg Hartt. In my spam I noticed "Give me honest hatred", a
blog or email from Reg obviously about me. To clarify things, I do not hate Reg Hartt. I
simply disapprove of his outrageous bullshit, what he did in Rochdale College, and for
appointing himself the Rochdale Director of Cinema $tudies.
I do not want a Google search for my name displaying malicious bullshit about me from a
disgruntled projectionist. This entry is for a chapter in my book "Rochdale College" and it is
all I have written about Reg Hartt for publication. I was a projectionist at the U of T for four
years, have written four movie screenplays, and published two large books of movie reviews.
I own thousands of movies on DVD and watch them with a high definition video projector on
a screen ten feet wide. Reg Hartt is inferior to me regarding knowledge of the cinema. You
probably know more about movies than he does.

Radio Rochdale (CRUD) at Rochdale College

http://radiorochdalecrud.blogspot.com

Britt Johnson DJ

Pat Rogers DJ

Stuart Spore DJ
Radio Rochdale began as an EdCon project in late 1970 and was located in Gnostic unit
#607, which was in the East wing of the sixth-floor of Rochdale College. Most EdCon
projects were in this wing, which was previously a drug dealing commune turned into an ugly
fortress that was heavily guarded. The dealers destroyed and trashed much of it, so when they
were evicted most of the wing was used for educational purposes. Radio Rochdale was also
on the 15th-floor then moved to Room #1102. The Rochdale sub-basement was also used as a
resource space for Radio Rochdale at one time.
The radio station was also called "The Voice of Free Toronto" and used the call letters
CRUD. At first it was an AM station all over the dial, including at 605 and 1300. Later Radio
Rochdale transmitted on FM frequencies. Eventually it broadcast on FM and AM
simultaneously. CRUD was on the air 18 to 24 hours a day with an eclectic mix of music and
talk. The station had much EdCon support at first, but when a large grant was foolishly
wasted, EdCon was wary of funding the station. CRUD had a dedicated staff and extremely
dilapidated equipment. At one time the transmitter was a gutted point-one watt FM wireless
microphone fed into an eight watt cable system RF line amplifier that was then fed into a
jury-rigged antenna system with a gain of about five, supplying about 40 watts of effective
radiated power. It could be picked up for about a mile away from the building at 103 MHz,
which is designated as a "very high frequency (VHF)". FM radio stations broadcast at
frequencies of 87.8 to 108 MHz. AM radio stations broadcast at frequencies of 148.5 kHz to

26.1 MHz. CRUD's radio station studio and FM radio transmission equipment was eventually
updated considerably and was worth $2,600.
Staff included: Mike Goldstein, Pat O'Brien, Pat Rogers from Trinidad, Stuart Spore, Brian
Hopkins, Ken Brown, Paul Murton, Mickle, Marlow, John, Michael Lennick, Eric, George,
Greg, Margaret, Jimmy, Titch, Rudy, Elf, Derek, Ruth, Patrick, Britt Johnson, Paul, Cap,
Mike, Don, Nick, Chris, Henry, Jackie, Merlin the Monitor, Bob Jeffries, Brad Keagle, Pat
Davis, Christine Hall, and others.
Music was played from vinyl LPs and singles, some cassettes, and reel-to-reel tapes. The
tapes tended to be of live performances recorded by the Radio Rochdale staff at concerts, and
were therefore unavailable in record stores and not heard on other radio stations.
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) did its best to
shut down Radio Rochdale several times, but failed. In March 1971 the RCMP and the
federal Department of Communications charged Michael Lennick and Paul Murton with
running a radio station without a license. In court Judge Addison dismissed the charges as
"small potatoes". The judge said the broadcasts were intended for Rochdale residents and not
the general public. Mostly Rochdalians listened to CRUD, but it was picked up by other
listeners in the nearby area. In Toronto the #1 rock radio station was CHUM-FM at 104 MHz,
and anyone near Rochdale attempting to dial it on their radio would inevitably discover
CRUD at 103 MHz. For some reason Radio Rochdale switched to 92 MHz in October 1972.
My neighbour Ira Rushwald complained about the dynamics, and said the station needed a
compressor to prevent speakers from being blown. Compression limits the dynamic range of
a signal, lowering the level of loud sounds and turning up softer sounds to achieve sonic
balance. All radio stations heavily compress their signals, but CRUD could not afford a
compressor. Fortunately, virtually all recordings are compressed. Round Records played
Radio Rochdale in its store located about five blocks to the east on Bloor Street.
By 1973 Radio Rochdale had moved to the fourth-floor Ashram and used three rooms: #413,
#414, and #419. In 1974 the unprecedented mass evictions began in Rochdale, and all
EdCon space was eventually lost, including Radio Rochdale. When Pat Rogers left, Christine
Hall claims she crashed in the station office for the last year as a DJ and security guard for the
operation. By default she was the manager of CRUD, although there is no documentation to
support her claims. Hall is an arrogant self-important bitch. She was an "ugly American"
tourist who visited Rochdale for a short period and fortunately she is back in the
motherfucking USA. I never believe any of her self-serving bullshit. She doesn't know what
the fuck she is talking or writing about, and seems to be an LSD casualty with an overinflated
ego.

November 19, 1968 newsletter clip

November 1968 clip

Daily January 29, 1969 clip

Tuesdaily January 5, 1971 clip

January 5, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily January 26, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily February 8, 1971 clip

February 16, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily March 2, 1971 clip

Clear Light March 5, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily March 16, 1971 clip

Fridaily June 18, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily September 7, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily October 26, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily November 16, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily 1972 clip

Tuesdaily January 18, 1972

Spotlight on Sex January 25, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily January 26, 1972

Tuesdaily July 27, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily August 2, 1972 clip

August 24, 1972 Tuesdaily clip

Hourly Madness September 15, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily October 31, 1972 clip

Rochdale Catalog November 1972 clip

Tuesdaily November 12, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily clip

Tuesdaily November 21, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily January 16, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily February 2, 1973

Tuesdaily March 2, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily July 16, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily August 3, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily November 3, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily November 28, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily January 19, 1974 clip

Sound Horn recording studio at Rochdale College

http://soundhornrochdalecollege.blogspot.com

Outside Rochdale College at the far end of the East wing next to the SCM bookstore was the
entrance to the Rochdale basement and sub-basement parking garage, which could

accommodate 157 cars. There was a wide ramp, a large door, and two levels for vehicles.
Also there was a stairway entrance to the basements inside the building plus elevator access.
Parties and meetings were sometimes held in the basement in the early years of the college
because there were few cars, but after the cars took over most Rochdalians never went there.
Rochdale made "an attempt to reserve the sub-basement as an activity area. At one time
Radio Rochdale had resource space there, it had music study rooms, and Billy Littler had
dog-training classes in the space.
The entrance door to the basement had a large sign "Sound Horn" which inspired the name of
a small audio recording studio located in a converted storage area in a corner of the subbasement. It was truly underground in every way, a no-frills operation with a medium-size
room for musicians, and the recording area was located behind a wall of clear glass bricks.
The musicians studio area was about 20 square feet. What made it a recording studio was an
Ampex AG-440 professional two-track reel-to-reel tape recorder. At the time, the Ampex was
the recording industry standard for mastering tape decks. The AG-440 was released in 1967
and went through three generations until it was discontinued in 1982. This workhorse was
used to create the majority of professional recordings in North America, including most hit
songs, until the 1980s. Scully, Studer and Revox also made pro recorders, but they were not
as good or as popular. I have my own recording studio and have owned an Ampex AG-440
for several decades. It is built much sturdier than a tank, and is by far the very best reel-toreel analog tape recorder ever manufactured. Usually it came with a cart on wheels, and could
be bought or easily converted to a four-track or eight-track recorder for multi-tracking.
Having an AG-440 put Sound Horn at the same level as any first-rate recording studio.
However, since Sound Horn Studio only had a two-track (stereo) model using 1/4-inch tape,
recording was done the way studios operated in the 1950s. Instead of recording many
separate tracks on a multi-track recorder and then mixing them to stereo, the musicians were
recorded performing live in stereo in one take. The single most important part of this process,
which is practically a lost art today, is microphone placement. There was a mixer in the studio
to adjust the gain for each mic, pan it in the stereo spectrum, and apply EQ and reverb if
necessary. Any recording or musical equipment required for a session could be rented at Long
& McQuade music store, located just a few blocks west on Bloor Street. The acoustic
properties of trhe room is very important in recording, and the Sound Horn studio was
acceptable most of the time, except when a car would honk its horn and ruin a take.
As everything was recorded live, each song would be recorded over and over again until it
was satisfactory. The performance might have been perfect in a take, but on playback the lead
vocal might have been too loud, for example, so it was re-recorded. Fortunately analog tape
can be erased and used again and again. Pro recording studios cost a fortune to build and a
fortune to rent by the hour, but Sound Horn was affordable. Bill Bryans was the recording
engineer and a drummer from Montreal who did not live in the building. His duties included
mic placement, mixing, and equipment maintenance. The AG-440 requires frequent
alignment and calibration, a delicate and time-consuming job. Pro recording studios calibrate
their equipment on a daily basis. If the studio has a piano, it will be tuned before it is used in
a recording.
A good number of musicians recorded at Sound Horn Studio. In 1971 the Downchild Blues
Band, who had performed on the second floor Terrace during the Rochdale Summer Festival
on July 19, 1969, recorded their first vinyl LP album there. Titled "Bootleg", it was recorded
over three nights, and guitarist Donnie Walsh and others distributed the album by hand. It

was also sold by Sam Sniderman at Sam the Record Man. The record was soon acquired by
RCA Records Canada for more general distribution in Canada and Japan.
Downchild's manager Dick Flohil arranged for his band to record at Sound Horn and he said:
"Sound Horn was a tiny place, with a studio of only twenty square feet for the musicians.
Then, behind it and separated by a panel of translucent glass brick, was a minuscule cupboard
masquerading as a control room, with this two-track equipment set-up. We put the band,
evenly distributed, in the twenty square feet, leaving absolutely no room to move between the
drum kit, the amps, and the six musicians. Technically, there was no mixing, there was no
overdubbing, there was no nothing. We could only mix right channel and left channel. I
remember we did it at night a fairly good party time, but it was never out of control at all,
because the band was very cognizant of getting it right.
"Over three nights, we recorded every single song in the book twice. And at the end of it, I
think we'd got something like thirty-five or forty songs down, with two versions of each.
Then we weeded and wound up with the nine cuts that are on the "Bootleg" album. We
calculated the total cost of that record at about $500 done, finished copies on our hands.
Afterwards, we sold about 2,000 copies instantly to friends and fans.
"Three weeks after we put out the record, we'd more than made our money back. And then
along came RCA and offered us $2,000 for the rights to distribute it. Now, an offer of $2,000
at that time was like unbelievable. Jackpot! We'd already made our money and this was a
bonus. And that record stayed in their catalogue until about 1986 when RCA finally pulled
it."
Donnie Walsh said, "At the time Downchild Blues Band was born (1969), Rochdale was
pretty much walking distance from where we lived and where we played (Grossman's
Tavern) on Spadina Avenue. It was a unique place, the likes of which you'll probably never
see again. Downchild recorded their first album there in a converted storage space on the
second underground parking level. The recording studio was called Sound Horn, which was
taken from the large sign on the garage door, which said Sound Horn! It was so archaic.
There were no overdubs, so there was no harmonica. I just played guitar. They were great
times and we all had a great time!"

Bootleg track list

"Rock It" 3:57
"Just A Little Bit" 3:02
"Down In Virginia" 3:30
"That's All Right" 4:50
"Messin' With The Kid" 3:18
"Don't You Bother My Baby" 4:01
"Change My Way Of Livin'" 5:04
"You Don't Have To Go" 3:04
"Next Time You See Me" 2:20
"I'm Sinkin'" 2:45
Personnel
Don Walsh: Guitar
Rick (The Hock) Walsh: Vocals
Jim Milne: Bass
Cash Wall: Drums
Dave Woodward: Tenor saxophone
Ron Jacobs: Tenor and baritone saxophones

Production
Executive producer: Bleakney - McConnell
Direction: Dick Flohil
Recording studio: Sound Horn
Recording engineer: Bill Bryans
Sound & Mix: Alan Duffy
Art Direction: Bleakney - McConnell
Cover photo: Larry Nicol
"Bootleg" was reissued as a CD on September 11, 2007 without any extra tracks and can also
be purchased at the band's official website.
In the Fall of 1972 the hard rock and progressive rock band Rush made their first recordings
at Sound Horn studio. Bill Bryans produced some two-track songs that were not released.
The tapes of these recording sessions were later lost. Geddy Lee, the band's bass player,
singer, and keyboard player didn't think much of Sound Horn, the songs or his recordings. He
said: "We did four tracks, although I'm not sure what we recorded. It may have been some
Led Zeppelin songs. Thankfully, those tracks have disappeared from the face of the Earth and
from memory. There was only one copy and nobody can find it.
"For us, it was just a place to do some recording eager, young high school kids that we
were. We didn't actually have anything to do with the building or the Rochdale scene because
the folks seemed a trifle weird to us. We just went in and did the session and split. But it was
fun, just being part of the history of the infamous Rochdale College."
A surprisingly large number of professional musicians lived in Rochdale College.
Unfortunately, they very rarely if ever played in the building. My next door neighbour Tim
Allan in our commune was a musician and I never heard him play. The musicians knew all
about Sound Horn and some of them recorded in the facility. But except for those who parked
their cars in the basements, most Rochdalians didn't seem to be very aware of it.
Engineer Billy Bryans said: "The beauty of it was that the whole building had access to the
studio. All the residents had to do was come up with cost of the tape and then book the time. I
remember many an all-night hash jam in the studio and rehearsal space when we got to some
very weird musical spaces. We'd have all kinds of musicians renting the studio after that
from folkies to Rush.
"There was a happening music scene at Rochdale. You had people like Luke Gibson, Nancy
Simmons, Michael Hasek, Murray McLauchlan folkies, rockers, jazz. Even the late jazz
great Lenny Breau played there. And there was the band Horn, the musical wing of the HornMateski commune that set up the studio. It was a politically active band that would go out to
the various demonstrations and political rallies and play in support of the cause."
On January 20, 1971 Rochdale Governing Council resolved "that the band in Room #526 be
instructed to move to the ramp storage room in the sub-basement forthwith, and that
maintenance be instructed to fix the door of, and remove their equipment from, said room."
On February 12, 1971 Rochdale Governing Council resolved "that the East Music Room be

given to Mr. O'Connell for a Demo recording studio, occupancy to commence March 1,
1971."
Also in the Rochdale sub-basement in 1972 was Studio II Sound. It was an EdCon project run
by Rudy Hierck, a drummer and head of Rochdale Security. The studio was mostly for the
Hot Melons Rock 'n' Roll Revue and their friends. Over $200 was raised to soundproof the
space, because it was deafening to practice in a solid concrete environment. Cork board and
fibreglass insulation eliminated all distortion and feedback. Studio II Sound recording
facilities were available to other musicians at a minimal cost.
Bill Bryans of Sound Horn is now a percussionist, songwriter, music producer and DJ. As a
musician, producer, and engineer he has worked on five Downchild Blues Band albums, and
with The Parachute Club, Horn, Eyuphuro, The Phantoms, Raffi, and on the soundtrack of the
Disney movie "Jungle 2 Jungle".

Memories of Cindy Lei in Rochdale College

http://cindyleirochdale.blogspot.com/2011/05/memories-of-cindy-lei.html

When Cindy Lei moved into Rochdale College in 1972, I was living in India. I returned to
my home town of Toronto in 1973 and soon moved back into Rochdale for the fourth time.
My new home was Gnostic unit #1503 in the 15th-Floor Commune. Cathy Johnson was my
roommate and she soon gave birth to Christopher Adam, the son of Ian Argue. Our next door
neighbours were Bob Allen of maintenance and John Panter of Rochdale Security. Nickie
Ashley and her son Sammy lived with John Panter.
I first met Cindy Lei at GovCon and EdCon meetings. She took the minutes at both and the
location was almost always the Rochdale Library. Of course the GovCon meetings were
much larger and Cindy was kept very busy writing everything down and she was also
Treasurer. But at the EdCon meetings she basically was in charge, and made sure the
meetings ran smoothly and efficiently. It was a friendly and casual atmosphere, but Cindy
kept order and was almost business-like.
As I was growing vegetables indoors in the storage room in the 15th-Floor Commune, I
applied for EdCon space for growing vegetables. Cindy helped me get the EdCon space on
the sixth-floor, and Kim Foikus joined me as my partner in the project. Kim is famous for
receiving a $3,500 Canada Council grant in 1968 to be Vancouver's Town Fool. He wore a
jesters cap and bells, and strolled around warning of impending nuclear destruction at antiwar demonstrations. Vancouvers Town Fool gave rides in the downtown area to anyone who
asked in his wooden wagon, pulled by two donkeys named Peter and Pan. His court jester
antics were so successful that he was even profiled in the New York Times. Kim used the last
$500 of his grant to throw a Gala Party in Gastown for Skid Road residents.
In early 1974 I received permission from EdCon to market buttons to help advertise
Rochdale's eviction problem. In the discussion, Barb Adams suggested the slogan "Rochdale
Let It Be" and everyone thought it was great. However, when I asked for more input Cindy
decided to end the discussion and told me to get the buttons manufactured. I chose the colour
brown and had 1000 made at my expense, because EdCon had no budget. When the 1000
were quickly sold for 25 each, I ordered 1000 more but added a small flower symbol at the
top. Cindy didn't like the flower and questioned me about it. I reminded her that she ended
the discussion about the design of the button and said it was too late to complain about it
now.
Cindy Lei moved in with John Panter and Nickie Ashley. They tried a threesome for a brief
time, then Nickie and Sammy moved out. About this time I moved into the Kafka unit
directly across from me, and I got to know Cindy very well. In fact I did all of her grocery
shopping every week for a year. This I did because she was very busy and did not get out of
the building much because of a painful back injury. Cindy sometimes offered me some of her
home cooking, and I always politely declined because of my very strict vegetarian diet. But
she did make great bean sprouts and sometimes I accepted those.
Everybody in Rochdale seemed to know that Hugh Hefner of the Playboy empire was a good
friend of Cindy's. She wore a ring he gave her, and managed to get a free write-up and ad for
Rochdale College in Playboy magazine because of this connection. Cindy was older than she
looked, and told me that when she was a teen in Chicago her next door neighbour and friend
was Marilyn Monroe. What she told me about Marilyn would be front-page news even now.
Unfortunately, I cannot share it with you here, because it is one of the unique things that
makes Lone Wolf's novel magnificent.

Cindy had a male black cat that sometimes got out and sprayed in the communal hallway.
Once she posted a small intricate pornographic drawing of hers on the wall beside the
entrance to the communal lounge. It depicted dozens of people having sex in every
imaginable way. A successful writer friend of mine visited me and it was the only thing that
impressed him about Rochdale. He stood examining and admiring Cindy's drawing for about
five minutes.
Cindy rarely interfered with other people's affairs. For example, I was taking an art course by
correspondence and was having problems with the asshole who was my "teacher". I
explained the problems to Cindy, who was a gifted artist, but she said absolutely nothing and
just gave me an inscrutable smile. Another time Brian Grieveson wanted to borrow $200
from me for one of his publication projects. Cindy knew all about it because Brian had
pitched the project at an EdCon meeting. I asked for her advice, but she said nothing.
During the time when attempts were made to sell Rochdale, Cindy Lei arranged for a wealthy
Chinese businessman to tour the building. Cindy wore an expensive black designer gown and
looked positively gorgeous. I hardly recognized her in the elevator lobby. But she was unable
to sell the building. Also living in the commune was Carol Tabuchi of Japanese descent. One
day someone called down the hall to her, "Hey Cindy." Cindy Lei overheard and replied,
"You think we Orientals all look the same, don't you?" On another occasion she said, "The
Chinese are the Jews of the Orient." I mentioned this to Nickie Ashley who found the
comparison offensive and was concerned about her son Sammy overhearing it.
On July 30, 1974 there was a drug bust in the East wing of the tenth floor and some dealers
and many tenants blocked the exit of two policemen, who were trapped inside. Actually the
police were there for a stereo supposedly stolen by a Rochdale maintenance worker, but they
found some pot in their search. The police shouted for help from the window. Kim was in the
room and said Im pregnant. One of the police officers tried to rush out of the room yelling,
"I've got a pregnant woman here, let me through." Kim yelled He's a cop and he retreated
back into the room.
Electricity had been turned off on the floor and consequently the elevators werent working.
A crowd of about 25 Rochdalians including me were in the elevator lobby of the tenth-floor
when another policeman came to rescue his colleagues. He pointed his gun at everybody, was
visibly scared shitless, and pointed a gun at Jackie Halliday's face. She was frozen as the cop
held his gun and long metal flashlight in front of him and yelled, "Get the fuck out of the
way, bitch!" Jackie didn't move fast enough and the cop slammed her head with both gun and
flashlight. She turned a complete sideways somersault from the force of the hit. Apparently
the police were trying to provoke a riot by assaulting women so they could use deadly force.
The lights were out and it was a terrifying experience.
In the bravest act I ever witnessed in my life, Tony Osbourne who collected admission money
for Reg Hartt's porn film screenings calmly walked right up to the armed policeman and said,
"We're not going to harm you, and you're not going to shoot us. Put your gun away. Now!"
The policeman backed down to some extent, lowered his gun from Tony's face, but still held
the gun. In the most cowardly act I ever experienced in my life, neighbour Margot Cross
began crying hysterically with fear. She actually stooped down and hid behind me as if I were
her shield against bullets. At this point I forevermore had contempt for my neighbour,
considering she seemed like a strong woman who never hesitated to criticize others about
anything.

I went to the stairways and passed my beautiful neighbour Coco Cromwell. Blood was
pouring from her mouth because a policeman had punched her in the face and knocked out
her front tooth for no reason whatsoever. Actually he probably did it because she was black.
Eventually Coco tried to take legal action. However, it became impossible because all her
many photos and negatives at the modeling agency where she worked mysteriously
disappeared.
Tenants were enraged by this fascist attack. The police did not have a warrant and they had
removed their hats, both violations of the law. After a dozen or so cops retreated back into the
raided apartment, they phoned for reinforcements. However, the officers that came to rescue
their colleagues were very outnumbered and trapped by around 100 furious Rochdalians.
About 50 more police were called to the scene, and armed with guns and riot sticks managed
to fight their way to the stairs and escape the angry mob who threw bottles at them. The
police charged Rochdalians such as Titch with agitating a riot, but in fact the police
deliberately provoked the riot.
Six "Greenies", the receiver-appointed Community Guardian security guards were barricaded
in the second floor Rentals office. Typewriters, calculators, office equipment, and all official
records were destroyed or taken away. Molotov cocktails, bottles filled with kerosene, were
thrown against the Greenies' office window. A firehose through the door's mailslot was used
to flood their office, so the Greenies were up to their ankles in water. All office furniture was
dragged outside onto the front patio and burned. The Greenies' desk in the lobby was
destroyed and also dragged outside and burned. Many people including Dr. Bob Call were
trashing everything. Someone broke a window of the Bank of Commerce. The Greenies
contacted the police to be rescued and left the building followed by the jeers and obscenities
of Rochdalians.
Up on the 15th-Floor Commune, everybody was very concerned. President Mike Randell was
quite upset. Cindy Lei to the rescue! She left and went downstairs to end the riot. But instead
she got caught up in the mob and trashed a lot of stuff herself. According to Brian Grieveson,
he and Cindy discovered there were hundreds of riot police assembled in the nearby subway
parking lot. Eventually Cindy returned to our commune very happy about trashing
Community Guardian property, and everybody was absolutely flabbergasted.
At the fourth annual Morgravia-Boulgnia Embassy Ball on December 4, 1974, I danced with
Cindy Lei in the decorated communal lounge. I am a good dancer, but only when I hold my
partner and dance rock-and-roll jitterbug. With Cindy we danced separately, and she was very
much the dance instructor. She imitated my jerky movements, so I moved more gracefully,
which made her smile.
Mike Randell had introduced me to the guests as Count Licentia of the Royal Duchy of
Lascivia. My costume for the Ball made me look like Dracula, with a black high-collared
cape, although I was supposed to be an over-sexed aristocrat. When greeting Cindy, I told
her, "I hear you're quite a good lay" and she laughed at the pun on her name.
Christmas arrived shortly after the Embassy Ball. However, Rochdalians did not celebrate the
event. I made some Christmas cards and gave one to Cindy. She thanked me and told me that
it was all she had received for Christmas. I said, "That's what everybody has told me."

I created The Rochdale Tribunal. It was a formal trial to bring those attempting to close the
building to justice. I was only the originator and one of the people involved, and not in
charge. In fact, Cindy Lei did more work than anyone for the Tribunal. She was a Judge at the
trials and came up with outrageous and sometimes obscene sentences for offenders. Official
forms were printed and sent to the violators. Candy Kane sent a notice to Karen Johnston
charging her with "consorting with the enemy". One of the sentences given to Johnston by
Cindy was "One lousy fuck." Cindy charged one of the Jesus Freaks who had handed over
East wing units to the receiver with "Trespassing, Audacity, and Impersonating a Christian."
He was reprimanded "to the Cross for mental examination, three days."
The Rochdale Tribunal also printed up the "Rochdale Tribunal Nullification Certificate",
official-looking documents stamped with the Rochdale corporate seal that were posted on
doors to replace eviction notices. They stated, "I HEREBY NOTIFY you that in the name of
His Majesty King James I of Rochdale, the ---- Notice to Vacate ---- Notice of Motion ---other (specify) dated ---- and issued to you by Clarkson Company Ltd. is NULL and VOID".
They were signed by Joe Wertz, "a judge for the people of Rochdale". Both the Rochdale
Tribunal and Nullification certificates helped reduce the stress and frustration of the mass
evictions, and let the tenants let off steam.
In January 1975 Cindy compiled a list of things that identified a "pig" for the Tuesdaily. She
wrote a line about, "Having a big beautiful funeral with all the trimmings, if you decide to
make something, someone help you to commit suicide."
When the end was near, the 15th-Floor Commune was approached by Ken Danson, a lawyer
and the son of Ted Danson, who was the federal Minister of Housing closing Rochdale. Ken
Danson offered to represent the commune for free. Simon Liston and other sucks thought this
was a great idea and most other tenants agreed. I was appalled and sickened by the idea. The
few who disagreed had a meeting in my room. Cindy Lei, Nickie Ashley, Coco Cromwell and
a few others discussed the situation and finally reluctantly agreed to join our fellow
communards. Everybody signed a deal with Ken Danson to leave by May 15, 1975 and
thereby avoid paying back rent and legal fees of $20,000. Cindy Lei had said, "I'll probably
be one of the last dozen to be dragged out by my armpits." This deal meant she would have to
leave earlier than she expected.
On May 15, 1975 seven Sheriff's officers with sledgehammers backed by 25 policemen used
a key to enter the 15th-Floor Commune. Everyone was escorted out while a policeman
videotaped everything. Before we left, I hugged Coco Cromwell and could sense her deep
sorrow. Then Cindy Lei came and embraced me. She was trembling with rage inside, and it
was frightening to feel Cindy's profound negative emotions of bitterness, despair, and icy
cold death.
Cindy moved into a house at 138 Albany Avenue bought by a few people from the 15th floor
commune. Although I visited the house many times, I never saw Cindy there. Tragically,
Cindy Lei committed suicide in her basement room with an overdose of sleeping pills. It was
a useless sacrifice, but a deadly demonstration of her absolute commitment to Rochdale.
There was a funeral, but I did not attend because I never went to a funeral or wedding in my
life. Instead, I transferred vinyl LP recordings to cassette tapes in the living room in the
company of my mourning former communards. When I played a Manitas de Plata recording
of his virtuoso flamenco guitar playing, everybody present was pleasantly astonished. It was a
little diversion from Cindy Lei's tragedy. I was shocked and nauseated to learn that Charlie

Taylor ate one of Cindy Lei's charred bones after her cremation.
There was a wake for Cindy Lei up the street at 243 Albany Avenue where Jay Boldizsar,
Mike Randell, Kevin O'Leary, Walter Dmytrenko and others lived. It was actually a fairly
happy party, as wakes should be. The house was packed because it was Rochdales first major
reunion since the building closed. Some gloom hung over the event because of Cindy Lei's
passing, as well as a tragedy for Mike Randell. He was not present, because his parents were
in a plane crash, and only his father barely survived. Otherwise, there was food, booze, drugs,
music, dancing, schmoozing, and some merriment.

Tuesdaily August 3, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily August 17, 1973 clip

The Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball in Rochdale College

http://morgravia-boulogniaball.blogspot.com

15th Floor Commune Lounge, location of the Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Balls.

About half of the members of the commune are in this 1974 photo, and all of them
had attended an Embassy Ball.

The Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball in Rochdale College

The Embassy Balls in the 15th-Floor Commune originated in the fall of 1971 as a
lighthearted reaction to a bitter "hassle" in the commune. One member was accused of being
a dictator. Others discussed this accusation and dismissed it as Rochdale was a monarchy
headed by King James I (Jim Garrard) and all Rochdalians were royalty. It has also been
alleged that the commune started the Ball because the residents had a reputation for being
tight-assed and bourgeois compared to other Rochdalians. There was some truth in this a
couple of years later, but in 1971 the 15th-Floor Commune was more communal and no
different from the rest of the building.
It was decided to host a costume ball in the communal lounge for kings, queens, lords, ladies,
grand sultans, and various dignitaries. There were no peasants or proletarians in this original
scenario, although that changed in a few years. Pam Berton, the daughter of Pierre Berton,
and Mike Randell were the main originators. Mike wrote a history of the Grand Duchy of
Morgravia-Boulognia, which had an Embassy to King James' Court at Rochdale. The Duchy
was formed by an amalgamation with the marriage of King Gustav of Morgravia and Queen
Irma of Boulognia. Their wedding day allowed mayors of all the cities of Morgravia and
Boulognia to give long-winded speeches commemorating the formation of the Duchy. As the
wedding took place on December 4, it became known as Mrspeche Day.
The 15th-Floor Commune was granted Ambassadorial status, and celebrated Mrspeche Day
each year. Mike Randell wrote the Anthem:
Ach Der Gutte Faderland
Morgravia-Boulognia
Mitte der Gutte Vine und Bierre
Gotte sie Dronke und Soa Amme I

Drinke sie Punch und Zmoak sie Doap

For Gustav und for Irma
Morgravia-Boulognia
Morgravia-Boulognia
This was sung to the tune of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, known as
"Ode to Joy". One of the greatest musical compositions ever written, the final movement was
actually adopted for use as the official European Anthem in 1985. The anthem was sung
during the first two Balls, but it was dispensed with along with the speeches, receiving line,
and other aristocratic conventions as the Ball became a major celebration in Rochdale. For
example, the "Medals Will Be Worn" was interpreted by the proletarians who attended with
beer bottle caps fastened to their shirts.
The last invitation read:
YOU ARE COMMANDED TO APPEAR
at the
SEVENTH ANNUAL
EMBASSY BALL
of the Embassy of
MORGRAVIA-BOULOGNIA
To His Majesty's Government
King James I of Rochdale
On the Occasion Of Mrspeche Day
DECEMBER FOURTH, 1977
in the
GRAND BALLROOM
Medals Will Be Worn
The first Embassy Ball in the 15th-Floor Commune was celebrated on December 4, 1971, and
the second one exactly one year later. Pam Berton said she wore a purple bridesmaid dress
she borrowed from Karen Johnston to the first Ball. She also said that Bill King started the
beer bottle cap medal tradition at the first Ball. I was living in India and could not attend the
first two. In 1973 I was a member of the commune and very involved thereafter with
organizing the Balls. The design and text of all seven Embassy Ball invitations were the
same. But they began quite simple, just typewritten. The layout for the last four were done by
me. I chose expensive paper and used Letraset for much of the text. A fancy frame border and
ornate embellishments were also added by me. Until I came along, the sealing wax was the
invitation's main feature.
In November 1973 a group in the commune prepared the invitations for delivery. Frank
McGarret made it quite clear that the sealing wax was the most important thing. Mike
Randell poured the melted red wax from a small teapot, then it was stamped with a Royal
Seal made from soapstone. I asked Mike not to stint on the wax for my invitation. He didn't,
and poured almost half an ounce on mine. There was a lot of discussion at commune
meetings about the Ball, but few actually did the work involved with invitations,
refreshments, and music. Until 1976 the music came from LPs and audio cassettes played on
huge stereo systems.
On December 4, 1973, well over a hundred elaborately costumed guests arrived, including

King James in street clothes. There was a formal receiving line for all guests to greet each
other with announcements and introductions starting near the entrance to the Ballroom. I
appeared as the Bulgarian Ambassador, wearing suitably frumpy clothes. Many others were
in royal costumes, and Eyre Dann from the 12th-Floor Commune looked exactly like Colonel
Sanders of Kentucky Fried Chicken. With some costumed guests you didn't know who was
behind the mask. I literally dragged Margot Cross from her room to the lounge and danced
with her. She quickly returned to her room because she did not enjoy parties.
For the 1974 Embassy Ball I decorated the 15th-Floor Commune lounge, including a taped
banner around the top of the wall of the ballroom with the complete text of the MorgraviaBoulognia anthem. I also put cardboard plaques on the wall, and one of them read "Der
Morgravia-Boulognia Botschaft-Ball ist Wunderbar". At the entrance to the commune were
other plaques, including one that read "Tradesmen Entrance at Rear". Mike Randell thought
that was cute. The music system included eight tall speaker towers spread around the
Ballroom. When I danced with Trish Flint she was very impressed with my costume and
asked me if I had rented it. I responded, "Do I look like a peasant to you, my dear?"
Rochdale College was closed in 1975, but the Embassy Balls continued. In November. a
meeting to plan the 1975 Ball was scheduled for 243 Albany Avenue, then changed to 138
Albany Avenue. Over a dozen former members of the 15th-Floor Commune attended,
including Pam Berton and Nickie Ashley. It was decided to hold the Ball at an old community
centre near Bloor and Yonge. I took care of the invitations, and others were responsible for
the refreshments, recorded music, and rental of the hall.
On Mrspeche Day 1975 the Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball went ahead as planned. It
was very well-attended, with hundreds of guests, many of whom traveled long distances to
celebrate the major reunion of Rochdalians. The old hall was enormous with very high
ceilings, and large tables were loaded with refreshments. There was a festive joyous
atmosphere and many of the guests wore great costumes. Mine was that of an Elizabethan
fop, with a frilly lace shirt, velvet jacket, and tights. Bob Allen did a double-take when he
saw me enter the hall kitchen. He wasn't wearing a costume, of course. Chuck Cassity came
down the stairs in an elaborate 19th-century Admiral's costume. A police officer saw him and
said in amazement, "Holy shit!". It was good to see old friends and neighbours, and I had a
good time until I drank a token sip of the punch, which was the Embassy Ball tradition.
Unfortunately, some asshole had dosed it with "bad acid", meaning it was not LSD at all--just
some sickening chemical crap. I began feeling very strange, then ill. After vomiting I walked
all the way back home and fell asleep. In the morning I felt fine, as if nothing had happened.
The Community Centre lost its liquor license because of the Ball.
A meeting to plan the 1976 Embassy Ball was held in November of that year, again at 138
Albany Avenue. About a dozen former members of the 15th-Floor Commune attended. Peter
Young suggested that the Ball be held at 21 Baldwin Street, the Rochdale Office I had set up.
I told Peter it was "out of the question". But I didn't give the reasons, such as it was too small,
the floors would cave in because of the weight, and so on. Then I suggested the Toronto
Islands. Peter said, "That's out of the question." We decided to hold the event at University
Settlement House in Grange Park by the Art Gallery of Ontario. I took care of the invitations
and also provided live music for free because I owned and managed a large music talent
agency on Bloor Street. Bill Granger rented the Hall, and others arranged for refreshments.
On December 4, 1976 the Embassy Ball was held at University Settlement House. It was a

great success with hundreds of costumed Rochdalians in attendance. At first there was a
squabble among the three rock bands for which of the three stages to use. Bill Granger, one
of the main organizers, almost ruined everything during the squabble among the bands.
Because of his interference, all musicians were going to leave--which would have pleased
Bill Granger very much. He wanted me to fail. I told Bill to butt out, then quickly resolved
the dispute with my bands. First to perform was a hard rock cover band named Overdrive that
sounded very much like Led Zeppelin and the singer was somewhat nervous. Their songs
included "Whole Lotta Love" and "Rock and Roll". Overdrive needed a younger audience.
Greystone Willow were the headliners, a good Chicago tribute band who played two sets.
Their horn section and slick performance added a touch of class to the Ball. The band played
Chicago hit songs such as "Beginnings", "25 or 6 to 4", "Saturday in the Park", "Does
Anybody Really Know What Time It Is?", and other great tunes familiar to everyone. I
danced with Pam Berton and she was stiff, probably not accustomed to dancing my jitterbug.
Rapid Tears were the hit of the evening with the great Beatles songs they played to
perfection. They sounded just like the Fab Four. When they started their set with "I Saw Her
Standing There" the place exploded with excitement and everybody got up to dance,
including King James I of Rochdale. It was amazing! The only time I witnessed anything
similar was on March 26, 1970 at the Toronto Rock Festival when the legendary MC5 started
playing and 10,000 kids rushed the stage. Rapid Tears next played "You Can't Do That". They
were not dressed like the Beatles, though, and the bass player wore a skeleton costume. Alex
MacDonald was so thrilled with Rapid Tears that he came over to me and said he wanted
them to play at his party. The egomaniac motherfucker! He couldn't even enjoy himself at the
Ball without thinking of himself and his ambition. I told him I was their manager, and they
did not perform at amateur house parties. Rapid Tears played hit Beatles songs for about an
hour, and their performance was definitely the most joyous moment in Embassy Ball history.
There was a short intermission and Greystone Willow ended the musical portion of the
evening with their second set. Simon Liston and some other Rochdalians who attended
referred to this Ball as John Sullivan's Rock Concert, because they were jealous and resentful
that I could pull it off since I was a rock band manager and agent.
The following year I invited the Embassy Ball organizers to Grossman's Tavern on Spadina
Avenue to hear The Fabulous Overtones, an electric blues band very much like the early
Rolling Stones. I chose the bar to be on "neutral territory". Bob Allen sneered, "Neutral
territory?" He was jealous. We decided they were perfect for the Ball. At 138 Albany we had
a meeting to organize the Ball as usual. But it was entirely different, with no cooperation, and
much competition and hostility. We decided to hold it at the University Settlement House
again. However, Bill Granger insisted that it be held on December 3, not December 4,
because that year December 4 fell on a Sunday. So what? I was opposed and should have
reminded him that I would do the invitations and distribute all of them, provide the live
entertainment for free, and so on. In other words, without me there would be no Embassy
Ball. Actually, I was the only organizer who helped organize Balls in Rochdale--Bill, Bob,
and Peter never did. I should have threatened to walk, but I reluctantly agreed mainly because
it would be December 4 at midnight during the Ball. The invitations were dated December 4
and the text read, "Royal Reception from 8:30 pm Saturday, Dec. 3 until 1 am Dec. 4". Then
Bill sent me to see his former girlfriend Cathy/Catherine/Kate who abused me very much
with insults and criticisms. I was polite to her, but I should have responded with profane
insults that would have reduced her to tears. Actually I should have told Bill to fuck off and
go see Cathy/Catherine/Kate himself.

It's important to understand that by this time the Embassy Ball had become the de facto
annual Rochdale Reunion. This was probably inevitable but it ruined the Ball. Some guests
still arrived in impressive costumes, but most wore street clothes or modern formal attire. An
annual reunion was needed by Rochdalians, and except for me, the organizers of the Ball
were unimaginative sensible workers who would never wear foolish costumes. If the
organizers had included Mike Randell and Pam Berton, genuine Morgravia-Boulognia
Embassy Balls would have continued.
On December 3, 1977 the last Embassy Ball was held at University Settlement House. Bill
Granger showed me the receipt from the centre and he smiled smugly because it was in his
name. The idiot appointed Billy Littler to handle security. We never had security at Balls,
never discussed nor approved it, and did not need it. Police officers came and Billy Littler
refused to allow them to enter. I should have told Bill Granger to dismiss the asshole
immediately so there would be no disaster. But it was a cooperative effort so I didn't. Instead
I tried in vain to reason with Billy.
I worked the lights for the Fabulous Overtones. They were excellent and their version of
Willie Dixon's "Evil" spoke directly to the Rochdalians: "I'm just warning you brother, you
better watch your happy home." They also performed a great version of Chuck Berry's
"Almost Grown", Etta James' "Just a Little Bit", and other classics. Alex MacDonald made a
grand entrance carrying a gigantic hash pipe about three feet long, and the singer for the
Overtones jumped off the stage to enjoy a few tokes. MacDonald's pipe was called "the
Official Regal Sceptre of the Grand Duchy of Smeennskneeng". There was an intermission
between sets, and a guest at the party played some lovely jazz on a grand piano located on
another stage. When I looked down, Kim Foikis (former Town Fool of Vancouver) was lying
on his back on the floor beside me laughing hysterically and moving his legs in the air like he
was rapidly pedaling a bicycle. Peter Young came over a few times to tell me many cases of
beer were being brought in the back door. I told him to stop it because it jeopardized our
liquor license.
The Overtones began their second set, but after another hour of partying a police officer went
on stage, stopped the music, then told everybody they must leave the building because the
liquor license had been violated. This must have been fun for the corrupt police at 52
Division to persecute Rochdalians again. Their Nazi attacks on Rochdale were fascist tactics
that Canadians supported and approved, so they could do anything they wished with
impunity. The mood at the Ball quickly changed from a celebration to sadness and anger.
People were in a daze and slowly left the building. King Bill panicked, freaked out, and broke
down like a little girl. "Somebody do something," he pleaded. "Somebody please do
something!" That's the kind of leadership King Bill had.
I do not drink alcohol, and I did what I could to avert this disaster caused by incompetent
amateur organizers. There was no way I would be involved with the consequences and
repercussions that I tried very hard to avoid. The issue was alcohol, which I hate and did not
drink at the Ball. So I simply left the building. Basically, Billy Littler had destroyed the
Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Balls forever. Outside was a large crowd of angry, drunken
Rochdalians and they disapproved of me "running away". I did not run away, I walked away
in disgust. There were no more Embassy Balls, and I have not spoken a word to Peter Young,
Bill Granger, or Bob Allen since then. Those competitive motherfuckers obviously did not
learn anything about cooperation in Rochdale. There can never be another MorgraviaBoulognia Embassy Ball. I could easily "organize" a magnificent Ball for December 4 all by

myself. But it wouldn't be an Embassy Ball, because that would require the involvement of
former members of the 15th-Floor Commune.

Memories of Dirty Dan McCue in Rochdale College

http://memoriesofdanmccue.blogspot.com

Dirty Dan
Daniel McCue as a construction worker helped build Rochdale College. He lived there from
the very beginning in 1968 until the bitter end in 1975. In March 1969 he was listed in the
Rochdale Curriculum for his discussions on recreational drugs:
* DRUGS (S): Tuesdays, 8pm, main lounge, conducted by Dan McCue, with frequent guest
speakers, films etc. Intense discussions of effects of drug use and abuse, and varied aspects of
the "drug culture" by people who know and people who want to know. Guests have included
members of the Alcohol and Drug Addiction Research Foundation, Community Services
Organization, etc., and U.of T. faculty biochemist, Deba Sinha.
It is worth noting that Dan did not use drugs himself. He told me, "I had my first and last joint
in Rochdale. The first was free, and after that you had to pay and I never fell into that trap."
However, Dan actually did experiment with drugs in the late 1960s. In the Rochdale College
newsletter he wrote: "Every now and then when in a really bad head, all I can see in my
brother's eye is this mote and it is full of these dagger spitting crocodiles. Every now and
then I remember my own mote. Like I tried to drown my crocs in alcohol. Thenaround
1967 with a little help friends, I tried to hide my mote, crocs and all, in a cloud of smoke.
Come 1968, 1969, with a little more help from my friends, I tried to dissolve my mote in

chocolate syrup. I mean, hell, a purple crocodile with orange microdots can't be all bad. You
know, most of these attempts worked well for the moment they sometimes somehow
seemed to work. Except coming down. Dammit you know every time I came down, them old
crocs got bigger and uglier. Then it got ridiculous." So Dan become an alcoholic and it
definitely changed his personality.
I first visited Rochdale in 1968 and lived there off and on from 1969 until 1975. Dan was
always a very visible fixture in Rochdale, with a grocery store, booze can and various retail
outlets or concession stands in the lobby. He lived in Kafka #902 and sold newspapers,
magazines, comic books, and other items in the building. Before Reg Hartt began his
capitalist cinema in the second floor lounge in 1970, Dan managed the second floor Lounge
with live music concerts, seminars, and film screenings for free. His distinctive long bright
red hair and moustache (and later a beard) made him very recognizable. I saw him countless
times, spoke to him occasionally, but never really got to know him. He was the son of Jean
Holt, his wife was named Tig and he had two children named Danah Jean and Tammy, plus
grandchildren. Dan's eight brothers and sisters were: Kathleen, Robina, Anna, Margaret, Jean,
Teddy, Gordon, and Billy.
In 1973 I moved back into Rochdale. It was a different situation, because previously I only
lived there because it was in the Annex neighourhood where I grew up. The big attraction had
always been the "no silly rules" policy that rooming houses were infamous for. I socialized
with people in the building and attended meetings, but they weren't really my kind of people,
and the meetings were fucking boring bullshit. They talked and talked and talked about
nothing. They did nothing.
This time it was different. I got involved. The GovCon and EdCon meetings were often
interesting, sometimes tedious, but rarely boring. One reason is Dan McCue would arrive
drunk and disrupt things. But it was great entertainment. He would rant and rave about the
"fucking bullshit", bellowing so loudly he was the center of attention. Most people were
amused by the temporary diversion from the boring bullshit.
In 1974 with the backing of EdCon, I marketed 2000 "Rochdale Let it Be" buttons to help
save the building. At the same time Dirty Dan marketed his white buttons which read "Let
My People Stay". My buttons were more popular, but I liked Dan's buttons better, although
he should have included the word "Rochdale" in them. Possibly Dan's concept was his
buttons were intended for Rochdalian internal-use only.
He became "Dirty Dan" probably because it was the pen name he used in Rochdale
newsletters. And of course he was a larger than life character, his name was Dan, and "Dirty
Dan" is a common nickname. Nobody called him "Dirty Dan" to his face, only to others to
distinguish him from other men named Dan. Although the name suited him, he was actually
an honest, friendly, and helpful man. I never heard anything but good said about him from his
countless friends. My neighbour Frank McGarret said, "A little bit of Dirty Dan goes a long
way." The truth is most people could not get enough of Dan.
After Rochdale closed, I started the Rochdale Office at 21 Baldwin Street in 1976. It was also
the office of the "Rochdale" newspaper. Dirty Dan was a frequent visitor and I got to know
him fairly well. Dan wanted to buy all of Brian Grieveson's "Rochdale" underground
newspapers for 10 each, but Brian turned him down. The only negative experience I had
was one morning I went to the office and Dan was there with Charlie Taylor, and they were

both very drunk. Dan was nice to me, but Charlie Taylor was in an extremely foul mood. He
ordered me to, "Get the fuck out of here. We don't want you here." As I had signed the lease
with Brian Grieveson to the building, Charlie was actually trespassing on my territory. But I
just left the malignant asshole with his booze, and never saw him there again. He was similar
to Fergie, who moved into the Rochdale Office because destructive motherfucking King Bill
ordered him to. Fergie assaulted me by smashing my head against a window just because he
was high on cocaine, no other reason.
When Rochdale closed, I moved back into the house of my best friend's family on Poplar
Plains Road. They were fine people, but they bored me to tears and annoyed me sometimes
with their bourgeois everything. The house next door became vacant and I leased it from the
owner. Big mistake. I learned that moving next door is no easier than moving across town.
About eight people moved into the house, including five Rochdalians: me, Dirty Dan, Mike
Sandberg, Ruth King, Beverly, and also two women and a young man not from Rochdale.
The good news was Dan was on the wagon. Unfortunately, he was very different. Not exactly
boring, but he was emotionally flat and didn't seem very happy. But it was great to hear him
tell the history of Rochdale College from his point of view and meet his many Rochdalian
visitors. His favorite word at the time was "Absolutely!", which he over-used at every
opportunity.
Dan told me about how he organized the great Rochdale Music Concert at the University of
Toronto's Convocation Hall on March 1, 1970. I had attended but it was fascinating to hear
about Dan's involvement and the behind the scenes stuff. Dan also organized "The Soul of
Christmas" on December 20, 1969 at Convocation Hall. Dan told me that the choirs arrived
in buses, and the singers stayed overnight at Rochdale.
Another thing Dan told me about was his encounter with Pierre Berton, whose daughter Pam
was living in Rochdale. When Pierre came to a Rochdale event, Dirty Dan was collecting the
entrance admission. Dan told him, "I don't care who your daughter is, you still have to pay to
get in."
The problem with the "Co-op" house was the other members' idea of a Co-op was to have
meetings and decide what work I would do. They treated me like the landlord. Mike
Sandberg removed all the plaster from his bedroom walls to expose the bare brick, but just
left the plaster in a huge pile in the center of his small room. He was quite impressive
intellectually, but Mike was a basket case when trying to function in the real world. Like
many Rochdalians, he had a spaced-out personality and his feet were not on the ground.
Dirty Dan and Mike had conversations about Rochdale in the 1960s that were quite
educational. Mike placed importance on Rochdalians taking control of the building from the
original management--the lunatics taking over the asylum. He didn't seem to think the
building was really Rochdale College until that change. Dan was less interested in this and
generally didn't seem very political, although he was a very sociable man.
One night while I was asleep, my bedroom door exploded into splinters and Dirty Dan burst
into my room screaming obscenities like a madman. "I'm fucking sick to death of all your
motherfucking bullshit! You suck so bad," he bellowed. I just thought, "Oh no, Dan has fallen
off the wagon." It was the last straw, and I decided to move back next door. One of the
women was angry about this decision and said, "But you're the reason I moved in here.

Without you this house is nothing." I replied, "This is a Co-op house. I'm not the landlord and
never signed a binding contract with you or anyone else. I'm outta here."
I moved back next door to live with my friends. The strange thing I learned was it is just as
much work to move next door as it is to move miles away. It was great to be alone again. My
friends spent much of their time out of the city, or out of the country, so I had the large house
all to myself much of the time. There was a cleaning lady, and all I had to do was feed Briar,
the Cocker Spaniel dog. Sometimes when my friends were home, I was in in NYC or
England doing research on my book of vegetarian biography. And sometimes I vacationed
alone on their private island on a large private lake north of Kingston.
Then I moved onto the U of T campus for 11 years, and could clearly see nearby Rochdale
College from my living room window. My antique stained glass hung over this window, the
same that hung over my bedroom window in Rochdale's 15th-Floor Commune.
As the years went by I often saw Dirty Dan McCue, usually in the Spadina and Kensington
Market area. We didn't say much, but he always gave me a wonderful warm hug. Nobody
gave better hugs than Dirty Dan, because he had a heart of gold and I could feel his goodness.
When the two dreadful semi-fictional books about Rochdale came out in the late 1980s I
realized that Dirty Dan could write the definitive history of Rochdale College. Nobody knew
or understood it better than he did.
By 2009 Dirty Dan habitually stood on the NE corner of Queen Street and Spadina where he
sold or gave away small newspapers. I passed him on my bicycle countless times, but we
never spoke because there was nothing to say. However, we did make eye contact, and we
definitely still loved each other.
When I began researching and writing my non-fiction historical novel A Wolf Among Sheep
in 2009, I contacted many people merely for names I had forgotten. I tried to contact Dirty
Dan, not only for names but also information about his 1970 Convocation Hall Concert and
other things. Tragically, Dirty Dan had died on Saturday, November 14, 2009 at the age of 65
years at Lakeridge Health Bowmanville. The cause was said to be throat cancer, although
some claim it was a lung problem. Private family services were held in Bowmanville. His
countless friends in Toronto held a Daniel McCue Memorial Hootenanny from 4 to 7 p.m. at
the Horseshoe Tavern, 370 Queen Street West on Sunday, December 13, 2009.

"Rochdale go bragh"

Booze in the Rock

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_54_Alcohol.html

Alcohol is an organic compound, a class of chemicals with various molecular formulas.

Ethanol is the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, and the word alcohol commonly
refers specifically to ethanol or a beverage based on ethanol. It has the molecular formula
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CH3OH). These other alcohols are usually poisonous and not imbibed. Ethanol is a
psychoactive drug that affects the mind and behavior, and it is the main psychoactive
ingredient in alcoholic beverages.
Alcoholic drinks have been consumed by humans since prehistoric times, at least as early as
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American adult drinks the equivalent of 38 six-packs of beer, a dozen bottles of wine and two
quarts of distilled spirits. 39 other counties outdrink the USA, topped by Luxembourg where
residents drink 284 bottles of beer and 88 bottles of wine annually.

The word alcohol first appeared in English as a term for a very fine powder in the early 16thcentury. It was borrowed from French, which took it from medical Latin, although the word
is from the Arabic kohl, a powder used as an eyeliner. The current Arabic name for alcohol is
al Kohool or al-gawl () " " " " " "", meaning "spirit" or "demon". "Powdered cosmetic" was the
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Wine was consumed in Classical Greece at breakfast or at symposia, and in the first-century

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generally drank diluted wine with the strength varying from one part wine and one part water,
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fermented mash for beer is distilled, then the beverage is a spirit. Typical beer is about five
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Cider or cyder is a fermented alcoholic beverage made from fruit juice, usually apple juice.
In the USA and Canada, cider often means unfermented apple juice (sometimes called sweet
cider), and fermented apple juice is called hard cider. In the United Kingdom and Australia,
cider refers to the alcoholic beverage. Hard cider varies in alcohol content from two to eightpoint-five percent or more. When sugar or extra fruit is added and a secondary fermentation
increases the alcohol content well above ten percent, it is classified as "apple wine".
Applejack is an alcoholic drink distilled from fermented cider, either by traditional
evaporative distillation or freeze distillation. The word applejack comes from jacking, a term
for freeze distillation. It will be seven to ten percent alcohol, but if the temperature is
lowered it can be up to 33% alcohol.
Wine and brandy distilled from wine are usually made from grapes, but when they are made
from another kind of fruit they are distinguished as fruit wine or fruit brandy. The kind of
fruit must be specified, such as "cherry brandy" or "plum wine. Fortified wine is wine with
an added distilled beverage, usually brandy. Table wine has an alcoholic content of seven to
14%. Typically, wine is about 12% alcohol and fortified wine is 17%.
Hard liquor is a generic term for any alcoholic spirit distilled from fermented grain, fruits or
vegetables. Types include whiskey, vodka, gin, Tequila, rum, and brandy. Whiskey (or
whisky) is made from grain or a blend of several grains. The type of whiskey (Scotch, rye,
bourbon, or corn) is determined by the primary grain. Vodka is distilled from fermented
grain or potatoes. It is highly distilled so that it will contain less of the flavor of its base
material. Gin is a similar distillate from grain or malt but it is flavored by juniper berries and
sometimes by other herbs as well. Tequila is a spirit that is distilled from the agave cactus in
Jalisco state in Mexico. Rum is a liquor distilled from sugarcane residues or molasses.
Brandy and other hard liquors are about 40% alcohol.
Short-term effects of consuming this central nervous system depressant include intoxication,

dehydration, sleep disruption, impaired balance, euphoria, lethargy, confusion, and stupor.
Long-term effects include alcoholism, changes in the metabolism of the liver and brain,
malnutrition, chronic pancreatitis, psychiatric disorders, and the possible damage to nearly
every organ and system in the body. Alcohol is a known carcinogen when consumed, and
can cause seven types of cancer even at levels far short of intoxication. Drinking small
amounts of alcohol can offer some protection for people at risk of heart disease, but large
amounts can increase the risk of stroke, high blood pressure, and other conditions.
Alcoholism is a major health and social problem throughout the world. Groups such as
Alcoholics Anonymous exist to help people to deal with alcohol addictions. Alcohol is the
major cause of motor accidents, which is athe primary cause of accidental death, particularly
for young people.
The reasons for drinking alcohol include: it is part of a person's standard diet, for medical
reasons, for its relaxant effects, for its euphoric effects, for recreational purposes, for
religious ceremonies, for artistic inspiration, and for its alleged aphrodisiac effects.
In the past alcohol was healthier than water, which was generally very dirty and a major
source of disease like cholera and other dangerous microbes. It was safer to drink booze.
The process of brewing alcoholic beverages requires that the liquid be boiled or subjected to
similar sterilizing treatments. "It's possible that people who drank fermented beverages
tended to live longer and reproduce more than did their teetotaling peers," said expert Dr.
McGovern, "which may partly explain why people have a proclivity to drink alcohol."
Alcohol was once a remedy for snake bites, used to extract tinctures from herbs, as an
antiseptic, and was also used as an anesthetic. In the old days, physicians would give patients
whiskey shots before an operation.
Today alcohol is used in medicine as an antidote to combat the effects of other types of drugs
or alcohol, especially to treat methanol poisoning. Once ethanol is added to the system, it
competes with the other alcohols to be broken down by the body, and slows down the
metabolism of other chemicals in the bloodstream where they typically become toxic. It's
occasionally used as a preservative, and is also used to counteract antifreeze (ethylene glycol)
poisoning. Alcohol is used for its antiseptic properties, and it's often found in antibacterial
wipes and hand sanitizers. Disinfection is one of the most important of vodkas properties. A
small cut or wound can be cleaned with vodka to prevent infection when no milder antiseptic
is available. It is effective at killing most bacteria, fungi, and many viruses on the hands and
skin, and it is a useful alternative to hand soaps. Medical professionals often use alcohol gel
sanitizers before treating patients to prevent the spread of harmful bacteria.
Vodka will help with a boil filled with pus by using a vodka compress. It can also be used as
an external anti-fever medicine because of its property to evaporate very fast. Tequila
benefits include treatment of ulcerative colitis, irritable bowel syndrome, colon cancer and
Crohns disease. Many drugs are destroyed by acids in the stomach. This can be avoided by
the agave compounds of tequila, a type of polysaccharide known as fructans.
Jagermeister is a German 70 proof (35% alcohol by volume) digestif made with 56 herbs and
spices. Since it's a digestive it is served after a meal. It was developed as a digestive and as a
cough remedy to clear out minor colds and congestion. A shot of cold Jagermeister will
soothe your cold, cough and sore throat.
There are also many benefits from beer. It is a natural hair conditioner, a cure for upset

stomachs, it can also reduce osteoporosis, and dark beer works as an anti-aging drink that
contains high levels of anti-oxidants. Around the world, beer is mixed with herbs like
ginger. It's helpful for morning sickness in pregnancy and rheumatoid arthritis.
Brandy will keep you warm and aids to improve the common cold. In the military, men were
given doses of brandy to help them last through troubled times. Brandy is also an antioxidant
and stress reliever. Chartreuse is a French liqueur that was created by monks from 130 spices
in the 1600s as a health tonic. It is also known as the "elixir of long life". Chartreuse works
as a digestif and it may well be one secret to a long life. Akvavit is a digestif from
Scandinavia most commonly flavoured with caraway, drunk as shots from the freezer.
Akvavit is often called the "water of life" and it has been in production since the 1500s. It is
believed to cure internal and external problems.
Mead, also called honey wine, is an alcoholic beverage produced by fermenting a solution of
honey and water, sometimes with added grain mash. It is regarded as the ancestor of all
fermented drinks. Mead may be flavored with spices, fruit, or hops and the alcoholic content
ranges from about eight- to 18%. It may be still, carbonated or naturally sparkling, dry, semisweet or sweet. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, promoted the use of honey for all kinds
of healing. Honey was a dominant ingredient in many ancient medications and the medicinal
powers attributed to mead are because of the honey in the winemaking process. Honey is a
disinfectant and alcohol can be used as an expectorant. When herbs are added to make
various forms of metheglin (spiced mead), the medicinal qualities of the herbs are infused
into the mead. Cultures all over the world made their own unique blend of metheglin to cure
whatever was needed. Aborigines made mead from rare medicinal herbs and Europeans used
over 100 different herbs in some mead that were designed as a complete cure-all.
Prohibition of alcohol is the legal act of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation and sale
of alcoholic beverages. The earliest records of prohibition date back to 1600 BC in China. In
the early 20th-century, much of the impetus for the prohibition movement in the West came
from the moralistic convictions of Protestants. It coincided with the advent of women's
suffrage, with liberated women strongly supporting policies that curbed alcohol
consumption. The Women's Christian Temperance Union's successful anti-alcohol campaign
was largely funded by the Mafia, which made billions from Prohibition in the U.S..
The first half of the 20th-century saw periods of prohibition of alcoholic beverages in a
number of countries:
1) 1920 to 1933 in the United States
2) 1907 to 1948 in Prince Edward Island, and for shorter periods in other provinces in Canada
3) 1907 to 1992 in the Danish Faroe Islands; limited private imports from Denmark were
allowed from 1928
4) 1914 to 1925 in Russia and the Soviet Union
5) 1915 to 1922 in Iceland (beer was still prohibited until 1989)
6) 1916 to 1927 in Norway (fortified wine and beer prohibited from 1917 to 1923)
7) 1919 in Hungary (March 21 to August 1; called szesztilalom or "liquor ban")
8) 1919 to 1932 in Finland (called kieltolaki or "ban law")
Alcohol for some religions is a sacrament, and for others a sin. For Roman Catholics,
sacramental wine, Communion wine or altar wine is intended for use in celebration of the
Eucharist, also known as the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion. Altar wine may be either

red or white pure grape wine, weak or strong, sweet or dry, and some churches add a little
water. It has an alcoholic content of around 12% and during Prohibition the wine on church
altars was real wine. It symbolizes the change of wine into the blood of Jesus Christ at the
table of the Last Supper. However, some Protestant Christian churches disapprove of the
consumption of alcohol. Today the views on alcohol in Christianity can be divided into
moderationism, abstentionism, and prohibitionism. Moderates think alcohol in moderation is
good, abstentionists don't drink alcohol at all, and prohibitionists want alcohol to be outlawed
and unavailable to anyone.
Strangely, after 2000 years Christianity (otherwise known as Churchianity) has little to do
with Christ. How many priests and ministers have long hair, a beard, and wear sandals like
Jesus? None, because they all look like fucking suburban assholes who want money, money,
money. What Jesus thought about alcohol is disputed like almost everything else he did.
Some claim that he prohibited his flock from associating with alcoholics. Others believe he
drank grape juice, and never wine. His cousin John the Baptist abstained from alcohol, grape
juice, grapes, and even raisins. Nowhere in the Bible does it explicitly state that Jesus drank
wine. However, as a pious Jew he definitely was obligated to at least taste it for religious
reasons. Furthermore, Jesus turned water into wine during the miracle at the Wedding of
Cana in John 2:1-12. He was the bartender at a celebration where abuse of alcohol certainly
may have taken place, and he himself would have drunk this wine. His participation makes
idiots of those who preach the Bible requires Christians to abstain from alcohol. At the Last
Supper Jesus gave his disciples wine and said, "This cup is the new testament in my blood,
which is shed for you." (Luke 22:17) and "I will not drink wine again until the day I drink it
new with you in my Father's Kingdom." (Mathew 26:29)
For what it's worth, in Luke 1:15 we find "For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and
shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even
from his mother's womb." In Timothy 5:21-25 is "I charge thee before God, and the Lord
Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one
before another, doing nothing by partiality. Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be
partaker of other men's sins: keep thyself pure. Drink no longer water, but use a little wine
for thy stomach's sake and thine other infirmities." In Mathew 11:19 is "The Son of Man
came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Here is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax
collectors and sinners.' But wisdom is proved right by her deeds."
Judaism treats alcohol much like it treats everything else. Anything that can be abused is
kept balanced and made holy. In the Scriptures wine is described as "bringing joy to God and
man" (Judges 9:13). Every sacrifice offered in the Holy Temple was accompanied by a wine
libation. Wine is considered to be the "king of beverages" and rabbis coined a special
blessing to be recited exclusively on wine: the Hagafen blessing. It is used for kiddush and
havdallah on Shabbat and Jewish holidays, and many mitzvot are accompanied by a cup of
wine. Wine sanctifies the Sabbath at its inception (kiddush) and its conclusion (havdalah).
Blessings are recited on a cup of wine beneath the chupah (wedding canopy), at a
circumcision, at a Pidyon Haben (the "Redemption of a Firstborn Son"), and Jews drink four
cups of wine at the Passover seder. The English word wine may derive from the Hebrew
"yayin". There is an old Jewish custom to say "l'chaim" and wish each other well over a shot
glass of schnapps.
Jews are also told of the destructive nature of wine and intoxication: Noah was disgraced by
excessive wine consumption. Nadab and Abihu, Aaron's two holy sons, entered the

Tabernacle while drunk and were consumed by a fire that emanated from the heavens. The
Torah extols the virtue, courage, and holiness of the Nazirite who vows to abstain from wine.
Lot became drunk and was seduced by his daughters. Aaron's two sons were killed for
officiating as priests while drunk. They had committed a sin as defined in Leviticus 10.
Judges were forbidden to sit in judgement if they were drunk. Only on Purim, when Jews
commemorate Queen Esther for saving her people from certain death, are Jews encouraged to
drink to excess. One custom even decrees that a Jew should drink "until he does not
know" (ad-lo-yada in Hebrew) the difference between Mordechai (their loyal leader) and
Haman (the evil betrayer). Hasidic Jews offended other Jews by praying while inebriated in
the 18th-century. They argued that everyone should worship God in joy. The Talmud rules
that drunkenness is no excuse for bad actions, and even business deals made while drunk are
considered valid.
During Prohibition any rabbi could show a list of congregants and get alcohol for them. The
numbers of Jewish congregation members increased dramatically and the names of the dead
were added to their enrollment lists. Some rabbis opened "wine stores" where customers
signed up for a membership to buy wine. There were rabbis who dealt in sacramental
champagne, sacramental creme de menthe, sacramental brandy, and various other liquors
unconnected to Jewish religious practices. Also there were Jewish bootleggers, and some
gentiles saw Jewish bootlegging as proof that Jews were incapable of conforming to
American values. But the flouting of Prohibition law was practically a national pastime.
Jews like to see themselves as restrained drinkers. However, recent statistics suggest that
Jews are just as susceptible to alcoholism as most people in modern society.
For Muslims alcohol is a sin and is forbidden (haram). At first it was forbidden for Muslims
to attend prayers while intoxicated according to the Qur'an. Then a later verse stated alcohol
contains some good and some evil, but the evil is greater than the good. Finally, "intoxicants
and games of chance" were called "abominations of Satan's handiwork", intended to turn
people away from God and forget about prayer, and Muslims were ordered to abstain. The
Prophet Muhammad said, "Alcohol is the mother of all evils and it is the most shameful of
evils." It was prohibited completely. No one was allowed to sell it, to buy it, to make it, or
have anything to do with it. No exceptions whatsoever.
There is no Hindu religious ban on the use of alcohol as there is in Islam because Hinduism
generally shies away from absolute dos and donts and tries to deal with individual cases.
Alcohol is considered part of the use of intoxicants in general, not a separate item. Many
monastic orders from India, both Hindu and non-Hindu, take various vows like celibacy.
Refraining from alcohol is another vow that most of these monks swear to. Some Hindu
Tantric groups, on the other hand, use alcohol in a sacred way, either as an offering to the
deity or to take during certain special rituals. Hindu merchants and aristocrats have
historically used alcohol, just as they have not practiced celibacy. Many continue to use
alcohol today, without necessarily falling into alcoholism.
One of the Five Precepts in Buddhism warns against taking intoxicants causing heedlessness.
Many traditional Buddhist teachers stick to the "I undertake the vow to abstain from
intoxicants that cause heedlessness." But this is a precept or rule and not a commandment, so
every Buddhist has to interpret it individually. This precept encourages practitioners to keep
their minds clear and lucid at all times to be able to meditate. Some Buddhists refrain from
alcohol and drugs altogether, and some are casual social drinkers. Chgyam Trungpa
Rinpoche attempted to lead his Vajrayana students in the West in what he called "mindful

drinking" with mixed results. Some students felt a loosening up on their ego and their
dualistic sense of "me" vs. "the world". Others threw up. One student said that they were
encouraged to "drink just enough to relax, to appreciate your situation and to help your ego
go to sleep." The idea was to be aware of the effect of alcohol and its ability to relax the
mind. When a loosening was felt inside, it was time to stop drinking.
In Thomas A. Dardis' book The Thirsty Muse, he explores the ancient notion that heavy
drinking fosters creativity. He profiles four alcoholic American writers: William Faulkner, F.
Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and Eugene O'Neill. Dardis argues that the first three
burned themselves out before they had fully reached their creative potential because of
booze. Faulkner's whiskey binges resulted in repeated hospitalizations, Fitzgerald's daily
alcoholic abuse led to despair, and Ernest Hemingway's denial syndrome was a sad picture of
self-destruction. However, Eugene O'Neill quit drinking at age 38 and went on to write plays
about the power of addiction, from The Iceman Cometh to his masterpiece Long Day's
Journey into Night. Dardis examines hereditary and environmental influences, and details the
strange and pernicious link between alcohol and creativity. It's a study of the writer as a
drunk and of a time when "Good writers were drinking writers," according to Hemingway.
Thomas A. Dardis favors the genes and environment explanation of the disease and believes
the four writers were genetically predisposed to alcoholism. Also during Prohibition some
Americans drank because they were against the establishment. The book generally makes the
point that alcohol can usually help a writer at first with "inspiration", but with the onset of
alcoholism it's all downhill.
An old Japanese proverb is, "First the man takes a drink; then the drink takes a drink; then the
drink takes the man." Presumably the best strategy is to set a limit and not allow "the drink
to take a drink".
In Rochdale College there was very little alcohol consumed at the beginning. That is because
the college inherited hippie values, and alcohol was viewed as the recreational drug of the
despised older generation. As Timothy Leary wrote, "Who's brainwashed you that way to
think that alcohol, the dangerous, narcotic, addictive intoxicant, is something that should be
consumed, and a holy sacrament such as marijuana and drugs like LSD which have been used
for thousands of years by spiritual seekers should not be used?" This belief was also shared
by Bob Marley, who said, " Herb is the healing of a nation, alcohol is the destruction."
On a lighter note, "gonzo" journalist Hunter S. Thompson wrote, "I hate to advocate drugs,
alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone, but they've always worked for me." Finley Peter
Dunne wrote, "Alcohol is necessary for a man so that he can have a good opinion of himself,
undisturbed by the facts." William S. Burroughs wrote, "Our national drug is alcohol. We
tend to regard the use of any other drug with special horror." Friedrich Nietzsche wrote,
"Two great European narcotics, alcohol and Christianity." Winston Churchill wrote: "I have
taken more out of alcohol than alcohol has taken out of me. My rule of life prescribed as an
absolutely sacred rite is smoking cigars and also the drinking of alcohol before, after and if
need be during all meals and in the intervals between them." And George Bernard Shaw,
who never drank alcohol, wrote, "Alcohol is the anaesthesia by which we endure the
operation of life."
In July 1969 I was living in Kafka unit #604 in Rochdale. I had many visitors from outside at
the time, and one was my old friend Wayne, who was on the road to alcoholism. He brought
a bottle of wine with him and insisted I drink some. When I had a few sips, he kept

encouraging me to drink more. "Don't even think about it. Just drink," he told me.
Unfortunately I followed his instructions and became very drunk and very sick. It was only
the second time in my life I had tasted alcohol and the experience caused me to avoid alcohol
completely for several years. With hindsight I should have avoided Wayne even more,
because he was the most insulting and obnoxious asshole I ever met in my life, and it was
because of alcohol. Whenever I asked him about alcohol he said, "I like the buzz."
Five years later, when I was living in the 15th-Floor Commune, I brought Wayne into
Rochdale. On Security was my next door neighbour John Panter. Usually he had a poker
face, but he gave Wayne a very dirty and suspicious look. I grew up with Wayne and couldn't
understand John Panter's reaction then. Now I do. Wayne was the fucking enemy, worse
than an undercover cop because he worked for the provincial government and he turned out
to be a cannibalistic traitor who betrayed me. He was no longer Wayne, only the symptoms
of alcoholism.

Dirty Dan McCue

Around 1970, when the hippie movement died and Rochdale College was finished and played
out, alcohol started to become popular in Rochdale. As alcoholic Dirty Dan McCue wrote,
"So there are a few bootleggers in the building. So there are a few drunks. What's that got to
do with the price of tea in China? Don't defend one weak castle with another weak castle or
you'll lose your whole kingdom. One drug being no worse than another, drunk is no excuse
for continued and any way we are not really disputing drug abuse, we are talking about the
abuse of our home and our future."
Dirty Dan McCue posted these three entries about sanitation with regard to beer bottles and
boxes in Rochdale newsletters:

"The Beer Bottle as an education ploy, OR one man's junk is another man's silk motor boat.
QUESTION? What is a beer bottle?
A) A four legged creature that wags its tail when happy.
B) A two legged creature commonly found in the park, walking a four legged tail wagging
creature.
C) A beautiful big brown bottle shaped vessel containing 12 fluid ounces of tail wagging
liquid happiness.
D) A commonly found polluting the environment, not so beautiful dirty brown glass shaped
vessel, the contents of which probably polluted the past owner thereof.
TEST YOUR ANSWER
If A) You must be in love
If B) You must be in love and so is your dog
If C) If you're sober enough to read this how about leaving bottles in boxes in garbage rooms
and or how about sending the bottle picker upper of your choice, and or HOW ABOUT
FALLING IN LOVE?
"Appeal: Dear drinkers of Heineken and other imported brands. In case you are not aware
there is a group recycling glass and paper and tins and things. They have a depot behind the
building. It would be nice if you took the bottles down there. It would please me to have less
garbage to pick up and give me more time to clean up the dog dirt and human waste which is
still prevalent on only 2, or 3, sometimes 4 floors of our wonderful wonderland we call home.
"Cat Owners! A standard Canadian beer case is the perfect disposable container for kitty
litter. It fits right down the garbage chute.
The interesting thing about Dan McCue is that he looked and behaved like the ultimate
hippie, but never used any drugs except for alcohol.
A legendary story about Dan McCue is one day he walked up to two men on Rochdale
Security in the first floor lobby with two bottles of beer. Using only his teeth, Dan
simultaneous opened both bottles of beer and handed them to the security men with a smile.
Alcohol was legal and became one of the most popular drugs in Rochdale. Its use was one of
the main differences between Rochdalians and the original hippies, who hated it. They
thought it was unhealthy, harmful, and would lead to violence. To quite an extent Rochdale
was a drug subculture that considered "soft" drugs to be beneficial and alcohol was good.
In June 1971, Dr. LionelPaul Solursh of the University of Toronto and the Toronto Western
Hospital conducted a survey of the residents of Rochdale College. By mid June an eightpage questionnaire was distributed to each room in Rochdale. Solursh describes Rochdalians
as "suspicious and unco-operative" and approximately 31% of the residents returned the
questionnaire. Respondents varied in age from 16 to 44. The average age was 22.5. 63%
were Canadian, 17.8% were born in the USA, and 19.2% were from elsewhere. Racially
there were 58 white respondents, two blacks, two Asians, and four Canadian Indians. 62.7%
reported using tobacco, 62% used cannabis, four percent used psychedelic and other drugs,
and 56.7% reported using alcohol. 13.5% drank alcohol every day, 43.2% used it on a

weekly basis, and 5.4% drank alcohol about once per month. 17.6% never drank alcohol.
Martin Burns wrote in the February 26, 1972 issue of the Saturdaily, "I have no firm attitude
towards alcohol. Some people can handle it, others can't. I am negative about it to the extent
that some people who abuse booze tend to be obnoxious and violent."
Beer was the most popular drink in Rochdale and cost 35 each or three bottles for one
dollar. It was so popular that Walt Huston made a living by collecting abandoned beer bottles
and returning them to the beer store for the deposit money. Walt basically lived on the roof in
the summer where he used his experience running a pizza operation in Rochdale to run a
concession stand and booze can to sell refreshments, wine, and beer out of his fridge. He
would wake people up in the morning screaming, "Ice cold Heinekens at outrageous prices!"
By noon Walt would be relaxing in his hammock and bootlegging beer and wine. Walt didn't
use drugs, and made wine-runs to Montreal where the quality and price were better than
Toronto. Sometimes there were "keg parties" on the roof, with small aluminum barrels of
draft beer. But most Rochdalians drank their beer from "stubbies", short brown bottles with
no neck that were standard in 1970s Canada. One Ashram made a thousand dollars profit by
bootlegging beer.
The 15th-Floor Commune was the largest commune in Rochdale with approximately 35
members. They were all decent people and typical of the respectable population of the
college. There was little marijuana smoking, some didn't use it at all, and dealing was
banned. However, Rochdale postman Sam Field and Tommy Chong-clone Bob Johnson both
sold dope because they lived close to the Ashram exit door, which they left open. It was the
same with alcohol, and it wasn't abused. Frank McGarrett said of his Ashram neighbour
Mike Randell, "Mike started out smoking a lot of pot, but now he mostly drinks beer." Mike,
Simon Liston and the large group of hicks from Parry Sound drank a lot of beer. They kept
the empties in the Ashram hallway by the entrance to the swimming pool, and the bottles
attracted fruit flies. We had the biggest and best parties in Rochdale and usually there were
cases of beer plus whatever guests brought. Twice we had aluminum kegs of draft beer. The
only time we had hard liquor was in the punch for the annual Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy
Ball every December 4. We used generic no name bottles of "Al Cool", an inexpensive
vodka-like drink marketed and sold by the LCBO as "Alcohol".
Personally I never drank alcohol, I never visited a booze-can in Rochdale, and believe it or
not I may not even have been aware of their existence in Rochdale at the time. Maybe I
heard about something that didn't interest me, but it was 40 years ago. I did eventually write
a feature article on "Beer" in the "Rochdale" underground paper that alcoholic Brian
Grieveson published.

The Pipe was a home made brand of beer in Rochdale College and according to the
Tuesdaily: "Remember the Pipe!! The Pipe comes to you in three unique brews, Doric, Gold
Medal, and John Bull. The Pipe will get you roaring drunk." The Pipe's operation included,
"a waterbed filled with apples in the back of a car in the basement." At a beer tasting party
John Bull was judged the best in Canada. "Good head," they said. There was a beer brewers
commune in Rochdale and for one party it supplied 500 quarts of beer and it was all
consumed.
Some Rochdalians brewed their own beer, including Dr. Bob Call who lived in Room #1111
with brothers Dave and Rick Witton, then hooked up with skinny Donna who was evicted for

using heroin. One day in 1971 I visited Bob and he gave me a lecture on the dangers of
distilling alcohol. It has to do with the temperature. Ethanol vaporizes at 78C whereas
poisonous methanol (wood alcohol) vaporizes at 64C. Fermentation always creates some
methanol and if it is distilled at the wrong temperature it can contain enough methanol to
cause blindness. Once a still is up to temperature and has started dripping, the first 50 mL per
20 L of wash should be discarded because it will contain any methanol that is present. Bob
also explained the danger of combining alcohol with barbiturate or benzodiazepine
prescription drugs. Alcohol would not merely add to the effect, it would multiply it and was
an unhealthy and dangerous combination.
Wine was also made in Rochdale College. The label of a 1969 bottle of "Satana" wine read,
"Satana red pectore wine is produced and blended in your heart. Contains pure evil of
squeezed heart blood. This old wine should get you off, if not, return it and we won't give
you more. Distributed by head and punks together." The word was that, "Mother Fletcher
had good wine, but it hit like a ton of bricks." A variety of hard liquor was also made, sold,
and consumed in Rochdale. The cheapest was home made alcohol available in various
flavours from Mother Fletcher, a man who also was in charge of Rochdales medical clinic
for a time. One Rochdalian described his booze as, "The strongest fuckin' drink known to
man. This stuff was beyond belief."
Rochdalians drank alcohol in their homes, at parties, on the roof, and at booze-cans in the
building. There were many booze-cans in Rochdale, and they tended to be short-lived. Dirty
Dan McCue had one, of course, and others started them up to make a living or make ends
meet. Some also sold drugs and a few were merely fronts for drug dealing. The Ptomaine
General Store in the second floor elevator lobby also sold beer. A Rochdalian remembers,
"Beer would be delivered to your door anytime, very quickly. I looked in Dave's cubbyhole
beside the store on the second floor once. He had cases and cases piled up against the wall."
Bar 711 was a booze-can and afterhours key club located in Gnostic #711, owned and
managed by artist Sharon Blanchfield. She painted the large double room to look like a
"Camel" cigarette package, and painted a "Big Ass" cartoon on the window facing Bloor
Street. There were pinball machines in the single room and the kitchen was a Jamaican beach
bar. Bar 711 was sold to Mitch, Stanley and "Big Boogie" (7' 2" tall) from Michigan who
painted over Sharon's art and turned it into a "Black Pit". Just as popular was Terry
Flanagan's 809 Club, with electrocuting pin ball machines and a bar made of an old door and
saw horses.
The reasons why Rochdalians drank alcohol and hippies did not:
1) Rochdalians were neo-hippies, not hippies
2) Many Rochdalians were sleazy deadbeat phonies
3) Many Rochdalians merely looked like hippies
4) At least half the residents of Rochdale were filler or tightasses
5) The hippie movement died in 1970
6) Young people usually don't like alcohol
7) Rochdalians were mostly older than hippies
8) Rochdalians were more hedonistic than hippies
9) After years of Speed, LSD and other stimulating
chemical drugs, it was time for a sedative like alcohol
10) Rock stars were the leaders of the hippie movement, and some were actually Beats who

enjoyed alcohol. Janis Joplin always called herself a "beatnik", hated LSD and loved
"Southern Comfort" a liqueur with up to 50% alcohol. Jim Morrison was also an
alcoholic. Rock star alcoholics had an influence on the drinking habits of some hippies.
11) Alcohol with cannabis gives a nice high

Drugs!
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_38_Drugs.html

Rochdale flyer November 17, 1968

Daily 1968 clip

Daily Planet 1968 clip

Daily clip February 14, 1969

Daily clip March 11, 1969

Daily clip from April 16, 1969

Daily clip from April 29, 1969

Daily clip May 12, 1969

Daily May 15, 1969

Daily clips May 22, 1969

Rochdale Minutes clip July 22, 1970

Daily clip July 28, 1970

Tuesdaily September 1, 1970 clip

Rochdale minutes clips September 8, 1970

Daily September 15, 1970 clip

Daily October 30, 1970 clip

Daily November 10, 1970 clip

Daily November 25, 1970 clip

Home Free April 2, 1971 clip

Daily April 9, 1971 clips

Daily April 13, 1971 clip

Daily April 19, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily July 27, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily November 23, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily February 15, 1972 clip

Saturdaily February 26, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily March 3, 1972 clips

Undated Daily clip from James Newell

Latest Flash April 1, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily September 26, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily February 23, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 2, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 11, 1973 clips

Tuesdaily August 10, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily October 5, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 5, 1974 clip about my studious next door neighbour who was
innocent

Tuesdaily April 14, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily April 24, 1974 clip

Daily May 1974 clip

Daily Planet May 1974 clip

Drug Dealing in Rochdale College

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_55_Drug-Dealing.html

Drug dealing in Rochdale College started very soon after it opened. In fact, drug dealing was
really the only thing Rochdale was ever known for and it was the only thing it had to offer the
world. It earned its reputation as a hippie high-rise drug store. Even in 1969 it was very easy
for anyone to buy "soft" drugs in Rochdale. Conversely, in nearby Yorkville Village it was
always difficult to buy drugs. Finding illicit drugs anywhere else in Toorotten in 1969 was
almost impossible.
Within two years Rochdale turned into a drug supermarket, and it is ironic that the Rochdale
building replaced an old pharmacy. The CBC and newspapers referred to Rochdale as North
Americas largest drug distribution warehouse". This free publicity attracted thousands of
drug customers to the building and Rochdale became an internationally notorious illicit drug
store. One of the worst aspects of the lurid front page headlines in newspapers was it
advertised for druggies and drug dealers to move into Rochdale. People believed what they
read and saw on TV, and that's basically what Rochdale became: what the media claimed it
was.
As long as dealers sold only cannabis and psychedelic drugs, there was no problem with
Rochdales management. The college's attitude was "soft" drugs such as cannabis and
psychedelics were good and Rochdale had an obligation to promote them. It was part of the
hippie ethos to accommodate crashers and help distribute soft drugs. "Ugly American" King
Bill became Rochdales General Manager in 1970, and he is responsible for turning the
college into an illicit drug store. For example, the entire East wing of the sixth-floor was a
"dealing commune", converted into an ugly fortress with its own security guards armed with
guns.
"To gain access, recalls a former Rochdalian, "one had to knock on a steel-reinforced door.
A small screen slid open and you had to state your business. If everything was cool, the door

was opened by a burly guard with a shotgun and dogs." Or first you might have to stand
against the wall with legs spread and be frisked. It was American Big Al's Fortress and it
reached its peak in the summer of 1970. With guard dogs prowling the halls, bikers guarding
the iron doors, Big Al was able to sell heroin, speed, and other drugs strictly banned from
Rochdale. There were over 20 dealers in his operation, although King Bill claimed there
were ten to 12. Windows were painted black, covered with vinyl and the place was a trashed
disaster zone after it was shut down. It remained empty for over a year until it was converted
into educational space. Someone in Rochdale Rentals described it as a "ghost town". She
said, "The destruction was phenomenonal, just unbelievable." As for Big Al, he lost two of
his fingers in a fight over a bad drug deal and it is believed he eventually lost his life in the
same way.
Another big time dealer, Canadian Robert W. Rowbotham III, known as Rosie, said, "The
sixth-floor dealing commune was a crock of shit and that was on the other side of the floor. I
was by myself in #617. I was my own island. The commune was an American version of
garbage the guns, the door, the lock, all that shit. It was part of the American culture I was
not going to simulate."
Cocaine was always banned in Rochdale, but it was sold secretly in an "underground" way.
Billy Littler and Fergie sold a lot of cocaine in Rochdale while working Security in 1971.
They also would evict other cocaine dealers, but steal their cocaine to sell. It was their job to
evict cocaine dealers and flush the cocaine down the toilet. Instead they sold it. There were
allegations and speculation of cutting off fingers, and throwing people out of windows then
claiming they were high on LSD and jumped out. In 1974 Bill King claimed that Jay
Boldizsar sold cocaine in Rochdale.
As the big drug dealers became more powerful, they had protection by distancing themselves
from their drugs by using stash rooms, usually Kafka units for storing dope. Rentals
Manager Karen Johnston said, "The dealers were renting rooms four, five, six, seven, even
ten at a time. They'd do it under various assumed names. Sometimes they'd come in and say,
'I want to rent this room for such and such a friend.' Other times they would send in their
people to rent for them. It became very obvious to me."
Money was power in Rochdale, and the dealers had both. They became more tight, organized
and tried being a political movement to control Governing Council and thereby Rochdale
itself. "Clear Light" was their alternative to the "Daily" newsletter, and they used it to
disseminate their views until 1971. Rosie was elected to Council, but he was ignored by the
other members and dropped out after three meetings. Their next step was to band together,
and this resulted in things such as Big Al's Fortress dealing commune.

The other aspects of Rochdale were insignificant compared to the drug dealing. It gave the
so-called college its reputation, its demographics, and its persecution by the authorities. All
of the riots in Rochdale were caused by police drug raids. Rochdalians never rioted or
demonstrated about anything else, not even their unprecedented mass eviction. Obviously all
they really cared about was drug dealing. Ultimately it was drug dealing that caused Ottawa
to close the place. There were no other real reasons.
James Newell wrote in the Tuesdaily newsletter, "I get the feeling that all I've become is a
front for a bunch of drug store owners." The truth is all the apologists for Rochdale who
claimed dealing was an evictable offence and there was no large scale drug dealing were
ineffective fronts for the drug dealers. Everybody in Toorotten knew Rochdale was a highrise hippie drug store and nothing else. It was doomed and Newell wrote, "You're going to
have to choose between Rochdale and dealing." Obviously Rochdalians made the wrong
choice.
Education was the main front for drug dealing, but it was never very convincing.
Rochdalians often talked about education. But there was absolutely no education in the socalled college. It was merely something that was talked about, especially at EdCon
meetings. There was "educational space", mostly in the East wing of the sixth-floor, but it
was used mostly as free housing by sleazy assholes who sold drugs. The educational projects
were mostly crafts and things like publishing that had nothing to do with education. I never
learned anything whatsoever that would fall in the "education" category during the four times
I lived in Rochdale over a seven year period. And for two years I had educational space on
the sixth-floor. To be fair, Ian Argue wrote in August 1970, "You will find people working at
a new way of life, people learning by living. People learning to live together and solve
problems. In my book, that's education." In this book, that's bullshit obfuscation. Formal
education requires teachers, classrooms and other things Rochdale never had.
Alex MacDonald said, "It is often asserted usually by either dope dealers or by policemen,
that everybody in the building dealt and that dealing was the absolute and sole economic
basis of the community. This is not true. There were people who had legitimate jobs. There
were people who lived on welfare. I mean, there were other sources of money." By the
summer of 1970, MacDonald estimates "Probably half of the building either dealt or lived off
the avails of dope dealing. I mean either they were dealers, or middled now and then, or they
operated some non-dope dealing business in the building which was directly dependent on
income generated by dealing."

Probably Alex MacDonald was unaware of Rochdale College in 1970, and he certainly was
not a tenant that year. I was a tenant that year, and his remarks are bullshit, with a vague
wide-ranging definition of "dealing". Rochdale was fully occupied in January 1970 with 850
tenants and in February 1970 it was estimated there were 1500 "residents". Judy Merril
claimed there were 2000 "residents". Dealers were 15% of the Rochdale population at most
in early 1970, and possibly as much as 25% with the arrival of summer. My memory is there
was a tremendous amount of student "filler" until the summer, then Rochdale became
increasingly and unbearably "heavy" because of drug dealers. It was amazing to see
hundreds of customers roaming through the halls of the building trying to find drugs to buy.
Most drug dealers in Rochdale College were "honest", meaning they would not rip you off.
But there were exceptions. Rochdalian Ralph Bendahan, who showed movies in the second
floor Lounge in 1969 and 1970, directed the seldom-seen "Rochdale College 1970"
documentary film. It's an OK short documentary, but there is a part where a notorious "drug
dealer" rip-off artist innocently says she came to Rochdale from the USA to help save it. In
fact she was a thief who sold oregano as marijuana and saccharine tablets coloured with dye
as LSD. She obviously learned to be sleazy and phony in Rochdale, but apparently not
obnoxious. Presumably she had to be "nice" to profit as a thief.
Until the summer I lived in Gnostic #1605 and there was only one dealer on the floor who
was very discreet. I had a succession of three roommates, all of them American draft dodgers
and none of them dealers. There were many American and Canadian hippie tourists who
made a pilgrimage to visit Rochdale. But by the time I moved into #1122 in the West wing in
the Fall of 1970, the place had changed. My roommate was sleazy and dishonest, my next
door neighbour Mary Gardner was arrogant, cold and hostile, and nobody was friendly.
Rochdale was a dirty, dark shithole that reeked of sleaze and crime. It was a great relief to
move out.
Personally, I never used or sold drugs in Rochdale. The first time I visited the place I
witnessed two guys mainlining "speed" (amphetamines), which horrified me. One of them
seemed to have taken too much, and he leaned out the window and took very deep breaths.
His friend patted him on the back and said, It's going to be alright, man. Everything is going
to be alright. In 1969 I met an old high school friend named Ted in Yorkville Village who
had become a "hippie" but I couldn't say anything to him because he kept repeating, "I'm on
acid, man." Ted became a drug dealer in a Zeus suite in Rochdale in 1969. His partner was
much older and looked like an office manager. They were busted, and when I visited Ted at
his home, his father angrily told me I could never see him again. I noticed Ted behind him
looking sheepish. Ted was a "hippie" for about two months. He visited Yorkville a few times
and lived in Rochdale for a few weeks. I never took him seriously he was just a confused
high school kid who needed a haircut.
In 1970 I saw the outside of Big Al's Fortress, did not enter, but wondered about my former
room #604 inside. The only drug dealers I ever visited were Syd Stern in #1405 of the 14thFloor Commune and Tommy Chong-clone Bob Johnson in #1519 of the 15th-Floor
Commune. They were very similar, both with many visitors in a comfortable social
atmosphere with no pressure to buy anything. Syd and Bob were perfect hosts. If there was
a difference, it was Bob sold almost exclusively to Rochdalians internally, and Syd probably
sold to anyone he trusted.
I visited Dave Lawrence in #1608 frequently, but we were usually alone or with his girlfriend

Candy Kane, and he wasn't much of a dealer. But he did sell drugs. He told me Kevin
O'Leary stopped him in the main lobby and gave him a hard time because he heard Dave was
one of the biggest dealers in Rochdale. I told Dave that Kevin was a parasitic power-tripper
just trying to intimidate him. Candy Kane asked me to loan her $2000 to buy some hash.
She couldn't comprehend that everything about her "scheme" was against my principles when
I explained it. Sometimes Dave, his friend Peyton Brien, and I had long, pretentious
conversations in #1608. Whenever they passed me a joint, I had a toke but did not inhale.

Police began attacking Rochdale beginning in August 1970. Their tactics changed from a
police operation to a military assault with sophisticated media manipulation and collusion to
demonize Rochdale. In one month in 1970 there were three major drug raids on Rochdale.
On Saturday night, August 15 after 9:30 p.m. about 1000 Rochdalians and hippies from
Yorkville Village battled with over 200 police officers, and three plainclothes cops were
injured when bottles, stones, and water were thrown from the upper windows of the building.
The RCMP Drug Squad, the Metro Drug Squad, and the Morality Bureau found no drugs in
unit #1509, but on their way down the stairs, they arrested American Robert Anderer on the
ninth-floor for possession of hashish. When Rochdalians blocked their way, they called for
more cops from Divisions 52, 14, 13, and the Emergency Task Force.
A Rochdalian described it as, "We had a monster raid that included 125 uniformed and
plainclothes police officers who charged through the front door and advanced on the 15thfloor." Another Rochdalian described it as a "foray" of eight or nine RCMP officers who
entered and searched a 15th-floor room (#1509). Rochdale phoned 52 Division for help,
believe it or not, and the outcome was 19 broken doors, 31 rooms searched, and two arrested.
Hippies in nearby Yorkville Village were aware of the problem almost immediately, and 300
of them joined the Rochdalians outside the building. They surrounded the police to free a
Rochdalian charged with assault and demolished nine police cars, including throwing a brick
through the roof of one car.

It was very bad publicity. The next day the newspaper headlines read: "1,500 People
Confront 150 Policemen at Rochdale in Near-Riot after Arrest", "1,000 Battle Police At
Rochdale", and "Mob Injures 3 Policemen after Rochdale Drugs Raid". The Toronto Star
mentioned, "College residents screamed threats at about 25 policemen called to the scene,
and hurled bottles, stones, water, and a live cat from windows of the student-owned cooperative."
The Strawberry Fields Pop Festival was held at Mosport Park on August 7 to 9 with about
100,000 in attendance. There were live performances by Jethro Tull, Sly & the Family Stone,
Alice Cooper, Procol Harum, Mountain, Ten Years After, Canned Heat, and others. Many
attendees were Americans, and about 150 Americans from the festival then crashed at
Rochdale College. Many blamed the Strawberry Fields crashers for the August 15 riot and
President Peter Turner's Governing Council evicted them on August 18.
On Friday, August 21 six drug dealers were arrested on the fifth-floor when about 40 police
raided the building by sealing off exits and rushing up the stairs with warrants. This time
there was no riot, probably because of the timing and the quick execution of an efficient well
planned bust.
Then on the evening of Friday, September 11, police armed with axes, crowbars and
sledgehammers smashed through half-a-dozen doors at Rochdale College around 9:30 p.m.
They searched units #604, #606, #607, #609, and #619. Twelve Rochdalians in the notorious
sixth-floor dealing commune were arrested and charged with trafficking in marijuana and
hashish, possession of a deadly weapon, and obstructing police. The raid erupted into a twohour riot with over 400 Rochdalians confronting 50 cops. Police cars were pelted with
debris, bricks, rocks, bottles, cans, eggs, and tomatoes thrown from windows. Eight cars and
one motorcycle suffered considerable damage. A cop called it a "routine execution of a
search warrant". This raid marked the end of Big Al's drug dealing fortress, and it also
changed the minds of many Rochdalians who were in the middle of a referendum vote on
drug dealing in the college.

The Executive Assistant to the Prime Minister of Canada was visiting Rochdale during one of
the raids and was "displeased" about the police tactics. Pierre Trudeau's aide was in
Rochdale because leftist Trudeau during the late 1960s and early 1970s was a "swinger" with
long hair who wore sandals to the House of Commons. During a question period, he called
an opposition MP a motherfucker". He approved of Rochdale and the use of recreational
drugs, and admitted smoking dope in a country where it was legal. It is known that he
smoked a joint in the U.S. White House. Trudeau said about dope smokers, "People who do
it I don't judge any more than I judge the person who takes alcohol." His wife Margaret said,
"I smoked pot with the best of them and came to love it." Donald Fergusson, aka "Fergie",
told me he knew who sold Trudeau his hash. This tells you more about Fergie than Trudeau,
as does King Bill's belief that Trudeau was the Antichrist.
Trudeau was sent a complimentary Rochdale College PhD diploma in Political Science. His
office saw Rochdale as, "a useful experiment in counter-insurgency, as a way to keep
potentially violent youth off the streets and politically dormant." The overwhelming majority
of people in Toronto hated Rochdale and believed radical Trudeau was supporting it, because
he was. They demonstrated against his support for drug dealing in Rochdale. Probably
Trudeau realized the hippie movement died in 1970 and considered Rochdale College to be
the anachronism it was, and stopped supporting it. It was his decision, because the arrogant
asshole never cared about demonstrators or his opponents.
Peter Turner tried to change Rochdale's negative public image with better relations with
Ottawa and public meetings to educate Toronto about Rochdale. But drug raids continued
through the Fall of 1970 right through 1971. They were almost a weekly event in 1971 and
typically happened on Friday mornings around 3 a.m., especially in the summer.
Rochdale was very unpleasant because of the druggies and dope dealing, so in 1970 Judith

Merril, Stan Bevington, and Ed Apt moved out along with most of the scholarly and artistic
tenants. Stan Bevington had a remedy for the huge crowds of drug customers that filled the
first floor lobby: "Rochdale should install turnstiles in the lobby and have people pay for the
amount of time they spend in the building, like parking meters." The college quickly
degenerated into a hippie drug store with bullshit educational pretensions.
To solve the drug dealing problem, a referendum on the issue was scheduled by GovCon. On
September 8, 1970 the Rochdale College Governing Council unanimously passed a motion
"That anyone who pays rent as determined by accounting should be allowed to vote in the
referendum with a maximum of 3 voters per Aphrodite, Gnostic or Kafka, 2 per Ashram
double, 1 per Ashram single, and 6 per Zeus." Next a motion was passed "That non-resident
members who show up to vote in the referendum be allowed to and that membership be
stabilized as of September 8, 1970 for the purpose of this referendum." Then Council
unanimously passed a motion "That council approve in principle that dealing to outsiders
from within is an evictable offence."
On September 12 and 13, 1970 there was an open-vote referendum by about 300 Rochdalians
who made dealing illicit drugs to outsiders an evictable offense. The vote was actually going
in favour of the dealers the first day, but the massive September 11 drug raid changed that.
Unfortunately, the referendum was not enforced. According to James Newell, "We
compromised by letting 'cool' dealers continue here, until now we have 80 dealers and the
same problems with the police as we did in 1970. The answer is 80 dealers is too many
dealers, no matter how cool they are."
Bruce Maxwell in the September 1, 1970 Tuesdaily stated, "The question of enforcing the
change requiring dealers to conduct their outside business outside of Rochdale is delicate and
essential. I suspect that the majority of them will continue to live here and will set up 'milk
routes' to supply outside traffic. It should be clarified that the restriction on dealing at
Rochdale does not prohibit residents here from dealing to each other. It will take several
months to change our heads which have grown accustomed to living in a congested shit hole
for so long. If our heads don't change, Rochdale will remain a congested shit hole swamped
with people trying to cop dope."
It is fair to report that the overwhelming majority of Rochdale residents approved of the
college's official policy that the use of "soft" drugs (cannabis and psychedelics) was
permissible in Rochdale, as was the internal selling of soft drugs. Less than half approved of
dealing soft drugs to outside customers, and virtually nobody approved of hard drugs such as
heroin, cocaine, and speed which were banned.
Due to the enormous crowds of drug customers and the inevitable problems with the police,
Rochdale started its own security force. Basically Rochdale Security was working for the
drug dealers, or more accurately, it owed its existence to the drug dealing situation. They
were unlike any security officers anywhere. Their job was to screen visitors, especially drug
customers, and keep undesirables out. They knew which visitors were drug customers, and
allowed "cool" customers to visit "cool" dealers. It did nothing to change the drug dealing
problem.
Head of Security Billy Littler said, "My role as I perceived it was to throw out the hard drug
dealers and the ones who were a little crazy those literally open-door marijuana dealers."
James Newell wrote in the Tuesdaily, "The dealers in this building have a sweet lobby.

Security protects them from the police, Rentals rents them stash rooms, Lionel Douglas
argues for them at Council meetings." Drug dealing destroyed Rochdale College, and the
dealers could not have survived without Rochdale Security.
T. Hunt wrote in the Thursday, October 30, 1970 Daily, "Pigskin Revue: Morality Squad
raids sixth floor Wednesday night supposedly narcs from all over the city. Rochdale, a
training ground for narc busts? Busted: 626 33 pounds of grass and a girl. Also busted
616, 606, 608, 601, and 607. Cops downed Bob Naismith on a forty yard pass. Officers
made a smashing play with the aid of axes and sledge hammers. No warrants were shown.
On Thursday some of the dealers of the sixth floor were kicked off the team."
m.k.1. wrote in the Tuesday, November 10, 1970 Tuesdaily, "Ah so, there was another bust
last Wednesday night, the usual knock down the doors and dump trash and general
harassment. 810, 824 (Rosie was clean), 823 Ed Walsh was busted on two counts of
possession. He was the only person arrested. For 902 the law had a search warrant, 626
again although it was still empty, two more on the 6th floor, one 12th floor Kafka. The
scourge was over in half an hour. Raids and busts are part of a means to close Rochdale. If
the law finds dope, if a riot is caused, by keeping the bad publicity going, by police and some
residents causing costly physical damage to the building all these things we can get together
and avoid."
Marcus wrote in the Wednesday, November 25, 1970 Daily, "Rochdale had a Bustday Party
early Friday morning, November 20, which lasted about four hours. A dozen cops entered
the building with the usual axe and crowbar paraphrenalia, and were greeted on short notice
with songs, cheers, confetti and streamers from the residents. This spontaneous method of
treating the law was effective in that none were arrested, and only one person (Frank Fury)
was hurt by a beer bottle that hit his shoulder from on high. Anyway, everyone sort of
ended up enjoying it all. A few from 52 were seen flashing the old peace sign. Maybe we
should always keep some spare confetti around."
In mid-1971 Rochdale Security changed its image. Judging by many photographs of the
original security team, they had an image of American cowboy/biker assholes with guns and
dogs, essentially the same as those in Big Al's dealing commune. They changed it to a casual
and friendly look. There were also new security staff, because all the others had resigned in
March 1970 due to an altercation with Mike Donaghy. Zipp and Ed Walsh had a physical
fight with Donaghy. Rochdale Security was originally headed by Ed Walsh, then Billy Littler.
Rudy Hierck replaced Billy Littler as head of Rochdale Security in 1972 as part of the
changes. Hierck wrote in the Tuesdaily of February 29, 1972: "We refuse to protect any
sloppy dealers and there are quite a few, so clean up. Anyone found trafficking in
illegalities will be given a 24 hour Eviction Notice, without appeal. ... The extreme amounts
of traffic at the door must decrease sharply or we will be forced to cut all by at least 50%. ...
It's up to us to do it and prove ourselves not as a wholesale warehouse for dope, but as an
experimental education in living with with enough dope for us all not the fucking outsiders
that's getting into what you were trying to out of the rip-off, hip capitalist society that
made you, will also break you."
There were always undercover cops and police informers in Rochdale College. Police
informers are secretive by definition. They are not merely discreet, they are silent and
dishonest about their activities. Jay Boldizsar, Alex MacDonald, and Mike Randell were
police informers according to Rochdale College lawyer Joe Sheard. This is just the tip of the

iceberg of the elitist pigs in Rochdale College collaborating with the police. There is a
mountain of circumstantial evidence regarding Rochdale elitist pigs squealing on drug
dealers.
For example, Mike Randell wrote in the July 27, 1971 Tuesdaily: "Dear Dealers: I have
listened to enough of your shit. In the future please do not try to tell me what you are doing
to support your capitalist rip off life style is good for Rochdale. Please do not try to tell me
that is isn't hurting Rochdale. Please don't ask me or Rochdale to do something to help you
hide or help our customers find you, or support your business. ... What has happened is that
the dealers have hid behind the community now for three years. Now the bad guys are going
to strike at the entire community in order to get the dealers. ... Basically, what I'm trying to
say behind all this verbiage, is : You've fucked me. Now I'm gonna fuck you."
An editorial in the February 15, 1972 Tuesdaily read, "Slightly less than a year ago, Rochdale
was flooded with sleazy dealers. Security wasn't functioning in any way beneficial to the
community. The majority of people were being ripped for for their privacy, the state of the
building and a lot of the things that make Rochdale slightly better than a Greenwin
development. There was a purge. There was a trafficking court in 111. There was a lot of
evictions. It was a heavy thing. After the purge, good old mother Rochdale was a much
better place to live."
In the February 26, 1972 issue of the Saturdaily, Martin Burns wrote: "Since we must have
soft dope, we must, I suppose have soft dope dealers. I have heard it said (by dealers) that
dealers are beautiful because they turn people on. Nonsense! People deal dope to make
money. ... Generally speaking I have observed four distinct kinds of dealers at large in the
building:
1) Middlers and small dealers who deal to survive. They are not always the epitome of
dealing conservatism. To them, Rochdale is simply a nice place to live, and they don't really
know or care what Rochdale is about. To them, the building is an eighteen-storey suckie
blanket or cloak for their collective insecurity. What they really need is a wet nurse. They
tend to write anonymous, poorly articulated, misspelled letters.
2) Larger dealers who live in the building and have put a good act together. Quite often, their
cover takes the form of a community-oriented enterprise that provides employment. This
secondary enterprise is quite often a means of guilt remission.
3) People who come to Rochdale to make a specific amount of money as quickly as possible
to finance the purchase of, say, a nice place in the country where they can live in peace.
Colour them 'PIGS'.
4) Dealers who live outside the building because they can't stand the noise generated by other
dealer's customers, but nonetheless maintain rooms in the building from whence they conduct
their businesses. Colour them 'PIGS', also."
Tony Rybak wrote in the March 3, 1972 issue of the Tuesdaily: "I have nothing against
dealers, only the way they use everybody for their gain (not all of them). One of the dealers
told me we pay rent so we shall have protection from security. ... And finally about the high
profits. There is nothing wrong if anybody is stupid enough to pay $25 $30 for a 78-cent
item. Stop! What am I saying, calling myself stupid. You have a right to make this much
profit. Long live the grass and hash dealers! Death and destruction to smack dealers! They
are lower than the lowest insect."

Chipper, the manager of Etherea Natural Foods Restaurant, wrote a piece in the April 1, 1972
Tuesdaily about the economics of dealing drugs. He explained the risks and costs of
transporting illicit drugs thousands of miles and ended with, "If you think hash should cost $5
a pound here you must apply this economic system to everything. Try and buy a banana in
the second floor store for the same price they are bought for in South America."
Alex MacDonald wrote in the May 11, 1973 Tuesdaily, "There will be no significant dope
dealing past August at the extreme latest. That is a a given and is beyond discussion."
Beyond discussion? Yes, that's how the fascist egomaniac thought and behaved. For some
reason he felt it was his duty to be the boss. He continued, "The end of dealing is inevitable.
I propose that it end because Rochdale cuts off traffic, because Rochdale initiates evictions,
because people dealing see that the trade is no longer viable and split." As usual, this
ultimatum from the self-appointed Boss of Rochdale was complete bullshit. Dealing did not
end or even taper off.
Of course, dealing in Rochdale College was simply a way to make money. One Hungarian
dealer is thought to have made $20 million to $30 million by dealing drugs. He used 75% of
the money to to bring his relatives to Canada and set them up in business. When he was
evicted, he took $200,000 cash with him. Another dealer sold his address to another dealer
for $1000 when he moved out. Alex MacDonald said, "There were people who lived in High
Park who rented six or eight rooms, and who employed people to sit and deal in them. They
would come now and then and pick up the money."
The sold drugs tended to leave Rochdale in small quantities by drug customers. But large
quantities of drugs to be sold tended to enter by the basement garage and be brought up the
stairs, the elevator, or in the kitchen's dumbwaiter. Other methods included stashing drugs in
mattresses and stuffing it in women's brassieres. Police once found $50,000 worth of drugs
in a car in the basement. Sid Smith, the court-appointed property manager, claimed that
Etherea Natural Foods Restaurant imported drugs: "It would come in with a van loaded with
groceries, health food, and the dope would be inside." This is yet another of Smith's libelous
bullshit fantasies. The staff and management of Etherea were vegetarian purists who did not
drink, smoke or use drugs. In any case, it was far easier to get drugs into Rochdale than take
them out, because the police focused on persecuting those leaving Rochdale with drugs.
A Rochdale Maintenance worker said: "They started using stash rooms rented by an ad hoc
group of dealers so that none of them would have stuff in his room. Those rooms would be
changed every so often and used only by the big dealers. Everyone dealt a little, selling to
their friends, but I would guess there were less than twelve big ones in the building. ... I went
into the dealers' lounge once just as part of the cleaning. They had between one and two
dozen green garbage bags of marijuana lined up against the wall, tens of thousands of dollars
worth." Another maintenance worker got all his drugs from the garbage chute because,
"They were just careless about it. The place was full of the stuff."
With the arrival of the Community Guardians (Greenies) security force in Rochdale College
on September 14, 1972 came a slow death for Rochdale Security. Early in 1973 twelve cops
and one sergeant were assigned as a permanent surveillance force in the building. This
special squad laid 974 drug charges on 794 people in the first four months of 1973. The
charges involved 54 pounds of marijuana, 8,646 grams of hashish, 32 grams of hash oil, 16
vials of hash oil, 85 grams of opium, 188 grams of MDA, 974 tabs of LSD, 370 caps of THC,
8 grams of cocaine, and 103 caps of mescaline. Of the people charged, 244 came from

outside Toorotten, from 77 places as far away as Mexico and both coasts of North America.
As drug raids didn't work very well and were very dangerous for the police, a new tactic was
used. Instead of periodically raiding the building, they surrounded the building at all hours
and searched people entering and leaving Rochdale. Pete King and Bob Waddell were two
long-haired and often bearded undercover drug cops who busted 3,500 people in Toronto.
King and Waddell became legends, feared by drug dealers back in the late 1960's and early
1970's like no others before or since. In Rochdale College, many drug dealers met King and
Waddell, or at least remember their pictures being plastered everywhere as Public Enemy No.
1 to the drug culture. On one November night in 1972, for example, King and Waddell made
front-page news following 35 drug arrests outside Rochdale College, while never venturing
too close to the building itself, thereby avoiding being hit by beer bottles, bricks, cats and
debris that always accompanied their arrival. "Those were good times," said Waddell, in
reflection. "They really were."
Searching drug customers outside Rochdale was done by the Morality Squad and then
George Crease, who said, "What we did was peripheral surveillance from the middle of
January until the end of April, 1973. We stopped people coming in and out of the building as
best we could. And in doing so, we pretty well stopped the drug trade in Rochdale, although
some dealers did set up satellite operations in apartments elsewhere in the downtown area.
We worked the periphery like that for six or eight weeks before the people of Rochdale
realized what we were up to. So we ended up being not a permanent fixture, but a sort of a
temporary emergency squad."
Later in 1973 Deputy Police Chief Jack Ackroyd reported, "Under the new program we
arrested more than 1000 people over a period of three months. We arrested people from 59
cities in Ontario, from practically every province in Canada, people from three states and
Mexico, all of whom were there to buy drugs. At the same time we seized $250,000 worth of
drugs, mostly soft drugs."
In 1974 during a two week period 59 people were arrested on 76 drug charges. From March
to August, 1974, 600 drug charges were laid on 445 people. Police confiscated 91 pounds of
marijuana, 887 grams of hashish, 158 grams of MDA, 160 hits of THC, two grams of LSD,
281 grams of methedrine, two grams of opium, 76 caps of Tuinal, five grams of cocaine, a
vial of morphine, 232 caps of valium, and 32 caps of mescaline.
In March 1974 Rochdale presented a 300-name petition to "stop police harassment" to
Toronto City Hall. Just before a delegation went before the Metro Toronto Executive
Committee in April, my neighbour in the 15th-Floor Commune, Rob Higgins (#1508) from
Parry Sound, was planted with drugs by the corrupt police. He was walking down the alley
behind Rochdale to his classes at the U of T, and four policemen jumped out and pushed him
against a wall. "They hoped I was carrying dope," said Rob, "and I wasn't, only books. I told
the guy beside me I didn't have anything and he said, 'If we don't find anything we'll put
something," and I was frightened because there were no witnesses."
At the police station he was stripped and abused. Rob said, "They kept calling me 'You
Commie' and everything was 'Fuck this or that.'" He was charged with trafficking in
narcotics (LSD). Because Rob was my next-door neighbour, I can assure you he was too
busy studying to get involved with drugs. His roommate Margot Cross never used drugs, I
did not, and his other neighbour Bob Allen never used drugs in his life. We all knew Rob

was innocent and his friend President Mike Randell explained the drug planting by police to
journalists at a press conference in his office. A "Rob Higgins Defence Fund" was set up to
help this victim of Toorotten police, but he had to move out. His unlawful persecution was
meant to further discredit Rochdale during the eviction process, because he represented the U
of T students in the building. Sadly, the police continued planting drugs and especially
harassing people entering and leaving the building.

On July 30, 1974 there was a major riot at Rochdale. During a drug bust in the East wing of
the 10th floor about 100 tenants and dealers blocked the exit of two police officers, who were
trapped inside. They shouted for help from a window and more cops came to their rescue.
My neighbour Margot Cross and I went down the stairs to investigate. Electricity had been
turned off on the floor and the elevators did not work. A crowd of about 25 Rochdalians
including Margot and me were in the elevator lobby of the 10th floor. A policeman came to
rescue his colleagues and pointed his gun at everybody. He was visibly scared shitless, and
pointed the gun at Jackie Halliday's face. She was frozen as the cop held his gun and long
metal flashlight in front of him and yelled, "Get the fuck out of the way, bitch!" Jackie didn't
move fast enough and the cop slammed her head with both gun and flashlight. She turned a
complete sideways somersault from the force of the hit. Apparently the police were trying to
provoke a riot by assaulting women so they could use deadly force. The lights were out and
it was a terrifying experience.
In the bravest act I ever witnessed in my life, Tony Osbourne who collected admission money
for Reg Hartt's porn film screenings calmly walked right up to the armed policeman and said,
"We're not going to harm you, and you're not going to shoot us. Put your gun away. Now!"
The policeman backed down to some extent, lowered his gun from Tony's face, but still held
the gun. In the most cowardly act I ever experienced in my life, Margot Cross began crying
hysterically with fear. She actually stooped down and hid behind me as if I was her shield
against bullets. At this point I forevermore had contempt for my neighbour, considering she
seemed like a strong woman who never hesitated to criticize others about anything.
I went to the stairways and passed my beautiful neighbour Coco Cromwell. Blood was
pouring from her mouth because a policeman had punched her in the face and knocked out

her front tooth for no reason whatsoever. Actually he probably did it because she was black.
Eventually Coco tried to take legal action. However, it became impossible because all her
many photos and negatives at the modeling agency where she worked mysteriously
disappeared. Up on the 15th-Floor Commune everybody was very concerned about the
ensuing riot with Rochdalians trashing things and forcing the Greenie security guards out of
the building. President Mike Randell was quite upset. Cindy Lei to the rescue! She left and
went downstairs to end the riot. But instead she got caught up in the mob and trashed a lot of
stuff herself. Cindy returned very happy about her accomplishment, and everybody was
absolutely flabbergasted.
Tenants were enraged by this fascist attack. The police did not have a warrant and they had
removed their hats, both violations of the law. Six "Greenies", the receiver-appointed
Community Guardian security guards were barracaded in their second floor office.
Typewriters, calculators, office equipment, and all official records were destroyed or taken
away. Molotov cocktails, bottles filled with kerosene, were thrown against the Greenies'
office window. A firehose through the door's mailslot was used to flood their office. All
office furniture was dragged outside onto the front patio and burned. The Greenies' desk in
the lobby was also dragged outside and burned. Many people including Dr. Bob Call were
trashing everything. The police charged Titch with agitating a riot and other charges. Brian
Grieveson wrote that he and Cindy Lei explored the area and there were hundreds of riot
police by the St. George subway station ready to attack Rochdale. This is bullshit because
Cindy would definitely have mentioned it but did not, nor has anyone else. Grieveson has
made up many bullshit stories about himself and Cindy and published them.
The reason for the police raid deliberately intended to provoke a riot was because on July 15
there was an Open House at Rochdale, organized by EdCon. Barb Adams and Cindy Lei did
most of the work, and it was a great success. Over a thousand visitors toured the educational
projects on the sixth-floor and all tenants were on their best behavior. There was very good
press about the event, and Rochdale College's public image improved considerably. Things
were looking up and Rochdalians were optimistic again. Then the police destroyed this
improvement with their brutal raid.

On January 8, 1974, at 5:30 a.m. the RCMP charged 26-year old Robert W. Rowbotham III
(Rosie) from Belleville with conspiracy to traffic in drugs when they found a ton of hash in
16 crates at Toronto International Airport. Rosie said: "The drug dealing was far from an
elaborate scheme, but more of an extension of the times. There were young people from all
over the world talking, debating, protesting, and basically growing up around Rochdale. The
American draft dodgers had few options when it came to making money, and they seemed to
have contacts all over the continent. I was the local boy who knew how to get things done,
not to mention I never missed a good party. In contrast to the sleazy speed-dealers of the
time, people could come to Rochdale and get a good, fair deal, with no chance of rip-offs or
violence. We weren't out to hurt anyone. In a way, we viewed it as providing a youthfully

naive public service with an element of adventure. We were just hippies having fun. ... From
1967 until January 1, 1974, I'd say $50,000,000 passed through my hands. I dealt grass,
hash, LSD and mescaline, but I stayed away from heroin, cocaine and speed."
At his 1977 trial police testified they found $73,000 on his Beeton, Ontario farm. Rosie
defended himself. He was a vegetarian pacifist and claimed to be opposed to chemical drugs
and even hashish. Dealing only marijuana, he said his supplier "would bring in 500 pounds
of marijuana at a time from California and they would store it in the underground garage at
Rochdale College. We are talking about tons and tons and tons." Although Norman Mailer
appeared as a character witness at his trial, Rosie was found guilty and sentenced to fourteen
years in prison. He received publicity and strong support from Rolling Stone magazine, High
Times magazine, and Toronto radio station CHUM-FM. Finally in 1980, after four years in
federal custody, Rosie was released on an appeal filed by lawyer and media personality
Edward Greenspan.
Unfortunately, Rosie and his old friend and "partner in crime" Richard Stratton arranged to
import an eight-ton load of hashish from Lebanon. They were caught. At the trial Neil
Young appeared as a character witness. Rosie got twenty years and Richard got twenty-five
in the US. Stratton won an appeal after eight years, and on October 6, 1997 Rosie left
Frontenac Institution in Kingston, Ontario to continue his sentence on parole at a halfway
house in Toronto. Rosie said, "I've had nineteen years to relax. It's time to get on with life."
He became a national CBC-Radio personality. There were later complications, including a
false domestic assault charge that sent him back behind bars, but he now has his freedom.

Another big time drug dealer was Syd Stern, who was an old prison convict who imagined he
was a hippie because he dressed like a teeny-bopper and sold drugs. He said, "Rochdale was
the best place in the world to live. I was probably one of the few people who realized how
safe Rochdale was for pot. Oh God, they had to go to 500 apartments to find you." Syd
started as a crasher in the second floor lounge and said, "Rochdale advertised free education,
so here I am." Stern didn't seem to understand that "free education" did not include free
housing. He sometimes bragged that he did not sell drugs until one year after his arrival,
presumably to excuse his criminality and the trouble he brought to Rochdale.
Syd Stern then took over the 14th-Floor Commune and turned it into a sleazy semi-dealing
commune. His operation was basically a franchise and Syd the franchisor "fronted" drugs to
people like Dave Lawrence and Candy Kane to sell elsewhere in the building. They were just
teeny-boppers and Syd had an extremely bad influence on them and others by being a silly
"hippie" role-model. Because of Syd, they believed a hippie must sell drugs and hippyism
included crime. Syd Stern was much too old, suburban, and had too much criminal baggage
to ever be "hip" in any way. He is in the top-ten list of those who did the most damage to
Rochdale College. Alex MacDonald tried to have him evicted a few times, but always failed
due to Stern's popularity with druggies and dealers in Rochdale.
I knew Syd Stern and he was somewhat larger-than-life, generous, a shady eccentric
character with self-respect, honest in his business dealings, and the perfect host for his many
friends. He was also quite dominant, although he could be co-operative with others, and

tended to impose himself at social gatherings in Rochdale where he was unwelcome. Stern
had good "vibes" that were conspicuously tainted with crime. He also had a strong
subversive streak. Syd's usual way of doing things was to overthrow or undermine the
established and elected authorities using underhanded methods. Like Alex MacDonald his
goal was to be the boss, but his methods were indirect and he usually was not visibly
involved. Typically he used others to do his dirty work. Sometimes he was an ego-tripper
and was a complete asshole, a destructive meddler who intruded and interfered in other
people's affairs. Yet he wasn't especially sleazy, despite living and socializing mostly with
the sleazy population of Rochdale. Basically he was a down-to-earth older gentleman known
for his integrity, generosity, and drug dealing.
Syd and I talked about many things, but rarely drugs. Once when he visited my home on the
U of T campus where he often sunbathed in the nude on my roof patio, he brought a small
bottle of hash oil. He asked me if there was a way to make it more concentrated and potent.
I told him it could probably be done with a solvent such as ether, and referred him to his
friend Dave Lawrence who was a medical student with access to laboratories. However, he
usually told me things such as he wanted a beard, but his whiskers had half a dozen colours,
and he did not want that kind of beard. We rarely gossiped, because I habitually avoid it and
Syd only said good things about his many friends. Music was never discussed because I
knew everything about rock music, and Syd was ignorant. Rochdale was mentioned, rarely
discussed, and we usually talked about whatever was on our minds. We were both from
Toronto, so we discussed things like the historical huge gates to Palmerston Boulevard, a
once-Jewish street where my gentile grandparents lived in the 1960s. He wanted to buy my
huge canvas by Laurie Peters titled "Pender Island" but it was not for sale. Syd had watched
Laurie paint it when they lived in the same large low-rise apartment building a few blocks
north of Rochdale at 95 Madison Avenue in 1976. He wanted to buy it then, but Laurie had
already sold it to me.
Syd may not have belonged in Rochdale, but he did love the place, helped finance Laurie
Peters to paint the Rochdale lobby, and financially supported many Rochdale projects. There
are things I know about Syd that I will not write about. Ordinarily I would not mention that
Syd had a colostomy. But since he was not shy about talking about it, even to children, it's no
secret. I could tell several stories about it. However, it's irrelevant, not a pleasant topic, and I
really don't want to write negative things about Syd. In fact, there are very many things I
know about Rochdalians that I will never divulge in writing. Some prominent Rochdalians
were on welfare (nine-point-seven percent of residents) but I will never share this information
in writing. Another example is the insulting nickname Jim Brennan used for Margot Cross
only with me in the 15th-Floor Commune. Never will I divulge the nickname because it is
brilliant and would destroy Margot, which I will not allow.
The last time I saw Syd Stern was in the mid 1980s when he was preparing to leave Toronto
for Vancouver. He was living across the street from the Amadeus restaurant, a Rochdale hang
out on Augusta Avenue in Kensington Market. Syd was quite bitter for some reason and told
me, "I was a hippie in Rochdale, but I'm not a hippie anymore." It was difficult not to laugh
in his face because Syd Stern was never a hippie, he did not know the meaning of "hippie",
and I always considered him to be an elderly man living out his "second childhood" as a
druggie teeny-bopper. Syd was very angry when he heard some gossip that I said he was too
old for Rochdale. He showed me his forged birth certificate that made him 20 years younger,
and I was dismayed by his vain dishonesty. Although he felt betrayed, I managed to convince
Syd that he should not believe everything he heard, especially when the source was "the

Black Widow" a non-Rochdalian gossip monger neither of us knew very well.

Rochdalien reminiscycles: How high are you?

In 1967, Earlham College journalist Jerry Hoff arrived at my Lower East Side digs. He had
his girlfriend in tow; Cass was a cute 17-year old, daughter of an Air Force colonel who was
just realising shed gone missing. Considering the draft and all, not to mention the Mann Act
criminalising transporting a minor across state lines for immoral purposes, Jerry thought it
prudent to move to Canada. We toked and talked and tripped our way around New York City
before Jerry & Cass left for the true North, strong and free.
Many months later, I got a postcard from Toronto, bearing the simple message: If you ever
get to Canada, come visit me at 341 Bloor Street West. I had no intention of going to
Canada. At the time, I figured Id get sent to jail for the draft like many of my friends.
Although I was a decorated peace movement veteran with 35 civil disobedience arrests, my
pacifist conscience was no match for the hot young Canadian Quaker girl I met while

counseling draft dodgers and deserters. Ho ho ho Chi Minh

Americas war on Vietnam slaughtered 1,134,787 combatants and uncounted millions of
civilians, laying waste an entire country. Of the 600,000 young men who evaded the U.S.
draft, at least 200,000 draft exiles (80,000 in 1972 and 1973 alone) and 100,000 military
deserters escaped the American war (as it is known in Vietnam) to Canada between 1962 and
1973, often with wives or girlfriends, encouraged by Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliot
Trudeau quoted pacifist Mennonites by whom he was lobbied: Canada should be a refuge
from militarism. A small percentage of these found their way to Rochdale College.
I myself moved to the peaceable kingdom in 1969 and found myself knocking at the door
of Rochdales #520 Aphrodite. Whos there?, etc. Jerry led me into an apartment so filled
with smoke, I could not clearly see its denizens. A giant, psychedelic candle was burning and
Mike Thornton had a quarter-pounder of fresh, blonde Leb lighted on the tip of a fashionable
Buck knife. When the smoking piece dropped into the candlewax, Mike casually reached for
another. Rosie was sitting on the bed. The bed was covered with ten inches of bundled cash. I
guess Id arrived!
It wasnt long before I moved into the Rock, to Aphrodite #824, in Rochdales West Wing.
Jerrys girlfriend, Cass, organised an American Thanksgiving that year, 1970, (the fourth
Thursday in November, well after the Canadian copy on the second Monday in October). We
had turkeys and trimmings basting in seven ovens around the building even though many of
us, including myself, were vegetarians. There were a lot of young people far from home in a
strange land.

My friends were pretty equally divided among Canuck natives and Yankee expats in the

building. Not all the 20% or so Americans in Rochdale were draft dodgerssome of them
were simply gutsick at the arrogance of US imperial warmongering. Well-known writer
Judith Merril who lived in the building and accomplished radical urban planner Jane Jacobs
who was long associated with the Rock are good examples of thistle.
The sense of community in Rochdale was, for me, its most notable feature. Nobody was ever
too busy to make time for you. I had a circuit of friends Id visit nearly daily, taking the stairs
and showing up at their doors. I was always invited in for a toke or a cup of coffee or to share
some food. As hippies, we integrated one another into whatever was happening at the time. It
sometimes had some drama but never became just an ongoing dope opera. The fine art of
welcome has been lost, at least without making an appointment pencilled in for, say, next
Tuesday. However, in my house, making a visitor welcome always includes a joint. Thats the
hippie code, kids!

Francie, the girl for whom I immigrated to the true North strong and free, grew up at the
Rasulia Quaker project in Madhya Pradesh and I pined for her wonderful Indian cooking. In
the block past Spadina I discovered my benchmark Indian restaurant, the Rajput at 388 Bloor
West. We young sophisticates from Rochdale drank Portuguese Mateus and ate their
wonderful onion bhajia.

Danes Erik Henriksen and his girlfriend Inge Hansen, a registered nurse, who lived in the
third-floor Zeus #326, introduced me to their grandmothers recipes for Juleglgg. This hot
Christmas wine and spirits mix, mulled with nuts and dried fruits and spices, is guaranteed to
send guests home in a wheelbarrow! Ive made up a batch every Xmas since. Erik was
Rochdale councilman Ian Argues business partner. Erik and Inge were probably the first
foreigners I ever became friends with and moved into the building from its beginnings in
1968.
I made my own Xmas gathering a joint-rolling party. My intention was, I think, to sell the pot
but I was never much of a businessman and had far more fun giving it away. This was my one
and only adventure in being a dealer. Rosie had lived in our Aphrodite before us and the walls
were painted deep purple with electric lime trim. My Canadian roommate, Robert Taylor, an
erstwhile UofT student, was as soft-spoken and diligent as I was gregarious and impulsive.
We made a great pair and Im sorry I lost touch with him over the years.
Our guests rolled the joints and eventually we managed to hang 600 reefers on the tree. The
big joke was, in the event of a police raid, wed have to toss the Xmas tree out the front
windows onto Bloor Street, eight storeys below! We were giving joints away and smoking
them for months! (Thank you, Santa)

I found the bells of Bloor Street United Church very comforting looking across at the
brownstone steeples from the eighth-floor. The bells were Rochdales anchor for me, and
gave me an abiding sense of continuity even though Im not a) religious, b) Xian, and c)

never had the slightest interest in setting foot inside the Church. Now I wonder what they
thought of Rochdale.
An interesting social feature of the dope-smoking culture, seen nowhere else but Rochdale,
was the practice of saving generations of roaches. Fresh roaches would be first generation;
broken down, rolled, and smoked again would result in second generation roaches. It was the
fad for heavy tokers to save these in labeled jars and a great treat to smoke a ninth-generation
joint, the oldest I saw. Talk about sticky!
Shotguns were also a universal intimate practice in the Rock, often indicating ones close
relationships such as a sex partner, good friend, or dealing partner. A lighted jay is reversed
with the lit end inside ones mouth. Gently blown while the recipient inhales, shotgunning
builds a powerful high. There was so much smoking dope in Rochdale, vacuum cleaner
parties would also be held. That was, as they say, a real blast! Long before pot tourism hit
Amsterdam, Rochdale was on the head circuit. Before the Cannabis Cup, we competed for
the best strains, tastiest, most kickass, biggest quantity smoked at once by the greatest
number of tokers, the largest spliffs.
We also had our rotating circle of visitors. Fuzzy (Chris Ringler) with his giant long shock of
red hair was one of our favourites. He died in an auto accident on Xmas Eve in BC some
years later and I ended up inheriting his state-of-the-art electrostatic headphones. I miss him
still; he was a unique gentle and generous spirit with never a harsh or unkind word for
anyone.
In Rochdale, even if you owned nothing else, you had the best stereo system. The dealers, of
course, always had the best of the best, with huge column speakers and hundreds of LPs even
if their only other furniture was a mattress on the floor. Those beautiful album covers were
made for rolling spliffageyou ever try that with a CD?!? I once shopped with Rosie at Sam
the Record Man on Yonge Street when he bought 700 albums in one shot.
Lenny Lunchbucket (the late Lionel Geller) lived in Aphrodite #1225 Id visit on the 12thfloor. Lenny had a shopping cart in his walk-in closet and a 100-pound tank of nitrous oxide
we always used to enjoy. Life in Rochdale was, literally, a gas!
My paycheque at the time came from my position as a research assistant at Addictions
Research Foundation, walking distance from the Rock down Beverly Street. Though that was
my day-job description, my advocacy saw me bringing daily samples of high-grade
psychedelics: .s.d., psilocybin, and mescaline, in particular, to test for both quality and
pricing. I think the docs at ARF had as much fun with this as I did!
Early LSD was most often Swiss Sandoz Laboratories liquid Delysid. Acid was only made
illegal in 1966 and there were considerable stockpiles of Delysid remaining in North
America, jealously guarded. I dropped Delysid only once in Rochdale. Real liquid acid, often
dropped onto a sugar cube in the mid-60s had gone to tabs like Orange Sunshine and later
microdots. Liquid LSD is notoriously unstable to light and heat and is rendered inactive by
dilution with chlorinated tap-water. Real, unadulterated acid will fluoresce in black light for
verification.

Some of this production came from the labs of chemist Augustus Owsley Stanley III in
California; he produced produced more than 1,250,000 doses of LSD between 1965 and
1967. Psychedelic rock band Blue Cheer took its name from a particularly potent Owsley
acid. Owsley also produced White Lightning and Monterey Purple tabs. Owsley became a
prolific artist and designed the Grateful Dead lightning bolt skull logo often known by the
first Dead album to feature it 13 years laterSteal Your Face; Owsleys nickname was Bear
and he also designed the Deads cool dancing bear logo, apparently a tribute to the Bear Oil
Companys auto service logo originating in the 1930s and visible in virtually every American
town. Owsley acid funded the band while he worked as the bands first soundman and made
live recordings of all the seminal San Francisco bands. http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/
news/owsley-stanley-the-king-of-lsd-20110314?print=true
Later LSD came to Rochdale from another Californian who made 3.5 million doses of
Orange Sunshine. Due to that prodigious output, Nicholas Sand became a fugitive acid
chemist on the run in British Columbia after being sentenced in the US to 15 years in 1974.
Sand was busted in 1996 for 43 grams of acid. Both year and quantity can blow your mind;
psychedelic exploration obviously did not end in the early 70s! Nick Sand served from 1996
to late 2000, first in Canada then after extradition south. His lab produced such awesome
purity that the RCMP used it in a training video. Only later did psychedelic art decorate
perforated blotter paper, each with a single hit.

David Cooper

Stanley Krippner

Among others, psychologist Stanley Krippner, director of the Maimonides Medical Center
Dream Laboratory in New York and an outspoken advocate for psychedelic sacraments,

sourced his acid in Rochdale when on the lecture circuit in Canada. So did South Africanborn shrink David Cooper, associate of the Scottish radical anti-psychiatrist R.D. Laing; in
fact, Cooper coined the term anti-psychiatry for the movement.
Cooper led a weekend psychedelic workshop at a farm in the eastern countryside after
stopping in the Rock; along the way, we used my keys for entry to disable Whitby Psychiatric
Hospitals only electroshock machine which happened to be made by Siemens in West
Germany; they never could replace the parts to fix it.
If you doubt the wisdom of this sabotage, you need to read Ken Keseys book and watch Jack
Nicholson in One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest again! From personal experience, I can tell
you that ECT was overwhelmingly used for convenience, conformity and control, all
antithetical to our Rochdale College values.
Rochdale was subject to police raids almost from its beginnings. Rochdalians favourite trick
was to shut down the elevators once the pigs were riding up. They were trapped between
floors, giving ample time for the targeted perp to move the stash and les flics to regret all their
evil-doings. However, theyre not quite as stupid as they look and began to take to the stairs.
A most exciting development was acid on tiny gelatin squares, called Clear Light or
windowpane; 100,000 hits fit in ones pocket! Which is where they were when I rounded the
stairwell on my way back home when I heard Torontos finest crashing their way up on one
of their periodic raids. I ran back to the eighth-floor where I had bought a huge box of glass
marbles for just such an occasion. I raced back to the stairwell and poured the marbles down
the stairs. The movies Keystone Kops were never as much fun as we had in real life in
Rochdale!

Clearlight, or windowpane, LSD was invented circa 1968 in Santa Cruz by Denis Kelly, now
a Zen Buddhist abbot. The Clearlight group is alleged to have produced more than a kilo of
pure. In comparison, chemists must ensure chlorine-free blotter paper; even then, purity
degrades rapidly with exposure to light and air.

Rochdales cult status made us a mecca for world travelers. Aficionados would bring with
them the finest quality sacraments from around the globe. Rochdales upwardly-mobile
cognoscenti were brought the highest-purity psychedelics such as liquid LSD, high-dose
synthetic yellow mescaline capsules and fresh peyote buttons from the Southwest deserts.
We also saw various little-known chemical lubricants. STP was a fine psychedelic but it took
a very long time to come on; this usually meant the user took another hit, resulting in an
overdose that lasted days. MDA was primarily used for sex, just as MDMA is today.
Rochdale even saw some PCP which was immediately rejected by all as bad mojo.
Small quantities of light amber Afghani honey oil, deep-green Jamaican grass oil, handrubbed hash in tiny fingers from Kashmir, small balls from Manali and temple balls from
Nepal joined pale, powdery Moroccan kif, barely-pressed blonde Lebanese which came apart
in thin flakes, and big, beautiful female colas from Maui, Michoacn and Jamaica, all shared
by the lucky few.
There were many police raids in Rochdale during my tenure there, mostly by RCMP (the
Mounties: Sgt, Preston, Dudley Do-Right) and Metro Toronto Police 52 Division on College
Street. As Cheech & Chong had their nemesis in Sgt. Stedenko, Rochdales nemeses were 52
Divisions drug cops (Pete) King & (Bob) Waddell, named the Bust Brothers in the popular
press. Although not all occurred in Rochdale, the duo were responsible for 3,500 busts in
their dope careers. Some of these raids triggered riots, though they were mild as such.
From 1963 to 1970, Qubec separatists, le Front de libration du Qubec, targeted the most
visible symbol of Ottawas powerthe humble mailbox. The FLQ also bombed the Montral
Stock Exchange, injuring 27 masters of the universe, before stepping up its game by
kidnapping British Trade Commissioner James Cross and the Qubec Cabinets Minister of
Labour Pierre LaPorte. The FLQs demands were to trade these hostages for 23 jailed FLQ
members with safe passage to Cuba or Algeria and CBC broadcast of the FLQ Manifesto.

FLQ flag

RCMP disarming

mailbox
Trudeau invoked the War Measures Act in 1970 as a result of what came to be called the
October crisis. This declaration of martial law was the PMs responce to the kidnapping of
two government officials. The FLQ announced LaPorte was executed but more likely was
killed accidentally. Cross was released as a result of negotiations after 62 days in captivity.
Five FLQ kidnappers were given safe passage to exile in Cuba aboard a Canadian Forces
aircraft. This was a far different era to todays we dont negotiate with terrorists! None
remained permanently in Cuba but returned to Canada within the decade and were pardoned
by Qubecs Premier, Ren Lvesque, after only eight months of jail time. Vive le Qubec
libre
Government was never adept at figuring out Rochdales hippies. Filled with subversive,
anarchist, stateless American draft exiles, they had no idea how the Rocks residents would
respond to the crisis. During my tenure, the most significant riot occurred when Mounties
surrounded the building that October and sequestered us inside. We just didnt make very
docile prisoners!
Susan & Russell, draft exiles from North Dakota, lived in #820. Rochdale council member,
Beverley Davis, lived next door in #822 with draft exile boyfriend, Bobby Anderer. Across
the hall in Aphrodite #823 lived Danny & Cathy Johnson. They were dealers (of course) but
they were the first growers I knew, too. First class product, tended with loving care!
Now, using the elevators in any public highrise is fraught with insecurity, anxiety, discomfort,
and embarrassment. No telling with whom one might be trapped for the duration of the ride.
However, in Rochdale, the elevators were something special.
No matter with whom one might find oneself in the elevators, it became a conversation, a
goof, or a toke. Sometimes the ride even became, as they say, intimate congress. The
elevators were residents DEW line, tom-toms and smoke signals of communication. Most of
us tolerated, if not exactly appreciated, the kids from the burbs who came to the Rock to
score dope. It wasnt that long since we were there ourselves so we became the buildings
guides and prophets. Well, anyway, we always knew who had the best smoke.

It wasnt hard to understand why straight Toronto saw us as anarchist freaks. Bobby Anderer
and his brother Danny rented an Aphrodite in which to store their dope safe from police raids,
#822, right next to mine. If I needed to borrow a cup of sugar, say, or a kitchen tool, I
wouldnt think twice about hopping out my window, on the eighth-floor, and scrabbling
across the outside of the building into my friends stash room. The good citizens could look
up at the building from Bloor Street in any season, at any time of day or night, and see
several longhaired Spidey lookalikes on the outside of the Rock. We were Rochdaliens!
A load of red Lebanese hash had been smuggled into Canada in canned food. When opened,
it was discovered that the Leb was hard as a hockey puck. In order to break it up for sale, the
boys in #822 employed a hatchet. It took weeks
Mostly, the hash came into the building by private cars into the underground parking garage
from where stairwells could be accessed. Hash seals were used for brand identity on units of
hash to show quality and origin of 500 gram and one kilo bricks; some seals were stamped
into the blocks, others were gold leaf and later gold spray-paint (yuck!), particularly Nepalese
and Afghani; Afghani was further identified by packing in red cellophane in addition to its
seal; the fragrant, blonde Lebanese hash in Rochdale often came sewn in cotton bags marked
with a rubber-stamp; three palm trees was a perennial favourite. Rosie had a sports-coat
hand-tailored of these stamps.
The parking-garage entry roller-door was key-carded but had a nasty habit of chewing ones
car as one drove into its maw. I know that intimately because I borrowed Lennys VW
microbus to move some plantslots of dings in the roof! Rosie owned a couple of old Jaguar
sportscars, cream-coloured with red leather interiors, he stored in the basement; he always
kept an artificial red rose hanging from their mirrors, earning him a second nick, The Flower.
Although only a select few were aware of the connection at the time, much of Rochdales
massive flow of hash and acid came through indirect connections with the Brotherhood of
Eternal Love in Laguna Beachworld-class smugglers and chemists. It all moved through
that roller-door.

Rochdale artist Trish, 1972

Young Canadians were on the move that summer of 1970 with free youth hostels spread
across the country for hitch-hikers. Many Westerners trekked the hippie trail from Europe to
Nepal. I wanted to explore my new country so girlfriend Trish and I hitched to Canadas
Maritime provinces.
When I left to make my journey to the East, I gave up my sweet Aphrodite #824 to Andrew
Ronalds, known as the Chooch. Andy was moving substantial loads of hash to and from
Montreal and distributing to small towns in both Ontario and Quebec. Along the way, the
Chooch lost the hippie code and became a notorious cheater. He put together many big
smuggles but this cat had nine lives, losing other peoples money but never his own freedom.
However, he sacrificed a lot of workers, including his wife, Sylvie, mother of his children.
The late 90s found Andy in Afghanistan (hmmm) where he lived with the Lion of Panjshir,
the legendary anti-Soviet mujahideen commander Ahmed Shah Massoud. Massoud was a
major smuggler supported by the CIA. The Choochs Afghan scam never worked but the
Chooch wrote a book about Massoud, published after the Lions assassination by al-Qaeda
just two days before 9/11: On the Trail of a Lion: Tracking Down Ahmed Shah Massoud, Oil,
Politics and Terror in 2004. [The author has conveniently dropped the final s from his last
name and in later printings, named himself A.R. Rowan. The book was ghostwritten by
Aaron Rain.]

With typically impeccable timing, the Chooch converted to Islamas a vegetarian. The book
added little to Massouds legend and was dismissed by academic scholars and researchers and
not even mentioned in Massouds Wikipedia entry and the Amazon reviews were punishing.
Theres a picture of Andy with Massoud in his book, though!

The Lion & the Chooch

When Trish went back to school, I continued on to Newfoundland, taking the car ferry
service from North Sydney, Nova Scotia to Argentia, Newfoundland. After exploring much of
the province by thumb I made a side trip by ferry from Port-aux-Basques to the French
protectorate islands of St. Pierre & Miquelon off Newfies southern coast. When I returned to
Newfoundland, I took the CN coastal steamship to the Labrador. I wanted to learn all I could
about Canada. This was the last year the Newfie Bullet ran across the island.
In the autumn, I arrived back at the Rock. I was offered a Gnostic in the 16th-floor domain of
a dealing consortium called The Losers. The Losers had evolved out of the closure of the
sixth-floor dealing commune and I found myself living next to Mod Rick and down the hall
from Hippie Bob for a couple of months.
There was always a lot of fluid movement in Rochdale and I longed for the civilized
Aphrodite life. In due course, I inherited #1820 from an older hippie named Stan Troyer and
his lady, Rosemarie. Stan was a veteran of 1950s LSD therapy for alcoholism at Weyburn
Mental Hospital outside Regina. The therapy was conducted by pioneering psychedelic
medical researchers, Quaker psychologist Duncan Blewett, and psychiatrists Humphry

Osmond and Abram Hoffer, advised by Al Hubbard. The acid came from Sandoz.
When I met Stan, he wore a big circle of Nepalese hash on a chain, its gold seal facing the
world. Some time later when I saw Stan, he wasnt wearing the seal; he explained hed
chipped away at smoking it from the back side until there was nothing left! The motto of
those Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers stands just as true today: Dope will get you through
times of no money better than money will get you through times of no dope. Bob Marley:
Him not dead
Psilocybin mushrooms were still legal in Canada, at least in their fresh form. Countless
hippies in B.C. were wandering farmers fields looking in the cow patties. Theo Lefterys
(Uncle Nick) had bought a bunch of mushrooms in Vancouver, tossed them in a suitcase and
flown to Toronto where he delivered them to Lenny Lunchbucket, only to discover that, on
the trip, theyd mostly turned to, well, mush.
We bought a carton of SOS (Save Our Stash) pads from the second-floor Sooper-Store,
packed them in plastic bags and SOS boxes and froze them in the freezers of several
apartments. This resulted in a lot of leftover liquid which I happily took off our hapless freak
brothers hands. My Rochdale home at the time, #1820, overlooked the naked sunbathing
roof on the 17th-floor. When God (Teonancatl, obviously) hands you mushrooms, well, you
sell mushroom smoothies from your apartment window!
I was always a bit of a naturist, frequenting skinny-dipping holes in summer. However, I
really became a committed nudist on the 17th-floor Roof Patio as soon as the Toronto
weather showed a glimmer of warmth and sun. In addition to tanning, my first introduction to
hatha yoga (naked, of course) took place in the classes held regularly on the sundeck. The
view to the south across Lake Ontario and the US was awesome on a clear day; Torontos
defining landmark, the CN Tower, hadnt even been built on the lakeshore yet.

Rosie, Jerry, Mike

Sweet Rick, Premo Productions, Loser

Rosie, Jerry, and Mike organised a music event called Fillmore North on New Years Eve
1970 at Torontos St. Lawrence Centre. The concerts headliner was albino bluesman Johnny
Winter. Imagine a concert venue filled with people you know, your community, your family.
This was one of the best events ever, paid for by Rochdale hash. There were lots of
psychedelics, of course; I manned the bad trips tent while completely zonked myself!

We often would go out for an evening of world-class Toronto music. Rosie sent a bottle of
champagne to Muddy Waters at the Colonial Tavern on Yonge Street. Blues is thirsty work!
We also frequented the El Mocambo on Spadina to listen to such Canadian blues greats as
Jeff Healey Band, Downchild Blues Band, and McKenna Mendelson Mainline.
Nobody I knew in Rochdale had a television, even if we all had killer stereos. Why would
anyone want to spend their consciousness with two-dimensional, black-and-white people and
a laugh-track when one could have a real laugh with any of many thoroughly 3- (and
sometimes 4-) D freaks?
However, most of us enjoyed Reg Hartts cinema in the second-floor lounge. Movie viewers
were, usually, ah, enhanced. One could bring all manner of food and booze, smoke dope with
abandon. If one were so led, you could watch a flick naked, lounging on the floor cushions.
Reg would show old movies, silents and comedies in black-and-white, sci-fi, monster movies,
and cult classics. My favourites were the super-saturated Disney animated musicals, made
even more vivid with shrooms!

The 101st Cannabis Brigade met infrequently in the sixth-floor Ashram lounge. Often blue
movies were shown (no one knew the far more pejorative modern term pornography).
Every Ashram had a pay-telephone booth. The sixth-floors had a rooster living in theirs! The
101st had membership cards and for some time, all paper money generated by dope was
stamped with the 101sts logo. Until the man started to use it against us to prove evidence of
criminal conspiracy.
Rochdale had its own ice hockey team, a particularly Canadian national sport at a time when
few Americans had even heard of it. The Rochdale Roaches rented a rink for practice and
there was a lot of smoke on the ice. Most popular were the several times the Roaches played
the Toronto Police 52 Division who were always raiding the building; cant remember if
anyone won! After the Czech spring takeover, Rochdale was home to a few young Czech
refugees who also worked at the local enterprise. The few times I ever watched TV in the
Rock were for some Czech-Canadian ice hockey games.
Of the typically Canadian sports, ice hockey, lacrosse, and curling, hockey is by far the most
popular, fast-pacedand aggressive. Professional players are often known as Canadian
gladiators. Before the invention of safety gear, and requirement for its use, hockey players
commonly displayed missing front teeth from taking a stick or puck to the mouth. Canadians
insult one another as centre-shotsa goalie who lets an easy puck slide between his legs.

Virtually all Canadian kids take to the ice. So it became a mark of distinction for successful
Rochdale dealers to have at least season tickets and often boxes on centre ice to watch the
Toronto Maple Leafs play the Gardens, and invite all their friends.
I kept in touch with my parents in New Jersey by letter (remember those?) and the banks of
payphones in the lobby before the lock-door manned by Rochdale security. I bet tons (and
Im being literal) of dope deals were made on those phones, made with rolls of gertz, or
quarters.
My folks eventually came to visit. Educated and open-minded, they showed a healthy
curiosity not only toward the Rock but toward peaceful Canada. We ate, of course, in Etherea
Vegetarian Restaurant on the first floor. During dinner, there was some commotion. Someone
had leapt to their death in the alley outside Ethereas back door.
Canadian media vilified the Rock for its occasional suicide jumpers. Ive never seen any
figures but Id be most surprised if Rochdale had any more suicides than the typical Toronto
highrise. My favourite was the hippie teenybopper stoned on acid who jumped from the thirdfloor window onto Bloor Street, landed on the roof of a parked convertible and walked back
into Rochdale through the front lobby, naked and unhurt.
Two disparate views presented themselves in Rochdale. The studious, if not all that serious,
had an agenda, a vision of cooperation and community. The dealers just wanted to have some
harmless fun, every single day, and make some money doing it.
You might not remember how long we lived under sophisticated and urbane prime minister
Pierre Elliott Trudeau. He openly opposed Americas war on Vietnam and welcomed young
Yanqui draft dodgers and deserters. Trudeau looked debonair in floor-length mink coats in the
harsh Ottawa winters and married a free young Westcoaster. His vivacious bride not only
partied with the Rolling Stones, in her garter belt, no less, but mailed herself a pound of hash
back from Morocco. Dried-up old Nancy Reagannot! Trudeau was our fearless leader for
almost 17 years. If our elected leaders could have so much fun, well, wed follow!
Many of us moved between both worlds and some dealers even became part of Rochdales
administration or sat on its Governing Council. Karen Johnston, then the buildings rentals
manager, suggested I take on the post of chair of the newly-created Evictions Appeals Board.
I have a good sense of fairness and justice and this proved a good fit. Karen became a lawyer
and then Madam Justice Johnston in the Ontario Court of Justice after her Rochdale
apprenticeship. She described her Rochdale experience as life-transforming and exposed
her to the need for compassion in her decisions from the bench.
Rochdales residents were always hardassed against hard drugs. There may have been a
junkie or speedfreak or two but, if these were their drug of choice, they learned to keep it
well hidden or get off the bus. Many who were busted in the building for coke, just arriving
on the scene, petty theft or ripoffs, simply left without appeal. That meant our little board
only got to see the choicest cases.
Possession of hypodermic works for shooting hard drugs, possession of firearms, throwing
objects from Rochdales windows, destruction of building property, permitting crashers into
the building or allowing them to crash in common areas, not cleaning up your pets shit,

subletting without prior permission from Rentals and, of course, nonpayment of rent were
also grounds for immediate eviction.
We hardly gave anyone the flick if they showed some contrition and promised to be good in
future. We did not develop a pansy reputation, however, and sometimes called in Security for
hard cases.
Rochdales ethics and values proved right on. In the early- to mid-1970s, many young dopers
who had been visiting the Rock became speed freaks. Closeby Spadina Avenue was notorious
for its speeder scene. Meth-smoking had not yet been discovered in those days speed was
shot up communally. This has resulted in an army of oldsters suffering and dying from
hepatitis C from sharing needles forty years ago.

Rochdales PUB office and Stan Bevingtons Coach House Press printed some fine
inspirational/motivational/promotional materials to improve our public image during my time
there. A greyscale photo of the building taken from across Bloor facing the northeast corner
of the Rock on sky-blue light-poster stock read, At Rochdale, we feel more like we do now
than when we first got here. A black postcard with white border stated, At Rochdale,

nothing is normalobviously a quote from some stuffed-shirt Canadian pol we Rock stars
wore with pride. The black-and-white photo adorning the bright yellow poster, Rochdale
Securityto serve and protect, the slogan of the Toronto cops, was probably less welladvised!
One of the most prominent elements to distinguish Rochdale from the so-called real world
was our total sense of tolerance and acceptance and freedom, except, of course, when it came
to hard drugs, theft, and violence. All freaks are created equal. This sense of tolerance was
what gave us such cohesion and purpose in contrast with straight society. Straight people
always think that where there are drugs, there must be violence. I never saw a gun, or even
heard of one. Fugeddaboutitwe were hippieswho needs a gun when youre armed with
consciousness!

Although drugs were a saleable commodity, there was also an abiding sense that these were

sacramental substances. We were all taking psychedelics to get somewhere but that
somewhere was not necessarily to get high. We embraced the greater reality, the
interconnectedness of all things. Swiss LSD discoverer Albert Hofmann stated that
psychedelics can stimulate the inborn faculty of visionary experience. Theres an inherent
question in that statement: Why would you want to live as a blind man?
If you happen to be spiritual the metaphor is, psychedelics enable you to be reborn, right
here, right now. No borders, no limits! Hey, if, like John Lilly, you can talk with dolphins,
well, what could be better than that!!! Tripping is not a game for the foolish. There is no
recreational use for genuine psychedelics. Dope was for education and exploration and
illumination and, by and large, was treated with the respect it deserved. So, Art Linklater,
show me who these chemicals have actually harmed, ever.
In the autumn of 1971, Jerry & Cass moved to the well-named High Park, eight Bloor TTC
stops from the Rock. They were pregnant with Jakab and their Dobermans, Sunshine and
Shadow, needed a place to run. Rosie moved in down the block with his girlfriend, Paula.
Bob the Goof rented a farm in Ajax with his girlfriend, Xena. Mod Rick rented in the
countryside near the Collingwood ski mountains and Uncle Nick a very remote farm near
Bolton for Penny and their two boys. It was just time to spread out.
I guess Id gotten as high in Rochdale as was possible (#1820!) so I had to jump off. My
dearest friend arrived back from the hippie trail from Amsterdam to Morocco and moved in
with me. Just one of our peak experiences together was taking LSD and then going to a highend, traditional Japanese restaurant on Avenue Road. In our private tatami room, the staff
kept delivering exquisite, tiny portions of food as art. We examined each with every sense for
20 minutes or so. We were too high, and they were too beautiful to simply eat. We were soon
pregnant with our first and it didnt take long for my sweetheart to pry me from the Rocks
depths of depravity. I moved to study at the Whitby Psychiatric Hospital, one bedlam to
another!
I dont know if Id move back into Rochdale again were it possible. (Maybe Id rent a stash
room.) The biggest crime of Rochdale College was that politicians didnt understand youth
culture and were mortally afraid of its threat to their power. They reacted by turning a
generation into criminals.
Robert W. Rowbotham III tried to live by his hippie principles and pitted his ego against the
police state. He became Canadas not only longest-serving cannabis prisoner for his imports
of tons of marijuana and hashish but an ever-present reminder that drug laws dont work.
Canadas highest law, the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, states the principles of
fundamental justice must not be violated. The Criminal Code states that sentence[s] must
be proportionate to the nature of the offence and not be unduly long or harsh.
Rosie spent more time in prison than terrorists, murderers and rapists. Who did cannabis hurt,
exactly? We should all be deeply ashamed we allowed this to happen.
Lauries lobby murals and Ed Apts Unknown student survived but now the building is a
seniors residence named after Senator David A. Croll (whoever the fuck he was!). Hard to
remember we only were FREE for six years. The only close fit Ive found is Copenhagens
Free State, Christiania, seized from the military by Danish hippies in 1971. Christiania, like

Rochdale, enforces a policy of no hard drugs. I like the company on Pusherstreet on a sunny
day, and todays smoking piece!
We can no longer deny that cannabis has proven to be an effective medicine for nearly 200
multiple ailments which do not respond to the pharmaceutical drugs of modern medicine, a
small selection of which include Ahlzheimers, ALS, arthritis, asthma, numerous cancers,
cerebral palsy, Crohns, cystic fibrosis, diabetes, epilepsy, Huntingtons, leukemia, Lou
Gehrigs, lyme, multiple sclerosis, Parkinsons.
Psychedelic medicine is similarly a growing field, particularly in cases of addictions such as
alcoholism, cocaine and heroin, and tobacco (ibogaine), depression (ayahuasca), cancer
(marijuana), post-traumatic stress disorder (MDMA), anxiety and panic disorders
(psilocybin), and end-of-life therapy (LSD). Hey, we Rochdale hippies knew that in 1968!
The demonisation of drugs and political fear-mongering delayed these scientific revelations
for almost 50 years and caused untold sufferingfor nothing!
The popular press reports smoking dope is currently distributed by hippies and gangsters.
Expect legal marijuana to take pot out of the hands of entrepreneurs and put corporados,
banksters and big business, all taxed by government, firmly in control. Rochdale sold hash
righteously. Really, would you rather buy branded products in an LCB or Macs Milk selling
GMO Frankenhash? Who do you trust? Support your local dealer!
Or, as Timothy Leary wrote: The dope dealer is selling you the celestial dream. He is very
different from any other merchant because the commodity he is peddling is freedom and joy.
In the years to come the television dramas and movies will make a big thing of the dope
dealer of the sixties. He is going to be the Robin Hood, spiritual guerrilla, mysterious agent who will take the place of the cowboy hero or the cops and robbers hero. (Timothy Leary,
'Dope Dealers - New Robin Hood', 1967) [Umm, it happened, didnt it?) Theres a reason
Tricky Dick Nixon called Tim Leary the most dangerous man in America.
If you dont know you are free, you dont deserve your freedom. There are no slavemasters.
The 21st-century police state has us locked down in every way so now youll have to find
your own way to get free. I often ask myself if our flagrant freedom hastened the rise of the
present fascism; theyll certainly never let even a whiff of the Sixties happen again. (Is that
smoke I smell???)
The difference between then and now is simply this: We were connected. Thats what
community is. We didnt need cellphones, we didnt need Fakebook, we didnt need selfies.
Because we had each other. (Selfies, really?!?) Sowake the fuck up! Thats still exactly
what we need!
The truth is still the truth: Money is a drug. Consumerism consumes us all. Rochdale was
more than a place in time, more than a building. Rochdale was a foundation to expand ones
consciousness and make a good life. Thats how Ive tried to live ever since. How high are
you?
Life exists only at this very moment,
and in this moment it is infinite and eternal,
for the present moment is infinitely small;
before we can measure it,

it has gone, and yet it exists forever...

--Alan Watts (1915 - 1973)
Remember. We werent there for a long time. But we had a really good time!
May the long time sun shine upon you
All light surround you
And the pure light within you
Guide your way on
Incredible String Band (1968)

CJ Hinke
Bangkok

THE HIPPIE CODE

In 1967, suits from Time Magazine published their own bullshit hippie code, not ours. They
got it wrong. This is the real hippie code.

All beings are one. Treat every being with kindness, understanding, and compassion. Be
good. Do good.
Ahimsa: nonviolence. Do no harm. Never use violence, no matter what. It just doesnt work.
Love is all. Live love. Love everyone. Serve everyone.
Listen, with an open mind. Its not you who are important. Show respect for all. And shut up.
You are a being of light. Educate and enlighten yourself, then share the light with others.
We have only one truth to depend on. Universal truth. Honour that truth without fear. No one
can take it away from you.
There are no dogmas and no karmas. Live your life today.
Fix it in your mind: What would Gandhi do?
Free yourself from all expectation. Its all in your mind. Surrender.
Time got the last part right: Turnonto beauty, love, honesty, fun.
Turn on. Tune in. Drop out. was the right message. Give up the brainwashing.

Be here now
Soyou need 3G with that? [But will we get 4D in time?] Just breathe the universe, in and
out. It only needs you. And, dont shave your headit makes you look like a criminal!
If you need more reminders, read Be Here Now again, and again, and again, and again, until
you get it!
Note. A collection of Rochdale materials is held by the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at
the University of Toronto should you desire some reminders. If anyone is interested in
working with me on producing a desktop bronze version of Ed & Dereks Unknown
Student sculpture, please email me at unblocktheplanet@gmail.com.

THE HIPPIE CODE

In 1967, suits from Time Magazine published their own bullshit hippie code, not ours. They
got it wrong. This is the real hippie code.

All beings are one. Treat every being with kindness, understanding, and compassion. Be
good. Do good.
Ahimsa: nonviolence. Do no harm. Never use violence, no matter what. It just doesnt work.
Love is all. Live love. Love everyone. Serve everyone.
Listen, with an open mind. Its not you who are important. Show respect for all. And shut up.
You are a being of light. Educate and enlighten yourself, then share the light with others.
We have only one truth to depend on. Universal truth. Honour that truth without fear. No one
can take it away from you.
There are no dogmas and no karmas. Live your life today.
Fix it in your mind: What would Gandhi do?
Free yourself from all expectation. Its all in your mind. Surrender.
Time got the last part right: Turnonto beauty, love, honesty, fun.
Turn on. Tune in. Drop out. was the right message. Give up the brainwashing.
Be here now

Soyou need 3G with that? [But will we get 4D in time?] Just breathe the universe, in and
out. It only needs you. And, dont shave your headit makes you look like a criminal!
If you need more reminders, read Be Here Now again, and again, and again, and again, until
you get it!
Note. A collection of Rochdale materials is held by the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library at
the University of Toronto should you desire some reminders. If anyone is interested in
working with me on producing a desktop bronze version of Ed & Dereks Unknown
Student sculpture, please email me at unblocktheplanet@gmail.com.

Have we forgotten Rochdale? : There Can Be No Light Without

Shadow, 1971

It is somewhat unusual to find oneself writing a book review of a scarce 40-year old, highly
limited circulation book, extensively (and strangely!) referenced. However, this exposition is
of enormous social importance not only to education in Canada but education everywhere.
The most incisive and informed commentary on the deeper meaning and underlying and
evolving philosophy of Rochdale College was the only book ever published at Torontos
iconic free school.
Rochdale President Peter Turners gold-embossed A Rochdale College Publication 1971,
There Can be No Light Without Shadow (a quotation from Camus) was a 430-page, singlesided typescript delving into the minutiae of way the building operated and its denizens, and
noted on its rear cover, Bound and published in Rochdale College by mindless acid freaks.
The top half of Page 265 has been blanked outwhat did it say that the author did not
intend?
The book also contains an 80-page study by UofT anthropologist Kent Gooderham who lived
in a Rochdale Zeus with his wife and six children who were sent to local public schools. He
found about one-third of Rochdale residents to be young expat Americans, a rather light
percentage. However, his survey of Rochdale residents provides hard proof of the benefits of
free education. [Please let me know if this study ever had a title.]
I have thus far been stymied in learning how many copies of Turners book were printed, for
whom they were intended, their method of distribution or even the books intent or purpose!

Rochdale College was named for an incident in England in 1844 in which 28 workers in the
little town of Rochdale formed one of the worlds first consumer cooperatives and developed
a philosophy for its operation called the Rochdale Society of Equitable Pioneers. Our
College also became home to a generation of equitable pioneers.
Rochdale College was established by law in the Ontario Parliament under a private members
Bill Pr14 which was passed as The Rochdale College Act, 1964. The bill merely ratifies the
law of corporations 1939 to include cooperatives and students and names Howard
Adelman, William Michael Rothery, and Howard Staats [where are they now?] as Rochdales
first students. All property of the college was to be exempt from every description of
taxation, a bonus of $10,000 a month. The act also mentions The objects and purposes of
the College are the advancement of learningbut do not include the power to confer
degrees. Of course, this was next:

Hippie College Sells Bogus Degrees!

Rochdales degrees were a satiric and theatrical fundraising tool printed by Stan Bevingtons
Coach House Press. My own degree is bordered with marijuana leaves and the Queens
image is two-faced. Its union notice bears a beaver wearing a mortarboard surmounted above
the legend, PRINTED IN CANADA / ON CANADIAN / PAPER / by mindless acid freaks.
Degrees were purchased by graduates in Canada, the United States, England, Ghana, and
Rhodesia; some 6,000 were were purchased in their first week of offering in 1970.
The bill was promulgated by MPP Mr. Lawrence (St. George) about whom we have been
unable to unearth further information. Rochdales proposed budget was $223,750 which
could convincingly be raised by fees, fundraising and magazine sales, to pay for the Colleges

850 residents. Admission was open to all, though Dennis Lee was in charge of Acceptance.
The Colleges location adjacent to the University of Toronto was described in December
1966 in the Rochdale College Bulletin, Vol. 1 No. 1, as building a botanical garden next to
an abattoir. The Colleges educational component was researched by Ken Drushka in 1966
with a grant from the Company of Young Canadians; Drushka subsequently was appointed
Rochdales first Education Director.

The Rochdale College building at 341 Bloor Street West in Toronto was designed in the
postwar Brutalist architectural style by Elmar Tampld and John Wells. Rochdale cost $5.8
million to build at the corner of Huron Street and Bloor Street West, bankrolled 90% by the
Federal governments newly-established Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation. Our
mortgage payments were just over $31,000 a month.
In 1973, CMHC forced Rochdale into receivership, ultimately leading to its closure in 1975;
many of us still think this was certainly a politically-motivated decision. Rochdale was
mercilessly persecuted by politicians, police and straight society, and vilified in the popular
press. However we lived, Turner points out Rochdale had punitive health inspections every
second week from 1969; we never failed one!
Of course, rabid politicians and media were our best advertising. A Toronto alderman in the
Telegram described Rochdale as a college of promiscuity, drug-taking, and defiance of the
law and good government. Sounds like fun, no? And not unlike any other institution of
tertiary education. This pol also opined that hippies can be cured by hockey rinks. We
thought the best games were the ones played by the Rochdale Roaches against the Metro
Police 52 Division!
Rochdale Colleges proposed seminar topics included Nothingness, Living in the
Present, Social Reform, Dead Dogma?, Human Rights, Participatory Democracy
and Revolution as well as the more conventional subjects of Rhetoric, Literature, Satire,
Civilization [sic], Radical Theology and Cinema. Rochdales faculty resources were drawn
primarily from the UofT but also from the Canadian Labour Congress, the Company of
Young Canadians, the Anglican Church, British Columbias Simon Fraser University which
itself had only been established in 1965, the National Indian Council, Californias
International Institute for Advanced Studies think-tank, the Dominican Catholic Order,
Hamiltons McMaster University and Torontos York University.

Its educational premise was, there is something wrong with the presents methods of
education and nothing substantially wrong withthe subject. And, of course, there was
always the S.C.M. (Student Christian Movement) Bookroom on street level.
Peter Turner describes Rochdale as a Protean society and its residents as the prophetic
Proteus of Greek mythology, struggling to free himself from the fetters of the past and
discover his new identity. The author described the building as bearing the positive Protean
attributes of versatility, flexibility, adaptability. Of course, the mythical, mutable Proteus lives
for today, and changes it all tomorrow!
Thus Rochdale was unintentionally modeled upon the Oxford common houses of the 11th to
16th centuries. 100,000 visitors arrived at Rochdale by 1969, 4,000 of them staying a month
or more, primarily between the ages of 16 and 24. The Rochdale Free Clinic treated 6,000
patients, compared to the Alcohol and Drug Addiction Research Foundation which treated
only one-third that number on a nine-million dollar budget. Rochdale College housed nearly
5,000 students over its seven year life.
Turner sees Rochdale teaching manners to the young, and the full meaning of freedom,
including its requirements and responsibilities. The author engages an erudite discussion of
the practical definitions of freedom and licence as elucidated by educator and theorist A.S.
Neill in his volume, Freedom Not Licence. Rochdales enforcement of social education also
comes under examination.

Rochdale takes everybody and turns them inside-out.

The Evictions Appeals Board, sometimes called the Court of Appeal, was composed of one
permanent chairman (myself, for more than two years) and five resident members, rotated
every ten weeks. This timeframe proved by trial and error to be long enough to ensure justice
could be served through knowledge and experience with generous compassion and second
chances, precisely opposite to the straight worlds courts of just-us, predicated on revenge,
and short enough to deter corruption. The Board taught socialisation to the benefit of both the
errant resident and the rest of us.
It is most interesting, in the the context of Rochdale 1971, that Turner argues for compassion
towards transientscrashers. He maintains that if Rochdale truly is a free school, in every
sense, then crashers must be tolerated and accommodated. He proposes to establish a
Crasher Co-op to find employment and withhold from wages for rent in the building.
Turner begs the question What is a relevant education? and expresses the philosophy,
Society has failed. These are children; be friendly to them.
The author also points out that, in the Toronto of that period, 1,000 drug busts occurred every
month. Rochdale was hardly unique in terms of drug culture. Dope was normal everywhere.
Turner estimates three-to-four percent of Rochdales population to be drug dealers. Few
Rochdale dealers were dealing for the money: they were dealing for its outlaw cachet. They
just wanted to be heroes. And many were.
Rochdale College was a true Utopian community in every contemporary and historical sense.
We had no burning desire to prove ourselves to outsiders. We were proving ourselves to

ourselves and to one another. The average age of Rochdale residents was 22! To be a member
of our Governing Council one had to be 21 but to live in the building without parental
supervision was only 16. And we were gleefully coeducational long before anybody thought
of gender equality. The residents in Rochdale had come out of a society that was committed
to the concept of individual liberty, never realizing that freedom is a profoundly social
concept. Nothing was extra-curricular.
The author characterises Rochdale as both cripple and giant. We were certainly crippled by
society in our time and giant to those who lived there to remember and honour us.
One of Rochdales posters read, We feel more like we do now than when we first got here.
Another quoted a Toronto politician: In Rochdale, nothing is normal. We liked being not
normal. In the 21st-century, we are drowning in normalcy.
Rochdales world of nearly half-a-century ago may seem charmingly antiquated. However,
we are still seeking answers to the fundamental questions Peter Turner raises in his book. He
makes a persuasive argument for a mutual and inclusive future. We have lost sight of that
future, become apathetic and disinterested in a way Rochdale College never was. Exclusive
has now become a positive value. Instead of becoming the people our parents warned us
about [innovative] (Jimmy Buffett) we seem to have become our parents [boooring]. What
went wrong?
CJ Hinke
Bangkok & Tofino
email: cj@tu.ac.th

The Unknown Student by Ed Apt and Derek Heinzerling

[Authors note. Peter Turners book deserves a far wider readership than a privileged few.
Precious little has been written about such an important institution. The first article about
Rochdale in This Magazine Is About Schools was by founder Dennis Lee, Getting to
Rochdale, Winter 1968; the second, and apparently last, was The Rochdale Experience by
Sarah Spinks in Winter 1970.
Although there is a comprehensive Rochdale College collection at the Thomas Fisher Rare
Book Library at University of Toronto, I am unaware if the collection has a copy of the book.
If you know more about its publication history or are willing to commit to posting the book
online, we need to be in touch! Certainly, the Rochdaily issues also need to be scanned online
to share before this knowledge is lost.
I am also interested in creating a desktop sculpture of Ed Apts The Unknown Student
sculpture still standing in front of what is now The Senator David A. Croll Apartments for
seniors. If you can help, please get in touch.
We are still The Rock!]

Rolling Stone, June 1972

Idioms in Rochdale
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_53_Slang.html

Slang is the continual and ever-changing use, invention and definition of words in casual
conversation. Often it is peculiar to a particular group or subculture or restricted to a specific
context. The informal speech uses expressions that many consider to be grammatically
imperfect and sometimes rude, vulgar, humorous or irreverent. Its use is frequently ridiculed
by ignorant people who think it is for the uneducated and believe it to be counterevolutionary. In fact, human language has been in a state of constant reinvention for

centuries, and slang has been used and created by poets and writers including William
Shakespeare. A slang word often falls into disuse over time, but sometimes it grows more
common until it is regarded as mainstream. Slang is not the same as jargon. Generally,
jargon refers to terminology that is associated with a profession such as medicine, law, or
computer science.
In Rochdale the slang used by the residents was largely based on 1960s hippie slang.
Although hippie slang was different from the Beat variety, Rochdalian slang was only
slightly different from the hippie type and included 1970s words and some slang unique to
the building. Slang defines a subculture and usually is understood only by the initiated.
Rochdalians defined themselves as three types: "Sleazes", "Tightasses", and "Filler".
However, almost everybody could understand their language. Slang is often used to
circumvent social taboos and is rich in violence, crime, drugs, and sex. The origin of the
word "slang" is uncertain and its earliest use was in 1756 to refer to "low or disreputable"
people. Much bohemian slang was derived from 1930s black jazz slang which was like a
foreign language to the uninitiated.
Rochdalians imagined they were "hip" for using slang, but most didn't have a clue. The
amount of slang used by individuals in the building varied from almost none to virtually only
hip slang. Michael Adams, an expert on slang, believes it is a type of poetry and therefore it
is appealing, friendly, musical and easily blends in with everyday conversation. As there
were so many hippies, much of their slang is now officially part of the English language.
Here are most of the slang words and expressions used or understood by Rochdalians:

Acid: LSD; Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated to LSD or LSD-25; a semisynthetic

psychedelic drug known for its psychological effects that can include altered thinking, closed
and open eye visuals, hallucinations, synesthesia, an altered sense of time and spiritual
experiences, as well as for its role in the 1960's counterculture; molecular formula
C20H25N3O
Acid Head: someone who takes LSD, usually often

Acapulco Gold: a particularly potent variety of marijuana; a strong and very expensive type
of marijuana grown in the Mexican mountains of the states of Guerrero and Michoacn. It
has a yellow rather than green colour; a sativa-dominant indica/sativa hybrid of cannabis
with strong sativa cerebral effects and a long-lasting indica high with body-relaxing, stress
reducing calmness; the Acapulco Gold farms are believed to have been destroyed by the
Mexican authorities in 1972, although the name is still used for similar marijuana

Ace: a person, place or thing of the highest value; completed to perfection; a marijuana
cigarette
Acid: LSD
Action: excitement; sexual activity; plan; illegal activity; commerce in drugs; acts of crime;
activity in general; whatever is happening; a share of something; a share of the winnings; a
political demonstration or protest
Afro: a hairstyle of tight curls in a full evenly rounded shape like Jimi Hendrix; a hair style
originating with blacks in which the hair grows naturally and acquires a bushy appearance; a
prefix indicating something of African heritage or influence

Airhead: someone without intelligence or common sense; a silly, dumb or empty-headed

person with no brains; a stupid person or someone pretending to be stupid to be attractive to
the opposite sex, sometimes characterised generically as a blonde woman
Al Cool: an inexpensive vodka-like bottle of "Alcohol" sold by the Ontario Liquor Control
Board and popular with Rochdalians, especially at large parties. The LCBO "Alcohol" was
discontinued long ago. Alcohol (ethanol) has the molecular formula ofC2H5OH.
All Right!: an approval, greeting, or exclamation of admiration with the emphasis on "right",
which is sometime used alone; related to "right on"
All-show-and-no-go: someone or something that looks good but has no substance
Amp Out: to the extreme; to go crazy; to blow a fuse
Ape: wildly excited or enthusiastic (used with verbs gone or went); crazy; mad;a big, ugly,

clumsy person; a hoodlum or strong-arm man, especially if big and strong; an imitator;
mimic; to "go apeshit" after hearing something surprising and alarming

Aphrodite: a one bedroom unfurnished apartment in the West wing of Rochdale College,
often shared by two roomies
Around the bend: to be crazy or strange
Around the block: mature, experienced; sexually experienced
Ashram: a communal living area on every residential floor of Rochdale College with eight
bedrooms, a bathroom, kitchenette, and lounge; many Ashrams were also genuine Communes
Attitude: (to have) self-centred; exhibiting arrogance towards others
Awesome: the best
Axe: a guitar, especially an electric guitar; any musical instrument; any tool of a person's
trade; from blues and jazz slang: historically black slaves could not own musical instruments
and so called them "axes" as camouflage

Babe: an affectionate term for a female, now with a slightly different meaning; a term for an
attractive young women; a term of endearment; affectionate term for one's significant other
Baby: a sexy, groovy person or someone you love; a person, either a man or a woman; in the
1960s it was often used at the end of sentences just like "you know" or "man" and didn't
necessarily mean anything affectionate; the word peaked in 1967 and wasn't used much in
Rochdale College


Backdoor: adultery; sodomy; anal sex

Badass: a tough guy you really don't want to mess with; a tough, aggressive or uncooperative
person; a person who is rugged and strong; particularly bad or severe

Bad Scene: bad trip; a bring down; a bummer

Bad Trip: an LSD trip that goes awry usually indicated by paranoia, or intense uncontrollable
feelings; a bad experience

Bag: what a person is interested in or into; a profession or obsession; what you enjoy; job,
work, interest; to steal

Ball: sexual intercourse; a good time; to have sex

Bananas: (to go) bewildering or perplexing
Bang: sexual intercourse
The Bank: in Rochdale it referred to the the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce branch
located at ground level next to the college entrance in the East wing. It was the bank for most
Rochdalians. Rochdale and the bank had a good relationship. The only exception was when
someone broke a window of the bank on the night of July 30, 1974 during a riot caused by a
drug bust.
Bar 711: a booze can and afterhours key club located in Gnostic #711 in Rochdale College
managed by artist Sharon Blanchfield; Sharon painted the large room in Bar 711 to look like
a "Camel" cigarette package, and painted a "Big Ass" cartoon on the window facing Bloor
Street; there were pinball machines in the single room and the kitchen was a Jamaican beach
bar; Bar 711 was sold to Mitch, Stanley and "Big Boogie" (7' 2" tall) from Michigan who
painted over Sharon's art and turned it into a "Black Pit.

The Zipper II by Sharon Blanchfield

Basket Case: a crazy person; an inconsolable person; in a completely hopeless or useless
condition; suffering from extreme nervous strain; a nervous wreck; incapable of functioning
normally
Bazooms: the female breasts; slang alteration of bosoms from 1955
Beanbag chair: a big chair shaped like a bag and covered with naugahyde vinyl or leather;
usually filled with little styrofoam balls
Be-In: a large gathering of hippies similar to a Love-In; there was no big reason to be there,
other than to be there; an event where you groove on everyone else

Be Here Now: live in the moment; a Zen Buddhist philosophy popular in the 1960s and the
title of the 1971 book by Ram Dass

Beat the Meat: masturbation; beat off; jerk off

Beautiful: a groovy situation or person
Beaver: a womans pubic region; vagina; a derogatory term for a woman
Bell-bottoms: trousers or jeans that are wide and flaring at the bottoms of the legs, de rigueur
in the late sixties and early seventies for hippies

Bi: a bisexual person; sexually attracted to both men and women

Bignote: bragging; a braggart (Australian slang)
Biker: a motorcycle afficionado; a member of a motorcycle club or gang
Bird: British slang for a young woman, not used in North America but understood; a brick of
drugs, usually cocaine; 36 ounces of cocaine; stupid, foolish, careless, idiotic, moronic,
retarded, or dumb

The Bird: the finger; the middle finger; "flip the bird", a gesture of raising the middle finger;
to hold up the middle finger to another; a profane gesture with the middle finger, as in Fuck
you or Fuck off

Blacklight Posters: psychedelic posters with fluorescent inks for an intense glowing effect
under black (ultraviolet) lights, originally printed on high-gloss or velvet-flocked papers;
black light is invisible ultraviolet or infrared radiation that causes fluorescent materials to
emit visible light

Black Power: attributed to Stokely Carmichael who used it to encourage blacks to attain

more political clout; a rallying cry for action against the racial injustice of the 1950s and 60s

Blade: a knife; a young man, witty and worldly; a homosexual man

Blast: a great time; exciting party or happening

Blasted: drunk, intoxicated; ugly; an intensifier, such as "blasted idiot"
Blitzed: drunk; to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol; to be wasted, often used by pot
smokers
Blonde: a variety of hashish, often from Lebanon, referring to its golden colour

Blotter: a type of LSD dropped onto paper in single doses, perforated to be easily cut, often
extravagantly decorated with psychedelic art

Blotto: intoxicated; drunk; unconscious, especially through drunkenness

Blow: to play a musical instrument; to depart; to make; cocaine; to leave in a hurry; to ruin
something; to ruin an opportunity; a setback; an attack
Blow Away: to amaze; to affect intensely; overwhelm; to defeat decisively; to kill, usually
with a firearm
Blow Off: to abort going somewhere or doing something; to skip, avoid or ignore someone
or something
Blow Your Mind: to be amazed by something; to have an enlightening or illuminating
experience

Blues: music of black American folk origin evolved from African traditional music, typically
in a twelve-bar sequence; a genre of music that evolved from Southern black American
secular songs and is usually distinguished by a strong 4/4 rhythm, flatted thirds and sevenths,
a 12-bar structure, and lyrics in a three-line stanza with the second line repeating the first;
probably derived from blue indigo, used by many West African cultures in death and
mourning ceremonies with all garments dyed blue to indicate suffering; a state of depression
or melancholy; Willie Dixon: "People have been brainwashed into believing that it's got to be
down or it wouldn't be blues. But it's not so. It's got to be a fact or it wouldn't be blues."

Blunt: a marijuana cigarette; a joint; a large marijuana cigarette, more like a marijuana cigar;
a marijuana cigarette wrapped in a hollowed out cigar
Bobo: Bourgeois bohemian; a poseur

Body Paint: to paint designs, words or slogans on body parts, usually in wild patterns and
often in paints that glow under blacklight; body painting wasn't invented in the 1960s, it is a
very old, traditional form of decoration, particularly in aboriginal cultures

Bogart: to "hog" something, such as a marijuana joint; to steal, monopolize; to force;

possibly from the movie The Roaring Twenties (1939) wherein James Cagney offers
Humphrey Bogart his cigarette to share and Bogart smokes the entire thing
Bong: a water pipe for smoking cannabis; a water pipe with a large chamber containing
water and a pipe stem mounted near the bottom so smoke bubbles through the water to cool
the smoke; bongs cool smoke, but also remove some THC and used bong water has a very
bad smell similar to cat piss

Boob: a female breast; a fool, imbecile,stupid person, dunce; a mistake, blunder

Boob Tube: television, normally with a negative or humorous connotation; TV

Boogie: dance; have a good time; a versatile word that could mean to party; to leave; [See
Cut Out]
Boogie On Down: dance; drop it like it is hot
Booze-can: an illegal after hours amateur alcohol bar; a speakeasy, also called a blind pig or
blind tiger; an establishment that illegally sells alcoholic beverage [Canadian slang]
Boss: a great or cool thing; very good, excellent
Box, A: A 20 lb quantity of hash for distribution. (Youre a loser if you can afford a box!)

Bread: money; cash

Brew: beer; it cost 35 each or three for one dollar in Rochdale College

Brick: a block of compressed grass, usually one pound, or hash, 500 grams; the bricks of
Mexican grass were often wrapped in brown paper with a decorative, identifying rubber
stamp, sometimes signifying support for guerrillas or outlaws
Bring Down: to sadden; a bummer; cause a punishment or judgment; reduce lower
Brother: any good male person or friend
Buck: one dollar, a masculine man, a stud

Bud: marijuana; the fresh or dried flowers of the female marijuana plant

The Building: the Rochdale College building

Bring Down: something or someone that ruins your day and makes you lose your high; to
sadden; cause to fall, collapse, or die
Bum a Smoke: borrow a cigarette from another person
Bum Trip: a bad trip
Bummed Out: depressed or upset; disappointed; unhappy

Bummer: depressing; a downer; sadness or dismay; a depressing person, thing, or event; a

male homosexual (British slang)
Burn: sell useless placebos as drugs; cheat; a witty, impressive or cheap insult, often
delivered in front of a group of people; to smoke marijuana or a cigarette; to have a talent for
cooking; to have a sexually transmitted disease
Burned Out: a person who used too many drugs and "burned out", or a person who is
exhausted; having long-term exhaustion and diminished interest, especially in one's career; a
feeling of tiredness during which nothing else matters

Busted: arrested by the police; extremely ugly; under the influence of alcohol or drugs;
broken; bad, generally displeasing
Buzz: a high; moderate intoxication from drugs or alcohol; current gossip
Buzz Off: go away; leave me alone; get lost
Can: gaol or prison
Can you dig it?: Do you Understand? Do you appreciate it?
Candyass: a wimp or uncool person or thing; weak-willed, overly meek and mild

Canuck: Canadian; French-Canadian; the name of the Vancouver National Hockey League
team; Johnny Canuck was a cartoon superthero dating from 1869 [Canadian slang]
Cat: a man; a male who is hip, a Beat term adopted by hippies to some extent
Catch some rays: sunbathe; to get some sunshine; to tan in the sun
Catch you on the flip side: Goodbye or See you later
Centering: to find one's balance; to center one's awareness
Check it out: inspect, look it over, look at
Check you later: see you later
Chick: a girl or a woman

Chillum: a straight conical smoking pipe for cannabis made of clay and used since at least
the 18th-century by wandering Hindu monks known as sadhus; Rastafarians use a chillum
made of cow's horn or wood; since the 1960s hippies have used chillums made of bamboo
and other materials, often with a brass bowl

Choice: really cool; perfect, great, excellent

The Clap: gonorrhea
Clean: a drug-free state; after prolonged drug use, a period of abstinence to allow the body to
remove all traces of drugs
Clue you in: explain; inform; provide someone with a clue; drop a hint; intimate by a hint;
suggest
C-Note: $100 bill, popularized by a number of gangster films in the 1920s and 1930s;a pair

of Cs = $200

Coke: cocaine; blow; an addictive drug derived from coca or prepared synthetically, used as
an illegal stimulant; molecular formula C17H21NO4; Cocaine was always banned in
Rochdale, but it was sold secretly in an "underground" way.

Cold Turkey: abruptly give up a drug habit or addiction rather than a gradual reduction or
use of replacement medication; abruptly give up a habit of some type
Come or cum: semen; to experience a sexual orgasm

Come Down: to stop feeling the effects of a drug; the period of time during which one stops
feeling the effects of a drug; to experience diminishing effects of a recreational or
hallucinogenic drug
Come on to: make a romantic or sexual advance to; to hit on
Coming Off: going on; happening; an orgasm and ejaculation
Commune: a word from Communist ideology used to describe a group of people living
together cooperatively, and the place where they live
Contact High: an altered state of consciousness people get being around other people who
are doing psychedelic drugs
Control Freak: a person who obsessively insists on always being in control of the situation;
one who has an obsessive need to exert control over people and situations; person who
instinctively needs to manipulate others

Cool: nice, awesome or swell; a cat who's laid back; a very relaxed word that never goes out
of style
Cool It: stop or discontinue; relax; calm down

Cool Head: nice guy

Cooler: jail or prison
Co-op: a cooperative business with members as part owners and many actively participating
in the business; based on Marxist principle
Cop: buy; to get; to take unlawfully or without permission; evade an issue or problem; steal;
a police officer
Cop Out: take the easy way out; avoid fulfilling a commitment or responsibility; renege; not
to do your share of work

Cop a feel: touch a girl's boobs or crotch and pretend it was accidental; grope someone

Cop a plea: to plead guilty to a lesser criminal charge to avoid standing trial for a more
serious charge
Copacetic: everything is okay, satisfactory
Cosmic: excellent; powerful; out of this world; marvellous; fantastic; originally British slang

Count: the amount received in a drug transaction; if two grams of a drug are paid for, the
"count" might be exact, more than two grams, or less; if a person buys a "dime" of hash it
usually is not weighed and the "count" could be generous or a rip off.
Crack Up: to break out in laughter; to make someone laugh hard; to have a nervous or
mental breakdown; an accident; a wreck count: the A.M.

Crash: go to bed or go to sleep; to stay in someone else's place; to come down off LSD or
other intense drug
Crasher: a "tenant" who does not pay rent
Crashpad: a home to sleep, or anywhere called home for a place to sleep

Crazy: hip, cool, or far out

Creep: a detestable person; someone unpleasantly strange or eccentric; an obnoxious person
Crummy: bad; in bad condition; unfair
Cut: adulterate drugs; to mix or dilute a drug with another substance
Cut the cheese: flatulence; lay a gasser
Cut in: return to a bourgeois lifestyle
Cut out: to leave without ceremony; "jam" or "split".

Daddy-O: a 1950s term for man or dude; father or dad; an older man you do not respect
Da Kine: the most potent pot or hash; the best; originally used to describe Maui Wowie from
Hawaii
Day-Glo: colourful paint that glows in the dark

Deadbeat: a person not able to pay bills, debts or expenses; a worthless and irresponsible
person; a lazy or socially undesirable person; parasite; freeloader
Dealer: a seller of illicit drugs; a drug dealer

The Deli: the second floor Cafeteria in Rochdale College as it was called in 1973 and 1974;
in 1972 it was the Fast Food Cafeteria

Dibs: to claim ownership or control, almost always used with "got", such as "I got dibs on
that Coke bottle", meaning you own it
Different strokes for different folks: different things please different people; variety makes
the world go round; you shouldn't judge others just because they're not the same as you;
American black 1960s in origin with a probable sexual reference

Dig: to understand; appreciate; approve of; enjoy

Diggers: hippies who were more into organizing and activism than art; a group of activist
hippies that gave away food and clothes in Yorkville Village, Greenwich Village and HaightAshbury, following the anti-materialist teachings of the English Diggers who fought against
private ownership of land and property
Digs: clothes; living space; home; lodgings

Dime: ten dollars; ten dollar's worth of drugs; from "dime bag" of marijuana; in the early
1970s it meant one gram of hashish for $10
Dipstick: a disliked person; an unintelligent person, idiot, moron; a cock or dick
Dippy: a rarely used word for an undesirable type of hippie; most known as George Carlin's
"Hippie Dippy Weatherman" in his comedy skits

Divvy: a portion; to divide; a share or portion; distribute or share; a stupid or foolish person
DMT: dimethyltryptamine, a very powerful hallucinogen that is smoked in a pipe giving
short intense trips of a very specific nature; a naturally-occurring or easily synthesized
hallucinogenic drug that is chemically similar to but shorter acting than psilocybin; banned in
Rochdale College; molecular formula C12H16N2
Do a number: smoke a joint; to do or say something shocking or upsetting
Dog Shit Park: a small park one block south of Rochdale College at the NW corner of Huron
Street and Washington Avenue, officially known as Huron-Washington Parkette. Long before
the "stoop and scoop" bylaw regarding dogs, Rochdalians used this park as a dog toilet. The
neighbours were not amused and often complained. There were far too many large and very
large dogs in Rochdale, and the insufficient space for them made it a form of animal abuse
and cruelty.

Do You Copy?: Do you understand what someone is saying?

Do your own thing: do it your own way

The Dome: in Rochdale College it referred to the large "music shell" half-dome stage located
at the east end of the second floor Terrace from early 1969 to 1972; a creation of Ed Apt's
Patio and Terraces Committee, it was used during the July 1969 Rochdale Summer Festival
and Allen Ginsberg read his poetry on the stage on September 12, 1970; a complete dome
was also under construction on the Terrace in 1972, but the City of Toronto insisted it be
removed, and it seems to have been moved to the Rochdale Farm after July 1972

Don't Flip Your Wig: See "Don't have a Cow"

Don't have a Cow: don't freak out; don't get overly upset about an incident; also "I'm going
to have kittens."


Don't Sweat It: dont worry about it; don't let it bother you; stop bothering me; don't mind;
never mind;
Doobie: marijuana cigarette; a joint; a blunt; a person, usually a male

Doofus: a stupid, incompetent, or foolish person; 1960s student slang

Dope: any type of illicit drug, especially marijuana


Dork: a very uncool person; bookworm, anti-social; nerd or geek; a dull or slow-witted
person
Dose: a unit of LSD; to cause a person to ingest drugs without their knowledge by putting it
in their food or drink; a case of the clap (gonorrhea) or syphilis
Dough: money
Dovetail: a European styled and rolled joint that looks like a bird
Down: in good standing with; connected in a personal association; in agreement with a plan
to do something; to appreciate or enjoy something; generally agreeable
Downer: a bummer; an unpleasant experience; a prescription drug that depresses the central
nervous system and was banned in Rochdale
Drag: someone or something that is boring or unenlightening; a bummer; a bore;
disappointment; an unfavourable situation or state of affairs


Drawing Designs: usually a guy looking a girl over good
Dream On: a response to something unrealistic; sarcastic response to someone's unrealistic
plan or expectation; to create, devise, imagine, invent, or think up

Drop: swallow a drug; ingest

Drop acid not bombs: self-explanatory anti-war and pro-LSD slogan
Drop Out: to withdraw from established society usually because of disillusionment with
conventional values; a person who rejects conventional society; to kill someone or
something; to get arrested; to knock someone down; a place where alcohol or drugs are left to
be claimed by somebody; to take a drug, specifically LSD

Drop a Dime: use a pay telephone, fink, snitch or rat on someone for ones own benefit
Druggie: drug addict; a person who takes or is addicted to drugs; a person who habitually
uses drugs

Dumb: lacking intelligence; stupid; showing a lack of intelligence

Dynamite: terrific; awesome; great

Dweeb: an unattractive, insignificant, or inept person; 1968 college student slang, probably a
variant of "feeb", a feeble person
Earth Shoes: ergonomically-correct shoes in which the heels were lower than the front,
popular in the early 1970s, Roots shoes

EdCon: the Rochdale College Educational Council responsible for the educational programs
in the college; there was an Educational Committee and 12 members who selected worthy
education proposals; the Board was elected by residents, "generally made up of people who
attended meetings religiously"
Ego Trip: to act in an egotistic manner; an act undertaken to increase your own power and
influence or to draw attention to your own importance

Easy: another way of saying goodbye, such as "Easy, man!"

Eh: do you understand?; do you agree?; please repeat that; what?; huh?; say again; isn't that
right?; a spoken interjection to determine the comprehension, continued interest and
agreement of the person addressed; a solicitation of agreement, often rhetorical; an
expression of excitement or happiness; usually used as a question; used to add emphasis to a
sentence or to replace an exclamation mark; a completely Canadian word that was used
constantly in Rochdale because most of the residents were Canadian
809 Club: a booze-can in Gnostic #809 of Rochdale College, managed by Terry Flanagan,
with electrocuting pin ball machines and a bar made of an old door and saw horses.
The Establishment: the relatively few important and powerful people who control society
and support the existing situation; the elite who run government, schools, military, etc.; the
social environment; the existing power structure in society; the dominant groups in society
and their customs or institutions; institutional authority; a group of social, economic, and
political leaders who form a ruling class; traditional business and government institutions,
believed to stand in the way of human progress
Etherea: a vegetarian natural foods restaurant that replaced The Same on the first floor of
Rochdale College; in operation from Friday May 7, 1971 until September 12, 1974; the main
entrance was outside Rochdale College on the front plaza at ground level in the West wing;
beside the restaurant was Nature's Way health food store

Fab: neat, fantastic, fabulous

Fag: a cigarette; a gay or homosexual; hippies and Rochdalians were intensely anti-gay and
did not mince words about it. This was way before the era of politically-correct
Fake It: to bluff; to pretend to be able to do something

Fall By: visit

Fall In: arrive; show up; make the scene
Fall Out: pass out from drug overdose
Far Out: excellent or cool; strange; bizarre or avant-garde; wonderful; extremely
unconventional; take things to the limit; unusual

Filler: people who lived in Rochdale but were not involved, students and workers who
merely paid their rent
Fin: five dollars
Finger Hash: potent black Nepalese hashish formed into finger shapes, some as big as a
forearm

Fink: a tattle-tale; snitch, informer

Five Finger Discount: anything obtained by theft, often shoplifting

Flake: a useless person; unreliable person; someone who agrees to do something but never
follows through; useless, shady, deceitful person who is unreliable and selfish; backing out or
giving up

Flake Off: get out of here, leave, beat it

Flake out: to fall asleep right away because one is extremely tired
Flaky: unreliable or unpredictable; behaving in a way that is not responsible or expected

Flares: trousers or jeans that flare from the knee and have wide bottoms but less than bellbottom trousers; trousers that become wider at the bottom of the legs; a conservative version
of bell-bottoms; in the 1970s bell-bottoms eventually evolved into more fashionable flares
Flashback: sudden memory of a past time or event; feeling high from an LSD flashback; the
spontaneous recurrence of visual hallucinations or other effects of a drug such as LSD long
after the use of the drug has been discontinued; recurrent and abnormally vivid recollection
of a traumatic experience sometimes accompanied by hallucinations; anecdotal claims of
flashbacks are common, but studies have shown that they are relatively rare

Flasher: a male exhibitionist; a man who exposes his cock to unsuspecting strangers in
public
Flip Out: to freak out; to go nuts; to react in an excited, delighted, or surprised way; to panic,
become frustrated or angry; to react irrationally to an event; the act of losing total control due
to stress overload or drug abuse
Flower Children: hippies because they wore flowers in their hair, on their clothes and painted
flowers on everything

Flower Power: a term coined in 1965 by Allen Ginsberg at an anti-war rally in Berkeley to
encourage a non-violent response to violence; the ideas of hippies such as the promotion of
peace and love; advocating peace and love using the flower as a symbol; associated with
drug-taking

Folk: folk music; music that is passed on from generation to generation by oral tradition; old
songs with no known composers; music that has been submitted to an evolutionary process of
oral transmission; music originating among the common people of a nation or region and
spread about or passed down orally, often with considerable variation; music of the 1960s
similar to traditional folk songs, typically with intelligent lyrics sung by a singer/songwriter
with an acoustic guitar

For Sure: correct; right on; not open to doubt; certainly; unquestionably
Fox: an outstanding-looking girl or woman; sexy, attractive woman; an attractive person
Foxy: attractive, usually used to describe females; sexually appealing; stylish; modish;
exciting and appealing; hot; sexy

Foxy Mama: a hot chick or hot girl

Freak: a hippie; to behave or cause to behave irrationally and uncontrollably; to become or
cause to become greatly excited or upset; react or behave in a wild and irrational way,
typically because of extreme emotion, mental illness, or drugs; a drug user or addict; an
enthusiast
Freak Flag: long hair; from Jimi Hendrix's song lyrics for "If 6 Was 9"; David Crosby refers
to long hair as a freak flag in his song "Almost Cut My Hair"; unrestrained, unorthodox or
unconventional in thinking, behavior, and manners; one who espouses radical, nonconformist

or dissenting views and opinions that are outside the mainstream; unique, eccentric, creative,
adventurous or unconventional thinking

Freak Out: overwhelmed with a temporary loss of control due to an unpleasant event at
which the participants do psychedelic drugs and "freak out"; a wild delusion, especially one
induced by a hallucinogenic drug; to be or cause to be in a heightened emotional state, such
as fear, anger, or excitement

Freaks: hippies; people who were cool because it was who they were; hippies often were
hippies because it was the "in" thing to do, whereas freaks did things because it was who they
were

Free Love: love without expectations or commitment; the idea or practice of having sexual
relations according to choice, without being restricted by marriage or long-term relationships;
sexual relationships without fidelity to a single partner or without formal or legal ties
Freebie: an article or service given free; something provided without charge; an item or
service one gets for free
Fringe: a fringe for vests and jackets, usually made of leather, consisting of ornamental
hanging strips of leather. Outsiders of society like hippies

Front: pretend, falsely represent; a cover-up, disguise, deception or mask; put on a fake or
false personality; to get in somebody's face; to advance someone money; to advance someone
drugs to sell on consignment
Fry: to be too high, usually on psychedelic drugs. To get busted.
Funky: neat or cool; interesting, strange, weird; bad smelling; gone bad, such as sour milk

Fuck Around: to waste time, to mess around; being unserious; to perform some activity in a
sub-par way or without seriousness; worthless; to have multiple sex partners; to use or
consume; to treat someone poorly, especially to joke with
Fuck With: mess with; threaten, challenge, attack, criticize, interfere, or cause problems
Fucked Up: damaged, broken, or injured; weird or unusual; extremely intoxicated on alcohol
or drugs; disturbing; extremely rude or improper; emotionally unwell; something spoiled

Fuckin' A: I concur; an exclamation of satisfaction or happiness; an exclamation of
dissatisfaction or pain; expression used to denote correctness [Canadian slang]

Fuzz: a policeman, policemen; authorities; any law enforcement officials

Ganja: marijuana, especially a highly resinous form of marijuana prepared from the
flowering tops and leaves of selected plants and usually smoked; from Sanskrit word for
cannabis, introduced to Jamaica by Indian laborers and adopted by many hippies who visited
India

A Gas: a lot of fun; to become amused or laugh very hard; to not care about something, an
acronym of "give a shit"
Gash: pussy (derogatory)

Gear: male genitalia, especially the testicles; a specific drug; tools used for drug taking;
great, wonderful, fab; musical equipment
Geek: a person, usually an intellectual who is disliked; an unfashionable or socially inept
person; a carnival performer often billed as a wild man whose act usually includes biting the
head off a live chicken or snake; 1916 American carnival and circus slang, perhaps a variant
of "geck", a fool, dupe, simpleton
Generation Gap: a term highlighting the differences between hippies and their parents

Generations: to save pot roaches for rolling into second-generation; when these are saved and
rolled, the jay is third-generation, etc.
Gertz: Slang for quarters or a roll of quarters to use in a payphone for making a dope deal
[Canadian slang]
Get a grip: have some self control; get a hold of yourself; get a grip on yourself
Get Down: dance, party, boogie or have sex; to abandon nonsense and confront

Get into it: dig it; go for it; do it with your whole being
Get it on: to have sex; to be hooking up; to get an erection; to become sexually aroused; to
do drugs; filled with energy or excitement; enthusiastically begin; to begin something; to
begin dancing

Get it together: straighten out one's life; to organize oneself; shape up: also "Get your shit
together" and "Get your act together"
Get Laid: have sexual intercourse
Get Off: to take a drug and get high, peak; to kiss passionately; make out; to climax; to
become sexually aroused by something; to enjoy very much; to go free from a criminal
charge; to do well on something; to get pleasure from something
Get Real: a statement of disbelief; be realistic; understand what's going on; get a life or get
out of sight; pay attention; face reality
Get with the words: a command to start talking; give the general idea
Give peace a chance: a popular slogan from a John Lennon song inspired by Canadian peace
activist Rabbi Abraham Feinberg

Gig: a live music concert performance; a job; something to do

Gimme me a break!: that is enough!; stop it!; don't be so harsh!; give me a chance!; cut me
some slack
Gimme Five: slap hands with one palm over the other, then in reverse, with another person
who is in agreement with you, or something you really like
Gimme some skin: shake hands; to smack palms with another as a sign of congratulations or
mutual celebration

Girls Say Yes to Boys Who Say No: slogan and poster by Joan Baez and her sisters, Pauline
and Mimi, in support of American draft resisters

Gnostic: a two-bedroom furnished unit in the East wing of Rochdale College on the North
side with a bathroom and kitchen; one bedroom was a single, the other was a double
Go down: to happen; to be accepted; to be arrested; a greeting and rhetorical question asking
about what's happening: "What's going down?"
Go down on: to perform oral sex on someone; give a blow job
Go for it: do it; to use all strength and resources toward achievement of an end or purpose;
take a risk
Go-Go: of or relating to a nightclub for dancing to popular music; in a fast and lively
manner; full of energy, vitality, or daring; stylish, modern, or up-to-date; Go-Go Dancers
were paid to dance on display in discos; from 1960 1965 and influenced by gogo, a
French expression meaning "in abundance, galore"; for a few years everything was a go-go

Go with the flow: take it as easy, as it comes; to not resist what happens naturally; to cope
with adversity; to accept one's lot
Going Steady: dating only one special person
Going through changes: to have a transforming experience; a negative experience; to go
through a reconstruction of one's life

Gone: cool, groovy, neat; said of a person: "He's a real gone cat."; in a pleasant trance like
Elvis says at the start of one of his recordings: "Let's get real gone."

Goof: a funny or silly person; a mistake; a source of fun or cause for amusement; to waste or
kill time; evade work or responsibility; to spoil or make a mess of something; botch; bungle;
a child molester [Canadian prison slang]; the only insult David Lawrence ever used in
Rochdale, and it definitely applied to him
Goofball: an abused pharmaceutical barbiturate drug such as Seconal (Reds), Nembutal
(Yellow Jackets), Phenobarbital, and Tuninal; banned in Rochdale unless the tenant had a
prescription; downer
GovCon: the Governing Council of Rochdale College; its main function was to maintain a
community and legal structure for the Educational Council to function; there were 12 elected
members of GovCon, the most powerful body in Rochdale
Granny Dress; a long loose-fitting dress usually with a high neck and long sleeves; a loosefitting, ankle-length dress, usually with long sleeves and a high collar and sometimes having
flounces, ruffles, or lace trimming; origin 1905 1910
Granny Glasses: small wire framed glasses with round or square clear or colored lenses
made popular by rock musicians including John Lennon and Jerry Garcia

Grass: marijuana, weed, dope, ganja, herb, Mary Jane

Greaser: a working class young man who uses too much grease in his short hair and still
lives in the 1950s; a word rarely used in Rochdale College for example, I mentioned them
to David Lawrence and the hick from Grimsby argued with me that Greasers never existed in
Toronto

Greenie: a green-uniformed external security guard working for Community Guardians in

Rochdale College, employed by Clarkson Company as receivers for the mortgage default
Groove: a situation or an activity that one enjoys or is especially well-suited to do; a very
pleasurable experience; to smoothly interact, maintain or improve relations with a person or a
situation; to leave; to do something; to dance; to appreciate and enjoy; to take great pleasure;
enjoy oneself

Groovy: nice, cool or neat; fashionable and exciting; enjoyable and excellent; very pleasing;
wonderful

Gross: disgusting; unacceptable; rude; unpleasant

Grossed Out: to fill with disgust; nauseate
Groupie: a person, especially a young woman, who regularly follows a rock or pop group or
other celebrity to meet or get to know them; a young woman, often underage, who wants to
have sex with rock musicians, roadies, security, and other band-related guys; an individual or
group involved in obsessive adoration of entertainers, musicians, actors, athletes, and
politicians

Hangin': awesome or cool; having bad luck; about to fall apart psychologically; disgusting;
feeling ill or hungover

Hangin' a B.A.: a car full of guys pulls up to another car (usually full of girls) and one of the
guys pulls down his pants, bends over, and sticks his "bare ass" out the window [Canadian
slang]
Hang it on me again: repeat it, say it again
Hang Loose: relax or take it easy; waiting for someone or something to happen in a relaxed

manner
Hang Out: to spend time at a place, usually relaxing; to spend time with one or more people;
to be some place, usually doing nothing with no purpose.
Hang-Up: inhibition, emotional difficulty, usually due to morals, beliefs, or culture; neurosis
or pet peeve; an obstacle in the way to accomplishing your goals

Happening: exciting, new, good; an event considered worthwhile, unusual, or interesting; an

unconventional dramatic or artistically orchestrated performance, often a series of
discontinuous events involving audience participation
Hard Drugs: opiate drugs such as morphine and heroin, speed (amphetamines), and cocaine
Hash: hashish; a product made from compressed preparations of resin from the unfertilized
flower buds of the cannabis indica plant; a purified resinous extract of the dried flower-tops
of the female hemp plant; it contains the same active ingredients as marijuana but in higher
concentrations; its colour is usually light to dark brown but varies toward green, yellow,
black or red; cannabis indica in hash relaxes muscles and works as a general analgesic
whereas cannabis sativa in marijuana produces more of an energetic, euphoric high; the word
hashish originated in 1590 and is Arabic for "dry vegetation; sometimes thought to be the
origin for assassins (Haschischins)

Hash oil, grass oil: concentrated THC extract, varying from green & murky to yellow & clear
(honey oil) to brown & tarry
Hash Pipe: small pipe used to smoke hashish

Hash seals: were used for brand identity on units of hash to show quality and origin of 500
gram and one kilo bricks; some seals were stamped into the blocks, others were gold leaf and
later gold spray-paint (yuck!), particularly Nepalese and Afghani; Afghani was further
identified by packing in red cellophane in addition to its seal; the fragrant, blonde Lebanese
hash in Rochdale often came sewn in cotton bags marked with a rubber-stamp; three palm
trees was a perennial favourite. Rosie had a sports-coat hand-tailored of these stamps.

Hassle: an argument or a fight; trouble; a bother; a problem; complication; difficulty,

nuisance; a prolonged argument; to quarrel; to cause annoyance; an interference; harass

Head: a hippie; a user of drugs, usually" soft" drugs such as cannabis and LSD
Headband: a fabric band around the forehead to keep your long hair out of your face and
mop up the sweat on warm days

Head comics: trippy comic books for psychedelics users, often with bizarre or risqu
imagery; R. Crumb created Mr. Natural and Fritz the Cat; Gilbert Shelton drew The
Fabulous Furry Freak Brothers
Head Shop: a store that caters to hippies or young people by selling clothes, comics, beads,
candles, jewelry and drug paraphrenalia
Head Trip: to play games with someone's mind; a person or situation that messes with your
mind; a session with a drug that influences the mind; an ego trip
Hell no, we won't go: the most used anti-war chant and slogan of the 1960's against the US
draft
Heat: the cops; a weapon of some kind; unnecessary or unwanted attention
The Heavies: authentic and committed full time bohemians; important local people; famous
celebrities like John Lennon, Mick Jagger, Timothy Leary, and Allen Ginsberg
"All my life I just wanted to be a beatnik.
Meet all the heavies, get stoned, get laid, have a good time.
That's all I ever wanted.
Except I knew I had a good voice and I could always get a couple of beers off of it.
On stage, I make love to 25,000 different people, then I go home alone."
(Janis Joplin)

"Janis Joplin knew more than I did about how it was,

but she lacked enough armor for the inevitable hassles.
She was open and spontaneous enough to get her heart
trampled with a regularity that took me thirty years to
experience or understand. Janis felt like an old soul,
a wisecracking grandmother whom everybody loved to visit."
(Grace Slick)
Heavy: deep, cool, chaotic, sad, controversial, good, excellent, brilliant, unbelievable, out of
the ordinary, depressing
Hemp: the cannabis plant, especially when grown for fiber; the tough, coarse fiber of the

cannabis plant; a tall Asian herb (cannabis sativa of the family cannabaceae, the hemp
family) that has a tough bast fiber used mostly for making rope and is separated into a tall
loosely branched species (cannabis sativa) and a low-growing densely branched species
(cannabis indica); a debated third strain may exist in eastern European countries (cannabis
ruderalis) with large seeds and a lower level of THC than sativas or indicas

Hep: with it; cool; hip; a person who understands the situation
Herb: marijuana; Jamaican term for marijuana with Biblical connotations; Rastafarian
sacrament

Hey, man: hello; a contraction for hello, hi or "what's up?"

High; in a euphoric state, usually because of drugs or alcohol; intoxicated from drugs; a
period of sustained excitement or exhilaration

High Five: a gesture of greeting, elation, or victory in which one person slaps an upraised
palm against that of another person; a painful slapping motion shared between so-called
friends after something great has been accomplished; an abrupt collision of two individuals
hands to signify coolness, acknowledgement, amusement or agreement; often preceded
verbally by "Give me five" or "High five"; first used on October 2, 1977, so it doesn't belong
here. Give me a break!
Hip: cooler than cool; very good; fashionably current and in the know; stylish;
contemporary; beyond trendy
Hip Huggers: jeans that rest low on the hips, exposing the navel, especially on a girl wearing
a halter top

Hippie: a young, long-haired person of the 1960s who dressed unconventionally, held
various anti-establishment attitudes and beliefs, and typically advocated communal living,
free love, pacifist or radical politics, and the use of recreational drugs; a young adult who
rebelled against established institutions, criticized middle-class values, opposed the Vietnam
War, and promoted sexual freedom; a bohemian in the late 1960s from the baby boomer
generation, a flower child who believed in peace and love and hated the word "hippie"

Hit: a single inhalation of marijuana smoke; a dose of LSD; to adulterate (cut) a drug;
murder-for-hire; contract killing
Hit on: to pay unsolicited and usually unwanted sexual attention to; flirt with
Hit up: to approach and ask someone for something, usually money; to contact a person,
especially by phone; to go to; to visit someone, especially at his or her home; to smoke
marijuana
Hog: a motorcycle, especially a large one such as a Harley-Davidson; Harley Owner Group;
a cock or dick; an overweight person; greedy; to take more than one's fair share of something

Holding: in possession of something, usually dope

Hook: steal; to kiss someone; to throw something to someone from across the room, or to
give someone something; to work as a prostitute
Hookah: a smoking pipe with a long tube passing through an urn of water that cools the
smoke as it is drawn through; a waterpipe with one long flexible tube stem with a mouthpiece
at one end to smoke; originally used to smoke hashish, but commonly used for marijuana as
well; usually very elegant in appearance, and available with four stems; also called a hubblebubble, narghile (with a coconut shell bowl), (also shishah)

Hooker: a prostitute ; a concealed problem, flaw, or drawback; a catch; a gulp of liquor

(antiquated); a large drink of liquor


Hopped Up: on drugs; stoned; a vehicle enhanced for speed
Horny: sexually aroused; in want of sexual activity; provoking or intended to provoke sexual
arousal; sexually eager or lustful
Hoser: generically, a Canadian or Canuck; thought to have originated from siphoning gas on
a Canadian farm [Canadian slang]
Hot Pants: very short shorts, often cut off blue jeans or plush velvet shorts, sometimes with a
white belt to match white go-go boots

Hot Spot: a fun and fashionable place; a popular nightclub or entertainment site; a place of
ongoing warfare or political strife
How's It Hangin'?: How are you?
Hung: a well-endowed man; well hung; a large cock or dick; a large flaccid cock that hangs
down; a "shower" whose large hanging cock probably doesn't grow much when erect; in
Rochdale the word was not used much, and "big" was used instead; men are impressed with
cock length, but for women a "big" cock means it is thick

Hung up: to be obsessed about something or someone; excessively preoccupied with

Hustled: robbed of money by a crafty person; something obtained by deceitful or illicit
means; victim of theft or swindling
Hustler: a person who is always working, usually illegally; a person who does whatever he
must to make some money such as gambling; a person who sells illegal things such as drugs
and stolen or pirate merchandise and bootlegs; a male or female prostitute who attracts
customers by walking the streets
Hydro: hydroelectric; electrical power or service; many Canadian electric companies
generate power from hydroelectricity and use the term "Hydro" in their names [Canadian
slang for electricity, literally, water]
Hype: to promote something excessively; the bullshit associated with something that is
hyped
I hear you: I heard and understood what you said, but I don't necessarily agree with you
If it feels good do it: don't be inhibited, explore what life has in store for you

I'm Hip: I understand, I agree; an embarrassing and rarely used statement usually made by
losers
In: whatever is trendy or fashionable at the moment
In the Groove: in perfect functioning order; in the popular fashion; cool; groovy; pleasant
and delightful; dancing, and doing it with style; a member of the "in" crowd
In your face: blatantly aggressive; in a bold, defiant or confrontational manner; I have
succeeded in embarrassing or up-staging you
It's been real: it has been nice, often used sarcastically
Jam: a group of musicians playing music together in a jam session; to leave a place very
quickly; a difficult or embarrassing situation; in a fix or trouble
Jay: a marijuana joint
Jazz: a type of music of black American origin characterized by improvisation, syncopation,
and usually a regular or forceful rhythm; a genre of music native to America characterized by
a strong but flexible rhythmic understructure with solo and ensemble improvisations on basic
tunes and chord patterns; to exaggerate or lie to; to give great pleasure to; excite; to cause to
accelerate; the word jazz was originally slang for "fuck"


Jazzed: elated or excited; looking forward to something; enthused about something
Jerk: an annoyingly stupid or foolish person; an unlikable person, especially one who is
cruel, rude, or small-minded; 1935 carnival slang
Jerk Off: male masturbation; to stimulate a cock with the hands; a masturbator; a mean or
rude person; a jerk; to engage in a wasteful activity that has no compensation or reward other
than mental stimulation

Jesus Freak: a Christian hippie; derogatory term for a Christian; one who is perceived to be
overtly and excessively Christian

Jive: act insincerely or deceptively; a colorful form of speaking, sometimes hard to follow;
to irritate or annoy; pointless or deceptive talk or rhetoric; 1930s and 1940s slang for
marijuana and marijuana-influenced popular music; a variety of street slang practiced
primarily by black Americans
Jizz: ejaculate or semen; come or cum
Joint, J, jay: marijuana cigarette; gaol or prison

Jones, jonez: Wanting something really badly, as in the munchies; sometimes relating to ones
addictions both minor and complex
Juicer: one who drinks liquor or alcoholic beverages habitually or excessively

Junkie: a drug addict; a narcotics addict, especially one using heroin; a person with a
compulsive habit or obsessive dependency on something

Kafka: a two-bedroom furnished unit in the East wing of Rochdale College with a shared
bathroom; one bedroom was single and the other was a double
Keen or Keen-o: someone or something that is cool; great; very good; outstanding; attractive
or appealing
Keep on Keeping on: have a good day; hang in there
Keep on Truckin': persist; keep doing things the way you're doing it; keep doing what you
are doing; Goodbye and take care

Keep your cool: remain calm and in control; not to become over-excited or confused; to not
lose one's cool
Keg: A small aluminum barrel of draft beer for large parties; kegs typically had a capacity of
five to ten gallons (19 to 38 liters) and up to 30 gallons (114 liters); a beer belly; keg party: a
party where beer is served
Key: kilogram
Kicks: activity done for pleasure, a pastime; something done for fun; something enjoyable
Killer: something really great, powerful, or impressive; very good, excellent, impressive;
cool, awesome; very difficult; a person, when used in greeting; someone who overdoes
something or who is overreacting

King (Pete) & Waddell (Bob): Notorious drug cops from Metro Toronto Police 52 Division.
They targeted Rochdale and were responsible for more than 3,500 arrests.
Knocked Up: pregnant; to become pregnant, usually in a negative sense
La La Land: a "place" inhabited by someone who is either drunk, stoned or just naturally
crazy
Laid Back: relaxed, easy going, not easily ruffled; not in a hurry; cool; a place that is cool

Large: slang for $1000 among Rochdale dealers

Later: Goodbye or See you later
Lay: to have sex with; a sexual partner, almost always used with an adjective; relaxed and
comfortable

Lay a (heavy) trip on: to criticize someone; to confuse or astonish someone; to lay a guilt trip
on someone: to attempt to make someone feel very guilty
Lay me out: to pay; to punch someone until they are on the ground
Lay On: to give; to present or reveal to; confront with

Lay one on me: give me one; to tell; to kiss

Lay it on me: to ask someone to tell something or to speak their mind

Lean On: to depend on someone; to depend on for advice or support; to put pressure on
someone in order to make them do something; to exert pressure on someone with threats or
intimidation

Let it all hang out: be who you are; relax; go for it; be yourself, assuming that you generally
are not; become totally relaxed and unpretentious; relax and do or say exactly what you want
to; do something enthusiastically and without fear of the results; a 1960s saying that means to
act without restraint, to let go of inhibitions
Lets blow this joint: let's leave, exit, time to go
Level: to be frank and open; level with; awesome; cool; great; on the level: honest, without
deception
Lid: One ounce of marijuana, a West Coast word that was not used in Toronto but its
meaning was known. In the sixties a "lid" or a "can" of pot weighed approximately one
ounce and the lid weighed one-eighth ounce. The term came from breaking bricks (a kilo) of

tightly packed marijuana into Prince Albert tobacco cans that weighed about an ounce. It was
not weighed, it was done by eye. This definition disappeared and then "lid" referred to an
ounce.

Like: often used at the beginning of virtually every sentence and it means nothing; used to
fill up space in a sentence when the speaker is unable to think of a suitable adjective to
describe something; this word has been adopted by other adjective-challenged subcultures
Line: a single "serving" of a powder drug, especially cocaine, arranged in a line for snorting
(inhaling through the nose); a prepared spiel or argument intended to persuade; to "get a line"
on someone or something meant to learn or become aware of something
Loaded: rich; wealthy; drunk, intoxicated (crocked, stoned, boozed); large breasted; under
the influence of drugs; carrying a gun

Lobby: the elevator lobby on the first floor of Rochdale College near the entrance; there was
a Rochdale Security desk, a bulletin board, stairs to the second floor, items for sale, a rear
exit, the tiny mail room, a passageway to Etherea Restaurant, and four elevators; the entire
lobby was painted from floor to ceiling by Laurie Peters from August to November 1971, and
her murals defined the lobby

Lose your cool: lose ones temper or to become flustered; to lose control; wig out; flip your
wig
Loser: a worthless person; a person who is very low in social stature; a person who has fallen
off the social ladder, climbed down the social ladder, jumped off the social ladder, or just
never bothered to climb the social ladder; Rochdale dealing group named themselves The
Losers used ironically
Lounge: a large lounge on each residential floor in Rochdale College for residents of the
Ashram and also the Kafka units; the main lounge on the second floor of Rochdale used as
the college's auditorium
Love Beads: colourful beads worn around the neck to symbolize love; a string of beads
originally made from small seeds; they came in numerous patterns and colours, and were
given as gifts between friends or made by the wearer; a common sign of friendship

Love-In: a large gathering of hippies like a Be-In; it was a reason to get together with other
hippies and have fun; loving everyone and everything was the general theme of the event

The Lowdown: the truth; inside information; unadulterated facts; dirty; mean
Low Five: celebratory gesture made by two people slapping each other's lowered hands, the
opposite of "high five", but with the same social meaning, often sarcastic; a hand job
(masturbation); the act of slapping the ass of a teammate or competitor; two guys slapping
their cocks together, intentionally or unintentionally, usually in places such as a locker room
Ludes: the pharmaceutical drug methaqualone (Quaaludes), a sedative and hypnotic meant
to replace barbiturates in the early 196's, but by the late 60s and early 70s it was abused as a
recreational drug and outlawed in 1984; a central nervous system depressant that causes
sedation, less anxiety, loosening of inhibitions, and a high with pleasant body effects; Elvis
Presley and the Rolling Stones loved them and they were a big part of the "sex, drugs, and
rock 'n' roll" culture of the 1960s and 1970s on both sides of the Atlantic; also known as
Sopers, Soapers, Disco Biscuits, love drug, Mandrake or Mandies (from Mandrax,
methaqualone with an antihistamine); it could also be smoked, a dangerous and unhealthy
activity; banned and unavailable in Rochdale College; molecular formula C16H14N2O

Mainline: to take a drug by intravenous injection; to inject a a narcotic drug into a vein
Main Squeeze: a steady boyfriend or girlfriend
Make a move on: to flirt or seduce someone
Make It: to achieve a goal; be successful; to have sexual intercourse; to leave (split, beat it)
Make love, not war: self-explanatory; the most common anti-war slogan of the 1960s

Make Out: have sex; a kissing session or sex in a parked car at a drive-in or other secluded
place

Make Tracks: leave and go somewhere; to move out of a place quickly

Man: used and overused at the end of a sentence, virtually any sentence, when speaking to a
man. Examples: "Thanks a lot, man." and Janis Joplin on "Festival Express": "Next time
you throw a train, man, call me."
The Man: police; anyone in a position of authority such as the government or a boss at work;
a group in power; any group that oppresses; a very cool or successful person;a drug dealer
(used by Curtis Mayfield, William Burroughs, Lou Reed, etc.)

MDA: 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine, also known as tenamphetamine (INN), a

psychedelic and entactogenic drug of the phenethylamine and amphetamine chemical classes;
it has no medical uses and was banned in Rochdale College; a derivative of amphetamine, it
was first synthesized in Germany in 1910; also known as the love drug; most popular in the
early 1970s; molecular formula C11H15NO2
Mellow: laid back; relaxed usually because of sex and or drugs; something pleasant and
enjoyable, often used to describe the marijuana high
Mellow out: calm down, equal to chill out; to become detached from worry, strife and stress;
relax; to make more relaxed, agreeable and workable; soften or smooth
Mescaline: an alkaloid drug obtained from mescal buttons that produces a psychedelic high
with hallucinations; also called peyote, "buttons", Mesc; peyote buttons from the peyote
cactus; the active drug in the flowering heads of the peyote cactus; extracted from peyote and
purified, but can also be synthesized; molecular formula C11H17NO3

Microdot: a type of LSD in a colourful tiny pill; a tiny tablet containing LSD; a small portion
of pure mescaline, almost like a gelatin capsule, but much smaller

Mike: short form for microgram, measurement for LSD doses

Middle: to buy a small quantity of drugs from a dealer for a customer or friend, sometimes as
a favor
Middleman: a non-dealer who has no drugs but can always find them for a friend or
someone, and usually charges a small markup; a dealer who sells only small quantities of

drugs such as grams of hashish and quarter ounces of marijuana; a dealer who buys drugs
from big dealers to supply the little dealers who deal with the end user
Mind Blowing: anything that tends to overload the senses; completely amazing;
overwhelming; astounding; producing a hallucinogenic effect

Mind Game: an attempt to manipulate or confuse; someone trying to control your mind,
often by trying to bullshit you
MOFO: motherfucker (since 1965); usually used pejoratively
Mood Ring: a ring that supposedly shows what mood you are in by your body heat changing
its colour, for example black means a bad mood

Moon: to drop your pants, bend over, and show your bare butt; to reveal one's naked ass,
usually as an insult or bawdy jest

Morgravia-Boulognia: a fictional duchy with an Embassy to King James' Court at Rochdale

College that granted Ambassadorial status to the 15th-Floor Commune: the duchy was
formed by an amalgamation with the marriage of King Gustav of Morgravia and Queen Irma

of Boulognia; each year on December 4 (Mrspeche Day) there was an Embassy Ball with
hundreds of costumed guests; there were Balls from 1971 to 1974 in the 15th-floor Lounge,
and Balls outside the college from 1975 to 1977
The Most: something that is the best or the greatest
Mother Fletcher's: a bottle of home made alcohol available in various flavours in Rochdale
College from Mother Fletcher, a man who also was in charge of the free medical clinic for a
time
Mountie: a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, responsible for illicit drug
enforcement [Canadian slang]; also horseman
Muffin or muff: a woman's genitals; a young woman who regularly arranges to have sex with
a partner; a "muff diver" enjoys cunnilingus

Munchies: the hunger for snack-type food that accompanies marijuana smoking; also known
as the "marijuana munchies" and the "hash hungries"; High Times magazine claimed the
appetite is caused by smoking low-quality dope and the solution is to spend more money for
drugs; a craving for food, induced by alcohol or drugs; food for snacking; hunger for any
reason; junk food
Mushrooms: mushrooms containing psychedelic compounds that cause a high with
hallucinations when eaten; psilocybin contains psilocybin and psilocin; amanita muscaria
contains ibotenic acid and muscimol; also known as shrooms, magic mushrooms, caps, blue
meanies (Panaeolus cyanescens), boomers, mushies, liberty caps (Psilocybe semilanceata),
cubes (Psilocybe cubensis), liberties, magics, amanita or fly agaric (poisonous); the molecular

formula for psilocybin isC12H17N204P; a stupid person or someone who you don't know
and don't like; to treat someone like a mushroom: to keep him in the dark and feed him
manure

Nail: to have sex with someone; to fuck; to get someone busted

Narc: an undercover narcotics police officer; a drug informant, rat, snitch, fink, dog
Neat: great; wonderful; fine
Neato: used by losers when something is very cool; excellent or desirable

Nehru Jacket: hip-length tailored unisex coat with a mandarin collar, modeled on the South
Asian achkan or sherwani and briefly popular in the West in the 1960s and 1970s; Hindi:
); a hip-length tailored coat for men or women, with a mandarin collar, originally
from India

Neo-hippies: unauthentic "hippies" from 1970 into the 21st century who claim to believe in
the hippie philosophy developed in the 1960s; modern hippies who retain some aspects of the
60s hippie movement, but have changed in some areas by adopting punk values, anarchism,
anti-establishmentarianism, feminism and acceptance of homosexuality; dreadlocks and other
anachronisms are popular with neo-hippies; drug use is common, but neo-hippies tend to be
like teeny-boppers imitating 1960s hippies all style and fashion with no substance or spirit;
hippies contributed much to modern-day culture, but neo-hippies cannot, did not, and do not
because they are fakes; some consider the "hippies" in Rochdale College were actually neohippies

Nerd: an unstylish, unattractive, or socially inept person; especially one devoted to

intellectual or academic pursuits; 1951 student slang, probably an alteration of 1940s slang
"nert", a stupid or crazy person, an alteration of "nut"
Never trust anyone over 30: the ultimate generation gap statement of the 1960s; said by Jack
Weinberg during the height of the Free Speech Movement at UC Berkeley; Jack Weinberg
would be age 74 in 2014; Weinberg claims he made the statement to get rid of a reporter who
was bothering him: "It was a way of telling the guy to back off, that nobody was pulling our

strings."
Newfie: one who is from Newfoundland and Labrador; a derisive word that is often
considered to be offensive; many jokes were coined at Newfies expence in Canadian, similar
to Polish jokes [Canadian slang]

Nickel Bag: five dollars worth of marijuana in Yorkville Village, a term not used in
Rochdale although it was understood; "Dime Bag" survived as "dime"

Nifty: cool; attractively stylish or smart; very good; fine; excellent; substantial; sizable
Nimrod: idiot, jerk; an unintelligent person
No Way: to express emphatic negation; in no manner; not at all; nowise; used to make an
emphatic refusal or denial
No way, Jose: I disagree or refuse; sometimes an exclamation of admiration

Nowhere: not very good; not acceptable; being or leading nowhere; pointless; futile;
worthless or useless; something or someone is boring, uncreative, clueless, foolish, or
otherwise "out of it"
Number: a cannabis joint; an article of clothing; a person with some notable characteristic; to
undermine, defeat, humiliate, or criticize thoroughly; to discuss, especially in an entertaining
way; to perform or give a performance; a routine; to be numbered or included; a tactic,
scheme, strategy or method to achieve something
OD: acronym for "over dose"; overdose on a drug; an overconsumption of any drug that
causes a medical emergency or death in the consumer; to over-do it, exaggerate
Off: kill or murder
Off the Pigs: a radical slogan used by the Black Panthers encouraging confrontation with the
police; the public took this literally to mean: Kill the Police but, in fact, the message was not
to fear the police or give them too much power
Off the wall: strange; crazy; unusual; unconventional; bizarre
Oil: the potent oil extracted from hashish and marijuana

Off the wall: bizarre; unconventional; oddball; unusual; strange; too much; crazy
Old Lady: mother or girlfriend, used affectionately

Old Man: father or boyfriend, ditto

On: to be "on" something means to have taken a drug, for example "What's he on? I want
some of that!"; to be in a performance mode; to be in top form as a performer
On the Make: seeking personal gain; looking for sexual conquest or a sexual partner; a guy
or girl who is "on the make" is looking very hard for a mate

On the Rag:a woman having a period; menstruation; irritable; grouchy, suffering from PMS
Orange Sunshine: a type of LSD in the form of a small orange tablet manufactured by
underground chemist Nicholas Sand in California and on the run in Vancouver, considered to
be some of the purest acid ever; sometimes confused with much smaller Orange Barrels
which were often adulterated with speed or of greatly reduced dose.
Out of it: naive; not keeping up with the times; lost; messed up; someone who is out there;
not with it; asleep
Outta Sight: groovy; fantastic; awesome; the grooviest
Out To Lunch: confused or incapacitated; crazy; not paying attention; spaced out; without a
grasp on reality

Owsley: Augustus Owsley Stanley III in California; he produced produced more than
1,250,000 doses of LSD between 1965 and 1967. Psychedelic rock band Blue Cheer took its
name from a particularly potent Owsley acid. Owsley also produced White Lightning and
Monterey Purple tabs. Owsley became a prolific artist and designed the Grateful Dead
lightning bolt skull logo often known by the first Dead album to feature it 13 years later
Steal Your Face; Owsleys nickname was Bear and he also designed the Deads cool dancing
bear logo, apparently a tribute to the Bear Oil Companys auto service logo originating in the
1930s and visible in virtually every American town. Owsley acid funded the band while he
worked as the bands first soundman and made live recordings of all the seminal San
Francisco bands. http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/owsley-stanley-the-king-oflsd-20110314?print=true


Oz. or O.Z.: pronounced oh-zee (never with the British/Canadian zed), an ounce of hash or
pot
Pad: someone's home, room, apartment or house; a police officer receiving a bribe,
especially on a regular basis

Papers, papes: cigarette rolling papers for, ah, rolling tobacco, of course

Pardy Hardy [Party Hearty]: have a great time, drink alcohol or do drugs, dance, or
all three

Peace Centre: the Toronto Rochdale Peace Centre with an office in Gnostic #1411 in
the 14th-Floor Commune; run by Mike Donaghy, it was an offshoot and imitation of
John Lennon's peace efforts; the centre was most active in 1970 and presented a few
rock music concerts the most successful was at the U of T's Convocation Hall on the
evening of March 1, 1970 called the Rochdale Collehe Peace Festival

Peak: the highest period of a drug high

Peaking: the term for reaching the highest high on an LSD trip or other psychedelic
experience
Pick Up: to successfully attract a person; to score drugs; to catch on to jokes; to get a phone
number; to hook up; to make out with; sleep with
Pick Up On: to observe a routine that you dig then add it to your way of doing things;
Pig: Cop; fascist; promiscuous girl; unclean person

Pig Out: over eat; to gorge oneself with food, alcohol or dope
The Pill: oral contraceptive; birth control pill for women

The Pipe: a home made brand of beer in Rochdale College; according to the Tuesdaily:
"Remember the Pipe!! The Pipe comes to you in three unique brews, Doric, Gold Medal, and
John Bull. The Pipe will get you roaring drunk."; The Pipe's operation included, "a waterbed
filled with apples in the back of a car in the basement."; the most popular brand of East
European small boxes of wooden matches available in Toronto in the early 1970s

Stan Bevington & The Original Pipe, 1971

Pinkie or pinky: Canadian pink $1000 banknote, much prized among Rochdale dealers,
withdrawn in 2000, there were then 2,827,702 in circulation. Bob the Goof wore a ring made
of a pinkie. Today, these are sold at a premium to facilitate concealment and transport

Pipe Down: be quiet; stop talking; speak more quietly

The Pits: the worst; nasty; bad; awful; meaningless
Plastic: artificial; phony; fake; imitation; shallow; not real; superficially attractive but
unoriginal

Poncho: a blanket-like cloak with a hole in the middle for ones head; patterns were based on
American Indian styles, colourful or with alternating coloured stripes; sometimes made with
natural hand-spun wool
Pop: Pop music [from sickly sweet soda pop]; music that appeals to teenagers; a bland
watered-down version of rock'n'roll with more rhythm and harmony; commercial popular
music; accessible tuneful music of a kind popular since the 1950s; a type of music that is
popular because it consists of short songs with a strong beat and simple tunes that are easy to

remember; since the 1930s pop was influenced mainly by jazz and sometimes Broadway, but
since the mid-1950s it has been based on rock

Pork: fuck; to engage in sexual intercourse; police; to take advantage of

Pot: the most widely used name for marijuana

Pothead: one who habitually smokes marijuana; often abbreviated as head

Power to the People: used by Black Panthers and others to describe the need to change the
existing power structure; self explanatory slogan, often ending with "off the pig" (confront
the police) when used by the Black Panthers

Power Trip: fascist behaviour; action undertaken for the pleasure of exercising control over
other people; the act of exerting power, authority, or influence
Power Tripper: someone abusing their position of power; a fascist

Primo: the best, awesome, first class, high quality; anything considered to be of excellent
quality, often applied to weed or hash
Psyche Out: astonished; intense experience; to discourage; to get someone very excited; to
cause someone to lose mental control; to figure someone out; to know how someone thinks;
to have a nervous or emotional trauma; to go mad for a brief time; to become very excited; to
lose mental control
Psychedelic: LSD, mescaline or psilocybin mushrooms; generating hallucinations,
distortions of perception and altered states of awareness; drugs with mind-altering effects
which may involve: multi-sensory hallucinations, delusions, intellectual insights, increased
creative capacity, spiritual enlightenment, and euphoria

The PUB: a publishing office for printing internal publications in Rochdale College; set up in
January 1969 it was initially located in Room #313, then Room #219, and finally Room #205;
various things were printed, most notably the college newsletter that had many names starting
with Daily and ending with Tuesdaily
Pull: to steal; to have sex; to attract a person in a romantic or sexual way; to perform an
unpleasant action; pull an all-nighter: an all-night period of activity to finish a task
Pusher: one who sells illegal drugs; a person who sells illegal drugs, especially narcotics
such as heroin and morphine; an unscrupulous drug dealer who will sell drugs to anyone. In
Canada, the RCMP initiated their T.I.P.S. campaignTurn In a Pusher

Put (someone) On: be obviously deceitful to show contempt, a common tactic by the hip in
the 1960's; try to put something over on someone; to fool someone; a joke on somebody

Putz: Jewish slang for someone who is a constant screw-up or foul-up, or just being a jerk
Raggin' or Rag On: put someone down, to cut someone down
Rap: to talk; to have a friendly discussion; to speak the language of the hip
Rat: inform; squeal on; someone who reports misdeeds to an authority; narc; snitch; telltale;
a wretched-acting person; traitor; stool pigeon; to betray someone and tell their secret to an

authority or an enemy; to turn someone in

Razz: tease, make fun of in a good-natured way; to get very drunk
Reefer: the Beat word for a marijuana cigarette (from 1820) that was never used seriously by
hippies or Rochdalians, although everybody knew its meaning; large quantity of cannabis

Rent a Cop: a security guard who is not a police officer

Retard: a very socially-inept, dorky person; stupid, idiot
Riff: a catchy musical expression; a short repeated line of music; an ostinato phrase in jazz,
blues and rock music typically supporting a solo improvisation; story; conversation; a
digression while speaking

Right On: a strong agreement; I agree; I concur ; correct, good, OK and terrific

Righteous: extremely fine, beautiful; extreme perfection; awesome, amazing, cool, exciting
Rip-off: to steal things or ideas
Rip-Off Artist: dishonest and duplicitous thief who steals things by various means
Ripped: very stoned or high

Ripped Off: to have something stolen, or to have stolen something

Roach: tiny remains of a smoked marijuana joint, often smoked with a small device called a
roach clip; the butt of a marijuana cigarette (See Generations above)

Rochdale Roaches: the Rocks very own stoned ice hockey team; the games played against
the Toronto Police 52 Division responsible for raiding Rochdale were the most popular and
often, as in all Canadian hockey, pretty violent
Rochdalians: neo-hippies who lived in and were actively involved in Rochdale College;
sleazy obnoxious phonies in Rochdale College who invaded each other's privacy the
phoniest thing about them was their "friendship"; Canadian hicks in Rochdale College who
learned about it from the media they were told it was a place for drug dealing, so that's what
they did; American draft dodgers in Rochdale College who didn't like or have a clue about
Toronto or Canada; also called "Rochdalers" in the early years of the college
Rochdollar: paper Rochdale College one dollar currency that vaguely resembled a Canadian

dollar and was sometimes used in Rochdale to buy things, generally at par; the Rochdollars
were printed by Stan Bevington at Coach House Press in July 1969; originally worth 75,
they are now an expensive collector's item

Rochburger: the name of an apartment-based restaurant located in the 13th-Floor Commune

in 1970
Rock: Rock music; a form of popular music that evolved from rock and roll and pop music
during the mid and late 1960s; a blend of black rhythm and blues with white country &
western; a generic term for the range of music styles that evolved out of rock'n'roll, which
was originally slang for "fuck"

The Rock: Rochdale College

Roof: the 17th-floor Roof Patio, a quiet and peaceful oasis for Rochdalians and outside
visitors to lie around in the sun in the summer; wooden floor pallets were added to the roof in

May 1971, there was a wading pool for the kids, and containers around the walls filled with
plants and flowers; surrounded by an "anti-freak-out" fence, to prevent things falling onto
pedestrians below, it was a created by Ed Apt, Director of the Patio and Terraces Committee
in 1969
Rush: short physical sensations during a high on some chemical drugs such as LSD and
"Speed"; a physical experience as a drug takes effect; a quick change of consciousness that
creates a dizzying sensation; an exciting occurrence
A Safe: a condom; a sheath of thin rubber or latex worn over the cock during intercourse for
contraception and to prevent VD, or as they now call it STDs or STIs; prophylactic; also
called a rubber

The Same: the Rochdale College restaurant also known as a cafeteria starting in late 1968
and ending in the Fall of 1970; the main entrance was outside Rochdale College on the front
plaza at ground level in the West wing, replaced by Etherea Natural foods Restaurant
Say What?: What are you talking about?; I don't believe you
Scam: a trick; a rip-off; a dope deal; a smuggle. Scammer: a dope dealer or smuggler
Scarf: eat something very quickly; to eat hastily; to hog or snatch up; to eat a lot, quickly
Scene: the place where you are is the scene; a trendy fashionable hang out; the locale and the
cool people who attend comprise the "scene"; a party with an atmosphere you appreciate
Score: to obtain something valuable or necessary; to succeed; acquire; to acquire drugs; to
have sex; get laid; to go all the way with a girl

Scratch: money, usually a small amount; done by or dependent on chance; gathered hastily
and indiscriminately

Screwed: cheated out of something; fucked; in trouble

Screwed up: made a mistake; messed up in the head; intoxicated; broken, ruined, defective
Script, or scrip: a doctor's prescription for medication or drugs; a drug requiring a

prescription, as opposed to an over-the-counter drug; Rx means "recipe" from the Latin "to
take"; tell a tall story: "flip the script" means to lie, change a story, reverse a position or turn
the tables on someone
Sell Out: to sacrifice counter-culture ideals for acceptance by society or material gain; to
give into something that is considered bad, usually for financial reasons, such as working for
a bad employer

Sensi, or sinsi: sensemilla or sinsemilla; marijuana without seeds; from the Spanish
"sin" (without) and "semilla" (seed), meaning "without seeds", usually pure bud; the female
buds or flowers that male pollen did not fertilize; a close relative of marijuana, a flowering
cannabis plant that is higher in concentrations of tetrahydrocannibol (THC, the active drug in
marijuana); sinsemilla is the flowering portion of a cannabis plant, while marijuana is
vegetation (leaves); conventional marijuana has approximately 4% THC concentration, while
sinsemilla is between 10-14% concentration and if grown correctly will be seedless

Shade: casual; disrespectful; acting in a casual or disrespectful manner towards someone

Shades: sunglasses
Shake: loose leafy marijuana left at the bottom of the bag after the buds have been removed
Shake Down: a thorough search of a place or person; extortion of money, as by blackmail; to
extort to obtain something using force, threats, intimidation or abuse of power; a period of
appraisal followed by adjustments to improve efficiency or functioning
Shake that thing: a saying that means dance, have fun, or shake your booty

Sharp: really good-looking; very well dressed; the latest or current fashion; strikingly neat
and trim in style or appearance; quickness of mind; a hypodermic needle
Shine it on: to disregard, ignore or blow off as insignificant
Shine me on: to ignore someone; ignore or try not to notice someone's presence;
continuously not follow through with an engagement
Shit: dope of one kind or another; one of the most common exclamations of surprise or
disappointment; a word that can mean almost anything; in Miles Davis' autobiography
"Miles" it seems every second word is "shit" and he uses it for virtually everything, including
his music: "I wasn't used to that kind of shit back then and hadn't seen no shit like that
before. Anyway, Bird noticed that I was getting kind of uptight with the woman sucking all
over his dick and everything, and him sucking on her pussy. So you know what that
motherfucker said? He told me that if it was bothering me, then I should turn my head and
not pay attention. I couldn't believe that shit."
Shoot: a general exclamation; to ejaculate; to inject a drug
Shooting gallery: a place where people inject illegal drugs
Shot down: rejected; rejected by a woman; the act of losing much confidence; demolished;

destroyed
Shotgun: the passenger seat beside the driver in a car; the place of honor in the front seat of a
car, a spot usually set aside for the coolest guy in the group; to reverse the marijuana joint in
your mouth and blow the smoke into the mouth of another

Shuck: a phony; something useless or worthless;a fraud, a rip-off or something bogus; to

get rid of; to fool someone or make a fool out of someone
Sister: any good female person or a friend, often "brothers and sisters"
Sit On It: a term of dismissal; to not agree with or value what was said
Skag: a plain-looking girl or skank; heroin

Skank: a plain-looking girl who doesn't care how she looks

Skuzz: low-down, disgusting person; also skuzz-bucket synonymous with skag or skank
The Skinny: inside information; true confidential information; the truth or the real deal
Skinny-Dipping: to swim in the nude; to swim naked

Skunk: hydroponic or hybridised weed, known for its potent smell, hard to conceal
Slash: pussy (derogatory)
Sleaze: a cheap impoverished person who wants everything for nothing; a deadbeat;
contemptible, cheap, unkempt or promiscuous
Smack: heroin, also known as H, junk, dope, horse, mud, skag, and brown sugar, was very
strictly banned in Rochdale College; a highly addictive morphine derivative; a white,
odorless, bitter crystalline compound that is derived from morphine and is considered a hard
drug; heroin is its illegal name and Diamorphine its medical name, used to treat severe pain;
heroin derived from the German "heroisch" meaning "heroic" because of the heroic, self
confident boost users first receive from the high; molecular formula C21H23NO5

Snatch: pussy, pussy, pussy http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wup1cEdgOWs

Snort: to insufflate (inhale) cocaine up the nose with a straw or rolled up paper money,
typically a $100 bill; cocaine or heroin, especially a small amount sniffed at one time; to
breathe noisily and forcefully through the nostrils; a double shot of whiskey or bourbon,
straight without ice; electrical energy
Sock it to me: let me have it, generally with an underlying sexual connotation; do your
worst; bring it on, I can handle it; overused from the late 1960s until the early 1970s, Richard
Nixon was parodied on TVs "Laugh In" with Rowan & Martin, many people became
convinced it was Nixons actual 1972 campaign slogan; hippies and Rochdalians never used
it, although they understood it

Soft Drugs: drugs such as marijuana, hashish, LSD, mescaline and psilocybin mushrooms

Solid: something thats OK or all right; cool, awesome; high-quality; well-done; difficult
Something else: very special; really great; very different
Sooper Store: a small convenience store located in Room #215 in the second floor elevator
lobby across from the second floor Lounge in 1973; in the same space was the Schop in 1970,
which started as the Co-op Schop in Room #422 and #924 in 1969; the Schop asked
customers to "build up this Dirty Dan Capitalist conspiracy!"; in 1971 the outlet was named
The Second Floor Store and under different ownership the Upstairs Store; in 1974 it became
Ptomaine General Store, the name of the store in 1970

Space Cadet: someone really spaced-out or stoned on a regular basis

Spaced-out: on drugs or out of touch with the environment; not all here, possibly stoned
Spade: an offensive name for an African-American; a disparaging term for a black person;
sometimes used by Janis Joplin and other beatniks and hippies with no offense intended
Spaz: a person who often acts in an irrational or spontaneous fashion; someone who is
accident prone, klutzy, or acting stupid; to react with extreme or irrational distress; spastic;
first recorded 1965
Speed: amphetamine; methamphetamine; crystal methamphetamine; a colourless, volatile
liquid used as a central nervous system stimulant in the treatment of certain neurological
conditions such as attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and narcolepsy, and abused as a
stimulant; a chemical derivative of amphetamine, such as dextroamphetamine sulfate
(Dexies); whizz; generally injected intravenously by speed-freak drug addicts; very strictly
banned in Rochdale; molecular formula C10H15N. Speed freaks shared needles; 40 years
later, Hep C is killing them

Speed-Freak: a person addicted to speed" (amphetamines), most often by intravenous

injection
Spliff: a marijuana cigarette, especially a large or very potent one; a cone-shaped marijuana
cigarette; joint; Dutchie; a marijuana cigarette mixed with tobacco; 1935-40 Jamaican slang
of uncertain origin


Split: to leave or depart; to end a relationship
Spot: to lend money; a place to hang out or party; a five-spot is a five-dollar bill and a tenspot is a ten dollar bill
Spot On: absolutely correct and worthy; very accurate
Square: somebody not cool; a boring person; a person who is dull, rigidly conventional, and
out of touch with current trends; someone who follows all the rules or is part of the
establishment
Stack: $1000
Stacked: a chick with large breasts; large breasted; a vehicle with damage to the front and
possibly rear

Stash: something hidden, usually illegal drugs or money; to hide or store in a secret place
Stash Room: a room in Rochdale College rented by big drug dealers to stash most of their
drugs separately from their sales room, and it was done primarily for security reasons to
avoid busts or rip-offs
The Statue: the "Unknown Student" sculpture created in 1969 by Ed Apt's Rochdale College
Sculpture Shop and unveiled on April 4, 1969 before noon; situated just outside the entrance
to Rochdale in the front plaza; it is now the only legacy Rochdale College has left the world

Stay Cool: remain calm; keep your composure; stay out of trouble; keep cool
Stay Loose: remain relaxed and unperturbed; free from anything that binds or restrains
Step On: to dilute illegal drugs; to mistreat
Stick it to: to give someone a problem; to confront someone; to treat severely or wrongfully
Stone Fox: a "fox" is a really cute girl or guy, but a "stone fox" is the ultimate cute girl or
guy
Stoned: intoxicated or high; under the influence of marijuana; under the influence of drugs,
narcotics, or alcohol

STP: a very strong hallucinogen with trips lasting 72 hours or more; a hallucinogenic drug
chemically related to mescaline and amphetamine; first known use 1967; 2,5-Dimethoxy-4methylamphetamine; STP stands for "Serenity, Tranquility, and Peace"; banned in Rochdale
College; molecular formula C12H19NO2
Straight: a conventional person, a "square"; a person who does not participate in "dangerous"
activity such as drugs, alcohol, sex or crime; entirely; honest; a heterosexual
Streak: to run in public in the nude, which was very popular in 1974

Street people: the homeless or poor; people who live in the streets
Strung out: addicted to a drug; debilitated from long-term drug use; feeling really bad
because you are out of dope or something else you really want; mental stress resulting from a
craving
Stubby: a bottle of beer with a short neck, as opposed to a long neck bottle; common in
Canada, Australia and New Zealand during the 1970s when virtually all small beer bottles
had short necks; starting in 1962 almost all beer in Canada was sold in stubbies until the beer
companies switched to the long neck bottle between 1982 and 1986; stubbies were phased
out for the long neck bottle when "twist off" caps became popular [Canadian and Australian
slang]. Americans found the Ladies Entrances to old Toronto pubs bizarre, along with the
practice of adding a pinch of salt to Canadian draft

Suck: to be inadequate, displeasing, or of poor quality; to be bad at a particular subject or

action; a reference to fellatio; to be repellent or disgusting; to behave in a fawning manner; to
be obsequious
Swinger: partner swapping for sex; single and playing the field; a lively and fashionable
person who goes to many social events
Swingin': really good; modern and lively; practicing exchange of partners, especially
spouses, for sex
The System: the catchall term for the power structure that oppresses the masses, controls
economics, and creates war; capitalism; the government; any large organization or tradition;
the system of laws, governance, and justice; the establishment
T: Rochdale dealer slang for a ton of dope
Tab: a tablet or pill
Tail (a piece of): sex; sexual intercourse; also a piece of ass

Take: impression; thoughts; to rob or extort; never; double take: a second look
Talkin Trash: gossiping, lying, exaggerating
Tank Top: a sleeveless, tight-fitting shirt with shoulder straps and no front opening; a
sleeveless jumper, usually with a low round or V neck, tight fitting and sometimes worn over
a tight fitting shirt with a long pointed collar; a piece of clothing made from wool or cotton
and worn on the upper part of the body that has no sleeves and does not open at the front

Tapped Out: out of money

Teenie-Bopper: young and superficial teenage hippie wannabe; cute young suburban girls
Temple Balls: a form of potent, hand-rubbed hashish exported from Nepal to Europe and

North America in the late 1960s and early 1970s; they were spherical or egg-shaped, and
smoothed by hand with a polished appearance; urban myth: hashish with opium mixed in it

Terrace: the second floor Terrace located at the south East end of the building; it originally
had a huge "music shell" half-dome stage built by Ed Apt's Patio and Terraces Committee,
but it was was dismantled in July 1972; after 1970 the Terrace was rarely used because of
noise complaints from neighbours, and rarely visited because it was a minefield of broken
beer bottles thrown by Rochdale drunks from their bedrooms above
Thai Stick: an excellent very potent marijuana from Thailand. Rochdales dealers liked them
because the thin bamboo stick around which the buds were wrapped and tied added to the
weight

That Sucks: that's awful, originally a reference to fellatio; a person who flatters or defers to
others obsequiously; a sycophant; to suck up to
THC: tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana that gets you high, one of
several cannabinoids found in marijuana; the percentage of THC in marijuana or hashish
usually determines how strong it is; molecular formula C21H30O2
Threads: clothes, clothing
Tie-Dye: dyeing fabric after knotting it to produce an irregular pattern; tying and dyeing a
piece of fabric or cloth, usually cotton, typically using bright colors; colorful abstract artwork
usually done on clothing by dyeing fabric after tying it together


Tight: close, as in close friends; very good, excellent; stingy; feeling high or drunk
Tightass: a person who is conventional, bourgeois and uptight; a person who is tense,
uptight, inhibited and can't relax; a stingy person
To The Max: take it to the maximum; the best it can be
Toad Lane: the Toad Lane Tenants Association (T.L.T.A.) was formed in March 1973 with an
office in the second floor admin wing in #207 then #209; TLTA was autonomous and
concerned itself with day-to-day problems of Rochdale tenants; there were five elected
officers or directors and others who helped out; by 1974 Toad Lane claimed members of twothirds of all tenants plus 50 children; the association published a "Toad's Breath" newsletter
for members
Together: mentally and emotionally stable and well organized: a together person
Toke: inhale marijuana smoke

Too Much: literally too much, usually meant as a compliment; far out; extremely funny;
Toot: to flatulate; to fart; a loud sound; the blast hole on the side of a bong or pipe; a binge; a
drinking spree; to bounce your butt up and down during sexual intercourse; a line or dose of
cocaine; cocaine; to sniff drugs; to snort powdery illegal drugs
Tracks: marks on the body, usually an arm, caused by using hypodermic syringes to inject
illegal drugs; a row of needle marks on a person
Trip: LSD experience, or any other unique experience; the period of time when a person is
under the influence of LSD; on a hallucinogenic drug that causes someone to act out of
character; going crazy; to act strange or foolish; acting out of control; to overreact or to lose
your cool

Trip Out: to get spaced-out; to get really stoned; to trip on LSD or other hallucinogen
Tripping: what you do on acid; on LSD or other hallucinogenic drug; a term used to describe
a crazy action or comment by others
Trippy: something unusual or psychedelic; cool; drinking or smoking; listening to acid rock

Truckin': to go; drug smuggling or trafficking, usually involving the mob

Tunes: songs; music; (singular) flirt

Turn In: go to bed

Turn off: not good or appealing; unattractive; repulsive; to repulse someone sexually; to dull
someone's interest in someone or something
Turn On: good or appealing; get high; sexually exciting; to become enlightened to new ways
of thinking or experiencing reality

Twat: [pronounced with soft ah] pussy; [British sland, pronounced with hard a] clueless,
brainless person, an idiot
Two-Four: a case of beer containing 24 cans or bottles; [Canadian and Ontario slang] also
known as the Canadian two-four; May Two-Four is a Canadian "holiday" or celebration of
beer in Canada, officially known as Victoria Day; beer sales rise 20% during the Victoria Day
holiday; a two-four is called a "slab" in Australia; in poker and other card games if you get a
two and a four, you are expected to take two shots or drink two times
Underground: something anti-establishment; working undercover or hidden; a term applied
to newspapers and comic books that were meant for hippies
Unwind: to relax; to loosen up; to lighten up; to become released from tension; chill; chill
out
Upper: a stimulant such as amphetamine
Uptight: anxious or angry in a tense and overly-controlled way; stressed-out; tense, nervous,
or jittery; annoyed or angry; concerned about maintaining set ways of thinking and doing
things; overly formal, conservative, repressed, rigid; stiffly conventional in manners,
opinions, and tastes

Vibes: short for vibrations, the ambience of a place or feelings emanating from a person; the
overall feeling or mood of a place, person or thing
Wang: a cock or dick; a bad smell; from the 1933 slang word "whangdoodle"
Wanker: jerk, dolt; an unpleasant person; a cock or dick; a jerk-off; a masturbator; 1940s
British slang from "wank" (to masturbate), of unknown origin; there were a few English
people in Rochdale who used British slang

Washroom: toilet; restroom; bathroom [Canadian idiom]

Wasted: very stoned to the point where you can't even move; drunk; very much under the
influence of drugs; too tired to proceed
Way Out: something so far out there, it's almost unbelievable; extremely unconventional or
experimental; avant-garde; excellent or amazing; exotic or esoteric in character; advanced in
style or technique
Weed: marijuana

Whatever: it means you do not care; a dismissive retort; apathy and indifference to the
feelings or actions of another
Whats Hanging?: Hows it going?
What's Happening?: What are you doing?; What's Up?
What's Shaking? How's it going?
What's with you?: What is bothering you?
What's Your Bag, Man?: What's your problem? Where are you coming from?
What's your sign?: What is your astrological sign? Hippies and Rochdalians were obsessed
with astrology and inevitably would ask people for their astrological sign to pigeonhole them.

White Lightning: the last of the finest LSD available

Wiggin' out: tripping out; paranoid; freaking out; going crazy; someone trying to act cooler
than they really are
Windowpane or Clear Light: a potent form of pure LSD in a tiny clear square of gelatin that
melts in your mouth. Other pure brands sold in Rochdale included Orange Sunshine, Blue
Cheer, Purple Haze.
Wipe(d) out: originally to fall off a wave while surfing, later to crash a vehicle and severely
damage it, then later a term for extreme fatigue
Wired: a person who is high; under the influence of stimulants; full of energy; slim but with
extreme muscle definition; connected; high
With It: knowledgeable; aware of what really matters; socially or culturally up-to-date; in
accord with the most fashionable ideas or style
Whiz (take a): urinate; a pee or piss
Wonk: a studious, unsociable person; an expert; one who studies excessively; a grind; one
who delights in having expertise in an arcane and often tedious area of study; "to wonk out"
means to study hard; earliest use 1960, either Siouxan for "man", Australian slang, or "know"
spelled backwards from MIT

Woody: an erection; a hard-on; a boner; a station wagon with exterior wood paneling
Works: hypodermic syringes for illicit drug users; equipment for injecting drugs
Wow: one of the most used words of the 60s expressing astonishment or admiration; often
expressed when tripping

Wrecked: drunk, intoxicated; an extremely upset person; a person who doesn't have their life
in order; a sick or disheveled person; a very messy place; to severely beat up or injure; to
defeat; to have very vigorous sex with
Yippies: a group founded by Abbie Hoffman, Jerry Rubin, Paul Krassner, Dana Beal and
others in 1967, the Youth International Party for pranksters and activists; Yippies levitated the
Pentagon in Washington in 1967 and helped organize the protests at the Democratic
Convention in Chicago in 1968 which ended up in a riot; Yippies got arrested and it became
the trial of the Chicago 10
Yossarian: a store named Yossarian Records located in the second floor Lounge then the
former Peoples Gallery next to The Same restaurant on the front plaza in the West wing;
records, health food, and clothing were sold from 1970 until 1971
You Know: like "man" it was used at the end of too many sentences; used in speech instead
of a pause to denote a comma or a period
Zeus: a large two-bedroom unfurnished apartment in the West wing on the north side; the
most expensive housing in Rochdale, with one Zeus unit (#26) on virtually every residential
floor
Zilch: zero; nothing; a person regarded as being insignificant; a nonentity; amounting to
nothing; nil; a large plastic garbage bag attached to the ceiling and set on fire
Zippies: Zippies were founded by Abbie Hoffman in early 1972 as a revolutionary street
army of hippie anarchists for the Miami anti-Nixon Republican Convention; Hoffman replied
when asked about the name change from Yippies to Zippies, "We have gone from A to Z!"
Zonked: to become intoxicated with drugs or alcohol; out of it, due to fatigue, alcohol or
drugs; stupefied; stunned; unconscious or asleep

EXTRA: A few fascinating dictionaries of cannabis and drug slang may be found here: http://
w w w. n o s l a n g . c o m / d r u g s / d i c t i o n a r y / ,
h t t p : / / e n . w i k t i o n a r y. o r g / w i k i /
Appendix:Cannabis_slang, http://www.ukcia.org/research/potnight/pn5a.htm.

Police Informers in Rochdale College

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_57_Police-Informers.html

There were always undercover cops and police informers in Rochdale College. In 1969 my
roommate was a private detective spying on a Rochdalian for her mother. He was foolish
enough to confide in me.
Police informants are by definition untermensch (sub-human) because society, the
government, and the courts have contempt for them and their unrespectable information. In
Canada police informants can make as much as $500,000. There were a number of elitist
pigs who were police informers in the Rochdale Animal Farm.
The pigs did not actually work, but directed and supervised the others. With their superior
knowledge it was natural that they should assume the leadership. (3.2)
Some of the animals had noticed that the van which took Boxer away was marked Horse
Slaughterer. (9.28)
This farm which he had the honour to control, he added, was a co-operative enterprise. The
title-deeds, which were in his own possession, were owned by the pigs jointly. (10.29)
The creatures outside looked from pig to man, and from man to pig, and from pig to man
again; but already it was impossible to say which was which. (10.35)

Joe Sheard was a card-carrying member of the Progressive-Conservative Party of Canada and
a lawyer. Unfortunately, he was also one of Rochdale College's lawyers. All of his account
is bullshit starting with taking the Deputy Police Chief's empty threat seriously, and his Nazi
idea that using police informants is "much more civilized" than resisting fascist police
oppression and persecution. To cut through his specious bullshit here, what we learn is that
the police threatened to "invade" Rochdale again on a Sunday morning in late September
1972, and the elitist pigs of Rochdale, namely

"quietly" squealed on drug dealers by personally giving a "list" of them to Deputy Police
Chief Jack Ackroyd.

"Quietly"? The elitist pigs quietly squealed on drug dealers and some went to prison. But it
was OK because the dealers such as Syd Stern and Rosie "weren't really a part of the
Rochdale Community, but were opportunists who just used the building. They were really
foreigners to the Rochdale concept."
Jay Boldizsar, Alex MacDonald, and Mike Randell were police informers. What more
evidence do you want? Who did you squeal on, Alex and Mike? You told the motherfucking
police, now tell us who you squealed on. We want to know. This is just the tip of the iceberg
of the elitist pigs in Rochdale College collaborating with the police. There is a mountain of
circumstantial evidence regarding Rochdale elitist pigs squealing on drug dealers.
Police informers are secretive by definition. They are not merely "quiet", they are silent and
deceptive about their activities. So we can only speculate about how much the elitist pigs in
Rochdale squealed on drug dealers. Alex MacDonald had far too much money for an
unemployed asshole. Typically he rented homes in two separate locations, owned thousands
of dollars worth of photographic equipment, and threw huge, expensive, boring parties.
Where did all his money come from? I believe it came from the police, and I also believe he
took hundreds of photographs of Rochdale residents for the police. Almost all of them are
portraits, and drug dealers were foolish enough to trust MacDonald when he photographed
them selling drugs. MacDonald's photographs were invaluable for the police.

In 1974 Alex MacDonald tried to murder me. I was having a nap in the 15th-Floor
Commune with a "Do not disturb" sign on my door. Yuppie egomaniac Alex MacDonald
rented a room in the commune, but was rarely there because he lived in Neill-Wycik. He
woke me up and roughly grabbed me by the neck and started strangling me to death. He kept
screaming "I'm going to kill you" regarding something I knew nothing whatsoever about. I
am a vegetarian pacifist or Alex MacDonald would be dead.
My injured neck required medical treatment and MacDonald was basically banned from the
15th-Floor Commune. If it happened now, I would definitely smash in MacDonald's head to
defend myself. First I would have to kick him violently in the crotch to get him off of me.
One of the regrets in my life is I did not kill police informer Alex MacDonald. Destroying
him in writing is not enough for me. Afterwards he treated me as if nothing had happened

and expected me to be friendly with him! A couple of weeks later the mouthy bullshitter was
quoted in a Toronto newspaper saying, "Rochdale taught me how to relate to people."

Last meeting

Rochdale Roof

May 1975

Last meeting

Rochdale Roof

May 1975

And so we bid a fond farewell to Rochdale College, the last bastion of the 1960s
hippie movement.

Rochdale in Receivership - Clarkson Company, Limited

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_42_Clarkson.html

The Greenies invade Rochdale College on September 14, 1972

Sid Smith (Clarkson), Howard Brebber, and a Greenie

Tuesdaily August 30, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily September 7, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily October 12, 1971 clip

Tuesdaily January 11, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily February 7, 1972 clips

Ghetto News May 18. 1972

Daily September 2, 1972

Daily 1972 clip

The Straight Shit 1972 clip

The Straight Shit 1972 clip

Tuesdaily September 26, 1972 clips

Tuesdaily October 10, 1972 clip

Tuesdaily January 16, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily February 6. 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 21, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily March 30, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily April 6, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 4, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily May 11, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily June 11, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily June 15, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily June 23, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily July 20, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily August 3, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily September 14, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily December 21, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily January 17, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily March 5, 1974 clips

Tuesdaily March 22, 1974

Tuesdaily April 14, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily May 1974 clip

Daily May, 1974 clips

Daily May 1974 clip: John Sullivan (me) interviews Sid Smith

Tuesdaily July 5, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily March 29, 1975 clip

Rochdale College Corporate Meeting, December 12, 1974

by John Sullivan and David Lawrence

http://rochdalecorporatemeeting.blogspot.com/2011/05/rochdalecorporate-meeting-december-12.html
[This article is from the TUESDAILY of December 12, 1974. It was written by John Sullivan
(now Lone Wolf Sullivan) and David Lawrence (now Dr. David Lawrence) immediately after
the meeting. Then David printed the Tuesdaily and it was distributed to all tenants in
Rochdale that same evening by me, Cathy Johnson and Bob Naismith.]

Second floor Lounge after the mass evictions

The Rochdale annual corporate meeting occurred on December 12, 1974. Ian Argue was
chairperson. A diverse crowd, mainly residents, met in the second floor Lounge. Outgoing
President Jay Boldizsar gave a brief corporate legal summary, saying the corporation is
smaller yet healthier than it has ever been. "Tighter, always tighter," added Charlotte von
Bezold. At this point Dan Dickie moved that we stop smoking because he and others found it
offensive. The motion was carried, but was not followed by all smokers. Mike Randell gave a
quickie financial report, saying that we have $10,000 left from the farm sale in a bank and
that at the present rate we are spending our money we can last 18 months. The only source of
income now is degree sales.
The next topic of discussion was Landlord and Tenant legal battles. Resident lawyer Mike
McLachlan gave March as the earliest time all the communes will be out, including appeals.
A chant of "OM" began in one part of the room, soon spread out, a reverberation of Moody
Blues that prompted the legal battle. Charlie Taylor suggested we stop playing the legal
game, gave anarchy as the solution, qualifying it with, "There's nothing wrong with anarchy,
as long as it's organized anarchy." Nickie Morrison, later elected to the new council, voiced
her frustration about consistently losing in courts. She asked, "Why let the courts rule our
lives, why don't we organize internally, take charge of remaining space, set up a token rent
payment system?" Henry Pollard made a motion that she do it. Mike McLachlan pointed out
that the legal machine will proceed without you, whether you recognize it or not.
As the meeting progressed, the atmosphere became anarchic. Lobbying at the federal and city
level was discussed. Kevin O'Leary said that has become his pet project. Dan McCue rolled
in on a case of beer, played his old records for us about elitist bullshit and people power, and
threatened to smash Joel Scott's face in if he ever came across him alone.
Jane Barnett wanted everyone to start going to court together, seeing as she was going to
court the next day. When it came time to discuss the latest piece of diarrhea from the
Clarkson Co., known as Memoir #4, Bill King said he didn't want to see a piece of paper (the
agenda) which was written earlier that day; we should structure what is going on here and

now. Many thanks to those who made the meeting so verbose, if not enlightening: Charlotte
von Bezold, Pat Wilson, Mike Donaghy, and you if you were there.
Elections of the new Governing Council were abolished by a motion to select the new
Council by drawing names out of a hat, carried by a two-thirds majority. All interested in
serving on Council were asked to toss their names into a hat.
When all the names were in, the latest-born Rochdale child (Christopher Adam) and the first
born Rochdale child (Brendan) grabbed 13 names out and here is a list of members of the
new Governing Council:
Nickie Ashley
Donald Fergusson
David Harlowe
Cindy Lei
Michael McLachlan
Nickie Morrison
Kevin O'Leary
John Panter
Michael Randell
Joel Scott
Suki Wrench
Farouk Yourossie
Maybe...maybe, this time, since it was was chosen by our children.........dingaling.
Democratic control seemed to be abandoned as an operating principle at Rochdale College's
annual corporate meeting. By choosing the Governing Council by lot, it may have appeared
to be throwing Rochdale's future into chaos. But a closer look shows that the community in
the college finally does look upon itself as made up of members of equal worth. Cooperation
has given us the trust that we could pick any 13 of us at random and still feel secure that these
people would try to act in our best interest. Experience has taught us that no one here has the
one solution but that any 13 of us working together have the capability of keeping the college
going. Choosing leadership by lot has a long history of use by other communities in other
environments. One of the reasons that it works is that all the people can feel that they are a
part of the leadership. Instead of spending time strengthening factions to fight each other
faction, we will guide our leaders by helping them carry the load.
36 years later Lone Wolf's memory of the meeting is that we entered the Lounge from the
hallway, not the elevator lobby. In fact, I believe we used the North Cafeteria, not the second
floor Lounge. Rochdalians confused the two, because the two spaces were connected. This
meeting was very noisy and those who spoke usually could not be heard clearly. The only
time people shut up and listened was when Lionel Douglas paid a surprise visit. His speech
was about the danger of staying on the same course decided in the past, instead of
considering a change in direction. He was quite animated and pointed with his arm, turned
and pointed in another direction. His eloquent speech probably inspired Bill King to suggest
dispensing with the agenda, and very possibly was the inspiration for the election by lot.
Mike Randell read a newspaper report about something or other, but it was impossible to hear
what he said in the noisy ten-ring circus. Syd Stern was quite generous with his hash, which

may also have inspired the election by lot, although Mike Randell and others were strongly
opposed to it.
Each name taken from the election hat was preceded by the name of the position available,
and President came first. Surprise! Surprise! Mike Randell won. What wonderful luck! (he
wrote sarcastically) All the important Council positions were taken by the elitists. Nickie
Ashley took each name from the children, showed it to Mike Randell for verification, then
read it aloud. I lived in the same commune as Nickie and Mike, and did I trust these
bourgeois Bobbsey Twins? Not for one second. I am certain it was a fraud.
I am convinced that the election at this meeting was rigged and the details are in my nonfiction historical novel A Wolf Among Sheep. Entries in the Tuesdailies also suggest others
believed the election was not honest. Furthermore, the next morning I congratulated Mike
Randell on his victory in his office. I could tell by his eyes and the look on his face that the
election was rigged. Or, to foolishly give him the benefit of the doubt, he was unhappy about
the method used by Council to elect him President.
As for the article I co-wrote, I remember that David and I wrote it quickly and it was fun. I
came up with the lines about Dan McCue "rolled in on a case of beer..." because that is what
he literally did, but I cannot remember much else about the meeting. Most of the names of the
elected Governing Council are a surprise to me now.

The Aftermath
http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_50_Aftermath.html

The Rochdale College building was closed by the Canadian government in an unprecedented
mass eviction of all tenants in 1974 and 1975. At the end of March 1974, the court had
granted permission to empty Rochdale College of all tenants. Housing Minister Robert
Andras claimed it was done strictly "on a financial basis. It is not intended to make a
statement about young people and their lifestyles." Bullshit! In late September 1975 the last
tenant, David Lawrence in Kafka #1608, was evicted. The building was allowed to "cool
down" and for a few years it just stood there empty while the politicians decided what to do
with it. Then it was renovated into The Senator David A. Croll Apartments as a subsidized
seniors' residence that opened in 1979. The current owner of the building is the Toronto

Community Housing Corporation.

By mid-1975 most of the evicted Rochdalians had left Toorotten and a large percentage had
left Canacaca. That was because they were not originally from Toorotten or Canacaca. They
really had no interest in Toorotten, because Rochdale was the attraction.
Some moved into co-op houses in Toorotten with other Rochdalians. Two examples are the
houses bought by Rochdalians at 138 Albany Avenue and 243 Albany Avenue not far from
Rochdale. About a dozen moved to the Rochdale Farm. Some just found other places to live
in Toorotten, usually close to Rochdale.
Jane Barnett, Ceildh, Michael Burns, Cathy Johnson and others rented a house on Brunswick
Avenue on the east side just south of Bloor Street West. It was a co-op house and had a lot of
visitors at first. A greenish antique plush living room chair from the 15th-Floor Commune
was a permanent fixture on the front porch. Patsy Hutchings and Georgia lived there for
many months, and when I visited one day Patsy had something in her eye. Using my first-aid
training I quickly removed it, and Patsy was impressed by my skill and gentle bedside
manner. Peyton Brien, Marcia Whitford, and Kareem lived in the house for a short time. I
took Marcia to the 99 Roxy Theatre to see El Topo and that made Peyton jealous. As Jane
recovered from the trauma of the Rochdale eviction nightmare, she became less sociable.
She was very friendly with me, then overnight she developed a disapproving hatred for me.
I continued to be friendly with her because I had not said nor done anything that would cause
such a reaction. In fact, I had given her light fixtures and furniture from the 15th-Floor
Commune's lounge. But Jane just gave me hostile bullshit. They say the pen is mightier than
the sword, and it's true. As true as the fact that Jane Barnett was an arrogant macho cunt in
Rochdale who meddled in other people's lives.
Candace and Bruno from the 17th-Floor Commune also lived in the house with Jane for a
while. Then they moved to the Maritimes and lived in the country on some land they
bought. But Candace became ill from the primitive conditions, and they had to abandon their
idyllic fantasy and return to civilization. Martin Heath told me Candace has passed away.
Simon Liston, Casey Eaton, and Gayle Eaton rented an apartment at 481 Palmerston
Boulevard. It was located just across the street from the house my grandparents used to own.
In fact, I knew the Jamaican Jews who lived in the apartment in the 1960s, and one of them
was my best friend. Before Palmerston Boulevard Simon had lived in an apartment with
Shirley Claydon and John Taylor before they left Toronto. The other tenant in the Palmerston
Boulevard apartment was Perry Chan, a non-Rochdalian who eventually became my best
friend and business partner. The apartment was quite nice, except for the living room which
had bright red velvet wallpaper that made it look like a whorehouse owned by Elvis. But the
Portuguese landlord would not allow them to remove the eyesore. When Simon moved out
because Gayle moved to California, the apartment was vacated, but not without a great
farewell party I attended.
Syd Stern, Ruth King, True, and other Rochdalians lived at 95 Madison Avenue in a fairly
large low-rise apartment building a few blocks north of Rochdale. Laurie Peters and her
boyfriend lived there as well as Dave Lawrence, who often was babysitter for True. Syd had
a lot of Rochdalian visitors on Madison and he was an excellent host. By the 1980s he had
moved to Kensington Market and then apparently to B.C. Syd used to visit me when I lived
on Sussex Avenue on the U of T campus and could see Rochdale from my living room

window. I had a roof deck and Syd sunbathed in the nude there. He stapled aluminum foil to
one of my fence walls to get extra sun.
When I met Laurie Peters where she lived with her boyfriend I noticed a very large canvas
she was working on titled "Pender Island", depicting two people at a campsite in the woods
on Pender Island in British Columbia's Gulf Islands. I bought the unfinished oil and acrylic
painting off Laurie, and when it was completed hung it over the mantlepiece in my bedroom-the same antique mantlepiece that once decorated the 15th-Floor Commune lounge. Laurie
had suggested that I frame it with old barn wood, but I left it unframed so it looked like a
mural.
Unfortunately, Laurie had painted a fish being cooked over the camp fire and this was
unacceptable for a strict vegetarian. Laurie paid a visit one day and quickly painted out the
fish. She took photos of the painting before and after the change. Her good-quality camera
and expertise suggested she took photos of all her work, including her murals in Rochdale. I
vaguely recall she told me that she received permission to enter Rochdale to photograph her
lobby murals, and had done so or was going to. She was quite business-like for an artist,
intelligent, articulate, sincere, honest, easy to get along with, and attractive. Unlike most
Rochdalians she did not gossip or mention others unless it was relevant. The only time she
was agitated was when I mentioned Bob Allen. She said, "No! Don't ask Bob Allen. He's the
one who destroyed my murals in the second floor Lounge. They were better than what I
painted in the lobby."
When the 15th-Floor Commune was evicted on May 15, 1975 I moved back to the large
house in the Annex where I was living before I moved into Rochdale for the fourth time in
1973. The house was owned by my very best friend's family and I definitely had an easy time
settling into a new home compared to most Rochdalians. But I was still very much shattered
by the long, drawn-out fight against the eviction process. I knew that Rochdale, for all its
flaws, was the last bastion of the 1960s bohemian movement and its death was a historically
important disaster. Let's face it, nothing significant has happened since. Cindy Lei chose not
to stick around, and what did Cindy miss? Disco? Reagan and Thatcher fascism? Global
warming? I don't approve of what Cindy did, but her timing was impeccable.
For a couple of years after the building closed there were occasional parties with mostly
Rochdalians. The first was the wake for Cindy Lei in 1975 at 243 Albany Avenue. Police
informer Alex MacDonald was famous for his large parties and continued to have them at his
house in the St. Clair Avenue and Vaughn Road area.

On Monday, November 24, 1975 there was a meeting in the evening at the hall of St. Thomas
Anglican Church on Huron Street, just south of the vacant Rochdale College building. The
purpose of the meeting was to determine the future of the building. About 200 attended,
mostly Rochdalians. On the stage was a panel of officials from CMHC, the Toronto Housing
Department, Metro Toronto Housing, and so on. Judy Merril was in the audience but I didn't
recognize her in conservative clothing. A few Rochdalians were swearing and I asked them
to stop because of the lady present. One of them said, "That's Judy Merril." I looked at her
and we smiled at each other. The highlight of the evening was during the question period.
King Bill stepped up to the microphone and launched a blistering attack on Frank Smith from
CMHC. Bill accused him of initially supporting Rochdale College with an unworkable
mortgage, then betraying the building, destroying the college, and then appearing innocently
afterwards at the meeting to turn Rochdale into something else. "You're the same guy," Bill
kept repeating. It was a great speech, but did nothing to re-open Rochdale College.
However, Bill impressed me and everybody present with his first-rate oratory. He earned the

title President of Rochdale College that night.

Ten days after the meeting in the church was the annual Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball
at an old community centre near Bloor and Yonge Streets.On Mrspeche Day, Thursday,
December 4, 1975 the Ball went ahead as planned, hosted by former members of the 15thFloor Commune. I was one of the main organizers, as I was in Rochdale. It was very wellattended, with hundreds of guests, many of whom traveled long distances to celebrate this
major reunion of Rochdalians. The old hall was enormous with very high ceilings, and large
tables were loaded with refreshments. There was a festive, joyous atmosphere and many of
the guests wore great costumes. Mine was that of an Elizabethan fop, with a frilly lace shirt,
velvet jacket, and tights. Bob Allen did a double-take when he saw me enter the hall kitchen.
He wasn't wearing a costume, of course. Chuck Cassity came down the stairs in an
elaborate 19th-century Admiral's costume. A police officer saw him and said in amazement,
"Holy shit!". It was good to see old friends and neighbours. Unfortunately, some asshole
dosed the punch with "bad acid", which ruined the occasion for quite a few.
One evening in late 1975 Nickie Ashley, Chuck Cassity, Jane Barnett and I went to see the
film The Harder They Come at the Macleod Auditorium in the U of T's Medical Sciences
Building. We were waiting outside in the lobby area and Jane and I were smoking a joint.
An officious young lady came up to us and asked us, "Is that marijuana you are smoking?"
"Yes it is", I replied, "Would you like a toke?" She said, "No. Can you take it outside
please? It's not allowed in here." We went outside then soon joined Nickie and Chuck to
watch the movie. They declined to smoke with us and seemed to think we were maybe
dangerous or something.
As time passed distances grew between most Rochdalians. For some, such as police informer
Mike Randell, it was immediate. As soon as he moved out of the building he turned into a
bitter Rochdale-hating Yuppie. The second-last time I saw him was with a group of other
sickening Yuppies at 243 Albany Avenue. It was "The House of Swine" where the top
Rochdale elite lived: Jay Boldizsar, Patti Chilton, Michael McLachlan, Kevin O'Leary, Bill
Granger, Karen Johnston, Walter Dmytrenko and others. Mike was leaving Toronto and
bitching about everybody in Rochdale. For example, he said Frank McGarret, his friend and
neighbour in the 15th-Floor Commune, only became a member of the college as a legal way
to avoid paying his debts. That was bullshit. Then Mike made the mistake of attacking me. I
call it a mistake because I'm writing about the motherfucker right now, aren't I? Mike asked
me when I lost my virginity and how often I masturbated. I was appalled! The only answer I
gave was that it was socially unacceptable to question me about my private life, and to back
off. But since I was on his territory he persisted and got a response to a question about my
first sexual experience. Mike made an extremely rude comment about it, and then basically
wrote me off as trash and a loser. The motherfucking swine deliberately insulted and
humiliated me in front of a dozen mostly strangers.
He did not mince words, so I will not. Mike was an arrogant, overbearing motherfucking
asshole. I hate the swine. He was a right-wing bourgeois phony. The last time I saw him
was in the 1980s. He had left Toronto in 1975 but we saw each other in a Bloor Street
bookstore near Rochdale. Mike looked the same in his typically drab and mousy clothes. I
looked great with my long hair, million-dollar blue-tinted shades, and M65 vintage parka
with a wolf fur hood. Mike recognized me immediately, but I ignored him and quickly left
the store. Drop dead, Mike!

Not long after the insulting interrogation by Mike Randell, Kevin O'Leary became politically
ambitious and ran for school trustee in the area. Walter Dmytrenko talked me into delivering
his campaign literature door to door and I attended a meeting on Albany Avenue. John Panter
was there. I told him I saw him demonstrating martial arts on a TV show. He replied,
"Which one?" A young woman told Kevin that he mumbled and talked too fast. Everybody
connected with the campaign was Rochdalian, yet no mention of Rochdale was made in the
pamphlets, only Kevin's Mickey Mouse academic credentials. It was completely phony. At
one point I burst out laughing because the entire scenario was ridiculous. Kevin O'Leary was
the most parasitic egomaniac in Rochdale history and he wasted my time and energy on his
hopeless political aspirations.
The house at 243 Albany Avenue was a place to be avoided. Except for Cindy Lei's wake
held there, all my experiences were entirely negative. I dropped by once and was chatting
with Walter Dmytrenko at the kitchen table, and he began criticizing me for not bringing
dope for him to smoke. It was like a Little Miss Manners Charm School lecture on social
etiquette. The fact was I did not smoke anything, and I did not visit to smoke dope. To top it
all off, Walter insulted me by suggesting my behavior could be improved by taking Bvitamins. Fuck off, Walter! With his extreme nose problem and other faults, he had no right
to criticize anyone about anything.
Jay Boldizsar the police informer was also unbearable. When I visited one day he started
criticizing and insulting me about the Rochdale College Alumni office I had started up. "It's
not Rochdale, so why are you calling it Rochdale?" he asked me. He was arrogant and angry
on his territory, so it was not possible to put the motherfucker in his proper place. I always
considered Jay Boldizsar to be a boring nerd and creep who imagined he was "hip" for living
in Rochdale College. He was just a tedious and bossy accountant, despite his reputation for
integrity. I had ten times more integrity than Jay.
At 138 Albany Avenue lived Margot Cross, Heather MacFarlane, Cindy Lei, George Vande
Bunte, Cathy/Kate/Catherine, Bob Allen, and Peter Young. We got along fine at first, since
we had lived together in the 15th-Floor Commune, but as time passed I was only compatible
with Peter. The others were far too bourgeois and boring for me. They actually had a
Tupperware Party one night! At this event Simon Liston wanted the chair I was sitting on but
I wouldn't allow it. So he sat on my lap. I started caressing his thighs and breathing heavily
in his ear. He got the message fast and jumped out of my lap in horror. It was the highlight
of the evening, because the others behaved like conservative suburbanites.
Margot Cross was the worst. She was always a bitch and probably just needed a good fuck.
However, we always got along very well in Rochdale. We were neighbours, shared the same
refrigerator, and were friends. When the building closed and time passed, she became more
distant and more hostile. She opened a book store called "Community Book Store" that was
located about 15 miles from her home. Community? Most of her books she bought at yard
sales and over a dozen times I met her at the sales. She was hostile and so was I. The way
she haggled to get a good deal on books was horrible. "That's not a yard-sale price," she
would say.
Once I mentioned at a sale that she was a book dealer, and then she was told to leave.
Previously I told her I did not approve of what she was doing, but she didn't care. I believe
she was trying to be sleazy, but she was just cheap. She closed the 15th-Floor Commune
bank account that was in both our names without consulting me. The account was still

needed for the Embassy Balls she never attended. So I wrote her a letter complaining about
her behaviour, and I told her what I thought about her. She did not belong in Rochdale
because she was too bourgeois, arrogant, and an intellectual snob.
Ian Argue, Nicky Morrison, and Brendan Donaghy lived in a house on Brunswick Avenue,
Jake and Mary Stephens lived in an apartment on Bloor Street West near the Brunswick
House Pub, and Nickie Ashley and Sammy lived in a large house in Riverdale with a friend.
Nickie and I visited each other. Art Jacobs shared an apartment in the Annex with a sleazy
creep named Jerry who had a bad influence on Art. They lived on the first-floor of 192
Lowther Avenue in a house at the corner of Brunswick. Walter Dmytrenko and his fiance
had an apartment by Christie Pits when Walter left 243 Albany Avenue. Most Rochdalians I
only saw when I delivered Tuesdailies. With hindsight I realize that I hardly knew many
Rochdalians at all, but because of the hick-town gossip I knew all about them or thought I
did.
Rochdale postman Sam Field lived in an apartment in the Dupont and Bathurst area with his
15th-Floor Commune neighbour Bob Johnson. Both were very mellow and laid-back, and
these qualities were a religion for Bob, the Tommy Chong-clone. Life seemed to be a
"Cheech and Chong" movie for him. When I visited one day they were watching a silly
costume show on TV. I made a disparaging comment about it, and Bob defended it by
comparing it to the Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Balls. He never forgave me for not being
mellow and laid-back all the time. Eventually Sam moved into a converted warehouse for
artists close to the waterfront, and Bob hit the road in a Volkswagen van with Zan Willits. In
the summer of 1975 I visited the Rochdale Farm in my Volkswagen camper van. Bob and
Zan were also visiting at that time. We said "Hello" but not much else, because Bob and Zan
kept to themselves. It was good to see Johnny Potter again, but I didn't care much for the
others and never liked the farm. What it lacked was a lake. I don't like the countryside, and
can't stand it if there's no lake.
Charlie Taylor had a bookstore on Harbord Street near Spadina Avenue, and I frequently met
Jim Newell at a building where I worked as a lifeguard/pool manager. Jim attended Christian
meetings. In 1978 I met Dennis Lee when he was Writer-in-Residence at the U of T. For an
hour we talked about my vegetarian biography book and also Rochdale. His main point was
he did not anticipate the hippies, street people, crashers, and speed freaks moving into the
building. For four years I was the projectionist at the U of T Hart House. One day Mary
Gardiner attended a screening of an episode of Kenneth Clark's Civilisation series. We talked
briefly. I asked her if she was still painting, and she replied, "I don't have a studio right
now." Soon after I noticed Mary working at the main information counter of Robarts Library
for a couple of months.
Judy Keeler lived closer to Rochdale than anyone, at number 2 Washington Avenue in a
house owned by the U of T. Her house was right next to Dog Shit Park, officially known as
Huron-Washington Parkette. She lived on the top floor. For 11 years I lived one block south
at 41 Sussex Avenue, across the street from where Ed Apt once lived at 30 Sussex. I talked
with Judy a few times. She was conventional and smug, and told me about her visit to New
Orleans for the Mardi Gras. Travel she considered an important part of her education. But
she was a bourgeois philistine and therefore incapable of travel. Judy could only be a tourist.
On December 5, 1976 I phoned her, because I thought she was at the Morgravia-Boulognia
Embassy Ball the previous evening wearing a costume with angel wings. But she didn't
attend. That's why I didn't know her in Rochdale, because she didn't go to meetings and

parties. Judy was American "filler" in Rochdale, with zero involvement in the building and
college. Almost nobody knew her. Now she is on Facebook without a face bragging about
her self-important bullshit and fantasies about Yorkville Village and Rochdale College. She
was and is completely bourgeois and did not belong in Rochdale, and it is fucking bullshit for
Little Miss Manners to claim she grew up in Yorkville Village. She told me she was an
American, so how could it possibly be true? Parents did not allow their children to visit
Yorkvillle. She is a fucking bullshitter, a bourgeois observer at best.
This criticism is very harsh, but Judy Keeler bullshitted her way into a "non-fiction" book
about Rochdale where she was quoted extensively. I cannot allow her lies to be treated as
history. Her "contribution" is bullshit. She was chosen for the book because she had a
"respectable" job as a "publicist" (i.e. professional bullshitter) which should have disqualified
her, but the authors were despicable ignorant assholes with no integrity as writers. Judy
Keeler was not a Rochdalian and had absolutely no involvement in Yorkville Village.
Her good friend "Animal Dick" Barnes lived in the area somewhere and I occasionally saw
him. He was far too old to live in a hippie envirornement with its "never trust anyone older
than 30" ethos. As he got older he used a cane. One day I met him on Spadina Avenue near
Bloor and he was extremely rude to me. Rochdalians were often like that to prove they were
Rochdalians. Animal Dick called me a "flunky" when I mentioned I would be working at a
rock concert that evening. What he didn't know was I was on my way to my office at Bloor
and Spadina where I owned and managed a live music talent agency. In contrast to that, I
met Skye in a train on the eastbound Bloor subway. We had a friendly chat and I truly
enjoyed being with the only person I considered to be an authentic hippie in Rochdale.
I visited lawyer Michael G. McLachlan in 1976 at his office to sign a guarantor declaration to
renew my passport. At the time only lawyers and other professionals were eligible guarantors
in Canacaca. Michael had been a criminal trial lawyer since 1974, and he was the 15th-Floor
Commune's lawyer, one of his first clients. He was conveniently living in the West wing of
the 15th-floor in Rochdale. Michael was friendly and charming with me and cheerfully
signed my passport application.
In Toronto the main hang-out for Rochdalians was Kensington Market. As far as I know it
still is, and it still looks the same as it did 40 or 50 years ago. Kensington Market is the
phoniest place in Toronto. Until fairly recently the entire market was owned by one woman!
Every store has its basement filled with pesticides of all types. It's not a healthy place, and its
"old world charm" looks like a dilapidated slum clearance project to me. I've always hated
the place. It appeals to phonies, which accounts for the sleazy Rochdalians hanging out there
and still selling drugs. However, for years after Rochdale closed it was by far the best place
to meet Rochdalians. Some like Marcia Whitford, Francisco Velez, and Army from Rochdale
Security were there every day, but others dropped by once in a while. I sat at a table with
Susan Rogers at a cafe, and she told me she had traveled a lot as a "dancer". She was doing
some kind of telephone work from her home, had changed considerably and was not at all
friendly. Susan was much too selfish and self-centred for me. Many people are, but it was
always too obvious with her. Maybe she thought it was normal or a virtue.
The few times I visited Amadeus, the most popular restaurant in the market, I was usually
treated terribly by all the Rochdalians. Marcia Whitford threatened me with death after she
insulted me profusely. Her drug dealing girlfriend I did not know at all asked me angrily,
"What's wrong with you?" I very loudly replied, "Nothing is wrong with me. But everybody

here knows you're a criminal drug dealer, so shut the fuck up or you're going to prison. Do I
make myself clear, shithead?" Everyone at the outdoor patio looked at her, and she got up
and quickly left. Then I said to Marcia, "We both know why you threatened me with death.
That's a very serious crime, so I suggest you fuck off and return to your motherfucking USA
while you still can."
Over the years I ran into quite a few Rochdalians while out walking. Usually it was in the
Spadina and College area for some reason. I met Kim Foikus, and he told me he had just
talked with Arnie, whoever that was. Mike Donaghy and I crossed paths while crossing the
intersection and had a brief chat. Quite a few times I met Dirty Dan McCue and he always
gave me a big friendly bear hug. Patsy Hutchings came out of Grossman's Tavern with Susan
Rogers one night as I was entering, but Susan was in a rush to go somewhere. Usually I
traveled by bicycle and often noticed people such as Donny Parker, Jurgen Wahler, Dawn
Golden, Skye, and many others. Mary Stephens Jr. (Mad Mary) saw me on my bike, but I did
not notice her. When she later asked why I ignored her, I explained that I was not a
pedestrian, but a cyclist with my eyes on the dangerous road to prevent being hit by a car.
When the building closed Reg Hartt screened his films at the Palmerston Library, Bathurst
Street Church, the Spadina Hotel, Sneaky Dee's, Queen Street West, and Mirvish Village.
Reg wrote an imcomprehensible autobiographical pamphlet titled "The Night They Raided
Rochdale College".
What surprised me most when the building closed was how completely isolated Rochdalians
were. Every one of them compared everything to Rochdale. Brian Grieveson spent much of
his time drinking beer at a Royal Canadian Legion Hall close to his country cottage in rural
Ontario. He told me, "It's just like Rochdale. Bob Naismith said the same thing." I thought
he was crazy because the Canadian Legion has a membership mostly of former military,
R.C.M.P, provincial and municipal police. I met Brian at the Hall because he invited me, and
he assaulted me there for no reason. Actually the reason was Grieveson had become a
genuine redneck from spending all his time with rednecks. Good-bye Brian! You are a
redneck druggie alcoholic and your brain is fried. In 1973 Grieveson's neighbour Art Jacobs
told me, "Brian is so burned out."
Bob Allen became a janitor at Neill-Wycik College. I was a youth worker there in the
summer of 1980 and saw Bob every day. He said, "Neill-Wycik feels like Rochdale." And it
certainly did. One of the teenagers in my care broke a window. Bob told me the glass
windows in Neill-Wycik were sub-standard, but the local M.P. used his influence to have
them approved. When Neill-Wycik officials complained about the broken window, I told
them to fuck off because their windows were sub-standard. If they did not fuck off I would
complain to government officials and the media for jeopardizing the lives of those in my
care. Bob met me on an elevator and snarled, "Babysitter!" I said to the "ugly American"
motherfucker, "We all can't be janitors, Bob. Fuck off or I'll have you deported." Bob
slandered me at Neill-Wycik, and the staff often said nasty things about me they made sure I
could hear. I told one of them, "You don't even know me, stranger, so keep your mouth shut
or I'll have you fired." They knew my boss was the Government of Ontario, so they stopped
their harassment.
Around this time Doug Hutchings was living in Neill-Wycik and I visited him quite a few
times. The building was set up as a summer hotel then, and there weren't many people there.
Doug and I talked about the same things we talked about in Rochdale, such as travel, cultural

and racial differences, and so on. He was good friends with Dr. Bob Call and I met him a few
times there. Bob was a psychiatrist like Dave Lawrence. The difference was Dave sucked
and Bob did not. Doug told me his good friend Frank McGarret spent most of his time in
Mexico. Frank was inspired by my travel stories, and was surprised I did not travel when
Rochdale was closed. Doug had a stable Social Worker job and was a good tenant at NeillWycik. However, he was evicted and believed it was caused by Bob Allen and/or Alex
MacDonald. It was probably Bob Allen.
A meeting to plan the 1976 Embassy Ball was held in November of that year at 138 Albany.
About a dozen former members of the 15th-Floor Commune attended. Peter Young
suggested that the Ball be held at 21 Baldwin Street, the Rochdale Office I had set up. I told
Peter it was "out of the question". But I didn't give the reasons, such as it was too small, the
floors would cave in because of the weight, and so on. Then I suggested the Toronto Islands.
Peter said, "That's out of the question." We decided to hold the event at University
Settlement House in Grange Park by the Art Gallery of Ontario. I took care of the invitations
and also provided live music for free because I owned and managed a large music talent
agency on Bloor Street. Bill Granger rented the Hall, and others arranged for refreshments.
On December 4, 1976 the annual Morgravia-Boulognia Embassy Ball was held at University
Settlement House, located in a park near the Art Gallery of Ontario. It was a great success
with hundreds of costumed Rochdalians in attendance. At first there was a squabble among
the three rock bands for which of the three stages to use. Bill Granger, one of the main
organizers, almost ruined everything during the squabble among the bands. Because of his
interference, all musicians were going to leave--which would have pleased Bill Granger very
much. He wanted me to fail. I told Bill to butt out, then quickly resolved the dispute with my
bands.
First to perform was a hard rock cover band named Overdrive that sounded very much like
Led Zeppelin and the singer was somewhat nervous. Their songs included "Whole Lotta
Love" and "Rock and Roll". Overdrive needed a younger audience. Greystone Willow were
the headliners and a good Chicago tribute band that played two sets. Their horn section and
slick performance added a touch of class to the Ball. The band played Chicago hit songs such
as "Beginnings", "25 or 6 to 4", "Saturday in the Park", "Does Anybody Really Know What
Time It Is?", and other great tunes familiar to everyone. I danced with Pam Berton and she
was stiff, probably not accustomed to dancing the rock and roll jitterbug.
Rapid Tears were the hit of the evening with the great Beatles songs they played to
perfection. They sounded just like the Fab Four. When they started their set with "I Saw Her
Standing There" the place exploded with excitement and everybody got up to dance,
including King James I of Rochdale. It was amazing! The only time I witnessed anything
similar was on March 26, 1970 at The Toronto Rock Festival when the legendary MC5
started playing and 10,000 kids rushed the stage. Rapid Tears next played "You Can't Do
That". They were not dressed like the Beatles, though, and the bass player wore a skeleton
costume.
Alex MacDonald was so thrilled with Rapid Tears that he came over to me and said he
wanted them to play at his party. The egomaniac motherfucker! He couldn't even enjoy
himself at the Ball without thinking of himself and his ambition. I told him I was their
manager, and they did not perform at amateur house parties. Rapid Tears played hit Beatles
songs for about an hour, and their performance was definitely the most joyous moment in

Embassy Ball history. There was a short intermission and Greystone Willow ended the
musical portion of the evening with their second set. Simon Liston and some other
Rochdalians who attended referred to this Ball as John Sullivan's Rock Concert, because they
were jealous and resentful that I could pull it off since I was a rock band manager and agent.
It was a mistake to get involved with amateurs.
At 41 Sussex Avenue I continued to socialize with a few former Rochdalians for a number of
years, primarily Dr. David Lawrence and also Jim Washington, who lived around the corner
from me on Spadina Avenue. He worked as a jet-engine mechanic and pilot, married an
Asian lady and they had a child. We had very casual and comfortable conversations. With
Dave the human parrot conversation was always too intellectual and scholarly, almost
pretentious. As his formal education continued he became increasingly bourgeois and
unbearable. Dave married his obnoxious childhood sweetheart from his hick town of
Grimsby and they had a daughter. He was a thing, a doctor who was perpetually "giving up
smoking". Although he was an excellent listener, when he started criticizing me for not
being bourgeois, he was no longer welcome in my home or my life. Probably he thought he
was growing up, but he was just an insufferable asshole. Eventually he betrayed me, which
allows me to call him an asshole and worse with impunity and a clear conscience.
Down the street near Huron I often saw Jane Barnett's younger sister, who looked like her
identical twin. She was friendly and told me "It runs in the family" regarding her
resemblance to Jane. There was a child daycare centre in one of the houses and I'm not sure
if Jane's sister lived there, worked in the centre, or both. We often talked, but I never asked
her personal questions. She told me Jane had left Toorotten. Then one day I saw Jane there,
and asked her if she was Jane or her sister. Jane laughed. She was polite and courteous, but
not exactly friendly, and we talked for a while. I didn't learn anything, except that she and
Ceildh were well and doing fine. The overall impression I had was Jane considered Rochdale
to be something in the distant past, she was not sentimental about it, and her unenthusiastic
treatment of me was nothing personal.
Dawn Golden, who lived across the hall from me in the 15th-Floor Commune, lived a few
doors away and we visited each other frequently. She was working as a librarian so she could
be stable, but tended to be spaced-out and forgetful. The last time I saw her she couldn't
remember my name. John Musgrave and Steve, both boyfriends of Coco Cromwell, visited
me. However, Coco did not, although I visited her a few times. Brian Grieveson, Margot
Cross, Cathy Johnson, Mary Stephens, Peyton Brien, Syd Stern and other Rochdalians visited
me on Sussex. One guy from Rochdale was a violent paranoid schizophrenic on medication
who criticized my behaviour in my own home, ripped me off, and eventually stalked me.
Fortunately I can't remember his name.
Most other Rochdalians all behaved the same with me. They offered me their phony
friendship, became obnoxious, then ripped me off or tried to. For some reason they had to
be obnoxious to prove they were Rochdalians. A typical example was Simon Liston. I had
not seen him for several years and I was cycling north on St. George Street. Simon was
cycling behind and shouted to me. Was it "Hello"? No. He said, "Your rear wheel is out of
true." He said it several times, but I just ignored the asshole.
Nonetheless, I continued to be the editor of the Tuesdaily. I cycled around Toorotten to
various Rochdalian houses and delivered the newsletters and also accepted contributions for
the next issue. Because of my Tuesdaily "job" and continuing interest in Rochdale, I was

forced to work with King Bill. Over the years I had hundreds of personal encounters with
Bill, and they were without exception always unpleasant. King Bill disrespected me and I
had nothing but contempt for him. The difference was Bill did things to harm me, including
slanderous gossip, whereas I like most people merely considered King Bill to be a crazy
fascist. Jane Barnett, Art Jacobs, Margot Cross, Marcia Whitford, and countless others hated
King Bill. He was crowned "President" of the non-existent Rochdale College at the so-called
last General Meeting on the roof. There was no election, no council, and no college. King
Bill was not a Canadian citizen. Legally he was a foreign tourist at best. The "ugly
American" always deliberately said and did things to annoy me and put me down.
Some mistakenly believe that King Bill had a Presidential "office" just south of the Rochdale
building on Huron Street. This is entirely untrue. Some filing cabinets, library shelves and
Rochdale documents were stored in the basement of 422 Huron Street but there was no
office. King Bill crashed in the office of a friend on Bedford Road. The source of the
misinformation regarding the non-existent Rochdale Office on Huron comes from the
American tourists who left Toorotten and never returned. What the fuck do they know about
it? I was born in Toronto, my parents were born in Toronto, and three of my grandparents
were born in Toorotten. When the building closed I continued to live nearby, I was the editor
of the Tuesdaily and I saw King Bill on a daily basis. There was no fucking Rochdale Office
on Huron. Get it? Stop the bullshit and fabrications. The Yankee tourists in Rochdale never
understood the place, and in their current senility make up ridiculous lies about its history. I
didn't know any of them in Rochdale because of their insignificance, yet now they imagine
they were extremely important to the college. The Yankees finally went home, and they
should shut the fuck up about things they know nothing about.
King Bill was a cowardly boss and swine, the son of an American educator and author of a
very profitable text book. He was an egomaniac with zero leadership potential because in
times of crisis he would panic and run away. Generally he talked at people, and it was
usually impossible to get a word in. His face would look vacant with far away eyes as he
babbled on and on and on about the latest nonsense he had read or heard about. It would be
exaggerated out of proportion like a Hollywood epic. Sometimes he would rant on and on
about the Greenies or the Prime Minister of Canacaca being the Anti-Christ. Bill told me a
dozen times that Pierre Trudeau routinely fucked each and every one of his cabinet ministers
in the ass every day.
Many times King Bill told (not asked) me not to repeat what he told me. This amused me
immensely. Nobody muzzles me. King Bill once said, "I heard that Jay Boldizsar was
selling cocaine. Don't mention this to anyone or it will get back to me." Why would I care?
Cocaine was an evictable offence and I was certain that Jay would not do such a thing. He
was not an asshole like King Bill, a malicious gossip monger with shit for brains.
King Bill became a Jesus Freak after accidentally taking 10,000 hits of Fergie's LSD. His
bizarre religious beliefs were absolutely insane, and he studied things like the Urantia"
book. He did not believe Roman Catholics are Christians. Bill, me, and for a while Bob
Allen attended meetings of the Rochdale Community Forum, a community group formed by
the Spadina-Bloor Inter-Church Council consisting of eight local churches and quite a few
community groups. It was created to ensure that community input would determine the
future use of the Rochdale College building, and had sponsored the meeting at St. Thomas
Church on November 24, 1975. The Forum was basically a waste of time. At one meeting
when an elderly lady mentioned that she had complained to the police about noise from

Rochdale, King Bill said to her, "Thanks a lot. Thanks a fucking lot, lady!" This was typical
of his diplomacy and leadership skills.
In the 1960s Baldwin Street was a youth movement centre, primarily the central location for
draft dodgers from the Vietnam War in Toronto. There were more draft dodgers in Rochdale
actually, and Baldwin Street was no longer relevant by the time Rochdale was closed. In
early 1976 at 19 Baldwin there was a run-down semi-detached slum house where some
former Rochdalians lived. Doug Hutchings, David Lawrence, and an older woman from the
14th-Floor Commune lived on the first floor. The older woman was quite witty dealing with
Doug's fascination with racial differences. When he mentioned that blacks are better than
whites at sex, she replied, "Why, do they do it differently?" Marcia Whitford, Peyton Brien,
and their four-year old son Kareem lived upstairs. David was in very rough shape, beyond
psychotic, a complete basket case. After he was the last person evicted from Rochdale, jilted
once again by Candy Kane, he was arrested for trafficking in narcotics. The young man
couldn't handle all the stress and fell apart. Most of his luxuriant long black hair had fallen
out, and he spent most of his time flaked out on his bed, seemingly semi-comatose.
The adjoining building at 21 Baldwin was vacant and the rent was cheap. I decided to rent it
for the Rochdale College Alumni Office. I signed a lease with its Chinese owner and the
office soon opened. King Bill made arrangements for a telephone to be installed. The
Rochdale College filing cabinets, library shelves and documents were moved in from the
basement of 422 Huron Street. Bill thought it was important to allow crashers, but I would
not allow it. On the phone sitting at his desk I overheard him say to Nickie Ashley, "I just
can't work with John." In fact, King Bill couldn't work with anyone, and just couldn't bear
the stress of leadership, so he ripped off $100 from me and returned to the USA. Good
riddance! He was an incompetent destructive failure, an irresponsible fascist who left me to
run the office, something I did not have the time, interest, or ability to do.
I had rented 21 Baldwin for King Bill to run, but now I was in charge. The only other
suitable Rochdalian interested in keeping Rochdale alive was Brian Grieveson, and he
opened up the "Rochdale" underground newspaper office on the second floor. I was Assistant
Editor. Brian was a druggie alcoholic who imagined he was a hippie. The newspaper was
subsidized by Syd Stern, Judy Keeler donated $50, and I spent an equal amount on
photographic work. To pay the rent I organized a great party in April 1976. The R&B band
Blue Nash played great music for over 100 people, over 20 songs. They included classics
such as "St. James Infirmary" and the original "Blue Jay Blues". Nickie Ashley and John
Panter encouraged patrons to donate at the front door, while Syd Stern and Fergie played high
stakes poker in the back room. Meanwhile Bob Allen and I examined the basement and were
concerned that the floor above was visibly bouncing as the people danced. The event made
more than enough money to pay the rent and expenses, and the first issue of "Rochdale" was
printed and distributed to stores throughout Toronto.

It pained me that I was forced into a leadership position by King Bill's untimely departure. I
actually heard people talking about me being in charge, which annoyed me greatly because I
do not believe in the concept of leadership. At one meeting Candy Kane and others looked to
me for leadership and answers, but I had no answers. Movies were shown at 21 Baldwin and
it was becoming a great Rochdale Alumni meeting place. Doug Hutchings opened up a
booze-can next door, and David Lawrence and Peyton moved out. Dave moved above the
Ragnarokr leather shop at 33 Baldwin a few doors away, then he moved to Kensington
Market. Peyton was replaced by John-John as Marcia's new lover. Kareem started calling
me John-John.
At 21 Baldwin there was a problem with crashers. It was OK for Brian Grieveson to live
there, since he was the newspaper editor and co-signed the lease, but anyone else living there
would destroy the office and turn it into their home, nothing else. Unfortunately, King Bill

and Syd Stern had Fergie move into the office with his girlfriend Sandra Littler. One day
while I was working at the desk in the Rochdale newspaper office, Fergie in the nude and
high on cocaine stormed in and began insulting me obscenely. He assaulted me by smashing
my head against the window repeatedly. I left the building and did not return for over a
week, by which time Syd Stern had ordered Fergie to vacate the building.
To pay the next month's rent I organized another party which featured an amateur rock band
who brought along their entourage of teenage fans and groupies. One of their tunes was
Willie Dixon's "Little Red Rooster", which they claimed they had written. JoJo criticized me
for the young age of their fans by saying "Rochdalians are sure young these days". I said,
"They're older than your children," and told her I had no control over who attended. They
were fans of the band. Outside was Martin Heath's Cinemobile showing movies on the street,
and Martin was dressed in a Shakespearean stage costume with frills and tights. The band
had hired a U-Haul trailer to transport their musical equipment, and when they left Ian Argue
was with a crowd outside and yelled out "U-Haul?!" There were fewer patrons and the party
was less successful, but it still paid the rent.
Nearly every Rochdalian in Toronto dropped by the Office, including Jack the Bear, Donny
Parker, Ruth King, Peter Young, Mary Stephens, Walt Huston, Reg Hartt, and Rebel. The
only non-Rochdalians there were journalist Bill Coulthard and a skinny very tall street kid
named Stretch. One day former Rochdale president Peter Turner dropped by. Brian and I
showed him the newspaper operation and explained the Rochdale Office downstairs. He
listened attentively, but all the while a star-struck groupie from next door was admiring him.
Eventually they began talking, and after an hour in the office Peter left with the groupie.
Brian Grieveson and I put out another Rochdale newspaper. However, it was becoming
increasingly difficult for me to cope with all the problems of the paper and the Rochdale
Office. Mostly it was sleazy asshole visitors who made it unpleasant and created work to do.
For example, one morning I arrived to see Dirty Dan McCue and Charlie Taylor very drunk
and still drinking hard liquor in the office. Charlie was in a very foul mood and told me,
"Why don't you get the fuck out of here? Go on! Just get the fuck out of here!" He did not
seem to realize that I had created the office, the building was leased in my name, and in fact
Charlie was trespassing on my territory.
Jay Boldizsar and Kevin O'Leary visited and looked through the old Rochdale filing cabinets
and documents with amused interest. Most of the time I was researching my vegetarian
biography book, and I had no idea who was visiting the Alumni Office. The office seemed to
be spiraling out of control. Kevin O'Leary told me 21 Baldwin was following the same
downhill pattern of Rochdale College. I was fed up with the entire project and left it forever
one day, with Candy Kane yelling after me, "Et tu, Brute?". She mispronounced it, speaking
it like it was French.
Candy Kane's basic problem was she cut off her long beautiful hair. In early 1975 she left
Dave Lawrence once again and moved out of the building to live with a straight looking
advertising creep. Candy was always "scheming", and her typically idiotic idea was to
convince this outsider who knew and cared nothing about Rochdale to create an advertising
campaign to save Rochdale. After a few weeks she returned to Rochdale with her long
luxuriant hair cut off. She looked horrible. Previously she was beautiful, but now she
seemed ordinary at best. I couldn't stand to look at her, and probably Dave Lawrence felt the
same way. Dave and I talked about everything, but not Candy. He told me some things about

her, but I knew she was a crazy teeny-bopper and didn't want to know the details. Brian
Grieveson drove me somewhere during the time I used the Rochdale Office, and Candy was
there. I ignored her, and she came up to me, grabbed me by both shoulders and shook me
violently. This was typical sleazy Rochdale confrontation and I hated her. I said nothing to
her then, and I never spoke to her again.
Brian Grieveson was then in charge of 21 Baldwin. He published about eight issues of the
"Rochdale" newspaper and was better dealing with visitors than I was. With hindsight I think
I should have made it clear to King Bill that the office was his, he was in charge, it was OK
for him to crash there, and the lease could be transferred to him. I also believe that the
underground newspaper would have been more successful with the name I wanted:
"Tuesdaily". It was Syd Stern who insisted it be called "Rochdale" and he helped subsidize
it. Syd told me he didn't like the layout of the paper and some other criticisms, but I never
mentioned anything to Brian. It was best to remain silent because if I told Brian, then Syd
would find out and they would both be angry at me. Silence is the best insurance policy, and
this nonfiction writer has suffered much for telling the truth. Bob Hope said people don't
want to hear the truth. G. B. Shaw said, "The man who always tells the truth will surely be
hanged."
When I severed myself from the Rochdale Alumni Office, I ran into Walter Dmytrenko on
Spadina Avenue near College Street. I mentioned I would never visit the Rochdale Office
again, and he said the same thing. Walter had visited it once and then went to the booze can
next door at 19 Baldwin. There he witnessed Doug Hutchings on the floor, with Billy Littler
standing over him and kicking him in the face. Eventually several people corroborated this
vicious assault, including Doug Hutchings. His nose was broken and never looked the same.
Recently I asked Walter for details of what he witnessed, but he denied everything! He said
he never visited the office ever, Billy Littler did not assault anyone ever, and Walter had only
visited the non-existent "Rochdale Office" on Huron Street. Bullshit! Or maybe he just has a
very bad memory. It's no problem for me, because I just write the truth and ignore what is
not.
Soon after this I lived in a so-called co-op house in the Dupont and Davenport area for half a
year. About eight people moved into the house, including five Rochdalians: me, Dirty Dan
McCue, Mike Sandberg, Ruth King, Beverly Ernenbacker, and also two women and a young
man not from Rochdale. Dirty Dan was on the wagon and he was emotionally flat. It was
great to hear him tell the history of Rochdale College from his point of view and meet his
many Rochdalian visitors. The other members' idea of a co-op was to have meetings in my
absence and decide what work I would do. It was more work than the Rochdale Office. They
treated me like the landlord. Mike Sandberg removed all the plaster from his bedroom walls
to expose the bare brick, but just left the plaster in a huge pile in the center of his small room.
I visited Syd Stern and the first thing he said to me was "I'm not going to pay Ruth's rent. So
don't even ask". "That's not why I'm here," I replied. "But while we're on the subject, you
cannot suck my big dick. So don't even ask." Syd laughed. One night while I was asleep,
my bedroom door exploded into splinters and Dirty Dan burst into my room screaming
obscenities like a madman. "I'm fucking sick to death of all your motherfucking bullshit!
You suck so bad," he bellowed. I just thought, "Oh no, Dan has fallen off the wagon." It was
the last straw, and I quickly moved out. After I left Mike Sandberg ordered many huge
containers of mineral water and charged it to my account. The water was stored in Bob
Allen's living room on Albany Avenue. This was crime, not Rochdale sleaze.

In November 1977 I invited the Embassy Ball organizers to Grossman's Tavern on Spadina
Avenue to hear The Fabulous Overtones, an electric blues band very much like the early
Rolling Stones. Actually I was the only organizer who helped organize Balls in Rochdale
Bill, Bob, and Peter never did.There were no more Embassy Balls, and I have not spoken a
word to Peter Young, Bill Granger, or Bob Allen since then. Those competitive
motherfuckers obviously did not learn anything about cooperation in Rochdale. There can
never be another Embassy Ball because that would require the involvement of former
members of the 15th floor commune such as myself, Nickie Ashley, Pam Berton, and Mike
Randell. It ain't gonna happen.
After the last Ball I had nothing whatsoever to do with any Rochdalians. I have not met one
in the flesh for decades, although I have talked to some on the phone and corresponded.
Martin Heath, the English projectionist from the 17th-Floor Commune, told me about a fairly
large gathering of Rochdalians in High Park, the largest park in Toronto. I think it was in the
1990s, but I don't like re-unions. Pam Berton told me she likes them because she learns how
people have changed. Fast forward to 2010. Because of the group structure of the Facebook
website, a fairly large group of cyber-Rochdalians emerged. Most are Americans in the USA,
and almost none of the Canadians are in Toorotten. It's very bizarre. On August 23, 2012
starting at 7 p.m. there was a Rochdale re-union at the Cameron House in Toorotten. The
Cameron House is a bar and live music venue at 408 Queen Street West and I'm sure
everybody got drunk, but it does not interest me and I know nothing about it. Rochdale died
40 years ago and everything about it is irrelevant now.

The only legacy Rochdale College has left the world is Ed Apt's "Unknown Student"
sculpture. I am the world's leading authority on the sculpture, and also Rochdale College.
Only Ed's brother knows more about Ed Apt than I do, and he said, "Rochdale has exploited
me. What I learned here is it isn't different from the outside world." He also said, "Squarism
is constipation while hippyism is diarrhea. And to those of you who evidently expect me to
come bottom kissing I have disappointing news."

The Rochdale Farm

http://rochdalecollegebook.com/1_40_Rochdale-Farm.html

Rochdale Farmhouse as bought in 1972

Patti Chilton and Jay Boldizsar at Rochdale Farm

Rochdale Farmhouse years later

Small dome house on Rochdale Farm

The Zome on the Rochdale Farm

Scott Walther and Jay Bolizsar killing a chicken at farm

Tuesdaily February 7, 1972 clips

Tuesdaily June 27, 1972 clip

Rochdale College Catalog November 1972

Tuesdaily November 21, 1972

Tuesdaily November 7, 1972

Tuesdaily May 25, 1973 clip

Tuesdaily January 19, 1974 clip

Tuesdaily 1974 clip

1. Can you give some background on the farm?

Our farm is on the five mile road south of the Algonquin First Nation in South Algona. We
had 360 acres (we've lost ten - that's another story). One guy's mother said we were in the
middle of nowhere and he corrected her - we were six miles south of the middle of nowhere.
There was a boom in Renfrew County in the 70s amongst back-to-the-landers as being
beautiful, economical and tolerant of individualism. The boom was centred around Killaloe
largely because a guy called Dalton McCarthy (who was from Killaloe) went to Rochdale in
Toronto and invited lots of people up. Rochdale is another story, a 18-floor highrise that was
at one point the campus of a democratic college (Rochdale College) of the U of T.
Everybody who was there has a different story of what Rochdale was, for me it was the first
place I ever felt safe. One of the assets of Rochdale College was this 360-acre farm which
had been bought as the 'Golden Lake Campus.' Anybody from Rochdale College (or
anybody else) could go there to live and 'experiment in alternate energy.' I did this in 1972.
In 1973, because Rochdale (in To.) was going broke, they sold their assets, they sold the farm
(Rochdale Farm) to those of us who were living there - about 15 of us. We formed a nonprofit corporation to buy the farm (for $16,000) and were all directors. We each had a named
heir to our 'seat'. We have made a provision that the farm can't be sold without enormous
hassle, with the intention that it would be our home place for a long time and never make
anybody any money.
Our philosophy derived from the philosophy we felt we had inherited from Rochdale:
Anything that is not specifically forbidden should be respectfully tolerated. We specifically
forbade shooting guns, dealing drugs and disturbing another member at his own site (we all
wanted to build one day, and we each had sites that were 'ours' and we chose our sites so as
not to interfere with each other.) We agreed not to set up our individual trips in common
grounds - the farmhouse and the immediate farmyard. Forgive my use of archaic words like
'trip,' it is hard to talk about the times without using the jargon. Our members were a married
couple with child, an unmarried couple with child, three single moms with one child each,
(one of whom married and had four more children so that's now a family of seven) a single
father with child, a couple with no children, three single women, five single men. Or so.
There were also people who lived there for a long time who weren't members and members
who never lived there. Most of us, as I say, were old Rochdaleans from Toronto.
A lot of us were argumentative, disagreeable people, and still are. We were and are united by
an idea of respect for the diversity of reality as the foundation of morality and by a love for
the rocks and swamp and scrubby trees of our farm.

2. Did any traditional family units exist (i.e. couples, children, etc.)? If so, how did this form
of living seem to affect their relationships?
We had a variety of family units, although no elders and no gays (not by design, just none of
us were. We now have at least four grandparents and at least one gay.) Our 'members' ranged
in age from 20 to 45 and our 'heirs' were from .001 to seven years old when we started up.
Each mother had her own hearth, the singles (especially the single men) tended to live in the
farmhouse. One couple courted and got married in church. One woman and one man who
each had his/her own ex got together and had another child and - in terms of farm life became a family of five. In the 'heyday' of us living on the farm, lots of kids were born.
Most of the children were around the same age, two were born just weeks apart. The children
had their community - like a band of cousins. Toys and clothes were passed around.

Mothering tasks were shared. (In some cases men mothered, but women tended to be more
interested in mothering than men). This 'mothering community' or 'moms 'n' tots community'
had ties also beyond our farm. This community was and is like an extended family. It was
not difficult to be a single parent because there were so many people around and if one of
them wouldn't help another would. Perhaps it weakened the nuclear family by strengthening
each individual member, and making them less dependent on the nuclear family, so issues
didn't have to be worked out so intensely.

3. What were the best parts of this way of living?

Beauty of nature. The farm was the best part. We didn't have to live in pokey flats (we had
all come from pokey flats), we could 'afford' a lifestyle together that we could none of us
have had separately. We had lots of leisure and stimulating companionship. I felt supported
but not stifled by the community. But I am mostly a solitary person and there was a lot of
room to be solitary on the farm but with people there when you needed them. We didn't feel
the pressure to live up to the expectations of society. This is why I felt safe, and for me this
was a biiiiiiiig issue.
The worst parts?
(At the time) Having to go through the same misunderstanding/reconciliation process again
and again over the same petty issues.
(In retrospect) Didn't accomplish anything.
(on the other hand) The very best thing about the farm for me was that it felt like a perfect
place to raise/enjoy/grow up with my children. I felt that my strong mothering urges were
respected and well-used and that my inadequacies as a mother were filled in by others.
Raising/enjoying/growing with our children was the purpose of our living together and it was
fun and felt very important, we all consider/ed it our most important work in life. Back to
philosophy: I realize that beside 'no laying on of trips' the other fundamental rule of our farm
was 'think first of the children.'
PS: The farm is still alive and well. We now have one family (two parents, two kids) and one
single man living on the farm. Those of us who live nearby go there whenever we feel like
'going out to the farm' Others come once or twice a year - the Queen's birthday and
Thanksgiving weekends - or other times in between. The beaver ponds get bigger every year,
and each year our meetings get a little less acrimonious and a little shorter.

Rochdale College Audio

Bruce Emilson, Rochdale Tapes, Toronto: Rogers Cable, 1972.

Rochdale: The hippie experiment explodes, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation http://
www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/society/youth/hippie-society-the-youth-rebellion/rochdalethe-experiment-explodes.html.
Rochdale College: Organized Anarchy, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation http://

www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/society/youth/hippie-society-the-youth-rebellion/rochdalecollege-organized-anarchy.html

Rochdale College Video

http://rochdalecollegevideos.blogspot.ca/2013/05/rochdale-college-videos.html
Dream Tower, Toronto: Sphinx Productions for the National Film Board of Canada,
Producer/Director Ron Mann, 1994 http://www.sphinxproductions.com/films/dreamtower/
http://www.sphinxproductions.com/films/dreamtower/presskit/files/
DreamTower_PressKit.pdf. http://www2.nfb.ca/boutique/XXNFBibeCCtpItmDspRte.jsp?
formatid=31610&lr_ecode=collection&minisite=10000&respid=22372&helios_prod=BmGj
6iHLdFRuijyFhaPrxMcX. Watch here: http://www.fulltv.tv/movies/dream-tower.html
Bruce Emilson, Rochdale Tapes, Toronto: Rogers Cable, 1972
John Hooper, Ground Floor
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_XX7YNQWzs
King of Cannabis: Robert W. Rowbotham III (Rosie), TV Ontario
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Dnfg_5jtw
David Malmo-Levine, High Society - Rochdale College
Part 1 of 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8w72uUB4rUg
Part 2 of 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CaimOfvMF4A
Pot-TV http://www.pot.tv/video/2003/10/22/High-Society-Rochdale-College.

Rochdale College by Brian Grieveson

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk2Lm18FVLk

Bruce Emilsons, Rochdale College Tapes

Part 1 of 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s2Wj_ZormPY
Part 2 of 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bW9EnDnsT_U
Part 3 of 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beFJ44d0xgA
Part 4 of 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wza6GsRlwns.

Peter Turner, Unknown Student by Ed Apt and the front of Rochdale College.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TCbREs9QDkM

King of Cannabis (Profile) Robert Rosie Rowbotham, TV Ontario

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3Dnfg_5jtw

Bibliography
Howard Adelman, Rochdale College: Power and Performance, Canadian Literature,
#152-153 Spring/Summer 1997. http://cinema2.arts.ubc.ca/units/canlit/pdfs/articles/
canlit152-Rochdale(Adelman).pdf.
Howard Adelman, The Beds of Academe: A Study of the Relation of Student Residences and
the University, Toronto: Lorimer, 1970.
Howard Adelman, Rochdale College: An Hysterical Response, unpublished essay, 1970.
Howard Adelman, Rochdale College: The Neurotic Child, unpublished essay, 1970.
Ray Bennett, The Jungle Collided with Rochdale College, Dossier/Compass, Vol. 14 #1.
http://www.gvanv.com/compass/arch/v1401/bennett.html.
Mark Bonokowski, King of the Bust Brothers, Toronto: Toronto Sun, September 15, 2009
http://www.torontosun.com/news/columnists/mark_bonokoski/2009/09/15/10908141sun.html.
John P. Bradford, The Rochdale Education Project: Why?, Rochdale College Bulletin, Vol.
1, No. 1, December 10, 1966 [in Turner, ibid.]
Patrick Burton, Amusing Idiots You Have in This Village http://www.deepsky.com/
~madmagic/Writing/mcluhan.html.
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation archives: http://www.rochdalefarm.ca/cbcarchives.htm.
Canadian Press, Marijuana ring boss receives 20-year term, Montreal Gazette, June 11,
1985 http://news.google.com/newspapers?
nid=1946&dat=19850611&id=1n0xAAAAIBAJ&sjid=2qUFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1220%2C328
178
David Stuart Churchill, When Home Became Away: American Expatriates and New Social
Movements in Toronto, 1965-1977, Unpublished doctoral dissertation, University of
Chicago, 2001.

Coach House Press, Rochdale is, Toronto, 1969.

Douglas Fetherling, Travels by Night: A Memoir of the Sixties, Toronto: Lester, 1994;
McArthur, 2000.
Brian Grieveson & Alex MacDonald, Rochdale College: Myth and Reality, Haliburton:
Charasee Press, 1991 http://www.amazon.com/Rochdale-College-Brian-Grieveson-ebook/dp/
B006SJ4FVW/. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fk2Lm18FVLk.
John Hagan, Northern Passage: American Vietnam Resisters in Canada, Cambridge: Harvard
University Press, 2001.
Michael Hamilton, Anything but Son of Rochdale, Vol. 1 No. 4, December 1967 [in Turner,
ibid.]
Reg Hartt, The Night They Raided Rochdale, http://reghartt.ca/cineforum/?p=10668.
Stuart Henderson, Off the Streets and into the Fortress: Experiments in Hip Separatism at
Torontos Rochdale College, 1968-1975, The Canadian Historical Review, 92.1, February
2011.
Injustice Busters, Adrian Humphreys, CBC producer, prison activist freed by parole board:
Corruption fighter: (Robert Rosie) Rowbotham, National Post, October 27, 2001; Tracy
Tyler, Acquitted of assault charges, Rosie still heads off to jail: Robert Robothams
girlfriend recanted her allegation that he brutally beat her, Toronto Start, October 18,
2001Robert W. Rosie Rowbotrham: Clearing the fumes, Canoe, June 27, 2002 http://
injusticebusters.org/index.htm/Rowbotham_Rosie.htm.
Denis W. Johnston, Up the Mainstream: The Rise of Torontos Alternative Theatres,
1968-1975, Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1991.
Eric leBourdais, The Other Side of Rochdale, Toronto Life, January 1971.
Dennis Lee & Howard Adelman, The University Game, Toronto: House of Anansi, 1968.
Dennis Lee, Getting to Rochdale, This Magazine Is about Schools, Vol. 2, No. 1 [excerpted
from The University Game, reprinted in Gerald F. McGuigan (Editor), Student Protest,
Toronto: Methuen, 1968.]
Thomas Mann, Rosie Rowbotham: Canadas longest-serving marijuana prisoner,
Vancouver: Cannabis Culture, 1998. http://cannabisculture.com/articles/32.html.
Judith Merril, Better to Have Loved: The Life of Judith Merril, Toronto: Between the Lines,
2002. ISBN: 1-896357-57-1
Henry Mietkiewicz, Dream Tower: The Life and Legacy of Rochdale College, Toronto:
McGraw-Hill Ryerson, 1988. ISBN: 007549597X
Ralph Osborne, From Someplace Else: A Memoir, Toronto: ECW Press, 2003.

Publius, Thirty Years After a Bad Idea, Gods of the Copybook Headings http://
godscopybook.blogs.com/gpb/2005/05/thirty_years_af.html.
David Sharpe, Rochdale: The Runaway College, Toronto: House of Anansi, 1987. http://
www.ohio.edu/people/sharpe/rochdale.htm.
Robin Barry Simpson, What We Got Away With: Rochdale College and Canadian Art in the
Sixties, Concordia University MA thesis http://spectrum.library.concordia.ca/35752/1/
Simpson_MA_F2011.pdf.
Lionel Solursh, An 18-Storey Flophouse, Psychological Reports, No. 32, 1973. https://
files.nyu.edu/spores01/public/rochdalequest.pdf
Sarah Spinks, The Rochdale Experience, This Magazine Is About Schools, Winter 1970. [in
Turner, ibid.]
John Wolf Sullivan, A Wolf among Sheep, http://www.amazon.com/Wolf-Among-SheepSullivan-ebook/dp/B00HMULOJ2/.
John Wolf Sullivan, We Are The Rock: Rochdale College 1968-1974
Peter Turner, There Can Be No Light Without Shadow, Toronto: Rochdale College, 1971.
United States of America vs. Robert W. Rowbotham, U.S. District Court Massachusetts, April
28, 1977 http://www.leagle.com/decision/19771684430FSupp1254_11473.xml/UNITED
%20STATES%20v.%20ROWBOTHAM.
Barrie Zwicker, Rochdale: The Ultimate Freedom, Change, November-December 1969 [in
Turner, ibid.]

Archives
Coach House Press http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/2/17/h17-221-e.html%22.
Rochdale College Archive, Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, University of Toronto

Web
Rochdale College Blog: http://rochdalecollege.wordpress.com. Email:
facthailand@gmail.com.
Rochdale Farm http://www.rochdalefarm.ca.
Rochdale College Museum https://files.nyu.edu/spores01/public/rochdale.html.
Rochdale College Revisited http://www.blogto.com/city/2006/11/
rochdale_college_revisited/.

John Wolf Sullivan, Rochdale College Book http://www.rochdalecollegebook.com

Rochdale College
Museum
https://files.nyu.edu/spores01/public/rochdale.html#Academics