Bohemian Club
The Bohemian Club is a prominent gentlemen's private club in San Francisco, California.
Its clubhouse is located at 624 Taylor Street in San Francisco. Today, the club has a diverse membership of many prominent local and global leaders, ranging from artists and musicians to leading businessmen. Founded in 1872, it was modelled on New York's prominent Century Club.
History
The club originally was formed exclusively by and for journalists, who lamented the lack of art and culture in post-California gold rush San Francisco and wanted to capture something of la vie bohème which had become popularized among the avant garde of the United States at the time. It quickly was apparent that the group needed to relax its rules for membership and permit some people to join who had no artistic talent, but had major financial resources. Pretty soon, the "bohemian" writers were on their way out and the wealthy and powerful were in control of the club - something which remains true today. The membership lists are private, and only a few people outside of the club ever have seen them. Some prominent figures are given honorary membership only, such as Richard Nixon and William Randolph Hearst.
Members include some U.S. presidents (usually before they are elected to office), many United States Cabinet officials, and CEO's of large corporations, including major financial institutions. Major military contractors, oil companies, banks (including the Federal Reserve), utilities, and national media have high-ranking officials as club members or guests. Many members are, or have been, on the board of directors of several of these corporations. However, artists and lovers of art are still among the most active members of the club, and the Club's bylaws still require that there be a certain number of artists, writers, and other academics.
Bohemian Grove
Every year the club hosts an annual two week camp at Bohemian Grove in Monte Rio (in Sonomoa County, California) which is notable for its illustrious guest list and its eclectic Cremation of Care ceremony involving a mock human sacrifice at the feet of a forty-foot stone owl. In addition to that ritual, there are also two outdoor performances, often with elaborate set design and orchestral accompaniment. The more elaborate of the two is called the High Jinx, the less elaborate and expensive of the two is the Low Jinx. More often than not, the productions are original creations of the "Talent" members, and the stage crew is composed of the regular members; corporate CEOs, bank presidents, politicians, etc. The club's motto, "Weaving Spiders Come Not Here", is featured in the club's logo, around a stern-looking owl.
Cremation of Care
The Cremation of Care was devised in 1893 by a member named Joseph D. Redding, a lawyer from New York. G.W. Domhoff, a sociologist, obtained access to the Bohemian Club's records and membership and was able to conduct extensive research about the organization and their activities. He was able to detail the Cremation of Care ceremony, along with the High and Low Jinx and other ceremonies and plays of the Club.
The ceremony involves the poling of a small boat across a lake containing an effigy of Care (called "Dull Care"). Dark, hooded individuals receive the effigy from the ferryman which is placed on an altar and at the end of the ceremony, is set on fire. This "Cremation of Care" symbolizes that within the Bohemian Grove members leave behind the "dull cares" of conscience, hence the imagery of human sacrifice, which would normally occasion the reproach of conscience.
The ceremony takes place next to a 45-foot (14 m) high concrete owl statue, symbolizing knowledge. During the ceremony, the voice of the former-newsman Walter Cronkite, a member of the Bohemian Club, is used as the voice of The Owl. Music and fireworks accompany the ritual, for dramatic effect.
The ritual was also performed in 1913 at the world famous "Red Rocks" Amphitheater, along with a ceremony entitled "The arrival of the goddess of prosperity".
Alex Jones infiltrated the Bohemian Grove in 2000 and filmed the final portion of the ceremony for his film Dark Secrets: Inside Bohemian Grove[4]. The grove and Jones' investigation were also covered by Jon Ronson in Channel 4's four-part documentary, Secret Rulers of the World.
See also
- The pseudo-biographical book PiHKAL by Ann & Alexander Shulgin includes a description of some activities of one "Shura Borodin" (presumably Alexander Shulgin), a member of the "Owl Club" (presumably the Bohemian Club). In his desciption of participating in the two-week summer event (probably in the 80s), he estimates there are about 2,000 regular guests and around 100 musicians and other sorts of performers.
- List of American gentlemen's clubs
See also
- Gentlemen's club
- List of American gentlemen's clubs
- List of Australian gentlemen's clubs
- List of London's gentlemen's clubs
External links
Bohemian Club in general
Bohemian Grove
- Wikimapia: Place of "The Cremation of Care Ceremony"
- A photograph of an elaborate ceremony taken at Bohemian Grove in 1915.
- A labor dispute involving the Bohemian Club
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