Joanna Harcourt-Smith was a 26-year-old European socialite in Switzerland in 1972 when she met Timothy Leary, the psychedelic Pied Piper to the flower children of the 1960s. Ms. Harcourt-Smith was instantly enthralled — not just by his canary yellow Porsche 911 Targa but also by his mesmerizing eyes and his promise of psychological freedom. “I’ll show you the way.”After weeks of LSD-fueled adventures, they headed for Afghanistan. But on landing, they were taken into custody by American agents and returned to the United States, where Mr. Leary was again imprisoned. Ms. Harcourt-Smith stood by him and pressed for his release, which came three and a half years later.

Source: New York Times November 14, 2020 16:53 UTC