5 Weird, But True Experiments The CIA Conducted In The 1960s
Project Acoustic Kitty
Does anyone remember the kids’ action comedy movie “Dogs and Cats”? You know the one where cats and dogs are actually secret agent spies. Apparently, Warner Bros weren’t the only ones with that idea. Though officially declared a failure in 1967, throughout the 60s the CIA ran tests and experiments to turn cats into secret spies. This was attempted by surgically placing a microphone into the cat’s ear, paired with a radio transmitter implanted in the skull, and an antenna woven into the cat’s fur. The goal was for cats to transmit Soviet conversations, whether in homes, embassies, or parks, without raising suspicion. Unfortunately, its failure was partly rooted in the realization that cats were not trainable. I imagine the CIA could have saved the $20 million in today’s dollars they spent on this project if they had just spoken to a single cat owner.
Project Stargate
Who says science and the supernatural can’t mix? Certainly not the government. Project Stargate was another experiment conducted by the CIA to create Psychic Spies. Yes…you read that right. The project was born from the belief that the members of the Soviet Union were somehow engaging in paranormal activity to advance their research. To keep them from getting the upper hand, a project officially starting in 1972, the US Congress allocated millions of dollars to fund research into a variety of psychic techniques. The goal was for individuals to use supernatural abilities, such as clairvoyance and out-of-body experiences. These acts were defined as “remote viewing” as a shorthand to define paranormal activity in a more scientific setting. The goal was for spies to be able to freely draw or describe concealed targets from a remote location. Ultimately, the project was declared terminated in 1995, concluding that the results were too vague for use in intelligence investigation.
MKUltra
More sinister than weird. MKUltra was an illegal, top-secret CIA human experimentation program running from around 1953 to 1973. The ultimate goal was to develop the “perfect truth drug” to be used during interrogation, specifically for suspected Soviet spies during the Cold War. The more sinister aspect of this entire experiment was that, in many cases, most of the participants were unwilling citizens being subjected to LSD, hypnosis, electroshock, and psychological torture. The MK-ULTRA project was started mainly in response to Soviet, Chinese, and North Korean use of mind-control techniques on U.S. prisoners of war in Korea. The New York Times had even published a piece claiming that American prisoners of war had been brainwashed by Communists. The CIA often sought out marginalized individuals to use in their experiments. This list includes people who were mentally impaired, psychopaths, and even American soldiers. The operation began in 1953 and was scaled back in the 60s, one of those reasons being due to concerns about legality and ethics. According to the CIA the project officially closed in 1973. I guess it would take me 20 years to realize dosing people with illegal drugs might not be right.
Operation Midnight Climax
If you read it again, the name won’t change. And you might also be thinking it couldn’t possibly be related to—it is. Though a sub-run plot of MKUltra, I had to include this one. Operation Midnight Climax was another CIA-led project, conducted through the 1950s–1960s, where unsuspecting American citizens would be illegally dosed with LSD, primarily in San Francisco and New York. And this is where the name comes in. Prostitutes were hired to lure men into CIA-owned brothels, and dose them with drugs. Yep, the CIA owned brothels. Most notably, on 225 Chestnut Street, San Francisco. George Hunter White, a Federal Bureau of Narcotics agent, was in charge of running these CIA Brothels. CIA agents would record the interaction through a two-way mirror to study sexual behavior, mind control, and different surveillance techniques. The experiment expanded, looking at how sex affects the type of information divulged, and even how prostitutes could be used in aspects of national security.
The Beard?...A national security threat
There isn’t quite an official name for this project, but this is certainly a hair-brained idea if I ever heard one. (You’ll get the pun) In the 1960s, the CIA planned to launch an attack on Fidel Castro’s beard. While the number may at times be exaggerated, it is reported that the CIA attempted multiple assassination attempts and/or schemes on Fidel Castro. But this one certainly takes the cake as the most bizarre. In an attempted character assassination to make Castro less sexy?... The CIA decided it was of national importance to destroy his beard. The plan was to use thallium salts, a highly toxic and powerful depilatory chemical, to make his hair and beard fall out. It was believed that, in doing so, his image as "The Beard" would be destroyed, making him a source of ridicule rather than respect. During an overseas trip Castro was supposed to take, the plot involved sprinkling thallium salt on Castro's shoes. Unfortunately, this plot was never carried out because Castro canceled the visit.