High Times
Cover image of High Times' premiere issue, Summer 1974.
Editor-in-ChiefJamie Solis
Staff WritersAshley Kern, Benjamin M. Adams
Art DirectorSteven Myrdahl
Creative DirectorFrank Max
Senior Cultivation Editor (former)Danny Danko
Vice President of ContentJon Cappetta
Former editorsEd Dwyer
FrequencyMonthly
FounderTom Forcade
Year founded1974
First issue 1974 (1974-Summer)
CompanyHigh Times Holdings Corp.
CountryUnited States
Based inLos Angeles
LanguageEnglish
Websitehightimes.com
ISSN0362-630X

High Times is an American monthly magazine and cannabis brand with offices in Los Angeles and New York City. Founded in 1974 by Tom Forçade, the magazine advocates the legalization of cannabis as well as other counterculture ideas.

Origins

The magazine was founded in 1974 by Tom Forçade of the Underground Press Syndicate.[1] High Times was originally meant to be a joke: a single-issue lampoon of Playboy, substituting marijuana for sex.[2] The magazine was at the beginning funded by drug money from the sale of illegal marijuana.[3] But the magazine found an audience,[who?] and in November 2009, celebrated its 35th anniversary.[4] Like Playboy, each issue contains a centerfold photo; however, instead of a nude woman, High Times typically features a cannabis plant.[5] The magazine's founding editor was Ed Dwyer (who had earlier written the text of the Woodstock music festival program booklet as well as the Woodstock film program booklet).[6]

The magazine soon became a monthly publication with a growing circulation, audited by ABC as reaching 500,000 copies an issue, rivaling Rolling Stone and National Lampoon.[7] In 2014, its website was read by 500,000 to 5 million users each month.[8][9] The staff quickly grew to 40 people.[when?] In addition to high-quality photography, High Times featured cutting-edge journalism covering a wide range of topics, including politics, activism, drugs, sex, music and film.[10] Tom Forçade was quoted as saying "Those cavemen must've been stoned, no pun intended."[citation needed] Forçade's previous attempts to reach a wide counterculture audience by creating a network of underground papers (Underground Press Syndicate/Alternative Press Syndicate) had failed, even though he had the support of several noteworthy writers, photographers and artists.[11] Yet, through High Times, Forçade was able to get his message to the masses without relying on mainstream media.[12][13]

In January 2017, the magazine announced it would be relocated to an office in Los Angeles permanently.[3] This followed the legalization of marijuana in several west coasts states, including California.[14] Later in 2017, High Times was acquired by a group of investors led by Oreva Capital.[15]

High Times acquired cannabis media company Green Rush Daily Inc. on April 5, 2018.[16] The deal was valued at $6.9 million. Green Rush Daily founder Scott McGovern joined the magazine as Senior Executive Vice President.[17]

Book publishing

Related endeavors

Notes

  1. ^ Danko, Danny. "Norml Founder Retires – Exhale Stage Left". hightimes.com, January 6, 2005. Accessed 11 September 2009.
  2. ^ Williams, Alex (2016-04-02). "High Times Wants to Be the Playboy of Pot". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
  3. ^ a b Romero, Dennis (2017-01-18). "High Times Is Moving to Los Angeles". L.A. Weekly. Retrieved 2017-03-15.
  4. ^ Krassner, Paul. "Tom Forçade: Prisoner of Romance" Archived 2009-10-05 at the Wayback Machine. hightimes.com, October 1, 2009.
  5. ^ "High Price Paid for High Times". CNN. 2017-06-02. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  6. ^ Dwyer, Ed. "By the Time I Got to Woodstock: The author of the Woodstock festival's program book recalls one helluva wild ride," The Saturday Evening Post (August 5, 2019).
  7. ^ Greene, Bob (1987-03-30). "What to read if you just don't say 'no'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  8. ^ Coscarelli, Joe (2014-10-17). "High Times hits middle age: How the marijuana magazine stays relevant". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  9. ^ Yu, Roger (2014-02-12). "For marijuana magazine, high and heady times". USA Today. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  10. ^ Lazaroff, Leon (2017-06-02). "New owner of 'High Times' sees a business ready to be fully baked". The Street. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  11. ^ Cotts, Cynthia (1999-10-26). "Our Buds, Ourselves". Village Voice. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  12. ^ Stroup, Keith (October 9, 2009). "NORMLizer – Here's to HIGH TIMES!". High Times. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  13. ^ Krassner, Paul (October 1, 2009). "Brain Damage Control: Tom Forçade: Prisoner of Romance". High Times. Archived from the original on May 27, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  14. ^ Flamm, Matthew (January 12, 2017). "High Times magazine is leaving New York for Los Angeles". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved March 15, 2017.
  15. ^ Smith, Aaron (2017-06-06). "The new CEO of High Times most definitely inhales". CNNMoney. Retrieved 2020-04-04.
  16. ^ "High Times Acquires Green Rush for Estimated $6.9M | Los Angeles Business Journal".
  17. ^ "High Times Acquires Green Rush Daily in All Stock Deal". 5 April 2018.

Further reading

External links

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