Popular Culture Review Vol. 8, No. 1, February 1997 | Page 21

Le t us h a st e n to gro w old, let us h a st e n to th e a pp o in t e d tim e
w h ic h p e rmits us to rejoin o ur s e lv e s.
— Seneca

D R . TIM O TH Y

LEARY:

PSYCHOLOGIST, CELEBRITY, REFLECTION
Mel S e e s h o ltz
P e n n St a t e U n iv e rs ity
If y o u h a v e n ’t c o m e a cro s s Dr. Ti m o t h y L e a ry re c e ntly, y o u h a v e n ’t
b e e n r e a ding n e w s p a p e rs or m a g a zi n e s , w a t c h in g t e l e vision, or o n
line. H e ’s e v e ryw h e r e th e s e d a ys.
Tim o t h y is s h a rin g his d e a th with us all. A w e b sit e pro vid e s
up d a t e s o n his p hysic a l condition a nd a list of his d a ily c h e m ic a l int a k e:
c a ff ein e, nicotin e, a lco hol, ch oc ol a t e , m a riju a n a , nitrous o x id e , c oc a in e ,
dil a udid, f e n t a nyl, e tc.
M a n y find his public d e a t h— so o n to b e a ‘d o c u m e n t a ry’ vid e o with
C D s o u n d-tr a c k— gro t e s q u e . I’m sure Ti m o t h y finds tha t pre dict a bl e
re a ction a m u s in g. H e ’s all a bou t bre a k ing rul e s a n d t a b o o s, d e dic a t e d
to s e lf-d e t e rmin a t ion in public a nd priv a t e.

Interpersonal Diagnosis of Personality w a s his first b o o k (1 9 5 7).
H e ’s c o nst a ntly run ning p s y c h e xp e rim e n t s on e v e ry o n e a ro u n d him.
P e rh a p s th a t’s w h y t ho s e w h o k n ow him b e st d o n ’t re a lly trust him,
c a n ’t co u n t on him. T h e a dvic e I w a s giv e n w a s “d o n ’t t a k e a nyt hing h e
s a ys or d o e s p e rs o n a lly.”
Th a t a lw a y s struc k m e a s str a ng e . H o w c o uld I not t a k e m y “b est
frie nd” p e rs o n a lly? O u r re l a tionship e n d e d w h e n I did. B u t b e f ore it did,
I h a d s e v e ra l y e a rs with th e m a n a n d th e myt h. In th a t tim e I l e a rn e d a
lot a bou t him, m e , us, a n d c e l e brity culture.