Cannabis History
Cannabis History
Kaleidoscope ,
Missouri ’ s Legendary Head Shop
Fifty years of selling bongs and no signs of slowing down . by Jay Richardson , contributing writer
As a fledgling journalist , I had never conducted an official interview until recently when I got to visit with a local legend . Anyone who has spent much time in Southwest Missouri during the past 50 years has probably heard of Kaleidoscope . Kaleidoscope opened in 1972 as a small record store that was located in an old house with an apartment upstairs . The apartment was the home to the proprietors of the store , Tom and Pam Pierson . The old house is gone , and the small record store is now a 6,000-square-foot complex that has evolved from its original concept and is home to one of the area ’ s top piercing and tattoo studios , among other things .
Tom Pierson , Owner of the historic Kaleidoscope store in Springfield , MO .
40 JUNE 2023
Unfortunately , I didn ’ t get to meet Pam , but Tom was very accommodating when I asked him to sit down and tell me about his store . You ’ re probably asking yourself what ’ s so interesting about some guy that owns an old record store . What I neglected to tell you is that Kaleidoscope is a head shop . I ’ m guessing that you probably know what a head shop is , but if you don ’ t , it ’ s a place to buy marijuana pipes , rolling papers , and other smoking paraphernalia . Kaleidoscope isn ’ t just any head shop ; it is legendary . That ’ s not just my opinion . The December 2018 issue of High Times Magazine ran an article that listed Kaleidoscope as one of the “ Ten Most Legendary Head Shops .” While it ’ s not quite the oldest place in America that sells cannabis accessories , it is one of the pioneers . They have sold bongs for the last fifty years and show no signs of slowing down .
That ’ s what piqued my curiosity . I wondered what kind of maverick would open a head shop in Springfield , MO , when it was pretty much scandalous and borderline illegal . I wasn ’ t disappointed . Tom Pierson is not what your average seventy-eight-year-old man would look like . Covered in tattoos , he looks as though he would be comfortable in a biker bar and probably would be . He is a boisterous bear of a man with a great sense of humor , which is displayed in the artwork on his arms . One of his tattoos is WWTPD , which , of course , translates as “ What Would Tom Petty Do ?” Another of his favorite tattoos is “ There is no such thing as too much fun .” The latter tattoo is inked in Latin , so Tom confessed to me , “ Since no one speaks Latin , there ’ s a possibility that it might say ‘ turn the goat to the east in the morning sun .’” He kept me laughing through the entire interview . I took my sister Christy along to take photos , and Tom made us both feel very comfortable and welcome .
When I was a teenager in the 1970s , going to Kaleidoscope was like taking a pilgrimage to a sacred place . In a world where marijuana and marijuana culture were very much underground , it was an amazing experience for my friends and me to go to a place that catered to us . It wasn ’ t just the pipes and rolling papers , although that was definitely a draw . There were cool posters and an amazing collection of albums . For people who didn ’ t experience music through albums , you can ’ t really imagine what it was like . Albums were our connection to the artists . Because computers were primitive and cable television was still a few years away , buying their records was the only way to listen to our favorite bands .
The original Kaleidoscope store opened in 1972 and has been replaced with a newer version near by .