bohemian tragedy: vanity fair sneaks into the grove

flashback: vanity fair editor arrested at bohemian grove

from vanity fair: Members of the ultra-exclusive Bohemian Club — 2,500 of America’s richest, most conservative men, including Henry Kissinger, George H. W. Bush, and a passel of Bechtels, Basses, and Rockefellers — are known to urinate freely against the ancient redwoods that cover their 2,700-acre property. Have they been chopping down the trees as well? According to one former member turned whistle-blower, the San Francisco–based society may have logged some of its old-growth forest. Drawing on his own Ivy League ties, the author investigates, with a daring sortie into the ceremonial kickoff of the Bohemians’ annual encampment.

flashback: bohemian grove to cut tress for cash

a guide to the bohemian grove
from vanity fair: Conspiracy theorists believe the Bohemian Grove’s idyllic grounds, in northern California, are host to right-wing, old-boy machinations about the New World Order. Honorary member Richard Nixon, meanwhile, called it “the most faggy goddamned thing you could ever imagine.” For V.F. contributing editor Alex Shoumatoff, who was arrested for trespassing at last year’s encampment while investigating the club’s forestry practices, the most suspicious activity that takes place in the grove is the alleged logging of old-growth redwood trees. But common to all reports from the two-week-long gathering of the country’s rich and powerful old guard — members have included every Republican president since Coolidge — is an account of profuse outdoor urination. With gin fizzes being poured at seven a.m., so many enlarged prostates, and such majestic natural urinals, who’s surprised? We present to you a guide to the Bohemian Grove, including a map of the premises, highlights of the events, and a list of prominent members and regular guests, from the club’s founding, in 1872, to today.

flashback: bohemian grove 2008 guestlist revealed