Ed Sanders: The Counterculture Trickster Who Tried to Levitate 2026

Ed Sanders, the counterculture trickster who tried to levitate the Pentagon, remains a vital force at 87. In a rare interview, Sanders reflects on his almost unbelievable life as a musician, poet, activist, and author.

“Charles Manson once wrote me a letter saying, ‘If I was as powerful as you claim then you wouldn’t be here,’” Sanders tells me over a video call, savouring the menace in that sentence. Sanders is an American maverick whose greatest hit remains his bestselling 1971 book The Family, in which he chronicled the lives, crimes and trials of Manson and his followers.

From the Fugs to The Family: Ed Sanders’ Counterculture Journey

Sanders was well placed to report on crazed hippies, having played a pivotal role in launching the US counterculture – though he very much espoused peace, love and consciousness-raising, rather than Manson’s apocalyptic worldview. “I’ve always been a peacenik,” says Sanders. “I got locked in a cell in 1961 for protesting against nuclear armed submarines, and today I’m protesting against the Trumpster. I don’t subscribe to apathy and nihilism.”

Aged 87, Sanders is speaking with me as Fugs Film!, a feature-length documentary about the Fugs, the offbeat folk-garage-psych band Sanders initially led from 1964-69, and re-formed in the 1980s, gets its UK premiere this week. “I don’t do many interviews,” he notes. “I’m constantly approached by people requesting them. And often they are wanting access only because I knew Jimi Hendrix and Allen Ginsberg and Andy Warhol and Janis Joplin and …” He shakes his head. “Everybody now wants to make a documentary about someone I once knew.”

The Fugs: Ed Sanders’ Band That Shook the Establishment

The Fugs were formed in 1964 by Sanders and Tuli Kupferberg, and became known for their satirical, often profane lyrics and raw garage-rock sound. They were a staple of the Greenwich Village folk scene and played a key role in the 1960s counterculture, influencing bands like the Velvet Underground and the Mothers of Invention.

Their 1965 debut album, The Fugs First Album, was released on Folkways Records and featured songs like “Slum Goddess” and “I Couldn’t Get High.” The band’s follow-up, The Fugs (1966), included “Kill for Peace,” an anti-Vietnam War anthem that became a staple of their live shows.

Key Takeaways from Ed Sanders’ Life and Work

• Ed Sanders is a musician, poet, activist, and author best known for his book The Family and his band the Fugs.
• He was a key figure in the 1960s counterculture and participated in the 1967 March on the Pentagon, where he and others attempted to levitate the building.
• Sanders’ activism spans from anti-nuclear protests in the 1960s to contemporary political engagement.
• His book The Family remains a definitive account of the Manson murders and the trial.
• A new documentary, Fugs Film!, explores the band’s legacy and Sanders’ multifaceted career.

The Pentagon Levitation: A Symbolic Act of Protest

In October 1967, Sanders was among the organizers of the March on the Pentagon, a massive protest against the Vietnam War. As part of the demonstration, he and other activists, including Allen Ginsberg, attempted to “levitate” the Pentagon by chanting and performing a ritual. The act was symbolic, aimed at raising the building three hundred feet in the air to exorcise the evil spirits they believed resided within.

The protest was later immortalized in Norman Mailer’s The Armies of the Night, which won the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award. Sanders’ involvement in such events cemented his reputation as a trickster god of the counterculture, using humor and spectacle to challenge authority. The background to this story is set out in Celebrity: latest articles. A related thread runs through All Rivers Spill Their Stories to the Sea: A Stirring Eco-Activism.

Ed Sanders’ Legacy and the New Documentary

Fugs Film! offers a comprehensive look at the band’s history, featuring archival footage and interviews with Sanders and other surviving members. The documentary highlights the Fugs’ influence on music and culture, as well as Sanders’ continued activism and creative output. Earlier coverage in Voice Actors Batman, Bender, Mario Fight to Keep Their Voices shows how the argument developed. A closer look at the same subject appears in Ed Gamble on Traitors, True Love, Weight Loss and People-Pleasing.

At 87, Sanders shows no signs of slowing down. He continues to write, perform, and protest, embodying the spirit of the counterculture he helped create. His life serves as a reminder that art and activism can go hand in hand, and that a sense of humor is a powerful tool in the face of oppression. Anyone following the wider picture can start with Olympic Rowing 2032 on Crocodile-Infested Fitzroy River Explained. The same theme surfaces in Bilbao Port Hydrogen Pipeline: 38 km Tube to Connect Cantabrian Coast, which takes a different angle.

Comparison of Ed Sanders’ Key Works

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