An Odyssey to preserve ‘60s spirit

When you see the magazine, you think 1960s, which is part of the problem.

Nothing against the ‘60s. It was, after all, one of the most significant periods in American history.

But it was 50 years ago.

Star Shields of Laguna Beach lived it — and is still living it through the pages of Oracle Odyssey, a slim, full-color psychedelic magazine that has been published sporadically since then. The challenge now is keeping the magazine alive and evolving it in a way that reaches new generations.

“That’s definitely a challenge I have in my life — even against odds,” said Shields, who calls himself the magazine’s “visionary concierge” but is essentially the editor and publisher.

“Some of my family says, ‘Oh, magazines, they’re never going to sell. ... Why are you doing this?’” he said. “It’s a labor of love, first of all. I’ve always loved printed graphics. I’ve been with the Oracle since 1967.”

True to the time, the underground magazine has a ramshackle history. The first 12 issues were published out of San Francisco and Los Angeles from 1966 to 1968. But it was the San Francisco Oracle that was the most substantial, printing works by Allen Ginsberg, Gary Snyder and other Beat writers.

In its heyday, the magazine boasted a circulation of about 125,000. The editor was Allen Cohen, a poet who dreamed of publishing a rainbow-colored newspaper filled with poetry and art. He died in 2004, but his former wife, Ann Cohen, still lives in the Bay Area and consults with Shields on the current magazine.

“She’s a good friend, and she gives me a lot of advice on the direction we’re going,” Shields said. “She’s also one of the editors and I run covers by her. She’ll say, ‘Yes, that’s an Oracle cover.’”

This notion of what is Oracle-worthy is both specific and vague. When the magazine resurrected itself in 2012 for another printing, there was no psychedelic or New Age movement. The closest approximation was the already-fading rave culture, backed by electronic dance music (EDM).

To that end, the magazine’s volunteers tried to woo various advertisers involved with any type of counterculture activities: eco-foods, holistic medicine, hemp producers, green supporters and, yes, EDM promoters.

“Oracle is bridging the generations,” Shields said. “We involve the younger generations by giving them some space for their art, for their writings, for their works — photography, poems, or even music.”

But Shields admits it’s a tough road. He’s trying to muster enough funds for a May printing, perhaps coinciding with the 80th birthday of Wavy Gravy, a famous peace activist and master of ceremonies at the original Woodstock.

Coincidentally, Gravy was the “official clown” for the Grateful Dead, which helped fund the Oracle during the Haight-Ashbury days, according to Shields.

“Part of the plan is to get sustainable corporate sponsorship, so that we can actually give it away free at big transformational and important spiritual festivals across the country,” Shields said.

The rack price for the magazine is $10 per issue, and it can be found at Mystic Arts in Laguna or by visiting oracleodyssey.net.

The transition to a free publication is difficult with limited advertising. Shields hopes to expand the message and production in a way that makes sense without compromising the magazine’s values. He hopes to include a digital version and perhaps run events or workshops.

Fundamentally, the issues that were important to the underground leaders of the 1960s are still very relevant today, if not more so.

“The ‘60s was one thing, the anti-war movement was one thing, but now look at it all these years later and what do we have?” Shields said. “We have more war now than we did then. We have more corruption and more corporate BS and lies and deceit than we ever had then.”

To make these issues transcend generations — through art, poetry and essays — is the Oracle’s conundrum.

Does each generation need its own curated Oracle? Can the stylized art of one decade make a transformative impact on another?

Shields knows he has to find the right mix and market; otherwise, the magazine will be lost amid the din of the online world where all content is free. And despite Laguna’s legacy, he has to expand.

“The most hip area of Orange County is not Laguna anymore,” he said. “It’s not Balboa or Newport or Dana Point or San Clemente. It’s Santa Ana. Santa Ana is happening. The whole scene there is amazing.”

Either way, Shields is hoping there are enough people who can see the value of psychedelic consciousness and help unite the generations before it’s too late.

DAVID HANSEN is a writer and Laguna Beach resident. He can be reached at hansen.dave@gmail.com.