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Towards the end of the 19th century, a social club called the Bohemian Club was founded. They bought a small piece of land in the Redwood Forest of California as a place of retreat and it was named Bohemian Grove. The club opened its doors to a limited number of people, only artists and writers, to provide social support for each other. However, being the starving artists they were, they soon had trouble paying rent. Reluctantly they began admitting wealthier businessmen into their ranks for the purpose of facilitating art sales. Soon enough, the businessmen took over and the true bohemians were out although the wealthier members maintained an appreciation for the arts and entertainment as the central purpose of the club. Fast forward about one hundred years and the summer retreat of Bohemian Grove has become an annual gathering for the wealthiest, most powerful businessmen and politicians in America and, by logical extension, the entire world.
Written in the 1970s, The Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats, written G. William Domhoff, is a sober-minded analysis of what the Bohemian Grove is and how it fits in with the power structure of American society. It is written from a structural-functional point of view and covers such topics as who is allowed to belong, what they do during the time spent at the retreat, spin-off clubs that serve a similar purpose, and how it works as a part of the networking system of corporate and government power.
The first half of this brief book is the most compelling as it gives as much detail about the two weeks each summer when the elite gather for rest and relaxation. The environs are nothing short of majestic, suggesting some sort of Elysian Fields or a heavenly forest. It kicks off with a staged ritual pageant to banish worry from the world, a spectacle that Sir James George Frazer would classify as a scapegoating ritual. Richard Nixon famously said that it was the gayest thing he had ever seen. The rest of the time is spent being entertained with music, comedy, and theater, drinking lots of alcohol, socializing, partying, attending lectures, and letting go of all the cares in the world. Domhoff then gives a detailed analysis of how the camp is structured and how its members interact with each other.
The other significant part of the book’s beginning is an examination of who is allowed to join and attend the summer retreat. Attendees of the Bohemian Grove are entirely male. Most are heads of the biggest corporations in America. Other smaller groups are politicians, presidents of prestigious universities, and entertainers. A waiting list of 800 applicants is kept, though few of them ever get accepted. Prospects with literary, artistic, musical, or acting talent get jettisoned to the top of the list, although only those with conservative styles are allowed in; Frank Zappa or William S. Burroughs would never make it, Bing Crosby and Bob Hope would and actually did. 95% of Grove members belong to the most conservative wing of the Republican party.
The author goes on to describe two other similar private social clubs that exist for similar reasons, the Rancheros and the Roundup Riders. These outfits, rather than being art and entertainment oriented, have cowboy themes. The members dress up like Hollywood cattle ranchers and go on extended rides through the forests and deserts of Colorado. Yes, there is something a little bit childish about all this. Although less prestigious then the Bohemian Grove, they have attracted some big names of the corporate and political elite as well; Ronald Reagan belonged to the Rancheros, for example.
The final section of the book is a brief overview of how the Bohemian Grove and the other two clubs function as networking centers for those who rule America. The members insist that these clubs are simply places for them to unwind and escape from the stresses of life at the top echelons of society, but Domhoff says they also use these events to field new ideas off the record while making connections with others who can further their careers in the ranks of power. To Domhoff this is a crucial function because by relaxing, enjoying themselves, and getting to know each other as people, the members form emotional bonds that make them more comfortable and well-established in their pursuit of wealth and power.
Being written in 1971, this is a dated text, although it is safe to assume that there haven’t been any dramatic changes in the Bohemian Grove over the last fifty years except in some of the details. Based on information collected from unnamed informants, it gives a clear picture of what the Bohemian Grove really is and what goes on there. Domhoff’s work has since come under fire, mostly from Marxist sociologists who claim he is not radical or incendiary enough, but you have to consider the possibility that dealing with political and economic inequalities might be more effective if we understand the nature of the monster we are fighting. Otherwise you might end up doing little more than shooting in the dark and changing nothing. (Notice how little left-wing radicals have accomplished in tearing down the capitalist system over the last 100 years) Besides, not everything in academia has to be about blind devotion to revolutionary politics.
In recent times, the Bohemian Grove has drawn attention from all kinds of kooks, conspiracy theorists, and right wing hucksters like Alex Jones who once sneaked into Bohemian Grove and filmed it. His immediate impulse was to commercially produce videotapes of it and sell it to the suckers who follow him. What Bohemian Grove and Other Retreats accomplishes is bringing to light what this group really is, a combination of a summer camp, a spa resort, and a private club with some elements of a fraternal order. It could possibly be considered a secret society because, for no other reason, its membership is so elitist and closed off to the likes of you and me. It certainly is not a satanic cult like the MAGA morons insist it is. That does not mean that Domhoff dismisses the Bohemian Grove as a harmless party for the corporate business rulers of the world; if anything, he insists this makes it even more dangerous for the functioning of a government that is meant to be by the people for the people when in reality it is being run by the corporate elite for the corporate elite. Like George Carlin said, “It’s all one big club and you and I ain’t invited.”
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