Cold War Origins
Project MKUltra was born from Cold War paranoia. In the early 1950s, American intelligence officials became alarmed by reports that the Soviet Union, China, and North Korea were using brainwashing techniques on captured American prisoners of war during the Korean War. CIA Director Allen Dulles formally approved MKUltra on April 13, 1953, placing it under the direction of Dr. Sidney Gottlieb, a chemist in the CIA's Technical Services Staff.
The project's stated goal was to develop drugs and techniques for mind control, interrogation, and covert operations. Gottlieb, who held a Ph.D. in chemistry from Caltech, became the program's driving force, earning the nickname "the Black Sorcerer" within the Agency. One of his first acts was to arrange for the CIA to purchase the world's entire supply of LSD -- approximately 10 kilograms -- from Sandoz Laboratories in Switzerland for $240,000 (roughly $2.7 million in today's dollars), ensuring that the Soviet Union could not acquire significant quantities.
