# Hallucinogenic banana skins is a misconception that must die blame Berkeley Barb **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 5, 2009, 12:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377 "2009-03-05T12:35:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![cjepson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a9adbd/32.png) [@cjepson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cjepson)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2009, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/21 "2009-03-16T17:40:51Z")
> [@Mollie\_Magill](#): > > Funny - I thought the worst thing was the smell. I _hate_ petrulli. I don’t think the Petrullis are that much worse than other families. Did you mean patchouli? ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2009, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/22 "2009-03-16T19:54:04Z")
> [@cjepson](#): > > I don’t think the Petrullis are that much worse than other families. Did you mean patchouli? Yet another joke destroyed by my terrible spelling. I’ll blame the hippies. ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f08c70/32.png) [@Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Brother_Walker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/23 "2009-03-17T06:44:13Z")
> [@Astroboy14](#): > > My friends and I never believed it. > > (Didn’t stop us from trying it during the Great Pot Drought of '86, tho…) OMG, that was the _worst_ drought ever! I only remember it because I was ::ahem:: sober most of the time. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2009, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/24 "2009-03-17T07:15:09Z")
There was a drought? ---
**Author:** ![Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f08c70/32.png) [@Uncle\_Brother\_Walker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncle_Brother_Walker)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 6:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/25 "2009-03-19T06:10:38Z")
Check out _Reservior Dogs_. Tim Roth’s character, albeit while undercover, references the period. …and if they mention it in a film, _of course,_ it must be true. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Argent\_Towers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e8c25b/32.png) [@Argent\_Towers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Argent_Towers)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/26 "2009-03-19T06:38:54Z")
It’s no **[JENKEM.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenkem)** ---
**Author:** ![Harmonious\_Discord](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/74df32/32.png) [@Harmonious\_Discord](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Harmonious_Discord)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/27 "2009-03-19T15:17:17Z")
> [@Argent\_Towers](#): > > It’s no **[JENKEM.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jenkem)** That must be related to the\*\* farmersuiticle\*\* drug better known as **dairyaire high** or **good shit**. The highest potency is produced in the **rolling fields** of the driftless area of south west Wisconsin. ---
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/28 "2009-03-19T16:39:04Z")
> [@Tenar](#): > > Because _everyone_ born over a period of \*\*18 YEARS \*\*is exactly the same, and thus equally loathsome? > > Good grief, that’s even worse than astrology. Once you compared it to astrology, I had to check. Start by assuming that everyone born with the same planet in the same sign have something in common. (No, I’m not even close to a believer. I just like to play with systems.) It takes Neptune 13.7 years to traverse a sign. So loathing boomers covers a longer period than that. It takes Pluto 20.8 years to traverse a sign. I’m not sure how astrologers reacted to the demotion of Pluto. Probably in a zillion different, loudly conflicting ways. But if you accept the influence of Pluto - astrology can cut a wider swath than hating boomers does. ---
**Author:** ![akrako1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@akrako1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/akrako1)\ **Post date:** [March 19, 2009, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377/29 "2009-03-19T21:55:25Z")
How it supposedly started: from: [http://ebanana.orconhosting.net.nz/](http://ebanana.orconhosting.net.nz/) > [@](#): > > I heard Donovan interviewed by Terry Gross on NPR Freshair. The section on smoking bananas can be heard here. > > In this interview he is asked to explain the lyrics. He goes on to tell a story about the electric banana. He claims that he knew nothing about smoking banana peels, and is surprised that anyone could believe that you could get high smoking banana peels. The mystery was revealed to him when he was sitting next to Country Joe McDonald in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall Of Fame in Cleveland in about 2000, and McDonald said to him “It was me man.” Donovan asked him to explain. > > Back in 1966 Country Joe and The Fish were giving a performance that they wanted to publicise. They managed to find an old carnival float which had a huge banana on it. They decided that they would drive this float through Height-Ashbury with the band playing on the back of it. To ensure maximum publicity McDonald released to the press the information that you could get high by smoking banana peels. > > All would have been forgotten, except the following Friday Donovan released “Mellow Yellow” with the famous lines > “Electrical banana > Is gonna be a sudden craze > Electrical banana > Is bound to be the very next phase” > > And the rest, as they say is history. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hallucinogenic-banana-skins-is-a-misconception-that-must-die-blame-berkeley-barb/488377.md?page=1)