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420 (cannabis culture)

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A Cannabis sativa plant

In Cannabis culture, the number 420 (pronounced four-twenty) relates to the consumption of cannabis and elements of its associated culture. The exact origin of the term is unknown. Marijuana users gather on April 20 ("4/20" in U.S. dating shorthand) every year to celebrate and consume marijuana.

Origin

The origin of the term "420" is the subject of some dispute and much speculation, and so no theory can be said conclusively to be correct, but the term seems to have first come into popular usage in the early 1970s.

Commonly accepted origin

Other possible suggested origins

  • The Bob Dylan song "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35". The song, initially released in 1966, features the prominent refrain, "everybody must get stoned." Since twelve multiplied by thirty-five equals 420, it has been suggested that this song is the original source of the term 420 in cannabis culture.
  • At some American junior or senior high schools, "after-school detention" ends at 4:20. Thus 4:20 signifies the time when the detainees are finally free to smoke after the school day.
  • The term could have possibly come from H. P. Lovecraft's short story, In the Walls of Eryx, which contains the line, "My route must have been far from straight, for it seemed hours before I was free of the mirage-plant's pervasive influence... When I did get wholly clear I looked at my watch and was astonished to find that the time was only 4:20." This theory for the origin of 4:20 was first postulated on the official website for the band Tool.
  • The second line of the first stanza in the children's nursery rhyme 'Sing a Song of Sixpence' reads: "Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie". This theory probably arose because "Baked" is also a common euphemism for being under the influence of cannabis.
  • To the Ancient Egyptians the number 420 was considered the closest number to perfection, because you can divide it by numbers 1-7 and it gives you a whole number. One theory states that as hippies expanded their awareness of foreign cultures, by the early 1970s this number had surfaced as the perfect number, and thus the perfect time.[citation needed]

Refuted urban legends

  • 420 degrees Fahrenheit is the temperature at which marijuana burns, the primary method of use. In reality, marijuana burns at or around 283 degrees.
  • 420 is a police code for a drug bust or for "marijuana smoking in progress," or that 4:20 is or was the shift change for the police. In San Francisco, 420 is the police radio code for suspicious juveniles[1], but it is not specific to what they are doing that is suspicious. It is unknown if any other cities/districts use this code, or what it is for.
  • There are 420 chemicals in marijuana. In actuality, there are approximately 315, depending on how the plants are grown.
  • April 21 is the last day on which one is supposed to plant cannabis seeds. With the variety of planting regions and cannabis genetics, no such date can logically apply to all growing operations.
  • April 20 is approximately the last frost in the American climate, making it time to move pot plants outdoors. In actual fact the date obviously varies from year to year, and from region to region.
  • 420 Day is celebrated as April 20th was the date of Bob Marley's death. Marley actually died on May 11, 1981.
  • Adolf Hitler was born on April 20, and smoking marijuana serves to undermine Hitler's memory. As one smoker explains: "Hitler represents in sharp opposite contrast all that the marijuana-smoking community stands for." However, most smokers do not dwell on Hitler's birthday.[2]
  • Marijuana grew wild on or near Highway 420 in Ontario in the 1960s. However, Highway 420 only gained its current name in 1972. Whether or not this is true, Highway 420 is the location for an annual legalization protest every April 20th.

April 20th events and traditions

Many North American cities and colleges hold pro-marijuana rallies, or at least celebratory marijuana gatherings, on April 20. Many famous landmarks are also targeted for public marijuana use, such as Parliament Hill in Canada. The city of Norwalk, Ohio, located near the intersection of Ohio state route 4 and U.S. route 20, is also thought to hold some sort of April 20th celebration. The authorities' reaction to these gatherings varies from place to place, as shown by prominent examples.

University of California, Santa Cruz

The annual congregation of UCSC students on April 20th gathers thousands each year, with an estimated 3,000 students gathering at the Porter College Meadow in 2006. The gathering attracts marijuana smokers and non-smokers alike; many people visit the field at or around 4:20 PM just to witness the "fog" of marijuana smoke that hovers over the crowd. Generally, these gatherings are peaceful, with bands or DJ's playing live music and students running food-stands under canopies. Authority figures seem to be nonexistent.

University of Colorado

The largest known celebration of this kind has been held annually for the past decade at the University of Colorado's Farrand Field in Boulder, Colorado, where protestors gather at 4:20 p.m. to smoke cannabis. In 2005, responding to negative press that year, University Police made their first attempt to disperse the gathering. They posted signs saying students were not allowed on the field that afternoon. After the field was overrun by an estimated 2000 or more students, police declined to issue any citations, as with past years. They did, however, turn the sprinklers on in an attempt to disperse the crowd. In another attempt to stop the celebration in 2006, the University put up signs telling students Farrand Field was closed for the afternoon, and even hired event staff to keep students from going onto the field. This, however, was a failed attempt, as thousands gathered around the field, only to storm it at around 4 o'Clock. In response, the university videotaped the gathering and are looking to prosecute students who attended it for trespassing. The university has posted pictures on the web in the hope that other students will identify other students in exchange for a $50 reward for each person caught. Following publication of this notice on pro 420 websites such as College Humour many false 'I.D.'s' were submitted, undermining the effectiveness of the University's attempt to catch those involved.

University of Vermont

It was a tradition for many years at the University of Vermont for a very large number of people to gather on the campus green and smoke openly in protest of marijuana prohibition laws. The protest was traditionally tolerated by the police, who would merely observe to ensure the safety of participants and bystanders. On April 20, 2002, however, incoming University President Daniel Fogel ordered campus police to maintain a more strict presence on the campus green. Students were not allowed to stay on the green for any reason and students who attempted to do so were ID'd, searched and detained. Fogel has stated multiple times before and since that he was trying to clean up the "reputation" of the University.[citation needed] Since then, police wearing bullet-proof vests and armed with shotguns have been a staple of 4/20 celebrations on the green; the protest has gone forward on a much smaller scale, though police now arrest any marijuana smokers.

References in pop culture

Occurrences in music

  • "Even in His Youth", a b-side by Nirvana (on the single "Smells Like Teen Spirit") - listed as 4:20 in duration on the single's cover, while the song's length is actually 3:06.
  • The death metal band Six Feet Under recorded a song called "420" for their 1997 album Warpath.
  • Rap artist Afroman released an album called "4RO20" and his website runs under the slogan "Where it's always 4RO20". Also, he changed the label on his "Colt 45" bottle to say "Cult 420", as seen on his website. Also, the clock shown on his website is stopped at 4:20.
  • The song "Smokin" by Boston has a duration of 4:20.
  • The Album Royal Highness by the Kottonmouth Kings lists all song durations as 4:20; actual song times vary.
  • The song "Take Me to Your Leader" by Incubus contains the lyric, "What if my watch read four dot dot two oh every hour, every day, you could bet your dollar I'd be happy!"
  • The song "Trouble in 421" by Incubus has the subject of the song living in apartment "420 G," and contains the lyrics, "his pupil was wide open...it was indubitubly dose derived," and, "I beg my common sense to keep my neighbor out away from my front door until I find a way to hide myself from those in 4-2-1...one away from the good one." There are also themes of paranoia throughout the song.
  • The song "Stoned Part I" (from the album Stoned by Lewis Taylor) was also released in a "420 Mix" by HackTone Records, with a duration of 4:20.
  • Crosby, Stills, & Nash recorded a song titled "Four and Twenty".
  • The Megadeth song "Mary Jane," from their third album So Far, So Good...So What!, has its last beat stop at exactly four minutes and twenty seconds, even though the total running time is 4:24.

Occurrences in film & television

Occurrences on the radio

Note: All times are P.M. unless otherwise specified.

  • 94.1 KPFA in Berkeley, California, airs "The 420 Report", hosted by Ed Rosenthal, typically on the last Friday of each month at noon. The hour includes cannabis-related news, as well as call-in advice for growers, patients, and people with legal troubles.
  • The radio show 4:20 Drug War News, a short talk segment which promotes legalization of certain drugs, is usually aired at 4:20.
  • 102.1 The Edge in Toronto, Canada has interesting discussions during 'The 420 Thought', on topics such as "Where is the best place to 420?"
  • KX 92 in Alexandria, Minnesota station plays a "classic comedy" bit every weekday at 4:20.
  • 107.9 KEYJ Rock 108 in Abilene, Texas, airs a short comedy segment every weekday at 4:20 called the "4:20 Funny".
  • 100.5 The Zone in Sacramento, California, features a daily brain teaser-like contest at 4:20 called the 420 Brain Drain.
  • Many FM and some AM radio stations in the United States play a Bob Marley track daily at 4:20 p.m., a tradition usually known as Mandatory Marley.
  • KZRR 94 Rock in Albuquerque, New Mexico, plays a Pink Floyd song every day at 4:20, which they refer to as the "4:20 Floyd Fix".
  • 100.7 WZXL in New Jersey does a segment called "getting stoned on the ride home" at 4:20 on weekdays, during which a set of Rolling Stones tracks is played.
  • 97.9 WGRD[2] in Grand Rapids, Michigan, plays a set of music every day at 4:20 in a segment called "the 420 Overdose"
  • DC 101 in Manassas, Virginia plays "Smoke 2 Joints" and asks callers to do bong hits on the air.
  • KMAD 102.5 in Sherman, Texas, plays the track "Mary Jane's Last Dance" by Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers at 4:20 on weekdays.
  • 104.9 The Monkey in Seattle, Washington, radio station encourages listeners to call in and do bong rips over the phone at 4:20.
  • The Tom Leykis Show has several callers take bong hits simultaneously on the air at 4:20 on April 20.
  • 94.3 Extream Radio in Knoxville, Tennessee, featured the "4:20 club", during which people would call and “check into the club” every day at approximately 4:20.
  • Rock 108 in Waterloo, Iowa, has a feature they call the "4:20 Buzz Cut", in which newly released music is played at 4:20 every weekday.
  • WPOC 93.1 in Baltimore would play the "4:20 Future File" every weekday at 4:20, where a newly released song would be played and then rated on a scale of 1-10 by listeners who called in. 'Michael J.', of the WPOC Fun & Games department, claims this is simply coincidence.
  • 103.9 Santa Cruz X plays a new song every weekday at 4:20, encouraging listeners to vote "toke it" or "choke it," depending on whether they liked it and want it to become a regular tune on the station or not.
  • 105.9 WXDX The X in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, plays a "420 Pause for the Cause" request segment at 4:20.
  • KROCK in Edmonton, Canada, does a "Roll Your Own" request segment every day at 4:20.
  • Classic Rock 104.5 KPUS[3] in Corpus Christi, Texas, listeners have the ability to "roll their own everyday at 4:20." At this time each day, one listener gets to pick three songs to play at 4:20. Bong bubbles are heard in the background between songs.
  • 650 CKOM in Saskatoon, Canada, talk host John Gormley of announces every day at 4:20 that "the time is 4:20, time to get rolling".
  • The XM Radio station "The Boneyard" reminds everyone that it is 'bong time' at 4:20.
  • 105.9 The Rock in Nashville, Tennessee, airs a segment every weekday at 4:20 called the "4:20 Smokebreak." Host Joe Elvis tells listeners, "Smoke 'em if you got 'em." The segment often plays songs related to marijuana.
  • KUOW-FM in Seattle, Washington, always announces "The local time is 4:20" at that time.
  • KROQ-FM in Los Angeles, California airs the local time-of-day phone service announcing that it is 4:20 p.m.: "Good afternoon. At the tone, Pacific Standard (Daylight) Time will be...four twenty, exactly. *beep*". They also throw a "420 party bash" show on the "Kevin & Bean Morning Show" every year on April 20.
  • 104.1 WMRQ in Hartford, CT, would host the "4:20 Brownie" every weekday, during which a cannabis related tune or popular stoner anthem was played, until they changed formats in September of 2003.
  • On 107.7 The End in Seattle, Washington DJ No Name had a bit called "The Moon-Cabbage Fact of the Day" which he did at 4:20pm every day until he was promoted to the morning show.
  • Arrow 93.1 (now-defunct) in Los Angeles, California used to play an authentic vinyl record every day at 4:20. This segment was called the Vinyl Vault.
  • 101.1 XFM (now defunct) in Ottawa, Ontario, would play different Bob Marley songs everyday at 4:20.
  • 94.9 WZIO (now defunct) in Portsmouth, Ohio, from 2000 to 2002, would air a segment during "The Traffic Jam with Tony Phillips" entitled "Get the Led Out" at 4:20 on weekdays, where 15-20 minutes of "non-standard" Led Zeppelin music was played. The segment was sponsored in part by Visine Eye Drops, with the slogan "because they get the red out when we get the Led out..."
  • [4]XM Radio has a blacklight room music session everyday @ 4:20 on Channel 40.

Other pop culture occurrences

  • The discoverer of LSD, Dr. Albert Hofmann, writes in his book "LSD: My Problem Child" that his first self-experiment with the drug occurred at 4:20 in the afternoon on April 16, 1943.
  • The California law that authorizes and regulates medical uses of marijuana was Senate Bill 420 (Chapter 875/2003, John Vasconcellos). [5]
  • The Hinchey-Rohrabacher Amendment, which would have prevented the U.S. Federal Government from using federal funds to interfere with state medical marijuana laws, was voted on in Roll call 420. It did not pass.
  • A cannabis coffeeshop located at Oude Brugsteeg 27 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands is named the "420 Cafe".
  • The number 420 is common in classified ads describing housing or individuals which permit or encourage marijuana use ("420 OK"). This practice is common in socially progressive communities such as Craigslist. One such "Housing to share" listing, from the Santa Cruz Sentinel in 1994, read:
Rm avail Veggie household. 420. No pets M pref
  • The Sweetwater Brewing Company makes a beer called Sweetwater 420, and gives their tours at 4:20.
  • The Shaftebury Brewing Company of Greater Vancouver, BC has a beer called Four Twenty Brilliant Lager, but makes no direct reference to marijuana, though the description used on the label and website [6] clearly markets to marijuana users.
  • The Stone Coast Brewing company has a beer called the "420 IPA", and on the case it says, "It's always 4:20 somewhere!"
  • The Flash animation "Strawberry Pancakes" features a town with a population of 420.[7]
  • In the game Kingdom of Loathing, eating 420 herb brownies earns you the "Bouquet of Hippies" trophy.
  • The clock tower across from the Huntington Beach, CA pier rings each day at 4:20.
  • A chain of head shops in Japan are all named 4:20.
  • NORML launches a daily podcast entitled "AudioStash" daily at 4:20.
  • A head shop in Athens, GA is named '42 degrees,' when written out with the symbol for the degrees, the name is 42ʘ, obvious play on 420

See also

References

  1. ^ "SFPD Complaint Codes". Retrieved 2006-06-24.
  2. ^ "'THE POWER OF 420' Transforming the universal code into a collective consciousness for stoners". Retrieved 2006-06-24.
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