Cannabis Sociables seeks Producer

We are trying to…make the thing sort of a sophisticated weekly get-together of people we dig and who dig us.  Just have ourselves kind of a late-night ball…

Hugh Hefner speaking with Lenny Bruce
Playboy’s Penthouse, October 24, 1959



Link to Stage 32 proposal: http://www.stage32.com/profile/48980/project/cannabis-sociableschanging-world-one-party-time

Healing the world, one party at a time

 Coffeehouse Pitch

Cannabis Sociables will be the Playboy After Dark of this century

Smart  Classy  Fun

A magnet for mainstream viewers—because as you well know

Americans love to watch people they wish they knew,

Hanging at parties they wish they could attend.

I’d play host; a tall, thin, well-groomed 50-something cannabis Yankee

From a pair of conservative Eastern medical families, and conveniently,

A self-taught guitarist and authority on medicinal uses of cannabis

A Hefner party without the Mad Men, alcohol or tobacco

Chatting with smart and interesting creative artists

About their connection with cannabis

THE TWIST

It’s a prohibition-era mask with invited guests treated to beautiful disguises

THE HOOK

Celebrities come on as themselves because they don’t need to hide.

My host persona will draw from

Hefner, Carson, and Benny

A bit of Robin Leach, a dash of Tom Lehrer…

No Dean Martin.

Mr. Hefner made a hero of the martini.

I’m going to do the same for the finest green.

What’s the Attraction?

This reality show will reflect the ‘honesty’ Lenny Bruce talked about with Mr. Hefner back in 1959; it’s actually a party.  The message; Look smart, be well-informed, have fun and act civilized.
 

The show will be popular with college students and young professionals, since many guests will be rising young artists, musicians and actors who see the party as a great place to openly discuss their connection with cannabis.

Cannabis Sociables will attract boomers and senior viewers who use cannabis in the shadows—and have fond memories of The Tonight Show and Playboy After Dark (I was 12, sneaking episodes while the house slept).

Just as Playboy After Hours attracted viewers who didn’t necessarily use alcohol, Cannabis Sociables will attract folks whose view of cannabis has been shaped by the most successful and far-reaching propaganda campaign the world has ever devised.  Americans will tune in for the vibe; beautiful people and intelligent conversation, and along the way we’ll show them the true nature of cannabis and the people who choose it.

 

Why now?
Cannabis use is rising in every demographic and support for full legalization grows with every election cycle.  Legalization is now inevitable, and more viewers than ever are tuning into cannabis-theme shows.

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Who will buy?

ADVERTISERS OUTSIDE OF THE CANNABIS TRADES: Clothes, jewelry, watches, eyeglasses, airlines, travel and resorts, spas and hotels, computing and communication devices, snacks and beverages, chain restaurants, feature films, musical instruments

CANNABIS TRADES ADVERTISERS: Dispensaries, consultants, extract/edibles manufacturers, glass makers, 420 retailers/e-tailers (clothing, merchandise, head shops, cafes), vaporizing and smoking devices, cultivation and processing equipment (lights, nutrients, trimming), grow room builders, ganja vacations

Production Notes

ADDITIONAL REVENUE:  Limited number public ticket sales, product placement, merchandise.

DOMAIN ASSETS:  www.thefinestgreen.com/net/org, www.cannabisrising.com/net/org

AGGRESSIVE ATTITUDE: Some of us who have been ducking and dodging prohibition for decades have had enough of the bullshit.  Like many I use cannabis medicinally and it’s my creative and spiritual muse.  We harm no one, and yet in New Hampshire, for example, they could still come for you; put you away.  National advocacy groups are not taking the case to the people.  For them it’s all about holding smoky festivals to expand the base, and crafting laws with people who were elected to maintain the status quo.  If the American people were shown the truth about cannabis; about how people use it in the context of successful lives, this long and terrible war would be over sooner than later.  This is the way to reach them…

HONEST ENTERTAINMENT:  In the growing field of cannabis programming, content is often defensive, fact-laden, noisy, crazed, or just silly.  That holds minimal appeal for mainstream viewers.  No appeal, no interest, no education; so The Great Prohibition continues.  Cannabis Sociables is a reality show that can tear down the wall and attract Middle Americans.  When they tune in, they’ll learn the truth about cannabis and the sorts of people who use the herb—by way of upscale parties with celebrity guests, talented performers, and smart people respectfully enjoying the finest green.

SMART TALK WITH CREATIVE, ARTICULATE GUESTS:  Cannabis aficionados are often deep thinkers, and Carl will want to hear what they have to say on a wide range of subjects and issues.  Held in undisclosed, classy settings in legal states (a mansion in Newport, a chalet in Telluride, a San Francisco rooftop), these private gatherings will attract socialites, models, fashion designers, musicians, writers, philosophers, visionaries, teachers, artists, inventors, and entrepreneurs. Some guests, like rising artists, will be looking for exposure; most will choose to remain in the shadows…

COMING OUT IN DISGUISE:  Guests not wishing to reveal themselves at the party will be treated to a custom disguise by a team of Hollywood make-up artists.  Well-spoken, successful closet stoners (doctors, lawyers, teachers, moms, dads, stiletto stoners) will finally have the chance to express themselves about cannabis outside of the legal and/or social framework that keeps them underground.  These artsy semi-formals will be visually intoxicating; beautiful guests in disguise mixing with established artists, entertainers and entrepreneurs who no longer feel the need to hide.

EXCESS SELLS:  This house party concept is of course entirely self-serving and hedonistic in the same manner as Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous was for Robin Leach.  Cannabis Sociables will be classy, smart, interesting, and very exclusive.  Viewers will tune in for the vibe, the people, the music, the strain reviews, and especially to see who might drop by to talk cannabis connections with Carl.  In the course of being entertained and dazzled, Americans will receive cannabis truths by way of comments and testimonials from successful, vibrant people they respect, admire, or at least envy.

A CANNABIS TASTING:  Cannabis Sociables will begin with a tantalizing look at the evening’s featured strains.  While the expert (dispensary/seed company sponsors) describes the flavor, medicinal uses and other characteristics, images of the bud and magnification shots are cut with shots of masked guests listening to the presentation.  Several perfectly cured strains will be chosen to demonstrate how different the flowers can be from one another—in appearance and in effect.  A medicinal use practitioner will be on hand to dispense the buds, answer questions, and provide guidance.

CANNABIS ONLY:  Alcohol will not be served and tobacco use will not be shown.  Great food, fresh juice, coffee, tea, smoothies, ice cream, chocolates; a stoner’s culinary paradise…

TRUTH AND MUSIC:  Venues would feature an area for musical exploration; a nice piano, maybe an artisan violin and some beautiful guitars maybe on loan from Taylor Guitar.  Carl will sit in on impromptu jams, which would be encouraged between guest performances. 

PRODUCTION:  One camera would stay with Carl while he greets guests and sparks conversation.  At the same time, other videographers roam in pursuit of musical moments and compelling discussions.  The raw material from each sociable will be cut to make two reality show segments.

SUMMIT GATHERINGS:  Once or twice a season Cannabis Sociables will travel abroad to provide Americans with a look at more progressive countries like Portugal, Spain, the Netherlands, and Argentina.   Stoner celebs (on vacation or shooting on location) will drop by to chat and sample the best of the local green. 

YOUR HOST:  Writer, musician, tincture maker, and cannabis patient/advocate Carl Hedberg, 56, will host the show modeled on Mr. Hefner's socially groundbreaking Playboy’s Penthouse and After Dark shows.  

Carl is not a typical cannabis advocate, and he’s no stoner.  He’s a boomer Yankee with conservative roots who grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts—Dexter School boy, former skeet shooter and curler at The Country Club, MBA from Babson College, co-founder of Boston Bagel, a wholesale business he ran in the 1990s. 

A few years ago Carl managed to take himself off of pharmaceuticals (for headaches) using a potent cannabis tincture he still makes for himself and legal patients.  In 2009 he came out in the Nashua Telegraph about it, and ever since he has been working to find ways to deliver the truth to the world.   

As a father of two teen girls—with one headed for the film industry—Carl says it’s important to tell the truth to young adults who finally have a chance to end this terrible war:

The new generation is not buying the crap anymore, but we still need to fascinate them with the possibilities of freedom before they get caught up in their jobs, money, and family and end up as closet stoners like most of my generation has…

Carl is the son and grandson of Harvard Medical School physicians.  He was named after his mom’s grandfather; Schyler Carl Wells, founder of S. C. Wells & Company, a well-known turn-of-the-century ‘cures and remedies’ maker.  Carl worked as a teaching case writer at the Blank Center for Entrepreneurship at Babson College until 2008.