Freak Power

The Los Angeles freak scene was a movement and subculture that emerged in Southern California during the early-to mid 1960s. The scene was led by Vito Paulekas, who in 1961, along with his wife Szou, established a clothing boutique on the corner of Laurel Avenue and Beverly Boulevard in Hollywood, close to Laurel Canyon. Paulekas assembled an expanding group of associates who were referred to as "freaks" or "freakers". His main partner would be Carl Franzoni, described as a "self-styled leader" of the freak scene. These individuals formed part of his dance troupe, which practiced a style of free-form dancing which noted them in Sunset Strip nightclubs as "an acid-drenched extended family of brain-damaged cohabitants". The scene would also be associated with the "freak-out" movement.