đ Jack Parsons: Rocket Science, Rituals, and the Road to Infamy
Jack Parsons in the 1940s, standing in front of early rocket test equipment.
Before NASA was a household name and before man ever left the Earthâs atmosphere, there was Jack Parsonsâa brilliant, dangerous, and wildly unconventional figure who helped launch Americaâs space program and dabbled in occult rituals by moonlight. To some, he was a misunderstood genius. To others, a reckless mystic. Either way, his legacy is one of the strangest blends of science and sorcery the 20th century ever produced.
Born Marvel Whiteside Parsons in 1914 in Pasadena, California, he was a dreamer from the start. Obsessed with science fiction and explosives, Jack Parsons would grow up to help co-found the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and Aerojet, laying the groundwork for Americaâs missile and rocket technology. But when he wasnât building the future of space travel, he was invoking ancient deities, practicing Thelemic rituals, and writing poetry about fire, flight, and forbidden knowledge.
Jack Parsons became a follower of Aleister Crowleyâs Thelema and eventually led the Los Angeles chapter of the Ordo Templi Orientis (O.T.O.). He saw no contradiction between spiritual experimentation and scientific innovationâin fact, he believed one fueled the other. His personal life was as combustible as his rocket fuel. Affairs, magical workings, and a rotating cast of followers and houseguests made his home a den of intellectual chaos and occult performance.
His name rarely appears in textbooks, but without Jack Parsons, itâs likely the U.S. space program wouldnât have launched when it did. And yet, his legacy remains clouded by controversy, secrecy, and the kind of tabloid-worthy drama that makes his life feel more like a cult thriller than a chapter in science history.
For other mystic leaders, see Anton LaVey
đ§ Early Life
Jack Parsons was born on October 2, 1914, in Los Angeles, California, into a wealthy but fractured family. His parents separated while he was still young, and he was raised by his mother and maternal grandparents in Pasadena. Though he came from privilege, Parsons always felt like an outsider. He was drawn to science fiction and fantasy stories, particularly those that blended the mystical with the futuristicâearly signs of the path heâd later walk.
By his teens, Jack Parsons had become obsessed with rocketry and pyrotechnics, building explosives in his backyard and fantasizing about space travel. He read pulp magazines, experimented with chemistry, and began corresponding with early pioneers in the rocketry community. Though he lacked formal training, his natural brilliance and unshakable confidence would soon place him at the forefront of a scientific revolutionâone that would take him from the desert sands of California to the outer reaches of imagination itself.
đ¤ Career
Jack Parsonsâ professional journey is one of the strangest in American historyâa tale where cutting-edge science and fringe occultism walked hand in hand. In the 1930s, Parsons became a founding member of the Guggenheim Aeronautical Laboratoryâs rocketry group at Caltech, later known as the âSuicide Squadâ for their explosive experiments in the Arroyo Seco canyon. These early tests eventually led to the creation of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the founding of Aerojet, a company that would help launch the U.S. militaryâs first rocket engines.
Though he had no college degree, Jack Parsons' knowledge of chemical propulsion and explosive fuels was unmatched. His innovations were instrumental in the development of solid rocket boostersâtechnology that remains vital to this day. But while his professional achievements were groundbreaking, his personal life was gaining attention for far stranger reasons.
Unicursal Hexagram, the symbol of Thelema
Jack Parsons was deeply involved with Aleister Crowleyâs Thelemic religion and became head of the Agape Lodge, the Los Angeles branch of the Ordo Templi Orientis. He blended scientific experimentation with ritual magick, often conducting occult ceremonies on the same grounds where rocket fuel was being tested. In 1946, his life took a further turn when he invited L. Ron Hubbardâa then-unknown science fiction writerâinto his inner circle. The two embarked on what Parsons called the âBabalon Working,â a series of rituals intended to summon a divine feminine entity. The bizarre partnership ended in betrayal, with Hubbard running off with Parsonsâ girlfriend and a chunk of his life savings.
Despite his contributions to aerospace, Jack Parsonsâ growing notoriety and controversial associations ultimately cost him government contracts and professional standing. He continued to freelance in the field of explosives, but his involvement with the occult, his volatile personality, and his connections to Hubbard and Crowley cast a long shadow over his scientific legacy.
â ď¸ Scandals & Fallout
Jack Parsons was a genius, but he was also a lightning rod for chaos. As his occult practices became more public and his association with controversial figures like Aleister Crowley and L. Ron Hubbard deepened, the U.S. government began to back away. Despite his brilliant work in rocketry, Parsons was viewed as unstable and a potential security riskâespecially during the height of World War II and the early Cold War years. His clearance was revoked, and his role in the very institutions he helped build was effectively erased.
The Hubbard betrayal was both personal and financial. Parsons had trusted the charismatic writer, investing thousands into a business venture that ended with Hubbard disappearingâtaking Jackâs lover and money with him. Though Hubbard would later found Scientology and become a celebrity magnet in his own right, Jack Parsons was left humiliated, his credibility shredded in both scientific and occult circles.
Adding to the damage was the media coverage. Rumors of sex magic, wild parties, and devil-worship filled the local papers, making him a sensational story for all the wrong reasons. He became a cautionary tale in the defense industry: a man too brilliant to ignore, but too unpredictable to trust. By the late 1940s, Jack Parsons was a man cut off from both the scientific community he helped pioneer and the occult world that once embraced him.
Explore the Biographies of Iconic Celebrities
đ Books, Pop Culture & Legacy
Jack Parsons may have died young, but his story refuses to fade. Over the years, his life has been retold, reimagined, and mythologized in books, documentaries, and television. His chaotic blend of science and sorcery inspired countless authors, including biographers like George Pendle, whose book Strange Angel became the basis for the 2018â2020 CBS All Access series of the same name. The show brought Parsonsâ explosive life to a wider audience, introducing a new generation to the man who once tried to summon gods while building rocket engines in the desert.
Jack Parsonsâ ties to Aleister Crowley helped solidify his status in occult circles, but his bizarre relationship with L. Ron Hubbard made him a footnote in Scientology lore as well. That overlap alone links himâhowever uneasilyâto Hollywood stars like Tom Cruise and John Travolta, whose careers have been intertwined with Hubbardâs legacy. While Jack Parsons didnât live to see the media empires built by those he once trusted, his influence ripples beneath the surface of both science and pop culture.
Parsons has also shown up in fiction. Elements of his life appear in novels by William S. Burroughs and comics like The Invisibles by Grant Morrison. Occult-themed bands and underground filmmakers have paid tribute to his life, seeing in him a kind of tragic antiheroâbrilliant, reckless, visionary, and doomed. Even in death, Parsons remains a symbol of rebellion, intellect, and the danger of mixing belief with ambition.
Though his name is often left out of official histories, those who look closer find a legacy filled with invention, betrayal, and mysticism. He may not be on NASAâs wall of fame, but Jack Parsons launched more than rocketsâhe ignited imaginations, and his story still burns.
đ§ The Strange Legacy of Jack Parsons
Jack Parsons lived fast, dreamed big, and left behind a legacy too wild for textbooks and too compelling to forget. He helped push rocketry from science fiction to scientific fact, then watched from the sidelines as others took credit for the future he helped create. At the same time, he plunged headfirst into ritual magick and occult belief, convinced that human potentialâlike a rocketâwas meant to break boundaries.
He died in 1952 at just 37 years old, in an explosion at his home lab that some called an accident and others suspected was something more. Whatever the cause, it was a fittingly dramatic end to a life that defied every category. He was a scientist who summoned spirits, a visionary destroyed by the very systems he helped build, and a man whose legacy still flickers at the strange intersection of space, science, and the supernatural.
ML Lamp is the owner of Kilroy Was Here. After his 20 years of working in Las Vegas in the entertainment promotions field, Mr. Lamp retired in 2002 from his job to pursue his passion for collectibles. Now as a guest speaker and author he’s living the dream, and sharing his warmth with You.