Ullman, Montague (1916-)

Psychiatrist, parapsychologist, and trustee of the American Society for Psychical Research. He was born on September 9, 1916, in New York City and studied at the City College of New York (B.S., 1935), New York University College of Medicine (M.D., 1938), and New York Medical College (1948). After graduation, he joined the psychoanalytic faculty of New York Medical College (1950-62). Having encountered psi events in his counseling work, he began to work with Gardner Murphy in exploring ESP experimentally. With Murphy and Laura Dale, he helped establish the medical section of the ASPR. The section lasted until 1953.

That same year, the REM (or rapid eye movement) stage of sleep was discovered. Ullman soon had the idea of using REM sleep in a controlled experiment in telepathy. With funds provided by the Parapsychology Foundation, Ullman, Karlis Osis, and E. Douglas Dean carried out the initial experiments. Murphy then arranged for a large grant for the establishment of the famous Dream Laboratory at Maimonides Hospital in New York City. Ullman became its initial director and an associate professor of psychiatry at Downstate Medical Center, State University of New York. The work of the dream laboratory produced some striking results, leading Ullman to conclude that altered states of consciousness, such as dreaming, were associated with ESP.

In 1966 Ullman was elected president of the Parapsychological Association. He is the author of numerous papers and several books, the most important for parapsychology being his work on dream telepathy.

Sources:

Ullman, Montague. "On the Occurrence of Telepathic Dreams." Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research (April 1959).

Ullman, Montague, and Roberto Cavanna, eds. Proceedings of an International Conference on Hypnosis, Drugs, Dreams and Psi: Psi and Altered States of Consciousness. New York: Parapsychology Foundation, 1968.

Ullman, Montague, and Stanley Krippner. Dream Studies and Telepathy: An Experimental Approach. New York: Parapsychology Foundation, 1970.

Ullman, Montague, Stanley Krippner, and Alan Vaughan. Dream Telepathy. 1979. Reprint, Los Angeles: J. P. Tarcher, 1985.

Ullman, Montague, and Nan Zimmerman. Working with Dreams. London: Hutchinson, 1983.