Alan Watts was a philosopher, academic and theologian, who wrote and spoke widely on Asian philosophy and theology. He became a cult figure in the 50s and 60s, lecturing and presenting radio shows in San Francisco and the Bay Area. His ideas especially gained a following in counter-cultural circles, including among the Beat generation.

He is best known as an interpreter of Zen Buddhism in particular, and of Indian and Chinese philosophy in general. He was the author of more than twenty books on the philosophy and psychology of religion including Behold the Spirit, The Way of Zen, and Cloud-Hidden, Whereabouts Unknown: A Mountain Journal. He died in 1973.