Alexander Shulgin

Alexander Theodore "Sasha" Shulgin (June 17, 1925 – June 2, 2014) was an American medicinal chemist, biochemist, pharmacologist, psychopharmacologist, and writer. He introduced MDMA (an ingredient of "ecstasy") to psychologists in the late 1970s for psychopharmaceutical use.
Shulgin was born in Berkeley, California. He was of Russian origin. His son, Theodore, died from cancer on May 15, 2011. Before he died, he was living on a farm in Lafayette, California.
Shulgin died of liver cancer in his home in Lafayette, California on June 2, 2014, aged 88. He was outlived by his wife, Ann Shulgin.