Eugene Ellsworth Landy (November 26, 1934 – March 22, 2006) was an American psychologist known for his controversial 24-hour therapy program and treatment of celebrity clients.

Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Landy aspired to show business as a teenager, working odd jobs as a radio producer, and was an early manager to guitarist George Benson.

After moving to Los Angeles, he treated many celebrity clients, including musician Alice Cooper and actors Richard Harris, Rod Steiger, Maureen McCormick, and Gig Young.

In 1989, the state of California revoked Landy's professional license amidst accusations of ethical violations and patient misconduct.

[3] Benson later stated, "My people developed a distrust for [Landy] when he made them sign a power of attorney that they didn't understand, and he got all my mail and all my checks.

"[4] Honoring his parents' wishes, Landy resumed his formal education at Los Angeles City College, where he earned an Associate of Arts degree in chemistry.

After falling ill with dysentery while attending medical school at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, he switched to psychology.

[2] The success of 24-hour therapy rests on the extent to which the therapeutic team can exert control over every aspect of the patient's life.

[The therapy would] totally disrupt the privacy of their patient's lives, gaining complete control over every aspect of their physical, personal, social and sexual environments.

Landy began developing ideas for his 24-hour treatment program while engaging in postdoctoral work at Rancho Santa Fe.

[3] In 1968, he worked briefly as an intern at Gateways Hospital in Echo Park, Los Angeles, where he developed his methods further, experimenting with treatment on teenage drug abusers with varying degrees of success.

He attributed his failures to having too little control over their nighttime activities; he tried evening rap groups and made himself available at all hours for talking therapies for their nocturnal anxiety attacks.

[8] Some of Landy's patients included Alice Cooper; Richard Harris; Rod Steiger; and Gig Young, who died in an apparent murder-suicide along with his wife in 1978.

[3] Under Landy's program, he was forced to maintain a routine of exercise and productivity, as well as limit his meetings with friends that were deemed as negative influences.

[18]Beach Boys road manager Rick Nelson later claimed that Landy had attempted to exert unwelcome artistic control over the group.

[20] At Landy's insistence, Wilson appeared on Saturday Night Live, choosing to perform a solo piano rendition of "Good Vibrations" which received mixed feedback.

He said that critics missed the point of this exercise, explaining that Wilson's performance "was a terrible thing" as a one-shot, but if he continued making appearances then he would have gradually overcome his stage fright.

"[26] In 1986, Wilson met his future wife and manager Melinda Ledbetter, a Cadillac saleswoman and former model, while browsing through a car dealership.

[31] In late 1987, Landy and Wilson became creative partners in a company called Brains and Genius, a business venture where each member would contribute equally and share any profits from recordings, films, soundtracks, or books.

[31] In a September 1991 Billboard interview, Landy falsely claimed to have co-written and co-produced the 1965 hit "Eve of Destruction" under the pseudonym P.F.

[31] In February 1988, the State of California Board of Medical Quality charged Landy with ethical and license code violations stemming from the improper prescription of drugs and various unethical personal and professional relationships with patients, citing one case of sexual misconduct with a female patient, along with Wilson's psychological dependency on Landy.

Landy surrendered his psychological license, complying with an agreement made with the state of California, and was not allowed applications for reinstatement for the next two years.

An August 1988 board meeting with the Beach Boys had Landy promising that Brian would reconnect with the group, which Love says: "was a ruse to get us to write a letter in his defense against the California authorities.

"[43] Gilmer left her job two weeks later, taking expired drug bottles as well as names, phone numbers, and bank account information that she later turned over to the California Board of Medical Quality Assurance.

While reading from a piece of paper, Brian was given a microphone and said: "I have heard of the charges made by Stan Love, and I think they are outrageous, which means they are out of the ballpark ...

[45] Audree, Carl, Carnie, and Wendy Wilson contested Landy's control of Brian, pursuing legal action on May 7, 1991.

"[45] The ruling was finalized on February 3, 1992, when Landy was barred by court order from contacting Brian, leaving his affairs to the hands of conservator Jerome S.

Ledbetter said: "After I first saw the film, I had to just drive around for a couple of hours to clear my head, then I remembered that what Landy did to Brian was even worse.

Margalit Fox, obituarist for The New York Times, identified longtime domestic partner Alexandra Morgan as his fourth wife and survivor.

"[61] Music producer Don Was commented in 1995 that Wilson had been "so different from his public image as a drug burnout or of someone catatonic and propped up by a greedy psychologist.