It was at his request, and I don’t think LSD was illegal or regulated in 1963. At that time it was mainly an interesting chemical which had been invented by Dr. Albert Hofmann in 1938. Professional people (and the CIA) studied its effects in the ‘50s and ‘60s, but it didn’t really become a recreational drug until the mid ‘60s.
Aldous Huxley’s ‘Doors of Perception’ is an interesting read (in addition to being the inspiration for the name of Jim Morrison’s band). In that book Huxley wrote about his experiments with mescaline, which is derived from peyote and has hallucinatory effects similar to LSD.
FRegards,
LH
Thanks very much, L H.