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This Infamous Party Drug Is Quietly Making a Comeback, Thanks to ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’

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13.09.2026

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This Infamous Party Drug Is Quietly Making a Comeback, Thanks to ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’

The long-banned sedative is resurfacing in underground drug circles, fueled in part by nostalgia and renewed curiosity after the 2013 film.

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Quaaludes are back. The prescription drug that once made millions of Americans euphoric enough to turn a sleeping pill into a national phenomenon that became such a problem that it was eventually banned in 1984 is somehow slithering its way out of the shadows.  

VICE reported on the drug’s quiet resurgence in July, and now The Guardian has documented its slow return to underground drug circles.

For most people, Quaaludes are a pop cultural artifact from a time before they were born, when 70s rock bands touring the world needed to take the edge off, so they used a tranquilizer. For others, the only interaction they ever had with the drug was via........

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