Who founded the Church of Satan in 1966?

The Church of Satan was established in San Francisco, California, United States of America, in 1966 by Anton Szandor LeVay (born Howard Stanton Levey; 1930-1997), an American author, musician, and occultist. He was the founder of the Church of Satan and the religion of Satanism. He authored several books, including "The Satanic Bible", "The Satanic Rituals", and others.

In the spring of 1966, the United States was marked by unrest and experimentation. War was raging in Vietnam, flower power was popping up in San Francisco, and California groove music was all over the radio. It was an ideal environment for provocateurs, a fact that was not lost on LaVey, then a 36-year-old showman who claimed he’d worked in the past as an occult investigator and a performer in a traveling circus.

He invented a new role for himself, shaving his head and forming the Church of Satan. LaVey organized his church around a philosophy of self-indulgence and excess but still played around with devil worship motifs, vamping in a cape, and wearing a bulbous ring that he claimed could grant little children their wishes. He drove around town in a coroner's van, and walked his black pet leopard, named Zoltan.

Anton LaVey remained the Church's High Priest until his death in 1997. In 2001, the church's headquarters were moved to Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City. The church’s headquarters is now located in Poughkeepsie, New York. Its membership numbers are not disclosed.