A convenient synthesis of 5alpha,8alpha,14alpha,17alpha-5,17:8,14-dimethano-5,8,14,17-tetraaza-5,6,7,8,13,14,17,18-octahydrodibenzo[e,e']benzo[1,2-a:3,4-a']dicyclooctene derivatives is described, and the compounds have been fully characterized by NMR; in some cases, the molecular structure has been determined by X-ray crystallography. These compounds represent the first examples of a new class of molecular tweezers.