EXHIBIT 99.1
                                                                ------------



        ARIAD Names Chief Commercial Officer to Build Oncology Business

     CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 1, 2005--ARIAD Pharmaceuticals,
Inc. (Nasdaq: ARIA) today announced the appointment of Richard W. Pascoe to the
newly created position of vice president and chief commercial officer. In this
role, Mr. Pascoe will be responsible for developing and leading the marketing
and sales organization necessary to launch and commercialize ARIAD's lead
oncology product candidate, AP23573, which is targeted to enter its initial
registration trial next year.
     "Mr. Pascoe has a proven track record in launching new pharmaceutical
products in various therapeutic categories and managing all of the requisite
components of a successful marketing and sales organization," said Harvey J.
Berger, M.D., chairman and chief executive officer of ARIAD. "He has drawn on
his superb leadership skills - team building, goal definition and staff
motivation, combined with courage, integrity and character - to bring out the
best in people and consistently achieve impressive results."
     Dr. Berger added, "The recruitment of Mr. Pascoe as chief commercial
officer positions us well to achieve two of our key corporate objectives:
readiness to launch AP23573 in the U.S. ourselves and establishment of a
partnership to commercialize AP23573 outside the U.S."
     Since 2000, Mr. Pascoe has held a series of senior management roles at King
Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading specialty pharmaceutical company developing and
marketing novel branded prescription products. Most recently, he held senior
vice president positions in both marketing and sales, and previously, he held
vice president positions in both international sales and marketing and hospital
sales. Prior to King, he was in the commercial groups at Medco Research, Inc.
(which was acquired by King), COR Therapeutics, Inc. (where he helped lead the
successful launch of eptifibatide (Integrilin(R))), B. Braun Interventional and
The BOC Group.
     "I am pleased to join Dr. Berger and his team as ARIAD advances AP23573 in
the treatment of devastating cancers such as advanced sarcomas. Our plan is to
build a world-class commercial organization to support ARIAD's
forward-integration strategy and successfully launch AP23573 in the U.S. once
regulatory approval is achieved," said Mr. Pascoe.
     Mr. Pascoe received his B.S. degree in Leadership Studies from the U.S.
Military Academy at West Point. Upon graduation, he served as a Commissioned
Officer with the U.S. Army 24th Infantry Division, including being advisor to
the Brigade Commander during Operation Desert Storm, where he was awarded
numerous combat and peacetime decorations.

     About ARIAD

     ARIAD is engaged in the discovery and development of breakthrough medicines
to treat disease by regulating cell signaling with small molecules. The Company
is developing a comprehensive approach to patients with cancer that addresses
the greatest medical need - aggressive and advanced-stage cancers for which
current treatments are inadequate. Medinol Ltd. also is developing stents and
other medical devices that deliver ARIAD's lead cancer product candidate to
prevent reblockage at sites of vascular injury following stent-assisted
angioplasty. ARIAD has an exclusive license to pioneering technology and patents
related to certain NF-(kappa)B treatment methods, and the discovery and
development of drugs to regulate NF-(kappa)B cell-signaling activity, which may
be useful in treating certain diseases. Additional information about ARIAD can
be found on the web at http://www.ariad.com.

     Some of the matters discussed herein are "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such
statements are identified by the use of words such as "anticipate," "estimate,"
"expect," "project," "intend," "plan," "believe," and other words and terms of
similar meaning in connection with any discussion of future operating or
financial performance. Such statements are based on management's current
expectations and are subject to certain factors, risks and uncertainties that
may cause actual results, outcome of events, timing and performance to differ
materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.
These risks include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding
the Company's ability to accurately estimate the timing and actual research and
development expenses and other costs associated with the preclinical and
clinical development and manufacture of our product candidates the adequacy of
our capital resources and the availability of additional funding, risks and
uncertainties regarding our or our collaborator's ability to manufacture our
product candidates on a commercial scale or to supply our product candidates to
collaborators, risks and uncertainties regarding our ability to successfully
enroll and conduct preclinical and clinical studies of product candidates,
including our product candidate to treat various cancers described in this
release and our collaborator's medical device product candidate to treat
vascular disease, risks and uncertainties that clinical trial results at any
phase of development may be adverse or may not be predictive of future results
or lead to regulatory approval of any of our or any collaborator's product
candidates, risks and uncertainties of third-party intellectual property claims
relating to our and any collaborator's product candidates, and risks and
uncertainties relating to regulatory oversight, the timing, scope, cost and
outcome of legal proceedings, including litigation concerning our NF-(kappa)B
patent portfolio, future capital needs, key employees, dependence on
collaborators and manufacturers, markets, economic conditions, products,
services, prices, reimbursement rates, competition and other risks detailed in
the Company's public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
including ARIAD's Annual Report on Form 10-K, as amended, for the fiscal year
ended December 31, 2004. The information contained in this document is believed
to be current as of the date of original issue. The Company does not intend to
update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this document to
conform these statements to actual results or to changes in the Company's
expectations, except as required by law.

     CONTACT: Ed Fitzgerald (Investors)
              (617) 621-2345
                    or
              Sheryl Seapy (Media)
              Pure Communications
              (949) 608-0841



                                        5