A Five Part Series from TTBOOK!

Public Radio International

Wisconsin Public Radio

THIS SADNESS

Program 07-12-16-A

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Architect Irving Morrow chose orange for the color of the Golden Gate Bridge so it would stand out in the ever-present fog. Spanning high above the mouth of the San Francisco Bay, it's undeniably beautiful. But take a closer look and you might see something else - someone about to jump. In this hour of To The Best Of Our Knowledge, a year at the "suicide bridge."

SEGMENT 1:

Jerome Wakefield is co-author of "The Loss of Sadness: How Psychiatry Transformed Normal Sorrow into Depressive Disorder." Wakefield tells Steve Paulson how the medical profession's attempts to make precise diagnoses have led them to define emotional states as medical conditions.

SEGMENT 2:

Joshua Shenk is the author of "Lincoln's Melancholy: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness." Shenk tells Jim Fleming that Abraham Lincoln never attempted suicide, that we know of, but he refers to it in a poem he wrote, and Shenk recites the poem. Also, Eric Steel is the director of a controversial documentary film called "The Bridge." Steel tells Steve Paulson that his crew filmed The Golden Gate Bridge every daylight minute for one year, and thus witnessed many suicides and even more attempts. Steel tells Steve who comes to the Bridge, why it's such a magnet for suicides, and how his crew tried to intervene.

SEGMENT 3:

Photographer Michael Nye made portraits of mentally ill and homeless people in San Antonio, where he lives, and also recorded their stories. He's put the results together in a powerful mix of words and images. Nye talks with Anne Strainchamps about the experience of working with these people. The photos can be seen at http://www.michaelnye.org/fineline/photoaudio.html.

CD copies are available at 1-800-747-7444. Ask for program number 07-12-16-A.

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Books:

Joshua Wolf Shenk, Lincoln's Melancholy: How Depression Challenged a President and Fueled His Greatness (Mariner Books)
Allan Horwitz and Jerome Wakefield, The Loss of Sadness: How Psychiatry Transformed Normal Sorrow Into Depressive Disorder (Oxford)

Websites:

• To see the photographs from Anne Strainchamps’ interview with Michael Nye, or to hear more stories:
  http://www.michaelnye.org/fineline/photoaudio.html
• For more on the film “The Bridge:”
  http://www.thebridge-themovie.com/new/index.html
• For more on Lincoln’s Melancholy:
  http://www.lincolnsmelancholy.com

Films:

• “The Bridge” A Film By Eric Steel. Distributed by Koch Lorber. (2007)
  

Music:

• Kristin Asbjornsen. “On the Bus” and “Reunion” and “Ice Plant Overture” and “Farewell 1.” Music From the Motion Picture “Factotum.” Milan Music.
• El Perro Del Mar. “This Loneliness” El Perro Del Mar. TCG Media.
• Sparklehorse. “See the Light” and “Morning Hollow.” Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain. Capital Records.
• in the Michael Nye piece: Ennio Morricone. “On Earth as it is in Heaven.” The Mission: Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture. London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Distribution dates: week of 12/16/2007 - hour 1

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