One of the most controversial medical procedures in history - Jenell Johnson
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In 1935, researchers found that after removing the frontal lobes of two chimps, they no longer experienced frustration or anxiety. Neurologist Egas Moniz believed that replicating this in humans could cure mental illness— leading to one of the most controversial and destructive medical treatments of the 20th century: the lobotomy. Jenell Johnson uncovers the history of the procedure.
Additional Resources for you to Explore
Want to read more about lobotomy? If you’re interested in learning more about the history of the procedure, take a look at Jack Pressman’s book Last Resort, which offers a comprehensive account of lobotomy’s rise and fall in medicine, and Jenell Johnson’s American Lobotomy, which explores the impact of popular culture on the procedure. To learn more about Walter Freeman, the doctor who popularized lobotomy in the United States, Jack El-Hai’s book The Lobotomist offers a readable biography. If you’d like to learn more about lobotomy from a patient’s perspective, listen to this interview with Howard Dully, or read his memoir My Lobotomy.
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Meet The Creators
- Educator Jenell Johnson
- Director Anton Bogaty
- Narrator Addison Anderson
- Composer Cem Misirlioglu, Work Play Work
- Sound Designer Cem Misirlioglu, Work Play Work
- Produced by Gerta Xhelo, Abdallah Ewis
- Editorial Director Alex Rosenthal
- Editorial Producer Dan Kwartler
- Script Editor Stephanie Honchell Smith
- Fact-Checker Charles Wallace
