Mildred Newman | |
---|---|
Born | Mildred Rubenstein 1919 or 1920 |
Died | (aged 81) |
Alma mater | Hunter College |
Mildred Newman (née Rubenstein), was an American psychologist and author known for her self-help books.
Early life
Newman's mother was from Russia, and Newman grew up in Manhattan. Newman gained an undergraduate degree (1940) and a master's degree (1943) from Hunter College. Prior to working as a psychologist, Newman spent time studying modern dance and was an artists' model. She trained as a psychoanalyst at the National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, which was founded by Theodor Reik.
Career
Newman started her psychoanalyst practice in New York City in the middle of the 1950s. She realized that her patients needed a place to have positive feedback, and in 1971 she and her husband Bernard Berkowitz started a book that became How to Be Your Own Best Friend. In 2018, an article in the New York Post attributed the self-help industry that followed back to this 1971 book.
Newman worked with many clients, starting with Paula Prentiss,Anthony Perkins, George Segal, Neil Simon, Nora Ephron, and others. She and her husband treated so many celebrities that they were known as "therapists of the stars". She and her husband also participated in social events with her clients.
Newman was a proponent of conversion therapy, famously treating Perkins with electroshock to supposedly "cure" his homosexuality; for this, Perkins' friend and collaborator Stephen Sondheim described her to author Mark Harris as "completely unethical and a danger to humanity."
Personal life
Her first husband was Philip Newman, though they later divorced. She met her second husband, Bernard Berkowitz as a teenager waiting in line for a concert, and they married in 1962. By 1978 they were sharing recipes in a newspaper article that was one of a series on celebrity recipes. Newman died of a pulmonary embolism on November 6, 2001, aged 81.
Selected publications
- Newman, Mildred; Stern, E. Mark (1964). "The Age Game". Psychoanalytic Review. 51B (2): 63–74. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Newman, Mildred; Berkowitz, Bernard (1974). How to be your own best friend; a conversation with two psychoanalysts. Jean Owen ( ed.). New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-24333-1. OCLC 1338573.
- Newman, Mildred (2016). How to be awake and alive. Bernard Berkowitz. New York, NY: Random House Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-399-59037-5. OCLC 953848210.
- Newman, Mildred (1977). How to take charge of your life. Bernard Berkowitz (1st ed.). New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. ISBN 0-15-142192-7. OCLC 2907334.
References
- ^ Farber, Stephen; Green, Marc (1993). Hollywood on the couch : a candid look at the overheated love affair between psychiatrists and moviemakers. Internet Archive. New York : W. Morrow. ISBN 978-0-87795-998-4.
- ^ Berman, Susan (1977-07-03). "Of marriages and families". The San Francisco Examiner. p. 276. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- ^ Oliver, Myrna (2001-11-13). "Obituary for Mildred Rubenstein Newman (Aged 81)". The Los Angeles Times. p. 13. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- ^ Saxon, Wolfgang (November 9, 2001). "Mildred R. Newman, 81, Psychologist and Popular Author". The New York Times.
- ^ Weisberg, Jessica (2018-04-14). "The reason Americans are obsessed with advice". New York Post. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
- "obituaries". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. 2001-11-12. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
- Winecoff, Charles (1996). Split image : the life of Anthony Perkins. New York, N.Y., U.S.A. ISBN 0-525-94064-2. OCLC 34281870.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Harris, Mark (2021). Mike Nichols : a life. New York. ISBN 978-0-399-56224-2. OCLC 1152495536.
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: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Blinn, Johna (1978-01-04). "Psychologists' specials: chicken and shrimp". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 21. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Anthologized in
- Strean, Herbert S. (1970). New approaches in child guidance. Internet Archive. Metuchen, N.J., Scarecrow Press. pp. 300–313. ISBN 978-0-8108-0330-5.
- Reviews
- Schwartz, Harry (1973-10-13). "Books of The Times". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Hodel, John (1974-06-25). "'Shrinks' tell 'how to be your own best friend'". The Raleigh Register. p. 4. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Reviews
- "Books of The Times". The New York Times. 1975-07-04. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Fisher, John (1975-08-31). "A way to adopt real life". The Pittsburgh Press. p. 91. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Reviews
- Lewin, Leonard C. (1977-09-04). "Me First". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Winston, Iris (1977-08-08). "Accounting time". Edmonton Journal. p. 8. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
- Lawson, Herman (1977-07-17). "How to take charge of your life". Daily Press. p. 131. Retrieved 2022-09-05.