Episode 214: Luke Dittrich

Luke Dittrich is a contributing editor at Esquire. His new book is Patient H.M.: A Story of Memory, Madness, and Family Secrets. “As soon as I told [my mom] that I got my first book deal for this story about Patient H.M., her first words were, ‘Oh no.’ That was sort of her gut reaction to it because, I think, she knew at a certain level that I was going to be dredging up very painful stories. And I think at that point even she didn’t know the depth of the pain that some of the stories that I was going to find were going to lay out there.” Thanks to MailChimp, EA SPORTS FIFA 17, Squarespace, Wunder, and Audible for sponsoring this week's episode. Dittrich on Longform [2:15] Longform Podcast #66: Andy Ward [2:45] "The Brain That Couldn’t Remember" (New York Times Magazine • Aug 2016) [4:15] "Possessed" (Atlanta Magazine • Nov 2003) [Google Books] [4:15] "The Red Zone" (Atlanta Magazine • Jul 2004) [Google Books] [4:30] Patient H.M.: A Story of Memory, Madness, and Family Secrets (Random House • 2016) [12:00] "The Brain That Changed Everything" (Esquire • Oct 2010) [13:30] The Alexandria Quartet (Lawrence Durrell • Pocket Books • 1977) [16:00] Egypt Today [20:15] journalismjobs.com [18:15] Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story (John Berendt • Vintage Books • 1999) [19:15] "Pageants Are My Life" (Oxford American • May 2001) [sub req’d] [24:00] "H.M., an Unforgettable Amnesiac, Dies at 82" (Benedict Carey • New York Times • Dec 2008) [32:30] "A Book Examines the Curious Case of a Man Whose Memory Was Removed" (Seth Mnookin • New York Times • Aug 2016) [37:15] "Faculty at MIT and beyond respond forcefully to an article critical of Suzanne Corkin" (MIT News Office • MIT News • Aug 2016) [37:45] "Questions & Answers about ‘Patient H.M.’" (Medium • Aug 2016) [43:00] "Tonight on Dateline This Man Will Die" (Esquire • Sep 2007) [43:00] "The Prophet" (Esquire • Jul 2013) [46:30] Chris Hansen’s new “predator” project [47:00] "Esquire Article on Eben Alexander Distorts the Facts" (Robert Mays • International Association For Near Death Studies • Aug 2013) [48:45] Proof of Heaven: A Neurosurgeon’s Journey into the Afterlife (Eben Alexander • Simon & Schuster • 2012) [50:45] "'Heavenly Father!' 'I love you all!' 'I love everyone!' 'Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus! Jesus!' 'I love all of you!'" (Esquire • Sep 2011) [51:30] "Chuck Berry Goddamn!" (Esquire • Dec 2011)