Mildred Newman

Mildred Newman
Born	Mildred Rubenstein[1]: 279  1919 or 1920
Died	November 6, 2001 (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,[2] and Newman grew up in Manhattan.[3] Newman gained an undergraduate degree (1940) and a master's degree (1943) from Hunter College.[4] Prior to working as a psychologist, Newman spent time studying modern dance and was an artists' model.[1]: 279  She trained as a psychoanalyst at the National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis, which was founded by Theodor Reik.[1]: 280 [4]

Career

Newman started her psychoanalyst practice in New York City in the middle of the 1950s.[5] 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.[5] In 2018, an article in the New York Post attributed the self-help industry that followed back to this 1971 book.[5]

Newman worked with many clients, starting with Paula Prentiss,[1]: 280–281 Anthony Perkins,[1]: 283–284  George Segal, Neil Simon, Nora Ephron, and others.[6] She and her husband treated so many celebrities that they were known as "therapists of the stars".[2] She and her husband also participated in social events with her clients.[1]: 287–288 

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."[7][8]

Personal life

Her first husband was Philip Newman, though they later divorced.^[when?][1]: 280  She met her second husband, Bernard Berkowitz as a teenager[2] waiting in line for a concert, and they married in 1962.[1]: 280  By 1978 they were sharing recipes in a newspaper article that was one of a series on celebrity recipes.[9] Newman died of a pulmonary embolism on November 6, 2001, aged 81.[3][4]

Selected publications

• Newman, Mildred; Stern, E. Mark (1964). "The Age Game". Psychoanalytic Review. 51B (2): 63–74. Retrieved 2022-09-05.[10]
• Newman, Mildred; Berkowitz, Bernard (1974). How to be your own best friend; a conversation with two psychoanalysts. Jean Owen ([1st U.S. ed.] ed.). New York: Ballantine Books. ISBN 0-345-24333-1. OCLC 1338573.[11]
• 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.[12]
• 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.[13]

References

1. 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.
2. Berman, Susan (1977-07-03). "Of marriages and families". The San Francisco Examiner. p. 276. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
3. Oliver, Myrna (2001-11-13). "Obituary for Mildred Rubenstein Newman (Aged 81)". The Los Angeles Times. p. 13. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
4. Saxon, Wolfgang (November 9, 2001). "Mildred R. Newman, 81, Psychologist and Popular Author". The New York Times.
5. Weisberg, Jessica (2018-04-14). "The reason Americans are obsessed with advice". New York Post. Retrieved 2022-07-19.
6. "obituaries". The Washington Post. Washington, D.C. 2001-11-12. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
7. Winecoff, Charles (1996). Split image : the life of Anthony Perkins. New York, N.Y., U.S.A. ISBN 0-525-94064-2. OCLC 34281870.
8. Harris, Mark (2021). Mike Nichols : a life. New York. ISBN 978-0-399-56224-2. OCLC 1152495536.
9. Blinn, Johna (1978-01-04). "Psychologists' specials: chicken and shrimp". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 21. Retrieved 2022-09-05.
10. 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.
11. 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.
12. 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.
13. 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.