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Patty Duke speaks frankly about her crippling manic depression
Identifier
028285
Type of Spiritual Experience
Background
Anna Marie "Patty" Duke (December 14, 1946 – March 29, 2016) was an American actress, appearing on stage, film, and television. Her first big break came from her Academy Award winning performance at age 16 for portraying Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker (1962), a role that she had originated on Broadway. The following year she was given her own show, The Patty Duke Show, in which she played the dual role of "identical cousins" Cathy and Patty Lane. She later progressed to more mature roles such as that of Neely O'Hara in the film Valley of the Dolls (1967).
Over the course of her career, she received ten Emmy Award nominations and three Emmy Awards as well as two Golden Globe Awards. Duke also served as president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1985 to 1988.
Duke was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1982, after which she devoted much of her time to advocating for and educating the public on mental health.
A description of the experience
Patty Duke speaks frankly about her crippling manic depression
"“Patty Duke dedicated the last few years of her life to talking about what it was like to live with bipolar disorder. She was fearlessly honest and wanted others to know that they weren't alone,” said Ed Moore, producer, director and writer of “Ride The Tiger: A Guide Through the Bipolar Brain,” about the Oscar-winning actress who is featured in the film and who passed away March 29, 2016, at the age of 69.
Duke is one of nearly 6 million Americans who have been diagnosed with the disorder and yet little is known about how the illness manifests itself in our brains. The film, which will air on PBS stations nationwide April 13, 2016, tells the story of highly accomplished individuals -- congressmen, attorneys, pastors and authors -- who have been diagnosed as bipolar.
Narrated by David Ogden Stiers (“American Experience”), co-written by National Book Award-winning author Andrew Solomon (“The Noonday Demon”) and directed by Moore, the documentary seeks to find out where the biological breakdowns occur and how we can possibly pre-empt, fix or rewire our brains back to recovery."