Joseph J Schildkraut, 1934–2006

Abstract

Joseph Jacob Schildkraut died in June last year following a year-long struggle with esophageal cancer. Joe (everyone called him Joe) was born in Brooklyn, NY, in 1934, but he lived the overwhelming majority of his life from college onward in the Boston area. This paper, which, it may be fairly said, launched a revolution in the general understanding of neurotransmitter function and affective disorders and formed the basis for research in the field for at least the following 20 years, is the most frequently cited paper ever published in the American Journal of Psychiatry (AJP). He was honored by the New York Times on December 31st, 2006, by being listed as one of the people of significance in 'The Lives They Lived' section. This was not for this work on the biochemistry of depression, rather it was for his contributions to the understanding of artistic creativity and mood. We learned then about yet one other aspect of Joe-that he followed football games, particularly Harvard games, with great interest. Just one more thing that Joe knew about in great detail. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)