The Bizarre Careers of John R. Brinkley (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "The Appalachian Mountain area of North Carolina, into which the Brinkleys migrated during the colonial era, has a rugged terrain but a pleasant, mild climate..." (more)
Key Phrases: goat gland doctor, goat gland operation, gland transplantation, Del Rio, Kansas City, John Brinkley (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Anybody with an interest in Kansas history, or the personalities that are a part of that history, will enjoy it." -- Manhattan Mercury

"Brinkley was without question one of the most irregular and deceptive medical figures of the U.S. during the twentieth century." -- Janes H. Young

"Crisp, meticulous and cheerfully cynical." -- Lexington Herald-Leader

Review

"In his splendid book, R. Alton Lee tells the story of a charlatan who used the radio to advertise his outrageous cures for impotence and to promote his amazing political career.-- Associated Press" -- Associated Press

"Now come Mr. Lee, a serious historian and author, who became captivated by the facts and myths of the man and has produced a very sound and captivating book.-- Baltimore Sun" -- Baltimore Sun

"Long before magnet therapy and miracle diet pills, one man in the United States invented much of the modern era of health quackery.-- Bloomsbury Review" -- Bloomsbury Review

"A documented, unbiased, and thorough... account that suggests Brinkley wasn't really a charlatan and quack (his medical education was somewhat better than average for his time) but was a first-rate con man.... A high-quality biography of a once-famous, then notorious, but now little-known figure.-- Booklist" -- Booklist

"A case can be made that Brinkley was the most important medical charlatan in our history. R. Alton Lee has given us the finest account yet of the Brinkley story.-- Bulletin of the History of Medicine" -- Bulletin of the History of Medicine

"Lee has written a sympathetic, balanced biography of a man who represented a not uncommon, but dying, breed of physician in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.-- Choice" -- Choice

"An informative and entertaining account of this larger-than-life character.... A thoroughgoing assessment of one of America's foremost twentieth-century quacks.-- Great Plains Quarterly" -- Great Plains Quarterly

"John Brinkley was without question one of the half dozen most irregular and deceptive medical figures of the United States during the twentieth century, even had he not also pioneered advertising over the radio and entered politics, running for the Senate from Kansas.-- James H. Young" -- James H. Young

"Probably the most complete life study of the radio phenomenon of the 1930s.... The saga of this flawed genius is told with good humor, grudging respect, and considerable detail.-- Journal of Southern History" -- Journal of Southern History

"A good read; it offers a glimpse into a bizarre episode of the past.-- Journal of the West" -- Journal of the West

"Records an interesting chapter in Kansas's history and paves the way for further scholarship on John R. Brinkley, the Kansas 'goat gland doctor.'-- Kansas History" -- Kansas History

"Crisp, meticulous and cheerfully cynical.-- Lexington Herald-Leader" -- Lexington Herald-Leader

"Anybody with an interest in Kansas history, or in the personalities that are a part of that history, will enjoy it.-- Manhattan Mercury" -- Manhattan Mercury

"Alton Lee tells the story of a charlatan who used the radio to advertise his outrageous cures for impotence and to promote his amazing political career.-- Minneapolis Star, Indianapolis Star, Claremont (NH) Eagle Times" -- Minneapolis Star, Indianapolis Star, Claremont (NH) Eagle Times

"Those interested in American charlatanism will enjoy the tale of this 'showman par excellence.'-- Publishers Weekly" -- Publishers Weekly

"Follows Brinkley's remarkable career from Beta (outside Sylva) to Medford, Kansas to Del Rio, Texas and beyond. It is an astonishing journey, and it answers all the 'fact or fiction' questions about this man who lived a life that could only occur in America.-- Smoky Mountain News" -- Smoky Mountain News

"Brinkley's medical curiosity not only led to advanced medical research but also his use of radio for campaigning changed American politics forever. This story of Dr. Brinkley's life and times is an American epic.-- St. Joseph News-Press" -- St. Joseph News-Press

"No one has ever gone broke overestimating the desire of men to boost their sexual prowess. But decades before Viagra, another, less medically sound solution came sweeping across the Kansas plains: transplanted goat testicals.-- U.S. News & World Report" -- U.S. News & World Report

"Lee's fun -- and shocking -- biography brings back to life the brilliant and deceitful Brinkley (1885-1942), who made and lost millions of dollars in a scam claiming to restore sexual vitality by implanting the sex glands of goats into humans.-- Wall Street Journal" -- Wall Street Journal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: The University Press of Kentucky (May 10, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0813122325
• ISBN-13: 978-0813122328
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,271,769 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Good Bio of The Good Doctor, November 5, 2007

By	Steve Sugarek (Skidmore, Texas) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I would highly recommend this biography to anyone! Imagine a movie about Dr. Brinkley starring Robin Williams............