List of Huntington's disease media depictions

Huntington's disease has been shown in numerous formats, more so as awareness of the condition has increased. Here is a list of references to it in popular culture;

Books

• Jacqueline Susann's 1966 American novel Valley of the Dolls (night club singer Tony Polar).
• Kurt Vonnegut's 1985 American novel Galapagos.
• Robert J. Sawyer's 1997 Canadian novel Frameshift (main character Pierre Tardivel).
• Pål Johan Karlsen's 2002 Norwegian novel Daimler (main character Daniel Grimsgaard is afflicted).
• Diane Tullson's 2001 Canadian novel Saving Jasey (Trist, Jasey and their Grandfather).
• Nancy Werlin's 2004 American novel Double Helix (Ava Samuels, Kayla Matheson and others).
• Steven T. Seagle's autobiographical 2004 American graphic novel It's a Bird features the author coming to grips with the presence of HD in his family.^[1]
• Ian McEwan's 2005 British novel Saturday. The character of Baxter is negatively portrayed in his affliction.^[2]
• Joe Klein's Woody Guthrie: A Life The book discloses the effects of the disorder in both Woody Guthrie and his mother.
• Nick O'Donohoe's Crossroads books (BJ Vaughan has HD).
• Ann Brashares's 2011 American novel "Sisterhood Everlasting" (later found one of the four "sisters", Tibby Rollins, had HD)

Films

• Arlo Guthrie's 1969 film Alice's Restaurant

Television

• Joseph Campanella in the 1970 episode "Dance to No Music" from the series Marcus Welby, M.D.
• Edward Dunglass the goth teen from the Australian soap opera "Home And Away" (1999–2000)
• Dr. Samantha O'Hara from the Australian medical drama All Saints.
• Hannah's father from the American drama Everwood, as revealed in the episode "Need to Know" (3x10).
• Characters in the episodes "Pad'ar" (3x08) and "the Sins of the Father" (4x03) of Gene Roddenberry's Earth: Final Conflict.
• Angie Padgett from the episode "In Which Charlotte Goes Down the Rabbit Hole" (1x06) of Private Practice.
• Dr. Remy "Thirteen" Hadley, one of the doctors who joins House's second team on House
• An episode of the BBC drama Waterloo Road
• The ER season 9 episode "Insurrection" featured a completely disabled man with Huntington's. During the chaos caused when Dr. John Carter leads a walk-out to protest unsafe working conditions, the man's mother disconnects his ventilator so that he can die in peace. Dr. Susan Lewis figures out what the mother did but protects her.
• In the season 8 finale of Scrubs, a woman is diagnosed with Huntington's disease, and her son has to make the decision to find out whether or not he also has the condition.
• In The Bold Ones: The New Doctors, Dr. Paul Hunter counsels a pregnant woman whose irritable husband is found to have the disease. After explaining the 50-50 odds, he advises her to have the baby, trusting in the advance of medical science.
• The episode "Second Sight" of the third season of Without a Trace ends with the revelation that the disappearance and kidnapping of the girl Malone's team was searching for, was in truth an elaborate set-up so that she could return to her estranged gypsy family - a decision she took after discovering she had the disease, inherited from her grandmother. Knowing she just wants to live the time she has left with her parents, Malone lets her and her father go.
• In the season 4 of Breaking Bad, a Walter White shares a childhood memory of his father who was diagnosed with Huntington's disease.
• "Fighting Huntington's Disease", a 2010 episode of the CBC News Network documentary series Connect with Mark Kelley, depicted the life and work of Huntington's disease researcher and advocate Dr Jeff Carroll, himself a carrier of the genetic mutation that causes Huntington's disease.^[3] The episode was nominated for a Gemini award for 'Best Lifestyle/Practical Information Segment.^[4]

Radio

• Mind Matters: RTÉ Radio 1 programme on Huntington's Disease, featuring a family affected from Ireland.
• Huntington's disease - two part ABC Radio National "The Health Report" program on the disorder examines the effects on families and the challenges it presents for the health system and society. (part 2)

References

1. ^ Seagle, Steven T.; Teddy Kristiansen (2004). It's a Bird. New York: Vertigo. pp. 123. ISBN 978-1401203115. http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/55071368?tab=details#tabs. 
2. ^ Nancy S Wexler and Michael D Rawlins (2005). "Prejudice in a portrayal of Huntington's disease". The Lancet 366 (9491): 1069–1070. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(05)67405-3. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140673605674053/. 
3. ^ "Connect with Mark Kelley: Fighting Huntington's disease". CBC, Canada. http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/News/TV_Shows/Connect_with_Mark_Kelley/1305591601/ID=1786034970. Retrieved November 22, 2011. 
4. ^ "Gemini award nomination for the 'Connect with Mark Kelly' episode featuring Carroll". Gemini awards. http://www.geminiawards.ca/gemini25/nomspop.cfm?mo=2&id=14919. Retrieved November 22, 2011.