Edgar Berman

Edgar F. Berman (died 1987) was an American surgeon and author. He is most remembered for his 1970 assertion that women were unable to hold leadership positions due to their "raging hormonal imbalances".[1] He also implanted a plastic esophagus into a person and performed a heart transplant for a dog.

Early life and career

Berman was born in Baltimore, Maryland. He attended the University of Maryland and the University of Maryland School of Medicine.[2]

Berman was in the Marine Corps during World War II, serving in Iwo Jima and Guam.[2] In 1950, he implanted the first plastic esophagus into a person. In 1957, he performed a heart transplant for a dog.[3]

Berman was the President of Medico, an organization involved with health care in developing countries, from 1959 to 1965.[1] From 1964 to 1969 he was a confidant of, and personal physician to Vice President Hubert Humphrey, advising him on medical issues.[3]

In 1970, Berman controversially asserted that women were unable to hold leadership positions due to their "raging hormonal imbalances".[1] Following the comment he was forced to resign from his post on the Democratic National Committee's Committee on National Priorities.[3] His assertion was refuted by leaders of the women's movement, including endocrinologist Estelle Ramey.[4]

Berman self-identified as a male chauvinist and wrote the 1982 book The Compleat Chauvinist: A Survival Guide for the Bedeviled Male. He considered the book to be revenge against "militant feminists", who he referred to as "Steingreers" and "Steinzugs". In an interview with The New York Times that year, he said "The women all hate me, and the men all think I'm their leader."[3]

Later life

Berman served on the Board of Directors of the Public Welfare Foundation for 20 years.[1]

Berman retired to a 50 acre horse farm in Lutherville, Maryland. He wrote five books and columns for USA Today. Following a heart attack, he died on November 25, 1987 at Sinai Hospital in Baltimore.[2][5]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Dr. Edgar Berman at 72; Author, Aide, Chauvinist". Los Angeles Times. November 28, 1987.
  2. 1 2 3 Anderson, Susan Heller (November 26, 1987). "Dr. Edgar Berman Is Dead at 68; Writer and Humphrey Confidant". The New York Times.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Klemesrud, Judy (August 22, 1982). "A Surgeon and Author Explains His Chauvinism". The New York Times.
  4. ↑ Woo, Elaine (September 17, 2006). "Estelle Ramey, 89; Doctor, Sharp-Tongued Feminist". Los Angeles Times.
  5. ↑ "Edgar Berman, Physician, Writer". Philadelphia Inquirer. November 27, 1987.
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