Providentia

Protecting The Children (Part 2)

Continued from Part One

The comic book industry hardly took Wertham's criticism in stride though. Not only did publishers hire private detectives to investigate his past, these detectives also harassed Wertham's colleagues at his clinic. According to an unfortunately-worded editorial written in the comic book industry newsletter Quest, "The immediate enemy is Fredric Wertham, not some other publisher.  He cannot be reasoned with. He must be discredited and rendered ineffective. Will he go away?Probably not. He must be knocked out". Wertham was sufficiently alarmed by the editorial to send a copy to New York's police commissioner.

Based on the Senate hearings, the Comic Code Authority was established in 1954 to regulate comic book content. Until it was revised in the 1970s, the Code banned all graphic descriptions of violence, gore, and sexual innuendo in comic books.; It also banned any negative representation of authority figures and stipulated that "in every instance, good should triumph over evil" as well as any representation of kidnapping or concealed weapons. EC Comics only survived by focusing on its only non-horror title, Mad Magazine (which savagely parodied Fredric Wertham for years afterward).

Wertham's influence was hardly limited to the United States alone. Child welfare agencies in Canada, Great Britain, Australia, and elsewhere began to call for restrictions on the importing of American comic books (partly out of concern for the violent content and partly to protect their own domestic comic book industries). Articles in British, Canadian, and Australian newspapers routinely denounced American comic books as being equivalent to a "narcotic" administering steadily greater shocks that desensitized children to violence. Women's groups, educators, the Catholic Church, and various other special interest groups formed alliances designed to counter the comic book menace on an international scale. Fredric Wertham's writings were extensively quoted in speeches and radio broadcasts around the world and government panels weighed in on the concerns that anti-comics crusaders raised. By the late 1950s, government regulating bodies for comic books were established across North America as well as various European and Asian countries.

The passing of the Comic Code Authority represented Fredric Wertham's greatest achievement (even if he protested that the regulation didn't go far enough). He would never be as influential again despite his efforts to expand his crusade to include other forms of media violence. In 1959, he attempted to publish a followup to his earlier book to focus on television violence but no publishers were interested. Despite occasional television appearances and articles in popular newspapers, his career as a media pundit was effectively over. Wertham continued writing on juvenile delinquency and the power of media until his death in 1981. Later social scientists tend to dismiss his work as being without scientific merit and comic book fans remember him only as a conservative demagogue and an advocate of censorship (one comic book writer referred to him as the "Josef Mengele of funnybooks"). To this day, comic book writers continue to parody Wertham and his crusade in various forms.

And yet...

Whatever we try to make of Fredric Wertham, he was hardly your typical demagogue. An early supporter of desegregation (and a personal friend of Ralph Ellison), Wertham's writing on race relationswere used as testimony in the 1954 Brown vs Board of Education case which overturned school segregation in the United States. In his 1966 book, A Sign for Cain, he linked racism to the genocidal policies of Nazi psychiatrists in the forced euthanasia of mental patients. Heended the book with a powerful message for abolishing the death penalty and his own philosophy of social reform. He even tried to reach out to the comic book subculture with his support of fanzines although fans refused to forgive him for his role in undermining the industry. Throughout his lifetime, Fredric Wertham placed his reputation on the line to support unpopular causes and to defend what he believed to be right.

While he is mainly remembered by the anti-comics crusade, his role as an early pioneer in the role of media in influencing behaviour can't be denied, even if you disagree with his views. It was Fredric Wertham who took comic books seriously enough as a cultural medium to address their impact on the children for which they had been written (something no other social scientist had bothered to do before). Whether his crusade was completely without value is open to argument.

Learning to be a Parent

An article published in a recent issue of Developmental Psychology presents the results of a longitudinal study of cross-generational parenting quality.  The researchers examined parenting skills in a sample of 61 participants (26 boys and 35 girls) in a lower socioeconomic status sample of moderate ethnic diversity. All subjects were part of a long-term study involving mothers recruited from Minneapolis public health clinics between 1976 and 1977.  The current study participants are second-generation subjects permitting assessment  of parenting skills across generations. Data was collected based on direct observation assessments for both generations in the study with controls being made for critical background factors such as stress, socioeconomic status, child and parent IQ.  For both parenting samples, parenting skills were assessed over a 24-month period.   Statistical analysis showed moderate stability (r = .43) in parenting quality across generations, and findings held after controlling for all other factors. The authors suggest that early parenting experience may play a significant role in passing on parenting skills to the next generation although extensive research is needed to demonstrate it further

For more information.

Encephalon 78

A hearty welcome to the 78th edition of Encephalon, the bi-monthly showcase for the best in brain and mind blogging.  I have been a long-time fan of this carnival and it's a pleasure for me to host it this time around.  There is a full roster of fascinating posts to cover so let's get started...

First up is Ionian Enchantment with a two-part entry on the visual assessment of formidability that can be found here and here.  We learn that being able to size up an opponent quickly is a survival trait (I learned that in grade school).

Next we have Brain Blogger giving us two separate posts.  The first post is on the cognitive impairments that are often seen in patients who have undergone major surgery, especially older patients.  The second post focuses on the evolutionary history of depression.  Is it always a disease or can it have adaptive value?

Does meditation affect brain performance?  Generally Thinking reviews neuroscience research examining Buddhist meditation practices.

Brain Stimulant tells us about a radical new research program using robots to model specialized neurological processes.

Then we come to Neurocritic with two posts.  The first post is on the newest fad of genomarketing, i.e., do our genes shape our buying choices?    The post  weighs in on the pros and con.   The second post deals with some very unusual case studies in sexology and the brain. 

I weigh in with a modest contribution about a tragic case of dementia pugilistica in a professional boxer who couldn't bring himself to quit.

Then we have the intrepid Mo from Neurophilosophy who gives us two posts.  The first post recaps some fascinating research into the Cocktail Party effect and the problems dyslexic children face in making sense from noise.  The second post deals with the Phantom Limb syndrome and the bizarre form it can take in some patients.

Our final contributor is Sandeep from The Mouse Trap who gives us three posts.  His first post is an addendum to his recent series on IQ, SES and heritability. While "know thyself" is an ancient bit of advice that never goes out of date, how many different ways are there to do it?  According to this post about Ulric Neisser, at least five.  Then we come to the third post that deals with the epigenetics of autism and how it may relate to schizophrenia.

That's it for this time. We're still looking for a host for the next edition, so if you're a neuro/psychology blogger and you'd like to be the next Encephalon editor, please email encephalon dot  host at gmail dot com.

Protecting the Children (Part 1)

It's hard to say for sure when the Golden Age of comics books ended.

Since the comic book format was first introduced in 1934, start-up companies featuring legendary talents such as Will Eisner, Jack Kirby, Bob Kane, and Jerry Robinson quickly established themselves. Throughout the  late 1930s and 1940s, comic books sales boomed with the rise of popular characters such as Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. While other countries followed suit with their own comic book industries, U.S. comic book companies tended to dominate the field. The comics industry grew and adapted with changing world events. As the U.S. entered World War II, comic book characters went to war in increasing numbers and the rise of the Atomic age simply introduced new plot lines for the next generation of comic book characters.

By the beginning of the 1950s however, the industry began to decline and new "grittier" comic books were released which increasingly focused on horror and detective dramas. It also marked the peak of the comics book boom with over 650 different titles being produced monthly by 1952 and millions of issues being sold every year. While conservative factions had long protested against the "evil" influence that comic books had on developing minds, the increasingly violent content to be found in many of the horror- and crime-oriented comics began to worry parents and educators alike.

That same era also marked the rise of juvenile delinquency as a serious concern in American society. Beginning in the years following World War II, increased publicity about crimes being committed by (usually male) youths generated considerable alarm and left child experts scrambling for an explanation. While early criminologists pointed out the probable role of family disruptions resulting from the war in delinquent behaviour, parents and educators were often uncomfortable with the blame falling so close to home. Hard questions began to be asked about the role of mass media in violence, especially given the violent content often found on radio (and later television) as well as comic books. Could violent comic books play a role in delinquency?

The crusade against comic books was nothing new (comic book burnings at conservative high schools had actually begun in the 1940s) but it took Fredric Wertham to give it respectability. A German-born psychiatrist who had moved to the U.S. in the 1920s, Wertham had established himself as a prominent forensic psychiatrist (he had appeared as an expert witness in the Albert Fish trial). He was also a prominent social activist who developed an interest in the role of the media in shaping violent behaviour.; Beginning in the 1940s, Wertham wrote a series of books and articles on the influence of violent comic books on youth violence. He specifically target comic books over other media portrayals of violence since comics were written specifically for children.  Other forms of media violence managed to escape his wrath since they were intended for audiences of all ages. For that reason, comic books needed to meet a higher standard than other media. It didn't help that the early comic book industry was almost completely unregulated with none of the government agencies overseeing newspaper and radio content.

Some of Wertham's early articles prompted attempts at self-censorship by the comics book industry. Many comic book publishers formed their own advisory boards with child psychiatrists weighing in on the impact of violent content on children but that wasn't enough to appease Fredric Wertham.  He dismissed these advisory board members as "psycho-prima donnas" who were obviously lacking in basic clinical experience with children.As he later wrote, "The fact that some child psychiatrists endorse comic books does not prove the healthy state of the comic books. It only proves the unhealthy state of child psychiatry".

In 1954, Wertham published his most influential book, Seduction of the Innocent.  In his book, Wertham provided graphic descriptions of the violent content that could be found in comic books. He specifically targeted EC Comics with its extensive line of horror/crime comics (including the Tales from the Crypt series). Along with his fairly valid objections to the extreme violence depicted in comic books, Wertham made some bizarre conclusions about the hidden sexual content to be found as well.  Not only did he denounce Wonder Woman for its "lesbian" and bondage themes, but he also suggested that Batman and Robin's relationship had homosexual overtones. Wertham also had harsh words for the advertisements in comic books (offering items such as air rifles, knives, and "x-ray glasses"). In his book, he concluded that, "The time has come to legislate these books off the newstands and out of candy stores".

Because of Wertham's book and his credentials as an expert witness, he was called to testify before the newly-formed U.S. Senate Subcommittee on Juvenile Delinquency.   Then-chaired by Senator Estes Kefauver, the subcommittee held public hearings that focused on "crime and horror" comic books and their potential impact on juvenile delinquency. Fredric Wertham was hardly the only expert witness called&to testify though. Other prominent researchers, including Lauretta Bender and Frederic Thrasher disputed the link between comic books and juvenile delinquency although Wertham's higher media profile gave his testimony more weight.

There was certainly little actual research on the supposed link between comic book violence and juvenile delinquency. While studies into comic book readership tended to find that most U.S children under the age of ten read comics on a regular basis (with boys being more likely than girls to prefer adventure comics).few studies found evidence that the books were harmful. Some researchers reported that comic book readers  had a lower IQ than non-comic book readers although later researchers failed to replicate this result. The lack of empirical data didn't stop Wertham's crusading.

Continue to Part Two

Blood-Note Stalker Trial Proceeding

Glasgow therapist, Dr. Lorna Relton, first realized that something was wrong when her patient, Brian Johnstone, asked her for help with his camera during a treatment session in early 2006. The 31-year old Johnstone then took her picture. The next day, Dr. Relton received an anonymous package at her house containing three broaches and a note saying, "Lorna, a gift from guess who" Since she suspected that the package was from Johnstone, she notified her supervisor at Glasgow''s Shawpark Resource Centre and they agreed that she would no longer be his therapist.Days after Johnstone was told of the decision, the external mirrors and windshield wipers from Dr. Relton's car were stolen although police told her that there was insufficient evidence to charge the patient.

Some time later, two mental health nurses who had visited the unemployed Johnstone's home told Dr. Relton that he had a large photograph of her as the background of his computer screen. Police investigated when the mirrors from her car were stolen again. In their search of Brian Johnstone's home, they found more than a thousand photographs and videos of Dr. Relton, her car, and her house. They also found the missing items from her car sealed in plastic bags as well as several notes which he had written in his own blood proclaiming his love for Dr. Relton. At least one of the notes had been written as if it were from her stating, "Brian, I'm keeping my body warm for you, when I see your muscles my heart starts pounding". Police also found handcuffs, pepper spray, smoke grenades, a handgun and a crossbow in their search of Johnstone's home.

Johnstone, now an inpatient at a secure care facility in Glasgow's Stobhill Hospital, has admitted to committing a breach of the peace in his harassment of Dr. Relton. His defense counsel is maintaining that his client is suffering from obsessive-compulsive disorder. A forensic psychiatrist evaluating Johnstone has warned that he poses a risk to society if he is ever released. Legal complications have delayed sentencing in the case but Sheriff Norman Ritchie is awaiting forensic reports before the case can proceed. Brian Johnstone faces a possible life sentence.

For more information.

Encephalon #78 - Call for submissions

Providentia will be hosting the 78th installment of ENCEPHALON, the regular neuroscience and psychology carnival on November 16th. A tradition since February 2008, ENCEPHALON provides a selection of the best neuroscience and psychology posts of the previous two weeks.  We're looking for the best mind and brain writing from around the net.  So, fire up those neurons and see what you can share with the rest of us.

As ever, please e-mail submissions (up to 3 posts) to encephalon dot host at gmail dot com, by the end of this Sunday 15th November!

When The Devil Came To Morzine

It was a fine spring day in 1857. The charming little town of Morzine, located in south-eastern Savoy (then an Italian province), was already well-known for its panoramic views of the Alps and the religious piety of the people who lived there. A ten-year old girl named Peronne Tavernier was eagerly preparing for her first communion when, on March 14 of that year, she reportedly saw a young girl falling into a river.  Although the girl was unharmed, Peronne became increasingly uneasy during the day and, while at school, collapsed into a strange stupor where she reportedly "lay as one dead for some hours". After being carried home, she regained consciousness but collapsed again a few days later. Peronne's strange fits began occurring more frequently until April when she and another girl,were found unconscious together where they had been herding goats on the hillside. Afterward, both children began showing similar fits including strange behaviour while in a trance state. Eyewitnesses reported seeing the girls stretching out their hands and receiving an invisible letter. On awakening, they reported visions of the Virgin Mary and the Devil.

As the fits grew worse, the two girls both began swearing blasphemously and screaming that serpents were wrapping around them.  The convulsions were so bad that three adult men were needed to hold Peronne down. More remarkably, they began accusing several men in the village of "bewitching" them and made predictions that others would be possessed as well. Peronne also predicted her father's death from witchcraft (he did die shortly afterward but the cause of death isn't recorded). Other people in the village began to show similar symptoms including a fifteen-year old girl named Julie Plagnat who went into convulsions and claimed to be possessed by seven devils. Julie also cut herself severely with a hatchet during one of her seizures (one of her possessing devils claimed responsibility). Although the parish priest was actually skeptical about the possession cases, the villagers loudly complained about his disbelief.

Peronne's brother, Joseph Tavernier, grew despondent after his father's death and claimed that the Devil was preventing him from eating. Joseph resisted any attempt at forced feeding and eventually starved to death. Over the course of the next few months, more than twenty-seven cases of demonic possession were recorded in Morzine. The symptoms were rarely the same in each case. While some reported being chased by black dogs that only they could see, others reported visions of men being transformed into animals. There were also cases of villagers "speaking in tongues". When a physician was sent to Morzine to examined one of the possessed women, he reported that "the devils in her" taunted him by saying that his medicine was useless and only exorcism could drive them out.

As panic grew over the possession cases, suspicion fell on those villagers who Peronne and the others had accused of witchcraft. One elderly shoemaker in particular, Jean Berger, was attacked by an angry mob armed with scythes and nearly killed.Others were forced to close their businesses out of fear since many villagers were demanding that the "magicians" be burned to end Morzine's suffering. The main suspect was a defrocked priest who had been driven out of Morzine years before and had supposedly cursed the town as a result. Despite a bizarre ceremony performed by the villagers to kill the ex-priest (who was in hiding in Geneva), there was no relief from the possessions.Even exorcisms did little to calm the villagers.

By 1860, France had annexed Savoy and the French government took an interest in the odd happenings in Morzine. The government dispatched two prominent psychiatrists to examine the cases in depth. One of them, Dr Constans, was the inspector-general of lunatic asylums across France who wrote the first scientific analysis of the Morzine possession epidemic. Of the one hundred and twenty cases of possession that were reported, Constans examined sixty-four in depth and concluded that there was no set pattern to the possession cases. While the overwhelming majority of cases were women, they varied widely in age and the symptoms that they presented. Some spoke in voices while others showed bizarre convulsions (including acrobatic leaps that astonished the ones watching). Dr. Constans had the worst cases sent to asylums and threatened the other villagers with heavy fines but the epidemic dragged on.

Finally, by 1865, the French government had enough of the strange happenings in Morzine.Dr. Constans returned with a full detachment of soldiers and a replacement priest for the Morzine parish. Armed with full police powers by the French government, Constans declared martial law on the town. All accusations of sorcery were punished with heavy fines and villagers showing signs of possession were ordered to return to normal or face exile. As before, the worst cases were sent to asylums and the rest were scattered as far from Morzine as possible. Although the government measures were harsh, they apparently did the trick. Despite reports of fresh outbreaks in other parts of France where the worst cases had been sent, the Morzine epidemic was essentially over.

But not completely. A few years later, Professor Joseph Tissot, a philosophy professor from Dijon, visited Morzine to research the epidemic and its aftermath.While Tissot noted that the government action had been effective in bringing the town under control, there were still some remaining possession cases. In a remarkable series of experiments,Tissot carefully examined these cases (he even secretly dosed them with holy water to observe their reaction) and concluded that the possessions were due to simple hysteria. He also examined the eyewitness reports and Tissot wrote about his findings in a book which has since become a classic of early skepticism.

As you might expect, the skeptical tone of the book offended many of those churchmen who had believed that the Morzine epidemic was real. Some of them even argued that the holy water test had failed because Satan was too cunning to fall for such a trick! While Tissot's book stirred up controversy, it died down quickly enough. As Tissot had prophetically pointed out, the expansion of the main road into Morzine ended the isolation that had encouraged the epidemic and the town settled down to becoming just another rural village.

While there have been other episodes of mass hysteria before and since, the Morzine epidemic represents the first case that was formally studied from a scientific perspective. Given the rash of anti-witch hysteria currently occurring in other parts of the world, it seems more important than ever to recognize the dangers of  suggestion and superstition when allowed to go to extremes.

Postconcussive Symptoms and PTSD in Veterans

Veterans with a history of mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) are reporting postconcussive symptoms in addition to experiencing postdeployment physical and emotional comorbidities. The Veterans Health Administration has mandated specialized evaluation and treatment for veterans with a history of mTBI and has suggested widespread use of the Neurobehavioral Symptom Inventory (NSI) as a measure of postconcussive symptoms. A study published in a recent issue of Rehabilitation Psychology evaluated the NSI’s factor structure and assessed the impact of posttraumatic stress (PTS) on the scale at the item and factor levels. Five hundred twenty-nine charts of returning veterans who screened positive for traumatic brain injury were reviewed, and 345 who met criteria for mTBI were included in the study. The study results were examined and the resulting factor analysis on the NSI revealed a difficult-to-interpret factor structure that was inconsistent with the results of civilian studies. PTS explained 5%–38% of the variance in individual postconcussive symptoms, and after controlling for this variance, the factor structure more closely paralleled findings from the civilian literature. The authors conclude that posttraumatic stress is an important variable to account for when evaluating PCSx in veterans. The authors also discuss research and clinical implications for the measurement and interpretation of self-reported postconcussive symptoms.

For more information.

Teen 'Hero' Unmasked as Serial Arsonist

On July 26, John and Gina Richardson were awakened by the sound of someone banging on their door and warning them that their bungalow was on fire.After helping the elderly couple out of their Nottinghamshire, U.K. home, 19-year old Ben Welbourn then rushed back inside to save their dog. Although the blaze had largely destroyed their home, they were grateful to Welbourn for saving their lives and even posed with him afterward for pictures that were prominently displayed in the local newspaper. The Richardsons' daughter publicly thanked Ben Welbourn for saving her parents' live. Two weeks later, on August 8, a second fire began at the home of 89-year old Faye Florio. Once again, Ben Welbourn was on the scene to help the frightened woman out of her burning home and to accept praise for his courage. This time however, a sharp-eyed neighbour recognized Welbourn from his previous rescue and contacted the fire service.

After an investigation, Ben Welbourn was arrested and charged with two counts of arson and reckless endangerment. Pleading guilty in a Nottinghamshire court, he was sentenced to four years in prison. The revelation that Ben Welbourn was responsible for both fires left his victims devastated. The Richardsons, who had lost all their personal belongings in the fire, were especially vocal and Gina Richardson stated that, " I feel terrible. I feel he has taken everything away from me. Everything in that home was very precious."

In handing down his decision, Judge Michael Stokes informed Welbourn that, "'I'm prepared to accept that on the first occasion you probably didn't appreciate the unpredictability of what you were doing and you no doubt were taken aback by the way the fire spread. There can be no such explanation for your conduct on the second occasion." Although Welbourn is not considered to be mentally ill, Judge Stokes advised him to seek treatment for his psychological problems.

For more information.

The Michigan Wildcat

Adolph ("Ad") Wolgast was definitely a champion.

Born in 1888 in Cadillac, Michigan, he was the oldest in a family of seven (two of his younger brothers became championship boxers as well). After distinguishing himself in amateur boxing, Ad turned professional in 1910 and captured the World Lightweight title a year later. The forty-round brawl with Battling Nelson that earned him his title was the stuff of boxing legends as Wolgast did the impossible and survived the bloody fight. Eager sports reporters labeled him "the Michigan Wildcat" as Ad won all but one of his first eight-nine bouts. In one famous bout with Joe Rivers in 1912, Ad and Rivers both knocked each other out. Ad was awarded the fight because he was seen to get up first before they were both counted out (there was some controversy over this decision). He became legendary for his ability to take (and give out) horrendous head punches but Ad Wolgast didn't keep the title long. In a vicious 1912 bout with Willie Ritchie, Ad finally lost his title although his boxing career went on.

The damage that Ad Wolgast took during his boxing career seems incredible. In his one hundred and thirty-five bouts, he sustained numerous injuries include cauliflower ears, numerous broken bones (hands, ribs, and arms), and a disfigured face. His wife, Mildred, threatened to divorce him if he didn't quit the ring and he arranged for plastic surgery to rebuild much of his face (including having his nose injected with paraffin to regain its former shape-the paraffin later leaked out). Milwaukee, Minnesota was a major fight center at the time and, through radio broadcasts of his boxing matches, Ad quickly gained fans across the country. After a brief attempt at retirement in 1916 (and the end of his marriage), the fact that Ad was suffering from "punch drunkenness" (a.k.a. dementia pugilistica) became apparent soon enough.

By the age of thirty, the "Michigan Wildcat" seemed far older than he really was. One Milwaukee reporter said that, "a glance at Wolgast's head is enough to show what he had one through". Hospitalized after a "nervous breakdown", Ad Wolgast was declared mentally incompetent in 1917 by a Milwaukee court. During his competency hearing, two psychiatrists who had assessed him testified that, "there was hardly a chance for him to regain his health". He spent a year in Minnesota hospitals before drifting to California and eventually being placed in the psychopathic ward at California's Stockton State Hospital. As a trained boxer, his involuntary confinement definitely led to problems, including beatings by staff, until a California court ruled that he was legally competent in December, 1918.

Since fighting was all Ad knew, he joined a gym owned by Los Angeles fight promoter, Jack Doyle. Although Ad Wolgast dreamed of a comeback, Doyle (who had assumed unofficial guardianship) simply allowed Wolgast to train with no intention of ever letting him box again. Most of the money that Ad had earned in prizefighting ended up going to his ex-wife so he was left destitute (Doyle gave him free access to the gym). Veteran fighters and boxing fans often dropped by to see Ad train and he reveled in their praise of his fighting skills. He also insisted on being treated like a world champion and often became agitated whenever anyone failed to give him the respect that he felt he deserved.

When his condition gradually deteriorated, Ad Wolgast was readmitted to hospital in 1927. While he remained there for the rest of his life, Ad continued to train in his room.; According to his obituary, that typically involved frequent shadowboxing, bobbing, and uppercuts against imaginary opponents. Ad Wolgast seemed largely unaware of his surroundings except on rare occasions when he would plaintively ask where he was and when he would be allowed to leave. His boxing career may have been long over but it still took two hospital attendants to restrain him whenever he was forced to do something he didn't want to do. By all reports, his "tough guy" reputation and violent temper earned him numerous beatings in hospital but he always recovered quickly enough. He went blind in the final few years of his life.

Adolph Wolgast died on April 14, 1955 of heart complications after having spent more than half of lifetime in hospitals. Although he was elected to the Ring Boxing Hall of Fame in 1958 and the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2000, he islargely remembered today only as an object lesson in the dangers associated with professional boxing. While not as famous as other cases of dementia puglistica including Chris Benoit, Ad Wolgast's sad story highlights the cumulative damage resulting from repeated head injuries in boxing and other professional sports.

The dangers involved in professional boxing were clear enough even in Ad Wolgast's day but the lure of fame and fortune seemed attractive enough for eager boxers to take the risk. Ad's lifetime earnings were estimated at more than $200,000 (a hefty amount even in 1915 dollars) although most of that eventually went to his ex-wife. He certainly had countless fans across the country, while his fame lasted. Even when he recognized how badly he had been hurt by boxing, Ad's attempts at retirement were always brief. In one famous 1916 interview, Ad told reporters, "You just can't quit after all.&They say a criminal is drawn back irresistibly to the scene of the crime. Well, so is a fighter drawn back to the old rings, the old crowds, and the old excitement. Why not let the old ex-champs have their little pipedreams?"

In the end, Adolph Wolgast paid the price for his dream.