Autism’s First Child

iHeartPodcasts

Tracing the history of autism through the first person ever diagnosed, and the rural community that helped raise him. Named “Case 1” in 1943, Donald Triplett was in and out of an institution, and spent time with history’s most important child psychiatrist, by the time he was five. Now 88, Donald has lived a full and happy life in Forest, Mississippi. What can his story teach us about creating a better world for those who are “different”?

  • 22 minutes 23 seconds
    Bonus: John Donvan and Caren Zucker Discuss Their PBS Documentary

    On Tuesday, December 13, at 9pm Eastern/8pm Central, John and Caren's documentary 'In a Different Key' premieres on PBS. They kindly joined iHeart's Mike Coscarelli to talk about the film, the reaction they've been getting to this podcast, and the latest adventures of Donald Triplett.

    For more information, or to arrange a screening in your community, visit inadifferentkeythemovie.com.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    13 December 2022, 12:50 am
  • 42 minutes 18 seconds
    Christmas in Forest

    In our final episode, we head down to Mississippi to meet Donald at the Bank of Forest Christmas party. He’s surrounded by love and acceptance and support. But there’s one last piece of the story that we didn’t get to yet — and it’s as important as the rest of it.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    23 May 2022, 1:46 pm
  • 38 minutes 45 seconds
    Donald on the Move

    Donald Triplett graduated high school and then made it through college. Moving through adulthood he discovers pastimes that bring meaning and purpose to his life.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    16 May 2022, 8:00 am
  • 37 minutes 41 seconds
    See the Forest

    Donald Triplett grew up in a family that was rich, powerful, and white in the Jim Crow South. But what might his life have been like if he were poor and black? On this episode, we explore the intersection of race, resources, and autism.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    5 May 2022, 7:00 am
  • 38 minutes 53 seconds
    I Wish Myself Luck

    After a difficult start to life, Donald Triplett, the little boy whose own mother described as “hopelessly insane,” is given a second chance. While psychologists try to make sense of Donald’s strange disorder, Donald does his best to fit into a world that doesn’t understand him.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    29 April 2022, 8:03 am
  • 34 minutes 9 seconds
    Kanner Syndrome

    Beamon and Mary Triplett discharge their three-year-old son, Donald, from a Mississippi institution. They appeal to Dr. Leo Kanner, the father of child psychiatry, who is intrigued by the boy’s remarkable memory and singular behavior. After years of studying children with similar attributes, Dr. Kanner makes the diagnosis that changes history. 

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    21 April 2022, 7:00 am
  • 35 minutes 22 seconds
    Fitter Families

    Born in 1933, Donald T. of Forest, Mississippi exhibits strange behaviors that neither his parents, Beamon and Mary, nor doctors can understand. It’s the Eugenics era, when people who are different are considered degenerates, imbeciles, and threats to society best kept locked away in institutions. Beamon and Mary have other ideas.

    See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

    14 April 2022, 7:01 am
  • 2 minutes 46 seconds
    Introducing: Autism's First Child

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    5 April 2022, 4:16 pm
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