William Griffith Wilson

William Griffith Wilson also Bill Wilson and Bill W. (born November 26, 1895 in East Dorset , Vermont , USA , † January 24, 1971 in Miami ) was one of the two founders of the Alcoholics Anonymous movement . The other co-founder was Robert Holbrook Smith , also Dr. Called Bob .

Life

After a difficult childhood, Wilson became an alcoholic at the age of 22 . While in hospital, the unsuccessful stockbroker and seemingly hopeless drinker was encouraged to help others suffering from the same problem. The doctor William Duncan Silkworth had a decisive influence on Wilson, through him Wilson understood for the first time that he was suffering from an illness .

From the encounter with the alcoholic doctor Dr. Robert Smith - both, like their wives, were participants in the Oxford Group - a friendship developed which led to both of them being permanently abstinent from alcohol until their deaths.

From then on, Wilson and Smith met regularly with other alcoholics in order to help themselves with the help of a series of simple spiritual manipulations, first of all, in order to stay abstinent or to become dry. Together with some of these other abstinent alcoholics, Wilson co-authored the 1939 book entitled Alcoholics Anonymous , which gave the movement its name. The book explains the Twelve Step Program as the core of AA ideology and includes the autobiographies of Wilson and Smith.

It was only after an article appeared in the Saturday Evening Post in 1941 about the regular meetings of Alcoholics Anonymous, the so-called Meetings , that the movement became very popular. New groups formed all over the United States. It is estimated that to date the movement has grown to over 100,000 groups with more than 2 million members in 150 countries worldwide.

The stated primary purpose of the AA groups is to maintain abstinence and to help alcoholics still suffering to live contentedly without alcohol.

As the movement grew, Wilson refused to assume greater authority and insisted that the movement should be based not on individuals but on spiritual principles . The established tradition of anonymity was later expressed in his refusal to appear in magazines and to receive public honors.

Wilson believed that LSD could benefit many alcoholics in a carefully controlled, structured environment. Bill W. had his first own LSD experience on August 29, 1956 at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Los Angeles.

After his death, was his obituary in the New York Times publicly that Wilson, the legendary Bill W. was.

Autobiography

Bill W. - My First 40 Years. An Autobiography by the Cofounder of Alcoholics Anonymous . Hazelden, Center City, Minnesota 55012-0176, 2000. ISBN 1-56838-373-8 . (Translation by Marga Klay): Bill W. - my first 40 years . Autobiography of the co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, Santiago-Verlag Goch 2003, ISBN 3-937212-00-0 .

literature

The Blue Book , USA, 1939
As Bill sees it , Munich 1978
AA comes of age , Munich, 1988
Dr. Bob and the good oldtimers . Munich 1992
Pass it on; The story of Bill Wilson and how the AA message reached the world , Alcoholics Anonymous World Services, Inc. (AAWS), New York, 1984. ISBN 0-916856-12-7 . Pass it on ; The story of Bill Wilson and how the AA message got into the world. 1st edition, Munich 1999, ISBN 0-916856-94-1 .

Filmography

1989: My Name Is Bill W. (TV) , with James Woods as Bill W., and James Garner as Dr. bob

Web links

Literature by and about William Griffith Wilson in the catalog of the German National Library
Homepage of Alcoholics Anonymous in German-speaking countries
Detailed list of the first members of AA (English)

Individual evidence

↑ Amelia Hill: LSD could help alcoholics stop drinking, AA founder believed . In: The Guardian . August 23, 2012, ISSN 0261-3077 ( theguardian.com [accessed February 24, 2019]).
^ A Radical New Approach to Beating Addiction. Retrieved February 24, 2019 .
↑ New York Times Movie: My Name Is Bill W

personal data
SURNAME	Wilson, William Griffith
ALTERNATIVE NAMES	Wilson, Bill; Bill W.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION	Co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous self-help movement
DATE OF BIRTH	November 26, 1895
PLACE OF BIRTH	East Dorset , Vermont , USA
DATE OF DEATH	January 24, 1971
Place of death	Miami , Florida

[1] Amelia Hill: LSD could help alcoholics stop drinking, AA founder believed . In: The Guardian . August 23, 2012, ISSN 0261-3077 ( theguardian.com [accessed February 24, 2019]).

[2] A Radical New Approach to Beating Addiction. Retrieved February 24, 2019 .

[3] New York Times Movie: My Name Is Bill W