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Was Sybil Real? The Film, The Book, Controversial Subjects Sybil's closest relative, Naomi Rhode, verifies her life story Shirley A. Mason - The Woman I Knew by Nancy Preston, Sybil's Friend
Please don't base your judgement of multiplicity, or these pages, solely on Sybil or on the real-life Shirley Mason. While we have received overwhelming confirmation that she was multiple and an abuse survivor, her story was unique, and many aspects of her case are controversial. There are a lot of myths about her story, and we carry this information only because so many people have written to us asking for it. Please do not judge all multiples by what you've seen on The United States of Tara. This show is a comedy, it is being played for laughs, it is distorted, inaccurate, and insulting to multiples.
Who Was Shirley Mason?
Kentucky art teacher was 'Sybil,' scholar confirms From the Detroit Free Press. Stranger In Our Midst How Shirley lived peacefully in Lexington, Kentucky with almost no one the wiser. Unmasking Sybil A few more facts about her life. Who was the real Sybil? From the New Yorker, January 4, 1999.
The Sybil TV movie starring Sally Field is not a documentary. It is a heavily fictionalized adaptation which was deliberately coded (using certain types of music, lighting and camera angles) to resemble a horror film.
The Sybil book and films -- not Shirley's real life -- are the public image of multiple personalities -- and have done a lot of damage to multiples. (Please read that if you don't read anything else on this page.)
Films such as Three Faces of Eve and Sybil and shows like The United States of Tara should not be viewed as educational: they are not representative or models of "how a real multiple acts". Click here to read more about this.
Among the many untruths perpetuated by the Sybil movie remake starring Tammy Blanchard, one of the worst came at the end, with the statement that Shirley Ardell Mason ended her life as a "recluse". She was an artist who exhibited her paintings at local galleries. She taught art for years, designed toys, and owned her own business. She was a devout member of the Seventh Day Adventist Church and was well known and liked there. Friends and family visited her constantly and there were family members with her when she died. Only a very few people knew Shirley was Sybil.
Sybil DVD ~
A 30th anniversary edition of the Sybil movie has been released on DVD. you can rent the Sybil DVD now through Netflix -- you can also watch a streaming version of Three Faces of Eve, if you're interested.
Watch Sybil Movie on TV -
Dr. Cornelia Wilbur's personal papers -- letters, diaries, etc. -- were opened in 2005. This is primarily for the use of researchers like Peter Swales. They were apparently part of the source material used by Debbie Nathan for her recent trash-exposé book Sybil Exposed. There is no reason to believe that the general public will ever be allowed access to Cornelia Wilbur's papers. There is still no word on when or if her professional records will be opened, and it is likely that this will not happen anytime soon due to issues of client confidentiality. Additionally, it is our understanding that Dr. Wilbur kept very incomplete records, and sometimes did not keep charts or records on her clients at all. Any information on Sybil the book, Sybil the movie, Sybil DVD or Shirley Ardell Mason will be posted here.
(And if you think we're doing a bit of SEO there, you're absolutely right.)
Dr. Herbert Spiegel, Sybil: The Making of A Disorder from the New York Review. Was Shirley really multiple? Or did Cornelia Wilbur just talk her into it? Decide for yourself -- but beware: take what Spiegel says with a large grain of salt. He's got a certain view of women and he's using Shirley's story to 'prove that he is right'.
Dr. Robert Rieber, All About Sybil: Natural History of a Myth His interpretation of the Sybil tapes he heard, and his version of the MPD scandal of the 80s and 90s and how the misreporting of Sybil's case contributed to it. Again, a lot of what he says is complete nonsense. The mentality of these people can be judged by the way they write. Published by Psycke-Logo Press.
Bifurcation of Self A review of Dr. Rieber's book on Sybil, pointing out his obvious nonsense, misinformation and half truths. Originally appeared in the American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis January 2008.
On Being The Proper Multiple By Sara Lambert. Even if you actually have the psychiatric MPD condition, it is completely unnecessary to behave like Sybil in order to be authentic or believed. Please don't use the Sybil book or film as a role model, and please do read this article if you have or think you have MPD.
Mistaken Identity There is some stuff about Shirley in this BBC Horizons report. Warning: A British friend tells us, "Horizon is a show about taking the subject of a scientific paper and making it into a 'story'. They use the expression 'sheer drama' which means that they can't tell you about the discovery of a new particle without giving you 50 minutes of the amazing chance discovery and people struggling to persuade their doubting collegues of its existence." Anyone who remembers Greer Garson sitting up in bed and gasping "Pierre! What if that stain is radium?!" should be familiar with this phenomenon.
A brief statement by Linda Massey, who was filmed in the Horizon documentary.
The Prodigy Transcripts: Cornelia Wilbur, Richard Kluft and Frank Putnam on MPD Interrogation methods developed and recommended by the foremost "experts" on this condition. One can see how a non-multiple client could become coerced into pretending to have MPD just to get the hell out of there.
Doctors Debate Multiplicity as Iatrogenic or PTSD Putnam sees multiplicity as damage, but at least he sees it. Originally appeared in the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, July 1995 v34 n7 p957(3).
Is Billy Milligan a Natural Multiple? A very brief astute observation by an anonymous writer.
Theosophy and later the New Age recognized the possibility of elemental spirits incarnating in human bodies or persons on a "deva" evolution path. Non-theosophical ideas about otherkin (not by that name) evolved before the internet, and are mostly associated with belief systems such as the Faerie Faith. If you're interested, check out Elf Lore Family (this is NOT Wicca).
Soulbonding and Related Links:
The Kaycee Nicole thing May 28, 2001: I am posting information about the Kaycee Nicole thing because it is another case of "Violation and Virtuality", not because I think Kaycee/Debbie was multiple. It is relevant in terms of creating and maintaining online identities. Anthony Temple Kaycee Nicole on Wikipedia Who was she and how did this get started?
If you think this phenomenon is only as old as the internet, click here.
Andy Temple's take on the Kaycee Nicole thing
Astraea's Web |
) published in 1970, presented this idea to teens and young adults.
