David Sheff
{{short description|American writer (born 1955)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=November 2021}}
{{Infobox writer
| name = David Sheff
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|December 23, 1955}}{{Cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/article/2008/02/29/father-and-son-memoirs/|title=Father and son memoirs|magazine=Entertainment Weekly}}{{cite news |last1=Sheff |first1=David |title=Playboy Interview: John Lennon and Yoko Ono |url=https://ipb-reader.playboy.com/19810101/index.html#p=80 |access-date=20 December 2020 |work=Playboy |issue=1 |date=January 1981 |volume=28 |page=75 |quote=The interview apparently depended on Yoko's interpretation of my horoscope, just as many of Lenons' business decisions are reportedly guide by the stars. I could imagine explaining to my Playboy editor, 'Sorry, but my moon is in Scorpio–the interview's off.' It was clearly out of my hands. I supplied the info: December 23, three P.M., Boston.}}
| birth_place = Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
| notableworks = {{plainlist|* Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction}}
All We Are Saying: The Last Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono
| education = University of California, Berkeley
| occupation = Writer
| spouse = Karen Barbour
| children = 3, including Nic Sheff
| website = {{URL|https://www.davidsheff.com/}}
}}
David Sheff (born December 23, 1955) is an American author. He is best known for his interviews with artists, scientists, and pop culture figures, as well as his non-fiction books. Much of his writing, including his memoir Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction, deals with substance addiction.
Early life and education
Sheff is of Russian Jewish descent.{{Cite book |last=Sheff |first=David |url=https://archive.org/details/beautifulboyfath00shef |title=Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction |date=2009 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Harcourt |isbn=978-0547347929 |location=Boston, Massachusetts |page=[https://archive.org/details/beautifulboyfath00shef/page/149 149] |language=en |url-access=registration}} He is originally from Boston, Massachusetts.[http://www.davidsheff.com/contact.html David Sheff's home page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708091224/http://www.davidsheff.com/contact.html|date=2008-07-08}} Author's bio He graduated from the University of California, Berkeley.
Career
Working as a journalist, Sheff has written articles and conducted interviews for The New York Times, Rolling Stone, Playboy, Wired, Fortune, and NPR's All Things Considered.
His interview subjects have included John Lennon, Frank Zappa, Steve Jobs, Ai Weiwei, Keith Haring, David Hockney, Jack Nicholson, Ted Taylor, Carl Sagan, Betty Friedan, Barney Frank, and Fareed Zakaria.
He has also been an editor of several magazines including New West and California.
Works
Sheff's books include:
- Beautiful Boy: A Father's Journey Through His Son's Addiction
- Clean: Overcoming Addiction and Ending America's Greatest TragedySussman, Mick (April 19, 2013). [https://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/21/books/review/clean-by-david-sheff.html?_r=0 "A Disease, Not a Crime"]. The New York Times.
- Game Over,{{Cite news |last=Lehmann-Haupt |first=Christopher |date=1993-05-13 |title=Books of The Times; Taking the Frivolity of Games Seriously Indeed |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1993/05/13/books/books-of-the-times-taking-the-frivolity-of-games-seriously-indeed.html |access-date=2021-09-30 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}{{Cite web |title=Why Nintendo Rules (Fortune, 1993) |url=https://fortune.com/1993/05/31/why-nintendo-rules-game-over-book/ |access-date=2021-09-30 |website=Fortune |language=en}} The Buddhist on Death Row[https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/david-sheff/the-buddhist-on-death-row/ "An indelible portrait of an incarcerated man finding new life and purpose behind bars"]. Kirkus Reviews. March 1, 2020.
- All We Are Saying: The Last Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono{{Cite book |last=Sheff |first=David |title=All We Are Saying: The Last Major Interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono |date=2000 |publisher=St. Martin's Griffin |isbn=978-0312254643}}
- High: Everything You Want to Know About Drugs, Alcohol, and Addiction
Beautiful Boy was based on Sheff's New York Times article "My Addicted Son," discussing Sheff's relationship with his son throughout his methamphetamine addiction.{{cite news |last1=Sheff |first1=David |date=2005-02-06 |title=My Addicted Son |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/06/magazine/my-addicted-son.html |access-date=2020-11-29 |newspaper=The New York Times Magazine}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.marinmagazine.com/January-2019/David-and-Nic-Sheff/|title=The Marin Family Behind the Film Beautiful Boy |website=Marin Magazine |date=January 2019 |access-date=2019-03-13}} An adaptation directed by Felix van Groeningen was released in 2018.{{cite web |last=D'Alessandro |first=Anthony |date=February 15, 2018 |title=Steve Carell & Timothée Chalamet Title 'Beautiful Boy' Sets Fall Release |url=https://deadline.com/2018/02/timothee-chalamet-steve-carell-beautiful-boy-drug-addiction-movie-release-date-1202290484/ |access-date=November 20, 2018 |website=Deadline Hollywood}}
Views on addiction
Sheff argues that addiction is a brain disease and advocates for putting addicts into therapy programs early.{{Cite web|url=https://drugfree.org/parent-blog/when-my-son-became-addicted-i-thought-it-was-his-problem-but-addiction-is-a-family-disease/|title=When My Son Became Addicted, I Thought It Was His Problem. But Addiction Is a Family Disease |website=Where Families Find Answers on Substance Use | Partnership for Drug-Free Kids}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.npr.org/2013/03/30/175485876/david-sheff-on-addiction-prevention-treatment-and-staying-clean|title=David Sheff On Addiction: Prevention, Treatment And Staying 'Clean'|first=David|last=Sheff|newspaper=NPR.org|publisher=NPR}} He identifies factors such as stress and trauma as major factors that can cause addiction.{{Cite web|last=Winerman|first=Lea|date=June 2013|title=Breaking free from addiction|url=https://www.apa.org/monitor/2013/06/addiction|url-status=live|access-date=2021-07-26|website=American Psychological Association|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190224162641/https://www.apa.org/monitor/2013/06/addiction |archive-date=February 24, 2019 }} He argues for teaching life skills to reduce the risk of addiction in response to these risk factors.{{Cite web|url=https://kleantreatmentcenters.com/author-david-sheff-focuses-on-the-war-on-prevention/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190123223910/https://kleantreatmentcenters.com/author-david-sheff-focuses-on-the-war-on-prevention/|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 23, 2019|title=Author David Sheff Focuses on the War on Prevention|date=2013-08-01|website=KLEAN Treatment Centers|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-23}}{{Cite press release|url=https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/botvin-lifeskills-training-most-widely-used-evidence-based-prevention-program-in-elementary-schools-117570258.html|title=Botvin LifeSkills Training Most Widely Used Evidence-Based Prevention Program in Elementary Schools|first=Botvin LifeSkills|last=Training|website=www.prnewswire.com}}
Personal life
Sheff lives in Northern California with his wife Karen Barbour. Barbour is an artist, illustrator, and author of children's books. Sheff has three children: Nic, Jasper, and Daisy Sheff. Nic Sheff is a writer for television and film;{{cite news |last=McGrath |first=Charles |date=February 26, 2008 |title=A Twice-Told Tale of Addiction: By Father, by Son |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/26/books/26meth.html |access-date=January 16, 2009 |newspaper=The New York Times |location=New York City}} he also wrote a memoir recounting his years of addiction: Tweak: Growing Up on Methamphetamines. Jasper Sheff is a Grammy Award-nominated{{Cite web|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/news/2022-grammys-complete-winners-nominees-nominations-list|title = 2022 GRAMMYs Awards: Complete Nominations List|date = November 23, 2021}} musician who has co-written and produced songs{{Cite web|title=Jasper Sheff|url=https://genius.com/artists/Jasper-sheff|access-date=2021-09-30|website=Genius|language=en}} for Lil Nas X, Elton John,{{Cite magazine|title=Lil Nas X & Take a Daytrip Lead Hot 100 Songwriters & Producers Charts Thanks to 'Montero' Hits|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/business/chart-beat/9638027/lil-nas-x-take-a-daytrip-top-hot-100-songwriters-producers-charts|access-date=2021-09-30|magazine=Billboard|date=September 29, 2021|language=en}} Halsey, and XXXTentacion. Daisy Sheff is an artist whose paintings have been exhibited in many places including White Columns Gallery,{{Cite news|date=2021-04-28|title=6 Art Gallery Shows to See Right Now|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/28/arts/design/6-art-gallery-shows-to-see-right-now.html|access-date=2021-09-30|issn=0362-4331}} Ratio 3, Clearing Gallery,Clearing Gallery and Grimm Gallery.{{Cite web|title=Grimm Gallery {{!}} When We Said Break a Leg, We Meant It|url=https://flaunt.com/content/grimm-gallery-the-future-experience|access-date=2021-09-30|website=Flaunt |language=en-US}}
Honors and awards
In 2009, Sheff was included in Time magazine's Time 100 and on the magazine's World's Most Influential People list.{{cite web |last=Velkow |first=Nora |date=30 April 2009 |title=The 2009 Time 100 |url=http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1894410_1893209_1893466,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090503142139/http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1894410_1893209_1893466,00.html |archive-date=May 3, 2009 |publisher=Meredith Corporation |magazine=Time |location=New York City}} Beautiful Boy won the Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers Award for nonfiction.{{Cite web |title=Barnes & Noble: Discover Great New Writers Award |url=http://www.barnesandnoble.com/awards/index.asp?PID=21575&cds2Pid=16450&linkid=1123471 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090328193551/http://www.barnesandnoble.com/awards/index.asp?PID=21575&cds2Pid=16450&linkid=1123471 |archive-date=2009-03-28 |access-date=2009-05-07}}
He has received several awards from organizations dealing with addiction, including College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD), American Society of Addiction Medicine, the Partnership for Drug-free Kids, American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP), and the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM), and was the first recipient of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP) Arts and Literature Award.{{Cite web |title=Awards - AAAP |url=https://www.aaap.org/about/awards/ |access-date=2025-01-08 |website=American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry |language=en-US}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|http://davidsheff.com/}}
- [https://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/06/magazine/my-addicted-son.html?_r=0 "My Addicted Son"] by David Sheff – New York Times article that preceded his full-length memoir, Beautiful Boy.
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheff, David}}
Category:American male non-fiction writers
Category:University of California, Berkeley alumni
Category:21st-century American memoirists
Category:American people of Russian-Jewish descent
Category:Jewish American memoirists