Jacob FuchsDirector of Pharmacy at CSC, St. Luke's Health System · Director of Pharmacy

5 Cents to Global History: Addiction's Turning Point #shorts

12 Sept 2026 · 1 min

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1:15

In this concise narrated short, Jacob Fuchs recounts a pivotal 1935 encounter that sparked the grassroots birth of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). A Wall Street broker named Bill, desperate to avoid drinking, uses his last five cents to call a local church, which connects him with Dr. Bob, a surgeon whose hands tremble from alcoholism. Rather than preaching or offering medical advice, Bill simply admits his brokenness and asks for help staying sober. This honest confession makes Dr. Bob feel understood for the first time, prompting him to quit drinking that very day to perform a final surgery. Together they help other addicts, forming an organization that operates without a CEO, dues, government funding, or central leadership—all originating from a single nickel in a hotel lobby. The short also highlights the harsh 1930s medical and societal view of addiction as a moral failing, with treatments ranging from asylums to lobotomies.

Chapters

In 1935, a Wall Street broker stood outside a hotel bar with 5 cents in his pocket. He had to make a choice: buy a drink or call a stranger. That 5-cent phone call changed global medical history forever. Back then, if you were a hopeless addict, medicine had no answers. You were locked in insane asylums, given lobotomies, or left to drink yourself to death. Society treated it as a moral flaw, not a disease. The broker, Bill, was losing the battle in Akron, Ohio. He knew if he walked into the bar, he'd never leave. So he picked up a payphone and asked the local church for another addict. They put him in touch with Dr. Dr. Bob, a respected surgeon who was drinking so heavily his hand shook during surgery. Here's the plot twist. Bill didn't try and lecture the doctor. He didn't preach religion. He didn't give medical advice. He just sat down and said, I'm broken. I can't stop, and I need your help to stay sober today. Nobody had ever talked to Dr. Bob like that. For the first time, a doctor felt understood instead of judged. Dr. Bob drank his last beer on June 10th, 1935, just so his hands would stop shaking long enough to perform one last surgery. That afternoon, they helped a third guy. Then a fourth. They created an organization with no CEO, no required dues, no government funding, and zero central leadership, all starting with a single nickel in a hotel lobby.