CinemaOSMovie · 2006 · 1h 33m

The Great Fever

DocumentaryHistoryDrama

On September 13, 1900, thirty-four-year-old physician Jesse Lazear believed he was on the brink of a scientific breakthrough that would put an end to yellow fever, the worst epidemic scourge of nineteenth-century America. Dr. Jesse Lazear, a member of the US Yellow Fever Board working in Havana, was working on a radical theory of transmission, which placed the lowly mosquito at the center of one science's most elusive riddles. Shortly after being bitten by a lab mosquito known to be infected with yellow fever, two of Lazear's co-workers had fallen ill. Encouraged by this success, the ambitious young surgeon put himself at risk, allowing an infected mosquito to bite him. In less than two weeks, after several days of delirium and black vomit, Jesse Lazear was dead. This film documents the research of intrepid Cuban scientist Carlos Finlay and the efforts of Major Walter Reed and his medical team, some of whom put their own lives on the line to eradicate yellow fever.

Directed byAdriana Bosch, Michael Chin

Play
Status
Released
Runtime
1h 33m
Language
EN
Released
October 30, 2006
Studios
American Experience FilmsBosch and CompanyWGBH Educational Foundation (US)

Featuring

Cast & crew

2 credited
Starring
Anthony Bourdain

Anthony Bourdain

Self

Linda Hunt

Linda Hunt

Narrator

Creative team
Directed by
Adriana Bosch
Michael Chin
Written by
Adriana Bosch
Produced by
Adriana Bosch

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