The Primary Purpose of Carrying the Message to Alcoholics – Bill

About This Speaker Tape

A $3-a-week flophouse in a decrepit section of Louisville is where Bill W. hit his limit. He spent years blaming his mother-in-law and a string of bosses for his slide into the gutter maintaining the delusion that he wasn't actually a drunk even as he sold neckties and handkerchiefs on street corners for nickels to fund his bottles.

The wreckage included a broken marriage and a son who acted as a human messenger between parents who couldn't stand to be in the same room. The turning point arrived in September 1946 via a stranger—a gambling cab driver—who dragged him into a hamburger stand to call the people who help drunks. After a night of hot milk and black coffee Bill found a way out of the alleys and hock shops eventually reclaiming his family and his dignity.

Topics

Timestamps

• 0:00 Introduction by Conrad; Bill W. begins by reflecting on the 1947 Memphis conference.
• 2:15 Bill describes the $3-a-week flophouse and his denial regarding his wife and bosses.
• 4:30 Laughter: Bill discusses the 'pet saying' about moving house quickly due to frequent separations.
• 6:10 Bill details his wardrobe of one shirt and one pair of pants, and selling ties on the corner for nickels.
• 9:45 The 'family conclave' and the cousin's failed attempt to cure Bill via a signed pledge.
• 13:20 Bill recounts the day he was thrown out of his hotel on Pearl Harbor Day.
• 16:40 The fantasy of the 20-room house in Cherokee Park and the subsequent crash into the Salvation Army.
• 19:10 The physical bottom: malnutrition, facial sores, and the encounter with the gambling cab driver.
• 22:30 The first contact with AA members and the experience of drinking hot milk in a restaurant.
• 25:15 Reflections on the 'miracle' of the stranger and the return of his family.
• 28:00 The reunion with the cab driver four years later and the final thoughts on the program.
• 29:10 Applause: Bill concludes his talk and is thanked by the moderator.