Carl Djerassi, a 1945 UW-Madison graduate and recipient of a 1995 honorary degree, died Friday at the age of 91, according to a university news release.
The chemist, poet and playwright was most known for his work with steroid hormones, the groundwork for the first oral contraceptive.
Djerassi emigrated from Vienna to the U.S. in 1939 and attended UW-Madison until 1945, when he began working with colleagues in Mexico City to create a synthetic steroid hormone. The substance contributed to the first hormonal oral contraceptive, deeming him the “father of the birth control pill,” according to a October 2012 release.
Upon receiving a Distinguished Alumni Award from the Wisconsin Alumni Association in 2012, Djerassi addressed the societal impact of the birth control pill.
“People think the pill should be either credited or blamed for the sexual revolution; that's a gross oversimplification,” Djerassi said in the release. “People forget the '60s were the decade of hippie culture, drug culture, rock 'n roll culture and, most importantly the flowering of the women's movement. All these had something to do with sexual liberation.”
More than a noted scientist, Djerassi was also a recognized artist and art collector, according to the release. He began writing poetry and plays in the 1980s as a way to educate the public through fiction without them knowing it, according to a 2014 interview with Chemistry World.
“I really decided it would be interesting to lead a totally different life - that of an intellectual smuggler,” Djerassi said in the interview.
The scientist-turned-writer remained intellectually active throughout his life, finishing his second autobiography at the age of 89, according to the release. He previously said his discovery came at a perfect time.
"As science moves forward, there is always a moment where, if you don’t do it, someone else will,” Djerassi was quoted as saying in the release.
