Susan Bergman

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Susan Bergman
Born
Susan Claire Heche

(1957-05-05)May 5, 1957
Bloomington, Indiana, U.S.
DiedJanuary 1, 2006(2006-01-01) (aged 48)
Barrington, Illinois, U.S.
OccupationWriter
EducationBA, Art, Wheaton College (Illinois), 1979
PhD, Literature, Northwestern University, 1992
(specialization: 20th Century poetry)[1]
GenreMemoir, poetry, nonfiction, essay
Subjectautobiography, religion
Notable worksAnonymity (1994)
Spouse
Judson Bergman
​
(m. 1979)​
ChildrenElliot Bergman
Natalie Bergman
RelativesNancy Heche (mother)
Anne Heche (sister)
Website
SusanBergman.com
(archived)

Susan Bergman (née Heche; May 5, 1957 – January 1, 2006) was an American writer and literary scholar.

Early life

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Bergman was born as Susan Claire Heche on May 5, 1957, in Bloomington, Indiana. She was one of five children of Donald "Don" Joe Heche and Nancy Heche (née Prickett).[2][3]

Bergman was the sister of actress Anne Heche,[1] who also wrote a memoir about their father and family background, in 2001.[4]

Writing

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Bergman wrote her memoir Anonymity in 1994,[5] which recounts the discovery, in 1983, of the closeted homosexuality and double life of her father, Don, a Christian, choir director, and seemingly model family man, while he was dying of HIV/AIDS.[1][6][7][8] Anonymity had its beginnings as Bergman's doctoral dissertation at Northwestern University.[8]

In 1996, Bergman was editor of an anthology titled Martyrs: Contemporary Writers on Modern Lives of Faith,[9] in which contemporary authors reflected on the lives of 20th Century religious and political martyrs. Bergman contributed the introductory chapter, a reflection on the nature of martyrdom and what it teaches about faith.[10][11][12]

Bergman was also a lecturer at, and taught literature at Northwestern University, New York University, and the University of Notre Dame.[13]

Private life

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Heche married musician Judson Bergman in 1979 and they had several children, including musicians Elliot Bergman and Natalie Bergman of band Wild Belle.[14]

Like most of her family, Bergman was a life-long evangelical Christian, and religious themes were a frequent subject of her writing. In 1996, Christianity Today named her in their profile of "Up and Comers: Fifty evangelical leaders 40 and under".[15] However, she stated that she did not consider herself part of the Christian right. Quoting the words of a friend of hers, Bergman stated: "I dare to believe that when Jesus invites all who labor and are heavy-laden, he's not screening for HIV, or voting behavior, or asking whether or not someone has had a divorce, or an abortion."[16]

Three months after her father's death from AIDS-related complications on March 3, 1983, aged 45,[17] Bergmans's 18-year-old brother Nathan was killed in a car crash when his vehicle missed a curve and struck a tree.[18][19][20] The remainder of her immediate family subsequently moved to Chicago to be closer to other family members.[21][22]

Death

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Bergman died on January 1, 2006, in Barrington, Illinois, at the age of 48, after a three-year battle against a brain tumor.[1]

Bibliography

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Books

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  • Bergman, Susan (1994). Anonymity. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. ISBN 0374254079.
  • Buried Life. (unpublished)

Anthologies

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  • Bergman, Susan (1996). Martyrs: Contemporary Writers on Modern Lives of Faith. HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 0060611200. (editor)

Sources

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d Sherlock, Barbara (January 2, 2006). "Chicago Tribune: Susan Bergman 1957–2006". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on August 13, 2022. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  2. ^ Heche 2001, p. 24–25.
  3. ^ Heche 2006, p. 13.
  4. ^ "Exclusive: Anne Heche Interview". ABC News. 3 September 2001. Retrieved 5 October 2025.
  5. ^ Kirkus Reviews (1993-12-01). "Anonymity by Susan Bergman (review)". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
  6. ^ Kelly, Joyce (February 5, 1994). "Revealing Truths". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on August 18, 2022. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  7. ^ Glass, Ira (host) (January 17, 1996). "Double Lives". This American Life. Episode 10. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Times Staff and Wire Reports (January 4, 2006). "Susan Bergman, 48; Wrote of Her Father's Secret Life as a Gay Man". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 22, 2022.
  9. ^ Kirkus Reviews (August 1, 1996). "Martyrs: Contemporary Writers on Modern Lives of Faith, edited by Susan Bergman". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved September 7, 2022.
  10. ^ Staff (September 9, 1996). ""Martyrs: Contemporary Writers on Modern Lives of Faith"". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  11. ^ Lapp, John A. (1999). "Book Review: "Martyrs: Contemporary Writers on Modern Lives of Faith"". International Bulletin of Missionary Research. 23 (1): 45. doi:10.1177/239693939902300122. ISSN 0272-6122. S2CID 149077801. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  12. ^ Bergman, Susan (August 12, 1996). "Faith Unto Death, Part 1". Christianity Today. Archived from the original on February 15, 2009.
    "Faith Unto Death, Part 2". Christianity Today. Archived from the original on February 18, 2009. Retrieved August 25, 2022. (CT publication of Bergman's introductory chapter in Martyrs.)
  13. ^ "Susan Bergman, older sister of Anne Heche, dies". www.advocate.com. The Advocate. January 4, 2006. Retrieved October 5, 2025.
  14. ^ Kot, Greg (September 10, 2012). "Wild Belle a brother-sister combo on the rise". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on July 12, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  15. ^ Christianity Today Staff (November 11, 1996). "Up & Comers (Part 2)". Christianity Today. Retrieved August 25, 2022.
  16. ^ Bergman, Susan (writer); Glass, Ira (host) (November 14, 1997). "One of Us. Act III: My Church Life". This American Life. Episode 83. Retrieved August 25, 2022. transcript
  17. ^ Heche 2001, p. 97–98.
  18. ^ Pringle, Gill (May 1, 2011). "Anne Heche: 'There was no joy in my family'". The Daily Telegraph. London, England. Archived from the original on August 26, 2022.
  19. ^ Heche 2001, p. 107–108.
  20. ^ Staff (June 6, 1983). "Police Notebook: Ocean City man killed in Upper Twp. crash". Courier-Post. Cherry Hill, NJ. p. 27. Archived from the original on September 5, 2022. Retrieved September 5, 2022.
  21. ^ Heche 2001, p. 99.
  22. ^ Heche 2006, p. 32, 117–118.
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Library resources about
Susan Bergman
By Susan Bergman