The following document and Vignette 15 are the only written records we have of Trillim’s stay in New York. She knew composer Monty Smith from high school in Burley, Idaho. Smith was a well-known figure in the Greenwich Village music scene and maintained an extravagant life style under the patronage of the DEA, an organization devoted to the arts and in particular Smith. He was raised Mormon, but had abandoned the Church shortly after leaving Idaho to study music in Los Angeles.
Trillim’s trip to New York is shrouded in mystery and much is unknown. But while her Journal mentions almost in passing that she “is going to the Big Apple,” she never directly refers to it again. These documents were uncovered by Trillim scholar Sergey Petrov, whose writings on Trillim and Smith’s relationship are intriguing and well worth perusing if just for a wealth of arcane information about high school life in Burley in the 1950s.1
Document 1: Mary Lassiter Mental Health Hospital. Manhattan, NY. Floor Logbook.
Floor Logbook
For attending staff floor notes only, please refer to patient’s chart for full information.
Patient name: Jane Doe #394
Admitting Physician: Dr. Aaron Mossberg, Ph: 212-116-2874
Date: Oct. 13, 1972
Time: 11:40 pm
Baseline: Pulse: 128; Blood Pressure: Sys: 154, D: 94; Wt: 123; Pupils: slightly dilated, responding to light.
Physical Appearance: Patient arrived filthy, with multiple superficial abrasions incl. both knees, elbows, nose, chin, and forehead. Patient is missing R. hand at wrist from previous injury. Face bloody from nasal contusion and one canine knocked out through trauma. Rat bites on hand and arms. Patient not oriented to time or place. Speech confused. Periods of calm punctuated with violent episodes of uncontrolled thrashing noted. No identification.
Reason for Admittance: Psychotic episode. Asks repeatedly for Fatty Lumpkin and Paps. Was found screaming in sewer near the corner of West 4th St. and Perry St. At least some injuries incurred in resisting Fire Department’s attempts to extract her from the sewer system.
Treatment: Placed in a straight jacket and retrained in cushioned restraint room 23B. Given 25 mg/mL injection of Thorazine and 600mg Aspirin. Wounds have been cleaned and bandaged, largely superficial except for the tooth. (Arrangements for an oral surgeon have been scheduled for tomorrow afternoon.) She is currently sleeping.
Update: 5:20 am. Awoke asked for water. Did not understand where she was or how she got here. Seems calm.