Writing this book relied on the trust, goodwill, and cooperation of so many people, but of one person especially: Jan Blankenship opened her home and her mother’s boxes to me without restrictions or conditions—but not, understandably, without apprehension. I’m thankful for her kindness, openness, and patience and hope this book delivers on that tremendous leap of faith. I had a lot of fun getting to know her and Chuck and am glad to have met their kids, Jeremiah and Verity, as well.
I very quickly gained staggering and overdue appreciation for archivists and the work they do. Thank you to Pat Young and Valerie Marlowe at the Disaster Research Center’s E. L. Quarantelli Resource Collection, as well as to the center’s directors, Tricia Wachtendorf and James Kendra, for welcoming me into their world. I’m equally grateful to Arlene Schmuland, Gwen Sieja, and Veronica Dawson at the University of Alaska Anchorage Archives and Special Collections for their extensive assistance and guidance and for sharing my fascination with Genie.
It was a total privilege to hear the stories of so many residents of Anchorage, past and present, all of whom are acknowledged in the source notes. Their affection for that time and place always moved me; I hope that comes through. I’m especially grateful to Al Bramstedt Jr., Barbara Brinkerhoff, Nancy Yaw Davis, Michael Janecek, and Robin Niemann for their help and patience over the years, and to Bill Davis and Robert Pond, who sadly aren’t around to see what all my nitpicky questions finally amounted to. Thanks also to Tom Drabek, whose memories of the early days of the Disaster Research Center were invaluable.
Jin Auh at the Wylie Agency knew—far more confidently than I did initially—that I should write this book. I’m grateful to her for reminding me that the decision was entirely mine and for empowering me to make it. Andy Ward is as skillful and sensitive an editor and collaborator as everyone says he is. It’s hard to imagine having two sharper or more exceptionally supportive people in my corner—it just feels so good.
Thank you to everyone at Random House who has played a part in the creation and promotion of this book: Craig Adams, Jess Bonet, Maria Braeckel, Barbara Fillon, Susan Kamil, London King, Matthew Martin, Tom Perry, and Chayenne Skeete. Thanks to Bruce Merrell, who helped with research in Anchorage at the very beginning and end of this project, but also generously read the manuscript and offered the kind of meaningful feedback and approval that only a genuine Alaskan could; Sonner Kehrt, who brought her impressive journalistic talents to the job of fact-checking the manuscript, shoring up its accuracy and my emotional well-being; Jason Richman at UTA for his advocacy and hard work on my behalf; the exemplary editors and fact-checkers at The New York Times Magazine, particularly Sheila Glaser, Jake Silverstein, Jessica Lustig, Bill Wasik, Rob Liguori, and Lia Miller, who’ve continually made me a better reporter and writer in thousands of obvious and imperceptible ways; and all the brilliant friends to whom I continually turned for advice, favors, comfort, and criticism as I went along: Laurel Braitman, Alexis Coe, Jack Hitt, Starlee Kine, Jamie Lowe, Claire Cain Miller, Caroline Paul, Meghann Riepenhoff, Rebecca Skloot, Amy Standen, and especially Wendy MacNaughton and Chris Colin. Also: Evan Ratliff and I had a standing phone call every other Thursday for two years to chat about the books we were writing. Anyone writing a book should make sure to have an Evan Ratliff.
This Is Chance! started as a collaboration with the musicians Jenny Conlee-Drizos, Chris Funk, John Moen, Jon Neufeld, and Nate Query for a live show produced by Radiotopia and the podcast 99% Invisible. Thank you to Roman Mars for his extraordinary trust in us and the chance to first dig into the story, and to Avery Trufelman, who played Genie in the original production. Thanks to my musical collaborators—the Brink Players—for making it a totally joyous experience and helping to set the tone.
This book is for Rose, who would have preferred I wrote a book about bees but isn’t holding it against me. It is also for Isla. It is also for Wandee. Everything is.