The Knick Finale Real Facts
While The Knick is a work of fiction, it is based on exhaustive historical research. Below, the show’s writers share some of the true facts of the era that are depicted in this episode.
The Spinal Block and Epidural are alternatives to general anesthesia. Unlike general anesthesia, these procedures leave the patient conscious. In 1901, knocking a patient out came with high risks. While general anesthesia has become much safer, to this day, doctors try to avoid rendering a patient wholly unconscious for surgery.
Thackery invents the Spinal Block in Season 1. In reality, New York doctor James Corning discovered the Spinal Block in 1885. He used a dog as his first test subject. In homage to that initial test, Thackery mentions in Season 1 that he’s tested the procedure once before on a Labrador retriever. (Image courtesy of the Burns Archive.
Funeral homes were not a popular institution in 1901, and most funerals took place in people's private residences. Parlors were often used for these solemn occasions, which earned them the name “Death Rooms.” In 1910, Ladies Home Journal supported the idea that parlors be used for everyday purposes. Thus, the idea of the “Living Room” was born—a place for life and family. (Image courtesy of the Burns Archive.)
The man helping Barrow with his police problem is William K. Vanderbilt. He and the Vanderbilt family have been discussed several times during Season 2. In fact, Captain Robertson was loosely based on Cornelius Vanderbilt.
The sores on Barrow's hands are the result of his over-use of the Knick’s x-ray machine and the ill effects of radiation. Thomas Edison's assistant, Clarence Dally, was one of the first people to die from radiation, back in 1904. In Season 1, Dally is a character at the Knick—the man who first presents the machine to the hospital. (Image courtesy of the Burns Archive.)
In 1921 American surgeon Evan O'Neill Kane performed self-surgery, using cocaine and adrenalin to numb his abdominal wall, and then proceeding to remove his appendix. The entire procedure took 30 minutes. Kane made a full and swift recovery, taking only 14 days before he returned to active duty as chief of surgery. He later explained that he had performed the self-experiment both to know how a patient feels when being operated upon and to understand how to use local anesthesia to its best advantage. (Image courtesy of the Burns Archive.)
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