The Shrink Who Exploited His Patient And Took Over Their Entire Life
Looked upon as one of the best psychiatrists across the state of New York, Dr. Isaac Herschkopf appeared to have it all. In addition to his thriving career, he had celebrity pals such as Gwyneth Paltrow and threw luxurious parties at his house in the Hamptons. But all was not as it seemed here. The property didn’t actually belong to him; it was the home of his patient Marty Markowitz, a man whose life he took over for nearly three decades.
Truth can be stranger than fiction...
Quite frankly, it’s a story so far-fetched that you’d be forgiven for thinking that it wasn’t true. How could something that crazy really happen, and over such a long period of time?
Well, you know the old saying: truth can be stranger than fiction. In this case, Dr. Herschkopf’s chilling abuse of power not only inspired an enthralling podcast, but a star-studded TV mini-series, too.
Meeting Markowitz
So let’s go back to where it all started. The year was 1981 and at first glance, Markowitz seemed to be in excellent shape. He was running Associated Fabrics Corporation, his family’s highly successful — and lucrative — business.
He became a very wealthy man, while also maintaining a close bond with his sister, Phyllis Shapiro. Yet away from all that, Markowitz’s personal life was in real turmoil.
Heartbreaking family drama
Sadly, Markowitz’s mom and dad had both passed away in quick succession, which had thrust him into his position of power at Associated Fabrics Corporation. But this had left his uncle furious.
His uncle couldn’t understand why his brother hadn’t entrusted the business to him. So in 1980 he filed a lawsuit against Markowitz. Yes, he tried to sue his own nephew!
Lost love
The problems didn’t end there. Just before all that drama kicked off, Markowitz was engaged to a woman he loved dearly. However, their relationship had unraveled after he’d suggested that she should sign a prenuptial agreement.
His partner flat-out refused, and the engagement was dissolved as a result in 1979. So it’s fair to say that Markowitz had a lot on his plate during that time.
Markowitz knew he needed help
Mind you, dealing with all that emotional baggage proved to be too much for Markowitz. He needed someone to help guide him through the rough waters of his personal life and find a semblance of inner peace.
Recognizing that, the wealthy businessman approached Shlomo Riskin, his rabbi in Lincoln Square, New York. Who better to ask for assistance? After hearing Markowitz out, Riskin came up with an idea.
A fateful recommendation
In an attempt to put him on the right path, Riskin suggested that Markowitz should see a therapist. The rabbi had one name in mind: he directed the guy to Dr. Herschkopf.
Otherwise known as Ike to his close pals, the psychiatrist was about a decade younger than Markowitz. On a personal level, he practically oozed charisma — an important detail to remember going forward.
An instant click
So Markowitz followed Riskin’s advice and got in touch with Dr. Herschkopf’s office. In 1981 he booked his first appointment, hoping that therapy would be just the tonic for his personal troubles.
And you know what? It seemed as though he’d found the right person for the task. Markowitz quickly formed a strong bond with his new psychiatrist as their sessions got going.
The sessions became more frequent
Before long, Markowitz’s weekly meetings with Dr. Herschkopf became more frequent. They jumped to three sessions every seven days. On the face of things, that seemed like a positive development.
You might reasonably assume that all that time was being spent on getting Markowitz in a better mental place. In fact, this wasn’t the case: something far more chilling was going down.
“Pouring salt into all of my open wounds”
In June 2019 Markowitz told news organization the Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), “Very quietly, over about an 18-month period, Ike started pouring salt into all of my open wounds. He got my sister and her children and all of my blood relatives and close friends out of my life.
“A constant mantra from Ike was he’d say, ‘You can’t handle the truth. You’re passive-aggressive, you can’t handle confrontation, ...[and] you’re going to screw up the business and lose customers.’”
Preying on a vulnerable man
Dr. Herschkopf’s harsh words — and his position of power — really did a number on the vulnerable Markowitz. Whether he realized it or not, the psychiatrist was starting to dig his claws in in the most inappropriate way.
Few of his actions were more awful than driving the wedge between Markowitz and his sibling. It was also made worse by the fact that Shapiro saw it coming.
A shocking discovery
Much like her brother, Shapiro had a job with the family’s business. But at a certain point, she discovered that Markowitz was making important decisions about the company via Dr. Herschkopf.
Who wouldn’t be shocked by that revelation? From there, Shapiro wanted to see the therapist herself to get a reading on him, so she booked an appointment at his office.
Serial pay-cuts
By the end of their meeting, Shapiro’s mind was made up: Dr. Herschkopf had done little to ease her distrust or her concerns about the situation. Meanwhile, in 1983, the psychiatrist made a jaw-dropping suggestion to Markowitz.
The business-owner informed the JTA, “[He] instructed me to serially lower Phyllis’ pay by $5,000, which I did several times.” And things continued to spiral going into the spring of that year.
No invite for you!
At the insistence of Dr. Herschkopf, Markowitz was pushed into organizing a second bar mitzvah for himself during that time. Plus, he also had a very strict instruction to follow.
The practictioner made it clear that under no circumstances could Markowitz ask Shapiro or her kids to attend. Unsurprisingly, his sister’s worries only grew more intense; she distrusted the therapist’s true intentions.
Taking bold steps
Believing that her family’s fortune was at real risk, Shapiro made an incredibly bold move. She booked a flight to Switzerland to access her and Markowitz’s joint bank account, as well as their safe deposit box.
Shapiro withdrew a share of the cash from the account, while taking some gold coins out of the box. After that, she also snuck into her brother’s home and grabbed a few savings bonds.
The consequences were dire
Given the rampant pay cuts and Markowitz’s unusual behavior, Shapiro clearly felt that those extreme actions were necessary. But they cost her dearly, and again Dr. Herschkopf was at the heart of things.
“At Dr. Ike’s insistence I fired Phyllis from Associated Fabrics,” Markowitz revealed. Shockingly, though, the punitive measures didn’t end there. The therapist had another idea that would ultimately sever whatever ties were left.
“Never call me again”
Speaking in an interview with the New York Post in June 2019, Markowitz noted, “[Dr. Herschkopf] had me write, and notarize, a letter to my sister, saying ‘Never call me again.’”
And the missive got worse. That message, at the insistence of the psychiatrist, also said, “No one in the family would ever inherit any of my money.” Just like that, his relationship with Shapiro was over.
The final nail in the coffin
Mind you, to put the cherry on top of this tragic cake, Dr. Herschkopf instructed Markowitz to get someone to hand-deliver the message. Now, that would’ve been sad enough as it is.
Yet it wasn’t Shapiro who was handed the emotionally crushing letter. Instead, Markowitz’s young niece had to take it. It was an awful way to essentially disown his family. But what now?
“It seemed like I was in a cult”
Thanks to Dr. Herschkopf’s unbelievable power play, Markowitz had no one else to rely on. He’d been completely isolated from his previous touchstones, leaving only the therapist by his side.
After the fact, Markowitz made a really unnerving point. Interviewed by the Daily Mail, he said, “It seemed like I was in a cult. What does every good cult leader do? The first thing is to separate you from your family.”
“My family will be your family”
Speaking of “cult-like” behavior, Dr. Herschkopf’s solution to Markowitz’s newfound isolation had a fairly creepy undertone to it. As the patient told JTA, “Ike said, ‘You don’t have a family? Don’t worry.
“‘My family will be your family, my kids like your nieces and nephews and we’re going to make a social life for you.’” Due to his emotional vulnerability, though, Markowitz couldn’t see anything wrong at the time. He rolled with it.
Creating the Yaron Foundation
And the bizarre dynamic shared between patient and therapist only got weirder as their “bond” deepened. With Shapiro out of the way, Markowitz was encouraged to found a new charity called the Yaron Foundation in 1984.
He and Dr. Herschkopf ran it, alongside the psychiatrist’s spouse, Becky. But here’s where things got really wild. “He [convinced] me to execute a will leaving my entire estate to the Yaron Foundation,” Markowitz revealed.
More insane twists
And who just so happened to be the recipients there? Yep, Dr. Herschkopf and his wife. This wasn’t just small change, either. Markowitz’s wealth was measured at around eight figures back then.
It appeared that Shapiro had been right to have concerns about the family fortune! But a little over 12 months later, there was another eye-popping twist. After speaking with Markowitz, Dr. Herschkopf was named as the “joint signer” of a personal account.
Sitting on millions
In total, Markowitz had roughly $2.5 million stored in that account. And now, he wasn’t the only one in charge of it. So Dr. Herschkopf’s control over his life was only getting stronger with time.
Having said that, though, some of the most brazen moments from this relationship are still on the way. Yep, Markowitz’s circumstances somehow managed to get still more bizarre going into 1986.
Master of the house
At that point, Markowitz had been the owner of a nice house in the Hamptons. The equally lavish property adjoining it was empty, which prompted Dr. Herschkopf to come up with a suggestion.
Remarkably, he convinced his patient to cough up the cash and purchase the home. But Markowitz didn’t take control of the house after buying it: the therapist did that instead!
A guest in his own home
Yes, Dr. Herschkopf and his clan moved in, with Markowitz being relegated to the guest area. We wonder if this is what the psychiatrist meant by, “My family will be your family?”
And the situation didn’t get much better for the patient after everyone got settled in. Taking advantage of his famous connections, Dr. Herschkopf began throwing some glitzy parties at the pad.
“People thought I was the caretaker”
Each invite included the names of Dr. Herschkopf and his family, but Markowitz’s was nowhere to be seen. On top of that, he couldn’t even be a guest at these parties.
His doctor put him in charge of the food and drink, while also expecting him to clear up any mess left behind. “People thought I was the caretaker,” Markowitz admitted.
The neighbors noticed, too
It wasn’t just the party guests who came to that conclusion, either. Take Joe Nocera, a professional journalist, as an example. He was the owner of the property next door.
Since first spotting Markowitz, he’d been under the assumption that he managed the house. Nocera did eventually uncover the jaw-dropping truth, though, which we’ll get into in a little bit.
The fridge was out of bounds
Going back to life inside the Hamptons house, Markowitz really had been dealt a shocking hand. He had to pay for pretty much everything, including the framed pictures of Dr. Herschkopf which adorned the walls.
The power dynamic was so skewed that the house-owner had even been barred from keeping his own food in the fridge. Rather, Markowitz had been given no choice but to store it in his own bedroom.
A new president
Then in 1991 Markowitz was persuaded to adjust his will once more. This time, the amendment ensured that the house would go to Dr. Herschkopf’s spouse in the event of his passing.
The psychiatrist was granted power of attorney, too. And if that wasn’t enough, Markowitz went on to name his trusted doctor as the president of Associated Fabrics Corporation as well.
How did this continue?
If this was a work of fiction, you’d probably have put it aside by now on grounds of improbability. How much sinister excess can one story contain! You might reasonably ask why Markowitz hadn’t realized he was being taken advantage of?
Vulnerable or not, surely something must have seemed off as Dr. Herschkopf continued to take control? Well, the patient offered some interesting insights on that subject that during a chat with website Forward in July 2021.
“Living a lie”
Markowitz said, “I was living a lie when I was with Ike. Ike sucked me into this cult of Ike and I was spending six or seven hours a week with him.
“He kept me constantly busy transcribing his handwritten books, throwing these parties, and I didn’t appreciate what was going on. He didn’t let me have a girlfriend. I would go on a date, and he’d call her a gold digger.”
“Everyone is out to get you”
“[Dr. Herschkopf] would say, ‘Everyone is out to get you, I’m going to protect you,’” Markowitz continued. “And I was stupid enough to buy it.” Everything changed in 2010, though.
By that stage, the therapist had been in his life for nearly 30 years. From Markowitz’s perspective, they were the closest of pals. But then, he was taken to hospital.
Blanked at the worst possible time
After suffering a hernia, Markowitz had to go under the knife to get it fixed. By all accounts, it turned out to be a very tricky procedure for the physicians and their patient.
But at least Dr. Herschkopf would be dropping by to see his friend during this tough time, right? Well, apparently not. The psychiatrist showed no interest in traveling to the hospital.
A wake-up call
Yet that decision proved to be a massive mistake on Dr. Herschkopf’s part. His heartless snub served as the wake-up call that Markowitz so badly needed following decades of exploitation.
Realizing that the therapist didn’t really care about him, he showed no hesitation in cutting Dr. Herschkopf and his wife out of the will. Markowitz acted as soon as he departed the medical facility.
A serious accusation
After that, Markowitz made an even bigger call. As he was still coming to terms with Dr. Herschkopf’s abuse of power, he got in touch with the New York Department of Health.
Quite simply, Markowitz accused the psychiatrist of malpractice. Elsewhere, he also started the process of rebuilding his personal life, finally reconnecting with his sister. “I’ve been waiting for this call for 27 years,” Shapiro said upon answering the telephone.
“Power and greed”
Overall, Markowitz calculated that he’d splashed around $3 million on Dr. Herschkopf’s services across the years. While that must’ve stung, though, the mental scars he had been left with were arguably worse.
“He said I’m not lovable,” Markowitz told the New York Post. “He was all about power and greed. Occasionally I’ll get a flashback of him, but I’m so happy with my life now. He’s not in my ear.”
The Shrink Next Door
As for the story itself, Nocera played an integral role in bringing it to the public’s attention. You see, after he discovered the truth about the Hamptons house, the journalist started to do some digging.
Once he was done, Nocera couldn’t believe what he’d found. Ultimately, it inspired him to create a podcast on the tale, which came out in 2019. Its title? The Shrink Next Door.
A guilty verdict
Meanwhile, just weeks after the podcast hit the airwaves, Dr. Herschkopf finally faced charges from the New York Department of Health. Markowitz’s years-long wait for a response was finally over.
In the end, the therapist was found guilty of 16 “incidents of professional misconduct.” The disgraced practitioner was subsequently stripped of his New York license in the spring of 2021.
Getting the Hollywood treatment
Later that year, the bizarre story found an even bigger audience via the TV adaption of The Shrink Next Door. Will Ferrell took on the role of Markowitz, while Paul Rudd played Dr. Herschkopf.
And both stars made a rather unsettling point during an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. Ferrell said, “While this story seems absurd and far-fetched, it really isn’t. We’re all prone to having a point in our life where we feel vulnerable.”
“I got justice”
“[And in those moments we] want to follow someone who’s just going to give us advice that feels like it’s going to help us,” Ferrell continued. Rudd then added, “Our brains are pretty fragile. You could say ‘That would never happen to me,’ but maybe it would.”
As for the man it did happen to, Markowitz was very much at peace in 2021. He told Forward, “I’m going to retire and travel the world with my girlfriend. I got justice. That’s what I wanted.”