Trouble at Home
One of Oppenheimer’s most biting moments was Kitty Oppenheimer’s testimony to the Committee during Robert’s security clearance hearings. The scene isn’t fiction; according to Elle, “many of her lines in those scenes were taken right from transcripts of the hearings.” But Oppenheimer’s home life, particularly during the Los Alamos years, with Kitty had troubles. Kitty Oppenheimer, an honors graduate in botany, had married three times already before meeting Oppenheimer in 1939.
After a summer together with Oppenheimer (while Kitty was still married), she became pregnant. Their son Peter was born in 1941. But Kitty wasn’t happy. She felt confined by motherhood and isolation at Los Alamos. Daughter Katherine was born at Los Alamos in 1944. While Oppenheimer relied on Kitty, she felt her role was to support Robert. The pressure of motherhood, isolation, and having a husband in the public eye drove her to alcoholism.
