top of page
Search

A Prescription for Murder: The Scarsdale Diet Doctor, His Jealous Lover, and a Fatal Affair.

Updated: 18 hours ago

When Dr. Herman Tarnower, a wealthy and widely respected cardiologist from Scarsdale, New York, published The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet in 1978, he became a household name overnight. The book, co-written with Samm Sinclair Baker, promised rapid weight loss with rigid structure and medical authority. But beneath the polished veneer of this disciplined doctor’s public persona was a tangled web of infidelity, obsession, and betrayal. At the center of this fatal love triangle was Jean Harris—a prim and proper headmistress turned convicted murderer.

This is the twisted true story of the so-called Scarsdale Diet Murder.


A Recipe for Tragedy

Born in Brooklyn in 1910, Herman Tarnower built a life of prestige through medicine. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and later founded the Scarsdale Medical Center in one of New York’s most affluent suburbs. His dedication to health extended beyond the clinic—he practiced what he preached, and The Scarsdale Diet was a commercial success that secured his status as a celebrity physician.


Enter Jean Harris.


A product of refinement, Jean was a Wellesley graduate, mother of two, and headmistress of The Madeira School for girls in McLean, Virginia—a role that demanded dignity and decorum. She met Tarnower in 1966, and the two began a long-distance, often emotionally volatile relationship that would stretch over 14 years.

But as time passed, so did Tarnower’s fidelity.


The Other Woman

In the late 1970s, Tarnower began seeing his much-younger secretary, Lynne Tryforos. Unlike Jean, Lynne was local, lively, and unburdened by the emotional complexities of a 14-year entanglement. Jean knew about the affair. In fact, Tarnower made little effort to hide it—he flaunted gifts he gave Lynne, including lingerie and jewelry, and even encouraged both women to be civil with each other.

Jean was far from oblivious. She wrote long, tortured letters, pleading for his affection, obsessing over his betrayals, and struggling with a cocktail of barbiturates prescribed by the very man stringing her along. Friends noticed a change. Her emotional health began to unravel. Her career suffered. And by early 1980, Jean Harris was on the edge.

March 10, 1980: The Final Visit

On the evening of March 10, 1980, Jean Harris drove from Virginia to Scarsdale, claiming later she had intended to die by suicide in front of Dr. Tarnower. She brought a loaded .32 caliber revolver.


What happened next is still debated.


According to Jean, an argument erupted after Tarnower confronted her about forged prescriptions—she had been altering scripts to secure more pills. During the fight, the gun accidentally discharged—four times.


Two bullets struck Tarnower fatally.


When police arrived, they found a distraught Harris who claimed it had all been a tragic mistake. But the physical evidence—four shots, two of them in the chest—told a different story. Investigators and prosecutors painted a chilling picture: a spurned woman, overtaken by jealousy and rage, drove nearly 300 miles to confront her lover and executed him in cold blood.


Trial by Obsession

The trial of Jean Harris was a media circus. Dubbed The Scarsdale Diet Murder, it combined tabloid drama with themes of feminist rage, emotional abuse, and prescription drug dependency. Harris, clad in conservative suits and an unwavering poker face, maintained she didn’t intend to kill Tarnower. Her testimony revealed the emotional cruelty she endured—Tarnower’s dismissiveness, his romantic entanglements, and his control over her medically and emotionally.


But it wasn’t enough to sway the jury.


In 1981, Jean Harris was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to 15 years to life.


A New Chapter Behind Bars

While incarcerated at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility, Harris became an advocate for prison reform and education. She taught GED classes, established a parenting program for female inmates, and eventually authored two books: They Always Call Us Ladies and Stranger in Two Worlds, detailing prison life and her own experiences.


After serving nearly 12 years, she was granted clemency by Governor Mario Cuomo and released in 1993 due to deteriorating health.


She lived quietly until her death in 2012 at the age of 89.


A Legacy Written in Blood

The Scarsdale Diet continues to surface in pop culture, though the murder has largely eclipsed its nutritional claims. Herman Tarnower is now remembered less as a heart doctor and more as the heartbreaker who paid the ultimate price. Jean Harris, once the paragon of upper-crust womanhood, became both villain and victim—a woman consumed by devotion, rejected, and undone.


The case remains a fascinating study in emotional manipulation, gender roles, and the explosive consequences of unrequited love. It begs the question: how far can obsession go before it becomes deadly?


Sometimes, it’s not the diet that kills you—it’s the man behind it.


Sources used for this podcast

APA-Formatted Source List

News Articles

Today in History: Jean Harris found guilty of shooting Scarsdale Diet author Dr. Herman Tarnower. (Chicago Tribune). Retrieved from https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/02/24/today-in-history-jean-harris-found-guilty-of-shooting-scarsdale-diet-author-dr-herman-tarnower/

The Scarsdale Diet Doctor Murder Trial. (CBS News). Retrieved from https://www.cbsnews.com/news/almanac-the-scarsdale-diet-doctor-murder-trial/

A Celeb Doctor's Slaying. (The Hollywood Reporter). Retrieved from https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/general-news/1980-a-celeb-doctors-slaying-817934/

Web Articles and Blogs

The Slaying in Scarsdale. (Medium). Retrieved from https://tiaragraceeeeee.medium.com/the-slaying-in-scarsdale-cd1750fdee0e

Wikipedia

Herman Tarnower. (Wikipedia). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herman_Tarnower

Jean Harris. (Wikipedia). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Harris

YouTube

Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song (Official Video). (YouTube). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlNhD0oS5pk

Institutional Websites

Smith College. (Smith College). Retrieved from https://www.smith.edu/

The Madeira School for Girls. (The Madeira School). Retrieved from https://www.madeira.org/

Books

The Scarsdale Diet Book. (Amazon). Retrieved from https://amzn.to/4l8t5Gl

Television and Film

Ted Lasso (2021). S2 E2, 'Lavender'. Apple TV+.

She’s Having a Baby (1988). Paramount Pictures.

Rocky (1976). Chartoff-Winkler Productions; United Artists.

American Justice (1993). S2 E4, 'Jean Harris'. A&E. Retrieved from https://www.imdb.com/title/tt15441446/

That 70’s Show (1998). S7 E4, 'Beast of Burden'. Fox.

Mona Lisa Smile (2003). Columbia Pictures.

Little Shop of Horrors (1986). Warner Bros.

Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985). Warner Bros.

The Hustler (1961). 20th Century Fox.

Family Guy (1999). S13 E6, 'The 2000 Year Old Virgin'. Fox.

Glee (2009). S3 E11, 'Drama'. Fox.

Fatal Attraction (1987). Paramount Pictures.

Crazy Stupid Love (2011). Warner Bros.

The Hunt (2020). Universal Pictures.

Bridgerton (2020). S1 E1. Netflix.

Below Deck (2013). S8 E2, 'There’s No Crying in Yachting'. Bravo.

Something’s Gotta Give (2003). Columbia Pictures.

Caddyshack (1980). Warner Bros.

Boardwalk Empire (2010) S1 E4 Anastasia HBO



DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY

All information contained in this audio podcast or video presentation is provided for entertainment purposes only. The authors leave any and all conclusions to individual members of the audience. The author offers no statements of fact beyond those available through diligent private research or through information freely available in the public record. To the extent that pending or settled criminal matters or crime or possible crimes, are discussed in this audio podcast or video presentation. All parties or defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law. To the extent that any pending or settled civil matters are discussed in this video presentation, all parties or defendants are presumed not liable unless proven liable in a court of law. Copyright for material incorporated and presented under Fair Use is retained by the original author or copyright holder where applicable. Our cases are researched using open source and archive materials, and the subjects are real crimes and people. We strive to produce each episode with respect to the victims, their families and loved ones. At Hitched 2 Homicide we are committed to always discussing how victims lived, and not just how they died. All podcast information is gleaned from sources given. All opinions in the podcast are solely of Hitched 2 Homicide and are for entertainment purposes only.

 
 
 

Comentários

bottom of page