Growing up, David Kaczynski knew there was something different about his brother, Ted. But how did he go from brilliant math professor to serial bomber? Project Unabom is an Apple Original podcast, produced by Pineapple Street Studios. Listen and follow on Apple Podcasts. https://apple.co/Project_Unabom
A quick heads up before we get started.
This episode contains a mention of suicide.
Please take care while listening.
The first time I heard from David Kaczynski was in September 2019.
It was a short email, gracious and thoughtful, but disappointing.
Thanks for reaching out, he wrote.
I'm mostly seeking peace of mind now, after a couple decades devoted to public advocacy.
Your project sounds like a worthy one.
But I've promised myself to learn how to say no in order to claim the space I need for reflection and calm.
Best of luck to you.
I wanted to ask you about the.
Pronunciation of your last name.
There are a couple people who have.
Insisted to me that it's pronounced Kchinsky.
Yeah, my parents taught us that the original pronunciation was Kchinsky, and sometimes, oddly enough, people will ask me what my name is and I'll say David.
And they say, david what?
And I'll say Kaczynski just so that maybe to maintain a little privacy.
I still don't quite know why David said yes.
Over the year and a half since we first spoke, David would tell me something still felt unfinished.
For decades, he and Ted were something akin to best friends traveling together, exchanging hundreds of letters, debating ideas, making sense of their childhoods, even sharing elaborate analyses of their dreams.