Helen Bottel

Helen A. Bottel (March 13, 1914 – April 18, 1999) was an American newspaper columnist who wrote the long-running, nationally syndicated advice column Helen Help Us! in the 1960s and 1970s.

Although not as well known as the Dear Abby or Ann Landers columns, King Features Syndicate's Helen Help Us! syndicated call-in show addressed concerns from parents regarding child behaviour, discipline, and parent-child relationships. Her advice focused on acknowledging what parents have control over (their own actions) and how to effectively apply limits and guidance to their children. One was teenage dating: she ran the "Stamp Out Steadying" or "S.O.S." campaign, which gave support to teenagers who did not want to succumb to pressure to "go steady". Another constant subject of letter writers to her column was suburban neighbors who would invade each other's privacy with spyglasses. For a time in 1971, she co-wrote the column with her daughter, Sue Peppers. [1] She published at least three books, some of which were collections of her columns.

In the 1990s, Bottel co-wrote a Look Who's Aging column for Senior magazine. [2]

Books

• Bottel, Helen. To Teens With Love. Doubleday, 1968. ISBN 0-385-07169-8.
• Bottel, Helen. Helen Help Us!. Grosset & Dunlap, 1970.
• Bottel, Helen. Parents' Survival Kit: A Reassuring Guide to Living Through Your Child's Teen-Age Years. Doubleday, 1978.

References

• Helen Bottel's obituary at the Sacramento Bee