Michael Huey’s biography of Count Felix Schaffgotsche was published in Vienna in early 2026 in English, by Album Verlag. At over 1,000 pages, Unpredictable Weather, the first full-length account of the life of Schaffgotsche, is the product of five years of research and writing: research in the privately-held Witt-Dörring and Schaffgotsche family archive near Vienna, but also in Austrian and German State Archives, as well as family archives accessible to the public in Donaueschingen, the Czech Republic, and the United States.

As is generally known, Schaffgotsche (dubbed ‘Wetti’ within his family) is an integral part of the story of Sun Valley. While his work for and with Averell Harriman in the 1930s stands out as Wetti’s biggest career success, his time in Sun Valley nevertheless represents but a short stretch of his own brief existence: until now histories of Sun Valley that touch upon his life have lacked the context of his family background, his upbringing, his other work experience, his politics, his ambitions, his friendships and networks, and his personal world and sexuality. Born in the Upper Austrian town of Enns in 1904, Wetti lived through four distinctly different political regimes that served as backdrop to his life’s story; with each came a new imperative to re-examine and radically restructure his family’s financial underpinnings, as well as the need to position himself politically for or against. Aside from his hometown Altmünster, he lived variously in Vienna, Donaueschingen, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, London, New York, and Sun Valley, and was en route from Moscow to Manchuria when his fortunes took a swift turn in his 37th year.

Huey’s talk will focus on the challenges and complexities of finding and working with the materials necessary to write Wetti’s intricate biography and about the parts of his life that have, until now, remained in the shadows.

Registration recommended to attend in person. The Community Library has a copy of Unpredictable Weather in the collection, and Michael Huey will bring some copies for sale the night of the talk.