He is known for pioneering sleep and dream studies, incorporating neurophysiology, endocrinology, and biochemistry into his work.
[1][2] In 1938, the family left Vienna, due to the rise of Nazism, and went to Paris and then to Switzerland; they finally settled in New York City in 1941, where EH graduated from the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in 1951.
He served as lieutenant commander in the US Public Health Service from 1962 to 1964 and held multiple high-level positions in tandem with his duties at Tufts, including but not limited to, directing the Sleep and Dream Laboratory in the Boston State Hospital from 1964 to 1980, the Sleep Laboratory at the West-Ros-Park Mental Health Centre, and the Sleep Disorders Center at the Newton-Wellesly Hospital.
[3] During his career as a researcher of sleep and dreams for 55 years, he published more than 350 articles and 9 books while giving a myriad of presentations and talks across the world.
[3] Hartmann was married twice, first to Barbara Snow Hengst, from 1961 to 1974, then to Eva Neumann, from 1995 to 1999; both of these marriages ended in divorce.