Convulsive therapy for dementia praecox was first used by the Hungarian neuropsychiatrist Ladislas Meduna in January 1934. On the 50th anniversary the author discusses the introduction of the treatment, the role of a theory of the biological antagonism between epilepsy and schizophrenia, and the contributions of Meduna, Sakel, Cerletti, and Bini. He also describes the changes in usage and methods and the impact of psychotropic drugs on the practice of convulsive therapy.