April is Autism Awareness Month and being a parent of a child with Asperger’s Syndrome, I am always trying to stress that he is not alone. Many famous people through out time have had autism or been in on the spectrum. To me autism is not a disorder, but a blessing. My son has his issues but his brilliance outweighs the issues. Autism does not have to be a “bad” word if people would look past the problems and see the person inside. Many people throughout history had the signs of autism; people such as Mark Twain, Thomas Edison, Mozart, Beethoven, Albert Einstein, Bill Gates and many more. So I have created a list of people in the TV and movie world that have autism or showed signs of autism before we knew what it was.
Daryl Hannah- star of such movies as Splash and Kill Bill has been diagnosed as being borderline autistic.
Satoshi Tajiri- creator of the hit TV show Pokémon has Asperger’s Syndrome.
Dan Aykroyd- comedian and actor, must famous for his work on Saturday Night Live and Ghostbusters has admitted to having Asperger’s Syndrome.
Some people think that Dan was joking.
Andy Kaufman- star of Taxi and stand up comedian. Andy’s close friends say that he showed many of the signs of autism, but, he was never tested.
Woody Allen- the famous director and actor is considered borderline autistic.
Michael Edward Palin- English comedian, actor and writer best known for being one of the members of Monty Python has Asperger’s Syndrome.
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock- many people say that he possessed many of the qualities people with Asperger’s have.
Parents of autistic children:
Jenny McCarthy
Sylvester Stallone
John Travolta and Kelly Preston
So take a step back and see that autism is much more than just another cause. Whether you choose to support, pray for or love a person on the spectrum, the rewards are countless.
Comments
Billy
April 7th, 2010 - 9:40:50 AM
This is a horrible article. Half of your names you list as speculation. How does this help the autism cause? By perpetuating rumors and stereotypes? Where's your research, where's the facts? What a bunch of useless fluff.
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valerie church
April 8th, 2010 - 6:21:35 AM
My neice, is a teacher for autism children. God bless her and her autistic children she teaches in Florida.
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Missy Armstrong
April 8th, 2010 - 12:32:52 PM
Billy, So many people hear my son has Asperger's and cringe. The point of this article to to make people see that people on the spectrum of autism are not alone and can be great if given the chance. Yes, some of the people on the list have never been tested and those people have that listed next to their name. Some of my research came from the following websites: http://www.child-autism-parent-cafe.com/famous-people-with-autism.html; http://www.2-b-well.org/famousautistics.html; http://www.disabled-world.com/artman/publish/article_2086.shtml; http://www.asperger-syndrome.me.uk/people.htm
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Lee
April 13th, 2010 - 4:56:15 AM
It was determined that Jenny McCarthy's son is not autistic, but has a rare genetic/ developmental disorder. Still she shills dangerously for the anti-vacine ignorance.
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John McKay
April 21st, 2010 - 6:23:45 PM
Even worse than this pointless article is the naive quote "To me autism is not a disorder, but a blessing. My son has his issues but his brilliance outweighs the issues. Autism does not have to be a “bad” word if people would look past the problems and see the person inside" All very well if you have a 'high functioning" child, but the symptoms are wide. Would she say the same if her son screamed incessantly, banging his head off walls, spat and fought with everyone, could not communicate at all, smeared excrement all over her house etc etc. Stop judging others distress by the relatively mild symptoms of your son 99.8% of parents AND autistic children agree it IS a HUGE brain disorder they can NEVER overcome, and would give up ANYTHING to become 'normal'. Look outside your own quaint, cosy, ignorant little world and see REAL suffering and distress of symptoms you dont even know about. Don't expect us to aquiesce with your cliches and platitudes about so-called "famous autistic people", and how wonderfully brilliant your child is conveniently ignoring those much worse off than you.
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Unhappy Mum
October 18th, 2010 - 6:26:57 AM
Thankyou thankyou thankyou John Mckay!!! Finally someone gets real about the fact that life isn't so damn rosie for some Autistic peoples carers. Ditto in regard to behavours John mentioned, down to a tea in fact, oh except i cop a punch and a bite if i take too long to pour a drink. I never asked nor would i ever wish my sons Autism on anyone. Our life has forever been changed, and certainly not for the good. Articles like this make my life harder than it already is as people read them and assume all matters of things in regard to Autism, and come to me with their bullshit philosophies.
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Cletus
January 4th, 2011 - 9:30:14 AM
i agree with billy and unhappy mum. wood allen did not have autism u witch
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