Famous People One Thinks Could Be On The Spectrum.

Post Reply New Topic

So, is this thread satirical, or…?

I am not sure what that word means, sorry.

Like, it’s not meant to be serious. In this case, only listing famous people that are obviously not autistic as opposed to ones we think might actually be on the spectrum— likely to make fun of how quick some people are to (non-professionally) diagnose people who don’t actually display a sufficient amount of traits to qualify.

The original poster meant it seriously...Im rather sure.

Others dismissed it, or misunderstood it, and used the thread to make joke suggestions.

Well yeah, because Cyndi Lauper is not on the spectrum, or very unlikely. All NTs are different, a few odd mannerisms or whatever does not indicate autism. If she 'definitely' was on the spectrum then there would be far more evidence than just this one thread. I don't mean diagnosed because I know that she isn't diagnosed, but even so, there still would be evidence somewhere from other sources but I googled it and there isn't.

Reading a what's supposed to be a serious thread on an autism forum that says "Cyndi Lauper does A, B and C, so she most definitely is on the spectrum", "yep, definitely on the spectrum" is not evidence. It's just fantasy or seeing everything through the autism lens.

Yeah… I agree that if someone that prolific actually displayed a sufficient amount of traits for an autism diagnosis, there’s no way it would go unnoticed by everyone except a few members of this forum.

Thank you for wording what I've been trying to say much better.

df

I started this thread just out of interest as I am convinced that Cyndi is on the spectrum because she masks the exact same ways as I do when she is being interviewed. She is also one who finds that she would never quite "Fit in" especially in her younger years... She always had a need to be different and do her own thing. She was never really interested in being popular or earning lots of money except in that she needed to to survive. If she could sing with a band she liked and was comfortable with, and they just went out to perform and enjoy themselves they were happy, and she would do that regardless of how much money she was getting.
The need for a manager to help her was purely to ensure she had a viable income so they did not have to worry about that side of things which is very different to other famous bands and musicians who would purpously seek fame and stardom. Cyndi rarely ever even knew how much money she had and hardly noticed how famous she had become. She just went out to enjoy sharing her and the bands musical creativity, and they did not care too much if people did not like them as they just enjoyed doing what they did. (Most people did like them though).
Cyndi started with a band called "The Blue Angels". Financially things were tough. She was actually very dissapointed when a manager came along and helped her who suggested she drop the Blue Angels as she felt deeply for those guys, and loved to perform with them. She has performed with many different musicians, some of whom were pretty famous in their own right like Prince.
One thing she always did was to enjoy what she did, as you could certainly say that if she is on the spectrum, singing and music is her special interest!

But going back on topic. This thread is with the serious thought that there are many who are famous who are very likely to be on the spectrum and they don't know that they are.

I am going to start another thread about something that has just come into my mind which kinda relates to this point.

Displaying one behavior similar to your own is pretty flimsy evidence in and of itself, especially since “masking” is pretty vague.

Speaking of vague things, not quite “fitting in” has a lot of grey area. Did she state she was excluded socially, had trouble making friends, was frequently called weird? If these were her experiences, the case for her being autistic would be a lot more compelling. Otherwise, there are tons of neurotypicals who don’t feel like they “fit in” in grade school, even if they don’t usually have it nearly as badly as us in this way.

Likewise, wanting to be popular or earn lots of money are not universally neurotypical— or non-autistic, for that matter— personality traits. Nor is being more passionate about what you do than interested in the fame and finances you achieve from doing it.

In conclusion, I do not feel as though the evidence you have provided very well substantiates the claim of Cyndi Lauper being on the autism spectrum because everything you listed is simply too vague to not fall into the range of common neurotypical human experiences. As cool as it would be if such a famous person turned out to have our brain type, the hero that would make her to our community, it really doesn’t sound like you’re going to get that with Lauper.

You maybe right but I am thinking that if you are right I need to take my name off the assessment list... I need to think about this. I don't want to be wasting anyones time.

Well, do you relate to the majority of commonly accepted ASD characteristics? Ones more specific than the ones you listed for Cyndi? Considerable difficulty in social situations, for example?

Not considerable difficulty except recently after the last few burnouts or breakdowns. In the past I was always an outsider if I was supposed to be part of a group and though for the first few months I was ok as I could mask my way through, after a while the bullying would start and I would be excluded. It was like I was part of a group but i was excluded from being part of the group. I was like a "Tag-along"?
I could never work out why though. I was always putting in major effort to "Fit in" but the only way I could do it sas by pretending to be thick which is what I saw that Cyndi Lauper does when she is being interviewed.

I definately think that

1. Leonardo DiCaprio - He is very hyper focused on the environment and seems to miss the mark of unwritten rules of social situations. He went on a tangent about the environment when he won that academy award.
2. Adam Brody
3. Johnny Depp
4. Claire Danes - She doesn't look at the camera when interviewed
5. I think Trump is on the spectrum
6. Obama is for sure, he acts like a spectrumite

Right.

Is anyone of note...NOT on the spectrum...in your opinion?

Yeah, you indeed sound pretty autistic to me. Again though, not being yourself in social situations isn’t necessarily an autistic trait. Say, for instance, that you aren’t naturally very social, don’t like people but since you’re famous, you have to act friendly in interviews to maintain your positive image. That could be an example of “masking”, but it’s not the same thing as doing your best to act “normal” out of fear for how people will react to your “weird” self.