Inspiration
Sarah Bernhardt, regarded as France's greatest actress, was disabled by a knee injury and had her leg amputated in 1914. She continued acting on stage until just before her death.
Beethoven, one of the most famous composers of all time, was deaf when he composed his 9th symphony.
Winston Churchill had a learning disability.
Walt Disney had a learning disability.
John Nash, one of the most brilliant mathematicians of his generation, was diagnosed with schizophrenia in the 1950s. He received the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1994.
Thomas Edison had a learning disability. He couldn't read until he was 12 years old and had a difficult time writing even when he was older.
Albert Einstein had a learning disability and did not speak until age three. He had a difficult time with math in school and it was hard for him to express himself through writing.
Goya, the Spanish painter, became deaf at age 46. He went on to create the most famous Spanish art of the 19th century.
Alexander Graham Bell had a learning disability.
Milton, the English poet (1608-1674), became blind at age 43. He then went on to create his most famous epic, Paradise Lost.
Nelson Rockefeller, former US Vice President, had dyslexia.
President Roosevelt's legs were paralyzed by polio when he was 39. He became Governor of New York state and was elected President four times.
Abraham Lincoln, former US President responsible for abolishing slavery, suffered from depression and anxiety attacks.
Harriett Tubman, the celebrated abolitionist (1830-1913), was struck by a caregiver when she was a child. The blow fractured her skull and resulted in a lifelong battle with narcolepsy. She rescued hundreds of slaves on the underground railroad.
George Washington had a learning disability. He could barely write and had very poor grammar skills.
Woodrow Wilson, US President from 1913-1921, was severely dyslexic.
Stephen Hawking is responsible for the discovery of infinity in space-time and black holes. He wrote A Brief History of Time, which was a London Times bestseller for four years. He has achieved all of this despite being wheelchair-bound due to Lou Gehrig's disease, a progressive neurological illness. He is the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge University.
Frida Kahlo conquered almost insurmountable obstacles to become one of Mexico’s best-known painters. Her disabilities stemmed from a childhood bout with polio, followed by a horrific bus accident. Her love of painting pushed her to transcend the pain and create colourful, vivid paintings that earned her a reputation as one of Mexico’s national treasures. Today, visitors to Mexico City can view her work at the Frida Kahlo Museum and her life story is featured in the movie Frida, starring Salma Hayak.
Helen Keller Because she was unable to see or hear, Helen Keller’s prospects for any kind of meaningful future seemed very limited indeed. But thanks to a committed teacher and her own indomitable spirit, Helen learned sign language and became a wonderful communicator whose own journey and activism had a profoundly positive influence on others.
Marlee Matlin, a well-known American actress and Academy Award winner for Best Actress, is unable to hear.
Tom Cruise, the American actor known for his work in movies like Top Gun, Mission Impossible and The Last Samurai, is dyslexic.
Leonardo da Vinci, the Italian painter, sculptor, writer, scientist, engineer, musician and architect, experienced Strephosymbolis (an inability to accurately process symbols).
Whoopi Goldberg, the African-American comic and actress, has a learning disability.
Greg Louganis, the American Olympic gold medal diver, has dyslexia. He also stuttered and had asthma as a child.
Bruce Jenner, the American Olympic decathlon gold medalist, has a learning disability.
Lucille Ball, the American film and television actress famous for “I Love Lucy,” had rheumatoid arthritis as a young woman. She was unable to walk for two years.
Linda Hamilton, the American actress famous for her roles in Terminator, Beauty and the Beast and Dante's Peak, has bipolar disorder.
Marilyn Monroe, famous American icon and actress, suffered from chronic depression.
Roseanne Barr, successful American comedienne, TV star, producer and writer, has Multiple Personality Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, depression and agoraphobia.
Julio Iglesias, the Spanish singer, was disabled in an auto accident which ended his soccer career and left him unable to walk for a time. He took up music during his long convalescence.
Ray Charles, the American singer, pianist, arranger and songwriter, contracted glaucoma at an early age and was blind within a year.
Dale Chihuly, the noted American glassmaker and founder of Pilchuk Glass School, lost an eye in an auto accident in the 70s. Although he doesn’t blow glass any longer, he directs others in making his designs.
Jeff Healy, the Canadian blues guitarist, was blind.
Georgia O'Keefe, the American painter noted for her distinctive works of flowers and bones, turned to sculpture when her eyesight failed.
Stevie Wonder, the renowned African-American singer and songwriter, is blind.
Virginia Woolf, well-known British author of novels such as Mrs. Dalloway, To the Lighthouse, The Wave, Orlando and A Room of One's Own, had bipolar disorder.
Isaac Newton, famous English physicist, mathematician, astronomer, natural philosopher, alchemist and theologian, suffered from mild schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Charles Darwin, renowned naturalist associated with the theory of evolution by natural selection, suffered from severe panic disorder.