Can you name a famous adoptee?

MamaKate

Why yes, Ollie, I can name several.
I can also name many "famous and successful" non-adoptees.
I can even name many "famous and successful" people who came from not so stellar beginnings. Many people overcome all kinds of adversity to become "successful" people. Disability, poverty, illiteracy, abuse, etc. are all things people have dealt with and been "successful". You need to define "success".

I wonder what your point is?

I have a question for YOU. Can you name any "famous, successful" First Parents? I can.

Adoptees:

Sarah McLachlan
Daryl McDaniels (Rev Run)
Ingrid Bergman
Hugh O'Connor
Sarah Gilbert
Art Linkletter
Bo Diddly
Christina Crawford
Eleanor Roosevelt
Gary Coleman
Jett Williams

If you research these people, many of their adoptive situations were NOT happy and were, in fact, burdens to overcome. Several of these people who are considered so "successful" were unhappy and many had drug problems, personal issues and some even committed suicide.

Overcame Adversity (People who had difficult childhoods):

Hellen Keller
Agatha Christie
Albert Einstein
Cher
Abraham Lincoln
Oprah Winfrey
Jim Carrey
50 Cent
Elvis Presley
etc. etc. etc.............

"Successful" First Parents:

Andy Kaufman
Roseanne Barr
David Crosby
Kate Mulgrew
Joni Mitchell
Rex Harrison
(These are the most well known)

True success is not measured by money or fame but by the happiness in ones heart.

Independ"ant"

There are lots of famous adoptee's......its nice to see that they didn't lose their "natural" gifts or talents.

Gaia Raain

Melora Creager of Rasputina. She's my hero. I can't find anything where she talks in depth about her adoption; she seems fairly private beyond her work. [She's not my hero because she's adopted. She's my hero because she's a kick-*** cellist, and I want to be just like her when I grow up.]

Devon, I think I love you. :-)

Lillie

I'm pretty successful.

And famous around here.

*wink wink*

sunny

Is this where everyone chimes in with people LUCKY enough to be raised by their MOTHERS and had stepfather's adopt them, with full knowledge of their histories?

Stallone, Clinton, Lennon, Ford, etc. Yes, business as usual.

Faith Hill is the only person mentioned here who is a real adoptee.

Find our people here:

http://www.amfor.net/penpals/display.cgi
**************************************...

Randy is wrong. Ted Danson is an adopter, not adoptee. Michael Caine is NOT adopted.

Mei-Ling

Jae-Ran at Harlow's Monkey!

She was quite successful in leading the community of Korean adoptees and heading out to adoptive conferences to educate the public about what it means to raise a TRA - especially since she was an adoptive parent herself (I think).

She's also quite successful at raising her own family and bringing racial awareness to the Asian-American community in general. I'd say that in her own way, she's quite "famous" and successful at doing what she does, considering she has her own family and organizes blogosphere awareness events too!

(Hey, you didn't say what she had to be successful AT. =P)

Flying Monkey #073177

I'm gonna go with David Berkowitz too, interesting fellow that one.

DevonChaos

Oh, Ollie! You are just a lil' ball o' sunshine, aren't you!?!?

All the famous adoptees that I know have been named.

Gaia, RASPUTINA ROCKS! Cellists unite! Whee!

tish_part deux

david berkowitz (son of sam)

Not Adopted

Frankenstein

alexisf319

Faith Hill

BOTZ

David Banda

Pax, Maddox, and Zahara Jolie-Pitt

grapesgum

Faith Hill

ETA: I am sick to death of people touting Bill Clinton as an adoptee. He was adopted by his alcoholic stepfather who used to beat his natural mother. Bill Clinton was a success because of the values that he learned from his natural family, not from his abusive step-father.

The true story of Bill Clintonâ€™s â€œadoptionâ€:

Bill Clintonâ€™ father died in an automobile accident three months before Bill was born. Following his birth, in order to study nursing, his mother Virginia Dell Cassidy (1923-1994), traveled to New Orleans, leaving Bill in Hope with grandparents Eldridge and Edith Cassidy, who owned and operated a small grocery store. At a time when the Southern United States were racially segregated, Bill's grandparents sold goods on credit to people of all racial groups. In 1950, Bill's mother returned from nursing school and shortly thereafter married Roger Clinton.

Although he assumed use of his stepfather's surname, it was not until Billy (as he was known then) turned fourteen that he formally adopted the surname Clinton, partially as a gesture toward his stepfather. Clinton says he remembers his stepfather as a gambler and an alcoholic who regularly abused his mother and, at times, his half-brother, Roger, Jr. Clinton intervened multiple times with the threat of violence to protect them.

Yeah - there's a real nice adoption story for you.

Sofiakat

sarah mclaughlan

opedial

My children.

The brain

Yes........THE BRAIN

sam22254

Ted Bundy a serial killer. In fact of all the serial killer most are adopted. Strange isn't it.

Lori A

http://famous.adoption.com/famous/a-z-index.html

I'm curious what your point is. Is it that these adoptees are all happy and grateful? Maybe they never would have been this successful if they had stayed with their first families?

Maybe Scott Hamilton's parents would have had an ice skater even if he was their biological child. Maybe he had a pushy mother who insisted on controlling his future. Kinda like the cheerleader mom who tried to kill off her daughters competition.

And are we talking step parent adoption too or just the straight adoption with no blood ties.?

Ralfcoder

Gerald R. Ford, former president of the US

Dave Thomas, founder and CEO of Wendy's Restaurants.

SJM

I just saw the headlines on CNN that Tom Vilsack is being considered for Secretary of Agriculture. He is adopted.

Linny G

You're right!
And don't forget these famous adoptees!

Oh, and Moses, too.

http://www.adoptedkillers.com/intro.html

edited to add:
my point is that it's just another label. It goes along with that whole "grateful" thing. There are many wonderful people, and I dont look up to them because they are or are not adoptees. Dave Thomas. Whoopdeedoo. He makes a good burger.
Ollieo likes to point out our differences all the time, and that all of us "bitter adoptees" should just be happy, grateful and quiet. Just thought Id give her another angle to look at....but again, in most cases, no one likes to see or hear the painful side of adoption.

Aussie in England

Nicole Richie.
Jack Nicholson. He was raised by his grandmother and his mother and father were his 'brother and sister'

Chandra

sylvester stallone

Anastasia's Mommy

Nicole Ritchie

yeahright

I don't know what got everyone's angst up either.....and noone said anything about being grateful famous adoptee.

I like Blondie--she rocks. She was a noncomformist before it was cool....and I bet you if you asked her...she strikes me as someone that would jump right in and flip off everyone who told her how she was supposed to be/act about her adoption history...and tell everyone to light one up and lighten up.

LITTLE PETS

Faith Hill - Country Singer
Danny Thomas - Founder of Wendy's

Rowan

i honestly cant think of any beyond what other people say, but like someone else said, its possible they would have been successful even if they had not been adopted. Some people just havethat drive in them, to achieve their dreams.

And as for that link with the killers, its also possible they would have still turned out that way no matter who raised them. Believe it or not, some folks are just flat out crazy.

just being fair.

B. White

John Lennon
Nat King Cole
Edgar Allan Poe
Malcom X
Crazy Horse
former-President Bill Clinton

Crucio

Dean Cain was adopted by his step-father and even named his son after him.
Art Linkletter â€“ Abandoned by his birthparents at a few weeks old, adopted by an evangelical preacher

Gary Coleman
Connor and Isabella Cruise
Melissa Gilbert

CupcakeQueen

Kristin Chenoweth

Randy B

Sarah McLaughlin - Canadian singer
Curtis Joseph - NHL goalie
Stompin Tom Conners - (only the greatest) Canadian singer (of all time)
Micheal Cane - British actor
Ted Danson - US actor
Daunte Culpepper - football player
Faith Hill - country singer
Gary Coleman - actor
Melissa Gilbert - actress

And of course many, many more.

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