Posted
on March 24, 2016
Jim
Parsons probably gets called “Sheldon” all the time.
He's
widely known for playing the quirky theoretical physicist Sheldon
Cooper on the long-running comedy TV show The Big Bang Theory.
And
unlike many of his costars, he looks a lot like his character
(although he doesn't dress or talk or act like his character):
 |
RIGHT: Theoretical physicist Sheldon Cooper
RIGHT: Experimental physicist Leonard Hofstadter
LEFT: Actress Melissa Rauch
RIGHT: Microbiologist Bernadette Rostenkowski
LEFT: Actor Simon Helberg 
RIGHT: Engineer / Astronaut Howard Wolowitz
LEFT: Actress Mayim Bialik
RIGHT: Neurobiologist Amy Farrah Fowler
LEFT: Actor Kunal Nayyar
RIGHT: Astrophysicist Raj Koothrappali
Jim
Parsons was born in Houston, Texas, on this date in 1973. He loved
acting ever since he was six years old and acted in a school play.
Parsons
has done a lot of plays and has had small parts in movies and TV
shows – but The Big Bang Theory has been so popular – with
hundreds of episodes through nine seasons, and counting – it's
dominated his time and acting efforts. Nevertheless, Parsons has
found time and motivation to also appear on Broadway in several
plays.
Parsons
has earned a lot of praise, and won a LOT of awards, for his
portrayal of Sheldon. Here are some of the awards:
- a Television Critics Association award for individual achievement in comedy
- 4 Primetime Emmy Awards and 6 nominations
- Golden Globe
- a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame
- a People's Choice Award, and a Teen Choice Award
- TV Guide Award
- 2 Critics' Choice Television Awards
What
about the Sheldon controversy?
I
have recently read a lot of controversy about the show The Big
Bang Theory, and about the character Sheldon Cooper. A lot of
people think that Sheldon has Asperger syndrome, which puts him on
the autism spectrum. Although the show's creators say he doesn't have
Asperger syndrome and isn't on the spectrum, some characters refer to
Sheldon's OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder), and Sheldon has talked
about having relationships and dealing with people being hard for
him.
Some
people, many of whom are themselves on the autism spectrum, say that
despite the fact that Sheldon remains unlabeled, he clearly is seen
by everyone as having Asperger syndrome / autism. And they point out
that he is often criticized by other characters, he is often the
“butt of jokes,” and his oddities are used for comic effect. They
say that the show, and the Sheldon character, hurt real people with
autism.
Other
people, some of whom are themselves on the autistic spectrum, say
that the show is positive for people with autism. Sheldon is
successful in his career and has friends and a romantic partner.
These fans talk about sweet moments between characters; they point
out that nobody in the show tries to medicate Sheldon, and nobody
puts serious effort into changing him. The other characters enjoy
him, are irritated with him, help him, are helped by him, miss him
when he is away, and ultimately love and accept him.
By
the way, I noticed that Wikipedia doesn't describe Sheldon as a
character with Asperger syndrome; instead, he is identified as having
social apathy—which means not particularly caring much about other
people's thoughts and lives, finding little interest in meeting or
listening to them. That sounds like a pretty good description of
Sheldon. Here is a quote from the episode “The 43 Peculiarity”:
Sheldon Cooper: “You
may not realize it, but I have difficulty navigating through certain
aspects of daily life: understanding sarcasm, feigning interest in
others, not talking about trains as much as I'd want to. It's
exhausting!”
I
guess that asocial behavior is often associated with autism /
Asperger syndrome. I'm not sure if social apathy is, as well.
More
controversy?
I
have also read several criticisms that TBBT makes fun of nerds /
geeks, that it is a show about smart people for dumb people, and that
it gets nerd / geek culture wrong – and not hugely and hilariously
wrong, but just “off” enough to make real nerds and geeks rage.
But
I've also read a lot of articles by nerds / geeks who love the show.
They feel that a lot of jokes in the show laugh WITH the characters,
not AT the characters; they also point out that sometimes it's fine
to laugh at particular actions or words of the characters, just as it
is sometimes fine to laugh at themselves.
Also, a lot of scientists and geekdom stars have participated in the show. I'm pretty sure most of them wouldn't have done so if they felt that the show was offensive.
On what other sitcom can you see Bill Nye the Science Guy, famed
physicist Stephen Hawkins, astrophysicist Neil de
Grasse Tyson, astronaut Buzz Aldrin, Darth-Vader voice actor James Earl Jones, comic book
icon Stan Lee, Firefly actress Summer Glau, Star Trek actor / twitter star George Takei, Star Wars actress Carrie Fisher, and Star Trek actor / nerd culture icon Wil Wheaton?
And more, soooo many more!
 |
| Not only was actor Leonard Nimoy and his iconic character "Spock" an important recurring theme in various episodes of The Big Bang Theory, after he died his son Adam Nimoy made a guest appearance! |
My
thoughts...
I
have to admit, I love this show, and I love the Sheldon character. I
am still processing the criticisms of this show, reading opinions of
detractors as well as fans, and I am trying to be mindful of these
concerns as I laugh at and talk about the show.
Also
on this date:
Plan
ahead:
And
here are my Pinterest boards for:
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