Elon Musk reveals Asperger's Syndrome diagnosis in 'SNL' opening monologue
NEW YORK - Billionaire Elon Musk revealed he has Asperger’s Syndrome in his opening monologue as the host of the May 8 episode of "Saturday Night Live."
Asperger’s Syndrome is a condition on the Autism spectrum. Though more severe forms of Autism are characterized by nonverbal communication or difficulty with social interaction, Asperger’s is known for being a milder or high-functioning form of the bio-neurological developmental disability.
Many people with Asperger’s can blend in with neurotypicals, their condition undetectable by the untrained eye.
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Musk said he was making history as the first person with Asperger’s to host NBC’s long-running sketch comedy show, "or at least the first to admit it."
According to a report by The Daily Beast, that claim isn’t accurate. Former cast member Dan Aykroyd has Asperger’s Syndrome and returned to host the show in 2003.
Still, Twitter users praised Musk for revealing his condition.
The CEO of Tesla and SpaceX joked about his monotonal speaking style, saying people often can’t tell when he’s joking. He addressed his sometimes-controversial Twitter presence, saying sometimes he posts strange things to his account with 50 million followers.
"To anyone who’s been offended, I just want to say I reinvented electric cars, and I’m sending people to Mars in a rocket ship," Musk said. "Did you think I was also going to be a chill, normal dude?"
He addressed his son’s name, joking that "X Æ A-Xii" is pronounced "cat running across the keyboard."
SpaceX owner and Tesla CEO Elon Musk poses on the red carpet of the Axel Springer Award 2020 on December 01, 2020 in Berlin, Germany. (Photo by Britta Pedersen-Pool/Getty Images)
Musk wrapped up the monologue by bringing out his mom, Maye Musk, She said she was excited to get her Mother’s Day gift, but hoped it wasn’t Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency that’d been surging ahead of Musks’ "SNL" appearance.
This story was reported from Atlanta. The Associated Press contributed.