# Late Bloomers: Those who master something they started later in life. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 21, 2008, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/late-bloomers-those-who-master-something-they-started-later-in-life/473901 "2008-11-21T20:34:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/late-bloomers-those-who-master-something-they-started-later-in-life/473901/21 "2008-11-23T17:59:56Z")
Thanks Wendell, my error. ---
**Author:** ![Beware\_of\_Doug](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/278dde/32.png) [@Beware\_of\_Doug](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beware_of_Doug)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2008, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/late-bloomers-those-who-master-something-they-started-later-in-life/473901/22 "2008-11-23T19:49:34Z")
Gladwell is right that there is prejudice in certain fields (although he only mentions lyric poetry). For example, in music - jazz and classical, anyway - if you’re not discovered by 25 (Young Lion), your next chance will be in your 70s (Old Master). In between, you simply don’t fit any easy category for promotion, and you give schooled musicians cause to doubt your talent, because they all take their training young. ---
**Author:** ![elelle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f0a364/32.png) [@elelle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elelle)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2008, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/late-bloomers-those-who-master-something-they-started-later-in-life/473901/23 "2008-11-24T03:05:01Z")
I love the example of [Paul Winchell](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul_Winchell), who was a beloved ventriloquist entertainer when I was a kid, as well as the voice of Disney’s Tigger and other cartoon voices. He had a whole other career in his older years in medicine, though, never got an MD. From Wiki: > [@](#): > > Winchell developed over 30 patents in his lifetime. He invented an artificial heart with the assistance of Dr. Henry Heimlich (the inventor of the Heimlich Maneuver) and held the first patent for such a device. The University of Utah developed an similar apparatus around the same time, but when they tried to patent Winchell’s heart was cited as prior art. The university requested that Winchell donate the heart to the University of Utah, which he did. There is some debate as to how much of Winchell’s design Dr. Robert Jarvik used in creating his artificial heart. Dr. Heimlich states, “I saw the heart, I saw the patent and I saw the letters. The basic principle used in Winchell’s heart and Jarvik’s heart is exactly the same.”[5] Dr. Jarvik denies that any of Winchell’s design elements were incorporated into the device he fabricated for humans — the Jarvik-7 — which was successfully implanted into Barney Clark in 1982.[6][7] > Winchell established more medical patents while working on projects for the Leukemia Society and the American Red Cross. Some of the other devices he invented and patented include a disposable razor, a blood plasma defroster, a flameless cigarette lighter, an “invisible” garter belt, a fountain pen with a retractable tip and battery-heated gloves. Remarkable that someone in mid life would switch from a successful entertainment career to exploring innovation in medical realm. I do know that there is some debate with Winchell/Jarvick on the artificial heart claim. It’s not my intent for this to devolve into a debate about that. ---
**Author:** ![Wallenstein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@Wallenstein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallenstein)\ **Post date:** [November 24, 2008, 4:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/late-bloomers-those-who-master-something-they-started-later-in-life/473901/24 "2008-11-24T16:09:14Z")
Bobby George didn’t take up darts until he was 30. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/late-bloomers-those-who-master-something-they-started-later-in-life/473901.md?page=1)