# Latest missing celebrity: Sinéad O'Connor \[Update: Found safe\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 16, 2016, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919 "2016-05-16T16:49:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/1 "2016-05-16T16:49:17Z")
[Since yesterday morning according to ABC 7 Chicago](http://abc7chicago.com/news/sinead-oconnor-missing-in-wilmette/1340701/): > [@](#): > > WILMETTE, Ill. (WLS) – Singer Sinead O’Connor is missing in Chicago’s north suburbs. > > Wilmette police confirm O’Connor went on a bike ride Sunday at 6 a.m. and did not return. > > A caller to Wilmette police asked for authorities to check on O’Connor’s well-being. > > Police refused to release any further information. ---
**Author:** ![Reluctant\_A](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/839c29/32.png) [@Reluctant\_A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Reluctant_A)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/2 "2016-05-16T17:11:02Z")
Anyone know whether Arsenio Hall has an alibi? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/3 "2016-05-16T17:57:19Z")
Wow, the actual police alert doesn’t say more than the “Wilmette area.” 😕 Wilmette ain’t small, and you’d think the police would give a **little** more detail. Saying what neighborhood she left from wouldn’t give away exactly where she’s staying, and, if it’s known, saying what general direction she was going (towards Chicago, towards the lake, etc.) would be invaluable. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/4 "2016-05-16T18:04:44Z")
Her FB post seems to be telling her son Jake to get his brother out of TUSLA, which is a child and family agency in Dublin. She thinks Jake committed his brother there illegally. She cancelled a tour last year because she said she had to care for her son. Damn, this lass is all about the drama. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/5 "2016-05-16T18:31:31Z")
As a fan of hers, I really worry about her. Amazing voice, has a way with a lyric - but beyond a doubt severely emotionally damaged even before she got famous, and the pressures, traps, etc of fame & money have only made things worse. ---
**Author:** ![robby](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robby/32/11048_2.png) [@robby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robby)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/6 "2016-05-16T19:18:57Z")
Found safe. > **[Sinead O'Connor found safe after going missing in Wilmette](https://abc7chicago.com/sinead-oconnor-missing-wilmette-illinois/1340701/)** > > Singer Sinead O'Connor has been found safe after going missing in Chicago's north suburbs. ---
**Author:** ![Tom\_Tildrum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e95f7d/32.png) [@Tom\_Tildrum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tom_Tildrum)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/7 "2016-05-16T20:18:05Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > Her FB post seems to be telling her son Jake to get his brother out of TUSLA, which is a child and family agency in Dublin. She thinks Jake committed his brother there illegally. She cancelled a tour last year because she said she had to care for her son. Damn, this lass is all about the drama. I wondered what her connection was to Oklahoma. That makes more sense. ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/8 "2016-05-16T20:21:41Z")
> [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](#): > > As a fan of hers, I really worry about her. Amazing voice, has a way with a lyric - but beyond a doubt severely emotionally damaged even before she got famous, and the pressures, traps, etc of fame & money have only made things worse. I concur. She is a very troubled individual with serious mental health problems. I fear there is no way she will live to a ripe old age. It’s a real shame, because she is incredibly talented and fearless. That said, I am so glad she has been found alive. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/9 "2016-05-16T20:46:06Z")
> [@robby](#): > > Found safe. > > [Sinead O'Connor found safe after going missing in Wilmette - ABC7 Chicago](http://abc7chicago.com/news/sinead-oconnor-found-safe-after-going-missing-in-wilmette/1340701/) Good to hear ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/10 "2016-05-16T20:46:14Z")
> [@robby](#): > > Found safe. > > [Sinead O'Connor found safe after going missing in Wilmette - ABC7 Chicago](http://abc7chicago.com/news/sinead-oconnor-found-safe-after-going-missing-in-wilmette/1340701/) That’s a relief. I was afraid an eagle might have dropped a turtle on her head. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/11 "2016-05-16T20:50:50Z")
Her career went missing a long time ago, and aint been found yet. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/12 "2016-05-16T22:13:27Z")
> [@John\_Bredin](#): > > Wow, the actual police alert doesn’t say more than the “Wilmette area.” 😕 Wilmette ain’t small, and you’d think the police would give a **little** more detail. Wilmette’s a bit over 5 square miles. That would qualify as “small” to me. ---
**Author:** ![lisiate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f05b48/32.png) [@lisiate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lisiate)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2016, 10:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/13 "2016-05-16T22:47:08Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > That’s a relief. I was afraid an eagle might have dropped a turtle on her head. Aeschylus what you did there. ---
**Author:** ![bienville](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@bienville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bienville)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/14 "2016-05-17T07:43:47Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > Her career went missing a long time ago, and aint been found yet. Meh. She was only ever tangentially mainstream successful to begin with and that’s just from lucky timing of the brief period of the “Alternative = Mainstream” contradiction filling the gap between New Kids on the Block and N’Sync. Her period of fame was probably artificially extended because entertainment news loves having celebrities who say “outrageous” things. Her artistry and talent would have been recognized either way but with slightly different timing she’d have always been among the critically well respected but obscure camp. She’s been actively making new music. That it may have gone “missing” from mainstream outlets isn’t really much of a dig. The album she put out less than two years ago, [_I’m Not Bossy, I’m the Boss_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%27m_Not_Bossy,_I%27m_the_Boss), is quite possibly the greatest album she’d ever made. I say “quite possibly” because it is damned hard to outdo _The Lion and the Cobra_ or _I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got_ or, hell, even _Faith and Courage_ (this woman has put out _a lot_ of great music!), so really it’s left to my mood at any given moment which one I’d say is the best. But the most recent one really is quite excellent and I often feel like it blows all the others out of the water. He mental illness is her greatest enemy. If she were to ever get that under control, she’d quite deservedly hold a place of highly respected music veteran. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/15 "2016-05-17T13:36:43Z")
If she got her mental illness under control, she wouldn’t be putting out great music. All great artists have some kind of screw loose. It’s the price for their gift. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/16 "2016-05-17T14:36:33Z")
> [@Knowed\_Out](#): > > If she got her mental illness under control, she wouldn’t be putting out great music. > > All great artists have some kind of screw loose. It’s the price for their gift. I’ve heard this many times, it seems too neat an out and it romanticizes the problems of a few far too much. I also can’t find any confirmation that mental illness might be more common in successful artists. Since that is the case, I believe it arises from an extreme case of confirmation bias. You never hear about the well-adjusted artists behaving well, so you don’t consider them. As a result, I think this belief is counter-productive at best, and damaging at worst. This is true for both the artists and the viewers. [Here’s](https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/creativity-explorations-in-art-literature-science-and-the-everyday/201503/creativity-and-mental) the clearest article I can find on the subject. Yeah, yeah. I’m fucking delightful at parties, believe me. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/17 "2016-05-17T14:56:27Z")
Wikipedia on[Creativity and mental illness](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creativity_and_mental_illness) I’ve heard it described as the brain’s brain. It’s a part of the brain that a person has no control over, and it comes up with creative ideas. Anyone with a good creative brain (ME!) will testify to that. It also may be the part of the brain that creates mental illness. Most mental ill people have no control over their illness. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/18 "2016-05-17T15:03:50Z")
> [@Annie-Xmas](#): > > Wikipedia on[Creativity and mental illness](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creativity_and_mental_illness) From the opening paragraph: > [@](#): > > There are cases that support the idea that mental illness can aid in creativity, but there is also strong support that mental illness does not have to be present for creativity to exist. I know there are aspects of creativity that aren’t in the conscious control of the person who is considered creative. I have been engaged in creative endeavors for most of my life and would probably be a megalomaniac if I thought I could pull genuinely creative and useful ideas at will. I also know that there are aspects of a normal person’s mind that aren’t in their conscious control, either. Also, you can be eccentric without being mentally ill. There’s no known part of the brain that creates mental illness or creativity. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/19 "2016-05-17T18:07:19Z")
Maybe it can’t be scientifically proven, but artists have long asserted that self-imposed and natural barriers stifle their creativity, and techniques have been developed to overcome these barriers, such as drawing on the right side of the brain. The left side imposes order, while the right side is more chaotic. It’s thought that insanity removes the ability of the left side to impose order. Dali certainly held to that belief. He wasn’t actually insane, but he wanted to emulate the condition. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2016, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919/20 "2016-05-17T19:01:15Z")
Her allegations about Arsenio Hall- not just that he sold drugs to Prince but that he’d harassed her for years- had “manic phase delusions” written all over them. I hope he’ll drop the lawsuit if she apologizes and gets help. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/latest-missing-celebrity-sinead-oconnor-update-found-safe/754919.md?page=2)