Information about Recluse

A recluse is someone in isolation who hides away from the attention of the public, a person who lives in solitude, i.e. seclusion from intercourse with the world. The word is from the Latin recludere, which means "shut up" or "sequester".

A person may become a recluse for many reasons: a celebrity may seek to escape the attentions of her or his fans; a misanthrope may be unable to tolerate human society; a survivalist may be practicing self-sufficiency; also a criminal who hides away from the rest of the community to avoid being detected by the police. It can also be due to psychological reasons, like: apathy, an autism spectrum disorder, a phobia, schizoid personality type, or various anxiety disorders.

It should be noted that this practice may not be voluntary as one may become a recluse due to illness. Some may become a recluse due to a physical deformity that makes their outward appearance unsettling to others. A person may also become a recluse for religious reasons, in which case s/he is usually referred to as a hermit or an anchorite.

Reclusiveness does not necessarily connote geographical isolation. A recluse may live in a crowded city, but infrequently leave the security of her or his home. However, isolated and sparsely populated states (e.g., Montana, Wyoming, and Alaska) often harbour recluses, who are often seeking complete escape from civilization.

In Japan, an estimated 1.2 million people suffer from psychological problems which cause reclusive behavior. The phenomenon of "Hikikomori" or "social withdrawal" has become a major problem, often blamed on Japan's education system and social pressure to succeed.

Recluses

The following is a list of famous individuals who have disappeared from the public eye for a lengthy period of time, or have continually lived a reclusive lifestyle.

• Charles-Valentin Alkan, 19th century composer and virtuoso pianist who rarely ventured outside his Paris apartment in the latter half of his life.
• Kevin Ayers, English songwriter and musician, founding member of psychedelic pioneers Soft Machine and later solo cult maverick. Despite releasing a string of albums in the 1970's which are regarded with high critical acclaim, Ayers is famous for his self effacing, enigmatic nature and since 1969 has lived in near hiding in Deya Mallorca and a medieval village of Montolieu in the South of France.
• Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd guitarist. From his departure from Pink Floyd up to his death he kept a low profile, recording only two solo albums, granting no interviews and doing no live shows.
• Thomas Billington, retired professional wrestler who has made no public appearances since his final match on October 10, 1996. He published an autobiography (Pure Dynamite) in 1998, but has only granted a few interviews with Canadian publication SLAM! Wrestling in the late 90s. Billington has been confined to a wheelchair for the past decade, and few people have been able to get in touch with him. Mick Foley is a friend of Billington, as was Chris Benoit who idolized Billington in his youth.
• Marcela Bodenstedt, Mexican journalist and the reputed mistress of Joseph Marie Cordoba Montoya.
• Marlon Brando, famous method actor, described as very reclusive - especially after his son murdered his daughter's boyfriend, and his daughter committed suicide five years later.
• Anne Briggs, English folk singer. After releasing two critical acclaimmd albums, She became a market gardener and avoided all contact with the music scene. Till this day, she has refused a return to studio and lives a private life, refusing all requests for interviews.
• Tod Browning, American film actor and director whose career spanned both the silent and talkie movie eras.
• Vashti Bunyan, English folk artist. Since the release of her debut, Just Another Diamond Day, she spent 30 years out of spotlight, living a secluded life in Ireland till the release of her second album Lookaftering
• Octavia E. Butler, African-American science fiction author.
• Dave Chappelle, African-American comedian. Went to Africa to escape the public after turning down an offer for the third season of Chappelle's Show.
• Henry Cavendish, British scientist noted for his discovery of hydrogen.
• Jack Chick, Christian fundamentalist comic book publisher. Has given only one interview since 1975 and has not allowed a photograph to be taken.
• The Collyer brothers.
• Joseph-Marie Cordoba Montoya, Personal Secretary of Carlos Salinas and rumored to be the power behind him. Since his departure from the Mexican government, little is known about what he is doing and has refused interviews and pictures since then. While in government, he was known to be very elusive and mysterious.
• Matthew Corbett, Nobody currently knows what Matthew is doing with his life. His last public TV appearance was in 1998 when he retired from Sooty and Co. Since then the public have been left in the dark about his current life or whereabouts. Since leaving The Sooty Show only one photo exists of him from 2004.
• Henry Darger, American writer, who created a 15,143-page illustrated book discovered only after his death.
• Miles Davis, American jazz musician/composer.
• John Deacon, English bassist with the rock band Queen.
• Tony Defries, ex manager of David Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy Pop. Since the 80's he has dissapeared from the public eye. The last thing heard about him is that he is writing his memories.
• Eileen Derbyshire, soap opera actress (Coronation Street).
• Emily Dickinson, poet.
• Steve Ditko, American comic book artist and co-creator of Spider-Man. He has never allowed himself to be interviewed or photographed, based on a personal conviction that his work should speak for itself.
• Doris Duke, philanthropist.
• Bob Dylan, musician who went into a 20-month seclusion after a motorcycle accident.
• Rod Evans, original singer of rock band Deep Purple. He has not been seen publicly for more than 25 years.
• Agnetha Fältskog, singer and former member of musical group ABBA.
• Bobby Fischer, the former world chess champion. His reclusiveness in later years was due to his status as a fugitive from justice, due to violating economic sanctions against Serbia, then Yugoslavia, when he played a rematch there against Boris Spassky. Fischer has reportedly terminated friendships with people who gave out his contact information.
• Jennifer Fitzgerald, the reputed mistress of former U.S. president George H.W. Bush, has never talked with the media and generally avoids the public eye, remaining within her own social circle.
• Rubem Fonseca, Portuguese writer, who almost never gives interviews and pictures.
• John Frusciante, Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist. After quiting the band in 1992 due to an inability to cope with their newfound stardom, Frusciante descended into a life of heroin and other drug abuse in seclusion from his former band mates and virtually all other aspects of society for five years. Remarkably, he quit drugs cold turkey and rejoined the Chili Peppers in 1997, continuing to find success to this day.
• Greta Garbo, actress, who famously said, "I want to be alone."
• João Gilberto, Brazilian musician.
• Glenn Gould, Canadian pianist, who later in life only talked to others by phone or letter.
• Alexander Grothendieck, German mathematician, winner of the Fields Medal. Retired from field at age 42. Left his home in 1991; exact whereabouts are not known although he is believed to be living in southern France or Andorra. Does not entertain any visitors.
• Martin Handford, English illustrator, creator of the popular Where's Waldo series of books. Has never let anyone to take his picture ( No one knows what he looks like ) and refuses all request for interviews.
• Thomas Harris, author of Red Dragon and The Silence of the Lambs.
• George Harrison, songwriter who went on hiatus several times during his life, particularly during the '90s until his death in 2001.
• Howard Hughes, movie producer and aircraft entrepreneur, who suffered from obsessive-compulsive disorder.
• John Hughes, has not given an interview in years, has not directed a film since Curly Sue in 1991 (though continues to film commercials and direct select television programs), and is distant to the Hollywood scene.
• Hunter, electronic music artist, Hunter has withdrawn from all public life since 1997, has no telephone, fax, mailing address or any friends, talks to no one.
• Richard D. James, aka Aphex Twin, electronic music artist.
• Jandek, ultra-reclusive musician from Houston, Texas. He released dozens of albums from 1978 to the present day, yet he never appeared in public or played live until 2004. However, his mysterious persona endures, mainly because he has only ever granted one interview - by phone - to Spin magazine in the 1980s, and even that didn't reveal much personal information.
• Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber. Prior to his arrest and trial, Kaczynski lived alone in a remote cabin in Montana, abandoning virtually all twentieth-century technology, even writing his entire Unabomber Manifesto using an old-model typewriter.
• Ray Kelvin, The British fashion designer behind the Ted Baker line of clothing refuses to be photographed and rarely gives interviews.
• The Kills (band), scarcely grant interviews, and are also asocial.
• The band Kraftwerk, "Their legendary Düsseldorf studio, Kling Klang, has no telephone, no fax machine, no receptionist and returns all mail unopened. They have not attended a photo shoot since 1978." http://arts.guardian.co.uk/fridayreview/story/0,12102,1004937,00.html. However, Florian Schneider was photographed with members of Nine Inch Nails in Düsseldorf on http://www.theninhotline.net/halo99/05/frv1/dusseldorf/03.htm 26 November 1999, during the latter's Fragility v1.0 tour.
• Stanley Kubrick, film-maker. He was very secretive about his life and work, although close friends and family all regarded him as a normal person, contrary to the public myths surrounding him.
• Ray LaMontagne, folk singer-songwriter.
• Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird.
• John Lennon, songwriter who hid from the public eye to raise his second child until 1980.
• Georges Lentz, composer.
• Thomas Ligotti, author.
• Terrence Malick, film director, has made only four feature films in 32 years. Contract stipulates that no current photos of him are to be taken for promotional purposes and he does not have to do media to promote the film (he doesn't).
• Jeff Mangum, singer of the band Neutral Milk Hotel.
• Chris Marker, French filmmaker and photographer. Never gives interviews and when queried for a photograph of himself, will respond by sending a picture of a cat.
• Martin Margiela, Belgian fashion designer.
• Lee Mavers, lead singer of the La's, he hasn't recorded an album in 15 years and has refused, until recently, all requests for interviews and reunion concerts. His erratic behavior and eccentricity are legendary. Has been called by The Guardian and Rodrigo Fresan "the J.D. Salinger of pop."
• Alex McAulay, author and musician under the name Charles Douglas.
• Cormac McCarthy, author.
• Beverlee McKinsey, soap opera actress (Another World).
• John McVie, Bassist of Fleetwood Mac
• Steven Meisel, fashion photographer. Rarely gives interviews or allows himself to be photographed.
• Chris Morris, English comedian, creator of The Day Today and Brass Eye. He refuses all requests for interviews and photographs out of character and has only done one interview in 15 years.
• Morrissey, former lead singer of The Smiths.
• Sean Murphy (filmmaker), refuses all requests for interviews and has rarely exhibited his work despite being a Garboesque fixture of the East Village and Saugerties for many years.
• Charles Ogden, Children's book author. No photographs of him have ever been published, and his whereabouts have never been disclosed.
• Amancio Ortega, a Spanish billionare.
• James Padgett, economist and philanthropist.
• Bettie Page, American softcore S&M pin-up model who was at the peak of her popularity during the 1950's. She withdrew from public life during the 1960's, rarely granting interviews and refusing to be photographed.
• Grigori Perelman, Russian mathematician, winner of the Fields Medal.
• Christopher Pike (author), bestselling author of young adult and children's fiction.
• Thomas Pynchon, author. Pynchon has found an excellent way to preserve his privacy on top of granting no interviews and avoiding public appearances: no photographs of him have knowingly been taken since the early 1960s. Thus, no one is really sure what he looks like. However, he provided his voice to two Simpsons episodes.
• The Residents, rock band who always appear masked.
• Trent Reznor, Nine Inch Nails frontman who recovered from social anxiety.
• Axl Rose, singer of the band Guns N' Roses avoided the public in varying forms from 1994 to May of 2006.
• Juan Rulfo, Mexican writer who refused all kind of publicity and interviews and only write two works Pedro paramo and El llano en llamas.
• J. D. Salinger, author of The Catcher in the Rye. Salinger has lived in rural New Hampshire since shortly after the novel's publication, has given no interviews and published no new writing since the short story "Hapworth 16, 1924" appeared in The New Yorker in 1965.
• Camilo Sesto Spanish singer, sometimnes nicknamed " The Spanish Michael Jackson" for his eccentric and erractic personality. Since the 80s, Sesto became more and more reclusive, especially after his son was borne in 1983 by a Mexican fan.
• Bert Schneider, American film producer and Academy Award-winner whose last film, Days Of Heaven , was filmed in 1978. After that, he bought a house in Beverly Hills and disappeared from public view.
• Masamune Shirow, manga artist/writer. Never allows photographs of himself to be published.
• Phil Spector, record producer.
• Layne Staley, vocalist for Alice in Chains.
• Sly Stone, funk musician.
• Patrick Süskind, German author of Perfume: The Story of a Murderer.
• John Swartzwelder, most prolific writer of The Simpsons. He has been credited with over 60 episodes, most of which are classics.
• B. Traven, author of The Treasure of the Sierra Madre. His true identity is still a matter of debate.
• John Twelve Hawks , American Science fiction writer. Said to live "off the grid".
• Don Van Vliet, aka Captain Beefheart, who retired from music in 1982 and has not been seen publicly for upwards of 10 years. He is rumored to have multiple sclerosis.
• Jan-Michael Vincent , American actor who was last seen in public at 2004. He is currently said to be retired from acting and lives a very secluded life in Warren County without contact with the local residents.
• The Wachowski Brothers, filmmakers.
• Ken Wahl, American actor. Since the tv movie of his tv series wiseguy in 1996, he has remained almost out of the public eye, with no public appearances since 1997.
• Scott Walker, musician.
• Bill Watterson, creator of Calvin and Hobbes. He gave few interviews during the strip's run, refused to pose for promotional pictures after 1985 and even today maintains a low profile in the Cleveland suburb where he grew up.
• Brian Wilson, singer and songwriter for The Beach Boys.
• D'Arcy Wretzky, Former bassist for Smashing Pumpkins, Wretzky has stayed out of the public eye since being charged with a narcotics offense in 2000.
• Yu~ki, former bassist of Malice Mizer.
• Scott Newton, trainer at The Pacific Club.

See also

• Avoidant personality disorder
• Hermit
• Misanthrope

Reference

• Article discussing "Hikikomori" in Japan

This article incorporates text from the public domain 1913 Webster's Dictionary.