Gerald Newport (1948–2023),^[1] better known as Jerry Newport, and Mary Newport (1954/1955 – ?),^[1] née Mary Meinel, also known as Mary Meinel-Newport, were authors, advocates, and public speakers who had been diagnosed with Asperger syndrome and whose lives became the basis for the 2005 film Mozart and the Whale.^[2] Their written works include self-help books related to autism and Asperger's, as well as their 2007 memoir Mozart and the Whale: An Asperger's Love Story.

Jerry Newport was born in 1948 and raised in Islip, New York^[3] by parents who were teachers.^[4] By age 7, he began showing signs of advanced mathematical ability, which continued to develop during school.^[3] Jerry graduated from the University of Michigan with a B.A. in mathematics.^[3] He then spent about twenty years in a variety of jobs, including cab driver, busser, and deliveryperson.^[5][6]

According to Alex Bellos, "As soon as Jerry sees a big number, he divides it up into prime numbers," and this made driving cab "particularly enjoyable" for Jerry, because "there was always a number on the licence plate in front of him."^[7] Bellos also described Jerry's process as "very similar" to the Sieve of Eratosthenes.^[8]

Mary Meinel was born in 1954 or 1955^[9] and raised in Tucson, Arizona, one of seven children of the astronomers Aden Meinel and Marjorie Meinel.^[10][11][12] She began to have difficulty in school as an adolescent.^[3] She attended the University of Arizona for more than two years, and left in 1978 after what she described as a nervous breakdown.^[10]

Mary worked as a piano technician and tuner in Los Angeles and New York,^[10] and in 1986, began composing music and drawing, but felt discouraged from art and music by relatives and friends in the late 1980s.^[3] She also studied gemological identification and jewelry manufacturing, and tried to work in the gem industry in New York City.^[10] Mary had two sons, and she and her children moved frequently over ten years.^[3]

In 1991, Mary obtained representation from Central Casting and was later hired for guest appearances on Star Trek.^[3] She was diagnosed with autism/Asperger's in 1993 by a UCLA psychologist and referred to a support group.^[3]

Jerry had seen the film Rain Man for the first time in 1988, then started reading about autism^[13] and contacted Bernard Rimland, a founder of the Autism Society of America.^[3] After Jerry attended conferences about autism, he became a coordinator for the first self-help group for adults with autism, the chair of an ad-hoc advisory panel to the Autism Society of America, and a spokesperson.^[3][13]

Mary met Jerry at a support group in Los Angeles.^[4] In 1993, Jerry told Mary about a Halloween party being held by the Adult Gathering, United and Autistic self-help group; she attended dressed as Mozart, and he wore a whale costume constructed from chicken wire and newspaper.^[3] Their first date was at the Los Angeles Zoo on November 28, 1993.^[3] They became engaged to marry in April 1994, and married in August 1994.^[3]

In 1995, at age 47, Jerry was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome.^[14] In October 1995, Kim Kowsky wrote a feature article about Jerry and Mary in the Los Angeles Times,^[15] and quoted Linda Demer, a former board member of the Autism Society of Los Angeles, referring to them as "superstars in the world of autism" and "a source of inspiration for a lot of people".^[3] In March 1996, The Arizona Daily Star reported Mary could write "beautiful, note-perfect classical symphonies perfectly, and often while painting or drawing with her other hand."^[12] In September 1996, they appeared on the CBS News show 60 Minutes.^[5][15]

Jerry and Mary separated in 1997.^[9] In June 1999, they divorced, and Mary returned to Tucson.^[5][9] Mary called Jerry after about a year afterwards, and they remarried eleven months later, on Valentine's Day in 2002.^[5][9] By 2004, they resided in Arizona, and the film Mozart and the Whale, loosely based on their lives, was completed but not yet released.^[5] They appeared on 60 Minutes in another segment by Lesley Stahl in 2004.^[5] The film Mozart and the Whale was released in 2005.^[9]

In 2007, Mary was working as a peer counselor, and Jerry worked as a cab driver and tax preparer.^[16] In June 2010, Jerry competed in the Mental Calculation World Cup in Magdeburg, Germany and won the World Cup Trophy for "Most Versatile Calculator".^[7]

After their appearance on 60 Minutes in 1996, Jerry and Mary wrote self-help books for people with autism and Asperger's syndrome.^[5] Their work includes Autism/Aspergers & Sexuality: Puberty and Beyond, which was released on July 1, 2002.^[17] Chantal Sicile-Kira writes in Autism Spectrum Disorder (revised): The Complete Guide to Understanding Autism that parts of Autism/Aspergers & Sexuality and the 2001 book written by Jerry, Your Life is Not a Label, "can be very helpful to the teenager," and Your Life is Not a Label is one of several books that help dispel the myth about people with autism lacking emotion and being incapable of forming attachments to other people.^[18]

• Newport, Jerry (2001). Your life is not a label : a guide to living fully with autism and Asperger's syndrome for parents, professionals, and you!. Arlington, Texas: Future Horizons. ISBN 1-885477-77-5.
• Newport, Jerry; Mary Newport (2002). Autism-Asperger's & Sexuality: Puberty and Beyond. Arlington, Texas: Future Horizons. ISBN 1-885477-88-0.
• Newport, Jerry; Mary Newport; Johnny Dodd (2007). Mozart and the Whale: An Asperger's Love Story. New York: Touchstone Books. ISBN 978-0-7432-7282-7.

Jerry and Mary both kept birds as pets before they married in 1994.^[9] By 2004, they had 11 birds, three iguanas, and a rabbit.^[5] In 2007, their household included a poodle mix named Wolfie and 13 birds.^[9]