Believe it. Edward de Vere, the 17th Earl of Oxford, wrote the works attributed to William Shakespeare. They don’t even know if the glove maker’s son could read and write.
Pish.
From the evidence I’ve seen it’s pure elitist arrogance. “Commoners” (and the term should offend every true American) even those that drop out of school, sometimes go on to be wildly successful authors. Did Charles Dickens not write any of his works because he dropped out of school at age 12? How about Mark Twain who also dropped out of school at age 12? Those are just a couple examples of writers, there are many. Extending the concept beyond writers, there are plenty of self made wealthy people that never had any formal education at all or dropped out at a young age. Formal education, while important, is hardly a reliable indicator of those that will do exceptional things.
There is a fundamental difference between being educated and having participated in formal education.