Everything about Marlee Matlin totally explained
» This is about the actress. For the political professional, see Mary Matalin.
Marlee Beth Matlin (born
August 24,
1965) is an
Academy Award-winning
American actress who is
deaf.
Biography
Early life
Matlin was born on
24 August,
1965 in
Morton Grove,
Illinois, to Libby and Donald Matlin, an
automobile dealer. She was raised in a
Jewish family in
Morton Grove,
Illinois. Matlin graduated from
John Hersey High School in nearby
Arlington Heights and attended
Harper College. She lost all hearing in her right ear, and 80% of hearing in her left ear at the age of eighteen months.
Career
Matlin made her stage debut at the age of seven, as Dorothy in a children's theatre version of
The Wizard of Oz, and continued to appear with the same children's theatre group throughout her childhood.
Her film debut, 1986's
Children of a Lesser God, brought her a
Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama and an
Academy Award for Best Actress. She is one of the few actors to win an Oscar for their debut performance, and as of 2008, still holds the record for youngest winner in the Best Actress Oscar category. Matlin was nominated for a Golden Globe award for her work as the lead female role in the television series
Reasonable Doubts (1991–1993) and was nominated for an
Emmy Award for a guest appearance in
Picket Fences. She became a regular on the series during its final season.
Matlin later had recurring roles in
The West Wing, and
Blue's Clues. Other television appearances include
Seinfeld ("
The Lip Reader"),
The Outer Limits ("
The Message"),
ER,
Desperate Housewives, and . She was nominated for
Primetime Emmy Awards for her guest appearances in
Seinfield,
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit and
The Practice.
In 2002, Matlin published her first novel,
Deaf Child Crossing, which was loosely based on her own childhood.
In 2004, she starred in the movie
What the Bleep Do We Know? as Amanda.
In 2006, Matlin was honored at AOL's Second Annual Chief Everything Officer Awards. She joined the cast of on Sunday,
September 172006. In the episode featuring a blind autistic boy with deaf parents, she was the guest host. She wrote and published a sequel to
Deaf Child Crossing, titled
Nobody's Perfect, which was produced on stage at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts in partnership with VSA arts in October 2007.
Also in 2006, she played a deaf parent in
Desperate Housewives. She also had a recurring role as
Joy Turner's (who made many jokes of Marlee's deafness at her expense) public defender in
My Name Is Earl and played the mother of one of the victims in an episode of
. She starred in the
Baby Einstein videos
Baby's Favorite Places: First Words-Around Town and
Baby Wordsworth: First Words Around the House, both of which were designed to introduce sign language as a form of non-verbal communication.
In 2006 Matlin was cast in season 4 of
The L Word as
Jodi Lerner, a gay deaf sculptor. She appeared in season 4 (2007) and season 5 (2008) as the girl friend of the show's main protagonist
Bette Porter (played by
Jennifer Beals). It is unclear if Matlin will continue in season 6, the show's final season.
On
February 4,
2007, Matlin performed the
Star Spangled Banner in
American Sign Language at
Super Bowl XLI in
Miami, Florida. She again starred in
Baby Einstein in March 2007 with
My First Signs, which introduced sign language using common words such as "mommy" and "milk." She also appeared on
Hollywood Squares with
Tom Bergeron as emcee. Though she couldn't hear and wasn't encouraged to use her own voice to speak, her personal interpreter Jack Jason (who also appeared with her during talk show and publicity appearances) accompanied her on the panel and she handled questions with his assistance - including offering some humorous quips (in ASL) in her own right.
In January 2008, she appeared on
Nip/Tuck as a television executive.
On
February 18,
2008, it was announced that Matlin would participate as a competitor in the sixth season of
ABC's
Dancing with the Stars. Her dance partner is newcomer Fabian Sanchez. Matlin and Sanchez were eliminated from the competition on
April 22,
2008.
Performances
Personal life
Matlin is actively involved with a number of charitable organizations, including the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation,
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation,
VSA arts, and the
Red Cross Celebrity Cabinet. She was appointed by
President Clinton in 1994 to the Corporation for National Service and served as chair of National Volunteer Week.
Matlin received an honorary doctorate of humane letters degree from
Gallaudet University in 1987. In October 2007, she was appointed to the
Gallaudet University Board of Trustees.
Matlin married law enforcement officer Kevin Grandalski on
August 291993 (in
Henry Winkler's back yard). They have four children: Sara Rose, born
January 191996; Brandon Joseph, born
September 122000; Tyler Daniel, born
July 182002; and Isabelle Jane, born
December 262003.
Filmography and awards
Further Information
Get more info on 'Marlee Matlin'.
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