The Life of Marlee Matlin
The life of Marlee Matlin
Maria R. Lopez (Rosy)
Bakersfield College
American Sign Language 1
Janice England
June 22, 2013
The life of Marlee Matlin Marlee was born on August 4, 1965 in Morton Grove, Chicago. She had normal hearing at birth, but at 18 months contracted measles. Her illness produced high fevers and serious complications that included permanently in her right ear, and 80 percent of the hearing in her left ear, making her legally deaf. Marlee’s parents educated her in their community instead of sending her to a special school. She learned sign language at the age of 5 her parents struggled to communicate with her but with time they learned sign language. They raised her with love and respect. As a child, Marlee discovered acting in a program at the Center on Deafness that brought deaf and hearing kids together. Marlee launched her career at age 8, playing Dorothy in the Des Plaines Children’s Theatre of the Deaf in their production of The Wizard Oz. She decided to put her theatrical aspirations on the back burner while studying criminal justice at William Rainey Harper College. Once she earned her degree in criminal justice from Harper College she went back on stage and began playing a minor role in the original Chicago Immediate Theatre Production of Children of a Lesser God. As time passed her community-theatre effort went "professional" and was transplanted to New York where Marlee was promoted to the leading role of Sara. She repeated this role in the 1988 film version of Children of a Lesser God, and in performing in it became the first deaf actress to win an Academy Award. In 1989 Marlee played a deaf woman in Bridge to Silence. From 1991-1993 she had the leading role in the television series Reasonable Doubts and was nominated for a Golden Globe Best Actress Award but her best reward in 1993 was meeting Kevin Grandalski while she was filming a scene from Reasonable Doubts series outside the studio
Maria R. Lopez (Rosy)
Bakersfield College
American Sign Language 1
Janice England
June 22, 2013
The life of Marlee Matlin Marlee was born on August 4, 1965 in Morton Grove, Chicago. She had normal hearing at birth, but at 18 months contracted measles. Her illness produced high fevers and serious complications that included permanently in her right ear, and 80 percent of the hearing in her left ear, making her legally deaf. Marlee’s parents educated her in their community instead of sending her to a special school. She learned sign language at the age of 5 her parents struggled to communicate with her but with time they learned sign language. They raised her with love and respect. As a child, Marlee discovered acting in a program at the Center on Deafness that brought deaf and hearing kids together. Marlee launched her career at age 8, playing Dorothy in the Des Plaines Children’s Theatre of the Deaf in their production of The Wizard Oz. She decided to put her theatrical aspirations on the back burner while studying criminal justice at William Rainey Harper College. Once she earned her degree in criminal justice from Harper College she went back on stage and began playing a minor role in the original Chicago Immediate Theatre Production of Children of a Lesser God. As time passed her community-theatre effort went "professional" and was transplanted to New York where Marlee was promoted to the leading role of Sara. She repeated this role in the 1988 film version of Children of a Lesser God, and in performing in it became the first deaf actress to win an Academy Award. In 1989 Marlee played a deaf woman in Bridge to Silence. From 1991-1993 she had the leading role in the television series Reasonable Doubts and was nominated for a Golden Globe Best Actress Award but her best reward in 1993 was meeting Kevin Grandalski while she was filming a scene from Reasonable Doubts series outside the studio
References: Retrieved June 22, 2013, from http://www.biography.com/people/marlee-matlin-212179?page=1