The Life of Marlee Matlin Essay Example for Free

The Life of Marlee Matlin Essay 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 grounds, the Burbank police department assigned Grandalski to provide security and control traffic. She went on and married Kevin on August 29, 1993. They have four beautiful children Sarah, Brandon, Tyler and Isabelle she is very devoted to her family. She also had a guest appearance in Picket fences and was nominated for the Emmy Award. In 1994 she portrayed Carrie Buck in the TV drama Against Her Will: The Carrie Buck Story she played a hearing woman for the first time and earned a Cable ACE Nomination as Best Actress. Other television appearances have been Seinfeld, The Outer Limits, ER, Desperate Housewives, CSI: NY and Law Order: Special Victims Unit. She was nominated for a Primetime Best Actress Emmy for her guest appearances Seinfeld, Law Order: Special Victims and The Practice. The following are Films or Television shows Marlee’s has portrayed a role in. Her career began in 1986 with Children of a Lesser God, Walker, Bridge to Silence, The man in the Golden Mask, The Linguinincident, The Player, Hear no Evil, Against her Will: The Carrie Buck Story, It’ my Party, Dead Silence, Freak City, Where the Truth Lies, Askari, What the Bleep do we Know, Sweet Nothing in my Ear, Celebrity Apprentice, Comedy Central Roast: Donald Trump, CSI, Family Guy, Dancing with the Stars, Nip Tuck, The L Word, CSI: New York, My Name is Earl, Desperate Housewives, Extreme Makeover: The Home Edition, Law and Order: SVU, The West Wing, The Division, The Practice, Blues Clues, Judging Amy, ER, Spin City, Reasonable Doubts and the most current television show Switched at Birth were she plays the mother of deaf son.