Miss-Delectable
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 18, 2004
- Messages
- 17,160
- Reaction score
- 7
http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com...?AID=/20060510/GPG0101/605100563/1207/GPGnews
Probably in some obscure language spoken in a country no one's yet heard of, the words "marlee matlin" have to mean "cup half full." They just have to.
As in optimist, bright side. Rose-colored glasses.
Deaf actress and activist Marlee Matlin on Tuesday exemplified that positive sparkle — from her almost-magical tales of her Midwest youth to how she deals with challenges now in Hollywood — at the final night of Bellin Health LifeLines speaker series at the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts.
"Life is challenging, but the real handicap of being deaf lies in the mind," Matlin told a Weidner Center audience. "I want to help the general public understand that deaf people not only deserve to be respected, they deserve to be heard."
Matlin, 40, has appeared in dozens of movies, television specials and series, including "The West Wing," and "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which she is working on now to air in July on ABC and, coming in June, Showtime's "The L Word."
Matlin lost her hearing at 18 months because of an illness. Although her parents were devastated and didn't know what to do, they defied those who advised them to send Matlin to a boarding school for the deaf, she said.
Matlin described being raised in Morton Grove, Ill., by parents who instilled in her that her deafness made her all the more special and adored.
"Every day, they opened the door and let me explore," she said of her parents, describing being allowed to grow up like any other kid, riding her bicycle, meeting new children and making friends and playing in the park.
"It was all about me, not my deafness," she said, adding that it's a whole lot healthier to focus on one's abilities rather than one's perceived disabilities. "My parents treated me with love and respect."
The big, yellow "Deaf Child X-ing" sign in her neighborhood, they told her, meant "You are entering Marlee's neighborhood; she wants to be your best friend."
"After all, what other kid has their own sign?" Matlin said via her longtime right-hand and interpreter, Jack Jason.
Her father told her to tell the kids at school that her hearing aids were actually big globs of bubble gum, and her brothers told kids their sister didn't speak funny — it was a strange foreign accent, as she was actually born abroad and their parents were spies.
Matlin advocates for the deaf and serves as a national celebrity spokesperson for the American Red Cross.
Matlin and husband Kevin, a Los Angeles police detective, have four children — Sarah, Brandon, Tyler and Isabelle, all under the age of 10.
She taught them all to sign as infants. Her daughter's first sign-word, at 6 months, was telephone.
"The sooner a child is exposed to languages, the better. They picked up signs immediately," she said. "Kids love to sign."
Matlin has helped produce two Baby Einstein educational DVDs that help in the teaching of sign language to babies.
In addition to her acting career and activism, Matlin is a published children's book author.
Her second book, "Nobody's Perfect," hit the stores last week, and she plans on finishing "Leading Ladies" for release next year.
She played a key role in 1990 in getting Congress to pass laws requiring American television manufacturers to equip their TVs with closed-captioning capabilities.
She serves on the boards of charitable children's organizations such as Very Special Arts, Easter Seals, Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and other charities benefiting children.
Dana Reeve was slated to be the final speaker in the Bellin Health LifeLines series, but she died earlier this year.
Probably in some obscure language spoken in a country no one's yet heard of, the words "marlee matlin" have to mean "cup half full." They just have to.
As in optimist, bright side. Rose-colored glasses.
Deaf actress and activist Marlee Matlin on Tuesday exemplified that positive sparkle — from her almost-magical tales of her Midwest youth to how she deals with challenges now in Hollywood — at the final night of Bellin Health LifeLines speaker series at the Weidner Center for the Performing Arts.
"Life is challenging, but the real handicap of being deaf lies in the mind," Matlin told a Weidner Center audience. "I want to help the general public understand that deaf people not only deserve to be respected, they deserve to be heard."
Matlin, 40, has appeared in dozens of movies, television specials and series, including "The West Wing," and "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," which she is working on now to air in July on ABC and, coming in June, Showtime's "The L Word."
Matlin lost her hearing at 18 months because of an illness. Although her parents were devastated and didn't know what to do, they defied those who advised them to send Matlin to a boarding school for the deaf, she said.
Matlin described being raised in Morton Grove, Ill., by parents who instilled in her that her deafness made her all the more special and adored.
"Every day, they opened the door and let me explore," she said of her parents, describing being allowed to grow up like any other kid, riding her bicycle, meeting new children and making friends and playing in the park.
"It was all about me, not my deafness," she said, adding that it's a whole lot healthier to focus on one's abilities rather than one's perceived disabilities. "My parents treated me with love and respect."
The big, yellow "Deaf Child X-ing" sign in her neighborhood, they told her, meant "You are entering Marlee's neighborhood; she wants to be your best friend."
"After all, what other kid has their own sign?" Matlin said via her longtime right-hand and interpreter, Jack Jason.
Her father told her to tell the kids at school that her hearing aids were actually big globs of bubble gum, and her brothers told kids their sister didn't speak funny — it was a strange foreign accent, as she was actually born abroad and their parents were spies.
Matlin advocates for the deaf and serves as a national celebrity spokesperson for the American Red Cross.
Matlin and husband Kevin, a Los Angeles police detective, have four children — Sarah, Brandon, Tyler and Isabelle, all under the age of 10.
She taught them all to sign as infants. Her daughter's first sign-word, at 6 months, was telephone.
"The sooner a child is exposed to languages, the better. They picked up signs immediately," she said. "Kids love to sign."
Matlin has helped produce two Baby Einstein educational DVDs that help in the teaching of sign language to babies.
In addition to her acting career and activism, Matlin is a published children's book author.
Her second book, "Nobody's Perfect," hit the stores last week, and she plans on finishing "Leading Ladies" for release next year.
She played a key role in 1990 in getting Congress to pass laws requiring American television manufacturers to equip their TVs with closed-captioning capabilities.
She serves on the boards of charitable children's organizations such as Very Special Arts, Easter Seals, Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation and other charities benefiting children.
Dana Reeve was slated to be the final speaker in the Bellin Health LifeLines series, but she died earlier this year.