Contents
Marlee Matlin
Her Oscar-winning debut in Children of a Lesser God.
Reasonable Doubts · The West Wing
- Born
- 24 August 1965
- Birthplace
- Morton Grove
More people
Marlee Matlin
American actress and advocate who became the first deaf performer to win an Academy Award. Her career includes film, television and Broadway work.
Early life
Illinois childhood
Grew up in Morton Grove and became deaf as a toddler. She was the only deaf member of her immediate family.
Career
- 1986
Film debut
Played Sarah Norman in Children of a Lesser God.
- 1987
Academy Award
Won Best Actress for the performance.
- 2015
Broadway
Appeared in the revival of Spring Awakening.
Selected work
Reasonable Doubts
Played a district attorney in the television drama.
The West Wing
Appeared as Joey Lucas.
CODA
Joined the ensemble of the coming-of-age film.
Beyond work
Advocacy and family
Supports deaf access and representation. Married Kevin Grandalski in 1993 and has four children; she also writes books for younger readers.
Sources & photo credit
Biography and career ↗Biographical references ↗Original photograph. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
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Photo: Adam Chitayat. CC BY-SA 4.0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.