Signing Savvy, Your Sign Language Resource

This article is part of our “Living Loud” series, which in addition to featuring well-known people who are deaf or hard of hearing, also highlights hearing individuals or unique developments that have positively impacted the world.

Oscar-winning actress Marlee Matlin is famous among both the Deaf and hearing communities worldwide. Her lifetime achievements are substantial. Matlin holds the record for being the youngest woman to ever receive an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her 1987 performance in the movie, Children of a Lesser God. She was also the only Deaf recipient of an Oscar in any category until March of 2022, when her fellow Deaf co-star in the movie CODA, Troy Kotsur, won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. Matlin continues to appear in television and films, is an ambassador for the Deaf community, and a critically-acclaimed author. She is married to Kevin Grandalski and they have four children.

Early Years — Foundation and Gratitude

Marlee Beth Matlin was born on August 24, 1965. She was born hearing into a hearing family in Morton Grove, a suburb outside Chicago. At eighteen months, Marlee came down with roseola, a viral infection common in infants and toddlers, however it is not determined if the infection was the cause of her deafness. Later in her adult life, Marlee learned that she had a genetically malformed cochlear from the time of her birth, which meant that she could likely hear when she was born, but that her hearing would recede over the first couple years of her life. By the age of 18 months, Marlee had become deaf, possibly due to the malformed cochlear.

Marlee was raised Jewish and luckily her family lived near a temple started by deaf Jews, which incorporated both deaf and hearing culture. She explained, “I had the benefit of a rabbi who could sign… I learned how to speak Hebrew phonetically, and I signed and spoke.” She studied Torah for multiple years with her rabbi and then at her bat mitzvah she spoke the Hebrew sections and signed her d’var Torah. She described it as a pivotal event in her life that, “gave me the drive…the foundation to believe in myself, despite what other people say.”

Regarding her upbringing, Marlee said, "My parents’ decision to have me grow up at home, go to mainstream schools, live in and cope in a hearing world, was, without question, the most important of my life, and one that I will forever be grateful for. At the same time, they wanted to be sure I could navigate the Deaf world as well, so my earliest memories are of moving constantly between the two. Feet firmly planted in both."

Marlee attended mainstream schools, and at the age of three, she also began seeing a doctor who specialized in oralism. Her speech reading and oral skills would eventually allow her to have roles that required her to speak, as well as give her criticism from the Deaf community. "I think that’s why it was such a shock for me years later (past childhood) when the Deaf community lashed out when I used my voice to present an Oscar in 1988. I had spent a lifetime talking, it was almost as natural for me as signing."

Acting — Starting Young, Thinking Big

Marlee Matlin at the age of 8, as Dorothy from the The Wizard of Oz, put on by the International Center on Deafness and the Arts (ICODA). (Photo Credit: Family Photo; CBS News)

Matlin began performing at the International Center on Deafness and the Arts (ICODA) when she was seven years old. She played Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz and had the lead roles in Pinocchio, Peter Pan, and Mary Poppins.

She would later meet Henry Winkler through ICODA, who would become her mentor to help her navigate the ups and downs of Hollywood. Winkler was a well-known actor, famous for his role as "The Fonz" in Happy Days. When Marlee’s mother asked Winkler to lower Marlee’s expectation of stardom, he replied, "You know, I can’t do that, because what I saw was so big that I can’t tell this human being not to do it."

Her first paid acting gig was in a stage production of Children of a Lesser God by the Immediate Theatre Co. in Rogers Park, Illinois, where she earned $300 a week by playing the secondary role of Lydia. While in this stage production, Matlin heard rumors that Paramount Pictures was working on making the stage production into a feature film and would be scouting for actors. A local talent agent sent tapes of the cast to the director, Randa Haines, where she spotted Matlin in the background. Haines requested another tape be made with Matlin performing the feature role, and afterwards invited her to read the lead part of Sarah with William Hurt.

Marlee Matlin in the movie Children of a Lesser God in 1986. (Photo Credit: Paramount Pictures)

She was ultimately cast for the part, earned $50,000 along with $800 a week for her time on set, and her fame took off. She fell in love with her Children of a Lesser God co-star, with whom she would move in when the filming wrapped. While she was living with Hurt in New York City, she met Jack Jason, who would eventually become her personal interpreter. Marlee’s professional relationship with Jack has stood the test of time… they have worked together ever since!

After a difficult time, including time in rehab to become sober and the end of her relationship with her Children of a Lesser God co-star, she moved in with her mentor Henry Winkler and his wife Stacey Weitzman. She said Henry was like a second dad to her since her father passed away and "they gave me a foundation to build my career on." Marlee and her husband were even married at the Winkler home.

Expectations to Congratulations

In 1987, Marlee Matlin won both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her portrayal of Sarah in Children of a Lesser God. Receiving the awards was an amazing accomplishment, especially considering they were awarded for her first-ever movie. Matlin was the first and only deaf person to win an Academy Award in any category for over 30 years! She remains the youngest woman to receive an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Leading Role at twenty-one years and 218 days old.

Marlee Matlin on her Oscar's Speech:

As per tradition, Matlin presented the nominees for Best Actor in a Leading Role at the 1988 Academy Awards, where she used her voice to read the list of names. This caused an uproar among the Deaf community, with the headline "Offensive? Deaf Actress’ Use of Speech Proves Divisive Among Peers"…in huge type stretched across the entire front page of the Silent News, the biggest newspaper for the Deaf community. Marlee’s response to these allegations was this statement, "I had never intended to be the most famous Deaf person in the world. If anything, I’d worked long and hard to make sure my deafness didn’t become a barrier to my dreams. I fought against anyone using my deafness to define me, to limit me. I was a lot more than Deaf."

Making Her Mark

Marlee Matlin continues to be an iconic figure for the Deaf community today. She interpreted the "Star Spangled Banner" in American Sign Language at two Super Bowls. She received an honorary degree from Gallaudet University and was appointed to the Gallaudet University Board of Trustees.

Marlee Matlin with Oscar the Grouch and Billy Joel on Sesame Street in 1988.

Growing up, she loved Billy Joel music, and she said she would drive her neighborhood friends crazy. "I would learn his lyrics and listen for the beat while I signed the words in time with the music."

As an adult, she made a guest appearance on Sesame Street with Billy Joel and then he invited her to perform in his music video, "We Didn't Start the Fire."

See the clip of Marlee Matlin on Sesame Street with Billy Joel:

She has appeared in both movies and television in the years since her days as Sarah in Children of a Lesser God. In addition to her Oscar, she has won a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award, as well as being nominated for four Emmy Awards and a BAFTA Award. She was also honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2009.

She has had roles in films such as Bridge to Silence, The Man in the Golden Mask, Against Her Will: The Carrie Buck Story, Whisper Sweet Nothings in My Ear, Hear No Evil, What the Bleep Do We Know!? and the Academy Award-Winning CODA. Matlin played roles on television in shows such as Seinfeld, The West Wing, Law and Order: SVU, The L Word, Switched at Birth, The Practice, Glee, The Magicians, and Quantico. She has appeared as herself on shows like Extreme Makeover: Home Edition, Celebrity Apprentice, and Dancing With the Stars. She was the first deaf contestant on both Dancing with the Stars and also on Celebrity Apprentice, where she was the first person to raise $1,000,000 in a single event on any television show and finished as the runner up.

Pregnant Marlee Matlin in an ad for Gap.

She is the mother to four children with husband Kevin Grandalski, a retired police officer from the Burbank Police Department. 

She has written three novels for young readers as well as her autobiography, "I’ll Scream Later," a New York Times Best Seller.

Matlin continues to make films and tour the country, promoting her books as well as raising awareness on Deaf culture.

More on Marlee Matlin

Books by Marlee Matlin

You can find these books on Amazon:

• I'll Scream Later (2009) by Marlee Matlin and Betsy Sharkey - Biography / Memoir
• Nobody's Perfect (2015) by Marlee Matlin and Doug Cooney - Children's Nonfiction
• Leading Ladies (2007) by Marlee Matlin and Doug Cooney - Children's Nonfiction
• Deaf Child Crossing (2004) by Marlee Matln - Children's Nonfiction

Movies

You can find these movies on Amazon Prime Video:

• Children of a Lesser God (1986)
• Bridge to Silence (1989)
• Hear No Evil (1993)
• In Her Defense (1999)
• Sweet Nothing In My Ear (2008)
• Askari (2001)

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