Actress and Deaf Activist, Marlee Matlin turns 52

CAIRO – 24 August 2017: August 24 marks the 52nd birthday of Academy Award Winning actress and deafness activist, Marlee Matlin, best known for her role in 1986's 'Children of a Lesser God'.

Born in Illinois, Matlin had lost the vast majority of her hearing as a baby, but never let her deafness hinder her. In fact, it was her first ever film debut with 'Children of a Lesser God' that brought her acclaim and got her an Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role; she is the first and only deaf actor to have won the award.

Starring William Hurt as her lover, the film involved a school teacher (Hurt) who falls for a deaf janitor (Matlin), who chooses not to speak through her own volition. Matlin has also had several roles in TV, starring in shows such as ‘Seinfeld,’ ‘Family Guy,’ ‘Law & Order’ and ‘Desperate Housewives.’

Apart from acting, Matlin has done much to champion better rights for the deaf. She is the spokeswoman for the National Captioning Institute, where she was instrumental in getting a law passed that ensured that TV screens larger than 13 inches would come with closed captioning support.