Marlee Matlin
Academy award-winning actress and activist Marlee Matlin is our Multiple Myeloma Heroes guest speaker. Marlee Matlin received worldwide critical acclaim for her film debut in "Children of a Lesser God," for which she received the Academy Award for Best Actress. At 21, she became the youngest recipient of the Best Actress Oscar and only one of four actresses to receive the honor for her film debut. In addition to the Oscar, Matlin received the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama.
Since winning the Oscar and Golden Globe for "Children of a Lesser God," Marlee has starred in numerous features including "Walker," "The Player," "Hear No Evil," "It's My Party," and "What the Bleep Do We Know." She has also starred in TV films "Bridge to Silence," "Against Her Will: The Carrie Buck Story," "Dead Silence," "Freak City," "Where the Truth Lies," and Hallmark Hall of Fame's "Sweet Nothing in my Ear."
Marlee also starred in her own NBC series "Reasonable Doubts" opposite Mark Harmon and the Emmy Award-winning "Picket Fences." Marlee was twice nominated for a Golden Globe Award as Best Actress in a Television Drama as well as the People's Choice Awards. She has been nominated for four Emmy awards for her appearances on "Seinfeld," "Picket Fences," "The Practice," and "Law and Order: SVU." Marlee starred for seven years on the award winning drama, "The West Wing," and has made numerous guest appearances including "ER," "Desperate Housewives," "CSI: New York," "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition," "Nip/Tuck," "CSI," "Glee," and "Family Guy." In 2007 Marlee joined "The L Word" for three seasons.
In 2009, Marlee published her New York Times Best Selling autobiography, "I'll Scream Later" and has authored three novels for children including "Deaf Child Crossing" and "Nobody's Perfect."
Marlee broke barriers once again when she starred on ABC's "Dancing with the Stars," and in 2015, she returned to the stage after a 30-year hiatus and made her Broadway debut in the revival of the Tony Award-winning musical, "Spring Awakening."
Marlee developed "Marlee Signs," the first celebrity-driven app teaching basics of American Sign Language on mobile devices. In 2016, Marlee returned for her third appearance at the Super Bowl, signing the National Anthem alongside Grammy-winning and Platinum-selling artist, Lady Gaga.
Matlin currently stars on the Peabody Award-winning series, "Switched at Birth." Though Matlin lost her hearing when she was only 18 months old, she never let her challenges dictate her future or deter her dreams. Along with a successful Hollywood career, Matlin has dedicated herself to raising awareness for many humanitarian causes, including diversity and LGBT rights. Matlin's father, Don Matlin, was diagnosed with stage 3 multiple myeloma. Matlin showed support for her father by participating in a Stand Up to Cancer fundraising special that aired on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, and several cable channels.
Marlee makes her home in the Los Angeles area with her husband, a law enforcement officer, and their four children.
View our interview with Marlee >>
Ms. Matlin is appearing in conjunction with the CURE Multiple Myeloma Heroes. This does not constitute or imply endorsement of any products or services.