(continued)
Seriously, life is grand for me and I relish the challenges I face every day. As for work, despite the predictions of many in Hollywood that my Oscar for 'Children of a Lesser God' was the result of a pity vote and that I would disappear like so many one-hit wonders, I am still -- as always -- a working actress who happens to be deaf. Whatever issues many predicted would stop my career dead in its tracks are just not there. Times have changed; technology has evolved to the point where I have 100% access. But, most importantly, attitudes have changed. In the end, I tell people the only thing that I can’t do is hear. Whatever handicap they think I have here in my ear has more to do with whatever is in their mind.
Most of the barriers I face on a daily basis are more humorous than they are distressing. Compound it by the craziness we know is Hollywood and all I can say is that I’ve had some interesting encounters.
Once, while working on a television show for NBC, a studio executive came to visit the set and watch me work. After a few moments, he went over to the show’s producer and commented: "That Marlee … is … fantastic!" -- (pause) -- "Is she going to be deaf for the entire series?"
And once, while getting ready to appear live in front of millions of viewers on CNN -- as the director counted down the seconds, "5, 4, 3" and I got my last looks from hair and makeup -- the female interviewer leaned over to Jack here and said in a most serious manner: “Could you tell Marlee that my dog is deaf?”
But I have to be fair -- these encounters don’t only happen in Hollywood. Here’s a good example: I’m waiting for a plane to take off when the flight attendant hands me a dinner menu. Suddenly, she notices me signing, holds up her finger and grabs the menu out of my hand. A few moments later, she returns with a new menu … in braille.
I tell these stories not to trivialize the barriers facing people like myself but rather to show that, in my case, breaking through barriers often means doing it with a smile. And I’d just as soon prefer to walk around them than break them down. I work every day to help people understand, like my parents taught me, that deaf people not only deserve respect, they deserve to be heard. I’m here, being honored with this wonderful group of Chief Everything Officers, because of the can-do attitude, lots of love and little bit of chutzpah my parents gave to me -- thank goodness I was born a Matlin.
Once, while working on a television show for NBC, a studio executive came to visit the set and watch me work. After a few moments, he went over to the show’s producer and commented: "That Marlee … is … fantastic!" -- (pause) -- "Is she going to be deaf for the entire series?"
And once, while getting ready to appear live in front of millions of viewers on CNN -- as the director counted down the seconds, "5, 4, 3" and I got my last looks from hair and makeup -- the female interviewer leaned over to Jack here and said in a most serious manner: “Could you tell Marlee that my dog is deaf?”
But I have to be fair -- these encounters don’t only happen in Hollywood. Here’s a good example: I’m waiting for a plane to take off when the flight attendant hands me a dinner menu. Suddenly, she notices me signing, holds up her finger and grabs the menu out of my hand. A few moments later, she returns with a new menu … in braille.
I tell these stories not to trivialize the barriers facing people like myself but rather to show that, in my case, breaking through barriers often means doing it with a smile. And I’d just as soon prefer to walk around them than break them down. I work every day to help people understand, like my parents taught me, that deaf people not only deserve respect, they deserve to be heard. I’m here, being honored with this wonderful group of Chief Everything Officers, because of the can-do attitude, lots of love and little bit of chutzpah my parents gave to me -- thank goodness I was born a Matlin.
I am proud to wear the Chief Everything Officer badge. I hold my head up, proud to be Alice and not stress out that I am no longer Marcia. Yes, as a mom of four, I am short two kids to qualify as a full bunch, but it's a challenge nonetheless, especially now that I'm working full-time on a series. I am still managing to make it work, but only because I've got my CFO, my Chief Father Officer -- my husband -- right there beside me the whole way.
Like Alice's Sam the Butcher, my ever-reliable husband, Kevin, is why I'm able to be here today. No matter if I'm traveling and working, girl-scouting or carpooling, it all happens because he is there with his love and support 24/7, filling in, subbing, taking the reins when I physically cannot be like Samantha Stevens on 'Bewitched' and be in two places at once. And just when I was feeling my worst -- two days after my last c-section, he managed to come through as any CFO should – he gave his CEO a nice bonus package for a job well done [Matlin refers to her necklace]. Unfortunately, the timing of his "push present" was just a bit off. He did it while I was hobbling to the bathroom, bent over, dying for a Vicodin. When I saw the necklace, I sat up like this, smiled for a brief second and then retreated to my hobbling position.
Life for me will always be about doing all that I can, reaching for my dreams and never stopping. And every day those dreams are coming true. Sixteen years ago, I lobbied to Congress on behalf of closed captioning and twenty-six million hearing impaired Americans. As a television viewer, it was important for me to spread the message that those little black and white words at the bottom of our TV screens are so important to our world. Today, closed captioning is everywhere and not only provides access for millions of Americans who are hearing impaired but also serves to help people learning English as a second language and serves as a tool to help our children learn how to read. They even work great in bars and at the gym!
And today, AOL is jumping in by breaking new ground in providing closed captioned content for streaming videos. I will continue to work to ensure that executives in Hollywood and across the entertainment industry understand their responsibility to provide programming that is accessible to all despite what barriers stand in their way. I am proud that AOL is there at the forefront and I look forward to much more.
So what is today about for me? Well, it's no longer about hearing aids and speech classes. It's not even about whether or not a deaf person like me can make it happen in Hollywood. For me, it's about listening, listening to my heart. In the end, silence will be the last thing the world will ever hear from me -- you can bet on it. And I'm sure it's the same for the women we are honoring today.
Thank you.
Like Alice's Sam the Butcher, my ever-reliable husband, Kevin, is why I'm able to be here today. No matter if I'm traveling and working, girl-scouting or carpooling, it all happens because he is there with his love and support 24/7, filling in, subbing, taking the reins when I physically cannot be like Samantha Stevens on 'Bewitched' and be in two places at once. And just when I was feeling my worst -- two days after my last c-section, he managed to come through as any CFO should – he gave his CEO a nice bonus package for a job well done [Matlin refers to her necklace]. Unfortunately, the timing of his "push present" was just a bit off. He did it while I was hobbling to the bathroom, bent over, dying for a Vicodin. When I saw the necklace, I sat up like this, smiled for a brief second and then retreated to my hobbling position.
Life for me will always be about doing all that I can, reaching for my dreams and never stopping. And every day those dreams are coming true. Sixteen years ago, I lobbied to Congress on behalf of closed captioning and twenty-six million hearing impaired Americans. As a television viewer, it was important for me to spread the message that those little black and white words at the bottom of our TV screens are so important to our world. Today, closed captioning is everywhere and not only provides access for millions of Americans who are hearing impaired but also serves to help people learning English as a second language and serves as a tool to help our children learn how to read. They even work great in bars and at the gym!
And today, AOL is jumping in by breaking new ground in providing closed captioned content for streaming videos. I will continue to work to ensure that executives in Hollywood and across the entertainment industry understand their responsibility to provide programming that is accessible to all despite what barriers stand in their way. I am proud that AOL is there at the forefront and I look forward to much more.
So what is today about for me? Well, it's no longer about hearing aids and speech classes. It's not even about whether or not a deaf person like me can make it happen in Hollywood. For me, it's about listening, listening to my heart. In the end, silence will be the last thing the world will ever hear from me -- you can bet on it. And I'm sure it's the same for the women we are honoring today.
Thank you.
