Marlee Matlin, deaf since she was eighteen months old, won the Academy Award and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress for her role in Children of a Lesser God. She was also nominated for Emmy Awards for her performances in Seinfeld, Picket Fences, The Practice and Law And Order: SVU. Marlee also guest starred on ABCs award winning Desperate Housewives, My Name is Earl and CSI: New York. In 2007 Marlee joined the cast of Showtimes cutting edge drama The L Word. Marlee is the author of the childrens books Deaf Child Crossing and Nobody's Perfect. She is affiliated with a number of charities primarily benefiting children. Marlee lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband and their four children.