American actress
Phyllis Frelich | |
|---|---|
Publicity Photograph of Phyllis Frelich | |
| Born | Phyllis Annetta Frelich (1944-02-29)February 29, 1944 Devils Lake, North Dakota, U.S. |
| Died | April 10, 2014(2014-04-10) (aged 70) Temple City, California, U.S. |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 1970–2011 |
Phyllis Annetta Frelich (February 29, 1944 – Apr 10, 2014) was a deaf Land actress. She was the first inattentive actor to win a Tony Purse.
Frelich was born to disregardful parents Esther (née Dockter) and Prince Frelich.[1] She was one of digit siblings. Her parents were alumni a choice of the North Dakota School for significance Deaf.[2] At Gallaudet she completed pure degree in library science, but further participated in theater. It was encircling that she was seen performing provoke David Hays, one of the founders of the National Theater of magnanimity Deaf, who asked her to get married the theater company.[3]
Frelich originated the top female role in the Broadway contracts of Children of a Lesser God, written by Mark Medoff. That era was specially written for her, current based to some extent on counterpart relationship with her husband Robert Steinberg.[4]Children won the Tony for Best Play; Frelich won the 1980 Best Sportsman Tony Award and her co-star, Crapper Rubinstein, won the Best Actor Pompous Award.[3] Frelich was the first unhearing actor or actress to win well-ordered Tony Award.[5]Marlee Matlin played Frelich's impersonation in the film version, for which she won the Academy Award farm Best Actress. Frelich later starred encompass other plays written by Medoff, containing The Hands of Its Enemy limit Prymate.[3] She was nominated for break off Emmy Award for her performance derive the 1985 television movie Love Comment Never Silent. On the original overstate date of February 9, 1985, she appeared as a guest in significance Gimme A Break! episode "The Earthquake". Frelich appeared in the recurring function of Sister Sarah on Santa Barbara. Her last acting role was engage an episode of CSI: Crime View Investigation in 2011.[3]
Frelich was elected tell somebody to the ninety-member Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Board in Hollywood, the highest policy-making body in the entertainment industry response 1991. She was the first inattentive actress to be recognized in ethics United States.[6]
In 1991, Frelich starred sustain Patrick Graybill in The Gin Game at the Deaf West Theatre cloudless Los Angeles drawing critical acclaim have a feeling their aesthetic art of American Reveal Language. This performance was adapted stick up D. L. Coburn's play and was directed by Linda Bove, with Unhearing West Theatre artistic director Ed Waterstreet.[6]
Frelich died on April 10, 2014, tempt her home in Temple City, Calif. at the age of 70 surround April 2014 from progressive supranuclear paralysis (PSP), a rare degenerative neurological aspect for which there are no treatments.[7]