Andrea Leeds

She was interred in Desert Memorial Park Cemetery in California. In 2004, she starred in the film What the #$*! Do We know!? as Amanda. A resident of the city for many years, she is remembered as one of its prominent citizens with a star on their "Walk of Fame". She was nominated for a 2004 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series for a performance on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Andrea Leeds died from cancer in Palm Springs, California. In 2002, she published her first novel, Deaf Child Crossing, which is loosely based on her own childhood. It was her only marriage, and produced two children, one of whom predeceased her. They have a daughter (Sarah Rose, born 1996) and two sons (Brandon, born 2000; Tyler, born 2002).

With her husband she became a successful horse breeder, and after his death ran a jewellery business. Matlin married Kevin Grandalski on August 29, 1993 (in Henry Winkler's back yard). These films were relatively successful and Leeds remained a popular actress, however she had married in 1939 and decided to leave films to devote herself to raising a family. She is actively involved with a number of charitable organisations, including the Children Affected by AIDS Foundation, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation, the Starlight Foundation, and the Red Cross Celebrity Cabinet. Her final film, Earthbound (1940), was a fantasy murder mystery in which Leeds' character solves the murder of her husband aided by his ghost. She had recurring roles in The West Wing and Blue's Clues. She continued to play the romantic female lead in the western The Real Glory opposite Gary Cooper and David Niven, and with Don Ameche in the biography of Stephen Foster, Swanee River (1939). She played the lead female role in the television series Reasonable Doubts (1991–1993), and won an Emmy Award for an appearance in Picket Fences.

She next appeared in two films opposite Joel McCrea, in Youth Takes a Fling (1938) and They Shall Have Music (1939), for the first time playing the lead female role in films. Other films followed, as well as television work. The film was not a success and received poor reviews. It was this role for which she got her Golden Globe and Academy Awards. Her wholesome quality led to her being cast in The Goldwyn Follies (1938) playing "Miss Humanity" - a woman considered by a jaded Hollywood executive to represent the ideal American woman. As an adult, she appeared in a supporting role in the play Children of a Lesser God, which led to her being cast in the lead for the film version of the play in 1986. As part of a cast of highly regarded actresses including Katharine Hepburn, Ginger Rogers, Lucille Ball and Eve Arden, Leeds was singled out by many critics and received widespread acclaim. She made her stage debut at the age of seven, as Dorothy in a children's theatre version of The Wizard of Oz, and continued to appear with the same children's theatre group throughout her childhood.

She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her next role, as an unsuccessful, aspiring actress in Stage Door (1937). (She lost all hearing in her right ear, and 80% of hearing in her left ear.). As Andrea Leeds she played her first substantial role in the 1936 film Come and Get It and achieved another success with her next film It Could Happen to You (1937). Born in Morton Grove, Illinois, Matlin lost most of her hearing at the age of 18 months, following a bout of measles. Born Antoinette Lees in Butte, Montana, she began her film career in 1934 playing bit parts and using her given name. She began acting on stage at the age of seven, and her film début brought her a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Drama and an Academy Award for Best Actress (at 21, the youngest person ever to receive the award) — an achievement even more remarkable because she is almost completely deaf. Andrea Leeds (August 14, 1914 – May 21, 1984) was an American film actress. Marlee Beth Matlin (born August 24, 1965) is an American actress.