# Differently-Abled Actors and Actresses **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 8, 2022, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118 "2022-02-08T19:03:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Riemann](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/riemann/32/3133_2.png) [@Riemann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Riemann)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2022, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/101 "2022-02-09T23:43:15Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > They can’t regenerate lost appendages in the 23rd century? I still think it could work - stubborn geezer who sees his lost finger as a badge on honor in his commitment to his work, and doesn’t want it regrown. Mr Spock raises an eyebrow and comments on the logic of this. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2022, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/102 "2022-02-09T23:45:33Z")
Yes, in protest of the homogenizing influences of Federation society that rob you of your individuality! (Personally, I’d rather have a new finger…) ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/103 "2022-02-10T03:25:33Z")
Raymond Griffith blew out his vocal chords and couldn’t speak above a whisper. This wasn’t a problem in silent films, where he was a major star, but he had to retire when sound came in. Still he did appear in _All Quiet on the Western Front_ as a dying soldier, where he only had to whisper. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/104 "2022-02-10T03:50:14Z")
I was wondering if there were any deaf actors in silent films. Have any idea? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/105 "2022-02-10T03:50:52Z")
Billy Barty had a long career in Hollywood because of his dwarfism – he was the go-to name if they needed someone of his stature. He played babies a lot. Same for [Michael Dunn](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Dunn_(actor)), best known as Dr. Miguelito Loveless in _The Wild Wild West_. Nowadays, of course, there’s Peter Dinklage ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/106 "2022-02-10T03:59:54Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > I was wondering if there were any deaf actors in silent films. Have any idea? I don’t recall any, but I do know Lon Chaney had deaf parents. I could see actual deafness being a problem in silent films, since the actors had to hear the director, who was telling them what to do. There seem to be a lot of actors who are deaf in one ear. Holly Hunter, Jane Lynch, Rob Lowe, Lou Ferrigno, and Halle Berry all have hearing issues in one ear. ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/107 "2022-02-10T04:04:15Z")
Lionel Barrymore ([seen in this video at 2:52](https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x7wzihu)), and [Jay C Flippen](https://m.imdb.com/name/nm0282435/) both kept on acting even after confined to wheelchairs. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/108 "2022-02-10T08:17:10Z")
Add Warwick Davis to that list. Kenny Baker, too. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/109 "2022-02-10T12:05:37Z")
And [Deep Roy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_Roy). ---
**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/110 "2022-02-10T14:16:45Z")
Imogen Millais-Scott was blind during the filming of _Salome’s Last Dance_ (1988) due to a degenerative eye disease, which actually may have added to her excellent, other-worldly performance in the title role. It stands as her last film to date owing to diabetes. And as long as we’re talking little people, few actors of any size had the distinguished career of Angelo Rossitto: > **[Angelo Rossitto - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0744441/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_0)** > > Angelo Rossitto. Actor: Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Small in stature at only 2' 11", but big in demand onscreen, the diminutive Angelo Rossitto was one of Hollywood's busiest "small" actors and appeared in over 70 feature films between 1927 until... ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/111 "2022-02-10T15:39:45Z")
And [Meredith Eaton](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0247860/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cl_t111), who is just adorable. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/112 "2022-02-10T15:42:35Z")
Let’s add [Zelda Rubinstein](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zelda_Rubinstein). [Marvin (Krondon) Jones](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krondon) is albino and played Tobias Whale in _Black Lighting_, arguably the best villain in the Arrowverse. He’s also of Black heritage. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/113 "2022-02-10T15:45:32Z")
Supposedly, according to some cast members of “Green Acres,” Hank ‘Mr. Ziffel’ Patterson was practically deaf, and sometimes a person (below camera level) would prod his foot with a stick or something to let him know it was his turn to talk. Unrelated: Hank Patterson was the great-uncle of Tea Leoni, although whether they knew each other is not known. ---
**Author:** ![dorvann](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/df705f/32.png) [@dorvann](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dorvann)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2022, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/114 "2022-02-10T20:09:18Z")
After having a bacterial infection in 2009 Actor Dean Winters (Detective Cassidy from Law & Order: SVU, Mayhem in All State Insurance commercials) developed gangrene and had to have two toes and half of one thumb as well as ten subsequent operations including a skin graft. ---
**Author:** ![Eclipse\_Chaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Eclipse\_Chaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eclipse_Chaser)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 9:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/115 "2022-02-11T09:07:28Z")
The Irish comedian Dave Allen famously had a missing finger joint and made use of this in many jokes. > **[Dave Allen (comedian)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dave_Allen_(comedian))** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > David Tynan O'Mahony (6 July 1936 – 10 March 2005), known professionally as Dave Allen, was an Irish comedian, satirist, and actor. He was best known for his observational comedy. Allen regularly provoked indignation by highlighting political hypocrisy and showing disdain for religious authority. His technique and style have influenced young British comedians. > Initially becoming known in Australia in 1963 and 1964, Allen made regular television... ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/116 "2022-02-11T19:35:23Z")
British actress Rose Ayling-Ellis (mainly known for Eastenders) won the most recent series of Strictly Come Dancing. She’s been deaf since birth. Liz Carr is probably more known as a comedian, but she’s a very good actress and was a regular character on Silent Witness for eight years and is apparently now in The Witcher. She has Arthrogryposis multiplex congenita, which has several effects, and she uses a wheelchair full time. I’d count severe burns, personally. They can restrict movement as well as the more obvious problems they cause. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/117 "2022-02-11T19:49:22Z")
Australian comedian [Adam Hills](https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1201831206121328641/0yyVPc4x_400x400.jpg) was born with only one foot. He hosts a talk show called _The Last Leg_, with [Alex Brooker](https://disabilitypower100.com/project/alex-brooker/), who was born with deformed limbs, which required having one of his legs amputated when he was very young. ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/118 "2022-02-11T19:57:23Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > Gary Burghoff has a birth defect known as Poland syndrome, which led to brachydactyly – three fingers on his left hand are shorter than the fingers on his right hand. A girl I went to elementary school with had one full had that was about half the size of her other hand. I wonder if she had the same syndrome? ---
**Author:** ![carrps](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carrps/32/2957_2.png) [@carrps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carrps)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/119 "2022-02-11T20:12:32Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > and amiable Russian gangster NoHo Hank in Barry. Wasn’t he Chechen??? I’m so bummed we never got more than two seasons of _Barry_. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2022, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118/120 "2022-02-11T20:21:58Z")
So far. A third season is expected this year. Like many other things, my guess is the pandemic caused delays. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/differently-abled-actors-and-actresses/959118.md?page=7)