Patty Duke is an actress. She has won three Emmy Awards for
made-for-television movies. In 1965, at the age of 17, Patty became the
youngest person to win an Academy Award in a regular category (Best Supporting
Actress) for her role as Helen Keller in the motion-picture version of The
Miracle Worker. At the age of 13, Patty starred as Helen Keller in William
Gibson's play The Miracle Worker.
As part of Patty's plan to win the Helen Keller role in the
play, Patty would practice at being a person with a visual impairment. She
would blindfold herself and practice eating, dressing, and moving around. Patty
also learned the manual sign language alphabet in preparation for her audition.
It was her determination and practice that won her the role as Helen Keller.
Although successful as an actress, Patty was a very unhappy
person. In 1982 Patty was finally diagnosed as having a manic-depressive
disorder. Manic depression is a disease caused by a chemical imbalance in the
brain. Patty continues to cope with this disability with medication. The medicine is not a cure but makes the
symptoms of manic depression easier to control. Patty is still an actress, but
also tours the country as a disability advocate, giving talks and answering
questions about manic depression and other mental illnesses.
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