Another Standing Ovation for The King's Speech

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (January 30, 2011) – Jane Fraser, president, The Stuttering Foundation (www.stutteringhelp.org), issued the following reaction to tonight’s “SAG Awards”:

“It is our privilege to give The King’s Speech another standing ovation for bringing hope and understanding to those who stutter. With its much-deserved two SAG Awards, Best Male Actor in a Leading Role for Colin Firth and Best Cast of a Motion Picture, The King’s Speech has the rare opportunity to teach the widest possible audience about the complexities of stuttering, and the availability of treatment and support.”

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Foundation Spokesperson Jane Fraser

Jane Fraser is president of The Stuttering Foundation and co-author of If Your Child Stutters: A Guide for Parents, 8th edition. She is also vice president of the Association for Research into Stammering in Childhood, Michael Palin Centre, in London. Ms. Fraser is available for interviews by contacting Greg Wilson, gregwilsonpr@gmail.com.

About the Foundation

Malcolm Fraser felt the same dread of speaking in public that King George VI experienced in the 1940s. Inspired by the plight of “Bertie”, Fraser, a successful businessman and stutterer, went on to establish and endow the 64-year-old nonprofit Foundation in 1947. The Foundation provides a toll-free helpline, 800-992-9392, and free online resources on its Website, www.stutteringhelp.org, including services, referrals and support to people who stutter and their families, as well as support for research into the causes of stuttering. Please visit us at www.stutteringhelp.org.

CELEBRITY FOCUS

Kenyon Martin

Kenyon Martin, the basketball sensation who was named to the NBA’s All Star Team in 2004, joins other famous people who stutter in a new brochure. The brochure - which unfolds into a small poster - is available free of charge from The Stuttering Foundation.

The poster is intended to give children and adults who stutter inspiration as they grapple with their speech disorder.

James Earl Jones

Actor James Earl Jones, a Broadway, television and movie star, is well-known for his voice as Darth Vader in Star Wars and his book Voices and Silences. Jones has spoken some of the most memorable lines in the history of American film, but the man known for his voice was once afflicted with a severe stutter.

Marilyn Monroe

From Edward S. Herrington's letter to Southcoasttoday.com

I am writing in response to "The importance of voice" (May 29), which mentioned that famous actor James Earl Jones struggled with stuttering. Another famous voice that you cited was the trademark breathy voice of Marilyn Monroe; however, you did not make mention of the fact that Marilyn Monroe also struggled with stuttering at various points in her life, sometimes very painfully.

Jack Paar

While Jack Paar is among the most prominent of the entertainers on the Stuttering Foundation’s list of Famous People Who Stutter, he deserves special recognition as he was among the first to openly address his stuttering in public. As host of The Tonight Show from 1957-1962, he spoke of his difficulties as a stuttering child and teenager, giving hope to young people.

Bruce Willis

While the world knows Bruce Willis as an A-list actor, few know that he struggled with stuttering throughout his first 20 years.

Walter Bruce Willis was born in 1955 in West Germany to his German mother, Marlene, and his American GI father, David Willis. The family settled in David’s hometown of Penns Grove, New Jersey in 1957, and the couple has three other children.