Marie Jean Philip was a leader, advocate, and researcher in the Deaf community. Best known for being one of the original researchers in the study of American Sign Language and Deaf culture. She earned his respect and became an admired figure for her monumental bilingual-bicultural movement. His influence spread not only to the United States, but also to children and adults around the world. Marie Jean Philip was born on April 20, 1953 in Worchester, Massachusetts. She was the eldest. Although she was born to deaf parents, Marie's deafness came as a surprise to her parents. He had two sisters, also deaf. Deafness was hereditary in his family, however not everyone in his family was deaf. Marie's father had a deaf sister and her mother had two brothers who were also deaf. When Marie was 11 months old her parents noticed that she was unresponsive to all noises. One day her parents decided to test her hearing by making noises behind Marie to see if she would respond. When Marie responded only to the loudest noises, such as pots banging together, they found that she could sometimes hear out of her right ear, but couldn't hear anything out of her left. Both of Philip's parents attended oral schools. His father later learned that he had signed through his friends who were active signatories. His mother learned sign language when she met his father at age 18. When Marie was born, her mother, who was 22, couldn't sign fluently. When Marie was old enough to go to school, her parents tried to send her to the Clarke School for the Deaf, a very famous oral school. Here she was rejected because she knew how to sign. As Marie became a teenager she noticed that it was much more difficult for teenagers with deaf parents... middle of paper... they would never become famous. She never wanted people to feel uncomfortable talking to her because she was so famous. Marie liked to be thought of as a normal person because she believed she was simply ordinary. She was an incredibly talented storyteller, and because her facial expressions were so animated, children were especially fond of her stories. It has become very popular in the children's community. After graduating from Northeastern University, she created the Marie Jean Philip ASL National Deaf Poetry, Storytelling, and Art Competition. Marie's lifelong support and work in the deaf community has earned her place as an icon in the deaf community. His efforts to legitimize ASL as a language and connect the deaf and hearing communities have had a lasting impact. To this day, she remains a respected and revered figure, as well as a pioneer of the bilingual-bicultural movement.