I’ve got to hand it to Marlee Matlin: she is one classy lady. Truly, anyone who can take a joke at their expense has my respect. Especially when that joke is a drawn-out jab at something really personal; in Marlee’s case, her hearing impairment. “Family Guy” first made fun of it a while back – they had a cutaway where an animated Marlee walks through a room, loudly passing gas with every step. The joke being that she can’t hear it. Juvenille, yes. Offensive to some, certainly. But Marlee says she wasn’t bothered by it, and points out it’s important to note that she wasn’t being mocked, she was part of the joke.

To show what a great sport she is, Marlee made a cameo appearance last night on “Family Guy Presents Seth & Alex’s Almost Live Comedy Show.” It features “Family Guy” creator/producer/writer/voice actor Seth MacFarlane with Alex Borstein, who voices many of the female characters, including the impression of Marlee on the show. They did a bit called “Marlee Matlin calls Moviefone,” and then Alex sings Lady Gaga’s “Pokerface” as Marlee. I was laughing and horrified at myself for laughing all at once. Halfway through the song, Marlee comes out on stage and bitches out Alex, then does an impression of her right back (focusing on Borstein’s sorta-large-for-Hollywood physique). Today she was interviewed by Entertainment Weekly and said everyone should just lighten up.

ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: How did you become involved with this special?
MARLEE MATLIN: I had been in touch with Seth MacFarlane’s office to ask him to let me use my own voice in the segments where they had a cartoon character based on me. After all, I have an Oscar and Alex [Borstein], who voiced me, doesn’t. God knows, I would have done a far better job of playing me than her.

Were you aware of being mocked on previous Family Guy episodes?
Mocked isn’t the right word. I was just part of the joke. I learned a long time ago from when I did Seinfeld never to take anything seriously and to be part of the joke is the best way to show what a good sport I was.

Were you ever offended by those jokes, or did you always think they were funny?
I personally have dealt with any adversity in my life with humor. That’s why I told America to “Read my hips!” on Dancing With the Stars or was happy to play along with Jason Alexander and Jerry Seinfeld in the great restaurant scene on Seinfeld. I know a lot of deaf people might have been offended when they made fun of my voice but remember, it was MY voice they were making fun of. I was more than happy to show up and show them that I could dish it as well as I could take it and that being offensive works both ways.

What about this skit — offensive or funny? (Or both/neither?)
It was sick. It was twisted. It was rude. And it was very Family Guy. People love [MacFarlane’s] stuff. They don’t pay him the big bucks for nothing and I was glad to be part of it. I want to do it again and BE the voice. BTW, it only would’ve been offensive if I hadn’t laughed and I loved that you couldn’t quite figure out if I was seriously angry at Alex or not!

As a very visible member of the hearing-impaired community, were you hesitant to be involved in a skit like this?
No. If I were, I wouldn’t have ever done Seinfeld, The Larry Sanders Show, Howie Mandel’s hidden camera show, My Name is Earl and this show. And it’s why I’m developing a very politically incorrect and very funny show for Showtime with Mario Cantone and Carol Leifer (who, BTW, wrote my episode for Seinfeld).

Were you aware that Microsoft withdrew its advertising from this special due to its controversial content?
Yep. That’s their right. But I had a hard time believing that they didn’t know what they were getting themselves into when they said they’d sponsor a show written by Seth MacFarlane. What were they expecting? Sesame Street?

Did you find any of the other controversial jokes in this special to be offensive?
Offensive. No. Sick, very. But that’s Seth and Alex. Humor comes in all forms and everyone has their cup of tea about what makes them laugh. But the day we censor humor is a sad one for sure. All I gotta say is, “Lighten up, people.”

[From Entertainment Weekly]

Talk about being gracious. I think most people can handle a joke at their expense, it just depends on whether or not it’s below the belt. For most people, this joke would be. Most of us have a few things that are clearly “do not joke.” Marlee must be incredibly well grounded that her hearing impairment isn’t one of hers. She gave lots of good examples to Entertainment Weekly about how she’s learned not to take offense and to just roll with it. I’m not saying everyone should have to do that, but it’s impressive that she can. And that she dished it right back, too.