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= Nyle_DiMarco =
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Introduction
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Nyle DiMarco (born May 8, 1989) is an American model, actor, and Deaf
activist. In 2015, DiMarco was the winner of The CW's reality
television series 'America's Next Top Model' in season 22, becoming
the second male winner and the first Deaf winner. In the following
year, he and professional dance partner Peta Murgatroyd were the
winners of the ABC televised dance competition 'Dancing with the
Stars' in season 22.
Early life
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DiMarco was born in Queens, New York as Nyle Thompson, explaining in
his book that along with his brothers, he changed his last name from
Thompson to DiMarco, his mother's maiden name, while at university. He
is of English, Scottish, Italian and German descent. DiMarco grew up
in Frederick, Maryland, where he attended the Maryland School for the
Deaf, and went on to graduate from Gallaudet University in 2013, with
a degree in mathematics. American Sign Language (ASL) is his native
language but he uses English fluently in writing. Nyle also gets by
with lip reading and nonverbal communication. He has a fraternal twin
brother, Nico, and an older brother, Neal.
Career
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In 2013, DiMarco had a leading role in the independent film 'In the
Can', an American Sign Language Films production. In 2014 and 2015, he
played the recurring role of Garrett Banducci in 'Switched at Birth'
on the Freeform network.
DiMarco was doing freelance modeling for about a year before he was
contacted by 'America's Next Top Model' producers in 2015. They
scouted him via his social media without realizing he was deaf. He was
named the winner of the season after beating out Mamé Adjei in the
season finale. He is the only deaf male in the show's history, the
first deaf winner, and the second male to win.
Shortly after winning the competition, DiMarco signed with Wilhelmina
Models in New York City.
On March 8, 2016, DiMarco was announced as one of the celebrities who
would compete on season 22 of 'Dancing with the Stars'. He was
partnered with professional dancer Peta Murgatroyd. DiMarco is the
second deaf contestant to compete on the show after Marlee Matlin. On
May 24, 2016, DiMarco and Murgatroyd were announced as the winners of
the season. DiMarco became the first deaf celebrity to win any global
version of BBC Worldwide's 'Dancing with the Stars' franchise.
In 2016, DiMarco appeared in the Hulu comedy series 'Difficult
People'. Later on, he appeared on Tóc Tiên's music video for "Big
Girls Don't Cry" in January and Alex Newell's music video for
"Basically Over You (BOY)" in March.
In June 2016, DiMarco walked for Giorgio Armani at Milan Fashion Week
Spring/Summer 2017.
DiMarco was featured on DIVERSEability Magazine's 2017 Summer issue.
He was also honored as DEAF LIFE Magazine's "Deaf Person of the Year"
(January 2017 issue).
DiMarco played the lead role in Dan + Shay's "Tequila" music video,
which premiered in February 2018.
Personal life and activism
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In October 2015, DiMarco came out as "sexually fluid" when asked
during an interview with 'Out' magazine about his sexuality.
DiMarco does not consider himself disabled by deafness and sees his
media profile as an opportunity to bring awareness to Deaf culture. He
views deafness as an advantage in modeling because he is accustomed to
communicating without speaking. He believes deaf actors should play
deaf roles.
DiMarco is a spokesperson for LEAD-K (Language Equality and
Acquisition for Deaf Kids). He is also a signer and creative
collaborator on The ASL App, an app that teaches ASL.
In 2016, DiMarco started The Nyle DiMarco Foundation, a non-profit
organization providing access to resources for deaf children and their
families.
DiMarco supported Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign during the
2016 U.S. election. He criticized Republican nominee Donald Trump,
after reports surfaced of ableist comments, one directed at deaf
actress Marlee Matlin. DiMarco stated, "[T]here are 55 million
disabled people living in America. I don't want a president who
marginalizes my community."
On November 22, 2020, DiMarco delivered the keynote address at the
closing general session of the Annual Convention and Expo of the
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. In the keynote
address, DiMarco drew comparisons between his experiences in education
(both in Deaf schools and in hearing schools) and the experiences of
learners of world languages negotiating cultural differences. Due to
the COVID-19 pandemic, the conference was fully online, so DiMarco
delivered the keynote via video streaming.
Television
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Year Title Role Notes
align="center"| 2014-15 'Switched at Birth' Garrett Banducci Season
3, Ep 18 "It Isn't What you Think" Season 4, Ep 16 "Borrowing Your
Enemy's Arrows" Season 4, Ep 18 "The Accommodations of Desire"
align="center"| 2015 'America's Next Top Model' Himself Cycle 22;
Winner
rowspan="2" align="center"| 2016 'Difficult People' Doug |Episode:
Kessler Epstein Foundation
'Dancing with the Stars' Himself Season 22; Winner
align="center"| 2018-19 |'This Close' Ben Genovese 4 episodes
align="center"| 2019 |'Station 19' |Dylan |Episode: Into the Wildfire
align="center"| 2019 'What Would You Do?' Himself Season 15
|align="center"| 2020 |'Deaf U' Executive producer Netflix original
reality series
|align="center"| 2021 |'Audible' Executive producer Netflix short
documentary film
|align="center"| 2022 |'Queer as Folk' Leo Season 1, Episode 4
Music video appearances
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Year Title Original artist(s) Director(s)
2016 "Big Girls Don't Cry"
2016 "Basically Over You (B.O.Y)" Alex Newell Alex Newell & Derec
Dunn
2018 "Tequila" Dan + Shay Patrick Tracy
2019 "7 Rings (ASL Version)" Ariana Grande Jake Wilson
|2020 "I Dare You (ASL Version)" Kelly Clarkson (in collaboration
with Deaf West Theatre) Trevor Joseph Newton
Accolades
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Award Date of ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result
Critics' Choice Real TV Awards June 21, 2021 Best Unstructured
Series Deaf U
Academy Awards March 27, 2022 Documentary (Short Subject) Audible
Critics' Choice Documentary Awards November 14, 2021 Best Short
Documentary Audible
License
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License URL:
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
Original Article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyle_DiMarco
