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Show \& DAILY Stutter Monday, March 27, 2006 HERALD synagogue.” Topp said. She said Jordan is one of the lucky ones who can benefit Continued from B1 others tohelp improve their flu ency this could work.’ People usually Topp. who is a consultant to Mercy Hospital speech and hearing clinic in Miami, and also has an office in Boca Raton, said the SpeechEasy devices come in different models and costs vary from about $4,000to cantell by the end ofthe initial almost $5,000. Insurance usu- consultation,” Topp said. ally doesn't cover them. The from the device. The moment he tried it, he looked at me and said ‘I think Therevare a lot of theories about the causesof stuttering It doesn't appear tha it's go- ing to be any single universal cause.” said Willams. who has written a book about stuttering ‘Stuttering Recovery. Personal and Empirical Perspectives. published in January by Law rence ErlbaumAssociates. Inc In somepeople, the cause may be neurological, he said. In others. it may be genetic, but researchers are still searching for answers technology was developed at Jordan's mother, Jennifer Hernandez, of Sunrise, Fla., East Carolina University and is licensed to Janus Develop- said at that first appointment Topp suggested Jordan wear a loaner device while his mom ment Group, which makes the product “They reall equipped with two memories and 16 frequency took him out to lunch or the mall for an hour or so. Hernandez said she noticed a 50 percent reduction in Jordan's bands,and the reason for that is it assists in hearing speech appropriately, while it dampens non-speech sounds. It’s a pretty sophisticated piece of equip- stutter during thatfirst one- hourtryout He's considered a severe Vivian Topp. the speech pathologist who tested Jordan to stutterer, so it has made a big difference,” she said. While he ment,” she said. device, said it alters the pitch has always done well in school, it is easier for Jordan to read gan whenhe was about4, and he has had speech therapyboth at school and in private sessions seeif he could benefit from the and delays the soundslightly to trick xe brain into hearing a second voice speaking in unison. The voice can be adjusted to sound more like Darth Va der, but Jordan chose a higher- pitched tone The whole point of the device is to simulate choral speech. like whenyouread aloud or pray aloud with others in vour class or your church or Jordan’s speech problem be- and comprehend his lessons nowthathe has the device, Hernandezsaid. Topp said stuttering is “a verysilent dilemma,” and she has seen the device change people'slives. “One of myfirst clients was a UPS truck driver, and he came back from his trial hour with the device with a 7-Eleven Slurpee. He said he'd always wanted one but was never able ri JACQUELING LYDIE KAZIL KRT rader Jordan Fowler, 11, center, explains a math problem to a classmate at Country Isles ElementarySchoolin Weston, Fla. Jordan uses SpeechEasy, a device that heplacesinhis ear to prevent him fromstuttering. It alters the wayusers heartheir ownvoicesas they speak off and oneversince. his moth- er said, but nothing has worked as well for himas the device. Jordan did not have problemssocially before his stutter improved, Hernandezsaid, but since he got the device some of his friends have been curious to order that before,” Topp re- called. “And, while he wasout. a woman walked up to him with a piece of paper with an address and asked howto findit. He said usually he would just say ‘L don't know,’ but that day he was able to give her directions. Toppsaid, Winkler about howit works. “When I told them. they said that’s cool.” Jordan said. critics and viewers. Since then Richards has appeared onlyin aTVmovie (“David Copper- Continuedfrom B1 womanon a TV monitorplay- field") and anindie film ("WahWah’), ing “The Price is Right” could be so excited about being on TV. These are the habits of a shy person. notofthe coolest guy inthe neighborhood Don't get Winkler wrong. He loves the Fonz. but the Fonz aint him. Twas a nerd,” Winkler says in near-perfect diction about his days before “HappyDavs. Beingdyslexic. | was always inthe bottom3 percent in the country academically. | was in the bottom 3 percent inthe class of high school. | went to anall- boys private school where your grades andyourcollege were Julia Louis-Dreyfus your calling card. | didn't have a calling card. .:1 would calla girl in the middle of the summer in New York. sweltering heat. I would have to wear anovercoat “WATCHING ELLIE” Air dates: Feb. 26, 2002, to y 20, because I was shaking. The 2003. Did you know?Theoriginal concept, abandonedfairly quickly, was that eath episode took placein real time and Fonz was my alter-ego. He was everyone I wasn't, everything I wasn't. everything that I wanted to be and couldn't manage.” Winkler discovered his dyslexia in 1976, when he was narrating a documentaryabout a timerin the cornerof the screen counted downfrom22 minutes, pausing only for com- merci: children with learning disabilities and recognized his own Patrick Warburton “THE TICK” Air dates: Nov. 8. 2001. to Jan. 24, 2002. Episodes: 8. Did you know?Originally scheduled to debut during the 2000-01 season. the show was pushedback tofall 2001 andaired Thursdays against NBC's powerhouse"Must problem. Since 2003. he has channeledhis childhood strug- See TV’” lineup. Since 2003, Warburtonhas beena regular gles withthe learning disability on the ABCsitcom “Less Than Perfect.” into a string of humorouskids’ books. The Hank Zipzer series — ninetitles intotal (a 10th is due in August), with thelatest. “The Secret Life of a Ping-Pong Wizard.” published in Septem- ber — is aimedat fourth-graders andis about“the world’s greatest underachiever.” Co- written withLin Oliver, the booksall take off from some struggle Winkler’s dyslexia caused him in school. “Kids write me from all over Courtesy photo Henry Winkler credits his durable career to hard work. “Longevityiin this businessisn't an accident,” he says. The actoris best known as “The Fonz”, is now 60. the country.” says Winkler, whowasin town to promote “Out of Practice’s” move from Mondays to Wednesdays on CBS. “I guess hilarious must be a fourth-grade word, because they say. Your books arehilari- ous.’ And they say. ‘Howdid you know me so well? Howdid you knowhow| felt? I don't feel alone. Hank can't spell; I can't spell. I could be a writer.” My jobis done. Just that one commentalone.that a child nowbelieves that they could be a writer. | didn’t know I could be a writer until 2003.” It’s not that Winkler, who notesthat oneinfive children suffer from somesort oflearning disability, has conquered his dyslexia. It’s just that he’s learnedto adapt “Youdon't overcomeit,” he says. “What you dois, you integrate it. You learn to live with it. You learn what's best for you. I can't spell; I don't use a computer. Myassistant uses the computer and gets my email. Over the weekend, I have noidea if I got an e-mail or not, because there's no wayI’m openingthat up to figure that out. I knowwhat mylimitations are. andit doesn’t stop me from going for the gold.” Laterin the day, at a reading for patients at Children’s Medical Centerin Dallas, Winkler will tell his audiencethe inspi- rations behindhis books. In oneof them, Hank's problems grasping math led him to seri- ously overspicea recipe for enchiladas, causing his humor- less teacherto havea five-alarm case of firemouth — and an embarrassing boutofflatulence. In another, Hank studies and studies fora spelling contest, onlyto get tripped up on the “i before e” rule in frontof his laughingclassmates. In still another, Hank, who has poor hand-to-eye coordination,is petrified when he’s asked to pitch for a baseball team. (Winkler learnedto play catch from his “Happy Days” co-star Ron Howard, who boughthis co-star his first mitt.) Winkler’s messageis that all children havegreatness within themselves, whether they have a learning challengeornot. “I think they're shortsighted,” he says. “I think thatit’s going to be with you anyway. I hada really great time playing(the Fonz). I had a great time being with those people for 11 years. Why would | then,all ofsudden — theonethingthat shot me onto the world stage — why wouldI say, Well, it doesn't exist ‘Winkler also could have turned into “Surreal Life” fodder, but he’s madea point to short-lived Fox sitcom “Monty,” taking bad-guy guest-star roles in several series, and appearing in such non-"Happy Days”-ish projects as the movies “Scream” and “The Waterboy.” When act- ing opportunities dried up for a his childhood dream of being while after the 1982 Ron Howard film “Night Shift,” Winkler stepped behind the camera, his gift in acting and clung to taking several movie and TV directing projects and racking He could have turned his up nearly three dozen producback on “Happy Days,” but ing credits,including last year's he's stayed close to manyfor“Happy Days: 30th Anniversary mer co-stars: Winkler played Reunion Special.” a recurringrole in the Ron “Fear is a tremendous motiHoward-produced series “Arvator, and I never wanted to rested Development.” Marion be in a magazinewiththe title “Mrs. C” Ross appeared onthis "Where are they now?’ “ he week's “OutofPractice,” which says.“I think that would have returned in a new time slot at 8 just sent me over the bend.... p.m. EST Wednesday. He spoke People say, 'Give me onebit ‘of with Don “Ralph Malph” Most advice being in this busijust this month. Some stars try ness,’ and say, You have to to reject their TV past, but Win- write the wordtenacity. You klerisn’t that way. haveto writeit in red, and paste as PROVO COE GI New Criminal Justice Degree at Provo College! is going to doit for you.” “Out of Practice,” which debuted in September, had a seemingly cherry time slot following “Two and a Half Men,” CBS’top-performingsitcom. Butthe show,a traditional but raucous comedy about a fam- PAO rad hehe 010) Episodes: 5. Did you know? Ten episodes were madebut onlyfive aired. It featured thefirst regular role for Chandra Wilson(Dr. Miranda Bailey on “Grey's Anatomy”), Did you know? The curse “Seinfeld” wentoff the air. During O'Hurley’s run asJ. Peterman,he also starred in “Over the Top,”a series that lasted just three episodesin 1997 and is most notable as Steve Carell's first sitcom. CBShas treated as a dumping groundforsitcoms,but the show has improvedsince September,with the writing snappier and funnier, and the cast Visit the chemistry jelling. Winkler knowsthe moveis risky, but he believes that fans ofthe show will come back obituaries — as will people who checkedit “The thing is, we were on the rise when they took us off,” he says. “What wehaveto dois _ MichaelRichards ae MICHAEL RICHARDS remind (viewers)that they had a good time. WhatI honestly say is, 'You give mea half-hour of your time, we will make you laugh outloud. Andif we don't, T'll come to your house and makedinner.’ “ VISITOR CENTER OPEN DAILY EXCEPT SUNDAY * Distillery & Greenhouse Tours + Special Events through the Summer (Call for dates & times) “THE MULLETS” Air dates: Sept. 11, 2003, to March17, 2004 Episodes:7. landedin a softtime period that out onceortwicelast fall, then drifted away. John O'Hurley wasin place even before With its new 8 p.m. Wednesdayslot, “Outof Practice” has Picnic Area + Wagon Rides : Paddle Boats * MedievalVillage « Climbing Rock Wall provocollege.edu “BOB PATTERSON” Air dates: Oct. 2-31, 2001. make room for Jenna Elfman’s “Courting Alex” and now Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ “The New Adventures of Old Christine.” Fun iswhere the Farm is! YOUNG LIVING Vv Jason Alexander ily of doctors, was bounced to branchout, playing a rightwing talk-show host in the Despite his dyslexia, he found on TV until that dream came true. Andhe'll never dismiss that dream. it on your mirror, so that you see it every day. You have to take your pick and your shovel, and you have to minethe system every day. Because nobody aAdates: Oct. 24 to Dec. 19, a sepede 6 Did you know?Thefirst | “Seinfeld” alum with a new | show was dismissed by both online to sign | a Guest Book | or send flowers. | See the obituarysectionat | www.heraldextra.com DailysHerald Herniated Disc? 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