Robert David Hall (b. 1947-11-09) [IMDB, Wikipedia], who plays Dr. Albert Robbins on the CBS television program CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, interviewed on the PBS television program Tavis Smiley, 2010-07-07 (link has transcript and video):
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Tavis Smiley: |
The actor Hugh Laurie. He walks on a cane on that show, but he uses it as a prop, so the cane - he does not walk on a cane in real life. |
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Robert David Hall: |
It's hard to argue with Hugh Laurie's success. He's a brilliant actor, great musician also, but I like to see - this is personally and professionally - I like to see people with disabilities who are actors audition for roles like that. There are so few actual people with disabilities in front of or behind the camera, so the opportunities are scarce and we're working hard to try to change that. |
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Tavis Smiley: |
I raise that, obviously, not to cast aspersion on him. He's a great actor and it's a great show. I think we both agree on that. I raise it only because I wanted to make a distinction that yours is not a prop. This is the way you walk around in real life. |
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Robert David Hall: |
I walk on two of these, two artificial legs. [...] [...] There are 58 million people with some kind of disability in America, so it's the largest minority, really, in America, and it lags behind in education and economics and jobs, so outside of "CSI" and outside of my music I serve on a couple of boards, and I'm trying to be a part of the movement that changes this. [...] "CSI's" been a great blessing for me. [...] I'm grateful that I wasn't hired by people who - they were just looking for a good actor to play a coroner, and they didn't say, "Oh, he's walking on artificial limbs," or "Oh, he's this or that." So I've been very fortunate, but there is discrimination that exists and it shows in the fact that one-half of 1 percent of words uttered on TV are spoken by somebody with a disability and 20 percent of the country has some disability, so there's a gap there, Tavis, that people are still a little reluctant to talk about. |
One of my bandmates2 is selling a treble viola da gamba1. Moeck, with case, may need new strings, bow may or may not need re-hairing, otherwise excellent condition. US$475 OBO. Interested or know someone who is? Reply here or by email and I'll pass along her contact info.
[1] If you had to click that link to find out what it is, you're probably not in the market for one, but I thought I'd save curious folks a step there.
[2] Why yes, the one who plays bass viola da gamba in the band. She's keeping the bass of course, but hasn't been playing the treble, so ...
[Yes, footnotes deliberately numbered in that order.]
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