Rocky Dennis was an American boy who suffered from the rare sclerotic bone disorder cranial dysplasia which caused his death at the age of 16. His head grew unnaturally big and distorted due to excessive calcium buildup which resulted in poor eyesight and hearing ability nevertheless with support from his mother Florence told us he attended school and let it life as normal as he possibly could until the rare disease took his life. He had a happy go-lucky attitude that helped him overcome his physical problems. Despite the fact that doctors had told his mother Florence that Rocky Dennis would not be able to lead a normal life she encouraged him to do everything normally. After the family moved to Covina, California she enrolled six-year-old Dennis in Ben Lomon Elementary School ignoring advice from teachers to put him in a school for the handicapped because his intelligence was impaired. He eventually learned to read and do many other things that a kid would do. In September 1978 he was forced to use a wheelchair after his headaches had increased. He passed away weeks later on October 4th 1978 and his body was donated for science to UC L.A. Genetics Research Center and then cremated. The 1985 film Mask by Peter Bogdanovich starring Eric Stoltz and Cher was loosely based on his life. His mother consented to the film because she thought showing Rocky's courage would help a lot of disabled kids and the parents of disabled kids. In 1985 Dennis life was made into the film Mask. In the film a dramatized version of his life Eric Stoltz played Dennis while Cher portrayed the role of his mother. The movie contains a scene in which a voiceover by Dennis himself is used reciting a poem he had written for his English class. If you enjoyed this video make sure to hit the like button and check out the video in the top left corner which I also know you will enjoy. Thanks for watching my friends.