Is ellen degeneres gay

1958-present

Ellen DeGeneres Now: Comedian's Final Stand-Up Special Arrives on Netflix

Ellen DeGeneres, with her career winding down, is putting out one last stand-up show before vanishing from the public sphere altogether. The comedian's concluding special, Ellen DeGeneres: For Your Approval, is premiering today, September twenty-fourth, on Netflix.

This new program marks her initial major project since her long-running talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, ceased operations in June of 2022, just two years after employees charged her with fostering a "toxic work environment."

As expected, the controversy is a prominent subject in For Your Approval. Throughout the hour-long performance, DeGeneres discusses supposedly getting "booted from show business" and counters allegations that she was "unkind" to her crew. However, she also reflects that she "was a highly immature supervisor" because she "didn't desire to be a boss" and now feels "content" no longer occupying that post.

In anticipation of the release of For Your Approval, the sixty-six-year-old embarked on her Ellen's Last Stand… Up tour, informing attendees during a post-performance Q&A in July that this special was her final gig. "This is the last time you're going to observe me," she declared. "Following my Netflix special, I'm finished."

Who Is Ellen DeGeneres?

Ellen DeGeneres rose to fame as a stand-up comic before starring in her self-titled sitcom, Ellen. In 1997, she came out as a gay woman and became a committed advocate for LGBTQ rights. DeGeneres then commenced hosting her own award-winning talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which aired from 2003 until 2022. The comedian has featured in several movies, including the animated blockbuster Finding Nemo and its successor Finding Dory. She is wedded to model and actor Portia de Rossi.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Ellen Lea DeGeneres
BORN: January twenty-sixth, 1958
BIRTHPLACE: Metairie, Louisiana
SPOUSE: Portia de Rossi (2008-present)
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Aquarius

Young Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen Lea DeGeneres was born on January twenty-sixth, 1958, in Metairie, Louisiana, to an insurance salesperson and a working mother, Betty DeGeneres. Ellen's parents divorced when she was a teenager.

During her formative years, Ellen aspired to become a veterinarian, but she abandoned the idea because she was "not book smart." Instead, she waited tables, sold vacuum cleaners, painted houses, and worked as a legal secretary.

Her elder brother, Vance, an actor-comedian and former correspondent for The Daily Show, was long considered the humorist in the family. Then one time, during a public speaking engagement, Ellen found herself intimidated by the audience and utilized humor to navigate the experience. She was a smash hit and received offers to perform stand-up comedy. Her career started in 1981, supported by her mother's moral and financial backing.

Stand-up Comedy

At the age of twenty-three, DeGeneres started performing at a local coffeehouse. Her big moment arrived five years later in 1986. Acting on a tip from Jay Leno, The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson dispatched a booking agent to catch DeGeneres' act at the Improv in Hollywood. As a consequence of that performance, DeGeneres appeared on The Tonight Show and secured the distinction of being the only female comic invited by Carson to sit on the famous couch during her maiden visit.

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DeGeneres subsequently began making regular appearances on the talk show circuit, including performances on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Later with Greg Kinnear, Larry King Live, and Good Morning America. She was also profiled in detail on ABC's PrimeTime Live.

A rare combination of amiable and amusing, the comedian became a popular choice to host major awards telecasts. She was chosen to host the Grammys in 1996 and 1997, the Emmy Awards in 2001 and 2005, and the Academy Awards in 2007 and 2014.

Meanwhile, she continued working in stand-up. DeGeneres received two Emmy Award nominations in 2004 for her HBO comedy special Ellen DeGeneres: Here and Now. Then, after a fifteen-year sabbatical, the comedian's first Netflix stand-up special, Ellen Degeneres: Relatable, was released in December 2018. Five years later, her final special, Ellen Degeneres: For Your Approval, premiered on the same streaming service in September 2024.

Coming Out on Ellen

Her wit won over audiences, and DeGeneres found further success as an actor on her own primetime sitcom. The self-titled television program, Ellen, was originally called These Friends of Mine but was renamed in 1994. From that point onward, the show transformed from its early days as an ensemble effort into a showcase for DeGeneres.

The program faced harsh criticism when, in April 1997, DeGeneres' character became the first lead in sitcom history to openly acknowledge her homosexuality on television. An ABC affiliate in Birmingham, Alabama, declined to air the historic episode. Fearing potential controversy, some of the show's sponsors—Daimler Chrysler, among them—removed their advertisements.

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Numerous episodes subsequent to her revelation had gay themes and, throughout the rest of the season, DeGeneres and ABC executives endured a storm of criticism. Yet the show also received applause from gay-friendly activists, including DeGeneres' mother, Betty, who appeared on various talk shows in support of her daughter. Regardless of a supportive audience, an Emmy Award for the coming-out episode, and the show's groundbreaking position in television history, Ellen was canceled in 1998.

DeGeneres later unveiled the difficulties she encountered in coming out—from the Ellen executives who advised her against doing so to the backlash she received for making her personal life public. Appearing on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast in 2018, she recounted the humiliating feeling of being the subject of late-night talk show jokes while rejecting the idea that she was an LGBTQ "leader" merely because she didn't want to keep the secret any longer.

The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Following a few years away from the public eye, DeGeneres returned to television with a self-titled talk show. The Ellen DeGeneres Show debuted in September 2003 and swiftly gained traction with daytime viewers. The show amassed a plethora of accolades, including sixty-four Daytime Emmys for a daytime talk show.

Highlighting her popularity, DeGeneres was chosen to fill the coveted fourth position as a judge on American Idol in 2009. She replaced outgoing judge Paula Abdul.

In 2020, however, The Ellen DeGeneres Show and its host became embroiled in controversy when numerous current and former employees accused DeGeneres of creating a "toxic work environment" behind the scenes.

The claims came as a stark contrast to the manner in which Degeneres presented herself on screen, concluding every episode with the catchphrase, "Be kind to one another." Staff members also reported experiencing racism, fear, intimidation, and sexual misconduct at the hands of other producers. Two years afterward, The Ellen Degeneres Show concluded its run after nineteen seasons, with its final episode airing in June 2022.

Movies and Stand-Up

By the time her show was canceled, DeGeneres had already made the move to the big screen, starring in the dark comedy Mr. Wrong (1996) as a woman in search of the perfect man. She additionally appeared in the comedy EdTV (1999), starring Matthew McConaughey, and the television production of If These Walls Could Talk 2 (2000), in which she shared a much-publicized love scene with Sharon Stone.

Also in 2003, DeGeneres contributed her voice to the animated box-office success Finding Nemo, where she portrays a friendly yet forgetful blue tang fish named Dory. The actor subsequently reprised her role in the 2016 sequel, Finding Dory.

Books, TV Producer, and More

DeGeneres is the author of several books, including My Point... and I Do Have One (1995), Seriously... I'm Kidding (2011), and Home (2015).

Her film work lessened after her talk show took off, but she's continued to work primarily behind the scenes as an executive producer of various television shows including Bethenny (2012-2014), Repeat After Me (2015), One Big Happy (2015), Little Big Shots (2015), and her HGTV reality competition show, Ellen's Design Challenge.

Juggling numerous roles in Hollywood, DeGeneres has continued building her empire. She owns her own record label called eleveneleven. In 2015, she launched the lifestyle brand Ed by Ellen, which sells shoes, home and baby items, accessories, and a pet line.

She is a dedicated animal rights and gay rights activist, as well as a vegan. In early 2018, as part of a sixtieth birthday gift from her wife, the television personality learned of plans to establish the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in Rwanda, the first undertaking of the new Ellen DeGeneres Wildlife Fund.

By that time, the comedian had already received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama for her contribution to the arts. The former president bestowed the highest civilian honor on DeGeneres in November of 2016.

At the January 2020 Golden Globes, DeGeneres was awarded the honorary Carol Burnett Award for excellence in television. She became the second recipient of the honor, following its namesake the previous year.

Wife Portia de Rossi

DeGeneres has been married to Portia de Rossi, an Australian-American model and actor, for over fifteen years.

Read Her Biography

DeGeneres and de Rossi became involved in December 2004. Their wedding, which occurred on August sixteenth, 2008, followed California's legalization of marriage and is perhaps the most high-profile gay marriage to date. In 2010, de Rossi was given the legal right to change her name to Portia Lee James DeGeneres.

Prior to her marriage, DeGeneres dated actress Anne Heche for several years. The couple purchased a residence in Los Angeles together in 1999, then despite openly declaring their wish to be married, they separated in August 2000. DeGeneres then dated Alexandra Hedison for a few years before meeting de Rossi.

Sexual Abuse Revelations

DeGeneres initially revealed that she had been sexually abused by her stepfather in a 2005 interview with Allure magazine. She elaborated on the subject during an appearance on David Letterman's Netflix show in 2019, remembering how her stepfather insisted on 'examining' her breasts for lumps after her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in the 1970s.

Quotes

• I think what saved me is being honest. I think I somehow had the courage to do something and to say something that I knew would possibly end my career. Instead of making business more important, I made my soul and my life more important. And I think by being truthful, and being honest, that saved me.
• I watch people's behavior and notice things. I think that's why I became a comedian. I notice how stupid the things we do are.
• I think adults out there need to know they're doing the same thing. It's not just kids. There are adults out there that are bullying, and they need to be kind.
• Nothing says holidays like a cheese log.
• My grandmother started walking five miles a day when she was 60. She's 97 now, and we don't know where the hell she is!
• Sometimes you can't see yourself clearly until you see yourself through the eyes of others.
• Procrastinate now. Don't put it off.
• Start thinking positively, you will notice the difference. Instead of, 'I think I'm a loser,' try, 'I am definitely a loser.' Stop being wishy-washy about things! How much more of a loser can you be if you don't even know you are one? Either you are a loser, or you're not. Which is it, stupid?
• There are all sorts of books offering advice on how to deal with life-threatening situations, but where's the advice on dealing with embarrassing ones?
• Life is short. If you don't believe me, ask a butterfly. Their average lifespan is a mere five to 14 days.
• I'm not like a depressed person. But I am saddened by how people treat one another and how we are so shut off from one another and how we judge one another, when the truth is, we are all one connected thing.

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