Ellen DeGeneres: News

Ellen DeGeneres brought new life to daytime television with the way she danced with her audience and guests, her silly pranks on celebrity guests, her BFF-like persona, and her wit. Born on January 26, 1958, in Louisiana, DeGeneres moved with her mother and stepfather to Atlanta, Texas, following her parents’ divorce. She did her schooling at Atlanta High School before moving back to New Orleans to attend the University of New Orleans. She failed to graduate as she left college to explore opportunities available for her. It was around this time that she ventured into comedy. She soon became a fan favorite as she began touring all over America. Her first regular role on TV was in the series ‘Open House’ (1989 - 1990). She received her big break in 1994 when she was cast in the ABC series ‘These Friends of Mine’ which was renamed ‘Ellen’ after its first season. She made history when she came out as a lesbian on ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ in 1997. After ‘Ellen’ was canceled in 1998 due to poor ratings, she returned to TV in 2001 with ‘The Ellen Show.’ It suffered the same fate and was canceled in 2002. Redemption awaited DeGeneres as her daytime talk show ‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ (2003) became an instant success, both critically and commercially. She has won 32 Daytime Emmy Awards for the show. She reached the peak of hosting twice in 2007 and 2014 when she hosted the Academy Awards.