While Ellen DeGeneres has hosted both the Academy Awards and the Primetime Emmy’s, many were perplexed as to why the actress-comedienne was chosen as a judge. Currently DeGeneres is best known for her wildly-popular daytime TV talk show, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” which she launched in 2003.
But long before she was an award-winning talk show host, DeGeneres was at the center of television history and controversy when for a brief time, America was obsessed with her sexuality. In 1997, she appeared on the cover of Time magazine under the headline, “Yep I’m Gay” after the usually-private actress was forced to go public with her sexuality. At the time the actress was starring in her own sitcom, “Ellen” and wanted the character she played on the show, reveal she was a lesbian.
Though her admission and her character’s admission on the show created a lot of controversy in the media, the coming-out episode, was one of the highest-rated episodes of Ellen. However, after declining ratings afterward, the show was canceled. Ellen returned to the stand-up comedy circuits and hosted the Emmy Awards before signing on for “The Ellen DeGeneres” talk show.
In its first season, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” was nominated for 11 Daytime Emmy Awards, winning four, including Best Talk Show. To date the show has won 25 Emmy Awards. DeGeneres is known for her dancing and singing with the audience at the beginning of the show and during commercial breaks. She often gives away free prizes and trips to her studio audience with the help of her sponsors.
Earlier this year the show celebrated its 1000th episode. To celebrate this accomplishment celebrity guests such as Oprah Winfrey, Justin Timberlake, Paris Hilton and many others appeared.
After her initial coming out, Ellen’s relationships have remained public. From 1997-2000 she was in a relationship with actress Anne Heche. The relationship was heavily chronicled in celebrity magazines including People magazine. Since 2004, she has been in a relationship with actress Portia de Rossi.
After the overturn of the same-sex marriage ban in California, DeGeneres announced on her May 2008 show that she and Portia de Rossi were engaged. The couple was married on August 16, 2008 at their home, with 19 guests including their respective mothers. The month after their wedding, People magazine featured exclusive wedding photos on its cover.
In 2007, Forbes magazine estimated Ellen DeGeneres' net worth as $65 million.
In 2008 Ellen became a spokeswoman for Cover Girl Cosmetics and has appeared in both TV commercials and magazine ads.
