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Ellen DeGeneres
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 Ellen:
The Real Story of Ellen DeGeneres by Kathleen Tracy
All Ellen DeGeneres wanted to be was funny. She
kept her humor clean and steered clear of politics and social
agendas, instead honing a quirky, off-center, mistrustful view of
the world.
I was coming home from kindergarten--well, they
told me it was kindergarten. I found out later I had been working
in a factory for ten years. It's good for a kid to know how to
make gloves.
If ever there was a more unlikely comic to
become a symbol of controversy, it was Ellen DeGeneres. Throughout
her career, she balanced her ever-growing success with her desire
to keep her sexuality private. How that struggle affected her life
and career and ultimately inspired her to come out of the closet,
putting her life in the spotlight and her career at considerable
risk, forms the emotional core of this biography. And in a broader
sense, the controversy caused by Ellen's acknowledged sexuality is
a reflection of America's own struggle with tolerance and
acceptance.
Ellen examines the repercussions still being
felt by the comic as a direct result of her revelations and offers
a glimpse of what her future may hold. It details:
 | Ellen's colorful family history, which
includes a swashbuckling pirate ancestor |
| How her conservative father turned his back
on Ellen when he learned she was gay |
| The personal tragedy that became her greatest
inspiration |
| Her secret life in the gay bar scene during
her stand-up days |
| The women Ellen has loved |
| Her life as a gay crusader |
 Ellen
DeGeneres - The Beginning (2000)
This post-coming-out performance fully
acknowledges Ellen DeGeneres's status as America's most famous
lesbian, but it is nevertheless imbued with a sense of fun. For
instance, rather than describe the experience of closet-exiting on
her self-titled situation comedy in the late 1990s, she performs
an amusing "interpretive dance." She uses her trademark
goofiness to ruminate on the necessity of directions on shampoo
bottles, ant road rage, and the possible nightmarish consequences
of buying cheese. While the performance is not
orientation-specific, the comedienne spends a fair amount of time
on sex-related issues, including jokes about blow-up dolls and
people who videotape their relations. She does venture into the
political with an appeal for same-sex marriage and a monologue on
meeting God, who turns out to be a middle-aged black woman. None
of this fazes her clearly supportive audience at New York's Beacon
Theatre who get to ask her questions at the end à la Carol
Burnett. The best moment of the 65-minute performance for HBO
comes at the end, when DeGeneres accidentally exhibits some gender
confusion with a young audience member, who then pays her moving
tribute as a role model. --Kimberly Heinric
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This site hosts bios, information about the
sitcom, a huge gallery of photos of both Ellen and Anne Heche,
news, information, a forum and chat.
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This page is dedicated to Ellen and those who
appreciate her (affectionately called "Ellenheads"), not
only as a gifted performer, but also as a principled, caring
person. Her coming out has not only provided a public figure with
whom many of us identify, but also a role model for gay and
lesbian youth everywhere. We love you Ellie, and your mother,
Betty, too!
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This page is built out of respect and admiration
for Ellen DeGeneres, who I believe is a truly gifted and talented
comedian/actress. It contains anything and everything you want to
know about her. When I first started searching for information and
pictures in January 96, she had only two personal pages dedicated
to her. I knew nothing about web creating, but slowly taught
myself so that I could have a page of my own.
A lot has happened to Ellen over the past year
with her character Ellen Morgan "coming out". The now
famous Puppy Episode, which aired in the States to much
controversy on April 30, 1997 made her the first lead in a sitcom
to do so. It was a huge success, rating a 26.5 and saw
"Coming out" parties held all over the country. With all
this happening Ellen herself decided to bite the bullet and
announce on the front of Time Magazine...."Yep I'm Gay".
And then on May 13, 1998 we got to see her final hour long finale
go to air with less than flattering reviews. It's a cruel world
out there...
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From the Gale Group, Celebrating Women's History
Month
Excerpt:
When Ellen DeGeneres was growing up in New
Orleans, she dreamed of becoming a veterinarian, but, as she told TV
Guide, she gave up the idea because she was "not book
smart." Since then she has waited tables, sold vacuum
cleaners, painted houses, worked as a legal secretary, and
finally, found success as a wry comedian and actress with her own
prime-time sitcom and a budding film career. All of the positive
attention has not quelled DeGeneres's insecurities, however.
"If the show is successful, then you're reaching millions of
people," the actress observed in TV Guide. "But
you're also standing there naked, saying, `What do you think of
me?' And there are mean people who just want to tear you apart.
That kind of frightens me ... I try not to, but I worry about
everything..."
Breakthrough Episode
In April of 1997 Ellen made television
history with the cameo-happy "The Puppy Episode," in
which DeGeneres's character proclaimed herself a lesbian. This was
preceded by months of speculation, culminating in a Time
cover story in which Ellen (both the comedienne and the character)
said, "Yep, I'm Gay." DeGeneres's partner, actress Anne
Heche, also came out...
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Names Index:
A B
C D
E F
G H
I J
K L
M N
O P
Q R
S T
U V
W X
Y Z
| Authors
Index | Scholars
Index |
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