DeGeneres, Ellen
Lee, 1958- , American actor and talk-show host, b.
Metairie, La. DeGeneres’s parents split in 1974, and she subsequently
lived with her mother. After attending one semester of college, she worked a
variety of odd jobs, starting to perform stand-up comedy in the late
‘70s. In 1981, she became the host of Clyde’s Comedy Club in
New Orleans and soon became a regular on the national comedy club circuit.
Although she has appeared in a few films—her most notable role to
date is providing the voice for the fish Dory in the films Finding
Nemo (2003) and Finding Dory (2016)—she
has gained the most success working as a television actor and talk show
host. She starred in two sitcoms, Ellen (1994-98) and
The Ellen Show (2001-02); in 1997, she made headlines
by coming out as a lesbian. In 2003, she launched the daytime talk show,
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, which became one of the most
popular of all syndicated programs; the show won 25 Emmy Awards. After
reports of workplace problems among the show’s staff, DeGeneres
announced that she would be ending it at the end of its 19th season in 2022.
In 2017, she became the host of the nighttime gameshow,
Ellen’s Game of Games. DeGeneres has also hosted
major award shows, including the Emmys and the Oscars.
See her My Point…and I Do Have One (1995), The
Funny Thing Is (2003), Seriously…I’m
Kidding (2011)
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2024, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.
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