Ellen DeGeneres is an American comedian, television host, actress, writer, producer and LGBT activist. She starred in the popular sitcom Ellen from 1994 to 1998 and has hosted her syndicated TV talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, since 2003. Her stand-up career started in the early 1980s and included a 1986 appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
Birth Name
Ellen Lee DeGeneres
Nickname
Ellen Degeneres, Alde
Profession
Comedian, Television Host, Actress, Writer, Producer
Nationality
American
Personal Life
Birthday / Date of Birth
Ellen DeGeneres was born on 26th January 1958, in Metairie, Louisiana, United States.
Age
She is currently 61 years old.
Sun Sign
Aquarius
Ethnicity
White
She has French, English, German and Irish ancestry.
Religion
Christian Scientist, but has recently dubbed herself as non-religious.
Education
Ellen DeGeneres attended Grace King High School in Metairie, Louisiana for one year. She shifted to and graduated from Atlanta High School in May 1976. DeGeneres came back to New Orleans after her high school graduation. She intended to graduate from the University of New Orleans with a major in communication studies. However, she left school after only one semester to earn money through her clerical job at a law firm.
Family Details
- Father – Elliott Everett DeGeneres (Insurance Agent)
- Mother – Elizabeth Jane “Betty” Pfeffer (Speech Therapist)
- Siblings – Vance DeGeneres (Musician and Producer) (Older Brother)
- Relatives – Roy Gruessendorf (Salesman) (Stepfather)
Manager
Ellen DeGeneres is currently attached to ICM Partners (Talent and Literary Agency), Los Angeles, US.
Girlfriend / Spouse
Ellen DeGeneres dated –
- Teresa Boyd (1995) – The production manager at 5 Points Production, Teresa Boyd had dated the comedian and actress in 1995 for a short span.
- Anne Heche (1997-2000) – The actress had started dating DeGeneres in the year 1997 which garnered a widespread media interest owing to the same sex-relationship issue. They separated in August 2000.
- Alexandra Hedison (2001-2004) – DeGeneres started dating the photographer, director and actress, Hedison in 2001, who is also a lesbian by sexuality. However, after three years of dating, the couple separated in 2004.
- Portia de Rossi (2004-Present) – The Australian actress, model and philanthropist, Portia de Rossi and DeGeneres started dating each other in 2004. The couple got married on August 16, 2008, just a few months after the overturn of the same-sex marriage ban in California. However, their marriage got legalized since they got their marriage registration done before November 4, 2008.
Physical Statistics
Height
- In feet – 5 feet 7½ inches
- In centimeters – 171 cm
- In meters – 1.71 m
Weight
- In Kilograms – 59 kg
- In Pounds – 130 lbs
Body Measurements
- Measurements – 34-27-35
- Bust – 34 inches
- Waist – 27 inches
- Hip – 35 inches
- Bra Size – 32B
Body Build
Slim
Hair Color
Blonde
Eye Color
Blue
Dress Size
Her dress size is 4 (US).
Shoe Size
She wears a size 8 (US) shoe.
Sexuality
Lesbian
Professional Statistics
Famous For
Ellen DeGeneres is best known for hosting the TV talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show which is airing since 2003. Earlier, she had been known for her role in popular sitcom Ellen (1994-1998).
Film Debut
Ellen DeGeneres appeared in a short film in 1990 known as Arduous Moon as herself. Her first role on the big screen was as coach in the science fiction comedy film Coneheads (1993).
Television Debut
Ellen DeGeneres first appeared on the small screen in 1989 when she appeared in two episodes of Open House (Irish Series) as Margo Van Meter. The series is the spin-off of the Fox series called Duet (1987-1989).
Brand Endorsements
Ellen DeGeneres has appeared in a number of commercials over the years during her career in Hollywood. She first appeared in the TV commercial of US West Communications (now Qwest) in 1987. Later, she was featured in TV commercials and voiceover for American Express credit card(2004), both TV and radio commercials for XM satellite radio (2005), TV commercial for Popeye’s chicken, American Express’ Members Project (2007), Covergirl’s Simply Ageless makeup (2009) and 6 AM Sale and Coupons in the Old West for JC Penney (2012). She is the advertising spokesperson for JC Penney. DeGeneres represents her own line of products on QVC, a home shopping network.
Controversies
- On August 15, 2016, Ellen DeGeneres posted a photoshopped version of the now-famous snapshot of Olympic runner Usain Bolt glancing back at his competitors during the 100-meter semifinal race in Rio. In the morphed image, DeGeneres appears to be riding on his back. She captioned the image, “This is how I’m running errands from now on”. However, this act of light humour was not taken in the way it was intended to be. Many twitteratis accused the comedian of racism, saying the image of a white woman on a Black man’s back is offensive.
- With Quantico star Priyanka Chopra as a guest on “The Ellen’s Show”, Ellen made some remarks that made Priyanka’s fans angry. During the talk show, Ellen asked her that how did she manage to win the Miss World pageant with ‘that hand wave’; DeGeneres compared her wave to ‘unscrewing of a light bulb’. The comedienne-host even joked that it was a “miracle” that Priyanka made it this far.
Distinctive Features
- Short Hair.
- Stand-up comic sense.
- Always wears pants and sneakers.
Ellen DeGeneres Favorite
- Favorite Designer – Axel Vervoordt
- Favorite Shoes – Saint Laurent Tennis Shoes
- Favorite Décor – Petite Chérie Annick Goutal Candles
- Favorite Watch – Rolex Daytona
- Favorite TV Series – Orange is the new Black
- Favorite Food – Pasta Arrabbiata
- Favorite Book – Eckhart Tolle’s The Power of Now
- Favorite Shopping Destination – Galerie Half, Obsolete, Blackman Cruz, Lucca Antiques, Hallworth Design
- Favorite Place – Los Angeles
- Favorite Car – Porsche
- Favorite Possession – Nak Armstrong Wedding Ring
- Favorite Accessory – Vintage Gold Ray Ban Aviators
Ellen DeGeneres Net worth
Ellen DeGeneres has an estimated net worth of $400 million dollars as of 2019.
Social Media Profiles
- Facebook – Ellen DeGeneres
- Instagram – theellenshow
- Twitter – Ellen DeGeneres
- YouTube Channel – TheEllenShow
Some Lesser Known Facts About Ellen DeGeneres
- Ellen DeGeneres is of French, Irish, English and German descent.
- Ellen DeGeneres began performing stand-up in 1981 and was named Showtime’s Funniest Person in America the following year.
- She is the 11th cousin of Singer-Actress Madonna.
- In 1997, Ellen came out publicly as a lesbian. For this display of courage, almost 20 years later, President Barack Obama honored her with the Medal of Freedom. In a speech to honour Ellen’s contribution, she was referred to as someone who lifted spirits and brought joy.
- Ellen was the voice of Dory in Finding Nemo.
- In 2005, Ellen set up a ‘Hurricane Katrina’ relief fund that raised $7 million.
- In November 2011, the then Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, named Ellen DeGeneres a Special Envoy for Global AIDS Awareness.
- Ellen also received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2012.
- In March 2014, host Ellen tweeted a “selfie” of herself with a number of stars in attendance at the year’s edition of Academy Awards. However, the picture crashed the servers of Twitter as it was re-tweeted a record 3 million times.
- Ellen once hosted the popular singing reality show- American Idol.
- Forbes listed her as the 50th most powerful woman in the world in 2015. She stands second in the list of World Pride list by the same magazine. Her net worth has also been estimated at US$75 million in 2015 by Forbes.
