Ellen Degeneres is one of the most famous television personality and stand-up comedian. She’s mainly known for the popular sitcom “Ellen” and for being the host of the “Degeneres Show”. Her sense of humor came to her during her teenage years in order to help her mother laugh and cope up with the rough divorce from Ellen’s father.
She then moved to New Orleans to enroll in a university but she eventually dropped out as she wanted to pursue a career in comedy. She stand-up comedy while also working odd jobs to support herself and slowly rose to popularity as a comedian.
A turning point in her career rose when she was able to make an appearance in “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Carson”. This helped kickstart her career to stardom as she was able to gain acting roles in various movies and sitcoms which gained her massive success.
Personal Details
Celebrity Name: Ellen DeGeneres
Full Name: Ellen Lee DeGeneres
Gender: Male
Birthday: January 26, 1958
Place of Origin: Metairie, Louisiana
Age: 62
Height: 5’6” ft
Weight: 59 Kg
Nationality: American
Sexual Orientation: Lesbian
Status: Married
Wife: Portia de Rossi
Profession: Producer, TV Host, Actor
Total Net Worth: $490 million
Childhood and Early Life
Ellen Lee DeGeneres was born on the 26th of January 1958 in Metairie, Louisiana to Elliot Everett and Elizabeth Jane DeGeneres. Her father worked as an insurance agent while her mother was a speech therapist. She also had a sibling named Vance who’s currently working as a producer and a musician.
By 1974, Ellen’s parent filed for divorce and her mother remarried to a Roy Grussendorf. They eventually moved to Atlanta, Texas to stay with her stepfather.
She had her education in “Grace King Highschool” and graduated at “Atlanta High School”. She proceeded to do to college at the “University of New Orleans” to get a degree in communication studies. Though she eventually dropped out after a semester as she wanted to pursue a career in comedy.
Personal Life
In 1997, Ellen publicly announced to the whole world that she was in fact, a lesbian. This became a huge hot topic in celebrity gossip. Her mother was also shocked upon hearing this revelation but still supports her on what her sexuality is.
During the same ear, she started dating the actress Anne Heche. They’ve dated for a couple of years until they eventually broke up in 2000. She then had a close relationship with the photographer and director Alexandra Hedison up until 2004.
Ellen then started dating Portia de Rossi and they eventually got married in 2008 in Beverly Hills. Portia’s name was then legally changed to Portia Lee James DeGeneres in 2010.
Both of the couple practice veganism and “The Ellen Degeneres Show” even has a segment called “Going Vegan With Ellen”. She endorses a vegan diet is a much healthier option through her vegan recipes and food items.
Career as a Stand Up Comedian
The way Ellen started her rise to fame was through stand-up comedy. She was performing stand-up comedy act in clubs and coffee houses until she became the emcee of the “Clyde’s Comedy Club” in New Orleans.
She gained so much popularity with her comedy gig that she was able to perform in different countries and was even hailed by the American TV show “Showtime” as the “funniest Person in Amerca”.
By 1986, she was able to be a guest in “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Carson” and became the first comedian to be invited to the show.
Becoming a Celebrity and the Ellen Degeneres Show
Ellen started to get a celebrity status when she appeared on the 1989 sitcom “Open House” and several films “Ellen’s Energy Adventure”. She then appeared in the 1992 sitcom “Laurie Hill” where she had the role of “Nurse Nancy Maclntyre”. Her success on the show helped her earn her own TV show called “These Friends of Mine”.
The show was later renamed as “Ellen” during its second season and eventually became one of Ellen’s successful shows. She then became the presenter in the 1996 Grammy Awards and in the following year, she publicly announced to everyone that she was lesbian during her time on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
In 2001, she then became the presenter of the Emmy Awards and also had her own talk show “The Ellen DeGeneres Show”. The show became a huge hit and has been running for more than a decade already. Ellen even had more success when she became the voice of “Dory” in the 2003 award-winning animated film “Finding Nemo”.
She then went on to become the presenter for the 2005 Emmy Awards and the host for the Academy Awards in the year 2007 and 2014.
Awards and Achievements
With Ellen’s career spanning for over fifty years, she’s been able to receive a 143 nominations and 76 awards. These awards include Daytime Emmy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, Teen Choice Awards, People’s Choice Awards, and Producers Guild of America Awards.
She has also been honored for the Carol Brunett Award for her various contributions on either on or off the big screens and also a star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
In 2016, President Barrack Obama gave Ellen a Presidential Medal of Freedom for her meritorious contributions to the country.
Total Net Worth
With the success that Ellen has gained throughout her career, she’s been able to amount an estimated net worth of over $490 million dollars. She also has an annual salary of over $75 million making her one of the highest-paid celebrities in the world.
Most of her income comes from her successful talk show. She also gets some of her money from her various acting roles in different movies.
Her other business ventures also help ellen gain more income. Her companies like “Elland Digital Ventures” and “A Very Good Production” have proven to be a huge success and has also made a lot of profit.
