Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen DeGeneres is an American actress, stand-up comedian, and host of the syndicated talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show. She first reached success with her own sitcom called Ellen (1994-98). The ABC show was popular in its first few seasons due in part to DeGeneres's style of quirky observational humor; it was often referred to as a "female Seinfeld."

Ellen caused a stir in February 1997, when made her homosexuality public on The Oprah Winfrey Show. Subsequently her character on the sitcom literally came out of the closet in April of that same year; admitting she was gay to her therapist (portrayed by Oprah Winfrey). The outing episode, entitled "The Puppy Episode," was one of the highest-rated episodes of the show, but later episodes of the series would fail to match its popularity, and after sinking ratings, the show was canceled. DeGeneres returned to the stand-up comedy circuit, and would later re-establish herself as a successful talk show host.

Categories: Broadcasters