ELLEN DEGENERES
"My haters are my motivators"
In 1997, DeGeneres came out as lesbian. Her announcement of her sexual orientation was written and published in most, if not all, the tabloids. All the negativity of the media coverage affected her professional career and left her "mired in depression". In her book Love, Ellen, DeGeneres's mother, Betty DeGeneres describes being initially shocked when her daughter came out, but has become one of her strongest supporters. Her mother, and Ellen, are very active and a member of Parents & Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) and spokesperson for the Human Rights Campaign's Coming Out Project.
Since 2004, Ellen has been in a relationship with Portia de Rossi. After the overturn of the same-sex marriage ban in California was announced, Ellen announced on her show that she and Portia were engaged. They were married on August 16, 2008, at their home, with nineteen guests including their mothers. Ever since she came out on her show, Ellen has gotten a lot of support from families, friend, and fans. But, the event didn't please everyone. There was an organized protest against J.C. Penney for using Ellen DeGeneres as a spokeswoman. In another sign of how much things have changed, the company stood by her — even though the company pulled its advertising from the Ellen show when DeGeneres came out 15 years ago. Ever since she came out, many have been worried that her show would get canceled and her show would get shut down. But, the opposite happened. More people tuned into her show, seeing how she is as a person and what she has to say about certain things. Bigger stars come to get interviewed by her and to play games/entertain people. Jessica Halem, a comedian and gay-rights activist that works with New York Times says, "It blows me away when I turn on her show and I see her in a vest and tie, dancing with housewives from Ohio, and she loves them and they love her. It's wonderful." An anonymous person wrote, "Ellen DeGeneres is Funny No Matter What If Ellen Degeneres's career suffered, it's not because she came out of the closet. She still works in Hollywood and gets acting gigs. She has her own show, which clearly hasn't suffered in the ratings otherwise she talk show would be canceled. The funniest thing I've ever heard DeGeneres do was the voice of Dory on "Finding Nemo." She got that role after she came out." |
Ellen DeGeneres's interview with Oprah Winfrey about coming out on her own show and how people (media and loved ones) were affected. Oprah discusses her opinion on equality and shows parts of the show where she argues with people who think the LGBT community shouldn't be treated equally.
Ryan Andresen has been apart of Boy Scouts since he was 6 years old. He always wanted to be a Eagle Scout since he started in Cub Scouts. Ryan Andresen put in all of the work that was necessary to earn a Eagle badge. After he came out to his friends and family, he was denied his award. This is the interview between Ellen DeGeneres and Ryan Andresen.
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Ellen Degeneres talks about how Larry King, a 15-year-old boy, was murdered by another boy. The reason the boy killed Larry was because Larry asked him if he wanted to be his valentine. The boy was so offended that he thought the only thing to do about this situation, was to murder Larry King.
Ellen DeGeneres talks about how JCPenny has asked her to be a spokeswomen. Also, she talks about how an organization called 1 Million Moms have stated they will no longer shop at JCPenny. Ellen DeGeneres comments on these posts that the group has made online and shows the audience what other people, who support Ellen, have said to the group.
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