A Letter to you From...

“I learned compassion from being discriminated against. Everything bad that’s ever happened to me has taught me compassion”

I was born in Jefferson, Louisana. I have two younger siblings and my parents are Elliot and Betty DeGeneres. My brother, Vance, is a comedy writer and was a correspondent on “The Daily Show” from 1999 to 2001.

I had a fairly typical childhood, raised in New Orleans and Atlanta, Texas. My parents divorced while I was in my teens. After graduating from Atlanta High School I moved back to Louisiana, where I attended the University of New Orleans. I majored in communications but left after one semester.

I did clerical work for a law firm, which was a followed by a string of jobs: working retail, waiting tables, house painting, bartending, and shucking oysters. I also sold Hoover vacuum cleaners door- to- door, a job which I joked about with Willie Nelson -- also a former door-to-door vacuum salesman (this was later on my show).

I got my start in comedy at Clyde’s Comedy Club. At the time, it was the only comedy club in New Orleans and I graduated from comic to emcee. This led to more shows throughout the South and soon the country.

I toured the states, honing the comedic timing and craft. In 1982, I was selected by Showtime as “America’s Funniest Person.” This led to a series of cable and late-night television appearances, including a shot on “The Tonight Show” in 1986.

I transitioned from comedian to sitcom star with the success of “Ellen.” The quirky show, based on my stand-up comedy, was likened to “Seinfeld” in its first few seasons.

“If we’re destroying our trees and destroying our environment and hurting animals and hurting one another and all that stuff, there’s got to be a very powerful energy to fight that. I think we need more love in the world. We need more kindness, more compassion, more joy and more laughter. I definitely want to contribute to that.”

I then began making regular appearanc- es on the talk show circuit, including performances on The Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Later with Greg Kinnear, Larry King Live, and Good Morning, America. I was also profiled in detail on ABC’s Prime Time Live. These are all triumphs for me, being a woman. But what I did next changed my whole life, and I was criticized and thrashed for who I was. I think courage is no matter what happens standing up for who you are and what you believe in.

I finally found success as an actress with my own prime-time sitcom—the selftitled television series, Ellen. The series was originally titled These Friends of Mine, but was renamed in 1994. From that point, the show evolved from its beginnings as an ensemble effort into a showcase.

The show faced strong criticism when, in April 1997, my character became the first lead in sitcom history to openly acknowledge homosexuality on air. An ABC affiliate in Birmingham, Alabama, refused to air the landmark episode. Fearing controversy, some of the show’s sponsors, Daimler Chrysler among them, withdrew advertisements.

Some of you may think of it as horrid even now, but some of us are born this way and that’s what life is. We are all different. Discriminating each other won’t take us anywhere.

I have risen and embraced who I was and I am, I’ve never regretted anything. I’m free now.

An Emmy Award which was due for my show was canceled. That is how sexist and homophobic people were.

“Don’t worry about what people say about you. Let the naysayer’s nay. They will eventually grow tired of naying!”

In 2003, I became a big hit with daytime viewers with her self- titled talk show, Ellen. Since its inception, the show has won a slew of Daytime Emmy and People’s Choice Awards.

Also in 2003, I lent her voice to the animated box office smash, Finding Nemo, in which she plays a friendly yet forgetful little blue fish named Dory. The next year I received two Emmy Award nominations for her stand-up comedy special Ellen DeGeneres. Good things do come to people who wait. And no matter what I never gave up.

I am honoured as I became a popular choice to host major awards telecasts. I was tapped to host the Grammys in 1996 and 1997; the Primetime Emmys in 2001 and 2005; and the Academy Awards in 2007 and 2014. Underscoring my popularity, in 2009 I was chosen to fill the coveted fourth slot as a judge on American Idol, replacing Paula Abdul.

I also authored several books, including My Point ... and I Do Have One ( 1995), Seriously ... I’m Kidding (2011), and Home (2015). My work on films slowed after the talk show took off, but I continue to work mostly behind the scenes as an executive producer of several television shows including Bethenny ( 2012- 2014), Repeat After Me ( 2015), One Big Happy ( 2015), Little Big Shots (2015) and the HGTV reality competition show, Ellen’s Design Challenge. Most recently, I returned to the studio for a much-anticipated production of Finding Dory, released in June 2016.

That November I received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Obama for her contribution to the arts.

“She made broken look beautiful and strong look invincible.

She walked with the Universe on her shoulders and made it look like a pair of wings”

I strived for who I am today. I am unapologetically myself.

Ellen DeGeneres

Written by Devuni Goonewardene email any feedback to devuni@gmail.com