DeGeneres wraps daytime TV show
Ellen DeGeneres brought her nearly twodecade daytime talk show to an end Thursday with a celebrity lovefest and an assertion of her achievement as a gay woman.
DeGeneres and guests Jennifer Aniston, Billie Eilish and Pink shared memories and affection as “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” concluded its Emmy-winning, 3,200plus episode run that began in September 2003.
“Twenty years ago, when we were trying to sell the show, no one thought that this would work. Not because it was a different kind of show, but because I was different,” DeGeneres said of the pushback from TV stations.
Aniston, who as the first guest on the show’s first episode gave DeGeneres a “Welcome” doormat, arrived with another that read, “Thanks for the memories.”
“I love you, and I so appreciate you and what you have given to the world over the last 19 years. The contribution is endless,” said the actor who has been on the show a total of 20 times. She introduced a career retrospective video that also touted DeGeneres’ philanthropic efforts, said to include more than $400 million in donations to charities and “deserving viewers.”
“I love you,” a beaming Eilish told DeGeneres during their chat.
“I love you so much, it’s dumb,” said Pink, who performed “What About Us.”
DeGeneres wrapped her daytime show with a plea to her audience. “If I’ve done anything in the past 19 years, I hope I’ve inspired you to be yourself, your true authentic self. And if someone is brave enough to tell you who they are, be brave enough to support them, even if you don’t understand,” DeGeneres said. “By opening your heart and your mind, you’re going to be that much more compassionate, and compassion is what makes the world a better place.”
BTS, Biden to meet:
BTS, the Grammy-nominated South Korean boy band, will join President Joe Biden next week to talk about “Asian inclusion and representation” and to address hate crimes and discrimination against Asians, the White House announced Thursday.
The musical group’s White House visit next Tuesday follows Biden’s trip last week to South Korea. Biden and BTS also will discuss diversity and the K-pop group’s platform as youth ambassadors.
Court dismisses Shakira appeal:
A court in Spain on Thursday dismissed Colombian singer Shakira’s appeal in a tax fraud case, paving the way for a trial after a judge previously concluded there was enough evidence to suggest the pop star may have avoided her fiscal obligations to the state.
The case first made headlines in December 2018 after Spanish prosecutors charged the singer with failing to pay approximately $15.5 million in taxes on income earned between 2012 and 2014. Shakira’s public relations firm said Thursday that she had immediately paid what she owed once she was informed of the debt.
Shakira, 45, denied any wrongdoing when she testified in June 2019.
At the heart of the legal wrangling is the question of the singer’s residence: Prosecutors allege she lived mostly in Spain despite having an official residence in the Bahamas.
May 27 birthdays: Actor Lee Meriwether is 87. Musician Ramsey Lewis is
87. Actor Louis Gossett Jr. is 86. Actor Bruce Weitz is
79. Singer Dee Dee Bridgewater is 72. Actor Richard Schiff is 67. Actor Paul Bettany is 51. Actor Jack McBrayer is 49. TV chef Jamie Oliver is 47. Actor Ben Feldman is 42. Actor Chris Colfer is 32.