Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen Lee DeGeneres was born at Ochsner Foundation Hospital in Jefferson, Louisiana,[2] She is the daughter of Elizabeth Jane "Betty" Pfeffer DeGeneres, a speech therapist, and Elliott Everett DeGeneres, an insurance agent.[3][4] She has one brother, Vance. Her brother is a musician and producer. She is of French, English, German, and Irish ancestry. She was raised as a Christian Scientist until age 13. In 1973, her parents filed for separation and were divorced the following year. Shortly after, Ellen's mother married Roy Gruessendorf, a salesman. Betty Jane and Ellen moved with Gruessendorf from the New Orleans area to Atlanta, Texas. Vance stayed with his father.

DeGeneres graduated from Atlanta High School in May 1976. Her first years of high school were at Grace King High School in Metairie, Louisiana. She moved back to New Orleans to attend the University of New Orleans, where she majored in communication studies. After one semester, she left school to do clerical work in a law firm with a cousin, Laura Gillen. She also held a job selling clothes at the chain store the Merry-Go-Round at the Lakeside Shopping Center.

Her early jobs included working at J. C. Penney,[5] being a waitress at TGI Friday's and another restaurant, a house painter, a hostess, and a bartender. She talks about her experiences as a child and at work in her comedic work.

On a February 9, 2011, episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, DeGeneres shared a letter from the New England Historic Genealogical Society. It said that she is Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge's 15th cousin via their shared common ancestor Thomas Fairfax.[6][7] Madonna is DeGeneres' eleventh cousin.[8]

In 2007, Forbes said that DeGeneres's has a financial worth of about US$65 million.[9]

She is a fan of the National Football League, and has shown particular support for the New Orleans Saints and the Green Bay Packers.[10] In 2011, she attended a Saints practice dressed as Packers Hall of Famer Don Hutson.[11]

In November 2011, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton named her a Special Envoy for Global AIDS Awareness.[12]

DeGeneres took a selfie at the 86th Academy Awards in 2014 with actors such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Bradley Cooper, Jared Leto, and Lupita Nyong'o. It became the most retweeted image ever on Twitter, with over 3 million retweets.[13][14]

DeGeneres at a ceremony to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in September 2012

Daytime Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Talk Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show – 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2011
• Outstanding Talk Show Host, The Ellen DeGeneres Show – 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
• Outstanding Special Class Writing, The Ellen DeGeneres Show – 2005, 2006, 2007

Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series, Ellen: "The Puppy Episode" – 1997

Mark Twain Prize for American Humor by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts

• 2012 [16]

People's Choice Awards

• Favorite Funny Female Star – 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008
• Favorite Talk Show Host – 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010,
• Favorite Daytime Talk Show Host - 2012, 2013, 2014
• Favorite Yes I Chose This Star – 2008

Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards

• Favorite Voice from an Animated Movie – 2004

Tulane University President's Medal

• 2009[17]

Women in Film Crystal + Lucy Awards

• 2000 Lucy Award, actor, If These Walls Could Talk 2, in recognition of her excellence and innovation in her creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television.[18]

Hollywood Walk of Fame

• 2012[19]