Ellen DeGeneres

Ellen DeGeneres got her start in stand-up comedy before making a name for herself in television. She starred on the sitcom Ellen from 1994 to 1998 and went on to host the Emmy-winning daytime talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show from 2003 to 2022. Since coming out as a lesbian on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1997, DeGeneres has used her platform to explore issues facing the LGBTQ+ community.

DeGeneres is also known for voicing Dory in the Disney films Finding Nemo (2003) and Finding Dory (2016). She has hosted the Academy Awards, the Grammy Awards and the Primetime Emmys and has authored four books. She received the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2012 and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016.

Four years after they met at a party, DeGeneres started dating actress Portia De Rossi in 2004. The duo announced their plans to say “I do” after a May 2008 California Supreme Court ruling granted same sex couples the right to legally marry. In August 2008, they tied the knot in front of friends and family at their Beverly Hills home.