Ellen DeGeneres Name: Ellen Lee DeGeneres Birth Date: January 26, 1958 (Metairie, Louisiana, U.S.) Medium: Stand-up | Television | Film | Books Subjects American Culture | Sexuality | Pop Culture Genres: Observational | Comedy | Satire | Surreal Humor | Anti-humor | Deadpan | Clean comedy Who is Ellen DeGeneres Ellen Lee DeGeneres (born January 26, 1958) is an American comedian, television host, actress, writer, and producer. She starred in the sitcom Ellen from 1994 to 1998, which earned her a Primetime Emmy Award for "The Puppy Episode". She also hosted the syndicated television talk show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show from 2003 to 2022, for which she received 33 Daytime Emmy Awards. Early Life and Education DeGeneres was born and raised in Metairie, Louisiana, to Elizabeth Jane (née Pfeffer, born 1930), a speech therapist, and Elliott Everett DeGeneres (1925–2018), an insurance agent. She has one brother, Vance, a musician and producer. Of French, English, German, and Irish descent, she was raised a Christian Scientist. Her parents filed for separation in 1973 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. When she was 15 or 16 years old, she was molested by her stepfather. DeGeneres graduated from Atlanta High School in May 1976, after completing her first years of high school at Grace King High School in Metairie. 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. Her early jobs included a stint at J. C. Penney and waitressing at TGI Fridays and another restaurant. She also worked as a house painter, a hostess and a bartender. She relates much of her childhood and career experiences in her comedic work.