ELLEN DEGENERES EMMY-WINNING TALK-SHOW HOST ELLEN DEGENERES WAS BORN IN METAIRIE, LOUISIANA, A SUBURB OF NEW ORLEANS. HER FATHER, INSURANCE SALESMAN ELLIOT DE GENERES AND HER MOTHER, A REAL-ESTATE AGENT, WERE DIVORCED WHEN SHE WAS 16 YEARS OLD. HER MOTHER REMARRIED, AND HER NEW HUSBAND, SALESMAN ROY GRUESSENDORF, MOVED THE FAMILY (WHICH INCLUDED ELLEN'S BROTHER) TO ATLANTA, TEXAS. AFTER GRADUATING FROM ATLANTA HIGH SCHOOL IN 1976, ELLEN ATTENDED THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS AS A COMMUNICATION MAJOR, BUT SHE DROPPED OUT AFTER ONE SEMESTER. SHE HELD A WIDE VARIETY OF JOBS UNTIL SHE TURNED TO STAND-UP COMEDY, MAKING HER BONES AT SMALL CLUBS AND COFFEEHOUSES BEFORE WORKING HER WAY UP TO EMCEE CLYDE'S COMEDY CLUB BY HER COMEDY WAS DESCRIBED AS A DISTAFF VERSION OF BOB NEWHART. BEGINNING IN THE EARLY 1980S, SHE TOURED NATIONALLY AND WAS NAMED THE FUNNIEST PERSON IN AMERICA AFTER WINNING A COMPETITION SPONSORED BY THE CABLE NETWORK SHOWTIME. THIS LED TO BETTER GIGS, INCLUDING HER FIRST APPEARANCE ON THE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JOHNNY CARSON (1962) IN THOUGH DEGENERES'S EARLY FORAYS INTO SERIES TELEVISION WERE NOT SUCCESSFUL (SHE APPEARED AS A SUPPORTING PLAYER IN TWO SHORT-LIVED TV SITUATION COMEDIES IN THE PERIOD , OPEN HOUSE (1989) AND LAURIE HILL (1992)), SHE SCORED A HIT HEADLINING HER OWN 1994 SITCOM ON ABC "THESE FRIENDS OF MINE" (LATER RENAMED ELLEN (1994) AFTER ITS FIRST SEASON). SHE MADE TV HISTORY IN APRIL 1997 WHEN HER CHARACTER, AND DEGENERES HERSELF PERSONALLY, REVEALED THAT SHE WAS A LESBIAN. HOWEVER, THE SHOW WAS CANCELED THE FOLLOWING SEASON DUE TO DECLINING RATINGS, AFTER WHICH DEGENERES RETURNED TO THE STAND-UP CIRCUIT. IN 2001, DEGENERES LAUNCHED A NEW SERIES, THE ELLEN SHOW (2001), ON CBS, BUT IT SUFFERED FROM POOR RATINGS AND WAS CANCELED. REDEMPTION AS A TELEVISION ARTISTE CAME IN 2003, WHEN DEGENERES'S DAYTIME TALK SHOW, ELLEN: THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW (2003) PROVED TO BE BOTH A CRITICAL HIT AND A COMMERCIAL SUCCESS. ALONG WITH GOOD RATINGS, THE SHOW HAS WON UNPRECEDENTED KUDOS FROM THE INDUSTRY, WINNING 15 EMMY AWARDS IN ITS FIRST THREE SEASONS ON THE AIR AND BECOMING THE FIRST TALK SHOW IN TV HISTORY TO WIN THE EMMY AWARD FOR OUTSTANDING TALK SHOW IN ITS FIRST THREE SEASONS. DEGENERES HAS ALSO MADE A NAME FOR HERSELF AS A HOST OF AWARDS SHOWS. SHE HOSTED THE GRAMMY AWARDS IN 1996 AND 1997, AS WELL AS THE PRIMETIME EMMY AWARDS IN 2001 AND IN FEBRUARY 2007, SHE HAD THE ULTIMATE TV AWARDS SHOW GIG, HOSTING THE OSCARS.BOB NEWHARTTHE TONIGHT SHOW STARRING JOHNNY CARSONOPEN HOUSELAURIE HILLELLENTHE ELLEN SHOWELLEN: THE ELLEN DEGENERES SHOW ELLEN DEGENERES IS… A comical author and talk show host. She constantly tells personal stories and ties random information into her piece of writing. She is an entertainer, but also has well established beliefs on issues. She publically displays all her views and always tries to bring a smile to her readers faces. Ellen is fearless. SHE IS LIKE… Poprocks; sporadic and shocking. Often, she goes off on a tanget and suprises the reader with her interesting experience. Poprocks are small jolts of energy in a mouth and once wet, give the consumer great pleasure. Randomness is to be expected from Ellen, but the reader never knows when, and when the strange information or story is finally presented, the reader can’t help but smile. AS I READ ABOUT HER, I THOUGHT… Never have I been so entertained while reading. Usually I dread reading another page in a novel, but Ellen captured my attention with her hysterical stories. Also, while reading, I realized how Ellen not only entertains, but also has a deeper interpretation of what she is talking about. She may ramble on quite a bit, but there are certain points at which she surpised me and wrote something that really made me think.

Excerpt for Ellen’s book Seriously… I’m Kidding “How to Be a Supermodel” Since I am a CoverGirl, I thought if any of you are interested in learning a little bit about modeling I could offer you some tips. I’ve sashayed down plenty of catwalks in my day—well, one. But I know what it takes to make an impression. So here are some suggestions, as long as you are willing to be fierce One: The Look Always look like you’re angry at the universe for making you too pretty. Two: The Walk Trot. Aggressively, like you’re a horse that’s trying to avoid puddles. Three: The Squint Squint like someone is bouncing sunlight off their watch and directly into your eyes. Four: The Pout Get those lips out there. Purse your lips like you’re trying to sip out of a straw that someone keeps moving away from you. Five: The Pose Be mysterious. Always pose with one hand in your pocket as if to say, “I’m so mysterious, this hand in my pocket could be a hook hand. You don’t know.” Carry a giant oscillating fan with you at all times. No exceptions. Now put it all together. Trot! Squint! Get the straw! Who’s a pretty girl? You are. Keep trotting! Downloaded from