The April 14, 1997, issue of TIME featured a s-down wh the edian, who nfirmed that her s character was gay—and so was she.
Contents:
- ELLEN DEGENER LD FOR GAY RIGHTS FLUENCE
- MAKINGGAYHISTORY—THE PODCAST
- HOW ELLEN DEGENER HELPED CHANGE THE CONVERSATN ABOUT GAYS
- READ THE 'YEP, I'M GAY' ELLEN DEGENER INTERVIEW FROM 1997
- TIMELE: KEY MOMENTS FIGHT FOR GAY RIGHTS
- OPRAH'S AMAZG RPONSE SUPPORT OF GAY RIGHTS
- ELLEN DEGENER FIR BACK AT CRICS CLAIMG SHE HAS A 'GAY AGENDA'
- ELLEN DEGENER ON NEW ANTI-GAY MISSISSIPPI LAW: ‘THIS IS NOT POLICS, THIS IS HUMAN RIGHTS’
- ELLEN DEGENER ON GAY MARRIAGE: “WE NEED EVERYONE ON OUR SI”
ELLEN DEGENER LD FOR GAY RIGHTS FLUENCE
In 1997, DeGener chose a very public fom — her televisn s — to announce, "I'm gay." The entertaer's reer has tracked the seismic shift public opn on gays and same-sex marriage. * ellen degeneres on gay rights *
Media ptn, Barack Obama awards the Printial Medal of Freedom to Ellen DeGenerComedian Ellen DeGener was praised by the US print for her fluence on the gay rights movement as she received the untry's hight civilian honour.
MAKINGGAYHISTORY—THE PODCAST
* ellen degeneres on gay rights *
Celebri cludg Tom Hanks, Robert De Niro and Michael Jordan were also among the 21 recipients of the Printial Medal of Obama said was easy to fet the risk Ellen DeGener took to e out as gay said her bravery helped "ph our untry the directn of jtice". When she featured two bt iends on her show -- one gay, the other straight -- who attend prom together.
When she spoke out agast hate and advoted for tolerance after the murr of Matthew Shepard, an openly gay man who was btally killed Wyomg. Two s ago, she ma history by beg the first openly gay actrs to play an openly gay character on televisn -- sparkg a natnal nversatn by puttg LGBTQ issu ont and center. At the time of her Makg Gay History terview 2001, there was no guarantee that Ellen’s star would rise aga—and far higher than had the 1990s—and that the honors showered on her would clu the Printial Medal of learn more about Ellen and to view an excerpt of the famo 1997 g out episo of her show, have a look at the lks DeGener at a tapg of “The Ellen Degener Show, ” 2008.
Stunts om the Universy of Nebraska’s Gay, Lbian, Bisexual and Transgenr Rource Center watchg the g out episo of “Ellen” Lln, Nebraska, Wednday, April 30, 1997. A 2013 AV/TV Club roundtable discsed the signifince of Ellen’s g-out episo and s her Makg Gay History terview, Ellen DeGener talks about her memori ncerng Matthew Shepard, who was murred 1998. Watch her monologue n fd Ellen DeGener’s 2001 oral history Eric Marc’s book Makg Gay years after the g out episo, Lra Dern (a gut star who played Ellen Man’s love tert) was quoted on the impact the episo had on her reer the 20th anniversary of the g out episo of “Ellen” April 2017, Ellen DeGener shared her thoughts about the experience wh her daytime talk show dience.
HOW ELLEN DEGENER HELPED CHANGE THE CONVERSATN ABOUT GAYS
June celebrat LGBT Pri Month, a look at some key moments gay rights. * ellen degeneres on gay rights *
”For further readg on the topic of gay and lbian people on televisn om the 1950s through the 1990s, we remend The Prime Time Closet: A History of Gays and Lbians on TV by Stephen Tropiano.
———Episo TranscriptEric Marc Narratn: I’m Eric Marc and this is Makg Gay History! There were no lead gay characters on televisn until Ellen Man me out.
Take my word for , Ellen DeGener on the ver wh the headle, “Yep, I’m Gay” was a huge al. The other one’s more like So I’m gog to jump right When did you first learn about gay people?
READ THE 'YEP, I'M GAY' ELLEN DEGENER INTERVIEW FROM 1997
Throughout Heche's three-year relatnship wh DeGener, she endured media attacks. But she was always proud to stand up for gay rights * ellen degeneres on gay rights *
ED: When did I learn about gay When were you aware of them?
TIMELE: KEY MOMENTS FIGHT FOR GAY RIGHTS
ED: Umm, I really didn’t get volved at all any kd of polics or any any awarens of gay stggl, gay movement, anythg at all until I me out. But everybody knew that I was gay. Until you fd out about the teenagers and the stggl that most kids go through high schools and the statistics and the gay… the bashg.
ED: They didn’t know… I didn’t know I was gay.
And I knew that that was gog to be an uphill battle if they thought I was gay. I mean… I didn’t see anyone else that was openly gay. And they’re gog to see that gay people are not what they… You know, everybody has a certa thg they clg onto and ci that’s what everybody is.
OPRAH'S AMAZG RPONSE SUPPORT OF GAY RIGHTS
” Until we found out what was, which is, you know, “Oh, she’s gay. Especially om a gay woman.
” And they knew that I was gay. I’m gay.
And you uldn’t… So for me on the show to be able to say “I’m gay” was, like… I mean, I cried every take we did.
ELLEN DEGENER FIR BACK AT CRICS CLAIMG SHE HAS A 'GAY AGENDA'
He was jt gay. Realizg they were gay bee of me. Like, pecially the gay muny.
Even though I’d fotten that for a while to say, “I’m gay and I’m gog to say and I don’t re what anybody thks, I don’t re if I lose everythg. ”Ultimately, when down to … Okay, y, now I’m gay and I’m ee. And, “Oh God, I n’t talk about that bee then they’ll know I’m gay.
———Makg Gay History is a team effort.
ELLEN DEGENER ON NEW ANTI-GAY MISSISSIPPI LAW: ‘THIS IS NOT POLICS, THIS IS HUMAN RIGHTS’
A special thank-you to Ellen’s mother, Betty DeGener, an LGBTQ civil rights activist her own right, who troduced me to Ellen back Makg Gay History podst is a -productn of Peapple Street Media, wh assistance om the New York Public Library’s Mancripts and Archiv Divisn and ONE Archiv at the USC three of this podst is ma possible wh fundg om the Ford Foundatn, which is on the ont l of social change long!
The AIDS epimic was at s height, and while there was already a burgeong gay-rights movement, a lot of homosexuals were not ready to e out of the closet. "What's wonrful about her, as a cultural figure, is that worked so wonrfully alongsi polil activism, " says Jsi Halem, a edian and gay-rights activist.
" Halem says is no accint that was a edian who took the nversatn about homosexualy to a new level.
ELLEN DEGENER ON GAY MARRIAGE: “WE NEED EVERYONE ON OUR SI”
As she stggl to adm she is gay to a woman she is attracted to, she accintally leans over an open mike and announc to the whole wag room.
"That scene is jt so betiful, bee there's nothg like tellg someone you're gay and then go silent, " Halem says. "But for her to say, 'I'm gay' and 's a lgh le, and you know lets lgh, lets release some of the anxiety.
It was on the April 14, 1997, ver of TIME magaze that Ellen DeGener, then the star of the s Ellen, nfirmed somethg she’d been buildg up to for s: “Yep, ” as the ver put , “I’m gay. She would be playg the first gay lead character on Amerin work televisn.