“Yep, I’m Gay”: Ellen DeGeneres Almost Lost Her $500M Fortune after Coming Out of the Closet Got Her Show Canceled, Talk Show Host Almost Decimated Her Entire Career
“Coming out” is a significant point in one’s life. The thought of not hiding their true identity anymore and finally living freely is exciting, but also scary. Once the person accepts themselves for who they are, one may think society’s rigid patterns won’t affect them. This case is true for an ideal world, but we don’t live in one. Unfortunately, people facing this inner turmoil are presented with more hardships to deal with.
One such case is that of Ellen DeGeneres. It is only now that the world is accepting of all identities, even though we have a long way to go as a society.
Ellen DeGeneres did what nobody could ever think of back in 1997 and had to pay the price for it.
Revealing the truth almost cost her losing her entire career
On April 14, 1997, Ellen DeGeneres came out as gay on the covers of TIME Magazine. As soon as the magazine hit the stands, it spread a wide range of emotions amongst its readers. From people congratulating her for summoning the courage, to people openly showing their disgust. It was a spectacle for sure
She has been in the industry since the mid-’90s and left an impression ever since. She rose to fame rather quickly, to the point where she got her own show called Ellen. During the time of the announcement, she and her character were both loved by the audience. Things changed as soon as she and her character in the show both came out as gay. Mind you, this was the first prime-time show ever to showcase a character from the LGBTQ+ community, that too in the lead. Although the creators of the show tried to milk the controversy by the end of the season, the show failed to captivate the audience. The show got canceled due to low ratings.
Some called the article “an affront to decency in general.” And some mocked the title of it by saying, “Yep, I’m done.”
The coming out definitely harmed her career at that point in time. But she regrets nothing. Later, she recovered her career as another big opportunity knocked on her door. The Ellen DeGeneres Show aired for almost two decades from 2003-2022 and changed the trajectory of her career completely. She became a well-liked television personality again and her weakness became her strongest pursuit.
The positive aspect of it
Things slowly started falling back into place after The Ellen DeGeneres Show hit the market. The show got positive reviews overall. In 2009, Ellen DeGeneres married the love of her life, Portia de Rossi. The two have been happily married ever since. In 2016, she also received a Presidential Medal of Freedom for her trail-brazing announcement in ’97.
The star ever since did not turn back. She recently wrapped up her successful show and is currently enjoying her retirement with her wife and dogs.
She will be returning on Youtube with her latest About Time For Yourself…with Ellen.
“Lately, I’ve been taking some time for just myself, away from the cameras, and I’ve been having such a great time, I thought I would share some of what I’ve been doing with you.”
The eight-episode series will feature Ellen DeGeneres learning things her own way.
Source: TIME
