Ellen celebrates 20th anniversary of her coming out
AMERICAN comedian and television host Ellen DeGeneres has celebrated the 20th anniversary of her coming out on her sitcom and on the cover of TIME magazine.
Late last week DeGeneres kicked off her popular daily talk show by coming out again.
“Hi – I’m Ellen and I’m gay,” she said.
“Twenty years ago when I said that it was a much bigger deal.
“It was the hardest thing I ever had to do in my life. I would not change a moment of it because it led me exactly where I am today standing in front of all of you.”
When she came out on her sitcom back in 1997 it marked the first time a lead character had come out and changed the lives of many in the LGBTI community.
To celebrate the historic anniversary DeGeneres was joined by Oprah Winfrey and Laura Dern on her talk show who helped everyone to remember the landmark moment on television.
“I believed in your truth and wanted to support you,” Winfrey said.
“You were the bravest woman ever.”
DeGeneres also revealed that at the time she came out, she faced death threats and a bomb scare which was called into the studio where she was shooting her sitcom.
