All Ellen DeGeneres wanted to be was funny. She kept her humor clean and steered clear of politics and social agendas, instead honing a quirky, off-center, mistrustful view of the world.

I was coming home from kindergarten--well, they told me it was kindergarten. I found out later I had been working in a factory for ten years. It's good for a kid to know how to make gloves.

If ever there was a more unlikely comic to become a symbol of controversy, it was Ellen DeGeneres. Throughout her career, she balanced her ever-growing success with her desire to keep her sexuality private. How that struggle affected her life and career and ultimately inspired her to come out of the closet, putting her life in the spotlight and her career at considerable risk, forms the emotional core of this biography. And in a broader sense, the controversy caused by Ellen's acknowledged sexuality is a reflection of America's own struggle with tolerance and acceptance.

Ellen examines the repercussions still being felt by the comic as a direct result of her revelations and offers a glimpse of what her future may hold. It details:

Ellen's colorful family history, which includes a swashbuckling pirate ancestor

How her conservative father turned his back on Ellen when he learned she was gay

The personal tragedy that became her greatest inspiration

Her secret life in the gay bar scene during her stand-up days

The women Ellen has loved

Her life as a gay crusader

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 3.0 based on 5 reviews)

The Real Ellen Story

Brilliant description of Ellen's life so far. Detailed yet dignified and truthful. A brilliant read!!
December 28, 2007

A lot of good info, but it reads like a newspaper

I'm giving this book 4 stars, because I'm a huge fan of Ellen, and as far as I can tell, this is the only biography available. If there were a few more biographies available, I'd probably only give it two stars.

This book reads like a newspaper written by a mediocre journalist. Or a compilation of a bunch of articles from Us or People. It's really annoying to read because of that style.

But, it does contain a lot of good information. It answered most of my questions that I had about Ellen. It doesn't have any direct interviews with Ellen, but I don't think that Ellen is going to say any more about her past than she has. In one book, Ellen says, "I can't remember anything about my childhood." And, I think that's probably true. That's probably why she makes a bunch of jokes about everything, because she's got a horrible memory.

And, this book is mostly about the TV sitcom, Ellen. Probably about 75% of it is about the sitcom, and the biography ends after the end of the show. So, since she's got a talk show, this book is really dated. And, three of the chapters are dedicated to various co-stars of the TV sitcom, so this book really isn't a 100% Ellen book.

So, if you're a huge Ellen fan like me, you will probably want to dredge through this book. For everyone else, I'd recommend passing on it and waiting for Ellen's next biography to come out in a few years.
April 19, 2005

CHEAP REHASH OF MAGAZINES, NEWS ARTICLES AND VIDEOS

I bought this book expecting a carefully researched, full biography on Ellen. Instead it was basically a rehash of magazine articles, videos, and news stories about Ellen and her Coming-Out. The author did not even interview Ellen, so we don't get a true, direct-source picture of Ellen's life. Instead, we have old information taken from other sources and condensed into this book. It doesn't sound like the author interviewed Ellen's closest friends and associates, either; I got the impression that a lot of the information was third- or fourth-hand, not directly from the sources. This book is crassly commercial and written at the time that public interest in Ellen was at its peak. It reads like a fan magazine and its sole purpose was to make money, not to provide an insightful biography of Ellen DeGeneres. I would only recommend it to those who no longer have access to the magazines and videos about Ellen's show and her coming-out.
July 11, 2001

wanting more..

I am an admirer of Ellen and applaud the difficult decision she had to make in order to live her life her way. This book, which was a fast read, left me wanting more.

Who is Ellen. What are her likes and dislikes. The book was a chronograph of her professional life and while she is "still a work in progress" it would have been nice to know a little more about who she really is as seen through the eyes of friends and family.
August 01, 2000

WHY NOT READ A MAGAZINE?

AS AN ABSOLUTE ADMIRER OF ELLEN AND DESIRING TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE REAL LIFE OF ELLEN DEGENERES, I WAS VERY DISAPOINTED TO READ A BOOK THAT HAD NO IMPUT FROM ELLEN DIRECTLY. THIS BOOK WAS TOO INVOLVED WITH THE TRIALS AND TRIBULATIONS OF THE GOINGS ON OF HER SHOW, THAN THE PERSONAL EVENTS IN ELLEN'S LIFE. OVERALL THE BOOK WAS WELL WRITTEN, BUT VERY UNEVENTFUL.
October 03, 1999

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