Highlights

• Ellen DeGeneres shared her coming out journey with Oprah Winfrey on television, facing backlash but promoting acceptance.
• Winfrey played DeGeneres' therapist in the historic sitcom coming out episode, facing racist and hateful responses.
• Winfrey encouraged DeGeneres to take time off after ending her successful talk show, acknowledging the challenges of the job.

In 1997, Ellen DeGeneres came out publicly on the cover of Time Magazine with the iconic quote, "Yep, I'm gay." During that period, she also did an interview with Diane Sawyer and appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show to talk about her coming out journey.

Oprah Winfrey and DeGeneres already had a special connection during this time, since Winfrey guest starred on Ellen, DeGeneres' sitcom. DeGeneres made history when she made her character come out as gay at the same time. It was the first time a lead character in a sitcom was openly gay.

Winfrey and DeGeneres' connection did not fade away. Throughout the years, Winfrey has made many appearances on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The two have shared a friendship that audiences have watched play out on television.

Oprah Received Backlash When She Played Ellen's Therapist In Her Coming Out Episode

Winfrey played Ellen's therapist in the two-part coming out episode of the sitcom Ellen. Twenty years later, Winfrey appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and spoke with the comedian about the experience.

According to Winfrey, she "immediately said yes" when asked to appear on the show. However, there was a lot of backlash that followed. This is something Winfrey said she didn't see coming.

"I misread that everybody was like us, that they were open-minded and that they were receptive and that they wanted people to just be who they are," Winfrey said.

Winfrey then told DeGeneres just how bad the response was.

"It was so bad. The next day after the show, I flew back to Chicago and the next day … we had to put another person on the switchboard. I remember something like 900-and-something calls; they couldn’t keep up," she remembered.

"There was a lot of, ‘Go back to Africas,'" Winfrey continued. "A lot of N-words, vitriolic stuff."

Ellen DeGeneres Almost Gave Up On Portia de Rossi Before The Two Began Dating

Ellen DeGeneres told Oprah Winfrey why she had "completely given up" trying to pursue Portia de Rossi before the two began dating.

DeGeneres and Winfrey reflected on the hate they both received as a result of the show. DeGeneres even revealed there was a bomb threat on the set, which scared her. Then, Winfrey gave DeGeneres some words of encouragement.

"You would not be who you are … you wouldn’t be able to open hearts and touch hearts and change peoples’ minds and make a difference in the world had you not had the courage to do that," Winfrey told DeGeneres. "And 20 years ago, you had no idea it would put you in this seat."

Ellen Started A Campaign On Her Talk Show To Land The Cover Of O Magazine

There was a lot of debate about whether DeGeneres made the right decision about coming out. DeGeneres, however, maintained that she didn't regret her coming out, because of the mail she received from fans who told her she saved their lives.

Over the next several years, DeGeneres appeared in films like EDtv and If These Walls Could Talk 2. There was another sitcom, The Ellen Show, which was short-lived, ending after just 13 episodes, with five being unaired. DeGeneres went back to her roots in 2000 when she performed a stand-up special for HBO titled The Beginning. DeGeneres went on a stand-up tour in 2002, which led to another HBO special, Here and Now.

DeGeneres also appeared in the film Finding Nemo as Dory, which was warmly received. This was around the same time DeGeneres announced that she would be starting her own daytime talk show. In September 2003, the first episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show aired. It was a huge success and became a staple in people's homes for 19 seasons. DeGeneres interviewed celebrities, played games with the audience, and helped those in need.

It was during her talk show that DeGeneres launched a campaign to appear on the cover of Winfrey's O Magazine. The campaign eventually worked, with DeGeneres being only the second person to appear alongside Winfrey on the cover. The first was Michelle Obama.

Winfrey invited DeGeneres to appear on the cover via a video call during The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2009.

"I can’t believe you’re serious about this. I’m freaking out right now," a surprised DeGeneres responded.

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Oprah Winfrey brought Rosie O'Donnell back to television, but it didn't work out.

When she appeared on DeGeneres' show in 2022, Winfrey revealed she thought the whole thing was a joke at first.

"You know what, at first I thought you were just joking, I didn’t know you actually really wanted to do it," Winfrey told DeGeneres. "And then you actually said ‘yes’, too!"

Oprah Told Ellen To Take Time Off After Ending Her Talk Show

During her 2022 appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Winfrey helped give the daytime show a nice send-off, as the show was in its final season.

When Winfrey came on stage, she told DeGeneres she was "emotional," having just spoken to staffers backstage about the show.

"I said to everybody, 'I know what this feels like with only a few days left,'" Winfrey said . "I just was really applauding your team for making this show what it's been for 19 years. Obviously, you're the face out front, but it's everybody back there that actually makes it work. I was tearing it up saying, 'Guys, what a great job you've done holding this together."

DeGeneres thanked Winfrey, whom she called a mentor and a friend. She also said there is a "small group of people who understand what this job is — and an even smaller group of women."

Ellen DeGeneres Was Stunned When Lisa Kudrow Revealed The Major Artist Who Is Her Distant Cousin

Ellen DeGeneres was surprised to discover her familial connection to this famous singer.

Winfrey told DeGeneres she is "going to be so missed." She also urged DeGeneres to "take some time off," unlike how Winfrey immediately launched the OWN Network following the end of her own show.

"I want you take some time off," Winfrey told DeGeneres. "Some real time. Because you know what I did? I took a week off and then I went right back into work. Take some time, OK? Do you hear me?"

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