Ellen DeGeneres announced that she was gay on the cover of Time magazine’s April 1997 issue. The magazine’s headline read: “Yep, I’m Gay.” Just weeks later, DeGeneres’ character, Ellen Morgan, on her hit television show, “Ellen,” also came out in a Season 5 episode titled, “The Puppy Episode.” Approximately 42 million viewers tuned in to watch the episode.
DeGeneres faced a wide array of criticism after she announced her sexuality. She had to defend her choice to come out during an interview with Oprah Winfrey, which saw audience members expressing their anger at the comedian for doing so. Even queer rights activists like Chaz Bono believed her sitcom was becoming “too gay.” As a result, ABC canceled the show after its fifth season, and DeGeneres’ career sat in the shadows for quite some time. However, fans of DeGeneres would see her again when she launched “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” in 2003. Running until 2022, it became one of the longest-running talk shows in history.
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Despite all the controversy, coming out was a monumental moment for the host and changed American television. Looking back on the episode 25 years later, the comedian shared on her talk show, “When I came out, people warned me that it was going to ruin my career, and they were right for a while. Actually, for exactly three years, I lost my career. But look at me now.”
