One day after elliptically telling audiences that she had “a lot going on,” comedian, actress, and daytime television host Ellen DeGeneres announced the death of her father, Elliott DeGeneres, and gave a heartfelt tribute, talking about how much he meant to her and how supportive he’d been of her over the years. Ellen said that her father “had a good long life” and lived “exactly how he wanted” then struggled to hold back tears.
DeGeneres was keen to note that her father was never judgemental of her homosexuality, and remained extremely proud of her accomplishments as his life went on. Despite being a product of what she called “Christian science.” — meaning here that her father had apparently never taken medicine, been to a doctor, or even had his children vaccinated, Elliott DeGeneres lived to be 92 years old
This week, at the age of 92, my father Elliott DeGeneres passed away. He lived a good long life. It wasn’t unexpected. I was able to say goodbye. pic.twitter.com/L0zEJJNPrq
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) January 11, 2018
She fondly recalled in a Twitter post how she’d only ever been on one family vacation when her father took both DeGeneres and her brother Vance on a trip to the famous Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California, before saying how much her father “loved this [the television] business.” She went on to talk about how meaningful it was for both him and her that, years later, she had a studio named after her on the Warner Brothers lot. The she showed a picture of what she saw after talking to her father for the last time: a rainbow over her building.
“Pretty amazing. … I got a rainbow before he died,” she said.
When I was a kid, my dad took us on one vacation to Warner Bros. Studios. He loved this business. He loved that I was in it. When he died, I saw this rainbow over the stage they named for me. pic.twitter.com/QQswe3mwfi
— Ellen DeGeneres (@TheEllenShow) January 12, 2018