Rosie O’Donnell has made a career in speaking her mind without shame, and in a new interview, the comedian candidly opens up about the incident that broke her with Ellen DeGeneres..
O’Donnell said the two had a “good relationship” when they first met on the comedy stage. Hollywood Reporter. “We were friends. We supported each other.”
O’Donnell recalled DeGeneres’ memorable appearance on the 1996 talk show; here he made two crazy jokes about how they could be “Lebanese” because they’re both Casey Kasem fans. She also fondly remembered going to Hollywood parties with DeGeneres, Melissa Etheridge, and kd lang.
But the friction between them came after DeGeneres showed up. Larry King Live.
“Larry King, what happened to the ‘Rosie O’Donnell’ show? ‘As soon as he got out, O’Donnell went down the tubes,’ said O’Donnell. THR. “And the quote Ellen said was, ‘I don’t know Rosie. We are not friends.’ My wife was like, ‘Did she just say that?’ Then I was watching TV in bed.”
In recent years, DeGeneres’ reputation has come under fire as the now-defunct company has faced allegations of cruelty and behind-the-scenes toxicity. Ellen DeGeneres Show. When asked if the negative press around his old friend had taken him by surprise, O’Donnell deflected a bit.
“It would never occur to me to say ‘I don’t know him’ to someone I held in my arms when their baby was born. Saying that would never be in my glossary of options, O’Donnell said. “When she was in an amazing situation and people were saying things about her, I said, ‘Let me stand next to you and say I’m Lebanese too. It did nothing when it was a downward media time for me.”
O’Donnell also said Hollywood Reporter once you want to continue Ellen Degeneres said “no” to promote a project. He added that DeGeneres had recently texted him to apologize. Larry King Live explanations – apparently after hearing O’Donnell tell the story Watch What Happened Live– but it looks like the damage has already been done.
“I know her mother,” O’Donnell said. “I’ve known him for years. It felt like I didn’t trust this person to be in my world.”