Rosie O'Donnell
Roseann Teresa O'Donnell (born
March 21,
1962) is an
American comedian,
talk show host, and
actress. From 1996 to 2002, she hosted the daytime talk show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show. She is also a co-host on the
ABC talk show,
The View. She has also starred in various
film,
television, and
stage productions.
O'Donnell was born in
Bayside, Queens,
New York to Edward J. O'Donnell, an
Irish Catholic immigrant from
Belfast, and Roseann Murtha, an American of
Irish Catholic descent who later died of
breast cancer at the age of 38. O'Donnell was raised in
Commack on
Long Island (
Suffolk County, New York). She briefly attended
Dickinson College, later she transferred to
Boston University but has not completed a degree.
O'Donnell began her career performing
stand-up around the East Coast. Her heavy-set appearance and tomboyish, husky
New York accent set her apart from other actresses and comediennes. She hosted the
VH1 stand-up comedy series in the late 1980s. She was cast as the lead in her own sitcom in
1992, called
Stand by Your Man (a US version of the BBC hit
Birds of a Feather), which lasted only briefly due to low ratings.
In the early-
90s, O'Donnell starred in a string of comedy films including
A League of Their Own, Another Stakeout, and
Sleepless in Seattle. In 1994 she played Betty Rubble in the live action movie version of
The Flintstones. Throughout this period, she was highly acclaimed for her performances, but lost ground in the mid-
90s with the less successful films
Car 54, Where Are You? and
Anne Rice's
Exit to Eden. She also had roles in
Now and Then,
Beautiful Girls, and the family movie
Harriet the Spy.
In
1996, she began hosting a daytime talk show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show. The show proved extremely successful; early on O'Donnell was dubbed "The Queen of Nice." During her tenure, she frequently highlighted various charitable projects, which tended to generate significantly increased donations. O'Donnell was also known for featuring extended production numbers from Broadway musicals and is credited with bringing this artform into the living rooms of America. She was known for her light-hearted banter with her guests and interactions with the audience, including the unique daily introduction done by a random member of the audience at the beginning of each program. Her talk show won multiple Emmy awards as did O'Donnell for her hosting duties. It was also her tendency to interview "Superkids", not just the standard celebrities that also brought her critical attention.
In
2000, O'Donnell partnered with the publishers of
McCall's to revamp the magazine as
Rosie's McCall's (or, more commonly,
Rosie). Rather than cover the magazine with thin models, she opted for stories about
depression,
breast cancer, and
foster care.
Rosie eventually folded due to difficulties in securing advertising at satisfactory rates. Some problems may have come from Internet-based boycotts of advertisers based on O'Donnell and the magazine's perceived political bias.
In
2002, O'Donnell left her talk show, favoring a return to stand-up comedy. The show was then hosted by comedian
Caroline Rhea (the show was renamed
The Caroline Rhea Show), but it only lasted one season. Shortly before leaving her show, O'Donnell confirmed the rumors about her sexuality when she
came out of the closet as a lesbian. Within the
gay community this was common knowledge, and the tabloids had been hinting at it. She claimed various reasons for doing so, including the need for publicity and to put a familiar face to
homosexuality, but her primary reason was that as a lesbian adoptive mother (with a long-time lover) she was infuriated that adoption agencies, particularly in
Florida, were refusing adoptive rights to able
gay parents. She hoped that by coming out, it would increase awareness of this subject.
In her January 31, 2002 appearance in
Will & Grace, she played the role of a lesbian. Thus the scriptwriters put the words "I'm gay and proud" into her mouth before she officially "came out".
After leaving her show and coming out, O'Donnell underwent a minor image change. She returned to stand-up comedy, and within her first few shows made fun of various celebrities, among them
Michael Jackson,
Liza Minnelli,
Diana Ross,
Martha Stewart,
Oprah Winfrey,
Winona Ryder, and
Joan Rivers. She also received what was considered by many to be an unflattering, somewhat masculine haircut, remniscent of
Cyndi Lauper's hair in the
1980s. The tabloid press again picked up on her life, claiming that she had abandoned the "Queen of Nice" image. O'Donnell pointed out that her stand-up routine had always been very political and abrasive, and that her haircut was a personal choice. She eventually claimed that she had cut her hair in imitation of
Boy George, in hopes that he would allow her to produce his stage show
Taboo in the
United States. If that was the true motive, she was successful, although the show was not, with a failed run on
Broadway.
In
2002 O'Donnell also published an
autobiography entitled
Find Me. In addition to cataloging her childhood and early adulthood, the book delved into O'Donnell's relationship with a woman with
Multiple Personality Disorder who posed as an under-aged teen who had become pregnant by
rape. The book was critically acclaimed and reached number two on the
New York Times Best Seller List.
In late
2003, O'Donnell entered into a legal battle with the publishers of
Rosie magazine. They claimed that the failure of the magazine was due to O'Donnell's uncooperative, rude and violent behavior within the magazine's offices. They claimed that by removing herself from the magazine's publication, she was in breach of contract. O'Donnell claimed that there was no way she could in good conscience continue to be a part of the magazine, because they were moving away from her vision.
The trial received considerable press coverage. O'Donnell would often give brief press interviews outside of the courtroom responding to various allegations. Of note was a former magazine colleague who testified that O'Donnell said to her on the phone that "people who lie die of cancer." Ultimately, the judge ruled against both sides and dismissed the case.
On
February 26,
2004, O'Donnell entered legal union with her partner
Kelli Carpenter, a former
Nickelodeon marketing executive, in
San Francisco, some two weeks after mayor
Gavin Newsom authorized the granting of marriage licenses to
same-sex couples. Her decision to marry Carpenter came after O'Donnell blasted
President Bush over his support for the
Federal Marriage Amendment. The
license was later voided by the
California Supreme Court.
Rosie and Kelli are parents to Parker Jaren (b. 05-25-1995), Chelsea Belle (b. 09-20-1997), Blake Christopher (b. 12-05-1999) and Vivienne Rose (b. 11-29-2002).
In December 2004, O'Donnell began maintaining a
weblog at
onceadored.blogspot.com with the title
formerlyrosie, until it moved to
Rosie.com in
April 2005. Rosie used her blog to give away tickets to her Broadway show,
Fiddler on the Roof, in which she played "Golde" opposite
Harvey Fierstein as "Tevye."
O'Donnell and Carpenter are currently operating R. Family Vacations, a travel company geared towards gay and
lesbian families. They have already launched a
cruise ship that sails from New York to the
Bahamas. (A
documentary film about the gay cruise,
All Aboard: Rosie's Family Cruise, had its debut on
HBO on
April 6,
2006.) O'Donnell continues to entertain and remains a popular
pop culture icon and a celebrity representative of the gay and lesbian community. Rosie and her family now divide their time in homes on the
Hudson River in
South Nyack, New York, and in southern Florida.
Rosie O'Donnell returned to films in 2005 with her self-produced TV movie
Riding the Bus with My Sister. Her performance, as a
mentally retarded woman named Beth Smith, was critically acclaimed (although was derided by some). She expressed concerns during filming that this role may "typecast her forever" in mentally retarded roles.
During the
2006 Daytime Emmy Awards,
Barbara Walters announced that O'Donnell will become a co-host on the talk show
The View in September 2006, which is alleged to have been a factor in
Star Jones Reynolds' contract not being renewed, though this allegation is as yet unsubstantiated. She will replace
Meredith Vieira, who departed
The View in June to join
NBC's
The Today Show as
Katie Couric's replacement. O'Donnell's website said she would assume the role of moderator upon Vieira's departure. Also on her website, she announced that she will be guest-starring in two episodes of season four of
Nip/Tuck.
Gun Control Stance
Rosie O'Donnell is an outspoken supporter of
gun control and a major figure in the
Million Mom March. In 2000, O'Donnell outraged parents of kindergartners at the school her son attends when she was granted special permission to allow an armed bodyguard to accompany her son to school. In response, she promised that the bodyguard wouldn't actually be armed while on the school grounds. Her critics charged that this was hypocrisy, citing the
April 19,
1999, broadcast of her talk show, on which she stated, "You are not allowed to own a gun, and if you do own a gun, I think you should go to prison." O'Donnell has since regretted making the remarks and has attempted to reconcile her stance by remarking, "I don't personally own a gun." [2,3]
In 1999, O'Donnell interviewed actor
Tom Selleck, who was promoting a film. During the interview, in what some critics perceived as an "ambush", O'Donnell confronted him about his stance on guns and his involvement with the
NRA, making it an infamously tense TV moment[
1]. The interview was controversial as according to Selleck, the two agreed not to discuss the topic prior to his appearance on the show. She maintains that he and his publicist had been informed that the topic would be discussed.
Also in May 1999,
Bernadette Peters and the rest of the cast from
Annie Get Your Gun was to appear for taping and perform the song "
Anything You Can Do." O'Donnell insisted that the line "I can shoot a partridge with a single cartridge" be removed from the song. Peters refused, and the cast sang a different song without Peters. Later in
1999, O'Donnell discontinued her contract with
Kmart as their spokeswoman, because of her opinion of the large retailer's sale of firearms.
George W. Bush
Rosie O'Donnell is an outspoken critic of many people including President
George W. Bush. In
May 2005, O'Donnell said Bush was a
war criminal who should be tried at the
World Court in
The Hague, Netherlands due to the
2003 invasion of Iraq. While others in entertainment have been criticized for taking political positions and statements such as this Rosie O'Donnell has mostly escaped such.
Television
Gimme a Break! (cast member from
1986–
1987)
Stand-Up Spotlight (
1988–
1991)
Stand by Your Man (
1992) (canceled after 2 months)
The Rosie O'Donnell Show (
1996–
2002) (also producer and executive producer)
The Twilight of the Golds (
1997)
Jackie's Back! (
1999) (cameo)
Riding the Bus with My Sister (TV movie,
2005) (also executive producer)
Theatre Work
Grease (
1994)
Seussical (
2001) (replacement for
David Shriner)
Fiddler on the Roof (
2004) (replacement for
Andrea Martin in
2005)
Filmography
A League of Their Own (
1992)
Sleepless in Seattle (
1993)
Another Stakeout (
1993)
Fatal Instinct (
1993)
Car 54, Where Are You? (
1994)
I'll Do Anything (
1994)
The Flintstones (
1994)
Exit to Eden (
1994)
Now and Then (
1995)
The Flintstones (
1995)
Beautiful Girls (
1995)
Harriet the Spy (
1996)
A Very Brady Sequel (
1996) (Cameo)
Wide Awake (
1998)
Get Bruce (
1999) (documentary)
Tarzan (
1999) (voice)
The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (
2000) (voice only)
Artists and Orphans: A True Drama (
2001) (short subject) (narrator)
Hedwig and the Angry Inch (
2001) (Cameo)
Last Party 2000 (
2001) (documentary)
The Lady in Question Is Charles Busch (
2005) (documentary)
Show Business (
2005) (documentary)
Pursuit of Equality (
2005) (documentary)
All Aboard: Rosie's Family Cruise (
2006) (documentary) (also executive producer)
Award Ceremony
Kids Choice Awards (Host) (1997-2003)
*54th Annual Tony Awards (Host) (2000)
*''
42nd Annual Grammy Awards (Host) (2000)
Bibliography
*
Find Me (2002)
Daytime Emmy Awards*2002 Outstanding Talk Show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*2002 Outstanding Talk Show Host,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*2001 Outstanding Talk Show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*2001 Outstanding Talk Show Host,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show (tied with
Regis Philbin)
*2000 Outstanding Talk Show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*2000 Outstanding Talk Show Host,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*1999 Outstanding Talk Show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*1999 Outstanding Talk Show Host,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*1998 Outstanding Talk Show,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show*1998 Outstanding Talk/Service Show Host,
The Rosie O'Donnell Show (tied with
Oprah Winfrey)
*1997 Outstanding Talk/Service Show Host,
The Rosie O'Donnell ShowEmmy Awards*1999 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special,
52nd Annual Tony Awards*Interview on
Inside the Actors Studio. Host
James Lipton.
Bravo TV. Aired
23 October. 2005 (original interview May 2005)
*
*
About.com's Profile of Rosie O'Donnell, Liberal Activist and ABC Talk Show Host*
I think there should be a law -- If you have a gun, you go to jail*
Article on O'Donnell's marriage in San Francisco*
Jump The Shark com - The Rosie O'Donnell Show*
Rosie's blog*
R Family Vacations*
Rosie's Flickr Photo's - Personal photos that Rosie takes in her daily life.
