Rosie O'Donnell

Rosie 'Donnell
O'Donnell at a tailgate party before a Barbra Streisand concert.
Born	Roseann Theresa O'Donnell or Mrs. MArtel
Years active	1979 - present
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Website	Rosie.com

Rosie O'Donnell (born March 21, 1962 in Bayside, Queens, New York) is an 11-time Emmy Award-winning American talk show host, television personality, comedienne, film, television, and stage actress.

Early life

O'Donnell was the third of five children born to Edward and Roseann O'Donnell. Four days before her 11th birthday on March 17, 1973, O'Donnell's mother died of breast cancer.

In high school, she began exploring her comic interest beginning with a high school skit in which she imitated Gilda Radner’s character Roseanne Rosannadanna.

After graduating, O'Donnell briefly attended Dickinson College, later transferring to Boston University but dropped out. Rosie toured standup clubs from 1979 to 1984. She got her first big break on Star Search, explaining on Larry King Live:

I was 20 years old, and I was at a comedy club in Long Island. This woman came over to me and she said, I think you're funny. Can you give me your number? My dad is Ed McMahon. I was like, yeah, right. I gave her my father's phone number. I was living at home, I'm like, whatever. And about three days later, the talent booker from Star Search called and said, were going to fly you out to L.A. [...] I won, like, five weeks in a row. And it gave me national exposure.

After this success, she moved on to television sitcom comedy, making her series debut as Nell Carter's neighbor on Gimme a Break! in 1986.

O'Donnell at the Emmy Awards in 1992

In 1988, she transitioned to VH1, where she hosted Stand-up Spotlight, a showcase for up-and-coming comedians. She soon after made her feature film debut in A League Of Their Own.

The Rosie O'Donnell Show

Further information: The Rosie O'Donnell Show

In 1996, she began hosting a daytime talk show, The Rosie O'Donnell Show. The show proved extremely successful, winning multiple Emmy awards, and earning O'Donnell the title of "The Queen of Nice" for her style of light-hearted banter with her guests and interactions with the audience. As part of her playful banter with her studio audience, O'Donnell often flung koosh balls at the crowd and camera.

On the show, O'Donnell frequently highlighted various charitable projects, often boosting awareness and donations to these causes. In 2002, she left her talk show. The show was then hosted by comedian Caroline Rhea (the show was renamed The Caroline Rhea Show) and ran for one additional season.

Magazine

In 2000, O'Donnell partnered with the publishers of McCall's to revamp the magazine as Rosie's McCall's (or, more commonly, Rosie). The magazine was launched as a competitor to fellow talk show hostess Oprah Winfrey's monthly magazine. Rosie covered issues including depression, breast cancer, foster care, and other matters of concern to O'Donnell. The magazine folded in 2003.

In late 2003, O'Donnell entered into a legal battle with the publishers of Rosie magazine. They claimed that, by removing herself from the magazine's publication, she was in breach of contract.

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 and breast cancer survivor 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.

In 2006, O'Donnell responded to a question on the "Ask Ro" section of her website in which she stated that she would love to do another magazine. O'Donnell also said she has written a new book, due out this summer. It is to be called Celebrity Detox.

JaHeRo

Rosie started a video blog on her site which debuted on March 27, 2007, originally featuring only O'Donnell and Rosie's hair stylist and make-up artist Helene Macaulay, and on April 18 her writer from The Rosie O'Donnell Show, Janette Barber joined the cast. They call themselves Jahero, which has each of their first name's letters in it. Occasionally Joy Behar, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, and Barbara Walters make short cameo appearances. Jenny McCarthy appeared once briefly, as has Hasselbeck's mother-in-law and O'Donnell's mother-in-law, her wife Kelli's mother. Kathy Griffin also appeared, where she read some of the questions. Also, Ross Matthews is expected to make an appearance on June 5th of 2007. It has become so popular that Rosie and her creative team are currently considering an "on the road" version of the video blog, in which Jahero would star. Although they are unsure of the locations, fan-submitted suggestions will likely influence the tour. Their announced goal is to begin in summer 2007.

Autobiography

In 2002, O'Donnell wrote 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 reached number two on the New York Times bestseller list.

Disclosure of sexual orientation

In her January 31, 2002, appearance on the sitcom Will & Grace, she played a lesbian. Shortly after that appearance, and before the conclusion of her talk show, O'Donnell came out as a lesbian.

She claimed various reasons for coming out, including the need for publicity and to put a familiar face to homosexuality. She said that her primary reason was to bring attention to the gay adoption issue; she protested against adoption agencies, particularly in Florida, that refused adoptive rights to gay and lesbian parents.

Image transformation

After leaving her show and coming out, O'Donnell returned to stand-up comedy. Within her first few shows, she contradicted the "Queen of Nice" image she had previously cultivated. She made fun of various celebrities, among them Michael Jackson, Liza Minnelli, Diana Ross, Martha Stewart, Oprah Winfrey, Winona Ryder, and Joan Rivers.

O'Donnell told the press that her haircut was meant to mimic the haircut of former Culture Club backup singer Helen Terry. She subsequently attributed the haircut as a way to emulate Boy George, in hopes that he would allow her to produce his stage show Taboo. O'Donnell subsequently invested in and produced the show, but it was an expensive failure on Broadway.

Family life

On February 26, 2004, O'Donnell entered legal union with 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 go to San Francisco to marry Carpenter came as a show of defiance against President George W. Bush over his support for the Federal Marriage Amendment. The license was voided by the California Supreme Court.

The couple are parents to adopted children Parker Jaren (born May 25, 1995), Chelsea Belle (born September 20, 1997), and Blake Christopher (born December 5, 1999). Their fourth child, Vivienne Rose (who was conceived through sperm donation) was born November 29, 2002 to Carpenter.

O'Donnell and her family currently reside in Nyack, New York, a suburb of New York City that is located in Rockland County.

The View

During the 2006 Daytime Emmy Awards, Barbara Walters announced that O'Donnell would become a co-host on the talk show The View. On September 5 2006, she officially replaced Meredith Vieira as a co-host and moderator of the show.

On April 25 2007, O'Donnell announced she would be leaving the show as a co-host when her contract expires in June because she and the network could not come to terms on the length of a new contract, but that she planned to return as an occasional correspondent.

After extensive interviews with insiders and industry analysts, the weekend editions of celebrity gossip shows, Entertainment Tonight and Inside Edition [1] broadcast on Saturday, April 28, reported there was more to the issue than initially was announced. O'Donnell allegedly had decided as early as December, following what she perceived as Walter's half-hearted support during her ongoing controversy with Donald Trump, she would not renew her contract and began holding talks with at least one major studio about producing a new talk show. (On her personal blog, O'Donnell admitted interest in hosting an issues-oriented show with audience participation, a format introduced by Phil Donahue [2]). Both programs cited a New York Post Page Six article, a gossip column, detailing O'Donnell's failed attempt to oust Walters from her producer's chair and ABC's growing concerns with her unpredictable outbursts [3].

On the April 30 episode of The View, Walters announced there was no truth to any published or televised reports without referring to any specific sources.

Walters also announced on The View that O'Donnell would be listed by Time Magazine as one of their 100 most influential people. Walters wrote the article for Time.

Charities

Personal contribution

On Friday December 15, 2006, at a one-night charity event on the Norwegian Pearl, Elizabeth Birch, Executive Director for the Rosie's For All Kids Foundation, confirmed that $50 million from her five-year contract with the Rosie O'Donnell Show were donated in an irrevocable trust to charity.[4]

"For All Kids" foundation

Since 1997, Rosie's For All Kids Foundation has awarded more than $22 million in Early Childhood Care and Education program grants to over 900 nonprofit organizations.[5] On October 30, 2006 she was honored by the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. "It's our privilege to be honoring and hosting Rosie," said NYSPCC president David Stack in a statement. "Her Rosie's for All Kids Foundation has awarded more than $22 million in grants to over 1,400 child-related organizations, and that's just one of her many impressive activities on behalf of children."

On November 1, 2006, Nightline aired a video report about the opening of The Children's Plaza and Family Center in Renaissance Village, a FEMA trailer park in Louisiana. This was an emergency response initiative of Rosie's For All Kids Foundation with the help of many local nonprofit organizations and for-profit businesses, all efforts were to assist the families displaced by Hurricane Katrina.

On May 18, 2007, Rosie and Pogo Games announced a joint-effort to raise money for Rosie's All Kids Foundation. EA, which owns Pogo, committed $30,000 and more money can be raised based on the amount of playing time people spend on certain games. They are also holding a sweepstakes in which winners get to fly to New York and meet Rosie and attend a charity function as her guest.

"Rosie's Broadway Kids"

In 2003, Rosie and Kelli O'Donnell collaborated with Artistic Director Lori Klinger to create "Rosie's Broadway Kids", dedicated to providing free instruction in music and dance to New York City public schools or students. Rosie's Broadway Kids serves more than 4,500 teachers, students, and their family members at 21 schools.[6] Currently programs are in Harlem, Midtown West, Chelsea, Lower East Side, East Village, and Chinatown.

Controversies

Gun control controversy

O'Donnell is an outspoken supporter of gun control and a major figure in the Million Mom March. During the April 19, 1999, broadcast of her talk show, 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." In 1999, O'Donnell interviewed actor Tom Selleck, who was promoting a film. During the promotional interview, O'Donnell confronted him about his involvement with the NRA. According to Selleck, the two had agreed not to discuss the topic prior to his appearance on the show. O'Donnell maintains that Selleck and his publicist had been informed that the topic would be discussed. However, she did subsequently say on her show that the interview did not go as she hoped it would.

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 her. Later in 1999, O'Donnell discontinued her contract with Kmart as their spokeswoman. However, Kmart employees had told the New York Daily News that it was Kmart who terminated the agreement with O'Donnell, which both Kmart and O'Donnell denied publicly.

In May 2000, O'Donnell's bodyguard applied for a concealed firearm permit in Connecticut. At the time, O'Donnell claimed that it was not she who requested the carry permit, but Kroll, the security firm through which he was hired. Numerous parents of children who attended the same school as O'Donnell's children expressed their concern about the possibility of O'Donnell's bodyguard being armed while on school grounds.

In an interview with Bill O'Reilly Rosie O'Donnell addressed the issue of her personal bodyguard's firearm.

Accusations of Anti-Catholicism

O'Donnell has faced accusations of Anti-Catholicism on occasion. After a Supreme Court ruling on the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act she stated

"You know what concerns me? How many Supreme Court judges are Catholic?"

She also added that, "If men could get pregnant abortion would be a sacrament." Statements like this led Laura Ingraham to urge her listeners to send protest e-mails to ABC for what she calls O'Donnell's "anti-Catholic bigotry."

Also William A. Donohue, president of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, has accused O'Donnell of engaging in anti-Catholic bigotry on The View. The Catholic League issued a press release stating:

Ever since O’Donnell joined The View in September, the show has gotten out of control. On four occasions between September and the end of December, she has lashed out at the Catholic Church. Ditto for Joy Behar. Their relentless and profoundly ignorant attacks on the Catholic Church and its teachings would never be tolerated by the show’s co-owner, Barbara Walters, if it were Judaism or Islam that was under attack. But when it comes to Catholicism, she gives these two ‘raised’ Catholics all the time they want to vent their adolescent anger.

Clay Aiken / Kelly Ripa controversy

On November 20, 2006, O'Donnell commented on Live with Regis and Kelly co-host Kelly Ripa's actions during a taping of her show. Guest co-host Clay Aiken put his hand over Ripa's mouth, as if to stop her from talking, while she was conducting an interview. Seeing that Ripa didn't appreciate his action, he said, "Oh, I'm in trouble." Ripa responded, "No, I just don't know where that hand's been, honey." In response, O'Donnell said "to me that was a homophobic remark. If that was a straight man...if that was a guy that she didn't question his sexuality, she would have said a different thing". Within minutes, Ripa was on the phone, responding to O'Donnell's comments by saying it was "cold and flu season" and Aiken had been shaking hands with audience members before the show. Both O'Donnell and Ripa have moved on from the incident and Aiken, who has declined to publicly discuss his sexuality, did not comment.

"Ching-Chong" controversy

On December 5, 2006, O'Donnell made a comment in reference to the publicity a November 29, 2006 appearance on The View by Danny DeVito had garnered. O'Donnell indicated that she was amazed that the controversy had become such a prevailing topic, and joked that it was being talked about as far away as China. "You know, you can imagine in China it's like, 'Ching-chong, ching-chong. Danny DeVito. Ching-chong, ching-chong-chong. Drunk. The View. Ching-chong.'"

The remarks sparked considerable media backlash, as O'Donnell's comments were interpreted as a "mockery of the Chinese language." The offended groups further noted that O'Donnell is herself indignant against comments that "she has perceived ... as being negative against a particular community," a reference to her stance against any kind of homophobic taunting or jokes.

O'Donnell's initial response via her publicist was, "She's a comedian in addition to being a talk show co-host. I certainly hope that one day they will be able to grasp her humor."

On December 14, 2006 O'Donnell said on The View, "To anyone who was offended at my Chinese, Asian, pseudo-Japanese, sounded a little Yiddish accent that I was doing, you know, it was never [my] intent to mock, and I'm sorry for those who felt hurt or were teased on the playground." However, she followed up on that apology by saying, "But I'm also gonna give you a fair warning that there's a good chance I'll do something like that again, probably in the next week — not on purpose. Only 'cause it's how my brain works."" The groups who had spoken out against O'Donnell's comments on December 5 were not satisfied with O'Donnell's response.

On February 24, 2007, O'Donnell wrote a more comprehensive apology on her blog with respect to this incident as a reply to the featured YouTube video "an open letter to all the Rosie O'Donnells" by Beau Sia.

In response to O'Donnell's comments, Chinese-American rapper Jin recorded a diss song called "You're Fired".

Donald Trump controversy

On December 20, 2006, O'Donnell criticized billionaire Donald Trump on The View a day after he appeared before reporters with Miss USA, Tara Conner, to announce that "everyone deserves a second chance" and that he would allow her to continue acting as Miss USA, despite her violation of pageant guidelines by partying and drinking. O'Donnell said that, due to Trump's multiple marriages and apparent infidelities, he was not suitable as the moral authority for young people in America.

In response, Trump began a media blitz that included The Insider, Access Hollywood, Extra, Larry King Live, Anderson Cooper 360,The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch, The O'Reilly Factor, WWE Raw, WWE Friday Night SmackDown!, Extreme Championship Wrestling and Jimmy Kimmel Live in which he repeatedly called her several unflattering, and perhaps even defamatory, names.

However, when Rosie became embroiled in an onscreen argument with "The View" co-host Elizabeth Hasselback on Iraq, Donald came to Rosie's defense,claiming that Rosie is a loser but not an imbecile and that Rosie is right to be against the Iraq war.

2007 Iranian seizure of British Royal Navy personnel

On the March 26, 2007, edition of The View, O'Donnell discussed the Iranian seizure of British Royal Navy personnel. She implied that the incident may be a hoax to provoke a war with Iran, stating:

There were 15 British sailors and marines who apparently went in to Iranian waters and they were seized by the Iranians. And I have one thing to say. Gulf of Tonkin. Google it.

O'Donnell's comments led to rebukes from individuals such as Bill O'Reilly and Donald Trump.

She reiterated her beliefs on March 28, 2007, stating on her weblog that the British had intentionally sent forces into Iranian waters, triggering the hostage crisis as part of a false flag operation intended to precipitate the invasion of Iran, writing:

The British did it on purpose. (They went) into Iranian waters as the U.S. military builds up on the Iranian border. We will be in Iran before summer as planned.

Accusations of anti-military bias

On May 1, 2007 during a segment of The View, Rosie, prompted by Ricki Lake explained that some members of the armed forces joined in order to be able to get an education through the G.I. Bill. http://youtube.com/watch?v=UgSPgwh1QX8] When challenged by her co-host Rosie added she "loved the military" and wanted to see them back home. Critics quickly responded to Rosie's statements and criticized her statements as being anti-military.

On May 17, 2007, Rosie rhetorically asked, "655,000 Iraqi civilians dead. Who are the terrorists?" She further explained, "If you were in Iraq and another country, the United States, the richest in the world, invaded your country and killed 655,000 of your citizens, what would you call us?" [7]. Though Rosie never did call American troops terrorists, the Republican commentators saying that Rosie thinks American troops are terrorists and Elisabeth's not defending her caused a heated argument between the two on May 23, 2007.[8]

Conspiracy theories

On the same airdate as her remarks about the captured British troops, O'Donnell said that 7 World Trade Center had been imploded, in line with 9/11 conspiracy theories. "It is impossible for a building to fall the way it fell without explosives being involved," When asked by a co-presenter who she thought was responsible, she commented that she had no idea, but argued in a blog entry that the building was blown up to destroy evidence of the corporate financial scandals at Enron and WorldCom. O'Donnell said:

I do believe that it's the first time in history that fire has ever melted steel. I do believe that it defies physics that World Trade Center tower 7 — building 7, which collapsed in on itself — it is impossible for a building to fall the way it fell without explosives being involved. World Trade Center 7. World Trade Center 1 and 2 got hit by planes — 7, miraculously, the first time in history, steel was melted by fire. It is physically impossible. To say that we don’t know that it imploded, that it was an implosion and a demolition, is beyond ignorant. Look at the films, get a physics expert here [on the show] from Yale, from Harvard, pick the school — [the collapse] defies reason.

Her comments were cheered by some of the studio audience. Talk show host Bill O'Reilly implied that "ABC should do something",but stopped short of calling for her firing. O'Donnell responded to O'Reilly's criticism on her blog, claiming that "...he edited my statements to make it seem as he wanted".

On April 2 and 3, 2007 former Congressman Joe Scarborough, on his MSNBC show Scarborough Country explicitly called for ABC to fire O'Donnell.

On March 30, 2007, Popular Mechanics magazine posted a point-by-point response to O'Donnell's claims on its website, which included a scientific correction to O'Donnell's statement about steel and fire: Tower 7 housed the city's emergency command center, so there were a number of fuel tanks located throughout the building—including two 6000-gallon tanks in the basement that fed some generators in the building by pressurized lines. The working hypothesis is that this pressurized line was supplying fuel to the fire for a long period of time. Steel melts at about 2,750 degrees Fahrenheit—but it loses strength at temperatures as low as 400 F. When temperatures break 1000 degrees Fahrenheit, steel loses nearly 50 percent of its strength. It is unknown what temperatures were reached inside WTC7, but fires in the building raged for seven hours before the collapse. O'Donnell responded to the Popular Mechanics article on her blog, stating, "I still believe explosives were used to bring down wtc7".

Works

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)
• Will & Grace (2002)
• Riding the Bus with My Sister (TV movie, 2005) (also executive producer)
• Queer as Folk (TV series, 2005)
• The View (2006–Present)
• Nip/Tuck (2006) (2 Episodes in Season 4, 4 episodes in Season 5)

Theater

• Grease (1994) (as Betty Rizzo)
• Seussical (2001) (replacement for David Shiner)
• 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)
• 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)
• Artists and Orphans: A True Drama (2001) (short subject) (narrator)
• Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001) (Archive footage)
• 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 ceremonies

• Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards (Host) (1997-2003)
• 54th Annual Tony Awards (Host) (2000)
• 42nd Annual Grammy Awards (Host) (2000)

Autobiography

• Find Me (2002)

Awards

Daytime Emmy Awards

• 1997 Outstanding Talk/Service Show Host, Rosie O'Donnell

• 1998 Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O'Donnell Show
• 1998 Outstanding Talk/Service Show Host, Rosie O'Donnell (tied with Oprah Winfrey)

• 1999 Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O'Donnell Show
• 1999 Outstanding Talk Show Host, Rosie O'Donnell

• 2000 Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O'Donnell Show
• 2000 Outstanding Talk Show Host, Rosie O'Donnell

• 2001 Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O'Donnell Show
• 2001 Outstanding Talk Show Host, Rosie O'Donnell (tied with Regis Philbin)

• 2002 Outstanding Talk Show, The Rosie O'Donnell Show
• 2002 Outstanding Talk Show Host, Rosie O'Donnell

Emmy Awards

• 1999 Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Special, 52nd Annual Tony Awards

External Links

• Official site
• Rosie O'Donnell at IMDb
• Template:Tvtome person
• Rosie O'Donnell at the Internet Broadway Database