Ellen DeGeneres isn’t just the host of the wildly popular daytime talk TV program “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” she’s also the executive producer. In that capacity, Ellen runs a tight ship, and she expects things to run according to plan.
So, when Jeannie the receptionist at the studio’s front desk called just as Ellen was about to introduce a special guest from “Modern Family,” Ellen was a tad irritated.
“I’m sorry to bother you,” Jeannie said. “You got a real quick second for me?”
“Well, I’m in the middle of a show,” Ellen said, determined to keep her cool. “But what’s going on?”
What was going on was that the receptionist had just read a moving email tribute from someone who was sitting at that very moment in Ellen’s studio audience.
Jeannie felt that she just had to share this email with Ellen.
“’Today, I am having a tough time, and I wanted to tell you what your show means to me. I am a 30-year old breast cancer survivor. This week I just got a new lump and learned I need to get a new MRI to figure things out.”
As Jeannie read the letter to Ellen, cameras panned over the studio audience and singled out a slender, dark-haired woman – obviously the woman who had typed the email to Ellen.
“’I am a strong person,’” Jeannie continued reading. “’But right now, I’m scared. It was just last year that I had to go through multiple surgeries and over five months of chemo. My Mom also had Stage IV cancer last year, so it’s been a rough go. I do my very best to stay positive, and today your show keeps me going. I eagerly await four o’clock when I know you will bring me smiles and happiness. Thank you for being there for me. You truly are the best. With hugs and hopes, Kim.’”
Kim, the dark-haired woman, had her hands up over her mouth at this point. She was crying a little. Her mother Becky was sitting right next to Kim.
Of course, Ellen invited these two courageous ladies to share the stage with her.
Kim was able to bring smiles to the faces of everyone in the studio audience by immediately announcing the results of her MRI: She was not facing a reoccurrence of her cancer.
Kim and her mother Becky had been one another’s support systems while they were both undergoing chemotherapy. There’d been televisions in the rooms where the two women were being infused, and of course, promptly at 4pm, these sets were tuned to Ellen’s show. “We always looked forward to you,” Kim told Ellen. “You were the bright spot in our day.”
Three weeks before her diagnosis, Kim had gotten engaged to Derek, her boyfriend of ten years, so Ellen decided to give Kim some wedding gifts: “Something old, something new, something borrowed, and something blue.”
“Something old” turned out to be a gloriously tacky wedding gown while “something new” was a gag garter. “Something borrowed” was a bouquet of beautiful white posies from Nick, Ellen’s “gardener.” Ellen invited Nick to take his shirt off, and the audience squealed.
For her final gift, though, Ellen gave Kim something green instead of something blue: She handed Kim $10,000 in cash to help pay for Kim’s wedding.
The studio audience went wild with applause. Kim was so overcome with emotion, she could not speak.
This is the reason why so many people love Ellen. She’s funny. She’s unpredictable. She’s not afraid to speak her mind – and she’s also one of the most generous celebrities in show business.