JL: Please welcome our buddy Ellen DeGeneres! 

JL: How are you kid?

Thank you.

JL: Thanks for coming.

Wow.

JL: Good to see you.

It's good to be back. I haven't been here in a while.

JL: It has been a little bit.

It's been almost a year, something like that.

JL: Gosh, I guess it is.

Kind of.

JL: I guess it is. Did you meet Dennis backstage?

Mr. Exitement! Yes, I did. He is too hyper for me, man! He's got ... I go in to say hello to him. He's like ... just barely... Well, anyway, nice to meet you. We've actually met before, but I'm glad I went in to say hello. Thank God I got here early. We were wearing the exact same thing.

JL: Really?

Yes! So...

JL: We hate that.

Well, what's... I mean, really, one of the odds. The one time I decide to wear a dress, you know, and so... thank God I had this in the car... and I've changed, so. She is a nice guy, though, he's a lovely guy. It's kind of like „freak night" for you, isn't it? I mean, all...

JL: Ya,ya, it's „freak night".

Well, you know. I'm somehow controversy all of the sudden. He's the bad boy of sports and I'm like the bad girl of television, now. You know, I think, I don't know... I actually look tame compared to him. So, that's good.

JL:Sure, sure. Or even compared to Marv!

Compared to Marv anyone looks tame. Ya. Wow.

JL: No, you're not the bad girl. You've been a favorite of ours for a long time, you know.

Well, of yours. And I appreciate that. Yes, no. I don't know, but you know. It's a...

JL: Does it feel like that sometimes?

Sometimes, and that's why, you know, to receive an „Emmy" was like such, I felt like a member of...

    ( Yeah )

Let me...

I, first of all, you're the nicest people, I really...

    ( Yeah )

    I feel love and that feels good. No, and ... seriously I didn't bring that up for applause. But  I'm glad you did, cause I really would have looked stupid if you didn't, but ... ' I won an Emmy.' - shsh... . But I did, I felt like it was sort of saying, you know, you're part of the club. Because I never really have felt part of club and it really was a nice thing to receive an „Emmy". And especially for writing. I mean that was a nice, I, ... Thank God, Helen Hunt didn't write that episode. Cause I think, you know, I keep losing her and you know what? I love Helen and she called me. She's so sweet and we're friends and everything. But our names are so similar. And every year we're up against each other, whether it's the „Emmys" or the „Golden Globes". And Helen sounds so much like Ellen, you know.  And so, they say the name and this year I kind of thought I had a shot, and I stood up cause it sounded so much like Ellen. And then they said Hunt and to me that sounded like DeGeneres also and so...

    ( Yeah )

    By that point I'm just walking, you know. I was out of it that night. I was just, you know. I got up also when they announced Dennis Franz. So, I was just all over the place. But, I feel  ...you know, there are people that are very supportive and I feel that and it feels good.

JL:Let me, when you win this, did you win for writing one specific episode or was it for the whole show? Explain that.

Yeah, for the „Coming out" episode. That‘s what we won...

JL:That was a good one.

Yeah, it was a very good one. Especially for the pressure that we had honest to write something when everybody was expecting it cause they've been hearing about it for so long.

JL:Right.

So to come up with ... So that was, that was what I won, for the „Coming out" ...

JL:I mean, when you, when you look back on shows, were there role models? Did you say to yourself growing up, were there... Cause there weren't a lot, were there?

There weren't. And that's another thing that felt really good to write this episode that... I mean, I've gotten so much mail, wonderful mail of, you know, people saying ' I can't believe this is happening in my lifetime' and 'This is great'. Cause when I was growing up, you know, I watched television I didn'thave a role model, you know, except for Chip on „My three sons" and that's not right, you know.

JL:Chip? Really?

When I was little. And then I got older and it was „Uncle Charlie". But, you know, I didn't have any ...You know, there ... like, obviously, you know, when you're growing up and you feel like there's something different about you, you're trying to identify with people. And, you know, definitely „Pettycoat Junction" was obviously one of my favorite shows and ... cause one of those girls was gay and I think we all know which one.

JL:Really?

There ..., but, you know, it's funny cause if you really look into, I mean, television has changed a lot. You couldn't say pregnant, you know. When 'I love Lucy' Besson they had to sleep in sperate beds. She had to say 'with child' and there was... So we have come on way, but even in the 70's there were gay characters on television. You just didn't ...

JL:Really?

Yes, you just didn't see it as much...I mean, Mary Tyler Moore and Rhoda were obviously lovers. We just didn't ...

JL:Really?...  

Good morning! ... 

JL:Really?

Yes!

JL:You know, that went right over my head.

Really? Well, you have to really know how to look for it, but I mean that’s ... I mean, come on!

JL:Maybe that is just the key.

They just, you know, couldn't show it. It was usually right, you know, during the commercials or whatever, you know.

JL:Well, last night you would see the premier. And that was a well written show also. How did it go? Do you feel it went well?

I thought it went very well. I thought... I'm happy about the show this season, I really am. I think the writing is great and we're doing some interesting... you know, last night I kissed the guy. So it was the big ... I ran into my old boyfriend, so I had the whole confusion thing and it was good. I mean, the numbers we were up against, „Hour 3rd Rock" and then „Country Music Awards". The numbers were good. They could have been better. What we're gonna try to do, I think, this is my idea to get better ratings, we're gonna shoot an episode some time in the next few weeks where we're just watching „E.R.". All of us.

JL:Really?

Yeah.

JL:Well, that's a good idea. ... Well, let me ask you. Is it hard when people are trying to boycott your show or organizing boycott?

Yeah, yeah, it gets to be ..., it's kind of crazy, you know. The big thing is the Baptists are boycotting the show because of the subject matter and now that we won the „Emmy" for writing, the Baptists are boycotting pencils, which is silly, I think. They're just looking...

JL:How has Disney been? Have they been supportive?

Disney's ... Yeah, they've been very supportive. I mean, for them to do the show in the first place was very risky and I appreciate that very much. Disney is gone over the, overboard, now. I think, they're, they've just opened a „Gay Theme Park".

JL:Really? I didn‘t know that.

Yeah. They have little things that you go up: „You must be this gay to get on the ride".

JL:I had no idea.

Oh, how many times can I say gay in a night, hm?

JL:Well, now [we're talking ‘bout this episode] when is she gonna kiss a girl? When is it gonna happen?

Yeah, I did. We shot the episode a few weeks ago where I have a girlfriend and we... you know, I don't know if anybody read the paper the other day. There... it's just turning into ... I'm kind of fighting for it. And it's a tiny, tiny kiss. Obviously, they don't want anything like that on television and ... so... you know, it's a tiny kiss. And they said, well, can't you just ... you know, this is supposed to solidify the date. You know, can't you just shake hands passionately? I love you. You know, kind of ... It's two seconds. I mean, yes, we were both completely naked but it's a two second ... kiss.

    ( Yeah)    

JL:Tiny!

Yes. No, we weren't naked. I was wearing heals and a wip, but I...

    (Yeah)

    Right. Ya, that's alright. We'll watch that. But, no, it was ridiculous, cause I'm kind    of  fighting and we don't know if it's gonna air. I'm not really sure. And I'm kind of   frustrated because for two seconds. I mean, ... really ... it's like... when I came out ..      Can I just kiss you? I'm gonna show you what the kiss is. Can I kiss you?

    (Yeah)

JL:Do I stand?

Ya.

JL:I don't think my wife will mind.

Ok, ya. Why should she mind?

JL:Watch her then.

So, well, we weren't really holding hands. But it doesn't really matter. I mean, it's a kiss, literally, it's this long, ok.

    (Ooh)

JL:Wow, that‘s fine.

Wait. It might have been longer.

    (They kiss again - longer)

JL:Thank you. We'll right back.

 ___________________________________________________________________________

Special Guest Star: Ellen DeGeneres

Sonntag, den 28.03.99  (USA : Thursday, 03/25/99)

My first guest, talented actress, and Emmy winning comedian, starring in the new film EDtv which opens March 26th in a theater near you and a couple near me. Please welcome Ellen DeGeneres.

JL: (handing Ellen a mic) There you are.

Oh.

JL:Haven’t seen you in a while. What, what eh, what have you been up to?

Nothin’.

JL:Nothing?

Nothin’ at all. Just hanging out.

JL:Just hanging out?

Yeah, thought I’d come by and visit and say hey.

JL:Well this is good. You look, you look, you look rested.

I am rested. I’m, I'm feeling really good.

JL:I saw, I saw Anne, Anne Heche on the Oscars, looking lovely.

Yes, braless, she was looking good.

JL:Looking braless, yes. Which always looks good.

He made a little joke about the braless thing. It's fine. No, she, she was, she was great. She recovered from her little mic thing very well.

JL:Yes, yes, she did.

It was fun, we went to all the parties. You know, that' just so wild to, to be in, you know, with everybody that you are so excited to see and meet and everything. You went to the parties, right?

JL:I did. I went to a couple of. Did you see uh...

(cutting him off) I, I was actually, the funny thing is, I walked in and, you know, everybody was there anyway, and some people were just arriving from the show, we left a little bit early. And, uh so, I hear this commotion, you know,  and everybody’s looking, and everybody’s facing this one direction. I couldn’t see so I turned my back and then I, you know, I hear ‘Ellen, I love you, I love you!’ and jumping it was like somebody jumping on my back and lifting me up and everything. It was insane. It was Monica Lewinski and I thought, this is crazy.

JL:Oh, oh I’m sorry.

And, uh, yeah.

JL:Really, I was thinking Roberto Benigni.

Yeah, that’s what I thought at first, too. She is strong, that woman!

JL:Really, really?

Right up in the air, and um. No, she was there, and I didn’t see her. I heard she was there. And I just tried to stay as far away from her... I, you know, I don’t need that kind of controversy around me, you know, I uh... You know, I mean, the last thing I need is her flying her dress up, showing me her thong underwear, you know.

JL:Nothing but problems.

Nothing but trouble, that girl. So uh... And I know nothin’ about that, so, I'm just uh...

JL:So, you don’t live in Los Angeles any more. You moved to the country, like Wyoming or something.

To the country, yeah. Actually, we got Ted Kasinski’s old place.

JL:Really!

Yeah, it’s uh... you know...

JL:Must have been expanded a little bit.

It’s a lot of land. It’s a small place. We don’t need much. And a good deal on it, very good price.

JL:Really?

Ya... So. No, we live in the country, we moved. We thought it would be very nice to, you know, to just get out of Los Angeles and live a very quiet, peaceful, you know, country life. And have a farm and, you know, a ranch and everything. And it sounded like a really good idea, it did. You know. I don’t know if anybody lives in the country but uhm,...yeah. It has its good side too, it does, uh, but, we... the first week we were there, our dog got sprayed by a skunk. Which is the most horrendous thing. I don’t know if anybody's had to deal with that but it is a horrible smell. And up close it doesn’t smell like it does on the highway when you go ‘ooh, skunk’. And so, and I was calling him and calling him and he’s not coming back, it’s like eleven o’clock at night. And finally he comes running back, and he’s rolling around on the ground. And I’m like, what’s the matter honey, what’s the matter baby, and I’m like my hands are wet. And I thought, what is that? Oh, my lord, that is a horrible smell. Then we had to try to get it off of him, and you know, who has cans of tomato juice in their house? So we’re using fresh tomatoes, rubbing fresh, seriously I swear. We’re in the shower scrubbing Trevor with fresh tomatoes. I ran to get more tomatoes, I come back and there’s like Anne naked in the shower with the dog, which is where’s the paparrazzi then, when you need them, you know? But, and she'd just done Psycho, so there is like red all over the shower.

JL:Ooh, bad image.

It was weird, it was very strange.

JL:Bad image.

So, that's the beginning, that was our first week, our initiation. And then I call the vet, and the vet comes out the next day to check on him because he's like, you know, scrubbed his face like trying to get the smell off. He was like bleeding and everything it was just, it was horrible. I mean his nose was bleeding, his eyes were bleeding because the smell was just so bad. So, the vet comes out and he’s checking the yard and he goes, I don’t know the skunk could still be in the yard, but I don't see anything, but you really got to be careful of the coyotes cause, you know, they’ll get in here. And now I’m thinking, okay, well, I knew there would be coyotes, but, you know. He said, oh, they’ll jump this fence. This fence can’t keep them out, you know, cause we have barbed wire, we have everything, and they're like evidently not afraid of that. So, he’s like, well, you can do things to keep 'em away you know like, so I look into this, you can actually buy tapes of gunshots over and over again.

JL:Gun’s firing?

Yes, just like you put a tape in and just have speakers blaring. Somebody, I don’t know who goes into a studio and records a just gunshot going off, you know like. But that’s what someone...you buy that. Or, or human hair. If you spread human hair around the property. Or, human urine. If you just urinate around your property, evidently, the coyotes don’t like that. And neither do our neighbors. They're not comin’ around either.

JL:Bears too?

Bears. And um, and now gophers are the biggest problem because we have, we have like lots of gardening stuff, you know, we have like vegetables.

JL:What? You live on an arch?

We have a whole ecosystem going on. We have like...it’s insane. And the gophers are tearing up the yard, and so, of course, we don’t want to loose all of our vegetables and everything. So they want to kill them, they want to go and put stuff down the hole and kill them. And I was crying, I was like weeping inside when he started putting the poison down the holes and so I thought, you know. And they said that you can take traps and catch them and release them somewhere where they should be because I don’t want to hurt them, I just don’t want them in my yard. Which I what I think we should do with paparrazzi. Just like trap them and then take them to like the Grand Canyon or Seaworld where they should be taking pictures, you know. So, it's been a lot. It’s not as peaceful as we thought. We’ve got like a lot of stuff going on there.

JL:Now let me ask you honey, you did this movie, and a wonderful job this EDtv. Tell folks what it’s about, a new Ron Howard comedy. Very funny, boy you’re really funny in this one.

Thank you. It’s a great story. It’s about a guy who wants to be on t.v. 24 hours a day. Well, basically, from the time he wakes up to the time he goes to sleep. And, uh,  and live. And it’s my idea. And uh, so it’s, you know, it's just about celebrity and what happens to you, and if you choose to get into this, but he goes too far. And it's a, it’s a great movie, and, you know, Ron Howard directed it who is...

JL:He’s great. Isn’t he a nice guy?

You know, really. And everybody says that, and it’s kind of like I know people are sick of it, but he is the nicest, nicest guy when he’s not drinking. He is just the sweetest, you know...

JL:But you should use it to keep the coyotes away. Maybe he could urinate in your yard after he drinks.

I’ve got a bunch of it. I collected a lot of it from the set. But um, you know, he is just the sweetest guy, it’s a great movie, and I had a lot of fun doing it.

JL:And we see a different side of you, I must admit, I was surprised. I said, wow, is that Ellen, you know.

Well, that’s nice. I keep hearing people are a little surprised. I, you know, from doing a show, I did a show, I don’t know if you know that, for about five years. And um...

JL:Yeah, I didn’t get a chance to see much.

Yeah, well, nobody really paid attention to it. But anyway, it was one character... I’m kidding. But thank you for caring!

JL:People go ooohh, Jay didn’t want you to be mad (or something like that, he’s mumbling).

But, I played that one character for five years, so it’s nice to all of a sudden be able to...

JL:(interrupting Ellen) And they think that is you, and, of course, it’s not you.

Right, and this is a stretch for me, it’s definitely something different that the people haven’t seen. And the clip, I guess, is me and Matthew McConaughey, it’s pretty self-explanatory.

JL:Okay, you and Matthew McConaughey, here’s a scene from EDtv. Let’s take a look.

   (Scene with M. McConaughey and Liz Hurley – kissing and smooching)

JL:Now let me ask you something, I know you weren’t looking at the t.v.. Is it hard for you to watch yourself like that?

It’s hard to watch myself like that. I have to gear-up and uh. I don’t know, I just, I mean I love doing it, and Matthew is a great guy.

JL:Well you look great!

Yeah, thanks, um.

JL:Now what’s next for you, what have you got, what's going on next?

Well, I'm, actually I am working on a new TV Show with Barry Levinson. So that's what I'm actually working on right now.   Thank you.

JL:And some more movies?

Yeah, I have a couple of movies coming out, and it’s nice that I’m getting to, you know, since the show ended I’ve actually met with a lot of people, and I was this close (indicating with fingers) to getting the part in Elizabeth, but Cate Blanchet got it. But, um, I just love dressing like that, so if I can get a movie like that I’ll do it.