Who Is Betty DeGeneres?: Everything About Ellen DeGeneres’ Mother

Betty DeGeneres is an American LGBT rights activist and a celebrity parent. Betty is the mother of the famous Ellen DeGeneres. Betty’s daughter Ellen is a comedian, television host, actress, writer, and producer, best known as the host of The Ellen Show. Betty has appeared in several episodes of The Ellen Show, sitting in the audience. Betty is also the mother of American actor, comedian, musician, film producer, and screenwriter Vance DeGeneres.

Betty DeGeneres: Bio Summary

How Old Is Ellen DeGeneres’ Mother?

Betty DeGeneres will be celebrating her 93 birthday on May 20, 2023. She was born on May 20, 1930, in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. Her birth name is Betty Jane Pfeffer. William Dick Pfeffer and Mildred Morrill are her parents. Her father was German and her mother was Irish.

Betty DeGeneres is not the only child of her parents. She is the youngest of three daughters born to her parents. Her sisters are Helen and Audrey. Becoming a speech therapist, Betty attended Louisiana State University (LSU) and studied speech-language pathology.

After the age of 50, Betty DeGeneres returned to LSU to complete her master’s degree in speech pathology. Betty DeGeneres is an author. She wrote the books: Love, Ellen: A Mother Daughter Journey and Just a mother. She also wrote a column for the (now defunct) website PlanetOut called “Ask Betty.”

Also Read: Elliott DeGeneres: What Happened To Ellen DeGeneres’ Father?

Betty DeGeneres has been married twice. She married Elliott Everett DeGeneres, Jr in 1952. They are the parents of Vance Elliott DeGeneres and Ellen DeGeneres. They filed for separation in 1973 and were divorced the following year in 1974. Betty remarried after the divorce.

Betty DeGeneres married a salesman Roy Gruessendorf. Betty and Roy moved to Texas with Ellen DeGeneres while Vance DeGeneres stayed with his father. Roy molested and attempted to sexually assault Ellen DeGeneres. Ellen told her mother but her mother didn’t believe her.

After several years Betty DeGeneres realized that Ellen was telling the truth. Roy Gruessendorf died in the year 1997.

Betty DeGeneres’ Reaction To Her Daughter Being A Lesbian

Betty DeGeneres’ daughter Ellen DeGeneres has come out as a lesbian. In Betty’s book Love, Ellen: A Mother Daughter Journey, Betty revealed that she was initially shocked when her daughter Ellen came out to be lesbian. However, she has currently given her support to Ellen.

Betty DeGeneres is an active member of PFLAG and the spokesperson for the National Coming Out Project for the Human Rights Campaign. Ellen is married to Portia Lee James DeGeneres.

What Happened To Ellen DeGeneres’ Mother?

Betty DeGeneres was diagnosed with breast cancer. This happened shortly after her second marriage. Her ex-husband Elliott DeGeneres died in January 2018, at age 92. Ellen DeGeneres talked about her father’s death in a video shared on Twitter.

Also Read: Vance DeGeneres: Who Is The Brother Of Ellen DeGeneres?

This week, at the age of 92, my father Elliott DeGeneres passed away. He lived a good long life. It wasn’t unexpected. I was able to say goodbye. pic.twitter.com/L0zEJJNPrq

— Ellen DeGeneres (@EllenDeGeneres) January 11, 2018

Ellen DeGeneres had a rainbow over her studio and she shared a photo of it on Twitter and caption it: “When I was a kid, my dad took us on one vacation to Warner Bros. Studios. He loved this business. He loved that I was in it. When he died, I saw this rainbow over the stage they named for me.”