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Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi began dating in December 2004, made their first reported public appearance as a couple in January 2005, and married on August 16, 2008. Accounts differ on when they first met: one places it in 2000, another in 2001.
When did Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi first meet?
Published accounts give two different versions of their first encounter. The Knot’s timeline says they met at a Rock the Vote concert in 2001. Us Weekly instead reports that they briefly met at a party in 2000. The accounts do not resolve the discrepancy, so neither date can be treated as definitive.
When did they start dating?
Their relationship is consistently dated to 2004, with both The Knot and Biography.com specifying December. The circumstances are described differently: The Knot recounts a renewed encounter at a photo shoot, while Us Weekly connects the start of the relationship with the VH1 Big in ’04 awards show. The sources support the month, but not a single uncontested account of where the relationship began.
Key milestones in their relationship
January 2005: First reported public appearance as a couple
The Knot places their first public appearance together as a couple at a Golden Globes afterparty in January 2005. DeGeneres later recalled that this was when people knew they were together.
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2005: de Rossi discusses being gay publicly
Us Weekly reports that de Rossi spoke about being gay and her relationship in an August 2005 interview with The Advocate. In a later interview with Oprah Winfrey, quoted by The Knot, de Rossi described being closeted while starring on Ally McBeal and fearing that speaking openly about being gay could end her career. That is her account of her own circumstances at the time.
May 2008: Engagement announcement
DeGeneres announced their engagement on her show in May 2008, after California’s same-sex marriage ban was overturned, according to The Knot.
August 16, 2008: Wedding
They married on August 16, 2008, at their home in the Los Angeles area. The Knot reports that the ceremony at their Los Angeles home had 19 guests. A contemporaneous Associated Press report carried by CBS News confirmed the wedding took place Saturday night at their Beverly Hills home; DeGeneres’s publicist confirmed the report.
2010: Reported legal name change
Biography.com reports that de Rossi received permission in 2010 to change her legal name to Portia Lee James DeGeneres. The Knot notes that she continued to use de Rossi professionally.
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2018: Tenth wedding anniversary
For their tenth anniversary in August 2018, DeGeneres shared a wedding video, according to The Knot.
2023: Reported vow renewal and fifteenth anniversary
The Knot reports that DeGeneres posted a video in February 2023 of de Rossi surprising her with a vow renewal at a birthday party. In August that year, DeGeneres marked 15 years of marriage in an Instagram post.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the public timeline establishes
The dated accounts trace a relationship that began in 2004, became publicly visible in early 2005, and led to marriage in 2008. Later public posts recorded anniversary milestones and a reported vow renewal. These reports document public events; they do not establish the couple’s private circumstances after those dates.
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