They Lived Here ROSIE O’DONNELL

New Yorkers are unique in a variety of ways. Their brash attitudes however, are an especially distinguishable quality. With that distinct New York attitude and a thick Long Island accent, Rosie O’Donnell, a talented young comedian propelled herself to a life of stardom.
She is today one of the most recognizable figures in popular culture. Although she has made a name for herself around the world, Bayside, Queens was her first home.
Roseann Teresa O’Donnell was born on March 21, 1962 in Bayside, Queens. Her father, Edward J. O’Donnell, was an Irish Catholic immigrant from Belfast who designed spy cameras for satellites. Her mother, Roseann Murtha, was an American-born homemaker of Polish and Irish Catholic decent. Although O’Donnell was born in Bayside, she was raised in Commack, Long Island.
At the age of 10, O’Donnell’s mother passed away from pancreatic and liver cancer. While O’Donnell and her siblings were not allowed to attend their mother’s funeral, their father added to their misery as he abandoned the five kids soon after. Dealing with such great losses at an early age was difficult for O’Donnell and her siblings.
They were forced to learn to fend for themselves with the help of neighbors and teachers. O’Donnell found comfort in watching television and movies, where she adopted prominent women like Lucille Ball, Barbra Streisand and Bette Midler as role models. It was not until high school however that O’Donnell came out of her shell.
Starting to discover her talents for acting and comedy, O’Donnell gained recognition for imitating Gilda Radner’s character “Roseanne Rosannadanna,” in a high school skit. O’Donnell was elected prom queen, homecoming queen, most school spirited student, and class president.
After graduation, O’Donnell boldly decided to pursue an acting career through comedy. She went out on tour where she appeared in 49 states over the next five years. It was a difficult time in O’Donnell’s life as she was disconnected from her family, but she was able to learn some valuable lessons to improve her act.
She attended Dickinson College and transferred to Boston University, but she never finished her degree because her career took off. Although she was young and inexperienced, audiences enjoyed O’Donnell’s quick wit and her dry sense of humor.
As she continued to entertain audiences, O’Donnell got her big break when she made an appearance on the popular talent show, Star Search. She made five winning appearances on Star Search before she decided to move to Los Angeles in 1984. She was offered the role of vee-jay on VH-1, where she would become popular with teens across America.
O’Donnell also received her long awaited chance to act in movies soon thereafter. She played supporting roles in films such as A League of Their Own and Sleepless in Seattle.
In 1995, having established herself in the industry, O’Donnell was offered the opportunity to host her own talk show, The Rosie O’Donnell Show. The show was an instant hit as fans appreciated the playful nature of O’Donnell’s show. She was crowned the “Queen of Nice,” because of the show’s success, which won five consecutive Daytime Emmy Awards for outstanding talk show and talk show host.
More recently, O’Donnell has taken a more serious approach to her career. Acknowledging her homosexuality shortly after leaving her talk show, O’Donnell has tried to become a face for the gay community.
She married her long time partner, Kelli Carpenter, on February 26, 2004. Aside from trying to change the stigmas of gay couples, O’Donnell has also become an activist of adoption. O’Donnell and Carpenter have adopted three children: Parker Jaren, Chelsea Belle, and Blake Christopher. The couple’s fourth child, Vivienne Rose, born to Carpenter was conceived through artificial insemination.
In 2006, O’Donnell made her return to television as a co-host on The View. Replacing Meredith Vieira as the show’s moderator, O’Donnell sits along side Barbara Walters to discuss issues in the news. Although she has moved away from comedy for the time being, O’Donnell continues to find herself in the middle of controversies, a habit that many New Yorkers cannot seem to avoid.