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Once upon a time, oh say, way back in 1997, there was a lesbian, some of you may have heard of her, named Ellen. Now, Ellen, who is the heroine of this tale, was small, petite, blond, and had a quirky little smile that would melt the hearts of an entire audience. She had a way of endearing herself to everyone, until that is, she decided to do the unthinkable and come out as a lesbian. The nation, nay, the world, drew a collective gasp of horror that someone would mention the “G” word on TV and claim it as their own. Soon this media darling had daggers of harsh words thrown at her then her show was cancelled. Tucking her tale between her legs, she slinked off to Ojai, the lesbian capital of Southern California, to lick her emotional wounds.

Then one day, the dark clouds lifted, and Ellen came out from under the rain to a beautiful colored rainbow waiting to whisk her away to a wonderful new and diverse accepting audience who reveled in her gayness and accepted her as what she was all along, an entertainer who loved to make people laugh. (And, besides, Ojai was just too damn hot anyway.) Now, don’t get me wrong, those dark clouds didn’t just miraculously blow away. Oh, no. Hollywood executives came out from beneath their protective arms and realized the world did not explode and swallow up all the gay people (a high percentage of whom work in Hollywood) just because someone finally mentioned, no declared, their homosexuality, which everybody already knew anyway. Before the brightly colored rainbow carried Ellen to her current life of being much beloved the world over, something started to change in the eyes and minds and hearts of the TV viewing audience. They started accepting gay characters on TV. Now, who knows, this might have happened earlier if Hollywood hadn’t been so concerned about censoring the big bad “G” word, but happen it did. Will and Grace, a TV show about a gay man with several gay characters, became a hit. Lesbian characters began cropping up in many popular TV shows like ER and Buffy, and the shows remained popular. No longer was a kiss between two women seen as a threat to primetime. But, one thing was clear; these were just actors playing parts. No real celebrities, those in the public spotlight, dare to speak of being gay. Even Ellen does not routinely speak about being gay on her daily talk show. Oh, sure, we all know she’s gay, so she doesn’t have anything to prove or disprove, she is who she is, and we all accept that. Thank the Goddess! And, thank Ellen. However, many famous actors and actresses still refuse to come out because they are afraid of losing work. Ellen’s proclamation only advanced humanity so far. So far as funny goes, it’s ok to be gay.

Wait a minute, you must be saying by now. I thought this was about Rosie, not Ellen! Well, this is where Rosie comes in as a lesbian role model, gasp! Did I really just say that? She’s a loud, brusque, obnoxious, rude, loud (oh I said that already) lesbian! I don’t look up to her, you say? She doesn’t represent lesbians in the media, you insist? Well, wait a minute. Rosie is doing what no other person is doing for the homosexual community – she’s talking about it. Yep. She talks about her mother-in-law, her wife, their kids, their home, their vacations — just the way a straight woman talks about her own family. Rosie is making being gay a common, ordinary, every day thing. By being highly visible and speaking about her life as a lesbian in a committed lesbian relationship, she’s doing what no other celebrity, or famous person, is doing for the gay community – she is making us look like normal people – the people next door, instead of those people, you know, them, the “G” word people. So, is Rosie doing us a favor by being big and loud? Would she make as big an impact if she were a timid, shy person who’s waiting to be called on before speaking? Well, yes, and no. Many people want to compare Rosie to Ellen. Ok, so what do they have in common? Well, they’re both women, they’re both comedians, they’re both in the public eye, and oh, yes, they’re both lesbians. Other than that, there isn’t much else they have in common. So, why should everyone expect Rosie to behave like Ellen, or vice versa for that matter? I applaud Rosie for having the gumption to speak up and speak her mind. And, that is why she’s on The View. She holds yet a different opinion, by a woman who is different from all the other women on the panel by the virtue of being a lesbian. I applaud Barbara Walters for wanting to seek out a diverse opinion from a woman who is not ashamed, scared or too intimidated to talk about being gay. I may not want to aspire to be like Rosie, unless of course, you’re talking about falling in love, having a wife, children, and yes, even a mother-in-law.