On September 7 , 2006 , DeGeneres was selected to host the 79th Academy Awards ceremony , which took place on February 25 , 2007 . This makes her the first openly gay person to have hosted the event . During the Awards show , DeGeneres said , " What a wonderful night , such diversity in the room , in a year when there 's been so many negative things said about people 's race , religion , and sexual orientation . And I want to put this out there : If there were n't blacks , Jews and gays , there would be no Oscars , or anyone named Oscar , when you think about that . " Reviews of her hosting gig were positive , with one saying , " DeGeneres rocked , as she never forgot that she was n't just there to entertain the Oscar nominees but also to tickle the audience at home . " Regis Philbin said in an interview that " the only complaint was there 's not enough Ellen . " DeGeneres was nominated for an Emmy Award as host of the Academy Awards broadcast . On August 2 , 2013 , it was announced that DeGeneres would host the Academy Awards on March 2 , 2014 , for the second time
79th Academy Awards
79th Academy Awards
Ellen DeGeneres