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WATCH: Ellen DeGeneres fights back tears while celebrating 20 years since she came out

It has been 20 years since Ellen DeGeneres came out as gay.

And the comedian celebrated the milestone on her talk show on Friday, with a little help from her famous friends including Oprah Winfrey, Laura Dern and her wife Portia de Rossi.

Ellen recalled the episode of her sitcom in which her character came out, and grew tearful when the audience gave her a standing ovation.

“My character, Ellen Morgan, came out as a lesbian, and I, Ellen DeGeneres, came out at the same time,” she said. “It was the first time a lead character had come out. I can’t tell you how challenging it was to get this episode made, and at the time, it was so controversial.

“It was the hardest thing that I ever had to do in my life, and I would not change one moment of it because it led me to be exactly where I am today, standing in front of you, which is a joy.”

Oprah played the therapist in the episode, and revealed that there was no hesitation before she agreed to the role.

“I just said ‘yes,’ because I so believed in your truth,” she told Ellen on Friday. “And I wanted to support you. You wouldn’t have been able to open people’s hearts and touch hearts and minds and make a difference in the world had you not had the courage to do that.”

Ellen was also surprised by Michelle Obama, who shared via video message, “Time and again you have shown us what love really means.

“You are brave, you are kind – you are a terrible person to go shopping with – and I absolutely adore you. Congratulations again. Love you much.”

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