Ellen K. (born September 19, 1962) is an American

radio personality A radio personality (American English) or radio presenter (British English) is a person who has an on-air position in radio broadcasting. A radio personality who hosts a radio show is also known as a radio host, and in India and Pakistan as a rad ...

in the

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the wor ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

market and a television host. She is the host of the Ellen K Radio Show on KOST 103.5 FM, and the nationally-syndicated weekend program ''Ellen K Weekend Show'' on iHeartMedia AC-formatted stations like Lite FM in New York and in Chicago. From 1990 to 2015 she worked at KOST's sister station 102.7

KIIS-FM KIIS-FM (102.7 MHz) is a commercial radio station licensed to Los Angeles, California, United States, and broadcasts to the Greater Los Angeles area. The station airs a top 40 format. Owned by iHeartMedia, KIIS-FM is the origin of the conglome ...

, co-hosting the

Rick Dees Rigdon Osmond Dees III (born March 14, 1950), best known as Rick Dees, is an American entertainer, radio personality, comedian, actor, and voice artist, best known for his internationally syndicated radio show '' The Rick Dees Weekly Top 40 Coun ...

morning show and later the On Air with Ryan Seacrest show. On October 19, 2015, Ellen took over the morning show at KOST after longtime morning host Mark Wallengren moved to afternoons.

History

She was born as Ellen J. Thoe in

Palo Alto, California Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was ...

, on September 19, 1962. The family lived in the area while her father, Dale Wesley Thoe, was a Ph.D. student at Stanford University. Ellen K. began her career in radio while in college after a year of collegiate swimming. Originally planning a career in Veterinary Science, she took an internship at a radio station, and after one fill-in shift behind the microphone she was hooked. She switched her major and graduated with honors in Radio/TV/Film from

Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...

. Over the years, larger market positions in radio convinced Ellen to move to various California radio stations, first in

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United States ...

, then

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

, and finally in Los Angeles at KIIS-FM. Ellen is a regular guest on the show ''The Talk'' and has participated in various productions such as the

Grammys The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

, the iHeartRadio Music Festival, the

People's Choice Awards The People's Choice Awards is an American awards show, recognizing people in entertainment, voted online by the general public and fans. The show has been held annually since 1975, with the winners originally determined using Gallup Polls unt ...

, and was most recently selected as the voice of the 92nd

Academy Awards The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

. Ellen also narrated '' My Big Fat Greek Wedding'' and '' My Big Fat American Gypsy Wedding'' on TLC. Ellen was honored with a star on The

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...

in 2012 for her work in radio. Ellen K appeared as herself on '' The Wayne Brady Show'' as his sidekick for two seasons in 2003–2004 and EXTRA TV a few years earlier. Ellen hosted the nightly TV news segments on KTLA Ch 5 titled, "Inside Hollywood" in 2012. Ellen resides in Southern California with her husband Roy Laughlin and her son Calvin.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ellen K Living people 1962 births People from Palo Alto, California Radio personalities from Los Angeles