Matthew Wright, the former executive producer of“The Ellen DeGeneres Show,”died Friday at 52 while working remotely in Los Angeles. He spent over fifteen years with the show, from 2006 until its 2022 finale, and occasionally stepped in front of the camera too. Ellen announced his death in a tearful Instagram video Monday, calling him“an amazing guy”and saying she believes he’s now with Stephen“tWitch”Boss, the show’s former DJ who died in 2022.
A GoFundMe was launched to transport Wright’s body to New York and cover funeral and memorial costs. It surpassed its $50,000 goal by Tuesday morning with nearly 400 donations. DeGeneres donated $5,000, Allison Holker (tWitch’s widow) donated $500, and longtime executive producer Andy Lassner donated $1,000. The fundraiser’s success means the family will get the help it needs.
The donation amounts, though, set off a social media storm. Critics called $5,000 a small sum relative to DeGeneres’wealth, while supporters argued she may be assisting the family privately and that public donations aren’t the full picture. What do you think: should celebrity donations be publicly scrutinized, or is all giving personal? Sound off in the comments.
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Local Lawton
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