Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres
One spent more than half a century quietly buying farmland in the Santa Clara Valley and turning it into office parks for the tech giants that would make Silicon Valley famous. The other became one of the most recognizable faces on television, hosting a daytime talk show for 19 seasons and flipping luxury homes on the side.
Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres don’t share a business, and there’s no public record of a direct partnership between them. But people often look up Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres together, and there’s a surprising thread running through both of their stories: real estate.
This article compares their backgrounds, education, careers, wealth, and the role property has played in each of their lives.
Quick Facts
| Richard Peery | Ellen DeGeneres | |
|---|---|---|
| Full name | Richard Taylor Peery | Ellen Lee DeGeneres |
| Born | Late 1930s (age 86 to 87 in 2026) | January 26, 1958 |
| Birthplace | Not widely published | Metairie, Louisiana |
| Education | Brigham Young University (bachelor’s), attended Stanford MBA program | Attended University of New Orleans |
| Known for | Silicon Valley real estate | The Ellen DeGeneres Show, stand-up comedy |
| Wealth source | Commercial real estate | TV, comedy, endorsements, real estate |
| Spouse | Mimi Peery | Portia de Rossi |
| Home base | Palo Alto, California | England |
Richard Peery: Early Life and Education
Richard Peery grew up in a family already involved in property. His father, Taylor Peery, owned real estate, and Richard took over management of his father’s portfolio while still in his 20s. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Brigham Young University and enrolled in Stanford’s MBA program but left before finishing.
His sister, Nancy Peery Marriott, married into the Marriott hotel family.
Richard Peery: Career Timeline
- 1950s to early 1960s: Took over his father’s real estate holdings.
- 1960s: Teamed up with John Arrillaga to buy farmland in the Santa Clara Valley, the area that later became Silicon Valley.
- 1970s to 1990s: The Peery-Arrillaga partnership built office parks and industrial buildings for fast-growing tech firms.
- 2000s to present: Holds millions of square feet of office space, with tenants including Intuit.
- 2022: His longtime partner, John Arrillaga, passed away at 84.
- 2024: Forbes ranked Peery No. 374 on the Forbes 400, with an estimated net worth of $3.6 billion.
Peery and his wife, Mimi, have four children. The family gives through the Peery Foundation, which supports youth, families, and social entrepreneurs.
Ellen DeGeneres: Early Life and Education
Ellen DeGeneres was born on January 26, 1958, in Metairie, Louisiana, a suburb of New Orleans. After her parents divorced, she moved with her mother to Texas, where she graduated from Atlanta High School in Atlanta, Texas. She briefly studied communication at the University of New Orleans before leaving to work a series of jobs, including legal clerk, waitress, and house painter.
Ellen DeGeneres: Career Timeline
- Early 1980s: Started performing stand-up comedy in New Orleans clubs.
- 1986: Appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and was invited to sit on the couch, a rare honor for a new comic.
- 1994 to 1998: Starred in the ABC sitcom Ellen.
- 1997: Publicly came out, both in real life and through her character on the show, in a landmark moment for TV.
- 2003: Voiced Dory in Pixar’s Finding Nemo, later starring in Finding Dory in 2016.
- 2003 to 2022: Hosted The Ellen DeGeneres Show for 19 seasons, winning dozens of Daytime Emmy Awards.
- 2016: Received the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
- 2022: Her talk show ended after reports of a toxic workplace culture behind the scenes.
- 2024: Released the Netflix stand-up special For Your Approval and moved to England with her wife, Portia de Rossi.
The Real Estate Thread
This is where Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres share common ground.
Richard Peery built his fortune almost entirely through real estate. He and Arrillaga bought cheap farmland before the tech boom, then leased offices to companies that became giants. Their holdings made both men billionaires.
Ellen DeGeneres has become known as one of Hollywood’s most active home flippers. Over the years, she and Portia de Rossi have bought, renovated, and sold many high-end homes in places like Beverly Hills, Montecito, and Santa Barbara, often for large profits. Real estate has become a major part of her wealth outside of entertainment.
| Real Estate Approach | Richard Peery | Ellen DeGeneres |
|---|---|---|
| Property type | Office parks and commercial buildings | Luxury residential homes |
| Strategy | Buy and hold, lease to tenants | Buy, renovate, and sell |
| Region | Silicon Valley | Southern California and beyond |
| Time frame | Decades-long holdings | Often a few years per home |
| Public profile | Very private | Highly public |
Philanthropy
Both have given back in very different ways.
Richard Peery gives through the Peery Foundation, a family foundation based in Palo Alto. Peery’s longtime partner John Arrillaga was also one of Stanford University’s biggest donors, funding athletic and campus buildings over many years.
Ellen DeGeneres has supported animal and wildlife causes for years. The Ellen DeGeneres Wildlife Fund backed the creation of the Ellen DeGeneres Campus of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund in Rwanda, which opened in 2022 to support gorilla research and conservation. She also used her talk show to give away money, cars, and scholarships to guests and viewers.
Different Kinds of Fame
Perhaps the biggest difference between them is visibility.
Richard Peery is famously private. He rarely gives interviews, and many people in the Bay Area have never heard his name, even as they work in buildings he owns.
Ellen DeGeneres, on the other hand, spent nearly two decades in American living rooms every weekday. Her catchphrase, “Be kind to one another,” became part of pop culture, and her famous 2014 Oscars selfie became one of the most retweeted posts of its time.
Is There a Connection Between Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres?
There’s no documented business deal, property sale, or personal relationship between Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres. Peery works in commercial real estate in Northern California, while DeGeneres has focused on luxury homes, mostly in Southern California. Searches pairing the two most often come from interest in wealthy Americans, real estate fortunes, or celebrity net worth comparisons.
Wealth Compared
Forbes estimated Richard Peery’s net worth at $3.6 billion in 2024, almost all of it tied to Silicon Valley property. Ellen DeGeneres is far less wealthy by comparison, though she still ranks among the richest entertainers in the US. Her fortune comes from her talk show, stand-up specials, production deals, endorsements, and profitable home sales. Estimates of her wealth vary by source, so treat any single number with caution.
Lessons From Their Paths
- Patience pays. Peery’s decades-long hold on Silicon Valley land shows the power of long-term investing.
- Diversify your income. DeGeneres turned TV earnings into real estate profits.
- Reputation matters. DeGeneres’s career shows how public perception can shift quickly.
- Partnerships count. Peery’s success was built alongside Arrillaga over many decades.
Where Are They Now?
Richard Peery remains one of Silicon Valley’s biggest private landlords and continues his philanthropy through the Peery Foundation. He lives in Palo Alto.
Ellen DeGeneres lives in England with Portia de Rossi. After her 2024 Netflix special, she said it would likely be her last stand-up special.
Final Thoughts
Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres took very different roads to wealth. Peery quietly built a commercial real estate empire in the heart of Silicon Valley, while DeGeneres became a TV star and later a high-profile home flipper. Comparing Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres shows two sides of American success: the private developer who stays out of the spotlight and the entertainer whose every move makes headlines. Both, in their own ways, proved that real estate can be one of the strongest paths to lasting wealth.
Key Takeaways
- Richard Peery is a Silicon Valley real estate developer in his late 80s, and Ellen DeGeneres was born January 26, 1958, in Metairie, Louisiana.
- Peery earned a bachelor’s degree from BYU and attended Stanford’s MBA program. DeGeneres briefly attended the University of New Orleans.
- Peery partnered with John Arrillaga in the 1960s to turn Santa Clara Valley farmland into tech office parks. Forbes estimated his net worth at $3.6 billion in 2024.
- DeGeneres hosted The Ellen DeGeneres Show from 2003 to 2022, voiced Dory in Finding Nemo, and received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016.
- Both have strong ties to real estate: Peery through commercial buy-and-hold investing, DeGeneres through buying and flipping luxury homes.
- There’s no documented business or personal connection between Richard Peery and Ellen DeGeneres.
- Peery lives in Palo Alto and gives through the Peery Foundation, while DeGeneres now lives in England with Portia de Rossi.
