Janette Barber Janette Barber ("JA" in "JAhero") and O'Donnell have been friends for 20+ years. Janette was a former writer for
The Rosie O'Donnell Show. The two met doing stand up in the 1980s. She often shares unique stories about her life such as her dad burying a can of peas in the ground then replacing them with raisins. She met her partner, Barry, on the Internet when she was working on O'Donnell's show. Barber enjoys alternative rock, gardening and boxing. Barber was allegedly escorted from ABC building during the week of May 21, 2007 for drawing a moustache on a magazine picture of Elisabeth Hasselbeck that was posted on a bulletin board. Rosie explains the incident in the Jahero (Minus Janette) blog posted on 5/26.
Helene Macaulay Helene Macaulay ("HE" in "JaHEro") is O'Donnell's hair stylist and makeup artist. She is often seen eating unusual foods such as dark chocolate, salmon, cold pizza, and large turkey legs for breakfast on the blog. She says her eyes are puffy in the morning so to mask them she usually wears retro aviator sunglasses on the blog. Macaulay is an advocate for environmentally friendly materials and habits and was found to reuse makeup sponges. She watches little-to-no television and also takes several classes, including: French, speech, and singing. Helene is also an actor, writer, director and producer for film and theater. She and her brother Gavin Macaulay co-directed and produced two documentaries, "Frankie's Mambo: El Ritmo Diablo" and "Chema's House", both of which aired on PBS. Helene's other celebrity clients include
Edie Falco and
Mariah Carey Rosie O'Donnell Rosie O'Donnell ("RO" in "JaheRO") is an American comedian, actress, singer, author and media personality. She has also been a magazine editor and continues to be a celebrity blogger,
LGBT rights activist, television producer and collaborative partner in the LGBT family vacation company
R Family Vacations. Raised
Roman Catholic, O'Donnell lost her mother to cancer as a pre-teen and has stressed the importance of protecting children and supporting families throughout her career. O'Donnell started her comedy career while still a teenager and her big break was on the talent show
Star Search when she was twenty years old. A TV sitcom and a series of movies introduced her to a larger national audience and in 1996 she started hosting ''
The Rosie O'Donnell Show'' which won multiple Emmy awards. During her years on ''The Rosie O'Donnell Show
she wrote her first book, a memoir called Find Me'' and developed the nickname "Queen Of Nice" as well as a reputation for philanthropic efforts. She used the book's $3 million advance to establish her own
For All Kids foundation and promoted other charity projects encouraging other celebrities on her show to also take part. O'Donnell
came out stating "I'm a
dyke!" two months before finishing her talk show run, saying that her primary reason was to bring attention to
gay adoption issues. O'Donnell is a
foster—and
adoptive—mother. She has since continued to support many
LGBT causes and issues. In 2006 O'Donnell became the new moderator on
The View boosting ratings and attracting controversies with her liberal views, and strong personality, dominating many of the conversations. She became a polarizing figure to many and her strong opinions resulted in several notable controversies including an on-air dispute regarding
the Bush administration's policies with the
war in Iraq resulting in a mutual agreement to cancel her contract. In 2007 O'Donnell also released her second memoir,
Celebrity Detox, which focuses on her struggles with fame and her time at
The View. She continues to do charity work and remains involved with LGBT and family-related issues. In 2008 O'Donnell starred in and executive produced
America, a
Lifetime channel original movie in which she plays the therapist of the title character, a 16-year-old boy
aging out of the
foster care system. The film is based on the
E.R. Frank book of the same name. In November 2009 "Rosie Radio", a daily two-hour show with O'Donnell discussing news and events on
Sirius XM Radio, premiered. O'Donnell said she was approached by the company after she appeared on
The Howard Stern Show. O'Donnell has signed on with the
Oprah Winfrey Network OWN to return to daytime TV with a talk show in Fall 2011. ==References==