In keeping with the holiday spirit, a pause would be appropriate during which to recall some of Oprah Winfrey’s Firsts, Mosts, Onlies, and other remarkable achievements, and this is by no means a complete list. We are looking at, let’s face it, a very unusual situation.
Aside from being female and Black, which are both disadvantages in some situations, and perceived as disadvantages in others, there is an aspect which almost always disqualifies a person from any sort of public acclaim: size. For most of her long and spectacular career, Oprah has been (depending on who makes the call) thick, chunky, fat, overweight, or obese — and yet, adored.
About this larger-than-life show-business personality, for whom the term “influencer” was seemingly invented, many things have been said. The main information trove for this series of posts is Harpo Inc., and other sources are also noted.
Mosts
In 1984 the TV show A.M. Chicago was in last place among local talk shows, until Oprah Winfrey began hosting, and within weeks it rose to the top of the rankings.
After its 1986 inception, The Oprah Winfrey Show took only a year to become the top syndicated talk show in the country. During its lifespan it consistently appeared at or near the top of various polls, like Best Daytime Talk Shows, Best 1980s Talk Shows, and so forth. By the turn of the century, it could be seen in around 140 countries. At its height, the show’s viewership was said to be 48 million in the U.S. alone. Over its lifetime, approximately 1.3 million people participated as live audience members.
At the 2004 People’s Choice Awards, Oprah was awarded the title of “Favorite Talk Show Host;” and somewhere along the way, became a first-name celebrity, not just in her native land but around the globe. In 2018, the National Museum of African American History and Culture engaged the public with an exhibit demonstrating how Oprah influenced the culture through TV.
Also, Apple announced an Apple TV partnership. A press release said,
The Oprah Conversation debuted on July 30, 2020, with Winfrey “[continuing] to explore impactful and relevant topics with fascinating thought leaders from all over the world…”
When after 25 years The Oprah Winfrey Show ceased, it had become the nation’s longest-running daytime talk show, and maybe even the number one talk show, period. It has even been called the highest-rated talk show in history. It won 47 Emmy Awards, and the 1993 interview with Michael Jackson was the most-watched interview in TV history (90 million viewers) and the fourth highest-rated television program of all time. After 4,561 episodes, Oprah was firmly entrenched in America’s brain. In 1996, TIME magazine designated her as one of America’s 25 most influential people.
The show didn’t enter into licensing deals or paid endorsements, even though she had plenty of companies banging at her door to become one of her “Favorite Things” or to see their latest releases as part of her Book Club. But Winfrey’s recommendations were all her own.
Of course, this multi-talented, infinitely compelling woman had other projects underway. In 1997, Newsweek named Oprah Winfrey “Most Important Person” in the books and media category. She was selected as TV Guide’s “Television Performer of the Year,” and also was given a People’s Choice Award for “Favorite Television Performer.”
In this century’s first decade, Oprah was being called the “Queen of All Media,” though the origin of the nickname is obscure. From the moment she was first named “the most influential woman in America,” that assertion would have been hard to disprove.
She and personal trainer Bob Greene co-wrote a health guide, and sold the rights in 2005 for an amount that was rumored to be the world’s highest-ever book advance fee. Generally acknowledged as one of the most powerful and wealthy show business figures, by 2007 she was known in some quarters as the most influential woman in the world.
The current Forbes.com list of the world’s most powerful women places Oprah at #33, in a field of 100. (She is, incidentally, one of the oldest.) Along the way, she has often made another Forbes roster, that of the highest-paid entertainers.
(To be continued…)
Your responses and feedback are welcome!
Source: “Harpo Inc.,” Company-Histories.com, undated
Source: “15 Chatty Facts About The Oprah Winfrey Show,” MentalFloss.com, 09/08/16
Source: “Smithsonian’s ‘Watching Oprah’ a powerful reminder of why we miss her,” ChicagoTribune.com, 07/20/18
Source: “Oprah Winfrey launching new show on Apple TV+,” CNN.com, 07/28/20
Source: “15 Most Popular Daytime Talk Shows Ranked,” ScreenRant.com, 07/15/24
Source: “Oprah Winfrey Biography,” IMBD.com, undated
Source: “The World’s Most Powerful Women,” Forbes.com, 12/11/24
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