Oprah Gail Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954 in Kosciusko, Mississippi. Her parents are Vernita Lee and Vernon Winfrey who were unwed teenagers at the time when Oprah was born. Here parents separated soon after her birth and Oprah was sent to live with her grandmother. Her grandmother was extremely religious and by the age of three, Oprah was reading the bible and reciting it in church. At the age of six Oprah was sent to Milwaukee to live with her mother. However, she was neglected and also sexually molested living a tragic childhood. Oprah ran wild at home and her mother tried putting her in a juvenile hall. When Oprah was only fourteen years of age, she gave birth to a premature baby, who died soon after.

In 1968, Oprah began turning her life around. She went to live with her father and stepmother in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Oprah Winfrey show generates more than $260 million a year with it's fifteen to twenty million viewers in the United States alone. Her show and other world have made Oprah one of the wealthiest women in the United States. She is worth an estimated $600 million. The Oprah Winfrey Show entered its 16th season in the year 2001. And in 2000, her magazine O: The Oprah Magazine debuted and has remained a best seller.

Her first big break was in 1973 when Oprah was hired as the first African American woman ever to anchor the news at Nashville's WTVF-TV. After just three years, in 1976, she moved to Baltimore, Maryland where she was hired to host the six o'clock news at WJZ-TV. However Oprah lacked the detachment to being a reporter and was demoted from news to work as the morning talk-show host of the station's chat show the People Are Talking. She remained at this job until 1983. Oprah then moved to Illinois in 1984 to host A.M Chicago, which was scheduled opposite of Phil Donahue's top-rated national talk show. Putting Phil's fame behind her, Oprah earned her respect and fame through her very personal interview approach. The show became known and called the Oprah Winfrey Show. In 1985, the show became nationally syndicated and overtook Donahue as the Nation's top-rated talk show. Without any acting experience, Oprah was then cast in the movies The Color Purple and the Native Son.

Oprah Winfrey is possible the greatest talk show host ever. Her warmth and integrity allows her to become intimate with her guests. She is personal and is not afraid to hold back on anything. Oprah is a successful, unique, African American woman who sets an example for millions to follow. "Oprah Winfrey argua

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