Here is a look at the life of
Oprah Winfrey, host of the award-
winning "The Oprah Winfrey Show."
Personal:
Birth date: January 29, 1954
Birth place: Kosciusko, Mississippi
Birth name: Oprah Gail Winfrey
Father: Vernon Winfrey, a barber
Mother: Vernita Lee, a maid (parents
never married)
Education: Tennessee State
University, B.A., Speech and
Performing Arts, 1976
Other Facts:
At age 19, while still a sophomore in
college, becomes the youngest and
first African-American anchor for
WTVF-TV in Nashville.
Stedman Graham has been her
companion for many years.
Three Emmy Award nominations with
one win .
17 Daytime Emmy Awards wins.
Since removing her name from
competition in the Daytime Emmy
Awards in 1999, "The Oprah Winfrey
Show" has won Emmy awards in the
technical categories only.
One Academy Award nomination with
zero wins. Won one honorary award.
One Tony Award nomination with
zero wins.
Timeline:
1976 - Becomes a news co-anchor at
WJZ-TV in Baltimore, Maryland.
January 1984 - Becomes the anchor
of "A.M. Chicago," which airs opposite
Phil Donahue.
September 1985 - The show is
renamed "The Oprah Winfrey Show."
1985-2011 - Host of "The Oprah
Winfrey Show," the highest rated talk
show in history.
1985 - Makes her film debut in "The
Color Purple," for which she was
nominated for a Best Supporting
Actress Oscar.
November 8, 1986 - "The Oprah
Winfrey Show" goes into national
syndication.
1987, 1988, 1989, 1996, 1997 - Wins
Emmy Award each of these years,
Best Talk Show for "The Oprah Winfrey
Show."
1988 - Forms her own production
company, Harpo Inc. Harpo is Oprah
spelled backwards.
1991, 1992, 1994, 1995 - Wins two
Daytime Emmy Awards each of these
years, Best Talk Show and Best Talk
Show Host for "The Oprah Winfrey
Show."
December 20, 1993 - President
Clinton honors Oprah by signing into
law the "Oprah Bill." This bill creates a
national database that allows people
to search for child abusers.
1993 - Wins two Daytime Emmy
Awards, Best Talk Show Host for "The
Oprah Winfrey Show" and
Outstanding Children's Special, "ABC
Afterschool Specials, Shades of a
Single Protein."
1996 - Starts "Oprah's Book Club" on
her show. The book club becomes
very influential in the publishing world
as selected books rise to the top of
bestseller lists.
1997 - Starts Oprah's Angel Network, a
charitable foundation.
1998 - Wins Emmy Award, Best Talk
Show Host for "The Oprah Winfrey
Show," tying with Rosie O'Donnell.
1998 - Produces the movie "Beloved."
1998 - Partners with Oxygen Media
which plans to operate a 24-hour
cable channel for women.
1999 - Withdraws her name for
consideration in the Daytime Emmy
Awards.
2000 - Winner of the Outstanding
Made for Television Movie for "Oprah
Winfrey Presents: Tuesdays with
Morrie."
April 2000 - Launches "O, The Oprah
Magazine," and the Oxygen Network.
2002 - Wins the Bob Hope
Humanitarian Award at the Primetime
Emmys.
February 2003 - Becomes the first
African-American woman on Forbes
magazine's "World's Richest People"
list, with a net worth of about $1
billion.
September 13, 2004 - Begins a new
season of her talk show by giving
each member of the audience a
brand-new car.
September 26, 2005 - Winfrey
announces that she is investing more
than $1 million to bring the musical
"The Color Purple" to Broadway in
December 2005.
February 9, 2006 - XM Satellite Radio
announces that it has signed a three
year deal with Winfrey worth $55
million. "Oprah and Friends" begins
broadcasting in September 2006.
January 2, 2007 - The Oprah Winfrey
Leadership Academy for Girls opens
in Henley-on-Klip, South Africa. The
school houses 152 girls from deprived
backgrounds and provides them with
an education. Winfrey has reportedly
spent $40 million dollars opening the
school.
September 8, 2007 - Hosts a
fundraiser for presidential hopeful
Barack Obama at her California home.
October 2007 - NBC buys the Oxygen
Network for $925 million.
January 15, 2008 - Winfrey and
Discovery Communications announce
that beginning in 2009 the Discovery
Health Channel will be renamed OWN:
The Oprah Winfrey Network.
November 20, 2009 - Announces on
her show that she will discontinue her
talk show on September 9, 2011. She
will then move to California and
launch OWN.
December 5, 2010 - Winfrey is
honored at the Kennedy Center as
part of the 33rd annual Kennedy
Center Honors gala.
January 1, 2011 - "OWN" airs.
March 2011 - Forbes estimates
Winfrey's worth to be $2.7 billion and
ranks at #420 in the World's
Billionaires.
May 25, 2011 - The last "Oprah
Winfrey Show" airs . There are no
guests for this episode.
November 12, 2011 - Winfrey receives
an honorary Oscar, the Jean Hersholt
Humanitarian Award, from the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and
Sciences.
January 1, 2012 - Winfrey's new
show, "Oprah's Next Chapter", debuts
on the OWN network.
March 2013 - Her net worth is
estimated to be $2.8 billion, putting
her at #503 on the Forbes Billionaires
list, #168 for American billionaires.
Her wealth makes her #151 of the
Forbes 400 Richest People in America,
and #2 of the World's Most Powerful
Celebrities.
June 26, 2013 - Regains #1 spot for
Forbes' World's Most Power
Celebrities.
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