Looking Back At Oprah Winfrey’s Legendary Life To Celebrate Her 66th Birthday

Jan 29, 2020 by apost team

Oprah Winfrey, the queen of all media, turns 66 today. To celebrate her special day we’ll look back on her life and her biggest achievements.

Oprah Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954,  in the rural town of Kosciusko, Mississippi. Most of her turbulent youth was spent in poverty and she was constantly moved around the country to live with various family members before she had even reached her teens.

Oprah displayed great intelligence and speaking abilities early on and these were encouraged by her grandmother and father. She went on to win a full scholarship to Tennessee State University where she studied communications. Winfrey worked at a local radio station and moved to a local Nashville television station where she became the youngest news anchor and the first black female news anchor. 

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She finally relocated to Illinois and took over hosting duties of “AM Chicago.” Just months later the show had overtaken Phil Donahue’s talk show in the ratings. Winfrey quickly signed a syndication deal and on September 8, 1986, the first countrywide, hourlong Oprah Winfrey show debuted.

As a host, Winfrey was credited with being attuned to her audience than other talk show hosts at the time. With changing the tabloid format, she was able to connect with her audience and interviewees by revealing stories about her past. She opened up about her weight and relationship problems and even disclosed that she had been molested in her youth.

This type of public confessional therapy was dubbed the "Oprahfication" of television. Oprah also helped raise the profile of gay, bisexual, transsexual, and transgender people to helped those groups gain mainstream acceptance.  

By the 1990s her show had broadened its format. She discussed health, spirituality, literature and social issues, in addition to the celebrity interviews for which she had become famous.

In 1993 Oprah made television history once again. Her primetime interview with Michael Jackson became the most-watched interview ever, with a worldwide audience of 100 million.

Winfrey’s talk show also resulted in something called “The Oprah Effect” this was the suggestion that Oprah Winfrey and her show were powerful enough to influence the American public in terms of book sales, religion, spirituality, and even political opinions. 

In 2011, after 25 years the Oprah Winfrey Show aired its last new episode on May 25, 2011. Despite falling ratings, the show had remained the number one talk show since it had first aired in 1986.

Oprah spent most of career in front of the camera, but not all as host of her talk show. In 1985 she starred in the Steven Spielberg film “The Color Purple” and this role got her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. In 1998 she produced and starred in the film adaptation of the novel “Beloved.” She went on to produce films and lend her voice to a number of children’s features.

Winfrey has also found success in the magazine industry with her booming “O - The Oprah Magazine” which debuted in 2000. She further proved her influence by transforming a number of television personalities into household names, including Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz,  Rachel Ray and her long time best friend Gayle King.

Oprah Winfrey also became the world’s first black female billionaire and is considered the most influential African-American of her generation. Throughout her career, Winfrey frequently made charitable donations to people in need.

Let’s wish Oprah Winfrey a happy birthday and thank her for her generosity and honesty over the years! Be sure to pass this article along to all Oprah fans out there!