Born: January 29, 1954
Place of Birth: Kosciusko, Mississippi
Major Notes:
Oprah Winfrey is reported to be the first African-American woman to become a billionaire.
Her parents were unwed teenagers; her father, Vernon Winfrey, was in the military and her mother, Vernita Lee, was a maid.
For six years, she lived with her grandmother on a farm which was without indoor plumbing.
Very bright as a child, Oprah Winfrey learned to read early and by age three was reading from the Bible.
In 1960, it was decided to let Oprah go to Milwaukee to live with her mother.
Unfortunately, she was subjected to sexual abuse by at least three individuals in this setting.
Several times, Oprah ran away from home getting into trouble and, finally, her mother decided to place her in a detention home.
It turned out there were no places for another child at the detention home so Oprah was sent to live with her father in Nashville.
Oprah Winfrey still did not settle down and found herself pregnant at 14 which resulted in a stillbirth.
At this time, she was very upset and decided to change her life around; her father provided the necessary support.
Perhaps because of his military background, he set up a regimental life style for his daughter.
Her father helped Oprah develop confidence in herself and she developed into a model high school student maintaining good marks and a good attitude.
In high school, she began to do some reporting work for a local radio station and then became a news anchor for a Nashville TV station.
Oprah Winfrey turned out to be a better talk show host than a news anchor and by 1985 had earned the right to host an hour long "Oprah Winfrey Show."
Also in 1985, Oprah played a part in a movie, "The Color Purple", for which she was nominated for an Academy Award.
She has a number of projects that came out of the Oprah show including Oprah's Book Club, Oprah's Angel Network, Harpo Films, "O" (The Oprah Magazine) and a new Dr. Phil show.
In 1987, The Oprah Winfrey Foundation was set up "to support the education and empowerment of women, children and families in the United States and around the world."
Oprah has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors including Best Talk Show Host of the Year and a Golden Globe award.
In addition, Time Magazine named Oprah Winfrey as one of the most influential people of the 20th century.
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