Top 10 Things You Didn't Know About Oprah

Facts you need to know about Oprah Winfrey.

Mediaworks NZ
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On Mar 29, 2017
1

Oprah was named "Orpah" after the biblical character in the Book of Ruth on her birth certificate, but people regularly mispronounced it and "Oprah" stuck.

2

She hated her name with "actual passion". To say that, growing up, wasn't too fond of her name is an understatement.

3

When Oprah was starting out as an evening news anchor for Baltimore’s WJZ-TV, she was fired for being too emotionally involved in the stories. Leave it to Oprah to turn getting fired into a million bucks. She was given a day time position shortly after (which was considered a huge step down in the news world), and turned the opportunity into the “Oprah Winfrey Show”.

4

Oprah Winfrey also dated renowned film critic Roger Ebert. Well, actually, Oprah and the late, groundbreaking reviewer went out on only two dates. But the second one was the most important date of Oprah’s life. It was on that evening, during a post-movie Hamburger Hamlet dinner, that Ebert talked Oprah into signing a national syndication contract for her then-local, Chicago talk show. On September 8, 1986, The Oprah Winfrey Show went national — and the rest is television, and cultural, history.

5

She completed her higher education with honors. She graduate at Tennessee State University, with degrees in speech communications and performing arts. Her impressive resume also boasts a line as College professor. She taught the dynamics of leadership at Northwestern University in 1999 and 2000.

6

She started dating Stedman Graham in 1986. They were engaged to be married in November 1992, but the wedding ceremony never took place. They are still together.

7

In November 2010, the talk show host was left completely stunned when she discovered that she had a second half-sister, Patricia, who she had never known about.

8

Was instrumental in getting "The Oprah Bill" passed. In 1993, President William Clinton signed the National Child Protection Act, often called the Oprah Bill because of Winfrey's staunch support of getting the bill signed into law. The bill gives parents the assurance that their children are not being cared for by criminals by creating a national database of child abusers.

9

Oprah established the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in Africa. It has 33 buildings on campus. As of May 2015 there are 193 graduates from this school who proceeded to different colleges and universities. Oprah considers starting a girls’ school in Africa to be one of her greatest accomplishments.

10

Oprah is an unadulterated philanthropy machine. Estimates say that she has donated more than $350 million to dozens, perhaps hundreds of causes and charities around the world. A few of Winfrey’s causes and those that she’s contributed to are:
• The Oprah Winfrey Foundation
• The Angel Network
• The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls South Africa
• The Mississippi Animal Rescue League
• Clinton Foundation
• Project Cuddle

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