Facts About Oprah Winfrey

She may be one of the most recognizable faces in the world but less information is available about the Queen of Talk Shows herself. Most people recognize this African-American woman from her successful talk show "The Oprah Winfrey Show". The show which began in September 1986 made Oprah a household name and one of the most famous black women in the world.

The show is one of the highly rated shows in the US and is broadcasted in more than 146 countries all around the world. Every episode of the show concentrates on important instances surrounding human life. Most people know Oprah through the show, so let's know some interesting facts about her and understand what makes Oprah so influential.

Not many people know but Oprah plays many roles other than just entertaining people sitting at home. She's not just a television host but also an Oscar nominated actress, an influential business woman, a well noted philanthropist and the most influential woman in the world. Let's know some more amazing facts about Oprah Winfrey.

♦ Oprah Winfrey was born on 29th January 1954 in Kosciusko Mississippi to teenagers Vernita Lee and Vernon Winfrey.
♦ For the first six years of her life, Oprah lived with her grandmother in very poor conditions. She also had a tough childhood. At the age of six she moved back to an inner city neighborhood in Milwaukee with her mother.

♦ Winfrey states that she was sexually abused by her uncle, cousin and a family friend when she was 9.
♦ Oprah thanks her grandmother for her public speaking skills as she taught the young Winfrey to read and write at the age of 3.
♦ At the age of 14 Oprah gave birth to a baby boy who died two weeks later because the baby was two months premature.

♦ Her favorite color is green.
♦ Oprah Winfrey graduated from the Tennessee State University with a degree in Speech and Performing Arts.
♦ As per reports Oprah lives on a 12 acre mountain view estate called "The Promise Land" in Montecito, California outside Santa Barbara. She bought the entire piece of land for $50,000,000.

♦ The queen of talk shows is scared of heights and apparently doesn't like chewing gums as well.
♦ Everyone knows that Oprah loves books and her favorite book is To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee.

♦ Did you know that Oprah Winfrey's first name was supposed to be Orpah, after Ruth's sister-in-law from the Bible? The name was misspelled on birth certificate and the name Oprah got stuck.
♦ Winfrey's net worth is calculated to be more than a billion dollars and it's said that she will reward $100,000 to every person who turns in a declared sex offender.

♦ She doesn't use all of this money for personal things. Oprah's Angel Network has raised more than $51 million for various charities. Oprah regularly lends her support to all the big donations around the world.

♦ In 2007, Oprah with her personal money opened The Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in South Africa. For this ambitious project Oprah chipped in more than $47 million.
♦ She also donated $10 million for people affected by the Hurricane Katrina in the US.

♦ It's strange but true that Tom Cruise and John Travolta had asked Winfrey to convert into Scientology but she declined the offer saying, "She wasn't interested".
♦ Even though she's one of the richest women in the world, Oprah is not a big fan of shoes; she prefers walking barefoot instead.

♦ One of her many nicknames is "O", which is also the title of her magazine.
♦ Her most successful interview till date has been with the King of Pop, Michael Jackson in 1993. Over 100 million people all across the world watched the interview and it became the fourth most watched American television event.

♦ In the premiere episode of the show's 19th season, Oprah Winfrey gave every audience member a car. The car was the Pontiac G-6 mid-sized sports sedan and priced around $28,000.

♦ Oprah Winfrey holds the honor to be the first African-American woman to get featured on the cover of Vogue 1998 issue. For the photo shoot the editor in chief of Vogue Anna Wintour told Winfrey to lose 20 lbs which she did.
♦ After having a turbulent love life, Oprah met her current live in partner Stedman Graham and they have been together since 1986.

♦ Oprah's best friend is Gayle King. Gayle currently serves as an editor of O magazine and they have been best friends for more than 20 years.
♦ Oprah is one of the first people to own and host a talk show by herself. She is the current president of Harpo Productions.
♦ In 2013, she received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama.

Another amazing fact about Oprah Winfrey is that her talk show ended on 25th of May 2011. Millions around the world gave a tearful goodbye to this woman with a big heart. Hope this  facts about Oprah Winfrey was an interesting read.