Oprah: The End Of An Era

After 25 seasons, Oprah Winfrey (The Ultimate Baller) has put an end to her multi-award winning daytime talk show The Oprah Winfrey Show. Who would have thought a woman who came from the ghetto,  was raised by a single teenage mother, a victim of molestation since age 9 and pregnant by age 14 would later in life have the countries longest running television show and at one point, be the only African American billionaire in the WORLD? Oprah has been an inspiration to so many and her show will be missed.

For those who are unsure why Oprah Winfrey is named BA’s Ultimate Baller, allow me to break down her accomplishments:

– In 1983, Winfrey relocated to Chicago to host WLS-TV‘s low-rated half-hour morning talk show, AM Chicago. The first episode aired on January 2, 1984. Within months after Winfrey took over, the show went from last place in the ratings to overtaking Donahue as the highest rated talk show in Chicago.

– In 1985 Oprah was nominated for an Academy Award (Best Supporting Actress) for her role as Sofia in “The Color Purple”.

– In 1986 Oprah founded Harpo Productions, a multimedia production company. 

– In 1993, Winfrey hosted a rare prime-time interview with Michael Jackson, which became the fourth most watched event in American television history as well as the most watched interview ever, with an audience of 36.5 million.

– In 2000 Winfrey launched and published her own magazine O: The Oprah Magazine. In 2002 Fortune called O, the Oprah Magazine the most successful start-up ever in the industry.

– Oprah became a millionaire by age 32. At age 41, Winfrey had a net worth of $340 million and replaced Bill Cosby as the only African American on the Forbes 400. She’s remained the only African American to rank among America’s 400 richest people nearly every year since 1995.

– In 2004 Oprah established the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls in Henley on Klip south of Johannesburg, South Africa. She also teaches a class via satellite.

– Don’t worry, although The Oprah Winfrey Show is off air, you will still be able to find Oprah on her very own cable television network “OWN“

Thank you Oprah for being an inspiration to women, to African Americans and to all of us who have gone through hardships and are thinking of giving up.