"It's much easier for me to make a major life, multi-million dollar decision, than it is to decide on a carpet for my front porch. That's the truth. "

Every Publicist's Wet Dream!

Oprah Winfrey is the host and producer of one of the most successful talk shows in the history of television, Oprah.

Winfrey was born to a very poor baptist family. Her mother, Vernity Lee, was a housemaid; her father, Vernon Winfrey was a soldier. Oprah was born when her parents were teenagers, and unmarried. Her early childhood was spent with her grandmother who took her to a church where she was nicknamed "The Preacher" for her ability to memorize bible verses quickly and recite them in front of audiences. Her grandmother said that she was born with the ability to perform.

At the age of six Winfrey returned to her mother's care. With her mother she lived in poverty and suffered sexual abuse from various family members. She was impregnated by one of her abusers at 14; she gave birth to a premature stillborn boy. Soon after she was sent to live with her father in Nashville. He encouraged her education above all else. She became an honors student, and received a full college scholarship.

Winfrey's media career began at her high school radio show at the age of 17. She began working in local media, making her the youngest and first black female news anchor at WTVF-TV, Nashville. In 1976 she moved to Baltimore to co-anchor WJZ-TV's evening news. She launched WJZ's People Are Talking in 1978, which she co-anchored with Richard Sher.

In the early 80s Winfrey was in Chicago where she hosted WLS's local morning talk show, AM Chicago. The show was so well received that it was renamed to The Oprah Winfrey Show and broadcast nationally in 1986. The show is still extremely popular, and seen by over 21 million people weekly. Winfrey interviews celebrities, promotes charities, and has notable audience giveaways. For example, in the fall of 2004 she presented each member of the audience with a new Pontiac G6, where were donated by Pontiac for publicity.

Winfrey is a also a successful business woman. She co-founded Oxygen, a women's cable network. She is the president of Harpo Productions. She publishes O, The Oprah Magazine, and O, at Home. She has authored and co-authored over twenty books. Oprah has also appeared is a few films including The Color Purple (1985) and Beloved (1998).

Oprah lives with partner Stedman Graham, a motivational speaker and author; the two have been together for nearly twenty years. Their home is in Montecito, California. She also owns homes in Lavalette, New Jersey, and Chicago, where she is based. She recently purchased property in Maui, Hawaii.