Oprah Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954. Her home has been at Santa Barbra, California. She lives there with her partner, Stedman Graham. Oprah is a renowned talk show host, actress, American media proprietor, producer and philanthropist. The Oprah Winfrey show, multi-award winning talk show is what this great philanthropist is best known for. This show was the highest ranked show of its kind, being syndicated nationally in the period 1986-2011 (Winfrey 3). She is currently the CEO and owner of Oprah Winfrey Network. During her early life as an actress she was in the movie “The Color Purple” and the “Beloved”. In 2013, she starred in the movie, “The Butler” as Gloria Gaines. She has done documentaries and movies for HBO. She was also the voice for Gussie the Goose in “Charlotte’s Web” and also the voice Judge Bumbleden in the “Bee Movie”. This is just a few of the movies she was in.
Oprah has been known as “one of America’s top 50 most generous philanthropist” as she continues to contribute ten percent of her income ($385 million in 2008) to her favorite charities, related to education, youths, and literature. She had donated millions to Tennessee State University which is her alma mater as part of the scholarship funds, The United Negro Fund, to encourage young black Americans to pursue their dreams, and the Harold Washington Library, which is a program for economically disadvantaged Chicago-area young girls.
In 2007, Oprah organized the Oprah Winfrey Foundation which supports the education and empowerment of women, children, and families in the United States and around the world. She then opened the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls near Johannesburg in South Africa, helping young African American girls get an ed...
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...ak through the cultural barriers, especially in the highly diversified American society. Her humanitarian efforts remains a huge lesson for all of us to learn from. Oprah who is now aged 60 will continue to shape the lives of people and the image of philanthropy in this 21st century.
Works Cited
Feinstein, Stephen. Oprah Winfrey. Berkeley Heights, NJ: Enslow Publishers, 2008. Print.
Lofton, Kathryn, and Brenda R. Weber. "The Legacies of Oprah Winfrey: Celebrity, Activism and Reform in the Twenty-first Century." Celebrity Studies 3.1 (2012): 104-105. Print.
Wensink, Joseph. Literary Philanthropy: The Pulitzer Prize, Oprah's Book Club, and Contemporary U.S. Fiction. New York: Millersmith Publishers, 2012. Print.
Winfrey, Oprah, and Bill Adler. The Uncommon Wisdom of Oprah Winfrey: A Portrait in her Own Words. New York: Carol Pub. Group, 1997. Print.
Oprah Winfrey’s credibility in the entertainment industry is one that many use as a platform to follow to achieve their own success. Oprah Winfrey career started as an anchor for many local news stations in Nashville, Baltimore, and Chicago. Winfrey took over the half hour morning talk show A.M. Chicago. A year later the show was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show. The Oprah Winfrey Show was highly influential and gained credibility by not trying to profit off the products it endorsed (2013). The show allowed Winfrey the chance to debut her acting skills in 1985 with the movie The Color Purple by Steven Speilberg. Winfrey was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for her role in The Color Purple (Ward, 2011). Winfrey’s credibility for her acting skills and her talk show allowed her to launch The Oprah Winfrey Show nationally (Ward). From books to film, from health and lifestyle, to pressing social issues which demand attention and donations, Oprah and her self-created, self-named brand are one of the most sought after forms of endorsement for any business TeamGlad2bawoman (2013). This is why Winfrey has been able...
Oprah Winfrey achieved great success in her various endeavors, growing from a news reporter in Nashville to the world-famous talk show host she is today. During the 1980s, talk shows were a crucial part of daytime television. Shows were organized based upon their content and varied greatly in subject. The popularity of talk shows led many people to enter this field, leading to a constant struggle for airtime. Oprah’s rise to fame began when she moved from her hometown in Nashville, to college in Baltimore and ultimately to Chicago, where she lives today. She appeared on an early morning television program called A.M. Chicago, which was later retitled The Oprah Winfrey Show which aired its first episode on September 8, 1986. Talk shows like Oprah’s were wildly popular, especially to women, because they focused on entertaining their viewers rather than discussing political problems. The thirty-minute to hour-long programs allowed for people to escape their problems, even if only for a short period of time (Rose). Biographer, Ilene Cooper took on the challenge of writing a biography about the complex and extraordinary life of Oprah Winfrey. In an article on the Kirkus Review website, published in 2010, a critic enjoys how the author of the biography, Up close: Oprah Winfrey, “makes excellent use of many quotes from interviews, Oprah’s own writing and, of course, her television show” (“Oprah Winfrey”). This reviewer appreciates how the biographer uses all of her resources to understand more information about Oprah. Some of Oprah’s greatest contributions to society are her generous donations to several organizations, and the way she encourages individuals to take actions that can not on...
Oprah Winfrey is an outstanding & determined bright woman. Winfrey is a very advocate person. She has encouraged and inspired many people, but when she was growing up it was rough for her, but after her courageous and outstanding work, she is now a billionaire and helps a lot of charities.
Oprah Gail Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954 in Kosciusko, Mississippi living with a poor Baptist family (Wikipedia). Her parents, Vernon Winfrey and Vernita Lee were unmarried and still teenagers during the time she was born (Wikipedia). She lived with her grandmother where she would learn how to read aloud and recite sermons by the young age of 3 (America's Beloved Best Friend). At the age of 13 she would move to Milwaukee with her mother and that's when the trouble would start (America's Beloved Best Friend). She would face sexual abuse and molestation from her family relatives as a teenager, by her cousin, family friends, and her uncle (Victoria Walker). Oprah would keep this a secret and would bottle up her anger, which lead to trouble (Victoria Walker). She would repeatedly run away from home and was sent to juvenile detention, but her admission would be denied because the detention's overcrowded area (America's Beloved Best Friend). At the age of 14 she was impregnated by one of her abusers, but the baby would become stillborn, and this would devastate Oprah (Victoria Walker). Her mother would send her to live with her father as a last resort. She vowed to change her life (Victoria Walker).
Oprah Winfrey is not only the richest woman in the world, but she is also is known to be one of the most influential black women to ever live in the United States. She is a person “who has become successful and spread it around to those who need it the most” (Oprah 76). She has opened many different foundations to help others, For example, the Oprah Winfrey foundation. As if that already wasn’t enough she made a networking site called Oprah angel, what it does is help raise money for charitable causes around the world. In 2000 Oprah Decided to not only help others with Physical and financial problems, she wanted to go one step further. She published her own magazine called “O” that would give woman advice with how she deals with the same situations that woman do in their everyday lives. One of Oprahs greatest works is a leadership Academy that she established. It is a school in Africa that will prepare students for what awaits them on the other side of those doors. “It is a place where young girls will have the opportunity improve the quality of life for their sisters, and for generations to come” (Owla 12-13).
...hip that lead her to have her own show and television network. Oprah Winfrey’s influential style greatly impacted those who were after her in the entertainment industry. To this day Oprah is still one the most outgoing, down-to-Earth woman. Her astonishing personality has faithfully made her success what is today.
Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls is a boarding school, and was founded in January 2007, located in Johannesburg, South Africa. It was designed to help females that are “disadvantaged girls from deprived background.” Oprah’s main goal for the academy was to mentor academically these disadvantage females, and to help them unlock hidden talents to make a difference in their lives.
Oprah’s childhood was not the greatest. Her unmarried parents split up, and she grew up on a farm with her grandmother. She developed rapidly and could read before she was three. Also, she was tested out of kindergarten and second grade, thus only taking first grade and skipping to third grade. When she turned six, she started to live with her mother and was very lonely. However, she began her speaking profession around that time. “She was invited to recite poetry at black social clubs and church teas, where she became known as ‘the little speaker.’ At 12, during a visit to her father in Nashville, she earned $500 for a speech she delivered at a church” (“Winfrey, Oprah”). As you can tell, Oprah started young in her profession and was determined to make a living off of this since her prior experiences.
During her childhood years living with her mother, Oprah had very little money and life was difficult. She wants to help as many children as possible grow up in a sound, safe, and educational environment. Oprah has changed the world with all of her organizations and charity efforts. Oprah Winfrey has helped thousands of children attend school with her scholarships that she has funded. Many of these children would never go to school or continue their college career without her amazing efforts of providing financial support to these children. Oprah also helped build homes for families through her efforts with Habitat for Humanity and her donations after Hurricane Katrina helped families start their lives over again after the mass destruction of the hurricane by providing the financial support to rebuild many communities and neighborhoods(“Oprah Winfrey”). When researching Oprah Winfrey, I now realize why she is such an incredible person. The world is a better place because of Oprah Winfrey. This is another example of a person that has worked very hard to achieve her goals in life. Oprah strived for her dreams of being able to give back to the community and world. Oprah came from nothing, built an empire and became one of the most influential people in the world. While building an empire, Oprah has influenced millions of people achieve a better way of live. Oprah has positively
This essay I have decided to write about Oprah Winfrey. This is because Oprah had many serious life events. These life events must have implemented her key development stages or the other.
Oprah Winfrey is an African American woman who is known as a U.S. media celebrity. She has done so much to contribute to society as we know it and her legacy will forever live on. Mrs. Winfrey is well known and she uses her platform for positivity and love, which is a huge reason for her success. She is an intelligent leader who worked hard for the spot she has in life and strives to encourage others to be successful also. Mrs. Winfrey has written books, acted and produced films, hosted an infamous television show, and given to charities. Her hard work and dedication has made her one of the most influential women of all time. She strived for greatness and accomplished what she wanted out of life, despite various obstacles that had been in the
Oprah was born on a farm in 1954 to a poor family. Winfrey enjoyed reciting African American poetry, and became known as the "little speaker" in her town. When she was 12, Winfrey won $500 for a speech she gave at her father 's church. From then on she wanted to "be paid to talk." When Winfrey was a teenager, her dream was put on hold. Some of the trusted men of her family began to sexually abuse her. She lashed out in anger at the world by lying to her mother, running away from home, and stealing. Unaware of what Winfrey was going through, her mother sent her away to live with her father. If her mother never sent her away, Oprah 's life would have been much different. At age 17, Oprah Winfrey won the Miss Black Tennessee beauty pageant and was offered an on-air job at WVOL, a radio station for the African American community in Nashville. Oprah continued to work at WVOL in her first years of college, but her broadcasting career was already taking off. She left school and signed on with a local television station as a reporter and anchor. In 1976, she moved to Baltimore to join WJZ-TV News as a co-anchor. There, she co-hosted her first talk show, People Are Talking, while continuing to serve as anchor and news reporter. In January 1984, she was invited to Chicago to host a half-hour morning program on WLS-TV. In less than a year, she turned AM Chicago into the hottest show in
Oprah Winfrey is a role model to thousands of people out there. She has made people understand the purpose of life and how to live it in a way that you are happy. She wants people to help and care for unprivileged people. Oprah thinks that education is a right and not a privilege. She wants everybody to have a good education no matter who they are. Oprah has an amazing story. She went through so many failures in her life but yet still carried on. She had such a tough childhood that actually mad her stronger as a person, that shows us today that just because you had rough parts in life where you didn’t want to carry on you can still get through it and get to where you want to be. Failure determs the level of success you are on and that’s what
Despite all of her troubles, Oprah is now very successful. Although when she was young Oprah was faced with many difficult problems, she stuck to her school-work and pursued her love of teaching (Fry, web). One thing that Oprah is known for is her love of reading, teaching, and learning. This passion has helped her move forward and help others that are less fortunate than herself (Fry, web). These troubling things that Oprah was faced with turned her i...
Through her private charity, The Oprah Winfrey Foundation, she has awarded hundreds of grants to organizations that support the education and empowerment of women, children and families in the United States and around the world. Amongst her various philanthropic efforts, she has contributed millions of dollars towards providing a better education for the poor and needy but intelligent kids who have no means of education. She has also developed schools to educate thousands of underserved children internationally and created "The Oprah Winfrey Scholars Program," which gives scholarships to students determined to use their education to give back to their communities in the United States and abroad. Oprah 's commitment to children also led her to initiate the National Child Protection Act in 1991, when she testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee to establish a national database of convicted child abusers. On December 20, 1993, President Clinton signed the national "Oprah Bill" into law (Associated Press).