Kathy Furgang - Oprah Winfrey: Businesswoman and Actress

Oprah Winfrey CHAPTER 1 OPRAH AS A CHILD Shes one of the most famous celebrities in the world. Shes often known by just her first nameOprah. She rose to fame as a talk show host and is today one of the most media personalities in the world. But Oprah Winfrey had to overcome a difficult childhood. She started out a long way from the life of wealth she knows today. A DIFFICULT BEGINNING Oprah Gail Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954, on a farm in Kosciusko, Mississippi.

Oprahs mother, Vernita Lee, was only 18 when she gave birth to Oprah. Her father, Vernon Winfrey, was 20. Vernita worked as a maid. Vernon was a coal miner and a barber. He eventually became a city . A sign stands in the area where Oprah was born in Kosciusko, Mississippi.

The road there has been renamed Oprah Winfrey Road. Oprah Says:I learned to read at age three and soon discovered there was a whole world to conquer that went beyond our farm in Mississippi. A YOUNG READER Growing up, Oprah had a very difficult life. Her parents separated after she was born. Her grandmother, Hattie Mae Lee, often took care of her. Her grandmother was very strict. She frequently beat Oprah.

However, she taught Oprah to read and write at age three. When Oprah entered kindergarten, she wrote a note to her teacher. She wrote that she belonged in the first grade. It worked. The teacher allowed her to skip to first grade. When Oprah was young, she moved around a lot. At six, she moved with her mother and other family members to a poor and dangerous neighborhood in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

The next year, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee, to live with her father. The following year, Oprah moved yet again. She returned to Milwaukee to live with her mother again. Through all of the moves, Oprah read books. They helped her see all of the possibilities in the world. CHAPTER 2 A SERIOUS STUDENT Things got very bad for Oprah while she lived with her mother in Milwaukee.

She was sexually by several people trusted by the family. The abuse went on for years. She was afraid to tell anyone about it. By the time Oprah was 13, she did not know where to turn for help. She even became pregnant and tried to hide it. Oprah ran away from home to escape her problems.

At 14, she gave birth to a son. He died after just a few weeks. It was around this time that Oprah told her father that she had been abused. She then went to live with him and his wife. Oprah and her father, Vernon. Oprah Says:My fathers insistence that education was the open door to freedom is what allows me to stand here today a free woman. Oprah attended East High School in Nashville, Tennessee. Oprah Says:My fathers insistence that education was the open door to freedom is what allows me to stand here today a free woman. Oprah attended East High School in Nashville, Tennessee.

She graduated in 1971. THE ROAD AHEAD Oprahs life began to improve when she went to live with her father and stepmother. She finally had the structure and support she needed. She read a lot and made weekly book reports. The book reports were in addition to her regular schoolwork. At college, Winfrey majored in speech communications and performing arts. Oprah was very to Tennessee State University. At college, Winfrey majored in speech communications and performing arts. Oprah was very to Tennessee State University.

The next year, a Nashville radio station hired her to read the news. CHAPTER 3 TALK SHOW STAR POWER After Oprah graduated college, she took a job at a TV station in Baltimore, Maryland. She worked as a co-anchor on the news. She did a good job. Soon she was hired as a on a talk show called People Are Talking. Oprahs next job was in Chicago, Illinois.

She became a cohost on a show called AM Chicago. It became so successful that it was renamed The Oprah Winfrey Show in September 1985. The show went national. This meant people all around the country saw it. On The Oprah Winfrey Show, Oprah interviewed guests and spoke about important topics. In 1978, Oprah was hired as a cohost for a local Baltimore talk show called People Are Talking . In 1978, Oprah was hired as a cohost for a local Baltimore talk show called People Are Talking .

She was an immediate success. AN INSPIRATION Oprahs success caught the attention of people all around the world. Famous people chose to be interviewed by her. She interviewed important people in the news. People felt comfortable talking to her. The show won 16 Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Talk Show and Outstanding Talk Show Host between the years 1987 and 1998.

She also became the youngest person to win the International Radio and Television Societys Broadcaster of the Year Award. Oprah Says:I dont think of myself as a poor ghetto girl who made good. I think of myself as somebody who from an early age knew I was responsible for myself, and I had to make good. Oprah interviews a young Will Smith, star of The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air , in 1992. Oprah looks on as President Bill Clinton signs the National Child Protection Act in 1993. The act created a database to track child abusers. Soon after The Oprah Winfrey Show started, Oprah started her own production company, Harpo Inc.

Harpo is Oprah spelled backward. MORE THAN JUST TALK Oprah was now a true celebrity. She was able to choose important projects that meant a lot to her. One of those projects was the 1985 film The Color Purple. The film was about a girl growing up in the South in the early 1900s. It was Oprahs first time acting in a movie. She was in the Best Supporting Actress category for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe Award.

In 1993, Oprah spoke in front of a group of United States senators. She asked for a national database to search for child abusers. President Bill Clinton signed the Oprah Bill into law on December 20 of that year. The law was called the National Child Protection Act. CHAPTER 4 A BUSINESS EMPIRE Oprah became more and more successful. People listened to what she had to say.