Oprah Winfrey Timeline
1954
Short Biography of Oprah Gail Winfrey
Date of Birth: Born on January 29, 1954
Place of Birth : Kosciusko, Mississippi, USA
Parents: Born out of wedlock
Father: Vernon Winfrey, a coal miner
Mother: Vernita Lee, a housemaid
Background Facts, Information & Ancestry : African American. DNA test have revealed her
ancestry has roots in Liberia, East Asia and Native American tribes
1954
1954-1960 Oprah was raised on a farm by her grandmother, Grandma Hattie Mae.
1960
1960-1968. Moved from Milwaukee to live with her mother, stepsister and stepbrother in an
inner city ghetto in Mississippi. During this time O later revealed she suffered from abuse and
was raped by her cousin, uncle, and a family friend
1968
Oprah ran away from home, ran wild and narrowly escaped being sent to a juvenile detention
center.
During this time she gave birth to a premature boy, who died soon after birth. She then moved
to Nashville, Tennessee with her father and her stepmother Zelma. Vernon by this time had
become a successful businessman and city-council member.
Vernon Winfrey was very strict and O became an honors student and graduated from East
Nashville High School
1970
Won a scholarship to Tennessee State University based on her communication skills and
worked at the WVOL local radio station whilst attending the University
1971
Crowned Miss Black Tennessee and Miss Fire Prevention. She also took part in the Miss Black
America Pageant
1973
She graduated from Tennessee State University with a Degree in Speech and Performing Arts.
Became the first black TV news anchor reporter with WTVF-TV
1976
Moved to Baltimore to host the 6 o’clock news with WJZ-TV where she met her best friend
Gayle King who was a production assistant at WJZ-TV
April 1: Was moved from news anchor to the WJZ-TV morning talk show host of People are
Talking
Also became a reporter for an ABC news affiliate in Baltimore, Maryland.
1978
Was moved from news anchor to the WJZ-TV morning talk show host of People are Talking
with Richard Sher
Also hosted the local version of 'Dialing for Dollars'
1983
Moved to Chicago, Illinois in late 1983 in preparation to host the talk show A.M. Chicago for
WLS-TV
1984
January 2: First episode of A.M. Chicago. Show was extremely successful in the ratings
1985
Continued to work on the Oprah Winfrey Show
Starred in the Steven Spielberg movie 'The Color Purple' as the character Sofia
1986
Nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress in 'The Color Purple' but lost
to Anjelica Huston
September 8: Her show expands to one hour and broadcast nationally. It was nominated for
several Emmy awards
Formed her own television production company called Harpo Productions
Received the National Organization for Women's Women of Achievement Award.
Starred in the movie 'Native Son' as Janet Thomason
1987
February 9: Her much acclaimed episode from her show was aired from Forsyth County,
Georgia, where no blacks had been allowed to live since 1912.
Oprah won her first Emmy for best talk/service show host and best show.
Cameo role in the Danny DeVito movie Throw Momma from the Train
1988
Named Broadcaster of the Year by the International Television and Radio Society
Harpo Productions which obtained ownership and production responsibilities for her show
from ABC-TV station, WLS in Chicago
Bought her Chicago apartmet and her farm in Indiana.
Appeared in the TV program Pee-wee's Playhouse Christmas Special as herself
1989
Starred as Mattie Michael in the movie The Women of Brewster Place (she was also executive
producer)
Received the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People's Entertainer of the
year award and went on to receive their Image Award 4 times from 1989 to 1992
Her half brother, Jeffrey Lee, sadly died of AIDS.
1990
Appeared in the TV program Brewster Place as Mattie Michael
Starred in the movie Listen Up: The Lives of Quincy Jones (documentary)
1991
Initiated the National Child Protection Act and testified before Congress
Appointed chef Rosie Daley to supervise a new and healthier diet.
1992
Won Best Talk Show Host at the Daytime Emmy Awards
1992 Appeared in the TV program The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Episode, A Night at the Oprah
Worked on Lincoln as narrator of the TV documentary
Became engaged to Stedman Graham, a public relations executive
Appointed Bob Greene to supervise her exercise program
1993
Hosted an interview with Michael Jackson which reached an audience of one hundred million.
President Bill Clinton signed the National Child Protection Act which had been strongly
supported by Oprah.
Appeared in the TV program There Are No Children Here role as LaJoe Rivers
1994
Won Best Talk Show and Best Talk Show Host at the 21st Annual Daytime Emmy Awards
Became co-author of the book In The Kitchen With Rosie: Oprah's Favorite Recipes by Rosie
Daley and Oprah Winfrey
1995
Became the first woman and the only black on Forbes list of 400 richest Americans. She has
remained the only black person to rank among America's 400 richest people nearly every year
since 1995
Won an Emmy for Best Talk Show and Best Host for the second year in a row.
“Oprah Online” started on American Online (AOL) in partnership with ABC
1996
Became co-author of the book A Journal of Daily Renewal : The Companion to Make the
Connection, by Bob Greene and Oprah Winfrey
Received the prestigious George Foster Peabody’s Individual Achievement Award
April 16: The OW Show dealt with Mad Cow Disease in the United States which led to a court
case
September 16: Oprah announced the start of her successful on-air book club
1997
Formation of Oprah’s Angel Network encouraging people to make charitable contributions and
volunteer work.
Delivered the commencements address to the Wellesley College Class of 1997
Appeared in the TV program Ellen - The Puppy Episode
Appeared in the TV program Before Women Had Wings role as Miss Zora (she was also
producer)
Author of the book The Uncommon Wisdom of Oprah Winfrey : A Portrait in Her Own Words
by Bill Adler (editor) and Oprah Winfrey
1998
February 26: Sucessfully defended herself in the food disparagement lawsuit brought by Texas
cattlemen following the show about Mad Cow Disease
Received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Daytime Emmy Awards and an award for
top talk show host.
Formed Oxygen Media
Starred in the movie of the Toni Morrison novel, Beloved
Co-author of the book Journey to Beloved, by Oprah Winfrey and Ken Regan
1999
1999 Co-author of the book Make the Connection : Ten Steps to a Better Body and a Better
Life, by Bob Greene and Oprah Winfrey
2002
In 2002 Fortune called O, the Oprah Magazine the most successful start-up ever in the
industry.
Became the recipient of the first Bob Hope Humanitarian Award at the 2002 Emmy Awards
for services to television and film.
2003
She was the narrator in the documentary Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave
Narratives
2004
The 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Concert was hosted by Oprah and Tom Cruise
Forbes' international rich list has listed Winfrey as the world's only black billionaire
Named by Time as one of the 100 people who most influenced the 20th century
She was the narrator in the documentary Brothers of the Borderland
2005
The Color Purple was made into a Broadway musical of which she was a producer
Forbes' international rich list has listed Winfrey as the world's only black billionaire
Became the first black listed by Business Week as one of America's top 50 most generous
philanthropists
Oprah's Christmas Kindness was made to draw bring attention to the plight of young African
children affected by poverty and AIDS.
Named by Time as one of the 100 most influential people of the year
Named as the greatest woman in American history as part of a public poll as part of The
Greatest American in which she ranked in 9th place in the list of greatest Americans.
She was the narrator in the documentary Emmanuel's Gift
2006
February 9: Signed 3-year contract with XM Satellite Radio to establish a new radio channel
based in Chicago
Forbes' international rich list has listed Winfrey as the world's only black billionaire
Named by Time as one of the 100 most influential people of the year
Appeared in the TV program Drake & Josh in the episode Josh Meets Oprah
Appeared in Drake & Josh - Josh Meets Oprah
Starred in the movie Charlotte's Web playing Gussy
Oprah currently lives on "The Promised Land", her 42 acre estate in Montecito, California and
also owns a house in Lavallette, New Jersey.