When you think of television hosts and iconic interviews, Oprah Winfrey is a name that doesn’t await any formal introductions. She rose to fame with her widely known show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” which first aired in 1986 and has 4000+ episodes spanning 25 seasons.
Since then, Oprah has established herself as one of the leading television hosts, media personalities, and also an author. With the kind of diverse career that she has gained over the years, it isn’t surprising that Oprah has managed to secure a career in media and earns $300+ million annually.
This article will further discuss Oprah Winfrey, her personal and early life, career growth, and net worth.
Quick Facts
| Full Name |
Orpah Gail Winfrey
|
| Birth Date | January 29, 1954 |
| Age | 70 |
| Profession | Television producer, Actress, Author, and Media Proprietor |
| Country of Origin | USA |
| Nationality | American |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Spouse |
Stedman Graham
|
| Net Worth (as of 2024) | $3.5 billion |
| Last Updated: | Feb 2, 2024 |
| Social Media | Instagram |
Early Life
Oprah Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954, and had one of the hardest childhoods. She was named Orpah Gail Winfrey at birth and she has explained in multiple interviews that her childhood is muddled with neglect, abuse, and poverty. She was born in Kosciusko, Mississippi.
She was born to Vernita Lee and Vernon Winfrey. While her mother worked as a housemaid, her father was stationed in the Army during her birth. Oprah’s father has undergone a series of career changes, including that of a coal miner, barbarian, and city councilman too.
With Oprah’s father not supporting his family, she spent the majority of her childhood with her mother and grandmother in poverty. Things were so rough that there were times when Oprah had to wear a potato sack to school because she didn’t have clothes.
Growing up, Oprah moved with her mother but she later decided to live with her father, Vernon, when she turned 12. However, she ended up fleeing from there within a year because of the abuse. Despite the challenges in her life, Oprah was very good academically.
She acquired her school education from Nicolet High School, followed by East Nashville High School. While the initial few years of her year were rough, things started turning around for her when she won the Miss Black Beauty Tennessee pageant. This also led her to acquire a full-ride scholarship to Tennessee State University but she dropped out of school.
Personal Life
Oprah Winfrey has had a very simple person and love life, where she has been with Stedman Graham. The two have been together since 1986.
Career
After winning the pageant, Oprah secured a job as a news anchor at WLAC-TV in Nashville. Later, she switched to WJZ in Baltimore, where she covered the evening six-o-clock news.
With the gradual success that she gained in her career, Oprah co-hosted a talk show called “People Are Talking,” from which she started earning a whopping $220,000 annually. She later secured her morning talk show on ABC, bringing her a $1 million contract across 4 years.
Seeing the kind of ratings that Oprah’s talk shows brought to the channel, it wasn’t even a surprise that she landed her first big talk show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” The show aired on ABC and discussed a variety of sensitive subjects including women’s issues, social issues, health, spirituality, etc. Each episode was an hour long.
A lot of complications went into the talk show’s contract, which turned out to be a slave contract. She ended up striking a deal, which ended up making Oprah 90% owner of HARPO and Jeffrey 10%.
Net Worth
Oprah Winfrey has an estimated net worth of $3.5 billion, making her one of the richest and most influential women in the world. Besides earning a steady income from her media career, Oprah also invests in a variety of real estate properties across different states in the U.S.