Oprah Friends!
Oprah Winfrey ends 25 years on television with all-star cast of guests?
[May 25]
Today marks 25 years of history, with Oprah Winfrey broadcasting her final episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show this afternoon. The show was taped earlier this month and promises an all-star cast of guests and audience members alike. For those who have grown up with Oprah Winfrey, today marks the end of a legacy. Even for those who are just getting to know the star celeb hostess, Oprah Winfrey will be missed.
In an era before the rise of internet media and on-demand television recording, Oprah Winfrey was the voice of women who were staying at home and wondering what to do with their lives. She spoke of personal well-being, self-validation, and empowerment. To an audience that at times felt stuck at home with the children and the housekeeping, Oprah introduced guests that made everyone think: I can do this too.
The humanitarian and pet friendly star celeb hostess is well known for her piercing and often personal questions to her guests. She has interviewed two presidents of the United States on her show (most recently Barack Obama) and she has consistently made her star-studded guests feel comfortable answering the questions that no one else dared to ask. While few would consider her an investigative reporter, the fact that she could initiate conversations with people and make even the biggest Hollywood celebrity feel like a regular person again was what propelledThe Oprah Winfrey Show.
Remember Tom Cruise dancing on the couch? Or the time that everyone in the audience received a new car? Expect nothing less from her green celebrity sign-off today. Oprah may not surprise the crowds with an unexpected stunt, but she certainly will have a captive audience and is unlikely to disappoint.
The New York Daily News has this to say:
She concludes her show in a multimedia moment in which everyone with access to YouTube or a blog can be a mini-Oprah, broadcasting her first-person story or dispensing advice over the Internet. Precisely because the digital medium is available to just about everyone, there will never again be anyone quite like her.
From her charity and her philanthropy to her book club and personal insights on politics and the world at large, Oprah Winfrey has done her best to make the world a better place, and for that, fans or not, we all can be thankful. While she will continue her work through her new television network the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN), the show she began 25 years ago will be missed. Get ready, Kimberly-Clark. There is going to be a run on Kleenex today.