Oprah Winfrey: A Brief Biography

“In 1998 Oprah Winfrey was listed one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century by the editors of Time magazine” (“Winfrey, Oprah”). Oprah Gail Winfrey was born to Vernita Lee and Vernon Winfrey on January 29, 1954. Currently, Oprah is a successful chairwoman and CEO of The Oprah Winfrey Network: OWN since 2011.

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.

Although she was with her mother, she had very little mother and daughter time. She, unfortunately, was neglected and at the age of nine, she began to be sexually abused by many men. After this occurred, Winfrey began to act out. She faked a robbery, stole from her mother, and much more, causing her to go live in Nashville with her father and stepmother. This change saved her life. She lived under the household of her father who had very high expectations of her. She started to excel in high school and won a contest that granted a full scholarship to Tennessee State University after her graduation. She worked at...

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...r own television channel, OWN. “The mission of OWN, Winfrey said in a press release on her website, is to be ‘a network that inspires our viewers and makes them want to be who they are on their best day’ ” (“Oprah Winfrey Network”).

To conclude, Winfrey is well known around the world through all of her accomplishments. She is considered a role model to many because she is an influential, very generous, and confident woman. She is a very successful woman who started her career very young and inspires young people to follow their dreams.

Works Cited

Feder, Robert. "Winfrey, Oprah." World Book Advanced. World Book, 2014. Web. 17 Feb. 2014.

"Oprah Winfrey Network." Pop Culture Universe: Icons, Idols, Ideas. ABC-CLIO, 2014. Web. 17 Feb. 2014.

"Winfrey, Oprah." Biography Reference Bank (Bio Ref Bank) (2009): Biography Reference Bank (H.W. Wilson). Web. 17 Feb. 2014.