Oprah - Her head has done blowed up!

[vettechick99]

Incorrect grammar on purpose.

Ok, this thought is pretty random, but just yesterday I was watching Oprah. I rarely watch it anymore since I'm working out of the home, but occasionally I'll catch an episode here or there. I've always had great respect for her.

Anyway, so I don't normally read her Book Club picks, but the ones I have read, I've enjoyed. So my MIL had A Million Little Pieces (a gritty, sensational "memoir" about 6 weeks in rehab) so I read it last week. I had already heard about the huge deal Oprah made over it (first good, then bad), but didn't watch any of the episodes with the author.

So I read the book and I loved it! I really didn't care if he fluffed up some details for interest. I was just amazed at the detail of it all and even told my husband that my teenagers will read this book! I was impressed by the whole thing.

Anyway, I'm going off on a tangent. So after I read the book, I went online and read the transcripts to the second interview and I really felt she was out of line. It was obvious to me it was a personal vendetta. Someone on thesmokinggun.com wrote that Oprah was "duped" (puh-lease) and it was like she went on a manhunt to clear her name. "String him up, his details weren't perfect!" Uh, 15 years of smoking crack will do that to ya.

Then yesterday her 20th Anniversary show was on. Look at me, I'm so cool! Everyone loves me. What an attention youknowwhat.

I'm just really annoyed by her arrogance lately! When did her head blow up?

Am I the only one who feels this way?

 

[Sleepy]

I stopped watching when she stopped allowing the audience to participate. I know she is not the only one who does a talk show this way, but to me it says "Only my thoughts and opinions matter."

 

[chesirechik]

I can't stand Oprah. I thought the interview with the author (when she bashed him) made her look terrible.

I make it a point NOT to read Oprah book club books!

 

[ilovepcot]

Have no idea when when her head blew up because I had enough of her decades ago! The 'ole head "appeared" to be swelling way back then.

 

[In a hurry]

I stopped watching when she stopped allowing the audience to participate. I know she is not the only one who does a talk show this way, but to me it says "Only my thoughts and opinions matter."

I did too. When she first arrived, it was her personal interaction with people that made her special. She wasn't just another Phil Donahue!

 

[nicolemarie]

Hey Vettechick!

I love love love your TR by the way -

I used to catch the occasional Oprah myself until recently. Her head has truly "done blowed up" (Maconite here - and I have family who would actually say it that way).

The last episode I saw, the one that confirmed my never watching her again, was during the Hurricane Katrina crisis. She traveled down there to do some up close and personal journalism and was EXTREMELY slanted in the way she presented the situation.

I will proudly claim to be a big "W" fan - I know he's made some mistakes - but I still really like him. I also know that tons of mistakes were made in the handling of that really horrible crisis. But is was obvious she was using her clout to make a political statement. She may do a lot of great things for people all over the world, but she is still just a celebrity. I thought she was really out of line to place blame like she did. Stick to interviewing celebrities, book club reviews and sharing favorite too-expensive-for-the-common-man purchases!

 

[hiwaygal]

Am I the only one who feels this way?

Nope...

I will admit she has her "shining moments" but most of the time it seems she has determined that no one else knows as much about anything as she does.

 

[DawnCt1]

I guess when she woke up one morning and realized that she was worth $1.5 BILLION DOLLARS!! And that she earned it all herself. Not too shabby. I guess I would have trouble controlling the growth of my head also.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Wasn't that the book about the guy who made it all up???

Didnt' read it--but I thought that was teh issue...she promoted his book as a memoir or something (and he of course allowed all that) and when she was duped--heck if it were my show--I'd be miffed as heck and yeah---would say my peace about it. At least she had him back on to explain himself or whatever.


but she is playing to her fans--adn she still has the diehards who love her.

I don't keep up with the show so haven't really watched its metamorphis--but can agree that at this point, with her money and star power--absolutely.....the topics are all that she chooses and from her standpoint.


It though it was a hoot when she had Sarah Jessica Parker on a couple of weeks ago. But it was a fluff piece show and not much room for slant and SJP was just too cute (her shoe accidentally flew into the audience when she got excited that Oprah who ordinarily doesn't wear perfume liked her new scent).

But anyway---if the "memoir" in question was where the guy passed it off as real---well, I don't blame her for being upset with that as she doesn't use her book club to further the gains of authors who pass of fiction as the truth.

If it is another book--then disregard. As I said--I don't keep up but just remember the book club issue recently.

 

[CheshireVal]

I've long thought that Oprah is insincere, arrogant, and spoiled. Fame has definitely gone to her head.

 

[mickeyboat]

I guess when she woke up one morning and realized that she was worth $1.5 BILLION DOLLARS!! And that she earned it all herself. Not too shabby. I guess I would have trouble controlling the growth of my head also.

Yeah, I guess somebody out there likes her.

That being said, I think she's too full of herself, and I don't care to watch her anymore.

Denae

 

[Stacey2grls]

I have tried so hard over the years, to continue watching her, I just can't take it anymore. I watched her 20th anniversary episode, someone please hand me a barf bag! She is so self indulgent, and into herself, I know she is "Oprah" and has done worlds of good i'm sure, but she just rubs me the wrong way. How she goes on and on about herself just makes me plain sick!

 

[Rella Bella]

I have to say I had the opposite reaction to yesterdays show...

I kept thinking how humbled she must be by all those clips with HORRIBLE hair-dos!! Plus showing her at her physical worst... and admitting about the "fat wagon" that she gained five pounds by the next day and couldn't get the jeans back on!

I think she's like everyone else... good & bad... transparent & masked... enjoying success & living with past mistakes... doing the best we can.

I am not a rah-rah fan, but I respect her because of her determination to do good things with her money. IE: the Angel Network, 1 Million to Katrina victims and all she's done in Africa.

 

[kpm76]

Yeah, I agree with you 100%. I never get to watch her show anymore but I did catch yesterday's and it was really a poor excuse for self promotion. I couldn't even watch the entire thing.....

 

[JerseyJanice]

I've never found Oprah or her show all that interesting.

However, if she's got many fans who are like my SIL, then I guess that would explain her popularity.

My SIL watches her every day and will buy pretty much anything Oprah says to buy. She bought a print from an artist that Oprah admires (spends thousands on it!). Oprah likes a certain type of pajamas, so guess what SIL had to have?

SIL has bought almost everything from Oprah's "favorite things" shows. Good thing my BIL has a high paying job.

 

[auntpolly]

Think what you will about oprah, but in this case it was the author of the book who's head self-destructed. He duped oprah and everyone else, and that's an interesting debate.

I don't care how interesting the book was (didn't read it), he lied, and deceived alot of people. On that paricular oprah, I think the guy had it coming.

 

[vettechick99]

Wasn't that the book about the guy who made it all up???

I didn't get to see the show (only got to read what transcripts they provided), but he didn't make it all up, just exaggerated a few details for dramatics. As if it wasn't dramatic enough. I don't think he sat down to write the book and sought out to deceive, but he did exaggerate and that is what it is. My whole problem was how she blew it way out of proportion. At the most, it should have been a snippet at the beginning of one show. The attack, IMHO, was overkill.

Regardless, the book is still very powerful. Maybe just add a "based on real life events" at the bottom of the book to clear things up.

Of course, my opinion and $29.99 gets you a t-shirt at Disney World. She does amazing work for people all over the world, I just would like her to be a little more humble. Money and fame have gone to her head. Let's not forget the Hermes incident of 2005!

 

[cardaway]

I've long thought that Oprah is insincere, arrogant, and spoiled. Fame has definitely gone to her head.

What she said.

 

[wvrevy]

Vettechick, you really need to read The Smoking Gun's expose on Frey's book. I'm sorry, but he did not merely "exagerrate for dramatic effect." He lied, outright, about everything from being in prison to his "crime spree" (that was actually no more than a parking ticket ). I'm no Oprah fan by any means (although, judging by the comments about her Katrina show, we at least share the view that Bush is an incompetant ), but if it were MY name that made this man millions of dollars, and then I found out he'd been lying all along, I promise I'd have done everything I could to rip him a new one.

(Edited to add that you can read The Smoking Gun's investigation here: A Million Little Lies -- Warning - There is some coarse language in the article linked)

 

[Honu]

I haven't been able to stomach her for quite some time. Her excess and flaunting of her "favorite things" far overshadow the charity work she does. I have a lot of friends that watch religiously though. The two sentences I dread hearing more than anything usually start with, "I saw on Oprah...." and "Dr. Phil says....."