Oprah’s an American talk show host, actress, author, television producer, and philanthropist. Born into poverty, she still didn’t end up poor. Let’s take a look at her biography, personal life and net worth.
Winfrey Oprah’s Net Worth, Bio and Earnings 2022
Winfrey’s birth, family, and early life
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Full name | Oprah Gail Winfrey |
Date of Birth | January 29, 1954 |
Age | 68 years |
Profession | TV Show Host, Actress and Author |
Height | 5 Ft 6.5 in (1.69 m) |
Nationality | American |
Source of Wealth | Author, Speaker, Film producer, Voice actor, Journalist, TV presenter, Media proprietor |
Annual Income | $300 million (₦125 billion) |
Net Worth | $3.5 Billion (₦1.5 trillion) |
Last Updated | August 2022 |
Winfrey Orpah Gail Winfrey was born on January 29, 1954. Her name was changed to Oprah as she was fondly called.
Orpah was coined from the character from the Book of Ruth. She was birthed in Kosciusko, Mississippi by a single teen mom. Her mom (Vernita Lee) was a housemaid and her biological father(Vernon Winfrey), was a coal miner.
He was in the Armed Forces when she was born. Later on, it was argued that her biological was Noah Robinson Sr., a Mississippi farmer and World war Veteran.
Noah claimed that he was her father in 2006. Her genetic make-up was mixed and this attributed to the claim.
After Winfrey was born, her mom travelled north to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. For six years, Winfrey lived in poverty with her maternal grandmother (Hattie Mae) and wore clothes poorly designed that attracted mockery from other children.
This was due to Lee’s inability to take care of her kids. She learned how to read at age three and was tagged “the preacher” due to her ability to recite bible verses.
Winfrey learned of her second sister, also named Patricia, in 2010. She also had a half-brother Jeffery. Winfrey was molested by family relatives and family friends at age nine.
Family members doubted her. Due to all these and denial of motherly care, she chose not to give birth to a child.
At age 14, she became pregnant but birthed a premature son who later died. Her story was sold to National Enquirer by a family member. She attended Lincoln High school in Milwaukee.
Winfrey’s career and net worth
Her grandmother saw her interviewing her corncob doll and the crows on the fence of her family’s property, so her career, at last, wasn’t surprising.
She attributed her ability to speak in public to her grandmother. She also added, “she gave me a positive sense of myself”.
Despite her bad experiences growing up, she didn’t fail to keep pushing forward. Her successes in the Upward Bound program, transferred her to the affluent suburban Nicolet High School.
She worked as a waiter, and a model, and now she hosts the Oprah Winfrey Show in Chicago. This is rated the highest television program in history.
She won the “Queen of all media” and the richest African-American of the 20th century in 2003. She was listed in the Forbes list of billionaire’s world as the only black billionaire, from 2004 to 2006.
She’s ranked the most influential woman in the world and the greatest black Philanthropist in U.S. history. She overtook eBay CEO Meg Whitman as the richest self-made woman in America.
This and many more are the various titles she attained. Her stories in her TV shows are an inspiration to many.
She runs her own magazine, The Oprah Magazine, and several other published books including her best-selling cookbook “Food, Health and Happiness.”
In her TV shows, she narrates most of her experiences and even cries revealing them.
Her primary source of wealth is TV shows and her long-running talk show in the media world has increased her net worth to $3.5 billion.