OPRAH IS ENDING HER TV MOMENT… Really?

I’ve been watching Oprah on and off since she launched a million years ago. Back then Phil Donahue had the lock-up on daytime talk shows… And before that there was Dinah Shore and Mike Douglas and Merv Griffin. Well, I was pretty darn young then (elementary school), but I used to stay home as often as I could. We had a television on and off in those days. My Mom was against it. She would pull it out once a year to watch “The Wizard of Oz.” A movie I’ve never really taken to, those flying monkeys were scary! But when the television was in vogue in our home I’d watch it. And when it wasn’t there, there was always the neighbor’s house.

But back to Oprah… I liked her then. She was real, she was working to help people see real people. A lot of her content then was scandalous, because that was the vibe—a bit of shock, shock of the real. She was always overweight and I honestly think that helped her because everyone could SEE she was normal. She had her own struggles. She wasn’t perfect. And then the year came when she made the announcement (I’m sure I don’t have this right, but the essence is there) that she was going to showcase stories that could actually help people, inspire people, give people something to work toward. Real – in a new way. It was the zeitgeist of the times and it really worked. Then came her magazine. And that really worked. Oprah, we may or may not love you, but we have to admit you’re a maverick. And if you’re done with daytime TV there has to be a real good reason. Wonder what you’ve got up your sleeves this time. Because we know, it’s gotta be something.