10 Unknown Facts About Oprah Winfrey

John Phillips/Getty Images

In honor of National Women's History Month, we salute the admirable Oprah Winfrey. Oprah was born into such extreme poverty and money was so scarce, that she didn't get her first pair of shoes til she was six years old.

Today she probably can't count her shoes as she is the first Black female billionaire and the richest African-American woman in the world. She is also arguably the most influential woman in the world.

Well, as much as I love Oprah and consider her my distant mentor, there are a few things that I didn't know about her, and I bet you didn't either. Below, I've compiled a list of 10 very interesting fact about the heart and soul of the Color Purple's, Sophia Sophia that I betcha didn't know.

Here we go!

1. Her real name is actually Orpah, but after people kept mispronouncing it as Oprah, the nickname stuck.2. The best-selling author was taught to read and write by her grandmother by the age of three.3. Oprah Winfrey has been ranked the richest African American of the 20th century, with a net worth of approximately $1.8 billion. She is the first black woman billionaire in world history.4. Born into a life of extreme poverty, money was so sparse that Oprah didn’t receive her first pair of shoes until she was six years old.

5. During the filming of her latest release The Butler, Oprah asked permission from Forest Whittaker’s wife for the two to work on their chemistry for the role.

6. In November 2010, the talk show host was completely flabbergasted when she discovered that she had a second half-sister, Patricia, who she had never known about.

7. Ever since she was 15 years old, Oprah has kept a diary recording every day of her life. Can you imagine the pages if she were to compile it into a "tell-all memoir"?

8. During her time as a news anchor, she recieved a bad perm, which meant she had to go on air with her hair looking a hot mess.

9. Oprah Winfrey was fired from her first television job because she was deemed “unfit for TV”. She has called it the “first and worst failure of my TV career”.

10. After being awarded the Lifetime Achievement award at the 1998 Daytime Emmy Awards, she permanently withdrew herself and her show from consideration for future Emmys. “After you’ve achieved it for a lifetime,” she explains, “What else is there?”

Filed Under: National Women's History Month, Oprah Winfrey

Categories: Sports News