When “The Oprah Winfrey Show” began its telecast on Sept. 8, 1986, Ronald Reagan was president and NBA players sported Daisy Dukes. That’s how long it’s been. Pop culture goddess Oprah Winfrey just announced she will bequeath her throne at the summit of talk shows to one of a bevy of aspiring wannabes, including Tyra Banks or Ellen DeGeneres. Which heir apparent will fill the canyon-sized void that will be created when Oprah signs off after her contract expires on Sept. 9, 2011, after 25 years?
Realistically, it’s a near mathematical impossibility to fill Oprah’s shoes. She is watched by 42 million people a week in the United States alone and is viewed in 145 countries around the world. “The Oprah Winfrey Show” is currently the longest-running daytime television talk show in the United States. It was named one of the best television series of the 20th century by Time magazine, and TV Guide hailed it as one of the 50 best American shows of all time in 2002. Then there’s the small matter of the billionaire’s worldwide influence and her almost preternatural ability to push books, products, personalities and issues she feels passionate about. And her early support for the junior senator from Illinois, Barack Obama, in the 2008 presidential election, undoubtedly had a profound effect on the nation electing its first African American commander in chief.
So while it’s next to impossible to replace or replicate Oprah’s success, Tyra and Ellen will certainly try:
Tyra Banks:
1. Supermodel: This Inglewood, Calif.-born pioneer made history when she became the first African American to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated and GQ magazines and Victoria’s Secret catalog.
2. Actress: Tyra became a household name when she began a string of credible starring performances in such TV shows and movies as “Fresh Prince of Bel-Air,” “Felicity,” Higher Learning and Love & Basketball.
3. Producer: Tyra really gained credibility when she created, produced and starred in her own original program, the long-running “America’s Next Top Model,” a show that plucked from obscurity a multiplicity of aspiring models and gave them a national platform. Eva Pigford is one of the more recognizable names to spring from that foundation.
4. Talk show: Tyra, 35, began “The Tyra Banks Show” in 2005 in Los Angeles before moving to New York as a way to fill the void left by the two-time Emmy Award-winning “Ricki Lake Show.”
5. Controversy: Banks has demonstrated a proclivity for staying in the news. Recently, she came under fire when she had white and biracial models darken their faces to represent ethnic mixing during a photo shoot in Hawaii.
Ellen DeGeneres
1. Comedian: DeGeneres, who ironically gave her first interview after coming out as a homosexual on Oprah’s show in the mid-‘90s, came to fame as an extraordinarily gifted comedian whose star shined via the defunct “Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.”
2. Gay rights activist: She garnered sympathy and love after she became one of the biggest stars to openly express her sexual orientation.
3. Talk show: Her afternoon talk show became the first to eclipse Oprah in the ratings, signifying that a changing of the guard is already in process.
4. Judge on “American Idol”: DeGeneres now hosts the still very popular “American Idol” show, a major platform to sustain face time and a colossal brand-building portal.
5. Appeared on Oprah magazine cover: DeGeneres has the distinction of being only the second person to appear on the cover of O. First lady Michelle Obama was the other.
Other possible TV talk show queens and kings: Rachael Ray, Whoopie Goldberg, Paula Abdul, Glenn Beck and even Gayle King, although her first attempt failed. –terry shropshire.
