'Piers Morgan Tonight' Debut: Everything You Already Knew About Oprah

Victoria Leigh Miller
He had some King-size shoes to fill, but how did Piers Morgan do on the debut of his primetime talk show Monday night?

The Larry King replacement had the Queen of Talk as his first guest- no small feat. But some critics thought Morgan was a big ol' softie during his interview with Oprah Winfrey. Others liked his unusual questions such as, "How many times have you been properly in love?" (Answer: Three. And no, she wasn't naming names.)

But in the end, did Morgan uncover any revelations about Oprah?

Not really. Because Oprah has been in our living rooms every week day for the past 25 years, there really wasn't much left to uncover.

Morgan relished in flattering her, even saying everything she touches turns to gold, a generalization that she quickly dispelled. Winfrey confessed that after her movie, "Beloved" tanked back in (beat out at the box office by "something called 'Chucky'") she became so depressed that she went on a macaroni and cheese eating binge. "I ate about 30 pounds worth," she told Morgan.

She also said it was the first time in her life she was depressed.

While the interview offered few revelations, it was entertaining. The pair enjoyed a back and forth banter that was like watching two old friends getting together to catch up.

A few of the interview highlights:

Oprah is trying to book and interview with NFL quarterback Michael Vick- and so is Morgan. So they made a friendly wager as to who will land an interview with him first- to the tune of 200 British pounds.

Winfrey said she will never again talk about the rumors about her relationship with her BFF, Gayle King. Back in December she squashed the rumors during an interview with Barbara Walters, stating, "I'm not even a little gay."

She admitted that as a teen she did things like "drinking detergent for attention."

She considered killing herself when she found out she was pregnant at age 14.

She felt like she was given a second chance when the baby died at birth.

She hid her pregnancy the entire time, even as her unknowing father said he's rather see a daughter of his floating down the Cumberland River than bring shame on his family.

As to the status of her longtime partnership with Stedman Graham, she said, "I'm not the marrying kind." If she wants a white dress and a big cake she'll just throw a party.

Oprah said she has given more than $300 million to charity. She wouldn't confirm her net worth, which Morgan estimated at 2.5 billion.

With the Oprah interview in the can, Piers Morgan's guest lineup for the remainder of his premiere week includes radio shock jock Howard Stern, Condoleezza Rice, British comedian Ricky Gervais (fresh off his controversial "Golden Globes" hosting stint) and George Clooney.

'Piers Morgan Tonight' can be seen weeknights at 9:00 p.m. ET on CNN.

*****

Source: 'Piers Morgan Tonight', January 17, 2011, CNN

Published by Victoria Leigh Miller - Featured Contributor in Arts & Entertainment

Victoria Leigh Miller is a freelance writer specializing in arts and entertainment articles and informational web content. She is a Featured A&E Contributor for Yahoo and the recipient of the 2011 Y!CA Award...  View profile

5 Comments

Post a Comment
  • Tiffany Booth1/25/2011

    Excellent work! Thanks for sharing =0)

  • David1/19/2011

    What gives? Why does the U.S. TV audience have to put up with all these Brits on American TV. Can I go to England and get on TV just because I have an American Accent? I'm really tired of hearing from these people.

  • TRESA PATTERSON1/18/2011

    Thanks for your run-down, Victoria!

  • Dina Sullivan1/18/2011

    Excellent.. :o)

  • Valerie Ferrari1/18/2011

    Good work, Victoria. I thought Oprah was acting a bit paranoid myself. 'Oh I see what you're trying to do' and all that, not just a couple of times, but constantly. Blech.

Displaying Comments

To comment, please sign in to your Yahoo! account, or sign up for a new account.