She seems so nice. But mercy --- she's nasty. That's the message in Kitty Kelley's new book. You may think Oprah is warm. She seems that way. But she's aloof. She gives everything to the camera.
Oprah has lots of secrets, according to Kelley. The book shows how Oprah is demanding and somewhat lazy. The woman who shows such compassion and love, so much humility and friendship, is really a diva with a big ego, big appetite and a case of just plain nasty. That is if you believe Kelley's book. And since Kelley has never been successfully sued over any of her books, I'm inclined to believe her. True, she's lawyered up. But, so are her subjects.
Kelley doesn't really have what I'd call a bombshell in her new book about the queen of talk. Much of it is innuendo and things we've heard, even things Oprah herself has said. For example, Oprah may be gay. Or, she may not be. I guess Kelley couldn't pin that one down. And really - who cares?
But Kelley quotes Rosie O'Donnell (from a 2009 Howard Stern interview) saying Winfrey and King are the "emotional equivalent of a gay couple," and author Erica Jong saying, "I would not be surprised if Oprah is gay." Oprah comes off as more asexual than gay or straight.
There is a lot here about the "real" Oprah as seen by her father and others. We get a glimpse of Oprah that makes her less than appealing. Would we expect this of a Kitty Kelley book? Yes, probably. On the other hand, Kelley has done her homework and held 850 interviews. The book is full of footnotes. It's well documented. Oprah comes off as self-centered and arrogant -- not at all likable. She doesn't come off as the person so loved by so many. But, should this surprise us? Have we not all read Machiavelli? People are seldom what they seem.
The queen often talks about herself in the third person. For example, "Oprah does not walk." "Oprah does not do stairs." I gotta wonder, maybe O needs to walk and take the stairs. Might help with the well-known weight problem. Know what I mean?
The queen even had a bathtub made to fit her body. And a gardener tells Kelley that Ms. O got too fat to use the pool at her Indiana farm. She was afraid of being photographed by paparazzi in all her girth.
The bottom line is, you'll have to draw your own conclusions about Oprah. If you love her, you won't like what you read. If you hate her, you'll enjoy it. If you're like me and don't care one way or the other, it's a fun book to read.
To me, not reading the latest Kitty Kelley book would be like saying no to dark chocolate. I just can't do it.
We get a sense of the real Oprah in the following quote from the book:
"She may be admired by the world, but I know the truth," Vernon Winfrey, Oprah's father, told Ms. Kelley. "So does God and so does Oprah. Two of us remain ashamed."
No one in Oprah's family believes her stories of child abuse, according to the interviews. But because she's rich and powerful, they won't contradict her colorful stories.
Kelley's book, according to The Washington Times, ". . . has an initial printing of 500,000 copies. Kelley said some major news organizations have refused to schedule interviews for fear of "Oprah's power and displeasure."
Like the Wise Guys, Ms. O has Omertà going for her. No one wants to touch this book in the media. Well, I suspect there are many outside the media who will do just that. The publisher should crank up the presses for a second run.
Highly recommended.
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