Oprah’s at the Smithsonian
Exhibit highlights her influence — and fashion.
WASHINGTON – The Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture has become a site for Oprah Winfrey superfans. Its new exhibition, Watching Oprah: The Oprah Winfrey Show and American Culture, opens Friday and continues through June 2019. It looks at the early life of the first self-made female African-American billionaire, her groundbreaking daytime talk show and her lasting influence. Here are the artifacts not to miss:
Pieces from the show set
In 25 years and 4,561 episodes, you might not have made it out to Chicago for a taping of Oprah’s show. The Oprah Winfrey Show section of the exhibit simulates the experience of being in the audience.
A stage is set with two cognac leather chairs with a coffee table nestled in between that are from the show’s 11th and 12th seasons. Footage airs in the background, and you can almost hear the excitement of a crowd applauding the host at the start of the show. It’s not an ah-ha moment but an AHHHHH! moment.
Oprah’s desk
The founder of Harpo Studios had a pretty sweet setup, as seen in the Oprah Shapes America section of the exhibition. From her kidney-shaped desk, we’re presuming she made many important business decisions and perhaps even fielded more than a few phone calls from her BFF, Gayle King. Seven Daytime Emmy Awards are displayed behind the desk, just a sampling of her impressive collection earned for her talk show, which aired from 1986 to 2011.
What does the view from atop a media empire look like? Oprah’s desk included a collection of framed photos: one of her grandmother, Hattie Mae Lee, and two of her longtime love, Stedman Graham.
Guest book greetings
Fans of the Instagram account Comments By Celebs will be intrigued by a reproduction of a guest book where famous faces wrote messages for Oprah. One entry comes courtesy of a major influence in the host’s life: Mary Tyler Moore. “Dear Oprah Tyler Moore,” the message begins. “What a swell party this is! With so much love, Mary Winfrey.”
Oprah’s GIF-worthy wardrobe
You get a look at her wardrobe, you get a look at her wardrobe! Visitors are treated to an array of milestone moments commemorated in fashion. One of the highlights: the red suit Oprah wore when she gifted her studio audience with cars — what she wears in our favorite GIF. Other memorable looks in- clude the aubergine L’Wren Scott gown she donned for her final episode, the Versace she wore to accept her Cecil B. DeMille Award in January, and the showstopping Vera Wang number she wore to the Legends Ball in 2005.
Oprah’s Medal of Freedom
President Obama awarded Oprah the country’s top civilian honor in 2013. The Medal of Freedom is included in Watching Oprah, reminding everyone that “the Oprah effect” extends beyond a bump in sales to material items among her “Favorite Things.”
Further attesting to her influence are thank-you notes displayed at the exhibition’s end.
“I come from a broken home,” one letter reads. “I have no brothers and sisters. I have never met my father (divorced) and I recently found out my mother is a lesbian.”
“Wow! That sounds like a dozen topics for your show,” the writer continued. “The reason I am telling you this is because by seeing you handle your problems so well it makes me get through the hard times even if I don’t know you!”