From Rags To Riches: The Life And Times Of Oprah

From The Small Screen To The Big Screen

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Not only was Oprah now dominating daytime television, she was beginning to try her hand at acting on the silver screen. While Oprah had found success in radio and TV, she held a deep secret — she always wanted to be an actress.

Her opportunity came when Steven Spielberg approached her to star in the film adaptation of the novel, The Color Purple, in 1985. Oprah was ecstatic, later telling Vanity Fair, “I never wanted anything in my life more than I wanted to be in ‘The Color Purple.'” Her portrayal in the film would earn her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She had barely scratched the surface of success, but her path to greatest was about to open.