Posted on 09/13/2004 10:47:00 AM PDT by Feiny
Chat show queen Oprah Winfrey celebrated the opening of her 19th season on US TV today by surprising each of her 276 audience members with a new car.
We’re calling this our wildest dream season, because this year on the Oprah show, no dream is too wild, no surprise too impossible to pull off,” Winfrey said.
Making sure the audience was kept in suspense, Winfrey opened the show by calling 11 audience members onto the stage. She gave each of them a car – a Pontiac G6.
She then had gift boxes distributed to the rest of the audience and said one of the boxes contained keys to a twelfth car. But when the audience members opened the boxes, each had a set of keys.
“Everybody gets a car! Everybody gets a car! Everybody gets a car!” Winfrey yelled as she jumped up and down on the stage.
The audience members screamed, cried and hugged each other – then followed Winfrey out to the car parking of her Harpo Studios in Chicago to see their Pontiacs, all decorated with giant red bows.
The cars, which retail for £15,500, were donated by Pontiac.
“A little idea grew into a big idea,” said Mary Henige of Pontiac
Winfrey said the audience members were chosen because their friends or family had written to the show about their need for a new car. One woman’s young son said she drove a car that “looks like she got into a gunfight” another couple had almost 400,000 miles on their two vehicles.
In other segments on the show, Winfrey surprised a 20-year-old girl who had spent years in foster care and homeless shelters with a four-year college scholarship, a makeover and £6,000 in clothes. And a family with eight foster children who were going to be kicked out of their house were given £72,000 to buy and repair the home.
The Oprah Winfrey Show is syndicated to 212 domestic markets and 109 countries.
Not even a minumental sacrifice.
Actually like you or me asking the bar owner to provide free drinks for everone. It wasn't her money!
Yes, I saw the think about the taxes. That's good. It's still about marketing (for Pontiac) and show ratings (for Oprah), but it worked out to be a real nice thing for those people anyway.
The cars . . . were donated by Pontiac.
Do you know what gift wrapping 276 boxes costs these days? The woman is a Saint!
I Tivo'd her show, do I get a free rental?
haha...i dunno about you, but there's no way I'D spend 400 dollars buying people a round of drinks.
im an ultra poor college guy on an oh-so-great college student budget...(oh yeah, im not 21 yet either, but i COULD buy people sunny delights, right?)
good for her.
I was quick, with a smile and the some enthusiasm I stated, "Pontiac donated the cars and Oprah made sure she everyone received one.".... popping a fake bubble in the minds of chattel by telling the truth... I was very pleasant... not mean in any way.
Volkwagans......I bet. I will be impressed if they are BMW's or Mercedes!
She might give away a HOUSE to everybody in the audience!
Far less than that to GM. There's the dealer margin to consider.
GM is out the wholesale price, less the tax they would pay on their normal profit margin, less the tax write off they can claim from the Feds. (Not even considering any saving they can make by lowering advertising)
But, still a generous and classy act by Big Auto.
You big meanie! LOL
Why does everyone keep talking about her politics? You all must watch a LOT to even know what her politics are. I thought I watched her show a lot over the years (not as much recently), but I can't say that I know her politics at all. I've heard her new age stuff, but that's not politics.
So, what ARE her politics? Don't just tell me 'liberal'; give me specific examples.
It's been stated a hundred times already but here it is again. Oprah didn't give the cars- Pontiac did.
Now to my main point. I may be wrong, I am not Jewish but it's my understanding that a Mitzvah is supposed to be done without fanfare.
Yea, but the media ruined it. I'm on the West coast and knew what the surprise was this morning because it was announced on the radio. So much for keeping it a secret.
They're just trying to get a rise out of old geezers like me.
Call me cynical - nothing against Oprah - anyone making as much money as she does had better always be on the hunt for tax deductions (as do all wealthy people). She is just more flamboyant. :o)
Did you know I was kidding?
If I had my way, you'd have a car. Hey, if I had my way, I'd have a brand new Minivan with a DVD player!
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