The Letterman Feud
"Could you tell me please what has transpired?" Oprah asked during her December 2005 appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman, in an attempt to set matters straight between the two. Back in 1995, Letterman had made a corny (and interminable) "Uma, Oprah" joke at the Academy Awards, which may or may not have rubbed Winfrey the wrong way. In a 2003 interview with TIME, Oprah said she had felt uncomfortable during past interviews on the late-night program and vowed not to return to Letterman's set. But the reportedly acrimonious feud may have been blown out of proportion. In the 2005 meeting, both said they were baffled by how rumors of a rift had spiraled out of control. (Letterman seemed to think that Oprah's rejection of his producers' overtures to bring her back to Late Show may have played a role.) Nevertheless, the pair squashed the feud, and two years later they even appeared in a Super Bowl ad as a loving couple.