Wednesday, May. 25, 2011
The Rumors
Whispers about Winfrey's sexuality have dogged the Queen of Talk since 1997, when she appeared on the episode of Ellen on which Ellen DeGeneres revealed to the world that she was gay. Winfrey had recently broken off her engagement to Stedman Graham (the two would become romantically involved again), and whispers circulated that Oprah and longtime confidante Gayle King were an item. In a 2006 O Magazine interview, Oprah denied that she and Gayle were partners, though a subsequent miniseries based on a cross-country trip the two took rekindled the rumors; Rosie O'Donnell claimed that the miniseries was evidence that the two were a couple. Like Winfrey, King has repeatedly dismissed the claims.