# Oprah Winfrey - Eat Me **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [November 1, 2001, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938 "2001-11-01T17:06:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/21 "2001-11-01T18:13:43Z")
Shit, I didn’t even notice **Eve** was back! YAAAAAYYYYY!!! ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/22 "2001-11-01T18:13:51Z")
Hey! **EVE!** Eve was here! Oh, nice rant, btw. Eve. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![Big\_Perm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/9fc29f/32.png) [@Big\_Perm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Big_Perm)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/23 "2001-11-01T18:24:03Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jarbabyj \* > \*\*She gets people reading what SHE WANTS THEM TO READ, not books that they picked out for themselves. > > When I was in highschool, I used to go to the library and just wander around the aisles, reading book jackets until something appealed to me. I developed my own tastes. > > jar \*\* While I agree in one way (I condone developing your own tastes in everything that you do), I don’t agree that Oprah is trying to get people to read what “SHE WANTS THEM TO READ”. If Oprah reads 10 books in a week, and 9 of them have no intellectually redeeming value to anyone, why would she recommend them? She is recommending books that appeal to the demographic that watches her show. That’s just good, capitalistic business sense. Not mind control. BP ---
**Author:** ![Why\_A\_Duck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/13edae/32.png) [@Why\_A\_Duck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Why_A_Duck)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/24 "2001-11-01T18:25:06Z")
As a side note, Wally Lambfucker used to teach at the same school Mrs. Duck teaches at now. Something of a local hero is the sheepish one. Also, Satan’s, er Oprah’s best friend Gail King used to be a local news anchor in these parts. It was always a hoot when best friend Opie would show up and do the weather. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/25 "2001-11-01T18:25:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zoff \* > > And even if there are a few people who will only read Oprah books – who cares? You seem to want to substitute your judbment of what to read for Oprah’s. > > I don’t particularly care for Oprah’s show and I’ll probably never read one of the books on her list, but this discussion seems to be turning decidedly elitist. No, my point is no one should use anyone’s judgement but their OWN in picking books to read. Not mine, not yours not Oprahs. I’ve seen first hand (because my mom is one of them), women just run into a store saying “give me oprah’s newest book”. They don’t know what it’s about, who wrote it, nothing. BUT OPRAH SAID TO READ IT. It could be about Satanic Girl on Girl Cannibalism, and they’d read it because Oprah ordered them to. Oprah is so pompous that she assumes because She likes a book (that I’m sure her staff reads for her and briefs her on), that Naperville Nancy will like it to, because Oprah rules the world. jar ---
**Author:** ![thinksnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thinksnow/32/2849_2.png) [@thinksnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thinksnow)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/26 "2001-11-01T18:31:21Z")
> [@](#): > > **Guin** > I say start your OWN talk show, **jarbabyj**. We would all watch. Today, **Jybabraj Productions** brings you another snatchsoffit, laticelubed clubfucking. So get your cockwrenches and asshammers and let’s head into the kitchen for a tall glass of pubegrease and a nice book ( **101 Ways To Skin Brett Favre** by Jess), shall we? Yes, it’s time for another installment of _ **Jarbaby** s mutherfucking house, bitch_. [/quote] I’m thinking this would have to be on HBO… ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/27 "2001-11-01T18:35:27Z")
Howdy, Eve. good to see ya! > [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by gobear \* > \*\* > Frantzen is a pompous, elitist schmuck who dissed Oprah becuase he didn’t want his “high-art” novel read by the Great Unwashed. He’s a member of the It’s The Public’s Job To Appreciate Me club, and he is a jackass. > > Mind you, I think Oprah’s touchy-feely, pop psychology, Iyanala Van Zandt-idolizing, show is annoying, which explains why I don’t watch it. But she has done wonders for the sales of serious novels and she gets people reading. That, in my book, is a Good Thing. \*\* Yes, I agree. She isn’t “telling you what to read.” She is making suggestions. And most of her suggestions are good. IMHO, _Stones From the River_ was phenomenal. (And our resident Germaniac would probably find it very interesting.) I agree with the OP with regard to a lot of her points, but I think the book club is great. If an O on the cover can help an uninformed book-buyer choose a book, so be it. If a person never reads any “good” novels other than Oprah books, it’s still better than having read nothing by Danielle Steele. Better authors are having their books read, and maybe more importantly, sold. If it’s an Oprah book, then at least it isn’t going to be consigned to the bargain bin. And just about any author out there would appreciate that. Frantzen is a pompous jerk of the highest order. I hope he chokes on his lark’s tongues in aspic, and the only one their to give him the heimlich maneuver is someone who learned it on Oprah’s show. ---
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/28 "2001-11-01T18:37:15Z")
**jarbabu** , I don’t know what diet Oprah is on now; she might not be allowed to eat you. ---
**Author:** ![porcupine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ac91a4/32.png) [@porcupine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/porcupine)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/29 "2001-11-01T18:37:24Z")
**jarbaby** , I don’t know what diet Oprah is on now; she might not be allowed to eat you. ---
**Author:** ![Aguecheek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a9adbd/32.png) [@Aguecheek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aguecheek)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/30 "2001-11-01T18:37:53Z")
[QUOTE] \*Originally posted by gobear \* \*\* > [@](#): > > Why the objection to Oprah’s logo on the front cover of the book? The publisher’s colophon is on the book, too, even though they didn’t write it either. If anybody should be pissed, it’s the cover’s illustrator. > > Frantzen is a pompous, elitist schmuck who dissed Oprah becuase he didn’t want his “high-art” novel read by the Great Unwashed. He’s a member of the It’s The Public’s Job To Appreciate Me club, and he is a jackass.\*\* I’d like to resfectfully disagree with you on this one **gobear** …From my viewpoint, Frantzen would rather have his books judged on the merits of his own writing, not what Oprah decided her minions should read: > [@](#): > > He told interviewers that he felt uncomfortable having her “logo of corporate ownership” on his book. That being chosen for her Book Club made him feel “misunderstood” (“I feel like I’m solidly in the high-art literary tradition”). And that he knew there were people who boycotted books simply because Winfrey had endorsed them (“She’s picked some good books, but she’s picked enough schmaltzy, one-dimensional ones that I cringe, myself, even though I think she’s really smart and she’s really fighting the good fight”). ([Newsweek](http://www.msnbc.com/news/648737.asp)) He was uncomfortable with Oprah’s “corporate owership,” which I feel makes everyone around here uncomfortable. “Go ahead and recommend the book, but don’t think I’m pining for your official seal of approval.” Oprah’s seal is nothing but another plug for her show, put her name in people’s homes, make her a more visible (if possible!) public figure. By having her endorse his book with her name put on the cover, it implies that he, in turn, endorses her show. He doesn’t even watch it. Granted, he said he felt he was part of the high-art tradition, but qualifies himself by saying that he didn’t really want to be put in the same class as other “schmaltzy” writers in Oprah’s club. He’s got the right to determine what sort of class with whom he wants to be associated. By refusing Oprah’s endorsement, he resisted her attempts to push him into another class. It seems he believes that more people boycott “Ophrah’s books” than buy them (from the article). If I’m looking for sales, I’d want to open myself up to the largest buying demographic possible. The paint you’re smearing on him with is the same kind you accuse him of smearing on Oprah. IMHO, you’re misconstruing his intentions and his methodology. He’s not refusing Oprah’s endorsement 'cause he considers her beneath him, but that he doesn’t want to have to depend on her for his book’s survival. He feels his book is better than the others she’s endorsed, and doesn’t want people to…well…judge the book by what’s on its cover. ---
**Author:** ![cleosia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@cleosia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cleosia)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/31 "2001-11-01T18:38:20Z")
**jarbabyj** > [@](#): > > Please. Why don’t those women who are so interested in reading haul their asses over to the library and think for themselves then? Think for themselves? Now there’s a scary thought. You know, this thread could be called _The Story of (yellow) O_! ---
**Author:** ![Clucky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/977dab/32.png) [@Clucky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clucky)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/32 "2001-11-01T18:40:45Z")
I totally disagree. Oprah does not have a pretty little head. (Twatclamp. Classic. Jarbabyj, this clinches it. You’re one of my favorite posters, if not my favorite.) ---
**Author:** ![Green\_Bean](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/green_bean/32/1760_2.png) [@Green\_Bean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Green_Bean)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/33 "2001-11-01T18:41:41Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by jarbabyj \* > \*\* > No, my point is no one should use anyone’s judgement but their OWN in picking books to read._\* Huh? So if a friend cared enough about a book to give you a copy, you wouldn’t read it? You don’t take the recommendations of friends or relatives when choosing books? Listen, if my brother picks a book for me, then I know I’ll like it. I trust his taste. Maybe these people have come to trust Oprah’s taste. ---
**Author:** ![Stoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stoid/32/272_2.png) [@Stoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stoid)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/34 "2001-11-01T18:47:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zanshin \* > \*\*I have to admit, I was a little worried when I read the title of this thread… my first thought was, “With a little barbecue sauce, I wouldn’t get too close to her, or she probably would!” 😃 > > [sub]Go get 'er, **jar**![/sub] \*\* That was a completely assinine thing to say. Now, jarbabyj, you are, of course, entitled to your opinion. But having read your OP, and having scanned quickly through the responses, I’m sorta stumped about what exactly your problem with her is, aside from everything. You (and others) sorta said: “Oprah, you do this - I hate you for it!” without really id’ing what’s wrong with “this”. There doesn’t have to be, of course, but just in case there was, I kinda wanted to know. I happen to be a pretty big fan of Oprah. I can get a little annoyed with her about some things, and she’s definitely not a perfect person. But it’s rather hard to argue that what she does and where she comes from are in any way negative. Contrary to your OP’s suggestion, she is a wildly generous person, both with people she knows and in a “charity” sense. She gives away millions and millions of dollars a year, in one form or another. The book club is a great thing, because it DOES get people who probably otherwise wouldn’t to read. Her starting motivation for almost everything she does is to help people be happier and to make the world a better place. And because she is so rich, so famous, and so powerful… \* she actually does. \* What she does has an impact, as opposed to what kind of impact it might have if she had the same goals, but was not famous, rich or powerful. Off the top of my head, I can’t think of anyone else of her level of celebrity who has used that celebrity for so much good. Just my view. stoid PS: And totally apart from the fact that he’s become a pop celebrity himself because of Oprah, apart from his good ol’ boy presentation, if you actually listen to (or read) what Phil McGraw has to say, he’s totally right on. I’ve probably read 60 self-help books since 1975. His is the only one that I feel is 100% correct, true, and most importantly: \*\* useful \*\* and is also refreshingly free of any touch-feely bullshit. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/35 "2001-11-01T18:49:10Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Green Bean \* > > Huh? So if a friend cared enough about a book to give you a copy, you wouldn’t read it? You don’t take the recommendations of friends or relatives when choosing books? Listen, if my brother picks a book for me, then I know I’ll like it. I trust his taste. Maybe these people have come to trust Oprah’s taste. Well, the difference is Oprah isn’t my best friend or my brother. She’s a billionaire carnival barker, telling us what to buy. How in the WORLD does she know my tastes? Are these books hot and steamy with great sex scenes? Do they feature action and swearing and drugs and rock n roll lifestyles? Are they like Bret Easton Ellis? My friends recommend books to me a) sparingly and b) only after they know exactly what I like. recommending Terry Pratchett to me is ridiculously stupid if you know me at all. And that’s my real point. Oprah pretends like she’s everybody’s best friend, wearing fucking pajamas on her show and talking about how she likes to eat fast food. Give. Me. A. Break. jar ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 7:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/36 "2001-11-01T19:00:53Z")
**Stoid** What the fuck? Let me remind you of this the next time you start on in Dubya. > [@](#): > > Off the top of my head, I can’t think of anyone else of her level of celebrity who has used that celebrity for so much good. Two words: Audrey Hepburn. Hell, what about Jimmy and Rosalyn Carter? I personally think Audrey did WAY more for people as an ambassador for UNICEF than anything Oprah has done for bored housewives. And Audrey didn’t do it just to push herself in everyone’s faces. **jarbabyj** -btw, I wanna be JUST like you when I grow up. 😉 Oprah is a self-centered, stuck up, holier than though cuntrag. ---
**Author:** ![tiny\_ham](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a183cd/32.png) [@tiny\_ham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tiny_ham)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/37 "2001-11-01T19:02:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Stoid \* > Her starting motivation for almost everything she does is to help people be happier and to make the world a better place. To make the world a better place on her terms and keep her a billionaire. Hey, I want to be rich more than anyone, but I’m not going to trick people into thinking I’m a philanthropist while I do it. And my main problem with her is that she tries to pretend that she’s ‘one of us’. One of us…with six houses and dripping in diamonds and a billion dollars, and we’re supposed to believe that she sits around eating Doritos with her girlfriends? I’m not buying it. And I’ve already explained my point about the books. People by them with zero research or insight. OPRAH SAID BUY IT, SO I WILL… sounds almost like blindly following a religion, eh? > [@](#): > > His is the only one that I feel is 100% correct, true, and most importantly: \*\* useful \*\* and is also refreshingly free of any touch-feely bullshit. Really? Every time I see him he’s trying to make someone cry by telling them that “their daddy is still with them, still holding their hand”. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![BiblioCat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/38 "2001-11-01T19:08:30Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Green Bean \* > **I agree with the OP with regard to a lot of her points, but I think the book club is great. If an O on the cover can help an uninformed book-buyer choose a book, so be it. If a person never reads any “good” novels other than Oprah books, it’s still better than having read nothing by Danielle Steele. Better authors are having their books read, and maybe more importantly, sold. If it’s an Oprah book, then at least it isn’t going to be consigned to the bargain bin. And just about any author out there would appreciate that.** Me, too. And hopefully, it gets them to read other books by that author. I for one (and other one this board are with me) like the Oprah books. I occasionally watch her show, but I hate Dr. Phil and I hate the “Finding Your Spirit” parts. But I do like most of the books she recommends. And I usually end up reading everything else an author has written. One of the first “O” books I read was _Vinegar Hill_ by A. Manette Ansay. I’ve now read all four of her books and thoroughly enjoyed each of them. And am waiting impatiently for her newest. And I am able to find others I like that aren’t suggested by her. BTW, the “blue” one is _Midwives_ by Chris Bohjalian. Just in case you wanted to know… 😉 ---
**Author:** ![stofsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@stofsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stofsky)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/39 "2001-11-01T19:19:14Z")
Gee, IIRC, and I was working for B. Dalton at the time, the book that started the whole “O” book club thing was Robert James Waller’s _Bridges of Madision County_. Would you want to be in that company? Does anyone want to say anything more about Oprah’s “good taste?” ---
**Author:** ![CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crankyasanoldman/32/11670_2.png) [@CrankyAsAnOldMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrankyAsAnOldMan)\ **Post date:** [November 1, 2001, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938/40 "2001-11-01T19:22:23Z")
Heck I sorta like the old gal. For one thing, my dream is to be on her show on the day that she shows her favorite gifts for the holidays. Because her stuido audience gets one of EVERYTHING! It’s a hell of a fucking haul. Naturally they now have to not reveal which show that actually is ahead of time. Second, I like the idea of her book club. It’s not valuable for me or jarbaby, but what about the ranch wife who lives out in the middle of East BumFuck Nevada who craves a chance to discuss books but can’t start a bookclub because everyone lives 100 miles away? By including an Oprah book in her repertoire, she gets the chance to see a pop book discussed once a month, on TV. On what other show does that really happen? And better yet, if it gets people to read who otherwise would never get their ass into a bookstore, more power to her. So what if they blindly buy it–at least they’re buying a book and taking a whack at it. Maybe in the future they’ll pursue reading independently. My bookclub picked a coupla Oprah books to read last year, but most of us read a wide variety of stuff anyway . Hey, I love Elizabeth Berg, and liked her long before she was picked. I’m not going to stop reading her just because Oprah picked her. But it’s nice that she was chosen, because that meant I could find the hardback everywhere. Even Target had it. Third, her magazine is actually not bad. Seriously. The first time I saw it on a friend’s coffee table, I guffawed. But then I picked the thing up. She includes some interesting stuff. The best thing I saw was an article/pictorial on the process they go through to produce a cover shot of Oprah. It looks like she just sat down on this wicker couch, crossed her legs, and they snapped a few shots and picked the best one. Au contraire. She explained the whole process–the people who work to get her hair and makeup right, the wardrobe people who have her try on 25 outfits, the lighting techs, the tests they do, the airbrushing of flaws, the color correction… it was an all-day process, involved a staff of dozens, etc. When they started, she was butt-ugly and she let them publish photos to prove it. You would run from Oprah when she rolls outta bed. Eeek. Anyway, her point was to not try to attain the images you see in the media, because it’s more than just a good makeup job that makes it happen. It’s mostly false, and a hell of a lot of work to boot. I thought it was gutsy of her. And interesting. Well, I think that’s enough out of ME. Lord I do hate to disagree with some you, if just on principle, because we see eye to eye on so much else. If it redeems me at all in your eyes, my husband LOATHES Oprah. Passionately. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/oprah-winfrey-eat-me/90938.md?page=3)