43
Final ‘Oprah’ draws crowd
AP
Photo
In this May 17, 2011 file photo, Oprah Winfrey acknowledges fans during a star-studded double-taping of "Surprise Oprah! A Farewell Spectacular, in Chicago. "The Oprah Winfrey Show" is ending its run May 25, after 25 years.
Associated Press
CHICAGO
Hundreds of giddy fans struck by their luck at getting tickets to be a part of history gathered outside Oprah Winfrey’s television studio in Chicago Tuesday awaiting the taping of her final talk show.
The show taped Tuesday afternoon will be the finale of “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” according to Harpo Productions.
The show will air today at 5 p.m. on 21 WFMJ-TV.
Winfrey announced in November 2009 that she would end her popular talk show after 25 years.
Tuesday’s taping comes a week after Hollywood’s A-list and 13,000 fans bid Winfrey farewell during a double-episode extravaganza at Chicago’s United Center.
The shows that aired Monday and Tuesday included Aretha Franklin, Tom Cruise, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jordan and Madonna, among other stars of television, music and movies.
Sarah Cranley, 32, of Chicago waited in line with her mother, who traveled in from Pittsburgh for the taping. Cranley said she felt very lucky to snag tickets to the last show and the prospect of seeing Winfrey live didn’t yet feel real.
“You think about how many billions of people around the world watch her and want to be here,” Cranley said. “What are the odds?”
Allegra Scott, 39, of Chicago, said it’s amazing to be a part of the final show, calling it a blessing.
Fans said they went through the normal ticketing process for the final taping by submitting their names online.
The finale of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” has remained a secret, even as Harpo Studios hyped it as a television event.
In a promotional video posted online May 16, clips of famous television finales plays over a sad song with the lyrics “It’s hard to say goodbye.” It includes Mary Tyler Moore, Walter Cronkite, Johnny Carson, “M.A.S.H,” “The Cosby Show,” and “Cheers.”
The video asks viewers “Where were you?” and “Where will you be?”
Another promotional video for the final three episodes prompts viewers to “Say farewell.”