Oprah Winfrey was in tears as the Smithsonian museum exhibit honoring her legacy as an influential member of the African-American community was previewed by her and “CBS This Morning” co-host and best friend Gayle King on Wednesday.
“How many people are alive who get exhibits?” Winfrey asked King as they walked through the 4,300-square-foot exhibit together with director Lonnie Bunch.
The exhibit, titled “Watching Oprah: The Oprah Winfrey Show and American Culture,” chronicles the mogul's life from birth to her time as an award-winning talk show host with a decades-spanning career.
Winfrey was born in 1954 as schools began to desegregate and there began to be hope for change during the coming civil rights era.
She grew into a television icon with a national talk show watched by millions during the 1980s and for decades afterward: 4,561 episodes over 25 seasons. The tears came when she read a note from a fan that said, “Oprah Winfrey is the reason I love myself so fiercely and know that my voice matters.”
“Thank you for this,” Oprah said, hugging King and Bunch.
The exhibit also includes the red dress she wore the day she gave everyone in her show’s audience a new car.
The Oprah exhibit opens to the public on Friday, June 8.
Twitter users were excited about the exhibit and talked of visiting to see it.
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