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Although the shoot happened more than 10 years ago, Vogue editor Anna Wintour recently revealed that she "strongly encouraged" Oprah Winfrey to lose 20 pounds for her 1998 Vogue cover.
And Oprah did it!
'It was a very gentle suggestion,' said Wintour during an unaired portion of Sunday's '60 Minutes' interview with Morley Safer. "I went to Chicago to visit Oprah, and I suggested that it might be an idea that she lose a little bit of weight. I said simply that you might feel more comfortable. She was a trouper!"
The most famous editrix in fashion and the inspiration for the book and movie 'The Devil Wears Prada,' "Nuclear Wintour" is known for her low tolerance for mediocrity and body fat -- both in the pages of Vogue and even on her staff at the "bible of fashion."
Oprah Winfrey Fashion Transformation
Twenty Years of Beautiful at Any Size
Consistently ranked as one of the richest and most powerful women in the world -- even credited with giving President-elect Obama over one million votes -- Oprah Winfrey has indeed risen to heights heretofore thought unimaginable. As with all of humanity, though, Oprah has had one very persistent and public struggle, and that is with her weight, which has fluctuated through the years, unlike her meteoric star. As we chronicle her looks over a 20-year period, you'll see that Winfrey remains smart about choosing styles that compliment her figure at any size. There should be NO shame in her game!
Text by Hayat Mohamed, Photo editor, Denyse Clarke
AP, Getty Images
November 1988
In 1988, two years after the debut of her highly successful talk show, Oprah was at her lowest weight ever, dropping an astounding 68 pounds. Who could forget the day she unveiled her new figure on 'The Oprah Winfrey Show' along with a wagon carrying 68-pounds of fat?
Charles Bennet, AP
January 1991
Three years after her amazing weight loss, Oprah fell off track and packed on some extra pounds. Her petite figure was history at in 1991 at the Daytime Emmy Awards, of which the undisputed talk show queen has won many.
Time Life Pictures / Getty Images
May 1994
"Three" seems to be the magic word for Oprah -- or maybe "corsets"... At the 1994 Emmy Awards, the media mogul showed off a tiny waist and sculpted arms in a form-fitting dress.
Dave Allocca, Getty Images
May 1995
A failed diet regimen or a poorly-cut dress? Whatever the reason, it appeared that Ms. Winfrey's Emmy count wasn't the only thing climbing that year. When she received her award at the Daytime Emmy Awards her hips appear to have widened noticeably from the year before. She still stands triumphant.
Paul Hurschman, AP
February 1996
Ms. O's waistline was looking rather slim at the 68th Academy Awards in a navy blue fitted satin gown in 1996. Eleven years prior, Winfrey was nominated for an Academy Award for her role as Sophia in 'The Color Purple.' Since then, she has starred in and produced several films.
AP
September 2003
Oprah arrived to the 54th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards in 2002 in a mellow yellow dress and her constant companion Stedman Graham, her man since 1986. Despite the added weight she was simply radiant on the red carpet. There goes that corset again!
Steve Granitz, WireImages
January 2003
In 2003, Oprah managed to stabilize her weight. Maybe it's the slimming choice of black but she looked as if she had dropped a few pounds when she was spotted attending the American Auction at the Metropolitan in NYC.
Arnaldo Magnani, Getty Images
February 2003
A month later, Ms. Winfrey was looking pretty fierce on the red carpet of the Association of American Publishers Honors Awards in a clingy red dress. By the looks of it, O was definitely hitting the gym.
Photo by Stefan Zaklin/Getty Images
August 2004
The year 2004 rang in a new do and a new waist for Oprah. She had no problem strutting her stuff at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Gala. Forget the color black, we give props to Oprah's diet and fitness plan.
Getty Images
Oprah, who has publicly fluctuated with her weight for years and who has been very vocal about being comfortable in the skin she's in, may leave a few puzzled at her agreement to shed the pounds for the magazine's cover.
"She totally welcomed the idea, and she went on a very stringent diet," recounted Wintour. "It was one of our most successful covers ever." But then again, one thing Winfrey is certainly known for -- especially in recent years -- is personal growth. Who knows if she would have gone for Wintour's "gentle suggestion" today.
Comments: (518)
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By: Vogue on 5/26/2009 8:39PM
The woman just loves to eat period. Now, leave her alone. She’s not going to change until she’s ready.
P.S. The Vogue picture was airbrushed. Her arms have never, ever been THAT thin.
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By: D. Peters on 5/27/2009 1:50PM
I don't understand how this is "news". Both Oprah and Anna Wintour stated this 10 years ago when the cover came out.
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By: DaddyBilly on 5/28/2009 4:45AM
Anybody who calls that gorilla face that Oprah has beautiful needs to have the taste slapped out of their damn mouth. Oprah is disgusting and lazy just like other big fat funky women. That woman has more than enough money to hire her own personal trainer, her own dietician, cook, calorie counter, meal planner, and her own gym if necessary yet that pig is still FAT. That is proof positive that fat women are just plain lazy. Those photos of her appearing to be thinner are fake, just look at them closely and you can see that the pig still have a big fat face. Oprah appearing in dark clothing does not make that pig lose weight. Thyroid problem my azzzz. That pig has no excuse for being fat, she is just plain lazy like all big fat piggy women. Oprah has no excuse whatsoever for being fat. Oprah could not lose 20 pounds in 20 years.
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By: Lisette on 5/28/2009 7:45PM
Since she had to be on the cover of Vogue she had to fit into the standards of the audience plain and simple. Like most B-folk I think she has issues and is still looking for other people to validate her as being somebody worthy...very twisted...but it's her call.
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By: Paulett on 6/08/2009 3:20PM
To Oprah & Rosie and all the other big girls out there, I love you all for being you. If we were all a size 4, the world would not be as enjoyable as it is. My friends range from size 2 - 26. Each have their own identity and are the most beautiful people on this planet. I would not want to change them for all the tea in China.
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By: Glennis Chappelle on 6/10/2009 9:59AM
I am so sure that Oprah would love to be smaller, but it's just not happening for her. We should all learn to be more sympathetic to each other. What's with all of the negative criticisms. Women are so mean to each other. Geeezzz!
I say to Oprah to just live your best life and she is!
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By: Wilnett on 6/10/2009 12:28PM
I agree that Monique should stop promoting obesity. In fact, I recently heard her say that she is on a diet, because she wants to be around for her children. It think over weight women try to hide how they really feel about thier size, when they joke around about it. As for Oprah, because she has tried in the pass to loose weight, I think she would do what it takes to become a healthier weight. I'm praying for her!
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By: JUDY on 6/16/2009 9:54PM
Miss Winfrey has earned the right to not apologize or explain herself to anyone except God. Oprah, don't apologize, don't explain, you don't own anyone anything. It's time for the world to realize that everyone can't be a walking clothes hanger.
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