The Oprah victory tour--she launches her syndicated show's last season this month--has added one more plaudit.
The veteran
talk show host/actress/producer has been tapped to receive a Kennedy
Center Honor at a ceremony that will be broadcast Dec. 28 on CBS.
The award
goes to individuals who have "spent their lives enriching, inspiring and
elevating the cultural vibrancy of our nation and the world," said
Kennedy Center Chairman David Rubenstein in announcing
the honors, which also went to singer-songwriter Paul McCartney,
country legend Merle Haggard, composer-lyricist Jerry Herman, and
dancer/choreographer Bill T. Jones.
"Winfrey has
established one of the most innovative careers in the entertainment
world, with distinctive accomplishments in television and film," said
Rubenstein.
If past is
prologue, Oprah (along with the other winners) will be seated with
friend and fellow Chicagoan President Barack Obama and First Lady
Michele Obama at the awards gala.
The awards
will actually be given out Dec. 4 at a State Department dinner, and the
gala taped the following day at the Kennedy Center, followed by a
dinner/dance in the grand foyer.
