The media mogul Oprah Winfrey will end her daytime talk show, “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” in 2011 as she prepares to start a cable channel of her own. A spokeswoman for Ms. Winfrey’s production company, Harpo, confirmed Thursday evening that Ms. Winfrey would make an announcement on her show on Friday. The plans were first reported by WABC, the ABC station in New York City. “The sun will set on the Oprah show as its 25th season draws to a close on Sept. 9, 2011,” Tim Bennett, the president of Harpo, said in a message to affiliates. After her broadcast talk show winds down, Ms. Winfrey will concentrate on her coming cable channel, OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. OWN will have its premiere in January 2011, according to a person with knowledge of Ms. Winfrey’s decision who insisted on anonymity. Ms. Winfrey, 55, informed her talk show staff of her decision on Thursday afternoon. The television world had expected that she would make a decision about the fate of her program by the end of the year. Ms. Winfrey told her staffers that she will not transfer the show to cable. She is expected to produce new programs for OWN, and may appear on some of them. In a statement, CBS Television Distribution said, “We have the greatest respect for Oprah and wish her nothing but the best in her future endeavors. We know that anything she turns her hand to will be a great success. We look forward to working with her for the next several years, and hopefully afterwards as well.” OWN is a joint venture between her production company and Discovery Communications. Getting the channel off the ground has proved challenging amid management turnover and an uncertain advertising climate. The timeline for OWN will theoretically give Ms. Winfrey about nine months to promote her cable channel on her existing show. Sometimes called the Queen of Talk, Forbes estimates Ms. Winfrey’s net worth to be $2.7 billion. “The Oprah Winfrey Show” is the most successful talk show in syndication, reaching about seven million viewers a day. It has been vital to the success of ABC, whose local station group has been the primary home of the show since it started in syndication in 1986.

Wow!! Rumors of this move have been swirling for a couple of weeks now so this announcement isn’t really a surprise. What is a surprise is that Oprah will not move her wildly popular talk show to her new OWN network … but, to be honest, Oprah has really conquered the world of daytime talk shows and will go out just as popular as she’s ever been. This is but another step forward in Oprah’s quest for world domination … methinks she will do just fine with this new venture. But still … wow … no more Oprah Winfrey Show. Whatever will Oprah fans do with themselves once the show goes off the air?

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I understand that NYC mayor Bloomberg, Regis Philbin, Kelly Ripa, Daniel Craig and Hugh Jackman are also scheduled to appear on today’s show but Mimi brought along a special guest of her own. After the jump, see who tagged along to appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show with Mariah Carey earlier today …

The happily marrieds are still goin’ strong … as is evident in these photos. Mariah even performed a song off her new album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (due out later this month) complete with a full gospel choir — which means this show is must see!!

Now, I’m not a regular Oprah watcher so I’m not sure if the ep will actually air today or if it will air on Monday … but I’ll deffo be on the look-out for the You Tube clips that are sure to come. I’m not sure I’m diggin’ this Mariah 2009 lookin’ like Mariah 1993 thing she’s got goin’ on. It was cute for promo pics but I dunno that it’s a good idea to recycle one’s own look in the flesh.

[Photo credit: Wireimage]

In this Aug. 31, 2009 photo provided Monday, Sept. 7, 2009 by Harpo Productions, television talk-show host Oprah Winfrey, right, and Whitney Houston are seen during an interview at the Town Hall in New York. Houston, who’s new album “I Look To You” was released on Aug. 31, was interviewed by Winfrey for a two-part season premiere of The Oprah Winfrey Show, airing Sept. 14 and 15.

Oprah has also made available a preview video clip from her 2-part interview which features Whitney’s revelation that her mother, Cissy Houston, showed up at home with the police to extricate her from her dangerous living situation with ex-husband Bobby Brown. After the jump, check out the minute-long preview clip in full …

Oprah Winfrey’s upcoming interview with Whitney Houston is said to be a, “jaw-dropping, open, honest and candid” conversation that the daytime talk show queen is calling, “the best interview I’ve ever done.” Winfrey sits down with Houston for a two-day interview starting on Monday, Sept. 14, where Houston discusses her marriage with Bobby Brown, drugs, rehab and how her family saved her. “I think it’s the best interview I’ve ever done. But I guess you’re supposed to let other people say that about yourself. I can’t think of a moment, ever, when I had a stronger connection to the person I was interviewing,” Winfrey said in a statement to Access Hollywood. “My approach to this interview was to not be judgmental in any way, and not to go in trying to get her to say things to make a ‘moment.’ I just wanted to be able to have an honest conversation with her. One woman to another woman. And the day of the interview I literally prayed about that all day long. I just wanted a connection between the two of us. And that is what happened.” With friends and family looking on, including Clive Davis and her daughter Bobbi Kristina, Houston brings down the house with an emotional performance of “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength” from her new album “I Look To You,” which is expected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. “I think whether you liked or loved Whitney Houston before you will certainly have a deeper appreciation for what she has been through as a human being,” Winfrey continued. “And I mean, the fans are just going to love her even more.” “The Oprah Winfrey Show: Season Premiere: Oprah And Whitney Houston – The First Interview” airs Monday, Sept. 14. “The Oprah Winfrey Show: Season Premiere Part II: Whitney Houston’s Show-Stopping Surprise” airs Tuesday, Sept. 15.

On the one hand, I am having a hard time believing that this interview with Whitney Houston is really Winfrey’s “best interview ever” and on the other hand, having seen many of Oprah’s softball interviews, I can see how it really wouldn’t be difficult for any particular interview to be the best ever. While I expect that Whitney will open up and bare her soul, I don’t expect that we’ll learn any stunning revelations. I think Diane Sawyer’s “Crack is whack” interview will remain THE interview that enlightened Whitney Houston the most to audiences. Best or not, I am very anxious to see this interview in full … the fact that it will air over 2-days is an excellent way to ensure that Oprah’s 24th season of her talk show kicks off with a bang. Will you be tuning in?

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Oprah launches her 24th season of “The Oprah Winfrey Show” with what she calls “the most anticipated music interview of the decade,” a must-see television event with singing icon Whitney Houston. This marks Houston’s first interview in nearly seven years and follows the release of her highly touted new album, “I Look To You” on August 31, 2009. For more information about the album check www.oprah.com/whitney or www.whitneyhouston.com. “The Oprah Winfrey Show: Exclusive: Whitney Houston’s First Interview” airs Monday, September 14, 2009 (check local listings). Since her 1985 self-titled debut, Whitney Houston has built an illustrious career that has generated over 170 million combined worldwide sales of albums, singles and videos. Cited by the Guinness Book of World Records as music’s “most awarded female artist of all time,” with an unsurpassed tally of 411 awards, inclusive of 6 Grammy Awards, 2 Emmy Awards, 23 American Music Awards and 16 Billboard Music Awards. Houston remains a singular force in music today. “The Oprah Winfrey Show” has remained the number one talk show for 22 consecutive seasons, winning every sweep since its debut in 1986.** It is produced in Chicago by Harpo Productions, Inc. and syndicated to 214 domestic stations by CBS Television Distribution Group and to 143 countries by CBS Paramount International Television.

Damn! Has it really been almost 7 years since Whitney Houston sat down for a televised interview? I’m not sure if her infamous “Crack is Whack” interview with Diane Sawyer is her most recent interview but a lot has gone down since those days back when she was happily married to Bobby Brown. As much as I am really looking forward to the release of her new album, I can’t help but be EXTREMELY interested in hearing her answer all the questions that we’ve been dying to know from the past few years. Oprah is by no means a tough interviewer but she does have the ability to draw her interviewees out. I hope this will be a good one … I can’t wait to see it!

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Heidi was most recently seen all glammed up for the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute Gala earlier this week but she had nothing to say about the sex of her incubating baby. This is great news … the couple already have a girl and two boys. This will round out their family perfectly. Perhaps she was yet unaware or perhaps the couple decided to save the news for Oprah but now we know. Oprah doesn’t air here in LA until later this afternoon … but I may just have to tune in to hear the announcement for myself. Congrats to the happy couple!!!

UPDATE: Here is a screencap of Oprah sharing Heidi and Seal’s happy news on her show today:

[Photo credit: Splash News; thanks Tammy]

Joseph Biden’s wife Jill on Monday appeared to let slip a piece of choice political gossip, suggesting her husband was given a choice by Barack Obama to be vice president or secretary of state. Biden will be sworn into office on Tuesday as Obama’s second-in-command, and appeared to try to hush his wife as she made the comment on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show. His office later put out a statement denying he had a choice of job. “Joe had a choice to be secretary of state or vice president,” Jill Biden said, prompting her husband to whisper “shhh” before her words were drowned out by cheers and applause. She went on to explain that she had worried about the impact of her husband being secretary of state on their family life. “I said, Joe, if you’re secretary of state, you’ll be away. (I’ll) see you at a state dinner once in a while. I said if you’re vice president, the entire family, because they worked so hard for the election, can be involved. They can come to our home. They can go to events. They can be with us all the time. And that’s what’s important to us.” Joseph Biden, trying to smooth over the awkward moment, then said he told Obama he would serve as vice president only if he was being selected for his judgement. “I know it’s going to sound corny. I could best serve there. The bottom line, Barack’s my friend. This is a partnership,” he said … Biden spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander put out a statement trying to play down Jill Biden’s comments. “To be clear, president-elect Obama offered vice President-elect Biden one job only — to be his running mate and the vice president-elect was thrilled to accept the offer,” she said. “Like anyone who followed the presidential campaign this summer, Dr Jill Biden knew there was a chance that president-elect Obama might ask her husband to serve in some capacity and that, given his background, the positions of vice president and secretary of state were possibilities,” Alexander said. “Dr Biden’s point to Oprah today was that being vice president would be a better fit for their family because they would get to see him more and get to participate in serving more.”

LOL! I love Jill Biden! And I love that in the excitement of being in the presence of the great Oprah Winfrey the poor dear got flustered enough to let this bit of previously unsubstantiated information get out. No matter what the press release says about the incident, you know what Jill spilled was the way it went down ;)

In any event, Joe Biden is just about to take his oath of office … and then, soon after, it’s Barack Obama’s turn!

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Thousands of spectators cheered Olympic medalists Michael Phelps, Dara Torres and Kobe Bryant on Wednesday as the city of Chicago got a high-profile boost to its bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics. Oprah Winfrey was taping the season premiere for “The Oprah Winfrey Show” at a downtown park, and she invited 150 U.S. Olympic athletes to join her. The athletes were introduced under a shower of red, white and blue confetti. Winfrey intends the show to be both a welcome home for athletes who competed in Beijing and also a chance to showcase Chicago as the city bids for the 2016 Games, said Harpo Productions … The 23rd season premiere of Winfrey’s talk show will air Monday. Chicago is a finalist for the 2016 Games along with Tokyo; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and Madrid, Spain. The International Olympic Committee will choose the 2016 host next year.

People.com has some scoop on what will transpire in next Monday’s season premiere ep:

Even face-to-face with Oprah Winfrey, Michael Phelps remains mum on the topic of his private life. But in terms of Olympic-sized revelations, Nastasia Liukin admits she gained inspiration from The Secret, while Kobe Bryant confessed to his surprise at finding he has so many fans in China … “It’s good to be back on American soil,” said Phelps, 23, grinning shyly and wearing only one of the eight gold medals he took home for swimming. Asking the most pressing question, “Are you single?,” Winfrey was told by Phelps, “I try to keep my private life private.” Bryant, joined by others on the winning men’s basketball team, said the players made a conscious effort to bring back gold and remedy what had become the sullied reputation of American players. “We made it a personal challenge. It was a priority” to take arrogance out of the game, he told Winfrey. In response to all the attention he received from adoring Chinese fans, Bryant, 30, admitted, “It caught me off guard” … Liukin, 18, cited the inspiration she received from The Secret, a self-help book popularized on Winfrey’s show. Recalling her pre-China prep, “I said, ‘I guess I should read it, Oprah read it,’ ” said the winning athlete. As for Torres – at 41, the winner of three silver medals in Beijing – the swimmer and mother of a 2-year-old said age shouldn’t limit one’s dreams. “All the mothers out there are my role models,” she said.

Oprah always does things in a big way, none of this surprises me at all. I do think it’s brilliant that she is using the fame of her show to help Chicago’s Olympic bid. I would love it if Chi-town won the the 2016 Olympics … if so, I’d make sure to attend some portion of the games, Chicago is so close to Detroit. I don’t make it a habit to watch The Oprah Winfrey Show (like my BFF Sarah does) but I’ll be watching this one. It looks too good to miss.

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