Born: January 29, 1954, Kosciusko, MS
Talk is cheap? Not if youre Oprah Winfrey. The woman who is Everywoman five afternoons a week has managed to make millions (and millions and millions) by saying whats on her mind and letting the rest of us pipe in. No longer merely a talk show host, Winfrey is an actress (with amazing performances in the film versions of Alice Walkers The Color Purple and Toni Morrisons Beloved), producer, marathoner and angel (networker), a business dynamo and icon. How did Oprah get to be such a bigshot?
Born under an Aquarius Sun, Winfrey is a bit out there, a true progressive thinker who has her pulse on what the people want. The people, in fact, are her main interest and first love; she wants nothing more than to challenge the status quo and make life and the world better for everyone. Aside from her Sun, Oprahs Mercury and Venus, planets of communication and love, lie in Aquarius as well, all in the sixth house of health. This sixth house stellium may explain Oprahs use of her talk show as a forum in which to help guide her viewers down the path of self-help and self-awareness. The intensity of Aquarian energy also influences her to champion the underdog; she loves rooting out previously unknown authors and giving them a ton of exposure, for example, and she truly cares about the people who call or write in to her show for advice on their lives.
Aquarius is a fixed planet, and Oprah has a total of six planets of the fixed quality in her chart. As a result, she can be quite stubborn, adopting an inflexible, my-way-or-the-highway attitude at will. She also needs to be in charge, which is why shes at the helm of her own Harpo Productions. She is truly determined and not easily swayed, so she gets a lot done.
With Uranus in Cancer, Winfrey is an empathetic person but in her own unique way. Coupled with Mars in Scorpio, shes also extremely shrewd, which compels her to leverage that empathy for maximum impact. The talk show host is a force to be reckoned with, so anyone thinking about getting in her way had better think twice!
In fact, were she not such a successful businesswoman, shed make a great lawyer; her Mercury square Mars gives Winfrey that razor-sharp tongue. Its rare that anyone will get the best of her in a verbal debate. Shes also quick, spontaneous and extremely smart. As her Sun is square Saturn, Winfrey is also intensely disciplined and quite hard on herself -- and twice as hard on others. Surprisingly, this tough persona may stem from a lack of confidence and lingering memories of having been an ugly duckling as a child. Thats no longer the truth, however, if it ever was; she has developed into a strong, beautiful and intelligent woman who is a role model for all.
