The Oprah Winfrey we know today held a long and arduous road ahead of her when she was younger. The lessons the now-media mogul and executive have learned along the way taught her how to pave her way through adversity with the foundations instilled in her from key people she had in her life. Today, she is known to be one of the richest women in the world, something she worked incredibly hard to achieve ever since her early high school days as a teen.
Now, we get to catch a glimpse of a younger Lady O from the early 70s as she was beginning to sow the seeds of what would one day be her media empire in full color thanks to MyHeritage In Color™ (they are an automatic colorization feature that brings old black and white family photos to life using sophisticated machine learning technology). See all of the pictures below!
Bright Beginnings
Oprah had always shown high academic and intellectual acumen when it came to her school work. She was an honors student, was voted Most Popular Girl, was part of her high school speech team and placed second in a nationwide drama competition.
All thanks to Ms. Hattie Mae
Oprah credits her strong sense of self to the foundation that her grandmother Hattie Mae (Presley) Lee instilled in her when she was a young girl. Ms. Hattie Mae taught her granddaughter to read by the age of three and always took her to their local church. Her late grandmother has reportedly said that from the moment Oprah could talk, it was like she was on a stage.
Her father Vernon Winfrey made education a priority
Growing up, Oprah bounced a lot between her mother’s home and her father’s home. After a tumultuous relationship with her mother, she was sent to her father’s home permanently. Once there, Oprah’s father Vernon reinforced the need for education and Oprah was able to flourish in a way she hadn’t before.
Off to the University of Tennessee
Due to her father Vernon’s strict but encouraging approach to her education, Oprah went on to excel in many areas and she achieved a full scholarship to the Tennessee State University after she won an oratory contest. She went on to study communications.
The beginning of her empire
At the age of 17, Oprah won Winfrey won the Miss Black Tennessee beauty pageant, and caught the eye of local African-American radio station and landed a part-time job with them doing the news. She went on to work there all of her senior year in high school and the first two years of her college life.
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