Farewell and HelloBy Kevin Ross
When Oprah Winfrey hit the national stage on Sept 8, 1986, who could have imagined that a 32-year-old news journalist with a strange, biblical-inspired name would amass such a level of fame, wealth and influence?
And it all started with a television show.
For me, what initially stood out about the undisputed queen of talk was that she was one of only a few minority personalities on network TV, particularly during the day.
Admittedly, I was underwhelmed watching the A.M. Chicago host interview Mr. T during a brief visit to the Windy City in the early 80's. “Who is this Oprah?” I remember saying disdainfully to my Morehouse College buddy. “People like her," he responded defensively. "She’s more popular here than Phil Donahue!”
(Years later, that same friend would marry a woman who ended up working at Harpo Studios.)
By the time Winfrey’s show debuted around the country, I had just finished college. Although I felt like the same person, the “new” Oprah I was now eying seemed more entertaining. I actually wrote to her the following month, inquiring whether I could be on the show to discuss why students such as myself preferred attending Historically Black College and Universities over mainstream white institutions (in my case the University of Southern California).
Hoping to get her attention, I included a 1986 Men of Morehouse Calendar that some classmates and I had created and sold earlier that year.Although I was never contacted by the show’s producers, I remained a loyal fan. Between scouring newspaper job listings and filling out law school applications, I always made it a point to get my regular Oprah fix.
But once my student loans started getting uppity and my parents began inquiring whether I was as clear about my career path as I kept insisting, it was decision time. Was I going to continue working the marketing job I had just landed, or follow the path that I felt compelled to pursue?
With a little help from the media mogul and the debut of a one-hour drama set in a fictitious law office, the answer would be revealed.
You see it was the power of television that ultimately gave me the confidence to believe that I had a shot at having a legal career. At the time, I neither knew anyone in the profession, nor did I fully understand what would be required to succeed in it.
What I did know was after watching LA Law, which also premiered in the Fall of 1986, I became convinced that if Mario Van Peebles and Blair Underwood could portray polished attorneys who just happened to be black, then I could actually be one?And with Bryant Gumbel successfully at the helm of The Today Show, The Oprah Winfrey Show obliterating afternoons and The Cosby Show dominating primetime, the so-called “boob tube” kept reinforcing in my mind one thing and one thing only:
Achievement!
In 2010, that message is making a comeback!
Look no further than the upcoming Primetime Schedule of the major networks and you’ll find more "color" (at least in front of the camera) than we’ve seen in quite some time. And NBC, to their credit, is leading the way with shows like Undercovers, Outlaw, The Event, Law & Order: Los Angeles, and Community.
In daytime, returning programs like ABC’s The View with Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Sheppard, Meredith’s Better with Audra Lowe, and Debmar Mercury’s The Wendy Williams Show feature multi-talented women conversing with everyone from reality stars to an African American Commander-In Chief. Joining that mix is Holly Robinson Peete, one of the six ladies helming CBS’s new chatfest The Talk.
With respect to syndicated game shows, Emmy-winning host Wayne Brady kicks off a second season of Let’s Make A Deal, while comedian, radio host and NY Times best-selling author Steve Harvey will now have the pleasure of kissing cheeks on Family Feud.
And if you go inside any of the court shows this year, you’ll discover 5 out of 10 feature African Americans dispensing justice They include mainstays Judge Joe Brown, Judge Greg Mathis, Divorce Court with Judge Lynn Toler, as well as Judge Karen’s Court.
I did say five, right?
The remaining one is mine.
And that's because I ended up going to law school and working as a LA prosecutor before serving for several years as an elected member of the California judiciary.Now, America’s Court with Judge Ross is set to find its niche with audiences this Fall.
"These years with you… have enriched my life beyond measure," Oprah stated when she announced her decision to leave her award-winning show.
In joining my soon to be colleague for her 25th and final season (beginning Monday September 13), I look forward to sharing with the iconic figure what many, irrespective of race, truly feel about her journey.
“Thank you for inspiring me Ms. Winfrey. Mission accomplished!”
Former Superior Court Judge Kevin Ross is the host of America's Court. The show, from Entertainment Studios, debuted on broadcast television Monday, September 20. 2010 (check your local station for show times)
