Oprah has surprised audiences with new cars twice 05/26/2011
As she signs off of her talk show after 25 years, many people will remember the various memories (and spoofs) of the Oprah Winfrey Show. It's hard to believe that Oprah will no longer be on the TV when we're home sick from work or wives and girlfriends won't be trying to get us to read one of the new books they heard about during Oprah's book club. Yes, for some this is the end of an era - but we're not all that phased.
Still, a lot can be said about Oprah's generosity to her audience throughout the years. We all remember the famous giveaways. In 2004, Oprah kicked off her 19th season by doing something that hadn't been done on television before: she gave every member of her audience a car. USA Today reports that the talk show queen gave away 276 Pontiac G6's that were brand new and valued at more than $7 million.
Of course, there was the scandal that the audience members would have to pay up to $7,000 in taxes for this gift, which is why Oprah learned from her mistake the first time around and made her second giveaway even greater.
For her last Oprah's Favorite Things Episode ever in 2010, Oprah revealed the silhouette of the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle. The catch? No one knew that it actually looked like yet. That didn't stop Oprah, who gave away the brand new model to each member of the audience, with the stipulation that they would not receive the cars until at least the fall of this year when the manufacturers complete it.
So while she may be heading off the airwaves, we'll sure miss her screaming "Everybody gets a car!" amidst the loud cheers from fans.