The beloved icon and all-around great human being, Oprah, turns the big 65 on Tuesday and we want to celebrate her the only way we know how -- by getting emotional.
If there is anything that Oprah can guarantee it's that she sure knows how to make us cry. It doesn't matter if she's opening up schools in Africa or inspiring the country with award speeches, Oprah is constantly keeping us on our toes, and of course, very, very emotional.
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We decided to round up some of Oprah's most iconic moments that really made us experience all of the feels. Some of these moments made us sob like newborn babies, and some of them made us feel so happy that we could explode like a firework. That is the power of Oprah, ladies and gentlemen.
1.) When Oprah's dog Sophie died
We are starting out with a real doozy. Oprah's beloved dog Sophie died and Oprah's staff decided to put together a video of Sophie that Oprah hadn't seen before. As soon as the video ends, Oprah is crying, the audience is crying and we're crying at home. So many people can relate to losing a pet, so this was an extra emotional moment on her show.
2.) When Oprah interviewed a man with AIDS in 1987
The AIDS crisis was still very new by the late '80s and was still a taboo topic, but that didn't stop Oprah from talking about it on her show. Oprah interviewed West Virginia man Mike Sisco, a gay man with AIDS who went swimming in his town's public pool and caused a huge controversy. It was quite the emotional moment since so many people weren't talking about the stigma against people living with HIV and AIDS.
3.) When Oprah reunited with her fourth-grade teacher
Oprah always talked about her childhood and the people that had a huge impact on her, so that's why this pick was so emotional. Oprah reunited with her beloved fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Duncan, and she absolutely loses her emotions and cries.
4.) When Oprah interviewed Nelson Mandela
Imagine how humbling it must have been for Oprah to interview such a legend like Nelson Mandela. In the clip below, Mandela explains how he is an ordinary human being just like the rest of us, and Oprah is completely awestruck by Mandela's words. It's a total full-body goosebumps moment presented by Oprah.
5.) When Oprah announced her show was ending
Was this the moment that all fans of Oprah lost their collective minds? On this fateful episode, Oprah announced that she would finally be ending her daytime talk show after 25 seasons on the air. Oprah does a pretty good job of keeping it together as she announces the end of her show, but once she starts talking about her fans who have stuck with her, she loses it and starts crying. There must not have been a dry eye in that entire studio that day.
6.) A week after 9/11, Oprah has the "Islam 101" episode
Oprah had many post-9/11 shows that dealt with a huge array of topics, but one of the most poignant episodes was when Oprah invited a group of Muslim-Americans to her show to explain their way of life. America still has issues with xenophobia today, but seeing that there was a positive dialogue between two different groups of people just weeks after the deadliest terror attack on American soil is pretty remarkable. Oprah even challenged the non-Muslim audience members to open their minds and question their own prejudices. Again, another one of those goosebumps moments that reminds you Oprah was way ahead of her time.
7.) Oprah invites 'skinheads' on her show
Oprah's show was always trying to confront racism and prejudice and hopefully shed some light on these dark situations, but in 1988 it backfired on her. Oprah invited a group of white nationalists on her show, hoping to show how awful they were, but she ended up giving them a huge platform to talk about hate, rather than have a meaningful dialogue. Years later, two of the racist men appeared on the show to apologize to Oprah and things got very emotional.
8.) When Gayle King surprised Oprah for her 40th birthday
There is no friendship bond that is tighter than Oprah and Gayle's. The two BFFs have been in each other's lives since they were in their 20s, and decades later they are still going strong. When Oprah turned 40, the show had a huge party that featured Aretha Franklin, Patti LaBelle and Gladys Knight, but none of these living legends could get Oprah to cry, except the surprise of Gayle. This is the definition of friendship goals.
9.) When Oprah revealed she has a half sister
Audiences thought they knew everything about Oprah. Heck, even Oprah thought she knew everything about herself, until one of the biggest bombshells was dropped at Oprah's feet: She found out she had a long lost half-sister. Oprah had Patricia Lee, her half-sister, on the show and explained how amazing it was to find out she had a missing sister, but also how amazing it was that Lee didn't contact the press to sell the story and instead went to Oprah directly. It was an emotional moment that directly affected Oprah herself. Talk about emotional.
10.) When Oprah gave away a bunch of cars
When Oprah introduced her "favorite things," it changed her show forever -- and daytime TV. It was so much fun to watch people freak out over all the free gifts Oprah gave away, and we all secretly wished we were in the audience. In 2004, Oprah decided to kick things up a notch by giving away 11 Pontiac G6s to audience members, but then pulled the ultimate gag by giving everyone in the audience a new G6. The moment has gone down in Oprah history, with tons of memes and remixes of the moment hitting the internet. How can you not feel all the excitement and happiness when you watch this clip?
So thank you, Oprah, for giving us all these emotional moments, plus more. The world is a better place with you in it. Happy 65th birthday!