Oprah most influential celebrity

Oprah Winfrey was crowned America’s most influential celebrity for a second straight year, despite having dropped off daily television in 2011. Forbes magazine ranked Winfrey, 59, ahead of Hollywood titans Steven Spielberg and Clint Eastwood and towering over other TV figures such as journalist Barbara Walters and financial guru Suze Orman.

Share

Obama’s high-stakes Olympic gamble

If there was any question about whether President Obama would do anything to bring the Olympics to Chicago in 2016, he’s put those doubts to rest. He and first lady Michelle Obama have embarked on an unprecedented joint diplomatic mission to beat out Madrid, Spain; Tokyo, Japan; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the Summer Games

Share

Mackenzie Phillips: ‘I understand this is a difficult thing’

The reaction to Mackenzie Phillips’ detailed account of her sexual relationship with her father, John Phillips, has been explosive, and some of the strongest statements have come from her family. But as the former actress and musician talked with Oprah Winfrey for the second time this week — this time about the firestorm that erupted from her hour-long interview Wednesday — she said she doesn’t regret writing her memoir, “High on Arrival.” “I understand this is a difficult thing for my family,” Phillips told Winfrey via satellite Friday, “but nobody’s talking about this, and if I’ve started a national dialogue, then I’m forever grateful.” Phillips said she has gotten letters and Facebook messages from incest survivors, thanking her for coming forward.

Share

For Mackenzie Phillips, drugs overshadowed promising career

Actress Mackenzie Phillips has said that she believes she had a “genetic predisposition” to the life of sex, drugs and rock and roll that have come to define her. In a 1999 interview on CNN’s “Larry King Live” on “Why Some Childhood Stars Crash and Burn,” the former “One Day at a Time” star said she didn’t blame Hollywood for the years of drug and addiction she had endured

Share