Image Credit: George Burns/Harpo Inc. Oprah Winfreys couch was once the go-to place for headline-makers in their time of public scrutiny. She was fair but tough. Blunt but not crass. And, most importantly, she could get people to tune in. As Jerry Sandusky reportedly contemplates sitting down with the one-time Queen of Daytime Talk TV, Id be lying if I said I didnt want this to happen mostly because itd be a powerfully bad move on his part. (Trainwrecks=must-watch?) Theres little doubt in my mind that Sanduskys appearance would join the ranks of the most brutal Oprah interviews ever. (Yes, Im looking at you, James Frey.) Of course, not all so-called controversial interviews resulted in bloodshed. In fact, you might be able to say that a few people in the hot seat have come out on top after appearing on Oprah , a rare but important side effect of answering the harder questions with candidness. So who benefitted from being on Oprah and who would have been better off pulling a Lohan ?...

Glenda Sopha attended the Oprah Winfrey Show last year, but the surprises keep coming. Sopha, of Bayport, got more than she bargained for when she attended the show last Novemer. She and her granddaughter got tickets at the last minute and walked away from the show with several thousand dollars' worth of prizes. "I've been such a big fan of Oprah's and my granddaughter had been trying to get us tickets," Sopha said. "She got through and I really think we got the last two seats in the house." Sopha said they received more than $7,000 worth of "this and that," including a Coach purse, iPad, cookware and $1,000 to Nordstrom's. Plus, they each won a car. Sopha was a winner of Oprah's Biggest Giveway, which that day was a 2012 VW Beetle. After nearly a year from winning the prize, Sopha finally picked up her new car last week. "It's getting to be that same excitement again because it's finally coming," Sopha said a few days...

AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast 25 years is a long time to stay atop the syndicated television game, but few people are able to make an immediate connection with viewers like Oprah Winfrey. Fewer still are able to bridge the startling contradictions of spirituality and rampant commercialism, e.g talking with Maya Angelou one day and showing off your set made from Godiva chocolate the next . Anyone else who tried this would come off looking like a train wreck. Not Oprah. Whether she was introducing viewers to a long-lost sister , giving away her final set of "favorite things and the 2012 Volkswagen Beetle (and covering the taxes on the giveaways for audience members ), disclosing to Piers Morgan that she ate 30 pounds of Art Smith's macaroni and cheese when Beloved tanked at the box office, and finding out there are things beyond her control like the weather , it mostly made for captivating television. The line Winfrey walked between the two was no more distinctly drawn than ...

In the wake of sexual abuse allegations leveled at Jerry Sandusky, the former Penn State assistant coach surprised many in November by agreeing to speak with NBC's Bob Costas on national television. Apparently, Sandusky is open to granting another interview to a high-profile personality. From PennLive.com: Sanduskys attorney, Joe Amendola, said [Sandusky's wife] Dottie Sandusky doesnt have an attorney and sees no need for one. The couple is considering speaking together publicly after the new year, Amendola said either to Oprah Winfrey, to the CBS show "60 Minutes," to NBCs "Rock Center" or to ABCs Barbara Walters. Those, in fact, are four of the highest-profile possible platforms for a television interview. It's difficult to understand what the Sanduskys' motives would be to set up such an interview, especially considering that his interview with Costas seemed to do nothing but reinforce the public's opinion of him. An interview with Oprah Win...

Scott Stinson Dec 22, 2011 8:00 AM ET | Last Updated: Dec 21, 2011 4:11 PM ET Illustration by Steve Murray As a new calendar year approaches, our writers reflect on what they learned from pop culture over the past 12 months. Today, Scott Stinson on the cancellation of The Oprah Winfrey Show. As we wait to see what kind of fantastically over-the-top tributes will be produced in North Korea to mark the passing of the fat little dictator with the penchant for cognac and Elvis shades, heres a suggestion for the minions struggling to come up with something suitably laudatory: start with Oprah Winfreys farewell shows as a framework, and go from there. Oprahs two-day send-off at a sold-out Chicago arena, though it was ostensibly a goodbye to her fans after 25 years of The Oprah Winfrey Show , had all the trappings of state-produced propaganda. A-list celebrities were trotted out to wish her the best and offer her profuse thanks. Segments were dedicated to recapping her many good deeds. And...

Glenda Sopha attended the Oprah Winfrey Show last year, but the surprises keep coming. Sopha, of Bayport, got more than she bargained for when she attended the show last Novemer. She and her granddaughter got tickets at the last minute and walked away from the show with several thousand dollars' worth of prizes. "I've been such a big fan of Oprah's and my granddaughter had been trying to get us tickets," Sopha said. "She got through and I really think we got the last two seats in the house." Sopha said they received more than $7,000 worth of "this and that," including a Coach purse, iPad, cookware and $1,000 to Nordstrom's. Plus, they each won a car. Sopha was a winner of Oprah's Biggest Giveway, which that day was a 2012 VW Beetle. After nearly a year from winning the prize, Sopha finally picked up her new car last week. "It's getting to be that same excitement again because it's finally coming," Sopha said a few days...

Scott Stinson Dec 22, 2011 8:00 AM ET | Last Updated: Dec 21, 2011 4:11 PM ET Illustration by Steve Murray As a new calendar year approaches, our writers reflect on what they learned from pop culture over the past 12 months. Today, Scott Stinson on the cancellation of The Oprah Winfrey Show. As we wait to see what kind of fantastically over-the-top tributes will be produced in North Korea to mark the passing of the fat little dictator with the penchant for cognac and Elvis shades, heres a suggestion for the minions struggling to come up with something suitably laudatory: start with Oprah Winfreys farewell shows as a framework, and go from there. Oprahs two-day send-off at a sold-out Chicago arena, though it was ostensibly a goodbye to her fans after 25 years of The Oprah Winfrey Show , had all the trappings of state-produced propaganda. A-list celebrities were trotted out to wish her the best and offer her profuse thanks. Segments were dedicated to recapping her many good deeds. And...