When Oprah Winfrey accepts the Cecil B. Demille award at the Golden Globes later tonight, she will be making history. The award, given out by the Hollywood Foreign Press, recognizes "outstanding contributions to the world of entertainment," and the 63-year-old will become the first Black woman ever to be so honored since the award's inception in 1952. She'll also be the fifteenth woman to win, joining the ranks of Joan Crawford, Bette Davis, Elizabeth Taylor, Audrey Hepburn, Barbra Streisand, and Meryl Streep, among others.
Oprah is no stranger to smashing barriers: She hosted the Oprah Winfrey Show for over 20 years, founded a magazine (O, The Oprah Magazine), launched a TV network (Oprah Winfrey Network), and is now a co-anchor on CBS' 60 Minutes. In her spare time, she stars in award-winning films like The Color Purple, and will be playing Mrs. Which in Ava DuVernay's upcoming blockbuster, A Wrinkle In Time.
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But it's important to note that no matter how busy she is, Oprah always has time for her friends. And they, in turn, reciprocate. Gayle King, co-anchor of CBS This Morning, knows how important this night is to her best friend, and she made sure to document behind-the-scenes moments of Oprah's pre-show routine, allowing us to share this exciting and important moment.
Here's Oprah making spaghetti for her longtime partner Stedman Graham last night, because really, what is more relaxing than parmesan and truffle oil?
And here she is today, working on what is sure to be a momentous speech. Seth Meyers has hinted that tonight's show will address the reckoning currently taking place in Hollywood over issues of sexual harassment and assault, and perhaps Oprah will use this opportunity to weigh in. "This is what I do know for sure: When something this major happens, when you have the fallout, 50 women coming forward, that it's a watershed moment," she said about the allegations against Harvey Weinstein on CBS This Morning back in October. "And what I do believe is actually happening is that, first of all, it's triggering a lot of unreleased pain, repressed anger, guilt and suffering that a lot of women have had."
Even icons have to rehearse:
King and Winfrey first met over 40 years ago while working at a Baltimore TV station back in 1976, and they've been supporting each other's achievements ever since. (Fun fact: they bonded when Oprah invited Gayle, a production assistant, over to her house during a major snowstorm. #Goals)
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Recently, King opened up about leaning on Oprah for support after the revelation that her CBS This Morning co-host Charlie Rose had been accused of sexual harassment by eight women.
"I got an hour and 42 minutes of sleep last night," Gayle said when she joined Norah O'Donnell in discussing the news on November 21, hours after learning of his firing. "Both my son and my daughter called. Oprah called and said, 'Are you OK?' I am not OK."
Those allegations, and the countless others that have come out over the past couple of months, will be looming large over tonight's awards. Women from Meryl Streep to Giuliana Rancic have already declared their support for the Time's Up initiative by walking the red carpet clad in black, with the latter going as far as to make an opening statement about making changes to E!'s coverage of the event to reflect the new mood in Hollywood.
It's so inspiring to finally see women voicing their stories, and their support for each other in a very public way. But of course, perpetual pioneers Oprah and Gayle have known that for decades.