How an Oprah interview went from must-see TV to cultural phenomenon
A TELEPHONE ringing at 4.30 in the morning is rarely good news, so television executive Ted Harbert will never forget the day in 1993 that he was awakened at home in Los Angeles by a call from his boss, ABC Network Television group president Bob Iger. When Harbert answered the phone, Iger uttered one phrase: “56 share.”
In other words, the previous night’s Oprah Winfrey interview with Michael Jackson – the pop icon’s first sit-down in 14 years – had been a ratings bonanza. A 56 share meant that
