Oprah's Dislike of Writing IRS Checks

If there’s one thing that Oprah Winfrey dislikes, it is writing checks to the IRS.  In fact her accountants bring some tequila for her each time she signs them.  That was the talk show hostess’ admission to Piers Morgan on the CNN talk show that he took over from Larry King.  In Morgan’s debut episode last Monday, Winfrey said she only signs checks of at least $100,000 these days.  And apparently, she still has several hundred of such checks to sign.  Winfrey told Morgan, “It would knock your socks off.  Millions are going out.”

Earlier this month, Winfrey has also launched her own cable TV network called the Oprah Winfrey Network or OWN.

Morgan asked if signing those checks was painful, to which Winfrey replied, “The most pain I feel — and my accountants will tell you this — is every time I write a check to the IRS, it’s a ceremony.  For years they came in with wine.  Now they come in with tequila.  It’s a tequila-signing ceremony.”

Morgan then asked what the most painful check that she had ever written to the IRS was, but Winfrey declined to specify it.  She did however compliment Morgan on his prowess as an interviewer, “You’re good.  You think I’m going to give you the number.  No, no, no, no, no.”  Well, you certainly can’t be a world-famous talk show host if you’re not witty.

But Morgan wasn’t going to stop there.  He changed his focus to Winfrey’s net worth, noting that according to Forbes she was worth around $2.7 billion and asked if the figure was accurate.  Winfrey replied that she ‘doesn’t sit around counting it’.  But she added, “because I already had counted it.”

Still wanting to get some figures from Winfrey, Morgan asked about her philanthropic projects which include the South African-based Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, a school for disadvantaged young women.  Morgan noted that she has given away over $300 million to various charities but Winfrey corrected him saying she knew it was more than that amount.

Asked if she knew how much she has given away exactly, Winfrey replied, “No, I really don’t, but I know it’s more than $300 million.  I have this school and it’s ongoing and I’m responsible for all of these girls and them getting an education, and I pay for every single thing and I think that the charitable work that you do — and when I’m gone everything that I have is going to go to charity because I don’t have children and I believe that that’s what you should do, that that’s how you should live your life.  To whom much is given, much should be given back.  To me, the money, it’s certainly a wonderful thing, but it is in direct proportion to how you’re able to bless yourself and how you bless others with it.”