All for a noble cause, of course. As Oprah explained in a breathless close-up, she decided to honor trailblazing black women, from Maya Angelou to Diana Ross to Rosa Parks, with a three-day gala captured for TV. She invited 25 of these ``legends" and also a group of ``young'uns": black actresses, models, and recording stars of varying ages. (Condoleezza Rice, among others, was conspicuously absent.)
It had to be sentimental. It had to be loving. And, of course, it had to be lush. ``Oprah's mantra is `Love is in the details,' and I completely agree with Oprah," explained her event planner, Colin Cowie, before he asked her to make a difficult choice of napkin rings.
The planning went on for a year, so the details were plentiful. Oprah invited a slew of A-list guests to a black-and-white ball (this being ABC, we saw multiple shots of Diane Sawyer, getting her boogie on). She hosted a lush lawn party that turned into a gospel sing-out. And at the kick-off luncheon at her estate -- ``legends" and ``young'uns" only -- she gave out giant jeweled earrings as party favors.
``I know it was extravagant," she told the cameras, dead-serious. ``And yet it still wasn't enough."
Don't get me wrong; I have no problem with Oprah Winfrey. If she wants to pay tribute to her heroines -- you go, girl. If she can persuade ABC to delay the airdate so it won't conflict with a presidential address -- hey, it's good to be the queen.
And there's certainly nothing wrong with using money to remind the world how far black women have come. Note: Oprah's personal chef is white, and calls her ``ma'am." Note: as the ``legends" and ``young'uns" arrived, they were greeted by a row of white waiters, offering drinks.
Why not? These ladies are mostly rich, and mostly deserving. The ``legends" seemed genuinely grateful, the ``young'uns" seemed genuinely moved. But in the end, it was really about Oprah. The ball was billed as black-and-white, but the hostess wore a red dress. She's rich enough to do whatever she wants.
Joanna Weiss can be reached at weiss@globe.com.
