Over the weekend, Doubleday publisher Nan Talese had a few choice words for Oprah Winfrey and Oprah’s smack-down of Talese author James Frey and his fictionalized memoir controversy. This part of the story stood out where Oprah allegedly channels Vito Corleone:
She said she was bothered by the sanctimoniousness of Oprah Winfrey” and the way the talk-show host attacked Frey, whose work Talese believes has great value for anyone who must deal with a loved one who is an addict. The publisher said that when she took responsibility for the publishing of the book on the show she said Oprah “didn’t ask me another question,” but turned her attention and wrath on Frey. After the show, Talese said Frey told her Oprah pulled him aside and said, “I know it was rough, but it’s just business.”
Other famous Oprah lines over the years are “keep your friends close, and your enemies closer,” “never take sides against the family,” and “Ms. Winfrey never asks a second favor once she’s refused the first, understood?”