Oprah Winfrey Gets a French Kiss-Off and Then Whines About It

By Carolyn Johnson

Most people in Paris certainly know who Oprah Winfrey is. Her show is beamed daily to billions of homes around the world in hundreds of different languages, her books grace counters of bookshops the world over, and she has appeared in several high-profile movies in unforgettable roles. But even if the world will always remember Oprah, apparently Oprah can’t remember what it’s like to be a regular person like the rest of us.

On June 14 during a stay in Paris, Oprah was scheduled to have dinner with Tina Turner and she decided to stop by the luxury store Hermes and pick up a watch for her dining partner. Apparently Oprah didn’t bother to check the store’s hours, because she arrived there around 6:45 p.m., about 15 minutes after the store’s closing time. Store officials were inside preparing for an in-store public relations event when Oprah and her entourage arrived, so they declined to let her come in and shop. And this is where the story starts to become muddled, with the store’s people telling one tale, and Oprah’s camp telling another.

Although the store’s normal closing time is 6:30, some high-end shops on the posh Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore are known to make exceptions for celebrities. And Oprah is certainly a celebrity. But according to Gayle King, one of the people accompanying Oprah, the star was first snubbed by a clerk, and when she persisted, the store manager came out to tell her that they had been "having a problem with North Africans lately." The chat-show queen and her entourage were forced to turn and leave, empty-handed. "Oprah describes it as one of the most humiliating moments of her life," King said. "I saw it, and it was really, really very bad. People were in the store and they were shopping. Oprah was at the door and she was not allowed in." Poor, poor Oprah. How horrible it must have been to be treated like a regular person after all these years of being called the "queen" of daytime television.

The store’s version of the story is just a wee bit different. An Hermes spokeswoman has categorically denied that the "North Africans" comment was ever made, saying that the story simply is not true. In a public apology to Oprah, the handbag boutique said that on that particular night, "a private public relations event was being prepared inside." The statement said, "Hermes regrets not having been able to welcome Madame Oprah Winfrey and the people accompanying her to give them all the attention and service that Hermes is committed to giving each of its clients in the world." It ended by saying, "Hermes expresses its sincere regrets for any misunderstanding that these circumstances could have caused." The spokeswoman for Hermes said that when Oprah came to the store, she was met only by a security guard who informed her that the store was closed, but he gave her a card and told her she could come back the next day. And surveillance videotape of the encounter supports the store's account, according to the spokeswoman.

Apparently the CEO of Hermes has now called Oprah’s empire personally to clear the air and invite her to come back anytime to shop at their boutique. But are they really the ones that should apologize? In our celebrity-oriented world, when someone of obvious importance arrives at a posh luxury boutique in Paris accompanied by an "entourage," does it really seem likely that they would be rebuffed at the door with a racial slur? Apparently someone in Oprah’s camp conveniently came up with that little sound bite to elicit sympathy and pity for the talk show queen, who surely isn’t used to not getting her way. There is talk that Oprah will devote an entire show to the incident at Hermes. Wonder if she’ll be showing a clip of the surveillance video? Nah, the "North Africans" story will probably make for a more entertaining show.