Diane O'Brien visits the Land of Oprah

The trailboss has been prodding the reclusive Diane Hoffman O'Brien to tell about her recent trip to see the Oprah Winfrey Show in Chicago. Today the letter arrived:

Diane writes: Well, it goes like this. My friend, Gwen, received Oprah tickets for Christmas from her son whose friend works for Oprah. On Feb. 8 we flew to Chicago to be in the audience on Feb. 9. We were both so excited. We had no idea what the show was. We just hoped it wasn't going to be a tearjerker, but a just chance to see an Oprah who cares!

Oprah has two tapings a day. One at 7 a.m. and one at 11 a.m. We fortunately had the later tickets, which gave us time to apply extra special makeup, just in case we got on camera.

We got in line at around 10:45. There is a tent-like wrap around the entrance so you are not exposed to the elements. But no heat. They were already taking people into Harpo Studio, where you go through security. You have to have picture ID. They confiscated my purse along with most others because of its size. I was allowed to take just my money. You can't have cell phones or cameras. Next, you are ushered up to the second floor, where we were crammed into plastic chairs in a long, narrow room.

There we sat for almost two hours. Do you know how loud it is with 350 women in a long narrow room?

Eight stalls, nothing fancy
During this time, everyone from the 11 a.m. show is making a bathroom call. At the same time the 7 a.m. audience is exiting the studio for the bathroom. Here are 700 women trying to jam into Oprah's ladies rooms. Eight total stalls...and nothing fancy. (Come on Oprah, how about a few more stalls?)

Finally they started calling out numbers to seat us in the studio. You are seated by your arrival time at Harpo and by the colors you are wearing...The brighter the color the better chance you have of getting on the main floor. We were seated on the first row of the second tier.

When telling friends I was going to Oprah, everyone asked, "Do they do your makeup? Her audience always looks so good." No, they don't do your makeup but the lighting in the studio makes everyone look great, including Oprah. Her hair is not shiny in person. The studio is beautiful.

(In the photo of Gwen and me above, please take into consideration that we looked much, much better under the sweet lights of Oprah's studio. We just weren't allowed to have cameras in there.)

The best hamburgers
There are three different people who warm up the audience. I believe this is when they do the actual filming of the audience. Oprah never addressed our audience directly. She basically looks into one camera to the left side of most of the audience so you just see her profile. Parts of three different shows were taped. The breaks between tapings were longer than the tapings themselves.

The main show we saw was the "20 Best Hamburgers in the USA," not the most interesting. The best part was there was two tapings with Rachel Ray (Food Network, "30 Minute Meals." At 3:45 we got out, after another line of 350 women, trying to get into eight stalls. Oprah never really talked to the audience. To Gwen and I, that was disappointing. Not like what it comes across to the viewer at home.

All was not lost though, when we arrived at Midway on Wednesday, a fellow that works for my husband picked us up and took us for a tour of Chicago. I hadn't been there for years. This fellow is a history buff and a native Chicagoan. We saw lots and learned more.
He took us past some of the jobs my husband has done there including Soldier Field, Millennium Park, McCormick Place, The Women's Hospital, and the Rattner Center. Right now I'm reading "Devil in the White City." It's a history of the Chicago's World Expedition and a serial killer that killed many more than Jack the Ripper... All true. A good read.

The most amazing thing on our trip was how safe we felt walking at night across Chicago. We stayed near the Navy Pier and walked to the Frontera Grill a mile from east to west and back. No fear. I would never do that in Minneapolis. While at the Frontera Grill, owner Rick Bayless ("Mexican One Plate at a Time," PBS) was there and also Rachel Ray. The meal was fabulous. Can you tell I'm more into food than Oprah?

Gayle King, Oprah's best friend, is totally hung up on finding the best burger in America! After reading an article in GQ magazine called "20 Hamburgers You Must Eat Before You Die," Gayle made it her mission to sink her teeth into every all-beef patty on the list.