TYLER Perry’s relationship with Oprah Winfrey has truly come full circle.
What began with a chance encounter when Perry was working as a housekeeper at the Windsor Court Hotel has now blossomed into a profound professional partnership.
In a recent appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live, Perry shared how he first met Oprah and how, nearly two decades later, he’s directing her for the first time in his new film The Six Triple Eight.
Perry revealed that the first time he saw Oprah was not on her iconic talk show, but while he was working at the Windsor Court Hotel in New Orleans. Employed in housekeeping, Perry knew Oprah was checking in and, eager to catch a glimpse of the media mogul, spent hours vacuuming the hallway outside her room.
“I was out in the hallway vacuuming, and I was vacuuming so long that people started to complain because I was just waiting for her to come,” Perry recalled. “I vacuumed that hallway for about two hours, and then she finally comes off the elevator. I was just like, ‘Ah!’”
When asked if he spoke to Oprah that day, Perry admitted he didn’t have the courage to approach her immediately. However, the next day, as Oprah was preparing to leave the hotel, Perry saw his opportunity. Still vacuuming, he nervously asked her for an autograph as she passed by.
“I stand up against the wall and say, ‘Tyler, say something. Say something.’ She’s passing me, she’s getting close to the elevator. I say, ‘Excuse me, can I have your autograph?’” Perry recalled. “She goes, ‘Why didn’t you say that when I was walking past you?’ So she walks over and she gives me her autograph. And it was a wonderful moment.”
Kimmel asked if Perry still had the autograph. Perry replied with a laugh, “I don’t, I don’t.” He then shared a more personal reason for losing the autograph: “I got broke. I was broke and put out of an apartment and all my things were lost, so...”
Despite the challenges that followed, Perry’s journey has now led him to a place where he is working alongside Oprah as a director. Their bond has lasted nearly two decades, with Perry recently directing Oprah in his film.
CREDIT: Jimmy Kimmel Live
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