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23 Jan 2026 4:32
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  •   Home > News > Entertainment

    Oprah Winfrey has recalled the "big mistake" she made while interviewing Sally Field

    Early in her career, she was urged by bosses to ask the actress an awkward question about her co-star Burt Reynolds, whom she starred with in the likes of 'Smokey and the Bandit' - while she also dated the late big screen icon for a number of years


    Appearing on Rob Lowe's 'Literally' podcast, she said: "My big mistake:

    I asked her, 'Does Burt sleep with his toupee on?'

    "I even say now, I cringe to even think that I asked that question. But I asked it because the producers are like, 'You have to ask, you have to ask, you have to ask. That's what everybody wants to know.'

    "And so I asked it, and she went cold on me. She shut down, and I could not get in again."

    Now, Oprah - who has gone onto become one of the biggest names in television with a great reputation for her interviews - admitted she shouldn't have followed that line of questioning, and she "deserved" to be shut down during their chat.

    She added: "It was like, 'Whoa, Sally went cold on me on live TV'.

    "I deserved it, I deserved it, I deserved it, 'cause that is such an inappropriate question."

    'Wayne's World' star Rob - who worked with Sally on 'Brothers & Sisters'

    - reflected on his own experiences alongside the 74-year-old actress.

    He joked: "She's one of the most amazing actors I've ever known, but when Sally goes cold, it's like Khrushchev in the Cold War. She will bury you."

    Oprah, 67, has opened up about the embarrassing incident in the past, and she back in 2005 she described the experience as "awful".

    She said at the time: "Sally Field used to date Burt Reynolds and I asked this awful question. It was a bad question. I wouldn't do it today."

    © 2026 Bang Showbiz, NZCity

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     Today's News

    Politics:
    Prime Minister Chris Luxon says the weather events of the past 48 hours have been a profound tragedy 21:57

    Entertainment:
    Valentino has died at the age of 93 21:40

    Accident and Emergency:
    Two bodies have been found at a house on Papamoa's Welcome Bay Road - after a large landslide caused extensive damage early this morning 21:17

    Entertainment:
    Lily Allen is "happy to be alive" after a lorry ran her new Porsche "off the road" 21:10

    Auckland:
    What we know about the landslide at Mount Maunganui in New Zealand 21:07

    Environment:
    Young girl among missing campers at New Zealand's Mount Maunganui after landslide — as it happened 20:47

    Entertainment:
    Valerie Bertinelli claims she was "fired" as a spokesperson for a diet company because she gained weight 20:40

    Entertainment:
    Stellan Skarsgard has branded Donald Trump a "little man who got megalomania" 20:10

    Entertainment:
    Chris Pratt has admitted he won't keep the giant painting of his father-in-law Arnold Schwarzenegger on the wall all year round 19:40

    Entertainment:
    Drew Starkey has been appointed brand ambassador for Dior 19:10


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