To celebrate her upcoming 60th birthday, Melinda French Gates interviewed media icons Oprah Winfrey and Gayle King for her “Moments That Make Us” series.
Oprah, 70, and Gayle, 69, discussed their lifelong friendship and the longstanding rumors that they are secret lovers.
“For years people used to say we were gay. Listen we were up against that forever,” Oprah said.
Gayle added, “I used to say to Oprah, you gotta do a show on this, because it’s hard enough for me to get a date on Saturday night with people thinking we were gay. Because if we were gay we would tell you.”
Melinda said, “It’s interesting to me – being a decade younger – I know when that was said about you. I remember that rough timeframe. But I think that what you’ve taught society is that women can have deep, true friendships.”
Oprah is pictured with her life partner of 38 years, Stedman Graham, 73, at Tyler Perry Studios in Atlanta on October 5, 2019.
Oprah said her lifelong friendship with Gayle works because Gayle is “happier” for Oprah’s many successes.
“You can’t really be friends with anybody who has a hint of jealousy about anything that you’re doing,” Oprah explained.
“Or anything that you have,” Gayle added.
Melinda turns 60 on August 15. She was married to Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. They divorced in 2021 after 27 years of marriage and 3 children.
