Third Time's Not a Charm for Oprah

Why do bad things always come in threes? Celebrity deaths, names of presidential assassins, and now, Oprah Winfrey's Golden Globes snubs. The media mogul was snubbed by the 2014 Golden Globes yet again this year for her role in The Butler. Many reviewers had Winfrey pegged for winning an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress for her turn as the titular character's wife (type "Oprah The Butler" into Google, and "Oscar" shows up in the second result). But she doesn't just stick to the sidelines — she has her own struggles when she has an affair and develops an alcohol addiction, and Winfrey handled the role with grace and heart. So it came as a shock when she didn't end up on the list of nominations for the Golden Globes after all the Oscar buzz.

But this isn't Winfrey's first time at the rodeo, and the fact that she's been snubbed by the awards show twice before makes the omission even more egregious. And damn, if one of the most powerful women in America can get snubbed thrice, what hope is there for the rest of us? Here's what happened prior to today's third oversight.

The Color Purple

Let's go back in time, all the way to 1985. "We the World" has been released upon the writhing, unfortunate masses, Back to the Future is the highest grossing film, and Oprah Winfrey's talk show was just AM Chicago. That's the same year Winfrey appeared in her first film, The Color Purple, as the strong, no-nonsense Sofia. Winfrey completely killed it dead in her performance, and most reviewers heartily agreed. But while she was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Academy Award, she won neither. Instead, the Golden Globe went to Meg Tilly for Agnes of God, although Winfrey's "I had to fight" monologue has become a classic film moment since then, and this is probably the first time you've heard about Agnes of God.

Beloved

Beloved seemed to be destined for greatness. It was based on the incredible novel of the same name by Toni Morrison, had tons of funding from Winfrey's Harpo Productions, and had Winfrey in the starring role during the height of her fame. Unfortunately, although the film was well-reviewed, it flopped dramatically at the box office — the movie got trounced by Chucky, of all things, and didn't even make back the money it cost to make. Once again, Winfrey's performance was lauded. But most likely because the movie was such a huge financial failure, it was completely overlooked at awards shows, only winning nods from the NAACP Image Awards.