Oprah's Big Give

Oprah Winfrey is a very famous woman, who has done many good things for many deserving people. President Clinton in 1993 signed the “Oprah Bill,” which started a national database of child abusers. She also built a school in Africa for young girls. Among these, she had a show called “Oprah's Big Give,” where she wanted contestants to use their wits and help others. This was a reality show to do some good.

The idea for Oprah's Big Give came from her own show, where she gave $1,000 to each audience member and told them to go help someone. In The Big Give, contestants were chosen from around the country, given an amount of money, and using their creativity, would use the cash to help make a difference in someone's life. However, there were challenges along the way.

In each episode, they would travel to a city in the US with the money. Contestants were told who to help -- a family, an organization, or sometimes just someone that looked like they needed it. They either worked in pairs or in groups to see how they worked with others. The money that contestants had with them sometimes may not have been enough to achieve their goals, so they also were allowed to raise more, giving them the ability to complete their tasks. After each competition, whoever was judged to have made the least of an impact on the lives of the people they were helping would have to leave.

This show ran from March 2 through April 20 of 2008, and Stephen Paletta was crowned the winner. His prize was 1 million dollars, but he had to give away $500,000 of the total. Unfortunately, the show did not turn out to be as successful as producers had hoped, so ABC decided to pass on a second season.