25 Highest-Rated Oprah Show Episodes

#6: The Home Alone Controversy (January 11, 1993)

In the 1990 comic hit Home Alone, 8-year-old Macaulay Culkin is accidentally left behind as his family heads off on a Christmas vacation—and hilarity ensues. In a true case from 1993, parents David and Sharon Schoo left their daughters Nicole, 9, and Diana, 4, alone while they took a Christmas vacation to Mexico. When David and Sharon landed, they were arrested on charges of child abandonment, endangerment and cruelty.

Using this case as a springboard for discussion, Oprah interviewed parents about whether it is ever acceptable to leave young children unattended at home.