oprah cover shoot

Photo: Sioux Nesi

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Walk This Way

The unlikely inspiration behind this month's cover? Paparazzi shots of Oprah shopping in Rome last fall. "I loved the look of her walking down the street with shopping bags," says O creative director Adam Glassman, who had Oprah re-create the scene on a Manhattan street. One security guard was less enchanted by the idea; Gayle King told him: "We have a permit. They just forgot to tell you!" Photographer Ruven Afanador quickly got the shots he needed while Oprah flashed smiles at smartphone-wielding passersby. One couldn't contain himself, shouting, "I love this woman!"