Tommy and Oprah

“Words can be fleeting, but actions withstand the test of time. Friends, family, and business colleagues who know me, who see the way I live and conduct business, know that the rumor is complete nonsense. The Oprah Show finally extinguishes the rumor once and for all.”
-- Tommy Hilfiger

Please log on to Oprah.com to see Tommy Hilfiger appear on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" for the very first time.

If you have any additional questions, concerns, or comments, please do not hesitate to contact us directly at rumor@tommy.com.

TOMMY HILFIGER APPEARS ON THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW FOR THE FIRST TIME

Oprah Dispels the Rumor as “A Big, Fat Lie”

Today, May 2, 2007, Tommy Hilfiger appears for the very first time on Oprah to address ugly rumor that has been circulating on the Internet.

Oprah personally invited Tommy Hilfiger to appear on her show to squash this rumor, repeatedly proclaiming, “That is the category of what I call a BFL, a BIG FAT LIE. [It] never happened.” The facts remain simple and indisputable: prior to May 2, 2007, Tommy Hilfiger had never appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show and never made any racially inflammatory statements in any context.

Ms. Winfrey’s debunked the rumor as early as January 11, 1999 when on air she stated: "Tommy Hilfiger has never appeared on this show…all of [the] people who claim that they saw it, they heard it- it never happened. I never even met Tommy Hilfiger.” Yet, in the pattern of a classic urban myth, the rumor continued to circulate. After the rumor was brought to Oprah’s attention again, she invited Tommy Hilfiger for his first-ever appearance on her show.

During the May 2, 2007 interview, Tommy Hilfiger talks about how he enlisted the help of outside experts to try to trace the source of this erroneous rumor. As for the impact of this rumor on his life over the years, Hilfiger said, “It hurt my integrity because at the end of the day, that's all you have. And if people are going to challenge my honesty and my integrity and what I am as a person, it hurts more than anything else…It has really hurt my heart.”

To coincide with the airing of the segment Tommy Hilfiger has released the following statement:
“ Words can be fleeting, but actions withstand the test of time,” stated Tommy Hilfiger . “ Friends, family, and business colleagues who know me, who see the way I live and conduct business, know that the rumor is complete nonsense. This show will finally extinguish the rumor once and for all.”

TOMMY HILFIGER I Want You to Know the Facts "I am deeply unhappy and frustrated that a malicious and completely erroneous rumor continues to circulate about me on the Internet."	OPRAH WINFREY 2007 TRANSCRIPT Today, for the very first time in "Oprah Show" history, Tommy Hilfiger is here and we're setting the record straight once and for all.

ANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE Fighting Anti-Semitism, Bigotry and Extremism Since 1913 "We have concluded that these rumors are completely false, and it is apparent that you never made the statements attributed to you, nor did you appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show."	OPRAH WINFREY 1999 STATEMENT I've Never Even Met Tommy Hilfiger "The rumor claims that clothing designer Tommy Hilfiger came on this show and made racist remarks, and that I then kicked him out. I just want to say that it is not true because it just never happened."
CUSTOMER STATEMENTS Feedback from Our Customers "It saddens me to know that there are people out there who perpetuate this type of painful gossip."