Forbes’ Richest People: Oprah Winfrey makes the grade; appears on cover of magazine

OHMYGOSSIP — Oprah Winfrey is one of the richest people in America! And she’s not afraid to show it. The media mogul — who’s worth an estimated $2.7 billion — appears on the front cover of the Forbes 400 issue with Warren Buffet and Bill Gates.

Microsoft founder Gates remains at the top of the Richest Americans list with a fortune of $66bn, followed by investor Buffett on $46bn.

Oracle founder Larry Ellison is third and is worth $41 billion, up $8 billion which is the biggest rise this year.

Forbes put it down to getting rid of unprofitable parts of the business, although he did spend $500m buying the entire Hawaiian island of Lanai.

The combined wealth of America’s richest is $1.7 trillion, up from $1.5 trillion in 2011, in due part to the rising stock market, a rebound in real estate values — especially in cities like Los Angeles and New York, and rising values for art works.