Oprah is still the highest earning woman worth over R2 billion till May this year… Oprah Winfrey remained the entertainment world’s top woman earner, but Lady Gaga and Bethenny Frankel, one of the original housewives in the “Real Housewives of New York,” are moving quickly up the ranks of the rich, according to Forbes.com. Winfrey held on to the top spot with R2.4 billion in earnings from May 2010 to May 2011 and an estimated net worth of over R22 billion. But Winfrey’s daytime talk show, which she wrapped up in May, was her chief money earner and her newly launched cable network, OWN, has drawn paltry ratings since its January launch. “The network has a long way to go before advertisers start paying the kind of rates Winfrey was charging for her syndicated show,” said Forbes’ Dorothy Pomerantz, who compiled the list by culling information from agents, managers, lawyers and others in the know. Lady Gaga was a distant second with R746 million in gross earnings, followed by Frankel with R456 million. Frankel, who launched her own diet and lifestyle brand, sold her Skinnygirl Margarita cocktail mix for an estimated R829 million and has been expanding her brand, which will soon include food, supplements and a possible talk show. Four women, model Gisele Bundchen, a singer Taylor Swift, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and Judge Judy Sheindlin, each earned R373 million last year and tied for fourth place. Forbes list of Hollywood’s Highest Earning Women: 1. Oprah Winfrey - US$290 million (R2.4billion)
2. Lady Gaga - US$90 million (R746million)
3. Bethenny Frankel - US$55 million (R456million)
4. Gisele Bundchen - US$45 million (R373million)
4. Taylor Swift - US$45 million (R373million)
4. Ellen DeGeneres - US$45 million (R373million)
4. Judge Judy Sheindlin - US$45 million (R373million)
8. Katy Perry - US$44 million (R365million)
9. Beyonce Knowles - US$35 million (R290million)
9. Danielle Steel - US$35 million (R290million)
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