Oprah pulled off a surprise for best friend Gayle King 's 70th birthday that was so good, she was afraid the " CBS Mornings " co-host would have a heart attack. On Friday night, Oprah convinced King to go to New York City restaurant Ci Siamo under the guise of a holiday party. Little did the TV journalist know, a horde of friends and family members was lying in wait to celebrate her milestone birthday.
An Instagram video the two friends posted on Saturday showed the moment King realized the big reveal. When King noticed the crowd gathered for her, she threw her purse on the bar and hobbled back in shock, with her hand clutching her chest. In the caption, Oprah explained the party's organizers had to make up stories and tell King lies to keep the secret.
She wrote: "Happy birthday @gayleking , sorry we almost gave you a heart attack😂." Tina Knowles , Robert De Niro , Katy Perry , David Oyelowo, Robin Roberts , Niecy Nash-Betts , Brooke Shields , Stephen Colbert and Dave Chappelle were among the guests at the star-studded bash. Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
In Instagram posts recapping the event, King reacted to the surprise and said she was "still floating" from the festivities. "Talk about a surprise!!! I thought I was going to @oprah’s holiday dinner for the @oprahdaily team at her favorite restaurant @cisiamonyc and then THIS happened ..
.." King wrote alongside the video of her reaction to the surprise party.
"Unbeknownst to me it was a surpr.