15 Years Ago, Pontiac and Oprah Staged the Biggest TV Stunt of All Times

15 years ago, Oprah partnered with Pontiac for what would go down in history as one of the biggest TV stunts of all times – and the most expensive instances of ad space ever sold, since it ended up costing Pontiac something in the region of $10 million.

Oprah gave all members of her talk show audience a free car, a brand new Pontiac G6, which was selling for $28,000 at the time. You can see how that scene played out in the video below: at first, only 11 members were picked from the audience because they all needed a new car. After their enthusiasm died down a bit, Oprah told the rest of the audience that she still had one more car to give.

Beautiful white boxes were handed out to every person in there: of all of them, only one had another key inside, she told them. When Oprah gave the go, they all tore through the box and found that each contained a key, which made it possible for Oprah to utter the now legendary phrase: “You get a car! YOU get a car! Everybody gets a car!”

Indeed, everyone got a car: 276 G6s were parked outside the production lot, and most of them went home with their new owners. Many did not, however, because they were not “free” cars at all.

Pontiac donated the vehicles (so no, those reports about Oprah buying them with her own money are not accurate) and covered the sales tax, while the producers on the show and the TV network paid for registration and other taxes. The gift tax was not covered, though, which means the new owner had to pay about $7,000 for the car.

Audience members had the option to take a cash prize instead of the car, and some agreed to take the G6 and sell it later, pay the gift tax and still get some money. Many complained to the media afterwards, saying a “free” car should be just that: free of any tax. As a side note, Oprah remembered this criticism and made sure the new VW Beetles she handed out in 2010 came completely tax-free – all 275 of them.

In later interviews, Oprah still describes the G6 giveaway as one of the best moments of her career, wisely choosing to overlook the criticism and negativity that came after the stunt. Pontiac learned a painful marketing lesson and took a hit in the sales, despite the publicity boost. And we were left with one of the most memorable and meme-worthy moments on television.