Oprah Helps Dr. Phil Celebrate 1000th, 1001st Episodes

Photo: Ron Jaffe

To mark the 1000th episode of Dr. Phil, the tell-it-like-it-is shrink has invited a few of his friends onto his program to celebrate. And, no, we aren’t talking about his friend Britney Spears — or her parents. In the two-part special, which will air Monday, Feb. 11 and Tuesday, Feb. 12, Oprah Winfrey makes her very first appearance on the show that she helped create.

On Monday’s episode, Oprah sits down for a rare interview and they reminisce about their decade long friendship and business partnership that all began back in 1998 when she was being sued by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association for making derogatory comments on her show about the safety of American beef (Beef Gate!). Soon after, he was a weekly contributor on her show — dubbed “Tuesday’s with Dr. Phil” — before she and her production company, Harpo, created his syndicated series.

Also helping to celebrate the milestone? Oprah’s BFF Gayle King, who appears to chat about her e-mail conversations with McGraw over the years — and reveal why she sometimes keeps them a secret from Oprah. Jay Leno, American Idol‘s Jordin Sparks are also guests in between congratulatory messages taped from famous folks like David Letterman, Rachael Ray, cast members of The View, Vanessa Hudgens and more.

Ron Jaffe