A couple of weeks ago, we gave you the list of the 100 most memorable female characters in TV history. There was lots of talk and conjecture among the readers about who we missed and who shouldn't have been there, which is why we do these lists to begin with.

But there were a fair number of people who asked us "Where's Ellen DeGeneres?" or "Where's Oprah?" among others. Well, since we were talking about TV characters and not real people, those folks had to be left off the list (And, yes, we know Ellen played a pretty important TV character ... more on this later.)

Fear not, loyal TV watchers. We've got a list for those of you who want to celebrate women who put themselves out there, have created a brand, or have made significant contributions to the current TV landscape as themselves and not a fictional character.

The list isn't in any particular order; after the first few obvious names, the rest of the women on this list come so close, it's hard to rank them. So we'll just start with TV's most accomplished woman (hint: her name starts with an O ... and it ain't Omarosa) and go from there.

Oprah Winfrey
What can you say about the big O that hasn't already been said? Syndication's biggest daytime talk show for a quarter-century, a production company that has either launched or helped launch the talk show careers of Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Nate Berkus and Rachael Ray, among others, and her OWN cable network would be enough to put her at the top of this list. But the fact that her endorsement can make a book a bestseller, a cable reality series a hit, or Illinois' junior senator the president makes her the most powerful person on TV, regardless of gender.

Martha Stewart
TV is just a part of Martha's empire, but without it, she would be just another home expert. Her company isn't called Martha Stewart Omnimedia for nothing; books, magazines, a line of housewares and other retail products, and multiple TV shows on multiple networks almost makes her the Queen of All Media. After she left the Fine Living Network, she has subsequently taken over a large chunk of the Hallmark Channel.

Katie Couric
There are lots of reporters and anchors on this list, but Couric comes out a little bit ahead because of one accomplishment: When she took over the 'CBS Evening News' in 2006, she became the first-ever solo female anchor of an evening network newscast. This was after her fifteen-year stint on 'Today,' a period when the show became the dominant force in the mornings. Now Couric is seriously thinking of leaving the anchor seat and starting her own daytime talk show in 2012... could she become the next Oprah?

Ellen DeGeneres
Yes, Ellen played the first main character of a primetime show to come out of the closet. But since 'Ellen' left the air in 1998, DeGeneres has done much more as herself than she ever did as Ellen Morgan. 'The Ellen DeGeneres Show' has been at or near the top of the daytime heap for eight years, and she's used the show to champion causes like gay marriage, pet adoption and the revival of her hometown of New Orleans post-Katrina.

Rachael Ray
Right now, Rachael Ray only has 3 television shows on the air; at one time, she seemed to not only be all over the Food Network, but between her own daytime talk show and her appearances on Oprah, QVC, 'Today' and others, her cherubic smile was everywhere. But just because Ray has decided to "scale" back doesn't mean she's any less accomplished, with a line of cookbooks, a successful magazine, and a line of cookware that can be found in kitchens across the country.

Tina Fey
Tina is the only person who is so accomplished, she shows up on both this list and our 100 most memorable characters list. Liz Lemon is only the most visible of Fey's accomplishments. She's the executive producer, head writer and showrunner of '30 Rock,' a show she was able to bring to life after seven years as the first female head writer on 'Saturday Night Live.'

Barbara Walters
A news legend who has been on America's TV screens for close to 50 years, Walters is a pioneer, paving the way for all the women in network news who have come since. From her long hosting stint on 'Today,' she went on to become the first female network evening news anchor when she made the jump to ABC in the mid-'70s. On '20/20' and her own specials, she's interviewed every major newsmaker -- statesman or scandalous celebrity -- over the past four decades, and she created the "around the coffee table" chat format that's has made 'The View' one of the top daytime shows for the last 14 years.

Diane Sawyer
Sawyer has been on the top of her game for over 30 years. She came to the nation's attention working as an intrepid network reporter for CBS, including a stint on '60 Minutes,' where she was show's first female correspondent. During her long career on ABC, she's hosted 'Good Morning America' in two separate periods, was the co-anchor for the debut of 'Primetime' and anchored '20/20.' Currently, she's the anchor of ABC's signature newscast, 'ABC World News.'

Robin Roberts
The reason why Roberts makes this list is because of her versatility. Anyone who saw her as a 'SportsCenter' anchor on ESPN in the '90s knew Roberts had presence and knew her stuff. But, since switching to the news side, her career has taken off. She's risen from news anchor of 'Good Morning America' to the show's senior co-anchor spot, and her personal stories about fighting cancer and the Post-Katrina recovery of her home region on the Mississippi gulf coast have been her high points.

Meredith Vieira
Because she's spent the last fifteen years in daytime, people tend to forget that Meredith Vieira has a hard news background. She anchored the CBS newsmagazine 'West 57th' in the late '80s, transitioning to a correspondent position on '60 Minutes' in 1989. But she successfully reinvented herself in the '90s, when she wanted to stay closer to home; she was the moderator of 'The View' from 1997 to 2006, has hosted 'Who Wants to be a Millionaire' since 2002, and has been the co-anchor of 'Today' since 2006.

Chelsea Handler
She's not everyone's cup of tea, but there's no denying Handler's accomplishments; she's broken into the boys' club of late night with her E! chatfest 'Chelsea Lately,' a show that's so successful that the network has given her a 'Curb Your Enthusiasm'-style comedy called 'After Lately.' In addition, Handler has three bestselling books; one of those books, 'Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea,' is currently being made into a sitcom pilot.

Kelly Ripa
Ripa is best known for her boundless energy and enthusiasm, which are highlighted when she tells her tales about her extraordinarily busy life. She's the co-host of 'Live with Regis and Kelly,' a reality-show producer, loving wife to her former 'All My Children' co-star Mark Consuelos, and the mother of three. The former 'AMC' and 'Faith and Hope' star's profile has only increased during her decade alongside Regis; she's poised to make the show her own when Regis leaves later this year.

Lesley Stahl
Stahl has been a CBS news stalwart for close to three decades, coming to prominence as a reporter in the early '80s, which led to an eight-year stint moderating the venerable 'Face the Nation.' For the last 20 years, she's been a correspondent on '60 Minutes,' interviewing everyone from Boris Yeltsin to Mark Zuckerberg.

Ann Curry
Using a unique combination of crack reporting skills and on-camera empathy, Ann Curry has been NBC's most versatile news player. She's been the news anchor of 'Today' since 1997, but also anchors 'Dateline' and often subs in for Brian Williams on the 'NBC Nightly News.' Curry has also reported on location for almost every major international news story over the last fourteen years.

Lara Logan
Logan goes where the battle is, embedding herself with combat troops in both Iraq and Afghanistan. In her time as CBS's chief foreign correspondent, she has not been afraid to put herself in harm's way to get a story, and she's brought back stories that have been memorable and horrifying all at once.

Christiane Amanpour
Amanpour established her credentials as a top foreign affairs reporter during her close to three decades on CNN, reporting from every world hotspot and interviewing heads of state, terrorist leaders, and despots. Now, as the anchor of ABC's 'This Week,' Amanpour is bringing a global flavor to the usually stodgy and policy-driven Sunday morning talk shows.

Tell us: Who else do you think should be on this list?


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