NAMES IN THE NEWS : Oprah Swallows Her Pride, Admits Regaining 17 Pounds

CHICAGO —  Battling the bulge while in the public eye hasn’t been easy, talk-show queen Oprah Winfrey said today, acknowledging she has regained 17 of the celebrated 67 pounds she lost last year.

“You order a side dish and they call 911 on you,” she told her television audience.

Then there was the time Winfrey ordered apple pancakes in a restaurant and “read about it in two newspapers the next day.”

Winfrey, who has not revealed either her “before” or “after” weight, shed her pounds with a liquid-protein diet. Exactly a year ago, she showed off a new, svelte self in tight-fitting jeans as her national audience applauded.

Her luck with losing was national news and in August, Winfrey’s face--superimposed on actress Ann-Margret’s hourglass figure--graced the cover of TV Guide.

But today, Winfrey, 35, commiserated over the difficulties of dieting with a studio audience loaded with folks on their way up or down the scale.

“Nothing would have pleased me more than to walk off into the sunset in my size 10 Calvin Klein jeans,” she said. “I said it was going to be a struggle and Lord knows, it has.”

Winfrey said she’s managed to keep most of the weight off by exercise and a diet low in fat and sugar.

Winfrey made a final plea: “If you see me out someplace and I am ordering pancakes--just let me do it.”