Oprah Winfrey presents her fellow billionaire ‘brother’ Tyler Perry with Governors Award at Emmys

On Sunday night, Oprah Winfrey presented her fellow billionaire ‘brother’ Tyler Perry with one of the top honors at the 72nd Primetime Emmy Awards – the Governors Award.

The 66-year-old OWN CEO – who’s a Grammy away from EGOT status – called the 51-year-old movie/TV mogul ‘a businessman who bet on himself, and by doing so showed the world that there’s a different path to ultimate success.’

Oprah described Tyler as a ‘man of deep faith’ and ‘a visionary,’ who ‘has done what no one had done before him – make it as an outsider.’  

High rollers: On Sunday night, Oprah Winfrey (L) presented her fellow billionaire ‘brother’ Tyler Perry (R) with one of the top honors at the Primetime Emmy Awards – the Governors Award

Close: The 66-year-old OWN CEO - who's a Grammy away from EGOT status - called the 51-year-old movie/TV mogul 'a businessman who bet on himself, and by doing so showed the world that there's a different path to ultimate success'

Close: The 66-year-old OWN CEO – who’s a Grammy away from EGOT status – called the 51-year-old movie/TV mogul ‘a businessman who bet on himself, and by doing so showed the world that there’s a different path to ultimate success’

Back in 2013, Winfrey and Perry reprised their career-making roles as The Color Purple’s Sofia and 87-year-old grandmother-of-five Mabel Earlene ‘Madea’ Simmons in a promo for OWN’s The Haves and the Have Nots.

The powerful pair also co-starred in Timothy Reckart’s 2017 Biblical animated movie The Star, and co-produced Lee Daniels’ 2009 drama Precious.

Unlike every other nominee, Tyler accepted his esteemed trophy in person at the virtual ABC telecast wearing an all-black Tom Ford tuxedo selected by his stylist Crystal Renee.

‘When I was about 19 years old, I left home and my grandmother, she gave me a quilt that she had made,’ Perry recalled. 

Admirer: Oprah described Tyler as a 'man of deep faith' and 'a visionary,' who 'has done what no one had done before him - make it as an outsider'

Admirer: Oprah described Tyler as a ‘man of deep faith’ and ‘a visionary,’ who ‘has done what no one had done before him – make it as an outsider’

Southern Belles: Back in 2013, Winfrey and Perry reprised their career-making roles as The Color Purple's Sofia and 87-year-old grandmother-of-five Mabel Earlene 'Madea' Simmons in a promo for OWN's The Haves and the Have Nots

Southern Belles: Back in 2013, Winfrey and Perry reprised their career-making roles as The Color Purple’s Sofia and 87-year-old grandmother-of-five Mabel Earlene ‘Madea’ Simmons in a promo for OWN’s The Haves and the Have Nots

'Congratulations to my brother': The powerful pair also co-starred in Timothy Reckart's 2017 Biblical animated movie The Star, and co-produced Lee Daniels' 2009 drama Precious

‘Congratulations to my brother’: The powerful pair also co-starred in Timothy Reckart’s 2017 Biblical animated movie The Star, and co-produced Lee Daniels’ 2009 drama Precious

‘And this quilt was something I didn’t really care for. It had all these different colors and these different patches in it. And I was quite embarrassed by it. I had no value in it at all.’

The New Orleans-born, Atlanta-based showrunner later came across a similar quilt in a fancy antique store, which he discovered was sewn by a freed slave woman.

‘I became so embarrassed,’ admitted Tyler (born Emmitt Perry Jr.).

‘Here I was, a person who prides myself on celebrating our heritage, our culture, and I didn’t even recognize the value in my grandmother’s quilt. I dismissed her work and her story because it didn’t look like what I thought it should. Now, whether we know it or not, we are all sewing our own quilts with our thoughts, our behaviors, our experiences, and our memories.’ 

Man of the hour: Unlike other nominees, Tyler accepted his esteemed trophy in person at the virtual ABC telecast wearing an all-black Tom Ford tuxedo selected by his stylist Crystal Renee

Man of the hour: Unlike other nominees, Tyler accepted his esteemed trophy in person at the virtual ABC telecast wearing an all-black Tom Ford tuxedo selected by his stylist Crystal Renee

Perry recalled: 'When I was about 19 years old, I left home and my grandmother, she gave me a quilt that she had made. And this quilt was something I didn't really care for. It had all these different colors and these different patches in it. And I was quite embarrassed by it'

Perry recalled: ‘When I was about 19 years old, I left home and my grandmother, she gave me a quilt that she had made. And this quilt was something I didn’t really care for. It had all these different colors and these different patches in it. And I was quite embarrassed by it’

'I didn't even recognize the value in my grandmother's quilt': The New Orleans-born, Atlanta-based showrunner later came across a similar quilt in a fancy antique store, which he discovered was sewn by a freed slave woman

‘I didn’t even recognize the value in my grandmother’s quilt’: The New Orleans-born, Atlanta-based showrunner later came across a similar quilt in a fancy antique store, which he discovered was sewn by a freed slave woman

Tyler continued: 'I stand here tonight to say thank you to all of the people who are celebrating and know the value of every patch, and every story, and every color that makes up this quilt that is our business, this quilt that is our lives, this quilt that is America'

Tyler continued: ‘I stand here tonight to say thank you to all of the people who are celebrating and know the value of every patch, and every story, and every color that makes up this quilt that is our business, this quilt that is our lives, this quilt that is America’

Perry continued: ‘I stand here tonight to say thank you to all of the people who are celebrating and know the value of every patch, and every story, and every color that makes up this quilt that is our business, this quilt that is our lives, this quilt that is America.

‘Because in my grandmother’s quilt, there are no patches that represented Black people on television. But in my quilt, her grandson is being celebrated by the Television Academy. I thank you for this. God bless you.’

The Madea’s Farewell Play star went from being homeless to employing 400 people at his $250M, 330-acre Confederate Army base-turned-studio in Atlanta with 12 sound stages, which he acquired in 2015.

Tyler’s hunger for success on his own terms stemmed from witnessing his father getting stiffed by an employer, and his mother warned him: ‘Don’t you ever stand by the door waiting on white folks to do nothing for you.’

Boss: Perry went from being homeless to employing 400 people at his $250M, 330-acre Confederate Army base-turned-studio in Atlanta with 12 sound stages, which he acquired in 2015 (pictured October 8)

Boss: Perry went from being homeless to employing 400 people at his $250M, 330-acre Confederate Army base-turned-studio in Atlanta with 12 sound stages, which he acquired in 2015 (pictured October 8)

The Madea's Farewell Play star hunger for success on his own terms stemmed from witnessing his father getting stiffed by an employer, and his mother warned him: 'Don't you ever stand by the door waiting on white folks to do nothing for you'

The Madea’s Farewell Play star hunger for success on his own terms stemmed from witnessing his father getting stiffed by an employer, and his mother warned him: ‘Don’t you ever stand by the door waiting on white folks to do nothing for you’

Backstage, Tyler - who's well known for his frequent charitable acts - chatted with presenter Laverne Cox (2-L) as crew members wearing masks stood by between segments

Backstage, Tyler – who’s well known for his frequent charitable acts – chatted with presenter Laverne Cox (2-L) as crew members wearing masks stood by between segments

Bearded duo: Perry also bumped into Black-ish star Anthony Anderson, who presented Watchmen with the Emmy for outstanding limited series

Bearded duo: Perry also bumped into Black-ish star Anthony Anderson, who presented Watchmen with the Emmy for outstanding limited series

Backstage, Perry – who’s well known for his frequent charitable acts – chatted with presenter Laverne Cox as crew members wearing masks stood by between segments.

The A Fall from Grace director also bumped into Black-ish star Anthony Anderson, who presented Watchmen with the Emmy for outstanding limited series.

Tyler – who is building a 35K-square-foot mansion with its own private jet runway – is father to five-year-old son Aman with his partner since 2009, Ethiopian model Gelila Bekele.

Babymama: The A Fall from Grace director - who is building a 35K-square-foot mansion with its own private jet runway - is father to five-year-old son Aman with his partner since 2009, Ethiopian model Gelila Bekele (R, pictured October 8)

Babymama: The A Fall from Grace director – who is building a 35K-square-foot mansion with its own private jet runway – is father to five-year-old son Aman with his partner since 2009, Ethiopian model Gelila Bekele (R, pictured October 8)