Dr. Phil

Dr. Phil's Early Years

Dr. Phil was born Phillip Calvin McGraw in Vinita, Oklahoma, on September 5, 1950. He claims to have been independent from a very early age, as evidenced by the fact that he began living on his own in his senior year in high school. In his younger years, Dr. Phil was convinced his future was in football. He followed in his father’s footsteps and attended the University of Tulsa on a football scholarship. Everything changed during his freshman year, however, when he was injured during a game. He was forced to withdraw from college, and his football career was over.

After taking some time off to work, Dr. Phil decided to follow in his father’s footsteps again; this time into the field of psychology. He attended Midwestern State University, where he received his B.A. in psychology and went on to the University of North Texas to get his Masters and Ph.D. After graduation, he went into private practice in Wichita Falls, Texas.

In 1984, Dr. Phil started a motivational speaking seminar business with a Dallas based acquaintance, Thelma Box, called Pathways. Pathways became a hugely successful endeavor, with people paying $1,500 per session. As Pathways thrived, the relationship between Box and Dr. Phil began to deteriorate. The exact nature of the breakdown of Pathways is a matter of dispute between the parties, but Box claims Dr. Phil employed some less than ethical practices to freeze her out of the business in the early 1990s.

The Pathways dispute is not the only time Dr. Phil’s practices were called into question during his pre-TV days. In 1988, the Texas State Board of Examiners of Psychologists filed a public grievance against Dr. Phil for what they called an “inappropriate dual relationship” with a patient. The patient, a 19 year old girl at the time, was employed by Dr. Phil at the same time he was treating her. He claims their relationship never crossed any serious boundaries, though she claims otherwise.

The State Board ordered Dr. Phil to take ethics classes to maintain his license for his private practice. In a move that was to change his life forever, he opted to close up shop and instead set up a jury consulting firm called Courtroom Sciences, Inc.

Enter Oprah

Oprah brought Dr. Phil to the national stage.

Courtroom Sciences became one of the leading jury consulting firms in the country, working with a number of international corporations. In 1998, when Oprah was sued by Amarillo, TX, based beef industry workers, she hired Courtroom Sciences to help with jury selection. The court decision came down in Oprah’s favor, and she gave all the credit to Dr. Phil. She was so taken with him; she invited him to appear on her show.

The audience went nuts for Dr. Phil. His first visit was so popular that Oprah created a weekly segment around him, giving him the title of Relationship and Life Strategy Expert.

It was all uphill from there. In 2002, Oprah gave Dr. Phil his own spin-off TV show, produced by her own Harpo Studios. The show is a ratings blockbuster and launched his career in new directions, with self-help books, diet products, and one-off evening dating show specials.

Shape Up! Controversy

Dr. Phil found himself in hot water again after the launch of his Shape Up! line of diet shakes, energy bars, and nutritional supplements. The labeling of the products claimed they had been scientifically proven to encourage weight loss. The FTC threatened action, and Dr. Phil pulled the products. It may have been too little, too late, though, as some patrons of the diet aids have filed a class action lawsuit for damages.

Self-Help Books

Dr. Phil and Robin have been married since 1976.

Dr. Phil has authored several self-help books, including:

• Life Strategies
• Relationship Rescue
• Self Matters
• Getting Real
• Ultimate Weight Loss Solution
• Family First
• Love Smart

Dr. Phil Trivia

• Dr. Phil has been married to Robin Jameson since 1976. They have two sons, Jay and Jordan.

• He founded the Dr. Phil Foundation in 2003 to fight childhood obesity.

• He appeared as himself in Scary Movie 4.