In a reversal of patronage for author James Frey's fallen memoir 'A Million Little Pieces,' Oprah Winfrey on Thursday apologized for the best seller on her book list, then lambasted Frey and his publisher on live television from the set of her show in Chicago.

The pretext for Frey's putative non-fiction work was demolished Thursday, though Winfrey's image as truth-teller and book club maven was preserved two weeks after she defended the 'underlying message' of Frey's fabricated book in a telephone call to CNN.

'I regret that phone call,' Winfrey said at the beginning of her show Thursday. 'I made a mistake and I left the impression that the truth does not matter. And I am deeply sorry about that.'