Miss Cleo
The fictional character Miss Cleo was created by an actor Youree Dell Harris, who most famously agreed to perform this character when she was the face of the "Psychic Readers Network".[1][2][3][4]
The Miss Cleo character first appeared in ads, on television, in 1998, offering free Tarot Card readings. In these ads Miss Cleo had a strong Jamaican accent.[1]
Interested viewers would call a 1-900 number, and wait for Miss Cleo to answer, for their free Tarot reading, however, every minute of a call to a 1-900 number incurred a $5 charge to the caller's phone number.[1] Eventually the Federal Trade Commission investigated.
The Psychic Readers Network ohone responder's cut of the $5 per minute revenue from their calls was 24 cents a minute.[5] The network's responder worked from home, and the network transfered calls to responder's home phones. They did so preferentially, with the most popular responders getting calls, when they were available.
Harris was, originally, just one of the Network's stable of phone responders, until managers realized that the Miss Cleo character was generating more revenue than all their other phone responders, combined.[5] That is when they paid Harris to appear in the infomercials.
Harris died of colon cancer, at 53 years old, in July 2016.[5][3]
Multiple film-makers tackled the Miss Cleo story, in both documentaries and biopics.[5][3]
Senain Kheshgi directed a documentary about the Miss Cleo character, for Studio XTR, in 2022.[4] According to Kheshgi:
- “Her story is an example of how brown and Black women have historically been marginalized and exotified in society and popular culture. The enduring image of the dark, mystical woman still continues to perpetuate this stereotype. As a woman of color and a director who wants to explore stories from diverse perspectives, I am moved by how Youree found a way to navigate her life on her own terms.”[4]
In 2024 Lifetime Television released a made-for-TV biopic loosely based on Harris's life, entitled "Miss Cleo: Her Rise and Fall", which triggered a lawsuit, for copyright infringement, from the husk of the embattled Psychic Readers Network.[3][6] According to law firm Frankfurt Kurnit Klein and Surtz they claimed "the film infringed upon the look, feel, and signature sass of Miss Cleo in violation of its copyright and trademark rights." Their claim was dismissed in September 2025.
According to reporting in Reason magazine the Psychic Readers Network had merely applied for trademark protection for elements of the Miss Cleo character.[7] They weren't actually granted trademark protection until January 2025.
In 2024 HBO Max released a documentary entitled "Call me Miss Cleo", that represented Harris as a victim, not an exploiter.[5]
In 2024 Deadline magazine reported Sanaa Latham was going to produce and star in a television miniseries based on Harris's use of the Miss Cleo character.[8]
References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2
Simon Whister (2026-07-29). "WTF Happened to Miss Cleo, the World's Most Famous TV Psychic?". Fact Quickie. Retrieved 2026-08-01 – via YouTube.
For a time, there was no more famous TV psychic in the world than Miss Cleo. But who actually was "Miss Cleo", how much money did she make doing her thing, what ever happened to her, and, most importantly, did she see it coming?
- ↑
Emily Strohm (2016-07-28). "The Real Story Behind Miss Cleo: How a Junior TV Reporter Blew the Lid Off Her Psychic Scandal: "She did believe she had a gift," says former Court TV reporter Matt Bean". People magazine. Archived from the original on 2017-01-17. Retrieved 2026-08-01.
Fresh out of journalism school, Matt Bean was an eager cub reporter when Miss Cleo, who passed away from colon cancer on Wednesday, was at the height of her psychic network success.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3
Julia Moore (2024-07-24). "Psychic Sensation Miss Cleo's 'Side of the Story' Is 'Finally' Told in New Biopic 'Miss Cleo: The Rise and Fall'". People magazine. Retrieved 2026-08-01.
In the trailer for Miss Cleo: Her Rise and Fall, which PEOPLE can exclusively premiere, Robin 'The Lady of Rage' Allen plays single mom Youree Dell Harris, who is 'desperate to take care of her family and takes a job at the Psychic Readers Network takes a job at the Psychic Readers Network — only to become one of the network's most beloved personalities.'
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2
Matthew Carey (2022-02-16). "Who Could Have Predicted? Documentary Coming About Miss Cleo, Famed '90s TV Psychic". Deadline magazine. Archived from the original on 2026-04-02. Retrieved 2026-08-01.
Miss Cleo purported to be a Jamaican soothsayer, but the person under the turban in fact was Los Angeles native Youree Dell Harris, a sometime actress and playwright hired to embody the gifted psychic.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4
Amelia Eqbal (2024-08-14). "Call Me Miss Cleo sets the controversial hotline psychic's story straight". CBC Arts. Archived from the original on 2025-05-23. Retrieved 2026-08-01.
In basically a year, she had generated more income by herself than a combined team of psychic callers. That's when they were like, 'We've got to do something with this lady and really make her the centre story.' They didn't mind that she was playing a character, because at the time all of these phone lines made it clear that they were for entertainment purposes only.
- ↑
Brian Murphy (2025-09-08). "Psychic Readings and Legal Proceedings: Miss Cleo and Copyright Law". Frankfurt Kurnit Klein and Surtz. Retrieved 2026-08-01 – via Passle.
PRN sued the defendants alleging that the film infringed upon the look, feel, and signature sass of Miss Cleo in violation of its copyright and trademark rights. It also brought various state law claims. Last week, Judge Dale E. Ho (S.D.N.Y.) granted the defendants’ motion to dismiss.
- ↑
Eugene Volokh (2025-09-03). "Should Have Seen That One Coming: Claims Over A&E's "Miss Cleo: Her Rise and Fall" Dismissed". Reason magazine. Archived from the original on 2025-09-03. Retrieved 2026-08-01.
People writing and making films about copyrighted or trademarked material generally have considerable latitude to quote parts of the material in the process (under fair use and related doctrines). But here, the court didn't have to reach that, because it found that plaintiff's Complaint hadn't adequately alleged infringement.
- ↑ Peter White (2024-01-10). "Sanaa Lathan To Star In & EP Drama Series 'Miss Cleo' About Infamous "Psychic" In The Works From Legendary Entertainment & Sharon Hall". Deadline magazine. Retrieved 2026-08-01.