Oprah. Johnny. Ellen. Conan. And now, Zach -- and Kristina.

Zach Anner, the comic filmmaker who grew up in Kenmore, tied with Kristina Kuzmic-Crocco, and Oprah Winfrey awarded each a show in the finale Friday night of "Your OWN Show," a reality TV competition on the Oprah Winfrey Network.

He now gets to host his own show -- an inspirational travel program -- on Winfrey's new cable channel.

"I just got a show from Oprah Winfrey. I could literally do back flips now. I won't show you, but I could do them," said Anner.

It's a dream come true for Anner, who has been making silly sketch comedy videos with his friends and family since he was a little boy.

But it could be more than that.

Anner showed that he's got what it takes to make it in show business -- and it doesn't really matter that he happens to have cerebral palsy and uses an electric wheelchair.

Anner and his competitor, Kuzmic-Crocco, who will host her own cooking show on the network, were challenged on Friday's finale to produce a video promoting their shows.

Anner's show, "Rolling Around the World," saw him visiting sites in Hollywood, including the Kodak Theater and the Walk of Fame. However, the tight taping and editing schedule seemed to be taking it's toll on Anner, whose energy began to flag as he also battled a cold.

After viewing the finished product, Winfrey expressed concerns about his stamina.

"The thing that I'm concerned about is Zach's ability to just sustain himself, because I know how exhausted I get. Television is grueling, what it takes to get that done," said Winfrey.

Winfrey was complimentary regarding both contestants, praising Kuzmic-Crocco's passion and accessibility and Anner's work ethic, easy-going personality and telegenic charm, almost telegraphing the possibility of the finale ending with two winners.

"The truth is, both of you have given your heart, and the truth is that both of you really deserve to have your own show," said Winfrey. "Kristina and Zach, I'm going to make that happen."

Of Anner, Winfrey said: "I would say this about Zach: Being around him makes you want to be a better person," said Winfrey. "I've never seen anybody with that kind of heart, that kind of humor who has all the challenges that he's had to deal with, and I've met a lot of people. I've never seen anybody like him," said Winfrey.

"I know that it's obviously going to be the first thing people see the first time they see me," Anner said. "Eventually, I hope that we get to a point in our culture where it's not like, 'Oh, that's a guy in a wheelchair who does travel videos.' That it's 'Oh, Zach's a guy who does travel videos and he's really good at his job.' That it's not really an issue. I think that's where we're headed."

The disability community has taken notice of Anner -- and they are rooting for him.

"It's about time," cheered Todd Vaarwerk, director of advocacy and public policy for Western New York Independent Living.

He, like Anner, has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. He even grew up in Kenmore.

Vaarwerk is especially excited about how Anner's show, by focusing on travel, will shed light on the fact that people with disabilities aren't consumed with their disabilities -- a common misconception, he said.

Peter Blanck, who heads a disabilities advocacy center at Syracuse University, called Anner's appearance on Winfrey's show "a watershed moment."

"Who would have thought 20 years ago that something like this could happen," said Blanck, chairman of the Burton Blatt Institute. "Historically, it's been out of sight, out of mind. Now, we have it right in the cultural mainstream."

Blanck, who speaks extensively about the portrayal of people with disabilities in the media, commended Winfrey for picking Anner.

"It's a very important move by the network," he said. "She isn't just including him. It sounds to me ... that he's included on his merits. He's a funny and engaging guy. At the end of the day, that's what will keep him on the air, not that people feel sorry for him but because he's funny and smart."

Jim Boles, chief executive officer of the Museum of disABILITY History in Amherst, believes Anner will be an inspiration "to people who have a disability and people that don't."

Anner "competed with what looks like to me a lot of talented people," Boles said. "It will inspire people to see them competing and maybe winning."

Joie Buddington, who runs People in Places, an East Aurora organization that arranges travel tours for people with developmental disabilities, was thrilled to see that Anner is hosting a travel show.

"You can get to know people when you see them travel," she said. "It really shows how people's abilities are common. Special needs are more than a wheelchair. It can be anything. There can be all kinds of assistance any of us could need to access when we travel. He really speaks to that with vision."

Anner's family couldn't be prouder of their son.

"He deserves it," said his mother, Susan Anner, a University at Buffalo theater lecturer who lives in Amherst.

"Oprah has this thing: that there's no such thing as luck," she said. "It's when preparation meets opportunity. That's what this is. This is his opportunity, and he was ready for it. He's been working on this for years."

Anner's family made it a point to make sure his disability didn't get in the way of his life.

"When you have a child with a disability, you're really apt to focus on the disability," she said. "I always saw him for him, what he needs. He needs to have fun. He needs to have friends."

She believes that Anner grew up so well-adjusted because, after spending kindergarten in a Special Ed program, he was mainstreamed into a regular classroom from his pre-first grade class at Lindbergh Elementary School. An aide worked with him.

"He excelled," she said. "He did great."

He continued going to regular classes at Kenmore Middle and later Kenmore West High, but he ended up missing a lot of school because he had health problems, common for people with cerebral palsy. He went to UB for a year but decided to transfer to the University of Texas in Austin to study filmmaking. He also found it easier to get around Austin compared with Buffalo, with its harsh winters.

Anner's father, Jonathan, of the City of Tonawanda, said his son has been wanting to do a travel show for a long time.

He took Zach and his brother on a trip to Europe in 2000.

Jonathan Anner, who watched the finale Friday night at the Scotch-N-Sirloin in Amherst where he tends bar, said he knew his son would win.

"I'm thrilled," he said. "If he can get five or six episodes of a show, I think he can really show his stuff."

Anner's goal is to stay true to himself, no matter what happens. "The reason that I'm in this position is because I've found a way to be myself," he said. "That's the hardest thing to be -- yourself. I think it is for all of us."

He's well aware that his starring role on his own show will make him a pioneer for people with disabilities.

"Even though there's a lot of responsibility," he said, "as long as I'm myself, then I'm on the right path. As long as I can stay true to my values and who I am, that pressure is lifted somewhat ... That's the message I want to get out there: Find a way to be true to yourself."

News Staff Reporter Harold McNeil contributed to this report.

mbecker@buffnews.comnull