Talk show host Phil Donahue dies at 88

CNN
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Phil Donahue, who changed the daytime television script by addressing controversial issues directly to the audience, has died after a long illness, his family said in a statement Monday.

He was 88 years old.

“Donahue passed away Sunday evening at his home surrounded by his family, including his wife of 44 years, Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, his grandchildren and his beloved golden retriever, Charlie,” his family said in a statement to CNN.

Many people received the news of his death with surprise and sadness, including his fellow talk show host Oprah Winfrey. Who praised Donahue? On social media.

“There would be no Oprah without Phil Donahue, who was the first to prove that daytime talk and women’s viewing should be taken seriously,” Winfrey wrote. “He was a pioneer. I’m glad I was able to thank him for that. Rest in peace, Phil.”

The legendary host was host of “The Phil Donahue Show” for nearly three decades, from 1967 to 1996.

Although the show ended 28 years ago, Donahue was in the national spotlight as recently as May, when he and 18 others received the Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden. The award is the nation’s highest civilian honor.

Philip John Donahue was born in December 21, 1935In Cleveland, Ohio. He honed his broadcasting skills as a radio and television news anchor in Ohio.

Donahue’s big break came in 1967, when Dayton television station WLWD launched “The Phil Donahue Show.” The broadcaster pioneered the idea of ​​asking questions of the studio audience.

The show gained a reputation as a forum for hot topics of the time, such as women’s equal rights.

The show moved to Chicago and then New York, while expanding to more stations across the United States.

The national broadcast led to high-profile guests – including his future wife, actress Marlo Thomas. In 1977, audiences watched the couple fall in love live on the show.

“You’re really amazing,” Donahue told Thomas on stage, extending his hand to her.

“But you’re amazing,” Thomas replied, taking the host’s hand. “I said that when we were off the air. And I want to say that you’re loving and generous and you love women, and that’s my pleasure. And whoever you have in your life is very lucky.”

He is credited with paving the way for talk show hosts like Winfrey and others, I asked him onceDid you know you are paving the way for a black woman?

“I have to be honest — we were so busy trying to keep the feather in the air that the last thing we feared was other people’s careers. We started locally in Dayton with two cameras and no stars — we could only afford two guests a week,” he said. “We had no couches, no announcers, no band, no folding chairs, no jokes. I didn’t say, ‘Come on in!’ We knew we were visually boring, so we had to go to the issues — that’s what kept us alive.”

This story has been updated.