Phil Donahue, the legendary TV talk show host, has died. He was 88.
Donahue passed away Sunday night following a long illness, his family confirmed to “Today” Monday morning.
The late star died at home surrounded by his loved ones, including his wife of 44 years, Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, grandchildren and his beloved golden retriever, Charlie.
The family’s statement requested that donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Phil Donahue/Notre Dame Scholarship Fund in lieu of flowers.
Three months before his death, Donahue was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Joe Biden.
The former host of “The Phil Donahue Show” got emotional as he was given the prestigious honor at the White House on May 3.
Born on December 21, 1935, Donahue grew up in Cleveland, Ohio and began his career in TV and radio in the 1950s.
In 1967, his eponymous talk show premiered in Dayton, Ohio. The hour-long show involved audience participation tackled serious issues such as abuse in the Catholic Church, the Ku Klux Klan and feminism.
The show moved from Dayton to New York City in 1985. While broadcasting from 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Donahue welcomed major guests on his show like Muhammad Ali, Whoopi Goldberg, Billy Crystal, Muhammad Ali, Steve Martin and Jamie Lee Curtis,
Donahue was the first person to interview Nelson Mandela following the South African president’s release from prison in 1990. He was also the first American talk show host to tape from the Soviet Union.
The show also hosted the 1992 presidential primary debate between Bill Clinton and Jerry Brown.
“The Phil Donahue Show” ended in September 1996 after 29 years.
Donahue won 200 Emmy Awards, 10 for outstanding host and 10 for the talk show itself, for his game-changing work in television.
“We grew up with the feminist movement, the consumer movement, the gay rights movement, we grew up with the antiwar movement, with the environmental movement,” Donahue said in an interview in 2001.
The last part of the 20th century, the time in which I was able to go out there in public on television and feature the people who had the most to say about these very compelling issues, had my name on it.”
In 2002, Donahue returned to TV to host an MSNBC talk show, “Donahue.” The show was canceled in 2003.
Donahue went on to co-direct and produce the 2007 documentary film “Body of War,” about Iraq War veteran Tomas Young