Talk show icon Phil Donahue dies at 88

(CNN) — Phil Donahue, who flipped the script for daytime television by tackling controversial issues in front of a live audience, has died following a long illness, his family announced in a statement on Monday.

He was 88.

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

The news of his passing was met with surprise and grief by many, including fellow talk show host Oprah Winfrey, who paid tribute to Donahue on social media.

“There wouldn’t have been an Oprah Show without Phil Donahue being the first to prove that daytime talk and women watching should be taken seriously,” Winfrey wrote. “He was a pioneer. I’m glad I got to thank him for it. Rest in peace Phil.”

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

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

Phillip John Donahue was born on December 21, 1935, in Cleveland, Ohio. He honed his broadcasting skills as a radio and TV news anchor in Ohio.

Donahue’s big break came in 1967, when Dayton’s WLWD TV launched “The Phil Donahue Show.” The host came up with the groundbreaking idea of asking the studio audience for questions.

The show earned a reputation as a forum for hot-button topics at the time, like equal rights for women.

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

National syndication led to higher-profile guests – including his future wife, actress Marlo Thomas. In 1977, audiences watched the couple seem to fall in love live on the show.

“You are really fascinating,” Donahue told Thomas on stage, reaching for her hand.

“But you are wonderful,” Thomas replied, clutching the host’s hand. “I said it when we are off the air. And I want to say you are loving and generous and you like women and it’s a pleasure. And whoever is the woman in your life is very lucky.”

Credited with paving the way for talk show hosts like Winfrey and others, she once asked him, “Did you know you were 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 worried about was other people’s careers. We started locally in Dayton with two cameras and no stars — we could only afford to fly in two guests a week,” he said. “We had no couches, no announcers, no band and folding chairs, no jokes. I wasn’t saying, “Come on down!” We knew we were visually dull, so we had to go to issues — that’s what made us alive.”

This story has been updated.

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