Phil Donahue, Daytime Talk Show King, Dies At 88

Phil Donahue, the one-time king of daytime U.S. talk shows whose audience interaction evolved into a distinctive brand, died Sunday at 88. No cause was given, but his family said he was suffering from what they described as a long illness.

“Groundbreaking TV talk show journalist Phil Donahue died Sunday night at home surrounded by his wife of 44 years, Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, grandchildren, and his beloved golden retriever, Charlie,” said a statement from his family.

Thomas posted to Instagram on Monday to tell her followers she’d be gone from posting for awhile. She wrote expressing gratitude for the support she’s received and the “wonderful and generous way that you’ve let Phil and me share our life adventure with you over the years.

“As a man who spent his career loving his audiences, Phil got such a kick out of our cozy little community here, and I know he would be very touched by the heartwarming thoughts and memories you’ve been sharing,” Thomas wrote.

The nationally syndicated “The Phil Donahue Show” was later renamed “Donahue.”

Oprah Winfrey described Donahue who brought startling new ideas to American women.

“His show debuted nationally, and the whole country came to know his personal brand of issue-driven straight talk,” Winfrey said in 2002.

“If there had been no Phil Donahue show, there would be no ‘Oprah Winfrey’ show. He was the first to acknowledge that women are interested in more than mascara tips and cake recipes — that we’re intelligent, we’re concerned about the world around us, and we want the best possible lives for ourselves.”

Donahue announced his retirement in 1996. He came back in 2002 as a prime-time host on MSNBC, but lasted less than a year.

Donahue was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame in 1993. He won nine Daytime Emmy Awards.

In lieu of flowers, the family asked for donations to be made to the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Phil Donahue/Notre Dame Scholarship Fund.