Gifford left the show in July 2000, and Kelly Ripa would take her place in early 2001.
Regis Philbin began hosting the morning talk fest, then known as AM America, in 1975.
By the time Philbin left the show in 2011, he was 80 years old, and, as he told Larry King, the daily format of the show simply wasn’t right for him at that time in his life anymore, so he made the decision to call it quits.
He had three different co-hosts between then and 1985, when Kathie Lee Johnson (later Gifford) would join him, taking the show to up to the number one position in the New York market, which led to national syndication for the show in 1988.
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Regis Philbin opens up about broken friendship with Kelly Ripa