For nearly two decades, was virtually the only TV talk show host to roam his audience with microphone and make them an essential part of his show. His huge cultural influence — especially with the women who tended to watch television during the day in his era — finally led to a flock of cultural imitators in the 1980s, including one who would eventually knock him off his perch. “For a long time I wondered why it took so long for someone to copy us,” Donahue told the Archive of American Television in 2001.
“Then along came Oprah Winfrey. It is not possible to overstate the enormity of her impact on the daytime television game.” Donahue died Sunday at age 88 after a long illness.
“I lost my sweetheart last night,” Donahue’s wife, the , wrote on Instagram Monday, saying she would be stepping away from social media “to take care of myself and the many people who took care of Phil, and held him close to their hearts.” Winfrey, among those paying him tribute after his death, was always first to acknowledge his importance. “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,” she on Monday along with a photo of the two embracing.
“He was a pioneer. I’m glad I got to thank him for it. Rest in peace Phil.
" By the time “Donahue” went off the air in 1996 after 29 years, nearly 7,000 episodes and 20 Emmy Awards, the daytime television landscape was littered.