Phile Donahue had no peers when it came to the art of the journalism interview.
He had that insatiable appetite of curiosity and interest in who was on the other side of his microphone. He looked his guests in the eye. He was attentive to what they had to say, and he wanted to know why they felt as they did about whatever the subject. He wanted to know, too, what his syndicated television audiences thought, often tossing the microphone their way.
Donahue was an American television icon of renown.
With his wire-rimmed eyeglasses that magnified his blue eyes, his thick salt-and-pepper hair and attired in his three-piece suits, he was the best as the “Donahue” daytime talk show host for 29 years, from 1967 until 1996. “Donahue” returned to the television airwaves in 2002 for a brief stint with MSNBC before the show was cancelled eight months later by executives fearing Donahue’s criticism on the pending U.S. invasion of Iraq.
“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,” Oprah Winfrey posted on Instagram, when news came that Phil Donahue died at age 88 on Aug. 18 at his home in Manhattan.
Along with Winfrey, others followed in his talk show footsteps to include Sally Jessy Raphael, Montel Williams, Maury Povich, Geraldo Rivera, Charlie Rose, Ellen DeGeneres, the late Jerry Springer, the late David Susskind and the late Larry King.
“If there wasn’t a Phil,” Raphael posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, “there never would have been a Sally.”
Rivera would remember Donahue, too.
“His death deeply saddens me,” Rivera posted on X. “He was a hero, a talk show pioneer who inspired me to try my hand at the genre he invented.”
In front of the camera’s eye
Phil Donahue dared to be bold.
He took on everything from LGBTQ+ issues to abortion to civil rights to the Vietnam War. Whatever the social issue of the day, Donahue wanted to know, and he wanted his audiences to know. He interviewed activists from Ralph Nadar to Gloria Steinem, Jesse Jackson, South African anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela and atheist Madalyn Murray O’Hair, the first guest that aired Nov. 6, 1967.
He interviewed those from entertainment to include Elton John, Dolly Parton, Whoopi Goldberg, Cher, Billy Crystal, Steve Martin, the late Paul Newman, the late Gregory Peck, the late Robin Williams and the late Muhammad Ali. And not to forget 1977, when guest Marlo Thomas of “That Girl” television fame swept Phil Donahue off his feet right in front of his studio audience’s eyes, and our television screens.
“You are really fascinating,” he told the actress.
“You are wonderful,” she said back.
They married May 21, 1980. She was by her husband’s bedside when Phil Donahue died.
“I’m sure by now you’ve heard the very sad news that I lost my sweetheart last night,” Thomas posted to Instagram on Aug. 19. “ … 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 … I hope that you will continue to hold close those you cherish most, just as I was blessed to do with my beloved Phillip.”
‘I still believe … ’
Phil Donahue taped close to 7,000 talk shows, according to published reports, earning 20 Daytime Emmy Awards and the 1980 Peabody honor. He was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame in 1993 and was honored in May with the Medal of Freedom from President Joe Biden at the White House.
You could see how moved he was as President Joe Biden placed the medal around a frail Phil Donahue’s neck.
“He helped change hearts and minds through honest and open dialogue,” Biden is quoted in a Washington Post report. “And over the course of a defining career in television and through thousands of daily conversations, Phil Donahue steered the nation’s discourse and spoke to our better angels.”
Donahue also reflected in May on his days of “Donahue” with People magazine.
“I do miss it occasionally,” he is quoted as saying. “Sometimes I’ll shout my question to a guest on the screen and hope they’ll somehow hear me … I still believe that, despite our differences, we’re all part of this sprawling global family, and we just need to get to know each other, so that we can share the world together.”
My thought long has been that Phil Donahue should have been a moderator for presidential debates. Imagine Phil Donahue craning his neck, wincing at a candidate’s response and asking beyond the political spin and rhetoric.
Epilogue
A funeral for Phillip John Donahue, according to published reports, is scheduled for Aug. 29 at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City.
Oprah Winfrey already has delivered the eulogy.
“There wouldn’t have been an Oprah Show,” let us remember her words, “without Phil Donahue.”
Bill Kirby Jr. can be reached at billkirby49@gmail.com or 910-624-1961.
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