Oprah Winfrey has led tributes to TV talk show host Phil Donahue, following his death at the age of 88.
The star, who presented his eponymous series, The Phil Donahue Show, died ‘peacefully’ at home on Sunday.
His family confirmed the news in a statement obtained by Today, sharing that he was surrounded by his loved ones at the time of his death – including his wife, Marlo Thomas and their children.
He is said to have battled a ‘long illness’, but there have been no further details on his cause of death.
‘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,’ the message read.
‘Donahue was 88 tears old and passed away peacefully following a long illness.’
They also requested that, in lieu of flowers, fans make donations to either St Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Phil Donahue/Notre Dame Scholarship Fund.
In the wake of the news, stars flocked to social media to pay tribute to a huge industry titan.
Beside a black-and-white picture of their embrace, Winfrey said: ‘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.
‘He was a pioneer. I’m glad I got to thank him for it. Rest in peace Phil.’
Katie Couric followed suit on her own page, sharing the obituary as well as a personal message: ‘So sad to hear this news. Legendary talk show host Phil Donahue died on Sunday night following a long illness. He was 88 years old.’
Sarah Jessica Parker added: ‘Phil Donohue, we loved you. Thank you for multiple decades of smart, funny, informative and often very brave television.
‘We honor you, your work and your devotion to your audience.’
Directing her message to Donahue’s widow, the Sex and the City actress added: ‘To @marlothomas and his family, my sincere condolences. RIP and Godspeed. X, SJ.’
In a tribute on Today earlier this morning, the presenters described him as a ‘trailblazer’.
‘He was of course a daytime staple for decades,’ Craig Melvin praised. ‘Pioneering the talk show format that has been replicated so many times since then.’
Cleveland-born Donahue began his career in the spotlight in the late 1950s, first as a production assistant at KYW radio and TV before eventually working his way up the ladder.
He gained fans thanks to his efforts on Conversation Piece and, in 1967, he landed his very own talk show – The Phil Donahue Show – and introduced the format as we now know it.
Instead of trying to fit countless topics into the one-hour time slot, he instead decided to tackle single issues in each episode, and didn’t shy away from controversial subjects including feminism, race relations and religion.
The late star, dubbed the ‘king of daytime TV’, was also the first to involve the audience in interviews, allowing those in the studio the opportunity to ask guests questions – a format that is still going strong today.
This clearly worked as Donahue was awarded an incredible 20 Emmys throughout his career, including 10 for the Phil Donahue Show, and 10 for outstanding talk show host.
Over the years, he invited huge names including Sir Elton John, Muhammed Ali, Robin Williams, Whoopi Goldberg and Steve Martin to share the screen.
He also was the only talk show host to be granted a coveted interview with Nelson Mandela following his release from prison.
The Phil Donahue Show, rebranded to Donahue, ran for 29 seasons until it came to an end in 1996 – but the presenter later returned to our screens for a year in 2002, helming Donahue on MSNBC.
Earlier this year, he was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by Joe Biden, alongside Michelle Yeoh and Katie Ledecky, and appeared at the White House in May.
‘I was very moved,’ he told People Magazine at the time. ‘Being inside the historic White House — man, that can really play on your heartstrings.’
Unpacking his extensive career, he admitted that he ‘misses it occasionally’, adding: ‘Sometimes I’ll shout my question to a guest on the screen and hope they’ll somehow hear me.
‘But to be honest, even though the medium has changed a bit – the sets are fancier, the productions are slicker, and the hosts are thankfully more diverse – all of the talk shows still cleave to the one thing that laid at the foundation of the 7,000 episodes I taped, and that’s curiosity.
‘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.’
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Donahue is survived by wife Thomas and his four children from his first marriage, Michael, Kevin, Daniel and Mary Rose.
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