The family of legendary TV personality Regis Philbin said the retired talk and game show host and Guinness record holder died Friday at age 88.
Regis Philbin, the frenetic though congenial host who entertained audiences for five decades died, his family said. He died at 88 from natural causes, according to a statement.
Philbin was the second legendary broadcaster we lost in the past month who happened to hold a Guinness World Record for his time on the tube.
In 2011, Guinness awarded Philbin the record for “Most Hours on U.S. Television.” It calculated he spent more than 16,746 hours over a then-52-year career. That worked out to be an average “of almost one hour a day.”
Hugh Downs, who died at 99 on July 1, held that same record until Regis surpassed him.
Long before he was known for co-hosting Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, which later became Live with Regis and Kelly, he was the sidekick on The Joey Bishop Show.
He was certainly one of a kind. And he made whatever he was doing entertaining.
Celebrities immediately began issuing statements and posting tweets about their love and admiration.
Chris Harrison, one of the performers who succeeded him as host of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? called him a “true gentleman.”
Talk show host Larry King called Philbin “a prolific talent:”
One of my favorite moments from his game show hosting came from a 1999 episode of ‘WWTBAM.’ He typically stalled on revealing whether the contestant correctly answered a multiple choice question.
“I’m a fat man, Regis. My heart can’t take it,” the contestant said.
Regis was quick with the comeback:
There are so many legends that have left us.
This latest passing simply serves as yet another example of how much 2020 sucks.
RIP, Regis.
