Exhibits: Irish American Hall of History

Phil Donahue

b. 1935

Television, Radio

Television today is filled with talk shows. When The Phil Donahue Show aired in 1967 there were only a few shows on TV, but at the time his show was considered quite radical, especially for daytime TV. He started in radio as an announcer and then as a host of Conversation Piece (1963-1967), a radio talk-show where some of his interviews were picked up nationally. During his first week on The Phil Donahue Show he showed a woman giving birth. The show combined the talk radio format with a television interview and was issue oriented. In the 1980s he was joined by a proliferation of other talk shows. As competition increased the shows became racier with less emphasis on issues and more on scandal. He maintained his focus on personal and political issues but eventually many markets dropped him for the racier shows. The show ran from 1967-1996 and won 19 Emmys. Phil has always been proud of his Irish American heritage. Besides his paternal side, the Donahue's, his mother's maiden name was McClory.

External Links

• Phil Donahue - Museum of Broadcast Communications
• Phil Donahue - Wikipedia