His first guest was renowned atheist Madalyn Murray O'Hair – who had brought a lawsuit against prayer in schools -- and a few years later, his show was syndicated nationally, kicking off a 26-year run...
to Oprah Winfrey. Winfrey said as much while handing Donahue a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Daytime Emmy Awards in 1996, noting, “Had there not been a Phil Donahue, I don’t think there could have...
“In many ways, she raised all the boats with her success. If you didn’t have Oprah, you had to have me. And we were a lot less expensive.”Winfrey’s success led many other hosts to try the format, with...
He wouldn’t return to a regular TV job until 2002 when he hosted a show for MSNBC called Donahue. He tried emulating the fearless truth-telling he always idolized in mainstream journalism, but Donahue...