PhinHater Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 http://www.cnn.com/2010/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/29/larry.king.steps.down/index.html?hpt=T1&iref=BN1 CNN broadcasting legend Larry King to step down By Alan Duke, CNN RELATED TOPICS Larry King Larry King Live Media Talk Shows Television Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Larry King, the iconic TV interviewer, will step aside from hosting of his prime time CNN show later this year, he said Tuesday. King, 76, made the announcement with a short posting to his Twitter account, citing his desire to spend more time with his wife and young children. "I want to share some personal news with you. 25 years ago, I sat across this table from New York Governor Mario Cuomo for the first broadcast of Larry King Live. Now, decades later, I talked to the guys here at CNN and I told them I would like to end Larry King Live, the nightly show, this fall and CNN has graciously accepted, giving me more time for my wife and I to get to the kids' little league games," King wrote. "I'm incredibly proud that we recently made the Guinness Book of World Records for having the longest running show with the same host in the same time slot. With this chapter closing I'm looking forward to the future and what my next chapter will bring, but for now it's time to hang up my nightly suspenders." "He will end his run with Larry King Live on his own terms, sometime this fall," said Jon Klein, president of CNNUS. "Larry is a beloved member of the CNN family and will continue to contribute to our air with periodic specials." King's decision followed months of media speculation as his once-dominant ratings declined. The decision also came after weeks of personal turmoil, including a divorce filing and later reconciliation with his wife. King was hosting a nationally-syndicated overnight radio talk show when CNN founder Ted Turner convinced him in 1985 to try his interviewing skills on cable TV. "All I had to do was everything I'd been doing since I was a kid," he wrote in his best-selling 2009 autobiography, "My Remarkable Journey." His gentle but persistent interview style drew big-name guests, and "Larry King Live" became a place for major personalities to break news. Billionaire Ross Perot used the show to announce he was running for president in 1992. And the show was the setting for the historic NAFTA debate between Vice President Al Gore and Perot in 1993, a debate that for more than a decade was the highest rated program in cable history. King, who was initially based in Washington, became a mandatory stop for politicians. Over his career, he conducted sit-down interviews with every U.S. president since Richard Nixon. His program was sometimes a place of real-time diplomacy. In 1995, he hosted a program on the Middle East Peace process with Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, King Hussein of Jordan and Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin. His suspenders, large glasses and vintage desk microphone are as recognizable as the countless celebrities lined up to have an intimate chat with King while the world listened in. And there have been a lot of guests. By one count, King has interviewed more than 50,000 people, including Marlon Brando, Nelson Mandela, Mikhail Gorbachev, Paul McCartney, Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, L. Ron Hubbard, Madonna and Martin Luther King, Jr. After extensive coverage over many months of O.J. Simpson's trial for murder, Simpson himself called the program the night he was acquitted. King says that Nelson Mandela was the most extraordinary person he has met. In his autobiography, King confessed that he never plans a question, that he likes to be surprised by the answers. He says he asks his interview subjects to explain things. "All I do is ask questions," he wrote. "Short, simple questions." Born in Brooklyn, Larry Zeiger moved to Miami, Florida, in 1957. He began his radio career that year with a new name, Larry King. His first television job was hosting a local interview show in Miami in 1960. While some critics have called King a throwback, he embraced the online social networking tool Twitter. He had 1,648,920 Twitter followers as of Tuesday. Just a day ago, King used Twitter to respond to a fan's question about the highlights of his career: "Winning 2 Peabody Awards & an Emmy. Perot-Gore Debate a show highlight," King tweeted. In addition to earning the Emmy and two Peabody Awards, he was inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 1992. King also has an extensive film resume, having played himself in 20 movies. King has suffered a decline in ratings. His show, which was once on top, sometimes has come in fourth among cable talk shows during the 9 p.m. hour. King faced highly-publicized personal problems this year. He and his eighth wife, Shawn Southwick-King, filed for divorce in April, but reconciled weeks later. King has repeatedly talked about the importance of spending time with his children, including his two boys from his marriage with Southwick-King. "I'd love to see Chance and Cannon talk about how their Dad took them to play when they were kids," he wrote in his autobiography. King underwent successful quintuple bypass heart surgery after suffering a heart attack in 1987. A year later, he created the Larry King Cardiac Foundation, which he said was to help those "not so lucky" to have medical insurance. In 2009, the foundation provided more 287 life-saving surgeries and has the goal of providing a life-saving surgery every day. Is there anyone he would like to interview that he hasn't so far? For years, he joked in his autobiography, he answered that question "God." "And my first question would be, 'Do you have a son? Because there's a lot riding on the answer." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Dear CNN, I'm available. Degree in broadcasting, long-term journalist, willing to relocate. Call me. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Gun Of Bavaria Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Dear CNN, I'm available. Degree in broadcasting, long-term journalist, willing to relocate. Call me. Bob Can I join you? We can bring back Crossfire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsfan80 Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 Can I join you? We can bring back Crossfire. Great. I can't wait for a spirited 20 minute debate on whether Dunkin' Donuts or Krispy Kreme is better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 I have no expertise in donut matters. I could not debate GOB on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jetsfan80 Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 I have no expertise in donut matters. I could not debate GOB on that. Fine. Mustaches. Whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SouthernJet Posted June 30, 2010 Share Posted June 30, 2010 I think CNN should hire Vlad Posner to replace Larry. The mood in country is right.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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