Six years ago, Regis Philbin retired from his hosting duties on Live! With Regis and Kelly. Prior to that, he and his co-host Kelly Ripa, made the perfect daytime television pair for ten years.
The duo brought something different to the show, which had been on air decades before they took over. So understandably, when Philbin announced his retirement, shortly after the 10th anniversary of the show, Ripa was not happy.
In an interview with Larry King Now, Philbin spoke about his rocky relationship between him and Ripa. When asked if he keeps in touch with his former Live! co-host, Philbin replied, "Not really, no, no."
"She got very offended when I left. She thought I was leaving because of her. I was leaving because I was getting older and it wasn't right for me anymore," the 85-year-old explained. He added that Ripa took his departure personally, and has never asked him to come back on the show.
Since the interview, which took place earlier this year, there have multiple reports of Ripa avoiding Philbin whenever she could. She reportedly even left a cocktail early so she wouldn't run into Philbin, who arrived later.
"Kelly arrived early and left before Regis arrived," Radar Online reported. "Since Regis left the show he has had no contact with Kelly and revealed that she hasn't returned any of his calls."
Unlike Philbin, Ripa, who now hosts Live! with Ryan Seacrest, has been very quiet about their relationship, until now.
In a recent interview with The New York Times, Ripa opened up about how much things have changed now that she has a new co-host, and revealed something that most people did not know about Philbin.
Contrary to her relationship with Seacrest, who she hangs out with on weekends and can text at any hour, Ripa said that she rarely communicated with Philbin off-camera.
She explained that in the ten years that she worked with Philbin, they did not talk on the set of the show.
"Regis had a mandate: Absolutely no talking off-camera," Ripa said. "He had almost a superstition about it. You save it for the show. I'd be like, "˜Good morning,' and he'd say, "˜Save it for the air!'"
This revelation about the pair's off-air relationship gives fans a glimpse into why they didn't continue to be friends after Philbin left.
Philbin's retirement wasn't the only major departure that personally affected Ripa. Former NFL player Michael Strahan joined Live! after Philbin, but said goodbye last year. He announced that he was leaving for Good Morning America, prompting Ripa to walk off the show for nearly a week.
Thankfully, Ripa seems to be happy carrying out hosting duties with Seacrest by her side.
"He's the future of the franchise," she said. "He's the future of ABC."
The former American Idol host also had nothing but good things to say about Ripa.
"If it were raining outside and there was a puddle, I'd want to stand in front of Kelly so she wouldn't get wet," Seacrest said. "There's that protection thing."
What do you think of Regis Philbin's no talking rule?