Seriously? OMG! WTF?

Larry King Live nearly tripled its normal audience last night with the Star Jones interview. The show had 2,957,000 viewers with 917,000 in the 25-54 demo. That’s nearly double what Cooper got for the Jolie interview. No wonder CNN re-ran it today, though I wish they hadn’t.

Inside Cable News

I am still betting that K-Fed penny that Star is going to CNN! How cool would it be if she got the 10p slot knocking Anderson out of his? 

It looks like her part-time return to television with "Game$how
Marathon" may translate to full-time.

With Star Jones leaving, there is speculation that Ricki Lake may be
taking her place at "The View." If she does, it’ll be a return to
daytime after her show ended two years ago. It may have been her own
decision to throw in the towel, but the real reason was that the
stations who used to carry her show in the afternoons have buried it to
3:00 or 4:00 in the morning. Oh yeah, not to mention Dr. Phil getting up
and up in the ratings.

Two other people I see vying for Star’s position are Paige Davis (who
also returned to TV on G$M after she was given the pink slip by TLC) and
former "E! News" anchor Jules Asner. Ironically, she and Star both used
to cover red carpet events for E!…but not together, of course.

And yes, Jules was one of the hosts of "View" knockoff "Life and Style";
it got the cancellation notice after one season and ratings below 1.0.

With Rosie O’Donnell already in the mix, could either of those three
pick up where Star left off, or will "The View" go onto Season 10
without a replacement? As we always say in the business…STAY TUNED!

rec.arts.tv 

I want Connie Chung to join the show! Maybe she can sit on a piano and sing her opinions.

Walters announced that Star would no longer be permitted to appear on the show — effective immediately — after Star strayed from script during an exit that’s turned ugly.

Transcipt:

WALTERS: "And then there were three. This is, truthfully, a very difficult day for us, and it is a sad day for us. If you were watching the program yesterday, you would have heard Star announce that she’s leaving THE VIEW and will not be on the program next fall.

"We didn’t expect her to make this statement yesterday. She gave us no warning. And we were taken by surprise. But the truth is that Star has known for months that ABC did not want to renew her contract and that she would not be asked back in the fall.

"The network made this decision based on a variety of reasons which I won’t go into now. But we were never going to say this. We wanted to protect star. And so we told her that she could say whatever she wanted about why she was leaving and that we would back her up.

"We worked closely with her representatives and we gave her time to look for another job. We hope she would announce it on the program and leave with dignity.

"But Star made another choice.

"And since her announcement yesterday, she has made further announcements that have surprised us.

"So it is becoming uncomfortable for us to pretend that everything is the same at this table.

"And, therefore, regrettably Star will no longer be on this program, except for some shows that have been prerecorded.

"THE VIEW helped make Star a Star and Star helped make THE VIEW the success that it is.

"We will never forget that. We wish her well in this new chapter of her life as we begin a new chapter on THE VIEW."

Drudge Report 

Star Jones Reynolds announced Tuesday morning on The View that she’ll be leaving the show in July after nine years as a cohost.

"Something’s been on my heart for a little bit, and after much prayer and counsel I feel like this is the right time to tell you that the show is moving in another direction for its tenth season and I will not be returning as cohost next year," she said on the air.

"That’s shocking to me," interrupted Joy Behar, prompting Jones Reynolds to link hands with her cohosts.

Thanking the show’s creator, Barbara Walters, "for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime," Jones Reynolds concluded by saying, "I’m not sure what the future holds, but I’m absolutely sure who holds the future."

After some discussion, Walters said, "It is a new chapter for Star. It will be a new chapter for The View in the fall."

So why is Jones Reynolds leaving? Contrary to speculation that she’s unhappy about the upcoming addition of Rosie O’Donnell – one of her most vocal critics – to the show this fall, she reveals exclusively in this week’s PEOPLE magazine that the departure was not her choice.

"What you don’t know is that my contract was not renewed for the tenth season," she tells PEOPLE. "I feel like I was fired." She adds that she was told her contract wouldn’t be renewed just days before news leaked that O’Donnell would be joining The View.

People 

I hear that the longtime panelist on ABC’s daytime chatfest, "The View," has signed a lucrative deal with another television outlet and plans to announce her departure live on the air at the end of this month.

Yesterday, Jones Reynolds’ PR rep declined to comment, and a spokesman for "The View," where she’s been a regular since the show’s August 1997 launch, didn’t respond to several detailed messages.

In recent weeks, Jones Reynolds — who’s married to former money man Al Reynolds — has reportedly taken meetings with execs at CBS, Court TV and E! Entertainment, in addition to filling in for Larry King as a substitute host in April. Her contract is up in September.

A knowledgeable source said: "Star has been floating around the studio, and she’s on cloud nine now that she’s leaving. She’s been acting as though she doesn’t have a care in the world. That’s why she was so pleasant, even when Sandra Bernhard was trying to bait her for a confrontation on the show. She’s known for weeks she was leaving, and now that her deal is apparently done, she just doesn’t care what goes on with the show."

Lloyd Grove 

Bet you a K-Fed penny she is going to CNN. 

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