Barbara Walters died at age 93
In a career notable for its length and variety, Barbara Walters pioneered as the first woman to become a TV news superstar. She was an intrepid interviewer, anchor, and program host. She died at age 93.
Friday night, ABC hacked into its broadcast to announce Walters' passing.
"She had no regrets about the way she lived. She was a pioneer for all women, not just female journalists, according to her publicist Cindi Berger, who also stated in a statement that Walters passed away quietly at her New York residence.
A spokesman for ABC only had a statement from Bob Iger, the CEO of ABC's parent company The Walt Disney Company, to offer Friday night.
In addition to being a pioneer for women in journalism, Barbara Walters was also a pioneer for journalism itself, according to Iger.
Walters was at the forefront of the movement that turned TV reporters become celebrities for nearly four decades at ABC and, before that, at NBC, thanks to her exclusive interviews with leaders, members of the aristocracy, and celebrities.
With "The View," a live ABC weekday kaffee klatsch with an all-female panel that welcomed guests ranging from world leaders to teen stars, she provided infotainment a fresh spin in the latter stages of her career. Walters regarded "The View" as the "dessert" of her career after that side project and unexpected success.
Barbara Walters founded "The View" in 1997 "to elevate women's voices," according to a statement from the program.
The statement read, "We're pleased to be a part of her legacy."
As the first female network news anchor in 1976, Walters garnered attention thanks to her jaw-dropping $1 million pay. Her perseverance was renowned as she battled for every significant "grab" in a world crowded with more and more interviewees, including female journalists hot on her heels as well as rival networks.
I never anticipated this, Barbara Walters stated in 2004 as she evaluated her achievements. "I've always envisioned myself as a television writer. I never ever imagined that I would be photographed.
She was, nevertheless, a natural on television, particularly when grilling famous people.
"I have no fear when I'm interviewing. I'm not afraid." In 2008, Barbara Walters spoke with The Associated Press.
Walters asked direct and occasionally exuberant questions in a voice that never lost the traces of her Boston accent or the substitution of Ws for Rs. Her questions were frequently sweetened by a hushed, reverent delivery.
Do you like me off-screen? When Lady Bird Johnson was asked if she was envious of her late husband's reputation as a ladies' man, she once asked actor John Wayne.
She taped her last edition of "The View" in May 2014 amid great fanfare to complete a five-decade broadcast career (although she continued to make occasional TV appearances ). A swarm of TV newswomen she had opened the way for, such as Diane Sawyer, Katie Couric, Robin Roberts, and Connie Chung, stood for a group photo during a commercial break.
Walters replied softly, "I have to remember this on the hard days. This is the best."
There were no hints of majesty at the start of her career.
In 1961, Barbara Walters, who had graduated from Sarah Lawrence College in 1943, was given a "temporary," behind-the-scenes job at "Today." After a short while, one of the eight writers on staff had what was perceived as the token female position open. After being hired, Walters started to make sporadic on-air appearances with quirky tales like "A Day in the Life of a Nun" or the struggles of a Playboy bunny. She put on bunny ears and high heels for the latter and went to work at the Playboy Club.
She was spared the moniker of "'Today' Girl," which had been given to her predecessors, as a result of her increased frequency of appearances. She had to earn her keep, however, and would occasionally sprint between interviews to act in dog food ads.
She spoke with Princess Grace of Monaco, President Richard Nixon, and Rose Kennedy for the first time following the murder of her son, Robert. She visited China with Nixon, India with Jacqueline Kennedy, and Iran to cover the shah's gala party. But she ran into trouble in 1971 when a new host, Frank McGee, took over. He insisted that she wait for him to finish asking three questions before speaking during interviews with "important persons."
Although she became famous on her own, she was already familiar with the celebrity scene as a young child. Her father was a booking agent from England who converted a former church in Boston into a nightclub. Young Barbara spent her after-hours with regulars like Joseph Kennedy and Howard Hughes when Lou Walters launched other clubs in Miami and New York.
The good times were then. However, her father's erratic financial success and failure taught her that success was never certain and that it was neither safe nor enjoyable.
She left the NBC studio, sensing more freedom and chances waiting for her outside, and set out to do additional exclusive interviews, including one with Nixon's chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman.
She was paid $700,000 year and had been given the title of "Today" co-host by 1976. However, she was dubbed "the million-dollar baby" after ABC signed her to a $5 million, five-year contract.
Reports omitted the fact that her job responsibilities would be split between ABC News and the network's entertainment division, leaving her stuck in third. Her seasoned "ABC Evening News" co-anchor Harry Reasoner, meantime, was rumored to dislike her pay and celebrity inclination.
Not merely her rocky relationship with her co-anchor was the source of Walters' issues.
On "Saturday Night Live," comedian Gilda Radner parodied her as "Baba Wawa," a rhotacistic commentator. Additionally, during Walters' conversation with Jimmy Carter, who had just been elected president, in which she advised him to "be careful with us," CBS correspondent Morley Safer openly mocked her, calling her "the first female pope greeting the new cardinal."
She subsequently remembered that it was a time when all she had worked for seemed to come to an end.
I believed everything was over and thought, "How foolish of me to have ever left NBC!"
But help came in the form of a new boss: Roone Arledge, president of ABC News, shifted her from the co-anchor position to special projects. She was successful in the meantime with her semi-annual primetime interview programs. She later co-hosted the news program "20/20" and was a frequent contributor. Her list of the "10 Most Fascinating People" from the year is a constant favorite.
By the time she left "20/20" in 2004, she had conducted over 700 interviews, with subjects ranging from Michael Jackson, Erik and Lyle Menendez, and Elton John to Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher, and Moammar Gadhafi. More than 70 million people watched her two-hour interview with Monica Lewinsky in 1999, which was timed to the publication of the former intern's memoir about her relationship with President Bill Clinton.
Several years ago, Lewinsky had lunch with Walters, who, according to Lewinsky's tweet, "was of course charming, smart, and some of her questions were still her characteristic interview style."
Katharine Hepburn was a particular favorite of Walters, yet one of her most derided comments came during a 1981 conversation: "What type of a tree are you?" (Walters would subsequently counter that given the nature of their talk, the query was quite appropriate.)
Oprah Winfrey and Ringo Starr were two of the more well-known people who broke down during a Walters interview. Barbara Walters admitted to being "dreadfully sentimental" at times.
But she also garnered high acclaim for her job. For her interview with Christopher Reeve immediately after the 1995 horseback riding incident that caused him to become paralyzed, she was honored with a Peabody Award.
After a year, Walters' first union with businessman Bob Katz was dissolved. After 13 years of marriage, she and theater owner Lee Guber, with whom she had adopted a daughter, divorced. In 1990, she and producer Merv Adelson divorced after a five-year union. In her popular memoir "Audition," published in 2008, Walters revealed a "long and difficult romance" she had with married U.S. Senator Edward Brooke in the 1970s.
In May 2010, Barbara Walters set a new record for self-disclosure when she revealed on "The View" that she will have heart surgery a few days later. In a primetime show, she would highlight her successful procedure as well as that of other famous people, such as Bill Clinton and David Letterman.