Kathie Lee Gifford has paid tribute to her friend and co-star Regis Philbin, who died Friday at age 88.
Gifford, 66, spoke on the Today show Monday morning about her affection for Philbin, with whom she co-hosted Live with Regis and Kathie Lee for 15 years, until 2000.
Their friendship was defined by their off-camera bond, he said, adding that the connection between them was immediate.
“We took off like a rocket,” he said, describing him as “the most beloved person I have ever met in this business.”
Kathie Lee Gifford on Monday morning paid tribute to her ‘dear friend’ Regis Philbin
Gifford and Philbin hosted Live with Regis and Kathie Lee for 15 years until 2000
Gifford, who spends most of his time in his new home in Tennessee, said he visited Philbin and his wife Joy two weeks ago when he returned to the New York area.
She said Philbin seemed more fragile than the last time she saw him.
“Of course, the first call I always make is to Regis and Joy, so I said, ‘Can we get together? Can we have lunch? ”
“Then they came about two weeks ago,” said Gifford, who appeared on the broadcast from his Connecticut home.
“I saw Reg get out of the car with Joy and I felt a lot more fragility in him than I had seen him since the last time in January in Los Angeles.”
Philbin and Gifford, photographed in 1988, the year their show began
The couple is shown playing a studio photo shoot
However, he said that his sense of humor was still strong.
“We sat here on my screened-in porch and laughed sick, we always got back to where we left off,” she said, adding that she and Philbin had become “dear friends” even after she left the show.
Gifford and Philbin in Hawaii in 1997
“We had the best time, and after they left, I thought, ‘Sir, is this the last time I go to see my friend? ”
“Because he was failing, I realized it.”
Gifford said he visited Joy on Sunday.
She said she wanted to express her condolences, but also give them the space to cry privately, something she said she understood by losing her husband Frank, who died in August 2015 at the age of 84.
“I didn’t want to intrude on his private family time because I remember what that was like,” he said.
“It’s been almost five years since Frank passed away, and you love your friends, but you also desperately need that private time as a family.”
“Anyway,” she continued, “I was grateful to spend time with them and comfort them a little and let them know that I believe with all my heart that I know where Regis is and I know who he is with, because I had many, many conversations with him at over the years about faith and where we are going when this life ends, and he was very curious, as always. ”
Philbin and Gifford, photographed in 2015, remained close friends even after their show ended.
Gifford said Joy told him that his recent visit was one of the last times he heard Philbin laugh.
“She said,” Kathie, he hadn’t laughed in a long, long time. I was so worried about her. ”
“That will forever be a precious gift that the Lord gave me, that I had to laugh with him, one of my best friends in all my life.”
Gifford said Philbin was ‘loved’ by everyone who knew him in the industry.
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