DONAHUE 25TH ANNIVERSARY (TV)

Summary

A special celebrating the 25th anniversary of this series of talk/interview programs hosted by Phil Donahue, held at the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City.

Highlights include: clips of memorable moments from “Donahue’s” 25-year history, including footage of anti-war activist and (later Wall Street analyst) Jerry Rubin, actress Jane Fonda, and Reverend Jesse Jackson, actor Paul Newman, actress Joanne Woodward, comedian Bill Cosby, actress Goldie Hawn, novelist Norman Mailer, actor James Garner, actor Danny Thomas, singer Cher, actress Farrah Fawcett-Majors, talk show host Johnny Carson, actor John Wayne, actress Bette Davis, actor Gregory Peck, actor Henry Fonda, actor Sylvester Stallone, journalist Vladimir Pozner, feminism activist Gloria Steinem, actor Robin Williams, comedian Steve Martin, actor Chevy Chase, actress Glenn Close, actress Meryl Streep, singer Dolly Parton, talk show host Arsenio Hall, actor Billy Crystal, comedian Whoopi Goldberg, actress Julia Roberts, actress Audrey Hepburn, actress Liza Minnelli, actress Elizabeth Taylor, actress Lana Turner, actress Ingrid Bergman, actor Robert Wagner, actress Natalie Wood, actress Zsa Zsa Gabor, actress Lauren Bacall, humorist Erma Bombeck, actress Katharine Hepburn, and singer Aretha Franklin; recollections about Donahue by Barbara Walters; a sketch involving a “secret club” of talk show hosts, featuring Donahue, Jerry Springer, Faith Daniels, Jenny Jones, Montel Williams, Geraldo Rivera, Sally Jesse Raphael, Maury Povich, Joan Rivers, and Oprah Winfrey; an appearance by Diane Sawyer talking about Donahue’s interviews with political figures, including clips of former president Gerald Ford, political activist Ralph Nader, former president Jimmy Carter, then-governor Ronald Reagan, then-vice president George H.W. Bush, politician Jerry Brown, presidential candidate H. Ross Perot, and then-governor Bill Clinton; a parody impression of Donahue by actor Phil Hartman; an appearance by Dr. Ruth Westheimer, featuring clips of Donahue discussing sex-related topics with various guests; Donahue dancing to “Me and My Shadow” with a number of children dressed to resemble him; Winfrey discussing Donahue’s innovation with respect to interaction with his viewing audience, accompanied by clips of Donahue warming up his studio audience and engaging in various stunts with his guests; clips of other memorable moments from the show, including the filming of a live home birth, the “transvestite fashion show” episode, an episode featuring a girl born without arms or legs, interviews with children suffering from progeria, an episode focusing on post partum depression, an appeal from two guests looking for a heart donor for their infant child; an appearance by journalist Connie Chung discussing Donahue’s efforts to expose racism and intolerance, accompanied by clips from episodes featuring guests and audience members commenting on controversial topics, featuring footage of Dr. Charles King, boxer Muhammad Ali, neo-Nazi Frank Collin, Reverend Louis Farrakhan, hip-hop artist Sister Souljah, South African revolutionary Nelson Mandela, Bishop Desmond Tutu, and commentary on racial profiling, civil rights issues, and racially-motivated police brutality; Daniels, Steinem, Larry King, and Charles Grodin participating in the “Donahue Letter-Reading Ensemble,” reading aloud some of the more memorable invectives sent to the show over the years, accompanied by clips of similarly impassioned audience reactions, and other clips such as a televised gay wedding and a debate between feminists and anti-abortion advocates; a recorded message from actress Marlo Thomas including a brief retrospective of Donahue’s life; a video of Donahue interacting with talk show host David Letterman; clips of various episodes of “The Donahue Show” featuring strippers as guests; and a final appearance from “The Donahue Show” executive producer Patricia McMillen, senior producer Lori Antosz Benson, and producer Lillian Smith, as well as the other members of his production staff. Commercials deleted.

(This program contains audiovisual errors; there is a minor video glitch at ~57:17. It represents the best copy available at this time.)

Details

• NETWORK: NBC
• DATE: 1992 9:00 PM
• RUNNING TIME: 1:26:06
• COLOR/B&W: Color
• CATALOG ID: B:42550
• GENRE: Specials
• SUBJECT HEADING: LGBT Collection; Specials
• SERIES RUN: NBC - TV, 1992
• COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

• Jack Haley Jr. … Executive Producer
• Allan B. Schwartz … Supervising Producer
• Phillip Savenick … Producer
• Marcia Lewis … Co-Producer
• Neil Olshansky … Line Producer
• Bruce Bailey … Segment Producer
• Kevin Miller … Segment Producer
• Gary Halvorson … Director
• Rhea Kohan … Writer
• Buz Kohan … Writer
• Jacques D'Amboise … Choreographer
• Steve Lawrence … Theme Music by
• Phil Donahue … Host
• Connie Chung … Guest
• Faith Daniels … Guest
• Charles Grodin … Guest
• Phil Hartman … Guest
• Jenny Jones … Guest
• Larry King … Guest
• Maury Povich … Guest
• Sally Jesse Raphael … Guest
• Geraldo Rivera … Guest
• Joan Rivers … Guest
• Diane Sawyer … Guest
• Jerry Springer … Guest
• Gloria Steinem … Guest
• Mike Wallace … Guest
• Barbara Walters … Guest
• Ruth Westheimer … Guest
• Montel Williams … Guest
• Oprah Winfrey … Guest
• David Letterman … Guest
• Marlo Thomas … Guest
• Patricia McMillen … Guest
• Lori Antosz Benson … Guest
• Lillian Smith … Guest
• Muhammad Ali
• Lauren Bacall
• Ingrid Bergman
• Erma Bombeck
• Jerry Brown
• George H.W. Bush
• Johnny Carson
• Jimmy Carter
• Chevy Chase
• Cher
• Bill Clinton
• Glenn Close
• Frank Collin
• Bill Cosby
• Billy Crystal
• Bette Davis
• Louis Farrakhan
• Farrah Fawcett-Majors (See also: Farrah Fawcett)
• Henry Fonda
• Jane Fonda
• Gerald Ford
• April Frankland
• Zsa Zsa Gabor
• James Garner
• Whoopi Goldberg
• Barry Goldwater
• Arsenio Hall
• Goldie Hawn
• Audrey Hepburn
• Katharine Hepburn
• Jesse Jackson
• Charles King
• Jay Leno
• Norman Mailer
• Nelson Mandela
• Steve Martin
• Liza Minnelli
• Paul Newman
• Madalyn Murray O'Hair
• Dolly Parton
• Gregory Peck
• H. Ross Perot
• Kevin Pollak
• Vladimir Pozner
• Julia Roberts
• Ronald Reagan
• Jerry Rubin
• Jesse Dean Sepulveda
• Suzanne Solomon
• Sister Souljah
• Sylvester Stallone
• Meryl Streep
• Elizabeth Taylor
• Randall Terry
• Danny Thomas
• Lana Turner
• Desmond Tutu
• Robert Wagner
• Faye Wattleton
• John Wayne
• Robin Williams
• Natalie Wood
• Joanne Woodward