Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most-watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly.
Mainly aired from CNN's Los Angeles studios, the show was sometimes broadcast from CNN's studios in New York or Washington, D.C., where King gained national prominence during his years as a radio interviewer for the Mutual Broadcasting System. Every night, King interviewed one or more prominent individuals, usually celebrities, politicians and businesspeople.
The one-hour show was broadcast three times a day in some areas, and was seen all over the world on CNN International.
On June 29, 2010, King announced that the program would be coming to an end. The "final edition" of the program aired on December 16, but a new episode on the war against cancer aired two days later on December 18.
Larry King Live was replaced by Piers Morgan Tonight, a talk show hosted by the British television personality and journalist Piers Morgan. It began airing January 17, 2011, featuring Oprah Winfrey as the first guest.
Format
Interview style
Larry King mainly conducted interviews from the studio, but he also interviewed people on-site in the
White House, their
prison cells, their homes, and other unique locations. Critics have claimed that Larry King asks "soft" questions in comparison to other interviewers, which allows him to reach guests who would be averse to interviewing on "tough" talk shows. His reputation for asking easy, open-ended questions has made him attractive to important figures who want to state their position while avoiding being challenged on contentious topics. When interviewed on
Late Night with Conan O'Brien, King said that the secret to a good interview is to get the guest to talk about him- or herself, and to put oneself in the background pool.
A 1996 interview in the Washington Post had King note that he sometimes slips hard questions in between softballs. King prefers one-sentence questions. In the Post interview, King also proclaimed that he prepares as little as possible for each program, does not read the books of the authors he interviews, and admitted that the show was not journalism but "infotainment." He said that he tries to project an image of earnestness and sincerity in each interview, and the format of the show (King in suspenders instead of suit and tie, sitting directly next to the guest) reinforces that.
In response to softball' questions" accusations, King says, "I've never understood that. All I've tried to do is ask the best questions I could think of, listen to the answers, and then follow up. I've never not followed up. I don't attack anybody — that's not my style — but I follow up. I've asked people who say this, 'What's a softball question?' They'll say, 'You say to some movie star, what's your next project?' To me, that's not a softball. To me, that's interesting — what are you doing next?"
Call-ins
King accepts
call-in questions on some nights. Callers are identified only by city and state/province, and generally not by name. Occasionally, surprise guests
telephone the show and comment, like
governors,
royalty, and
celebrities. At times,
prank calls come in.
Frequent topics
During major election coverage, the program may center on political analysis and commentary, as the show's airing generally coincides with the closing of polls in many states.
One of King's recurring topics is the paranormal. A frequent guest is John Edward of the popular television show Crossing Over with John Edward. Edward comes on the show and gives callers a free chance to supposedly communicate, via him, with their dead loved ones. King also had alleged psychics such as Sylvia Browne and James Van Praagh on from time to time to do readings and discuss the future. King sometimes allows skeptics such as James Randi to debate the psychics. In an April 2005 episode, King hosted a panel discussion regarding Evangelical, Catholic, Jewish, Muslim, and atheist views on the afterlife. King has also had topics about UFO's and Extraterrestrials where he pits experts against skeptics.
King is also frequently accused of pandering to sensationalist news stories; for instance, the death of Anna Nicole Smith took up much of King's shows after the event, causing the cancellation of numerous guests and interviews that were already scheduled, most notably Christopher Hitchens, who had intended to discuss the Iraq situation.
After the death of a prominent celebrity, King will either replay a recent program featuring said celebrity (for instance, after actor Don Knotts' death in 2006 King replayed the interview with Knotts and Andy Griffith taken several months before) or will bring on family members and close confidantes to the deceased to reminisce on the departed's life.
Set design
Each studio set features an identical colored-dot map of the world in the background and one of King's trademarks, a vintage
RCA microphone (as seen in the title card), on the desk. The microphone is a
prop, as King and his guests use
lapel microphones.
Notable episodes
On June 3, 1985,
Larry King Live debuted on CNN, with then-Governor of New York
Mario Cuomo as King's first guest.
The November 9, 1993 debate between
Ross Perot and
Al Gore on the
North American Free Trade Agreement was watched in 11.174 million households - the largest audience ever for a program on an ad-supported cable network until the October 23,
2006 New York Giants-
Dallas Cowboys game on
ESPN's
Monday Night Football.
On September 25, 2006,
Oprah Winfrey made
her first endorsement of
Barack Obama for
President of the United States on
Larry King Live. Once Obama became a candidate, Winfrey made her first endorsement of candidate Obama on
Larry King Live in May 2007. Two economists estimate that Winfrey's endorsement was worth over a million votes in the Democratic primary race and that without it, Obama would have lost the nomination.
To mark the 20th anniversary of the show, ABC's Barbara Walters was a guest host and interviewed King on his reflections of his career.
To mark 50 years in broadcasting, Larry King Live had a week long celebration that included a two hour CNN presents special and an hour of celebrity toast. The broadcast of this special week-long event was postponed due to the tragedy at Virginia Tech. XM Satellite Radio also featured a micro channel called "Larry!" that featured replays of The Larry King Show along with interviews and the new material from the CNN anniversary shows.
On July 19, 2007, a frail Tammy Faye Messner made her final appearance on Larry King Live to talk about her battle with lung and colon cancer. She died the following day.
On September 7, 2009, the first episode in high definition was aired.
On February 12, 2010, during a discussion on Bill Clinton's latest heart procedure, Larry King revealed he had undergone a similar operation 5 weeks earlier. King had a heart attack in 1987 and said he had surgery to place stents in his coronary artery.
On December 16, 2010, the final episode of
Larry King Live aired on CNN, with
Ryan Seacrest and
Bill Maher acting as co-masters of ceremonies, and surprise appearances by President
Barack Obama, former President
Bill Clinton, and network news anchors
Barbara Walters,
Diane Sawyer,
Katie Couric and
Brian Williams, among others. King says his final show was not a "good-bye" but rather a "so long", as he plans to move on and pursue other things. The final show attracted an audience of 2.24 million people, more than triple the program's usual audience of 672,000.
Guest hosts
When King has been absent from the show, other interviewers have substituted for him.
Geraldo Rivera was a guest host in the 1980s.
Ryan Seacrest has substituted for King many times.
CNN Headline News host Nancy Grace has substituted for King many times including October 31, 2003, regarding the Scott Peterson case.
On April 1, 1994 and 2002,
Kermit the Frog hosted the show as an
April Fool's joke.
On February 16, 1998,
Dan Rather hosted a show regarding the then-ongoing Iraq crisis. He also hosted on October 19, 2000, with
Jay Leno as a guest.
On March 29, 1996,
Newt Gingrich, then the
Speaker of the House, hosted, with
Jack Hanna serving as the guest.
On October 16, 1998, Wolf Blitzer hosted the show with the subject matter being the Matthew Shepard case. He also hosted the March 1 and March 19, 2008 episodes. In addition, he hosted again in August 2010.
On May 22, 2000,
Kathie Lee Gifford hosted while
Diane Sawyer and
Joan Rivers were the guests.
On November 30, 2000,
Roger Cossack interviewed
John Ashcroft, who had just been defeated by
Mel Carnahan. Carnahan, who died, was replaced by his wife,
Jean
On January 22, 2001,
Bob Schieffer hosted a show about
campaign finance reform with
John McCain as a guest.
On June 8, 2005, sportscaster
Bob Costas was named as the regular substitute anchor for the show, filling in roughly 20 times a year and not on a set schedule.
On August 18, 2005, Chris Pixley hosted the program instead of then-regular guest host Bob Costas, who did not feel comfortable with the subject matter, the Natalee Holloway case.
On September 12, 2005,
Dr. Phil hosted with the subject matter being the aftermath of
Hurricane Katrina. He again sat as guest host on February 27, 2009, interviewing various people concerning the
Suleman octuplets.
Comedian Bill Maher has taken up the duties of guest host.
On June 26, 2006,
Chief Justice John Roberts hosted
On March 2007, Mike Shiver sat in as guest host for a couple of shows.
On April 2007, Star Jones hosted
On April 6, 2007, Jimmy Kimmel hosted
On July 24, 2007, former attorney and TMZ.com managing editor Harvey Levin guest hosted the show, the topic of discussion being Lindsay Lohan's arrest of that morning.
On March 11, 2008,
John King hosted 2008, July 26, 2008, November 21, 2008, and January 28, 2009.
On March 17, 2008, and April 24, 2009,
Dr. Drew hosted
On July 21, 2008, Glenn Beck hosted.
On October 19, 2007, November 14, 2008, and April 13, 2009,
Joy Behar hosted the show.
On July 26, 2008, Kathy Griffin hosted for an episode featuring paparazzi.
On March 12, 2009, Jeanine Pirro hosted
On March 11, 2009, Sanjay Gupta hosted
On March 9, 2009, Ali Velshi hosted
On March 27, 2009, Tavis Smiley hosted. He hosted again on August 10, 2010.
On February 19, 2010, Jeff Probst hosted
On June 5, 2010, Donald Trump hosted a 25th anniversary special during which he interviewed King.
On August 2, 2010, Kyra Phillips hosted.
Planned Al Gore hosting
Al Gore was supposed to host on May 6, 1999, with Oprah Winfrey as a guest and the topic was supposed to be the aftermath of the
Columbine High School massacre. However, with Gore's candidacy for Presidency pending, CNN decided not to let him host as a result of the controversy.
References
External links
Larry King Live Official Website
2005 Neilson Cable News TV Ratings / MediaBistro.com
Lawsuit re. Lynn Redgrave interview
Category:1985 American television series debuts
Category:2010 American television series endings
Category:1980s American television series
Category:1990s American television series
Category:2000s American television series
Category:2010s American television series
Category:American television talk shows
Category:CNN shows
Category:English-language television series
![Henrietta Maria and King Charles I with their two eldest children, Charles, Prince of Wales, and James, Duke of York, painted by Anthony Van Dyck, 1633. The greyhound symbolises the marital fidelity between Charles and Henrietta.[10]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110707012118im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/ce/17/756664b31e665b6adffa59a6cc90_grande.jpg "Henrietta Maria and King Charles I with their two eldest children, Charles, Prince of Wales, and James, Duke of York, painted by Anthony Van Dyck, 1633. The greyhound symbolises the marital fidelity between Charles and Henrietta.[10]")
![Pre-1956 Tangier had a highly heterogeneous population that included 40,000 Muslims, 30,000 Europeans and 15,000 Jews.[20]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110707012118im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/0e/4f/3fe3e71fc3c9fa3a5057015abfec_grande.jpg "Pre-1956 Tangier had a highly heterogeneous population that included 40,000 Muslims, 30,000 Europeans and 15,000 Jews.[20]")
![Henrietta Maria and King Charles I with their two eldest children, Charles, Prince of Wales, and James, Duke of York, painted by Anthony Van Dyck, 1633. The greyhound symbolises the marital fidelity between Charles and Henrietta.[10]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110707012118im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/ce/17/756664b31e665b6adffa59a6cc90_thumb.jpg "Henrietta Maria and King Charles I with their two eldest children, Charles, Prince of Wales, and James, Duke of York, painted by Anthony Van Dyck, 1633. The greyhound symbolises the marital fidelity between Charles and Henrietta.[10]")
![Pre-1956 Tangier had a highly heterogeneous population that included 40,000 Muslims, 30,000 Europeans and 15,000 Jews.[20]](http://web.archive.org./web/20110707012118im_/http://cdn.wn.com/pd/0e/4f/3fe3e71fc3c9fa3a5057015abfec_thumb.jpg "Pre-1956 Tangier had a highly heterogeneous population that included 40,000 Muslims, 30,000 Europeans and 15,000 Jews.[20]")
