What will editors and bloggers now do on a slow news day? Rosie O’Donnell is leaving “The View.”
UPDATE: Her announcement is HERE.
Some sites have confirmed it, it’ll be announced soon and the key question becomes: what will happen to “The View’s” ratings now that viewers know they might not watch a tongue lashing or an acrobatic foot-in-mouth manuever? And what show will Donald Trump watch now? TMZ:
TMZ has now confirmed the buzz that we exclusively reported last night: Rosie O’Donnell will announce on today’s show that she is leaving “The View.” And TMZ has confirmed that “View” honchos are already searching for her replacement.
Her latest blast came Monday at Fox News and New York Post Ultimate Boss Rupert Murdoch:
Rosie O’Donnell has tossed off countless one-liners and quips in her career. On Monday, she had one line she said she never imagined she’d utter: “Please welcome Rupert Murdoch.�
O’Donnell was hosting the New York Women in Communication annual awards luncheon at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in Manhattan. Murdoch, the media mogul whose holdings include the New York Post and Fox News, was presenting an award to columnist Cindy Adams.
O’Donnell’s shots at Murdoch started from her opening.
“This is a celebration of women who changed the world, and no one understands why Rupert Murdoch is on the dais,� she said, adding, “I mean that in the kind, loving Post-like way, sir; it’s delightful to see you in person.�
She turned to the audience and finished, “I was looking for numbers on his head. There aren’t any.�
O’Donnell didn’t say what Murdoch might have done to provoke her ire.
When Murdoch’s turn to speak came, he just said, “Thank you, everyone, including Rosie.�
And it was notable what “The View’s” creator and host Barbara Walters then did — she put as much distance between herself and O’Donnell as possible without jumping out the window:
Among the other presenters at the luncheon was Barbara Walters, who appears with O’Donnell on “The View.�
“I would like to point out that Rosie’s view is not always mine,� she said. “I would like to say for the record that I am very fond of Rupert Murdoch.�
A Fox News report says resignation rumors started after this appearance, partially because O’Donnell used the “f-word” at that appearance:
Rosie O’Donnell’s bawdy humor while emceeing the Matrix Awards on Monday may result in her leaving “The View.”
There is strong buzz in Hollywood that O’Donnell will announce Wednesday that she is signing off from the ABC show, TMZ.com reported.[As seen above,TMZ now says it is confirmed.]
…The chat-show host dropped the F-bomb as Barbara Walters lowered her head and covered her face with her hand. She also concluded a rant about Donald Trump by grabbing her crotch and shouting a profane epithet.
The last Rosie who grabbed her crotch in public and suffered accordingly was Rosanne Barr some years ago when she sang the national anthem in San Diego, was roundly booed and her public image was never quite the same. Only Michael Jackson has gotten away with crotch grabbing in public…
O’Donnell said she was sad when Trump called her “disgusting” and “fat” because it was always her dream to turn on “an old, bald billionaire.” [Fox actually cleaned up the actual quote a bit. It was a bit more specific in its wording.]
The Fox News report notes that both Democrats and Republicans were turned off by O’Donnell’s comments at the event — and it was not the comments about Murdoch that upset them.
In reality, O’Donnell pushed the envelope in terms of controversial comments on “The View” since most daytime talk shows don’t make news (or usually provide literally days of angry rant material to talk show hosts and bloggers). Prediction: her outspokenness could translate into some specials on cable and big crowds at comedy clubs and comedy concerts. But she will likely may still be too unpredictable to handle for most television program syndicators who produce shows for broadcast television.
Joe Gandelman is a former fulltime journalist who freelanced in India, Spain, Bangladesh and Cypress writing for publications such as the Christian Science Monitor and Newsweek. He also did radio reports from Madrid for NPR’s All Things Considered. He has worked on two U.S. newspapers and quit the news biz in 1990 to go into entertainment. He also has written for The Week and several online publications, did a column for Cagle Cartoons Syndicate and has appeared on CNN.