Five Daytime TV Pioneers

A lot of people don’t take daytime TV very seriously. It’s kind of gotten a bad rep as nothing but soap opera’s for old ladies and shows offering nothing worth watching. But a lot of daytime TV does stand out and even matches up with prime time fare. I talked before about how game shows were all over the place once upon a time, but of course we also have talk shows, court shows, soap opera’s and the ever reliable news programs. Ans some of these shows and hosts have elevated daytime TV with their presence, and are just as popular and admired as anyone one prime time.

Here are five people who pioneered daytime TV








Phil Donahue

When it comes to talk shows, Donahue was the grand master. I don’t think he originated the concept but he certainly popularized it. The list of people who tried to imitate his success goes on forever. Sally Jesse, Geraldo, Joan Rivers, Jerry Springer, Riki Lake..on and on and on. Including a bunch of names we’ve all forgotten (who remembers Jenny Jones?). His style was simple but effective, easily impersonated but still respected. He could be serious one minute and light hearted the next. And he also introduced the idea of taking calls which I don’t think many do, back then or today.











Oprah Winfrey

I kind of think of it this way, Phil got the concept of daytime talk rolling. And Oprah came along and perfected it. She was huge, and on for year’s. Do  I need to mention all the Emmy wins? Heck, how many talk show’s create successful spin-off’s? Dr.Phil and Rachel Ray are still going strong while Dr.Oz made medical shows an actual genre. She’s been off the air for a while now and people still reference and parody her. Others she inspired, like Rosie O’Donnell and Ellen Degeneres, have carried the torch. She had an amazing style and her fans loved watching her.










Regis & Kathie Lee

While Winfrey and Donahue gave us “tabloid” talk, Regis and Kathie Lee gave us “Breakfast talk”. I discussed way back when Regis stepped down from Live! at what an impact that little show had. Regis & Kathie Lee was huge and their effect is still being felt. Shows like “The View”, “The Talk”, “Morning Joe” and various copycats are all around because of what R&K started. It was such a simple accept..talking. It’s true, I still remember the first time I ever stumbled across that show and couldn’t believe it. They were just talking for ten minutes! I kept wondering, “are they going to do something?”And the chemistry between the two was simply magic.  They also had great celebrities on which was rare in the day. This was before shows like Extra and Access Hollywood. These days the show is hosted bu Kelly Ripa and Ryan Seacrest and it’s fine but I miss the days of starting my mornings with Regis & Kathie Lee.









Judge Judy

It’s hard to believe that the court show is such a genre.Judge Wapner and The People's Court were all the rage in the 80's, but it was this show that really set the genre on fire. There are tons of TV judge’s out there from the wacky Judge Mathis and Judge Joe Brown to Marilyn Milian. What is it about Judy that makes her stand out the way she does? I have been watching her loyally since 1996 (yes, that year is correct) and I just love her show. She is tough, no nonsense, but also has a soft side. While other shows either come and go, or change litigators every few years, her show has always been a constant. She’s not afraid to dress down a defendant and call it like it is, and unlike other personalities over the years we no she isn’t doing it just to be mean and she never crossed the line into just plane abusive. She’s fun to watch and I still to every chance I get.










Bob Barker

It’s impossible to do this article and not mention this guy. It’s hard to believe now, but Bob Barker WAS weekday morning’s. If you were home from school at 11:00am this is what was on. Not iff’s, and’s or but’s about it. The Price is Right is a great show and Barker was the perfect emcee. No offense to Drew Carey, I’m sure he’s fine but he’s no Bob Barker. Plenty of game shows hosts came and went from Richard Dawson to Chuck Woolery to Pat Sajak, but Barker will always been king. Some may argue Alex Trebex should be here, but since Jeopardy is always on at 7:30 I have a hard time considering him a “daytime” personality. And i never, ever watched Jeopardy with the kind of loyalty I waked Price is Right. It wasn’t just on in the morning, it was my morning.










And I need to mention this show:

Created in 1952 by Pat Weaver and first hosted by Dave Garroway, this was the first show to make people (and I mean ANYONE) realized that there is a market for daytime TV. That people want to start there day getting updated on the news and whatever else was going on in pop culture. And I never understood that, it was a mystifying idea that people at home during the day may want to have something to watch? I guess time’s were different than. The guy also invented The Tonight Show figuring people may want to watch TV past 11:00 pm but that’s another article. The Today Show has rotated through dozens of hosts from Barbara Walters to Tom Brokaw to Bryant Gumble and Jane Pauley to Katie Couric to the current hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotbie.Weather man Willard Scott and Al Roker are pop icons, and of course it spawned imitators Good Morning, America on ABC and CBS This Morning (not to mention countless others). Now while I hate that the show is four hours long today, it’s impact cannot be understated.








Kids shows are different I was focusing here on daytime for adults. And yes I left off soap opera’s, because trying to find one or two example’s to represent that genre is impossible. That is a subject for another day my friends.