Kathie Lee Gifford Says She Has No Desire To Read Kelly Ripa's Memoir: 'What's The Point?'

It is interesting to note that in some of the most accomplished creative partnerships, such as Rodgers and Hammerstein, behind the scenes the parties struggled to get along. It looks like this was also the case for Kelly Ripa and Regis Philbin. Kelly’s new memoir, Live Wire: Long-Winded Short Stories, touches on it, and Kathie Lee Gifford is not having it.

Kathie Lee appeared on Good Day New York and stated that she wouldn’t be reading the book. Kathie Lee cohosted Live! With Regis and Kathie Lee from 1988 to 2000. In 2001, the show was revamped, with Kelly coming in to take over for Kathie Lee and cohost with Regis.

Kathie Lee prefers to remember her friend Regis on her own terms. She said, “I'm not gonna read the book. I just know what Regis was to me. He was, for 15 years, the best partner a person could ever, ever have professionally, but he was my friend.’ The pair remained close even after she left the show. She added, “I saw him two weeks before he died.”

When news broke about Kelly’s memoir and stories about Regis, Kathie Lee was “was very sorry” to read the headlines. She hoped it wasn’t true “because what's the point?” Just because she does not agree with the book does not mean she will speak negatively about Kelly. Kathie Lee stated, “I'm not going to say anything ugly about anybody. I never have and I'm not going to start now. My reality is something completely different from that.”

Kelly told People magazine that writing about Regis was “the hardest chapter to write.” She said, “There were good and bad days. I don't want to feel like I'm slamming anyone or that I'm being disrespectful. But I also want people to know it was not a cakewalk. It took years to earn my place there and earn things that are routinely given to the men I worked with.” She wants people to know, “I loved [Regis], and I still do.”

Watch this video to see Kathie Lee's full comments on Kelly's memoir.

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