Barbara Walters: 'The View' pays tribute

Passed away peacefully on Friday Dec 30 2022

As an avid watcher of 'The View', I was sad to have learned of Barbara Walters passing from Sunday Today with Willie Geist.

I've followed her in the past due to my enjoyment of following 'The View'.
After watching the 20/20 special on her over the weekend, I was reminded why she was so popular... that she's mostly known for charasmatic interviewing ability with us, the viewers. Other than The View, I knew her through her specials on ABC.

In today's 'The View' tribute, there was a parade of View veterans on the panel including current and onetime OG table mates Joy Behar, Meredith Vieira, Star Jones and Debbie Matenopoulos. They paid their respects to Barbara during and throughout today's special episode.

Barbara Walters defied sexism and ageism. She validated people's opinions. - Sunny
For someone who gets paid to talk. What she did so well was she listened. - Sara
There will never be another Barbara Walters - Whoopi

Conspicuously missing from the hour-long tribute: former co-host Rosie O’Donnell. According to O’Donnell’s spokesperson, the actress-comedian was invited to take part in Tuesday’s retrospective. However, “She is on a plane and couldn’t change her schedule,” the rep explained. A View spokesperson confirms that an invitation was indeed extended to O’Donnell. O’Donnell honored her former boss, who died Friday at the age of 93, on Instagram over the weekend. “What a long and eventful legendary life she had,” O’Donnell marveled. “Spoke to every prominent world leader in memory, interviewed everyone who’s anyone, and I was lucky enough to be in her orbit for a good many years.” Despite the pair’s well-documented rocky relationship, O’Donnell focused on the good times she shared with Walters. “We saw a lot of Broadway shows together,” she recalled, “and whenever we go backstage, I’d, like, try to help her, you know, over the steps backstage and she would always smack my hand and tell me to leave her alone. She [knew] what she was doing I could tell you that. “May she rest in peace and may everyone remember just what barriers she broke down for women,” O’Donnell concluded. “She… was the first, and will always be remembered.”

The OG's
'Without Barbara Walters there wouldn't have been me - nor any other woman you see on evening, morning, and daily news.
She was indeed a trailblazer.'
- quote from Oprah Winfrey via Instagram