ET has an exclusive that Kelly Ripa has told Live execs that she’s not going to return to the show until her cohost, Michael Strahan, leaves. As you know, Kelly was informed about Michael’s departure only right before the network announced the news that Stahan was leaving to join Good Morning America. It’s widely assumed that Live will be canceled and replaced with a third hour of GMA. Kelly has been on Live for fifteen years and has worked with Michael for the past four. The fact that she was told that he was leaving at the last minute is said to have blindsided and understandably upset her. She was reported to have left for an anniversary vacation with her husband in Turks and Caicos and did not return to Live after hearing the news. (The vacation was already scheduled, but she was only supposed to take off Friday and Monday.)
Kelly is reportedly so upset that she’s threatened that she won’t return to the show until Michael leaves. There’s said to be no love lost between them at all, although sources close to Michael have told the press that he wanted to break the news to Kelly months ago but was under orders from ABC execs not to tell her. Here’s this story, thanks to ET:
Kelly Ripa is still “pretty pissed off” about Michael Strahan’s Tuesday announcement that he was departing Live! With Kelly and Michael to go full-time at Good Morning America, according to a source on the set of the daytime talk show.
Ripa skipped Wednesday’s taping of the show after Strahan revealed that he’d be leaving, and the source told ET that the 45-year-old co-host has “threatened to not come back until Michael leaves,” adding that the production staff is still unsure of her status for the rest of the week.
Variety’s Debra Birnbaum reported on Wednesday that ABC said Ripa will not return until “next Tuesday at the earliest.”
ET’s source went on to say that Ripa was blindsided by the news of her Strahan’s departure, and feels “betrayed,” as she is also not happy on Live!.
“She put her neck out for Michael to be a part of the show four years ago,” the source added. “She is actually miserable with the show, has been for a while now…They have not [been] getting along that well recently, but this [takes] the cake.”
I know many of you think it’s unprofessional of Kelly to bolt like this but I do think it was justified considering how she was treated. Yes it’s business, but she worked there for 15 years and they treated her horribly. Maybe it would have been smarter for her to stick around and see how this played out, but she’s hurt and she left.
Incredibly ET also got Oprah to go on the record about this. Oprah, the ultimate arbiter when it comes to talk shows, said “Nobody should ever be blindsided. I don’t know who’s in charge, but somebody should’ve said, ‘This is gonna happen.’ You shouldn’t have to read it in the paper. Ever.” Yes exactly. They treated Kelly poorly and it was the executives who behaved unprofessionally, not her.
TMZ has a related story which just brings it home to me how much ABC honchos are screwing Kelly. Someone in their camp leaked the news that Kelly’s lifestyle is unsustainable if she doesn’t keep working for Live. That’s low, and consider that TMZ has a real source for this story, they’re not coming up with that themselves.
Sources connected with the production don’t believe she’s going anywhere, because of her paycheck and her spending habits…
Our sources say ABC brass isn’t worried that Ripa will bail on the show. We’re told she makes just shy of $15 million a year, and her lifestyle eats up most of it. Kelly and hubby Mark bought a big townhouse on the Upper East Side of NYC a year ago, and they have a mansion in The Hamptons.
As one source put it, “She makes a lot of money, but she spends a lot of money, and so does he.”
So they treated Kelly like sh*t after she worked for them for 15 years and yet they don’t think she has any leverage in this employment dispute because she lives large. AND they leaked this to TMZ! That’s low. I hope Kelly has some recourse against ABC for this, I really do. I’m so team Kelly now. I don’t blame Strahan, he did what he was told by keeping quiet and this was a career move for him, but ABC should be ashamed.
Kaiser tipped me off that Page Six tweeted that Kelly was actually papped outside her apartment this morning. She was replaced on Live by Erin Andrews today. So somehow People reported that Kelly is in Turks and Caicos on vacation but she’s actually in New York and just not going to work. Did she fib or change her plans?
Kelly Ripa emerges from her Upper East Side apartment this morning. https://t.co/UhNaFgX82p pic.twitter.com/YonL56KxPr
— Maggie Coughlan (@MaggieCoughlan) April 21, 2016
photos credit: WENN.com
I don’t get why ABC wanted to treat her like an a**hole. That show brings in the ratings and it was mean to do her dirty like that. And yes, I’m sure Michael’s PR and ABC are leaking stories left and right…but I don’t think it will work. She is the show.
Can I play devil’s advocate for a minute here?
Many of you think ABC did her dirty by not warning her say a month ago that Michael would be leaving. So – if they had told her a month ago – then what? She would have just had her hissy fit then. What would giving her warning accomplish, other than stroking her ego? Because that’s what she is doing, having a fit because – ego and because if she’d have known sooner, she could also started shopping for a new job. That’s exactly what the company tried to prevent. It’s what any corporation would do.
Also, as far as the timing of the announcement and letting her know is concerned, telling her privately sooner would have changed nothing. If they want to cancel the show because of low ratings – they will. Now she has taken this to a mean girls fight level. Oh, I am upset so I won’t be back until he is gone – so they start hitting back with rumours about how she really has no better options because she needs the money – and this way they undermine her new job search by hinting to everyone that she is both expensive, and unprofessional. She made a big mistake if she let it be known she was on vacation but then was seen around NYC. That is not the message and image you want to broadcast if you are potentially looking for a new job.
If Michael leaving makes her feel she’s up a creek career wise, the timing of informing her doesn’t change anything. Perhaps knowing that would be her reaction, they put it off until the last minute.
Not to mention, until everything was finalized on Michael’s contract, they (and Michael) were absolutely justified in keeping it under wraps. Many times negotiations stall and deals fall apart at the last minute. Gossiping about it like interns at the water cooler is unprofessional and creates an atmosphere of stress and uncertainty. You announce news when the deal is done. And telling your co-workers (yes, even old ones) about it prematurely is not the way to do it.
I know this is not the popular opinion here, most of you seem to think that the company should have informed her about the deal sooner. Not sure why and how much sooner would suffice. If it’s for courtesy only – why? The change is happening months from now, plenty of time to adjust, interview new co-hosts or discuss the new opportunities if they plan to shut down the show.
But why is it not professional of her to go job hunting? Why is it only professional when they’re preventing her from searching for a new job? I think you just proved the point. They were trying to screw her by waiting until the very last minute to tell her, thereby preventing her from job hunting, and then when she reacts in a basic human way, they immediately start the mudslinging so that she looks bad and has to stay employed there, not knowing if they’re just going to screw her again in a few months by cancelling the show altogether?
Agreed. I believe they anticipated her childish, bratty response. This is the same way Regis’ exit was hanndled, which just reinforces my belief that she is a difficult to work with. I will even go so far as to say that I don’t think this amounts to anything of importance. Welcome to the corporate world, Princess Kelly.
Again I agree with you. It is the same reason why corporations have people escorted off of the property the day they are fired. They try to minimize the damage. She’s making a mistake by not showing up. She is not in a position of power and needs to think of her career and not her feelings. The network will not shut down if she doesn’t show up and it sounds cold, but that is the way it is.
“What would giving her warning accomplish, other than stroking her ego?”
It would have been treating her like a professional who deserves their respect after 15 years. It doesn’t matter how she behaves because the onus is on them as a company to treat her in a professional manner. If you have an employee who throws fits you can’t simply use it as an excuse to throw a fit along side them.
Also, she has every right to be given advanced notice so she can pursue another job. It can take months to line things up and arrange them and the sooner she knew the better.
I truly do not believe they would have treated a man this way.
A hissy fit… applied to a woman in today’s world… is never a fair phrase. Read nothing after I saw that. FYI…
Join me then, I agree with you.
I completely agree with you. When I was laid off from my job I was blindsided too. No notice just “see ya! Here’s two weeks pay!” Companies don’t give a crap about you and your feelings. It’s about money and that’s it.
@Vauvert
I wholeheartedly agree and posted this on the other thread as well. Now personally, I am a highly emotional being and I tend to be incredibly emotionally reactive, something I had to work really hard at over time. Soo i get how emotions and what not can get the better of you. However at work you have to put a lid on it, in my opinion.
I don’t care that she took the day off, although I think it’s incredibly unprofessional to take a day off of a live tv show without a lot of notice, whatever.
To me, the way she’s acting, is petulant, babyish and really spoiled.
Michael did his thing, the network did their thing and if she didn’t immediately lose her job while both of those things happened, I don’t see why she feels she deserves anything more.
You could want more, you could hope for more, but you can’t EXPECT more from a bunch of business professionals who are all
trying to do their jobs and succeed.
To expect your costar to breach a contract is unreasonable. To take it personally is unreasonable. If you don’t feel secure in changes that are going on around you, make a change and cover your ass for yourself, just like everyone else is doing.
The fact that her “freaking out” is a story all over the Internet proves that she didn’t act professionally. As in getting the news, taking it in, going home quietly, throwing your tantrum at home and then calling in for the next day.
A couple of years back I went to help one of my very close friends open up her company. She brought on board me and another good friend of hers and it was funny how the progression of us opening this company together really showed who can separate business from personal. Her other friend wound up getting really upset at everything my friend was doing, when really our friend was just to make her company survive. She wound up leaving on a bad note and never recouped that friendship.
When I got wind that they were going to be some changes that I hadn’t been told about, I was understandably hurt, but what I did was go home, sit on it and call every friend I had to complain and bitch.
I woke up the next morning and was like I don’t want to be here anymore and I sent in my letter of resignation for two weeks just like that. On my last day I wrote her a lovely note thanking her for the opportunity to work with her and that was that. I could’ve made it really personal but it’s not it’s business. And business is business.
She remains a close friend who refers me from her business frequently as I do for her.
THANK YOU, Vauvert, for being the voice of reason I’ve been waiting to hear.
Eternal side-eye– so on point.
To say that we shouldn’t expect business people to treat their employees with basic respect….smh. We SHOULD expect that from business owners. If you can’t treat your employees with common decency then you don’t deserve the responsibility of being their employer.
I was recently in a similar scenario at work where I was the Michael Strahan of the story. Coworker flipped out ten different ways over me getting promoted because nobody told her it was coming. Well it wasn’t her business. And in all honesty it wasn’t Kelly’s. Michael can’t risk his job to preserve her feelings.
I agree with you, vauvert. I think she was treated poorly; however, that doesn’t excuse her behavior now. She’s being paid to do a job, and she should do it.
Totally disagree.
1.) Remember that this had happened to Kelly before. She was told 20 minutes BEFORE THE SHOW of Regis’s retirement. She continued with the show professionally, and then apparently told network producers that their actions were unfair.
2.) When Michael first started doing GMA segments, Kelly specifically voiced concerns that it would distract him from Live. She was told that his gig was temporary and that it wouldn’t distract him.
In sum: Even though she told network execs that she should not be blind-sighted like she was with Regis, they didn’t care and did it again. When she showed concern for Michael’s GMA segments, she was openly lied to. I’m totally on #TeamKelly.
What does Kelly’s husband do? I thought I read once that he was an actor when they met. Does he still act or is he a stay-at-home ‘House Husband’ who watches the kids? This is not a dig at him or ‘them’ … I’m just curious.
So, if a man who felt he had been treated with disrespect by management basically said f@$! that and hopped the next plane out, would you call that a hissy fit?
(It would be seen as ballsy probably.)
Agree with others. Companies are not under obligation to treat employees with a minimal decency, but those that don’t are usually badly managed. This was bungled, badly. If they felt Kelly was too childlike to handle it, they shouldn’t be employing her, period.
To everyone who still thinks she should have been given advance notice so she can go job hunting: she HAS been given until September when Michael leaves – I don’t have cable, don’t watch TV so IF I misunderstood the date and the change is immediate, then yes, you are all somewhat right – as a long term employee, the longer you give someone to prepare for a massive change, the better. But even if Michael leaves tomorrow, can we please all take a moment to listen – they haven’t handed her her notice. They told her that her co-host is leaving. Excuse me, they don’t owe her anything more than being supportive during the upcoming period – whether that is hunting for a co-host replacement, or finding her another job, or transitioning her to a different show format, etc.
If I read it correctly, from April to September is way longer a period to “adjust” than any of us in the corporate world ever get, whether we are a junior employee or the bloody CEO. The reason you don’t announce massive changes until you are ready to implement has nothing to do with lack of respect for the employees, and everything to do with stability, stock price, your investors and your board. I have been on both sides of this story. Yes, emotionally it is very difficult when it happens to you. BUT no one is doing it out of spite or disrespect, there are business and legal reasons. Her reaction shows exactly why she wasn’t tipped off – because look at the drama now. And sorry, but I would have the same reaction whether this attitude came from a man or a woman. This is about being equal, and about being professional. I don’t expect someone to be gentler on me because I am a woman. If anyone does not show up at work the day after receiving bad news (and again, why is she having such a crisis??? They did not announce her that she was being let go!) then I call that a hissy fit, regardless of their age, gender, pay scale or any other characteristics.
I understand that some of you disagree, but can I ask you a question: if she wanted to go looking for another job a year ago, when all was well, when do you think she would have told them? When she started looking? When she was having preliminary talks? Or when the ink was dry on the contract? Because I can promise you, any seasoned professional out there would have kept silent until she (or he) knew that the new job was already secured. Why would you expect more from the other party?
It’s strange that they would cancel live because my understanding is it actually has good ratings especially in the core demographic. I think the cancellation may be just rumor. And GMA’s ratings are down — which is why they want someone popular like Michael.
This is the best response to this whole issue with Kelly & Michael couldn’t said it better myself.
VAUVERT I have to agree with you. In the real world, everyday jobs, people would not get the privilege of what people are expecting her to receive. At all the places I work if you get let go or fired, you have to leave right then. Also one place was a large company and apparently all of the top honchos had known for months they would have to let people go and who they would be, but no one else knew! This also left some people in situations where they were the only ones left in their area of work and were suddenly expected to shoulder it all after their tams were let go. I’m not saying it’s right, but when you run a company you look out for the best interest of that company, that’s how it’s always been. It’s normal for her to be upset but she’s a former actress and 15 year professional on Live, so I would expect her to be able to suck it up and come back at some point. It’s her job, she’s still getting paid so.
I would like to see her go too. drop this stale show or get new co-hosts
““What would giving her warning accomplish, other than stroking her ego?”
It would have been treating her like a professional who deserves their respect after 15 years. It doesn’t matter how she behaves because the onus is on them as a company to treat her in a professional manner. If you have an employee who throws fits you can’t simply use it as an excuse to throw a fit along side them.
Also, she has every right to be given advanced notice so she can pursue another job. It can take months to line things up and arrange them and the sooner she knew the better.
I truly do not believe they would have treated a man this way.”
agree with all of this
Thy did this to her when Regis quit too.
I’m sorry, but I have no sympathy for someone who can’t live on $15M a year. It’s not ABC or Michael Strahan’s fault you can’t live within your means. No tv show lasts forever.
Yeah, they treated her like shit. I won’t deny that.
BUT – you’re in the entertainment field – you can’t be spending the bulk of your income – you need to squirrel away a bunch of it. You don’t KNOW how long a show will go on – you don’t know how long you’ll be a commodity. You need to be in control of your finances in case the job offers dry up. If they don’t – great. But I really don’t think there’s going to be THAT many shows scrambling to hire Kelly.
Not sure i buy this story at all! First her and Mark have a production company and i don’t know this sounds like a petty thing they say about women.
Yeah it’s hard to say, K.
If her finances are in order, then losing this job/leaving it won’t be THAT big of a deal. We’ll see what happens I gues.s
I agree with the living beyond your means – that’s on Kelly and how she chooses to live.
Her salary isn’t the issue. That is just a distraction.
Exactly. Who cares what she does in private with her money, as an employer and face of a particular property she deserves the respect to know what’s going on with the show.
Or else this happens. Where she doesn’t show up and already the show is struggling.
Exactly. It’s not about the $$$ people. BTW Anderson Cooper should replace the other guy.
I find it sad that a lot of women on this site are quick to believe the story of her spending habits from just some printed gossip. I agree with the poster who said this is just a distraction from the real issue and that’s treating a loyal member of their team like a piece of crap.
The issue is that she was treated like crap. BUT if her finances are in better order than they’re reporting – then this won’t be THAT huge of a deal. If she’s being treated badly, and has invested, she should leave. Why stay?
I agree…although boy is it an interesting tid-bit!
I can’t…I can’t imagine it. 15 million EVERY YEAR?!?! I would retire with $1 million. I would play video games and eat cupcakes and go to the beach. I can’t even comprehend the need for that much money.
So ….not a ton of sympathy here. You’re already more fortunate than 99.999999999999999999999999999999% of the world Kelly. You had a rough day at work…well, I know people who were unexpectedly laid off and on welfare….perspective…
Entertainment is a fickle business. Anyone making 15M a year with several years under his/her belt should be able to just go home and forget the drama.
These last-minute replacements have to be causing added effort for the crew members. The network honchos may or may not be jerks, but her decision to stay home is no doubt creating tension and drama on set, for those making far less money.
People are treated like crap at work all the time. I work in a very small office and I’m the last to know anything. I can tell you right now that if I refused to come in and do my job because I was mad I wasn’t told something, I’d get fired.
Spot on, @bluehare. I am fortunate to work for a good employer, yet there is no expectation of being told in advance of transfers and promotions (even when it directly affects your own team).
I’m not sure I believe it. Kelly seems to be a serious miser. I think they’ve invested their money well. The fact she’s behaving this way suggests she can write her own ticket and others know it. Someone else on CB mentioned this is a way to fire Kelly.
I agree, her salary & what she does with it is a non issue. ABC is treating her horribly & if they planted the story about her spending habits….cheap shot.
it is a third hand rumour and judgement from the outside. She could have a bunch of very good investments that aren’t public. I doubt this would be the same slant if it was a man. “She’s difficult to work with” “She over spends and needs the job”
Actually you hear that about Wall Street men all the time…
Although the fact that she can’t live on $15 million a year isn’t the issue, it’s still indicative of self-importance and excess. And there’s the fact that I just don’t care for her. At. All. And my not liking her isn’t the point, either, but the show was never the same after Regis left. May be time to bury it at sea.
but you don’t know that she’s in Tori Spelling territory, you’re just believing a story that may have been put out there to make her look bad
Okay the gossip on them not living off of 15 mill is bs, and really this is the misogynistic television network flinging dirt at a woman, and I know because I worked for them once upon a time. As a woman in television you are never given the respect a man is given, and she’s angry and I don’t blame her. Oprah is right you really shouldn’t be blindsided like that anywhere, but especially with a long standing television show where when leads leave, the show may go too. Trust me if it was reversed and Kelly was leaving Michael would have known about it months ago. They thought because she is a middle aged actress/ host they had her over a barrel as her opportunities are less now, and she wouldn’t raise a stink. They also thought they can try and replace Michael, and it won’t matter, but I think they might be wrong on that one too. They have been lucky with this, but just like the View and others sometimes you take it a step too far and change too much for the audience. I just don’t understand what made them want to change Live for GMA’s benefit. I think they have too much faith in this, and it may not help GMA and destroy Live to boot. Go for it ABC, just like your desire to have more scripted criminal dramas is a good idea if executed well, which you haven’t been doing lately, instead of just staying with what is working and asking for more Shonda Rhimes.
Preach!
This narrative is a dirty spin tactic implemented by the network to make her seem less appealing to any future employer. I wouldn’t be so quick to believe it. I’m sure she is doing just fine.
This sounds like the green monster. If she is being paid according to her peers and considering she has been doing it for 15 years and the show pulls ratings, why do you care?
Ugh. No loyalty or love lost in Hollywood. Team Kelly.
If Hollywood actually tried to behave like a normal workplace I’d say no that she just needs to bite the bullet and come to work but 15 years + them possibly trying to cancel the show + why would they even refuse to tell her knowing everything leaks in this business?
If they’re doing this to try and keep GMA strong against the Today Show then they’re ironically making the same mistake The Today Show made. Even my “I don’t know who these people are” Momma boycotted The Today Show after seeing Ann cry her heart out for her final goodbye. If they make the mistake with Kelly who has a lot of fan loyalty they’ll see the same boycotts.
IMHO she was treated really badly and I don’t blame her for wanting some time away. I would have been furious if I had been blindsided like that and probably would have needed to get out of there too.
After 15 years you would think that the head honchos at ABC could have at least taken Kelly aside and given her a heads-up, that’s the professional thing to do. I don’t blame Strahan either, this is all on ABC.
This is such a classic example of sexism. She’s a woman in television anchoring a major morning show, has seniority over her male co-star, and is still being treated like an assistant. She was kept in the dark over a major decision, something that is relevant to her work in a substantial way, and then when she has an utterly appropriate reaction, is deemed “crazy” and angry. #standwithkelly
She brought life back to the show when Kathie Lee left. Michael did the same when Regis left. I don’t think it’s a sexist situation at all. Michael found a better gig. If the tables were turned and she had the opportunity to better herself, I’m quite sure she would, and in all likelihood wouldn’t ask for Michael’s permission.
Except it nots about him asking permission it’s that the studios heads and those in charge couldn’t even tell her to prepare. These kinds of shows aren’t formal and static. You have to have chemistry between hosts, they have to have good banter. Blindsiding her like this was stupid for the show and now is putting a dark stain on what should have been easy.
To prepare for what ? His going for another job ? That’s his right and has nothing to do with her.
Saying that his departure means she’ll get out of work is nothing but assumptions. I can understand, on a personal note, being hurt by a long time colleague quitting without notice or good by. But I don’t see why, on a professional note, a one has to keep one’s colleague informed on one’s career choices. Nor why a employer would keep one employee informed on another employee moves.
Except for the fact that HER job performance is directly related to his. This is not a co-workers at the accounting firm type of relationship.
While his departure may or may not influence her performance, she has month to prepare and adapt. He ‘s not leaving tomorrow. And even then, why would her job performance trump his right to move on and not keep everyone in the loop every step of the way.
Plus the leaking of her “expensive lifestyle” which clearly causes people to lose sympathy for her. Ridiculous and a really low blow by the network.
I don’t know why she’d expect sympathy. She replaced another host, and another host replaced Regis. It’s no secret she has a house in the Hamptons and lives an opulent lifestyle. Andy Cohen suggested Anderson Cooper when TMZ asked. She loves him. I guess she feels she was entitled to know Michael was exiting, but he probably had it in his contract not to. Surprise! I’m still betting GMA will expand to three hours. I know not one person who watches Kelly’s show, and who would tape it. Once the dust settles, she will survive.
@Nancy
She was blind-sighted before when Regis left (given a 15 minute heads up) and apparently asked for it not to happen again. She expressed concerns about Michael leaving, and she was explicitly told that his work with GMA was only temporary.
I feel sympathy for her. They screwed her over before, and now they not only did it again, but did so after lying to her when she asked if she should be concerned. That’s not acceptable behavior, imo.
Yes. This.
Exactly. Look at all the promotional material. It’s Kelly and Michael. Not Michael and Kelly. She’s the lead, and is being treated like the assistant.
And Michael’s entire reaction to the blowback has been very smug. He was smug on GMA, he’s been smug in interviews. “Oh the little woman is just jealous” It’s terrible optics.
I agree with everything that you said. No respect whatsoever! All those top secret meetings with all of the males behind closed doors, the whispering behind her back. They wanted this to happen because they could have handled this a lot differently. She should have been told!
ABC showed her even more lack of respect by having Regis at Good Morning America to greet and congratulate Michael. Low blow.
Exactly! That part is the most revolting, closed meetings that excluded her. It seems so childish.
I know this isn’t the main issue but, the fact they asked Regis to show up and welcome Michael?! That’s gross Regis agreed to even do that. I don’t have to wonder why she hasn’t spoken to Regis in years now.
Well said!!!
This, exactly.
Would a man in Kelly’s position have been treated this way? After all, she’s the senior headliner in this show, and majorly affected by this change. She is not an assistant on the show! It’s irrelevant how much she makes and how she spends her own income – it doesn’t change the fact that she was completely mistreated by a company she has been loyal to for 15 years. I’m sure Strahan’s hands were tied by the directives from above, but there’s no question this was completely mishandled by ABC/Disney, and now the money leaks? It’s just slimy, and a terrible way to end a relationship with a longterm employee.
@Nancy I think you are wrong. At one point she was doing both live and a half hour comedy on prime time. I think she did have the opportunity to leave, but probably stayed because she liked the job and the family atmosphere you get on a television show that has been around that long. No one with her opportunities stays anywhere for 15 years, unless you like it. However, once she is middle aged and less marketable by Hollywood standards she is not consulted about a major change with the program she has been on for 15 years and the lead for the last 5 years. If she was male they wouldn’t even think of doing this without giving her warning. Glad you never had to see this kind of behavior in business, because if you did you would notice it right away.
She is still marketable. She’s only 45 and the audience for this type of show has an older audience. Look at Barbara and Whoopi. She can still love her job, but with a different cohost. I am an attorney, noway, so yes I have seen every kind of situation one can imagine involving racism, ageism, you name it. However, after trying to absorb the fact that Prince has passed away, this story lost its steam. It put what matters most in the headlines….life.
Love this move. TeamKelly.
No, she’s not being professional. But I’m not expecting her to be. This was slimy, greasy, and reeks of “oh, she’s just a dumb little woman who lives expensively. She either won’t know what we did, or is too much of a princess to do anything about it.” I didn’t see Houston’s comment above, who said it perfectly: she has seniority here but is still being treated like an assistant. Sexist as hell.
She’s not some new girl who needs to save face. After 15 years, it’s okay for her not to give a f*ck, and that’s what I see happening here. She can give no f*cks, be pissed, and be unprofessional if she wants to. This was a 100% dick move by ABC.
Enjoy your vacation girl.
Amen. The sexism irks me to no end about how she supposedly needs to react to such disrespect and betrayal in being blindsided with this from both her co-host and Disney/ABC. And it could be very worrisome that they are planning to move a third hour in and cancel the show. I wouldn’t trust a thing about them, and definitely wouldn’t have shown up these last two days just to make everything smooth for ABC and their plans. It doesn’t seem like they are worried about Kelly nor the fate of her show at all.
And the leaking her salary and the fact that she needs it. is also condescending. She owns two homes. Big deal. And Kelly has made a boatload of money from endorsements, etc. This wasn’t her only income. So I imagine financially they are sitting pretty.
Something nasty is in the air with ABC and it’s not sitting right with me. The way they’re leaking things about her is pretty gross. And it’s making me think there’s way more to this than just Strahan going to GMA, because they’re potentially sinking the whole ship here.
Bridget, I’m thinking the same thing.
+10000
Same.
Hmm, that’s a good point. I remember 4 or so years ago when ABC was clearly trying to tank their soaps and now there’s only General Hospital left. I wonder if they’re trying to pull the same shenanigans with their morning shows.
Yeah, I do think some sexism is at work here and they are being slimy. I like Kelly, i just can’t muster THAT much sympathy because I feel just having a show for that many years is something basically no one in the world has, percentage wise. To me it’s the equivalent of a bad day at work. And I agree, the execs sound totally slimey but nothing will happen to them. Nothing ever does.
ABC, the Disney network, has been and is one of the nastiest outfits out there.
There have been clues over the years re- Kelly. Remember the Clay incident? And the fact Regis said there hasn’t been any contact with Kelly since he left. IMO it’s time for Live to fold. It had a good run.
Clay was rude and a jerk and very condescending. If he would have been a guest co-host on my show and put his hands over my mouth shooshing me and acting or talking in a condescending manner to me, I would have been furious. I bet he wouldn’t have done that to a male co-host where he was a guest co-host.
Again, Kelly treated like just the little woman by a male, not the powerhouse that she is on that network as far as her show. She handled it professionally on air, but was furious. I would be too.
It says more about Clay Aiken than it ever does about Kelly.
I have never understood how anyone thought it was acceptable for Clay to put his hand over her mouth and to shush her like a child. That was appalling.
Regis did it a few times and she didn’t mind.
Anyway, I agree it wasn’t right for Clay to do what he did- he was a guest host and he went way overboard with it.
I was referring to the aftermath and how Ripa went on and on about it, especially her interview on the View and how it turned into a perceived bias against homosexuals. Ridiculous. Ripa could have handled it better IMO.
Regis was the senior co-host and she kind of had to just shut up and deal with it. Clay on the other hand, was a guest on her show. And I don’t know that Ripa could have handled it any way that would have been considered acceptable, which is absurd because HE was the one doing something wrong. I think it’s hard to say she went “on and on” when you consider that Rosie O’Donnell was a huge part of continuing the kerfuffle. The onus should never have been placed on Kelly to defend herself.
Kelly did NOTHING wrong in the Clay situation! He was rude and inappropriate! She could and should have slapped his hand away and if she was the true diva ABC was trying to make her out to be she would have had him thrown off the show and BAND.
The only people wrong in that were Clay and Rosie. I would freak out if someone I didn’t know put their hand on my mouth. I don’t know if you wash your hands, I don’t know if you are clean. I don’t know if you’re sick. I have a right to personal boundaries and space.
And the plot thickens. If she wants to continue on, she should take the hit professionally to the public and make her own move privately. When she returns the ratings will spike just to watch them squirm together. These morning shows are going the way of soap operas and won’t be around too much longer. Audiences change, times change and cohosts change, so get over it Ms. Ripa. Like the Godfather said, this isn’t personal, it’s business. Somehow, I think she can mutter through on 15 mill a year.
Wow that stuff about her spending habits and salary is ridiculous. That’s pretty bold of someone to leak that.
I don’t think it’s true. But it seems to be a constructive dismissal against Ripa. I don’t think she got on with Gelman either.
I tried to watch after regis left. I gave it almost a year of regular watching but Kelly is soooo annoying!!
Also she makes 15 million a year and has spent so much she cant maintain her lifestyle if she leaves her job?? I find that so gross.
I agree. She is extremely annoying. I tried watching a few episode, and find myself immediately changing the channel, because of her.
I can do a perfect imitation of her. She goes for the gigantic coffee mug four or five times before she finally puts it in her hands. Then she holds it very close to her face, takes a little sip while darting her eyeballs through the crowd. Mind you I’m not around to watch this show, but she does it every time I’ve seen it. Comical, probably a mug of Vodka.
Count me in on the Kelly is annoying team. I don’t find her to be a sincere person at all. She is fake and she is acting like a teenager having a meltdown. Very unprofessional of her to play this in the public eye. Who is going to want to hire her for a live show again knowing she will not show up for work when she doesn’t get her way.
That is a distraction tactic meant to make you lose sympathy for her in favor the network. Don’t fall for it.
So you believe a leak that she can’t maintain her lifestyle as fact? LOL Okay.
As of last year, she’s worth $100 milion.
I think she’s doing ok and can probably afford 2 houses. 🙄
No. She wasn’t planned to leave for vacation until Friday, maybe flying out late Thursday. She already had Friday off and Monday. When this all broke she has taken off Wednesday and Thursday, so she would still be in town.
maybe she is seeing lawyers or other advisors to see what the move means for her. Anytime there’s a big shake up at my husband’s company, there are meetings called. I’m in that situation now. I have meetings with other personnel to discuss how my role is being impacted by a change in the Deans in my department.
ABC better be really careful here. You know what they don’t need to do? Play hardball and try to make her look bad. Matt Lauer’s rep hasn’t been the same after the Ann Curry debacle. Learn from it.
Yep exactly and Michael Strahan’s won’t either. He’s an ego-driven fool.
The ABC/Strahan camp are really working hard to spin this their way. Obviously, they know they did something wrong. Kelly likes to spend her own money? Hmm. I wonder if her personality changes when she gets her period.
Spot on.
I’m quite sure ABC/Disney would be pretty pissed off if Kelly Ripa had blindsided them with the announcement she was leaving with no warning. I think it’s a boys club, Michael Gelman included, and they keep her, even though it’s her show, on a need to know basis. I think Regis was the same way, which is why there was no love loss between him and Kelly when he finally left the show. I also feel bad for Lara Spencer at GMA, who has put in all that time and effort just to be pushed aside for a multi millionaire former athlete who can barely put two sentences together.
What’s happening to Lara? I hadn’t heard about that. Just that Michael was going to GMA full time. Which really, why?? I like him on Live, which I usually only catch a few minutes of if I’m running late, but I don’t get why they’d put him on GMA full time.
Apparently Lara thought she was being groomed for the spot Strahan just took. She was blindsided too.
I think she thought her and Michael were friends. And she is loyal. as a friend I would have told her in private and tell her why he took the job. And that he trusted her and their friendship. I think that is why she feels betrayed.
I absolutely believe Michael Gelman had to know about this. Gelman is valuable to Disney – maybe Kelly’s upset because Gelman knew?
Kelly and Gelman haven’t gotten along for years according to an article I saw yesterday at People.com.I thought they were very good friends but apparently these people aren’t really friends.I just read that Regis told Hoda Kotb he has not seen Kelly since he left the show in 2011.Also I read that Kelly and Michael rarely socialize outside the show.They are friendly co workers,not friends.
IIRC, the Gelmans and the Consuelos vacation in the Hamptons together – they have homes nearby one another. Another IIRC – didn’t Gelman orchestrate Regis’ departure by cutting his salary in half? Regis got fed up and fired his manager and left the show.
I think this whole drama fest is giving the network even more ratings & promotion.
Live with Kelly and Michael’s demographic is the so-called MiniVan Majority (Lainey’s words, not mine!) and they all are team Kelly. It’s also been reported that Lara Spencer is mad about this as well, and Lara is beloved in that demographic too. I just see this super messy and that ABC acted shady. I don’t think is Michael’s fault but I don’t fault Kelly for being pissed either. And to the ones saying “business is business” please! It’s different than in the workforce, because it is being done with the whole country watching. Plus, if Kelly were the one leaving, you bet that Michael or Regis or any other co-host with a penis would have been told beforehand.
The way Laura was fawning over Michael this morning ,she is not that upset.
Well let’s remember Lara Spencer desperately needs this job, she isn’t a big name and is more known for being the annoying blonde then anything. It is also really clear this move was to push her out.
Kelly isn’t in that situation. Kelly is the name of that show and has been for over a decade, she is the draw, she is what people like and is a huge name. She will get another gig easy.
She isn’t mad that he’s leaving, or that she was blindsided. She’s mad because this is a clear indication that she isn’t valued anymore. I can’t blame her for being upset because her turn in the spotlight is over, especially if she has been overspending. But I still say that having a public temper tantrum isn’t the way to go.
This wouldn’t be nearly so public if ABC wasn’t leaking stuff left and right.
Oh, I didn’t know that.
Everything is from “insiders”. Lost amidst the whole professional courtesy debate between Strahan and Ripa is the fact that there are rumblings that Live will be completely done, to be replaced by another hour of GMA. Being mad that a co-worker is taking another job doesn’t typically warrant this kind of conflict. Potentially finding out that your job is going to be finished by getting the news that your co-worker is going to show absolutely does. At heart, what it looks like to me is that it’s going to be a dispute between ABC and Ripa.
She also Hasn’t been over spending someone who makes a base salary of 15 mil (not including production company, enforcements or husbands) and lives in New York typically owns a house/apartment in the City and a place in the Hamptons. This story is straight bull because people with a lot less income do the same and are beyond fine this is the try to make the “little woman” seem frivolous and unrelateable.
Trust me she isn’t doing anything a typical New Yorker isn’t doing- especially in her income bracket.
Ok, I didn’t know that, either. I guess I’ll shut up now. Lol
Woman’s taking meetings. Watch out!
–TheRealPinky
Kelly has every right to be pissed. It’s not the amount of money that she makes or her lifestyle that is the subject here, Far from that…she was completely blindsided! She has been with them for 15 years…that’s enough loyalty to at least earn some damn respect.
Kelly is totally justified. Michael is an ungrateful jerk. If I see him on the TV in the future, I’ll immediately change the channel. And I won’t be watching any of the “Michael” show in the morning either since Kelly will not be there. I just get angrier thinking about it all.
I think she has every right to be mad, and I don’t blame her for wanting to take an extra day or two. If she refuses to return all together though, that isn’t good, as she does have a contract to be there.
The “story” about her spending habits is gross, whoever planted that should be ashamed. It has nothing to do with anything, and probably isn’t even true.
No sympathy for her; she is uprofessional & acting like a diva. I have no patience for these entitled divas. If she’s being subjected to a hostile work environment, there are remedies for that. How many of us can just not show up to work when we’re mad at management or a co-worker? Just ridiculous, first world problem.
Can someone remind me, how did we go from Kathie Lee to Kelly … . .
How did all that go down – I can’t recall specifics.
I just remember Kelly came in doing Kathie Lee’s schtick & it stuck.
(who’s cackling now?-?)
Kathie Lee left on her own, to spend more time with her family as Frank aged (if I’m remembering that part correctly).
Strahan has been on GMA for the past few years once or twice a week for the first hour. Then he goes to work at the Live show. Then on weekends from August to February he flies out to do the Fox NFL Sunday show.
This summer, he’s the host and executive producer of the $100,000 Pyramid game show for ABC.
He’s leaving Live in September, not immediately. He started in September 2012, so he’s leaving after almost 4 years to the date. He first co-hosted back in 2010.
So what’s Ripa going to do? Not show up to work for the next 5 months?
Also, the DM reported that Laura Spencer was unhappy with the news because she thought she’d be an anchor or something.
1) Ripa obviously knew that Strahan had connections with GMA for the past few years, and she knew that he usually works other shows, movies, and other projects throughout his time at Live. Did he give her a promise ring that he’d stay at Live forever? Does she think she has final refusal rights on what he can do with his life?
2) You can’t always report every negotiation at every step to whomever. There’s company politics involved and feeling like you have to run to Ripa all the time over everything he does at ABC is ridiculous. There are issues involved with GMA presenters and at Live too apparently. Ripa should know this by now since she’s been on different shows, including a soap opera in which there’s always turnovers and actors going off to work on other shows.
3) Who does Ripa think she is? She has rights on Strahan’s life and career? She hasn’t even talked to Regis since he left Live. So that’s two long-time co-hosts that she’s ghosted. She needs to grow up. It’s show business. Not everybody can be putting her on a pedestal and treat her like she’s the boss of everything.
Agree.
You seem to be missing the point. It’s not about him leaving. While that would be upsetting, it’s not what this is about. It’s about the fact she was left in the dark by her own network and co-host that she championed and told at the very last second at the same time as the pubic. You are twisting it about him leaving. It’s about the way she was treated as someone who has been on this show and been the face of it for 15 years and how little value and respect they showed her.
Well then why make Michael the villain because their bosses didn’t inform her and instructed him not to discuss the move?People didn’t call Regis a jerk when he left the show.Apparently she was blindsided then also.Blame her bosses.
In fairness to Kelly she isn’t saying anything. She’s either in Turks and Caicos, or on her doorstep of her condo, but certainly not talking. These leaks as they are far more negative on her than anyone else seem to be coming from the network.
I totally agree with your points. It IS show business. All of it feeds the machine. Ripa is a long time veteran – she knows how the game is played.
This totally.
Agreed.
I don’t like her anyway she’s so annoying. I haven’t watched the show in ages. I’d like them to replace her then maybe ill watch. If it’s going off the air even better maybe they’ll focus on quality programming.
So I am a bit confused. She is not returning to Live! until September when he leaves? That’s 5 months away! I understand taking a couple mental health days after being blindsided by news like but 5 months?
Just on a side note…if she really is declaring that she won’t come back until Michael is gone- isn’t that a fireable offense? I mean, what job in real life can you throw a tantrum like that and not get fired?
I read by other sources that she does plan to come back after her vacation. Just one source said she wasn’t until he is gone. I don’t believe it. This is her show. She’s not going to bail for five months.
But I guarantee, unless they smooth things over with her, he will be gone much sooner and switched over to full time at GMA, and Kelly will have her buddies Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper and Neil Patrick Harris and her husband come on and help co-host over the months by filling in.
Yeah she really wanted Anderson Cooper before but he had his own daytime talk show when Regis left. This may turn out better for Kelly.
The Senate does it.
: )
Yeah I don’t think I buy this at all- either story. Sorry but while I haven’t been a fan of hers for a while I do know she has been loyal to abc daytime for over 20 years. And honestly this leak sounds like abc got a lot of flak for how they handled it and so did probably Michael/GMA, so they are trying to make Kelly look bad.
It is just the typical story that always comes out about a woman in the media during contracts or anything negative behind the scenes.
Think ABC is lying big time to save themselves.
I agree. It feels like a smear campaign and people are falling for it.
Yes, but would the smear campaign have started if she showed up for work? To me, it’s like she totally gave them an opening and I would have expected more from a veteran of showbusiness … she can’t be unaware of how shark like you have to be. I still think she should have gritted her teeth and smiled, showed up for work, thought her murderous thoughts inside her head, and made plans quietly behind the scenes and then when the timing’s right, make her move. This not showing up business, showing everyone that book, making predictable ploys for sympathy…it just seems too basic and too easy to take down to me. If she’s truly being mistreated but is a show biz veteran, I would have expected more and better from her. But that’s just me and who knows, maybe this is just all for show and it’s fine.
Wow, who’s running the mouse house at ABC? It seems they are starting a trend of not telling the staff who’s leaving (See Castle cast. Jon Huertas said he found out the ladies on the show were leaving via the press). So unprofessional!
You know what could have stopped all this? Telling her more than a hour before the news breaks. Tell her the night before. Or have her sit down with the execs and her people and let them know a few hours beforehand.
Zero warning and then backpedaling when there’s blowback just shows that whoever is in charge of ABC has no idea about how to read their audience, or manage their staff. GMA is getting killed in the ratings, and this change isn’t going to help. Look at the Matt Lauer/Ann Curry debacle. It’s just bad decision making from the execs in charge.
power hungry pricks – the lot of them.
great pics, btw!!!
Any station that didn’t learn from the Today Show/Ann Curry debacle deserves the bloodbath it’ll get.
Looks like GMA just handed the reigns over to TTS without even realizing how stupid they were.
I know seriously, I couldn’t stand Anne Curry but I felt sorry for the way that went down. The thing people are forgetting is it is one thing to get blindsided at a job, but to get blindsided at your job and then have millions of people see it, just a bit too much. Also, it only happens to the women.
It seems as if they apparently knew how she’d react regardless of the timing since they had a co-host backup on the ready or had to call the actress in at the last second.
I’m guessing they had a feeling she wouldn’t take this well. She doesn’t seem to have taken Regis leaving well, ghosting the man for years who started the show in the first place and had worked with her for what? A decade? Even Kathy has made amends with Regis.
Anyhoo, it looks like she was told well in advance as it seems as if she was told before she headed out to the studio, because I’ve yet to hear anything about her showing up to work and then being told.
100% petty. Be a professional. It’s what she is handsomely paid for. Sheesh, people come into work every day and lose their mentors never mind their co-workers and they get on with their jobs.
The header and thumbnail pics are making my life.
yes yes yes – mine too
TMZ also ran a story about her spending habits, which didn’t sound accurate to me at all (it had almost no detail in it to back it up) and it sounded like ABC was trying to spin her as being difficult and a big spender to turn the tide on public opinion. I think she got screwed, I think there was no reason for it, and I think they should stop trying to make HER look like the bad guy.
I get the feeling that there’s a whole lot more going on than what we’ve been told. Yes being treated this way after 15 years of work would really piss me off. However, if that’s the way they’re going to play, you have to play the game right back. She may already have gotten the lay of the land legally, but she needs to play the long game. Figure out what you want, see if you’re legally entitled to it and make sure there’s nothing in your future plans that would be grounds for dismissal(if you do want to keep the job.) The hard part about this is they have publicly treated her badly and its hard not to have a visceral reaction to that. I don’t blame her for not wanting to be there and getting out I just hope ABC/Disney doesn’t use it against her later. They are known for that.
(BTW- I think the mention of their financial ‘situation’ is beyond petty. That let’s me know who they are and I hope Kelly gets everything she wants out of this.)
If she were smart and mature, she would have shown up to work and spent the whole hour acting bummed and upset at the thought of missing Strahan as if they were close buddies. Then she could have gotten the sympathy vote at least. If she’s going to play the victim, then she should have played it like a pro.
Instead, refusing to go to her $20m-$24 million per year job (or whatever it is) just because your co-worker wants to move on with his life and you won’t deign to approve of his life choices and whining about ‘office politics’ makes her look bad. This on top of ghosting Regis after he left, it makes it look like she has a habit of being petty if people ‘leave’ her and move on with their own lives without her approval.
A millionairess staying at home, throwing a silent but very public temper tantrum, and boycotting her highly-paid job just because of this makes her look petty and immature.
I think she’s making a mistake by demanding Strahans absence before her return. She’d be better off channeling her anger at the execs that orchestrated these events. Making it personal towards Strahan seems a petty response ( and while initially feeling injured is understandable) will play into Disneys hands.
I agree. She has every right to be angry, but throwing a big ol’ foot-stomping, breath-holding public tantrum is just going to play right into the hands of the people who orchestrated this in the first place.
The longer she’s gone, if she cools off, grieves and then decides to stay, the more it’s gonna look like she’s crawling back.
Sounds like a classic case of “let’s piss her off and make her quit so we don’t have to fire her.”
Which, obviously, Ripa could thwart – at least in the short term – simply by putting on her big girl panties, showing up and continuing to do her job.
Bridgeport for the win! She’s playing right into their hands.
Whether they anticipated such a reaction, she is setting up a good reason to shutter the set.
Not the best move on her part. She’s being outmaneuvered and needs to change course quickly.
I completely and utterly am not team kelly. I have disposed this person for years and couldn’t understand why she was still a host of live. She’s skinny as heck, and not likeable because of how fake she is. Cancel the show, pay her out for her contract and get rid of her.
I’m not familiar with the show, have never watched it.
But she’s been there for 15 yrs & doesn’t get a promotion? Her show gets cancelled?
So the guy has been there for 4 yrs & he gets the promotion to GMA & she gets…..nothing?
And in addition to the arrogance of network execs, mostly men and yes thelse leaks reek of sexism, Live and GMA demographics are mainly women and often around Kelly’s age. Smh.
Am I the only one who doesn’t get Strahan’s appeal? I prefer GMA over the other morning shows, but more Strahan is incentive to change the channel.
I don’t get it either. He seems nice enough, but….??
ABC not having a good week. They fired Stana Katic from Castle, kept Kelly in the dark about Michael’s promotion… Not really impressed with the way they have been treating women lately.
it could be that upper management at ABC are just idiots but also this is politics as usually in corporate USA. The executive who made this decision likes MS much more then he likes KR. This is why Kelly is so pissed. So no matter how good of a job she does or tries it will never change that alliance. She probably feels like she was smacked in the face. Hang in there KR.
She must have lots of other gigs offering her $15 Million dollars a year to keep her in her brand new upper east side mega pad and Hamptons Mansion! I mean I get why she’s pissed off and I would be too but, the $15 million dollars a year pay check would get me over it quick! Hey Disney! I’m available! LOL
I’m confused. Can someone tell me why is this such a big deal to her? If he is leaving and she is staying, the network is just going to start a search for a new co-host. She didn’t lose her job and her paycheck. If she is not happy she should’ve looked for a new position somewhere else. I cannot imagine how they could’ve prevented her from doing that other than by specifying it in her contract. Well, it’s going to expire at some point and she can go.
Kelly really has made the situation worse.
There can be hard feelings when things happen but you would think she would get better pr advice
Her staying away is not professional and truly petty.
She has a contract to do a job. Regardless of who is sitting next to her. If she doesn’t like it, she can quit. I am sure she has a non-compete clause in her contract. She can sit at home for no pay til the contract expires.
Michael Strahan got promoted. Do people where you work discuss when others around you are up for promotions? No. It is was none of her business. The issue is that she isn’t moving to the higher paying and higher rated show.
That’s (although maybe not as harshly) how I feel – she doesn’t own this show. What’s with the ego…
I have a suspicion they are just trying to boost the ratings and she is in on the joke with the Network.
#TeamKelly
She should have blind sided them and say, ‘wow this is a great opportunity for my husband. I have always wanted to work with my husband on this show and it would be a great mistake if they didn’t hire him to be my co-host’.