Kathie Lee Gifford may be best known for her
long career on daytime television — but she's so much more than just a TV host! From belting
out tunes to directing faith-based movies, Gifford has proven that she
isn't afraid to try new things. Although she was born into a Jewish family,
Kathie Lee Gifford converted to Christianity when she was 11 years old. According
to People magazine, Gifford's mother, Joan Epstein, was inspired to convert
after seeing a Billy Graham special on television. The evangelist preacher
had such a profound effect on Gifford's mother that the rest of the family were
also inspired to follow Christianity. Since then, Gifford's religion has had a
massive impact on her career and personal life. In an interview with the "Whoa
That's Good" podcast, Gifford explained, "Ever since I entered this industry [...]
when I was 17 years old, the Lord was very, very clear with me and He said: 'Never
separate the secular from the spiritual. You live in my world, you live in my
world.' People will try to say Hollywood is secular. [...] But God is everywhere." Gifford's passion for her faith was one of the reasons she pursued a career in Christian
music early on. As Biography reported, it all started when Gifford met singer and activist
Anita Bryant while she was participating in a national beauty pageant in Alabama. Bryant
talked Gifford into pursuing a gospel career, and she even reportedly helped her get into
Oral Roberts University to study music. However, she didn't graduate due to her disagreements with
the way the program was run. Gifford told People, "They tried to cookie-cutter all of us. I
wanted the diversity of life. God went to the trouble to make us unique. They wanted us
to believe the same way, think the same way." "I don't do anything according to the rules." Gifford eventually made her way to Los
Angeles, where she tried to land acting and singing gigs. She ultimately found a niche
in gospel music. It was also during that time that Gifford began her painful first marriage
to Paul Johnson, a gospel music producer and Bible study group leader. They were married
for six years. However, the couple never had the right chemistry and eventually divorced.
Despite these issues in their marriage, Gifford and Johnson were successful from a professional
stance because of their gospel music output.
Although Kathie Lee Gifford appeared on
various television shows early in her career, her big break came in the late 1980s when she
and Regis Philbin hosted "Live! With Regis and Kathie Lee." The talk show premiered
on ABC in September 1988. During a 2022 interview with "Good Day New York," Gifford
spoke about her time working with Philbin: "We were dear friends and after I left the show, for the next 20 years, we became
better friends, dearer friends." In July 2000, Gifford left the series. Philbin
went on to host the show himself temporarily until Kelly Ripa joined in 2001. "Live!"
has since evolved over the years, with Ripa co-hosting with Michael Strahan, Ryan Seacrest,
and then Ripa's own husband, Mark Consuelos.
Kathie Lee Gifford married former NFL player
and television analyst Frank Gifford in 1986. This was Kathie Lee's second marriage,
and Frank's third. Throughout the years, the couple were visibly smitten with one another,
even on the air. However, as with all marriages, things weren't always so easy for the couple.
After a tabloid exposed Frank's affair with another woman in 1997, many wondered whether
Kathie Lee would choose to stay married to him. However, not only did they decide to stay
together, but Kathie Lee chose to speak about the ordeal publicly. She explained
in a 2000 interview with CNN's Larry King: "We've come so far in three years. We have,
you know, we've dealt with a very difficult and very painful issue. And if it is going
to help somebody, let's talk about it." Kathie Lee sat for an interview with
ABC's Diane Sawyer just days before, this time with Frank beside
her. Frank told Sawyer, "It's much harder to forgive yourself. I was stupid — that's kind of hard to
forgive when you're as vain as I am." After taking time off from broadcast television,
Kathie Lee Gifford decided to come back as a co-host for the fourth hour of NBC's "Today
Show." The weekday segment developed a strong fan following, due in part to Kathie Lee's chemistry
with co-host Hoda Kotb. The pair co-hosted the show for about 11 years. Interestingly, the public
found out later that Kathie Lee pushed for Kotb to be her co-host. Kotb said in an interview on
the "Just B with Bethenny Frankel" podcast, "Kathie Lee said [...] 'If it's not Hoda, I'm not going to do it.' She chose
me and I am forever grateful." Another interesting part of Kathie
Lee's time on the show was the ubiquitous presence of her husband.
Frank regularly appeared on the show, but he was also a big influence behind the
scenes. This could be partly due to his own broadcast television hosting experiences.
Nevertheless, the way Kathie Lee talked to him appealed to the audience — she would call her
husband "Lamb Chop" on the air, and also make comments about their love life. Frank told
the Archive of American Television in 2006, "Most of the time, I tried not to
listen to it, I know her heart, and I know her soul. She wouldn't hurt anyone." Kathie Lee Gifford's life changed unexpectedly in 2015 when Frank Gifford died at the
age of 84. Months after his death, the Gifford family told The New York Times that
Frank had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, better known as "CTE," which was from head trauma
likely connected to his time playing football. Despite this, Frank's death was a
shock to Kathie Lee. She spoke about her husband's death in an emotional
segment on the "Today" show, saying, "I just want everybody to know that this is
a man who was at complete peace in his life. He might have been the happiest, most content
person in the world at this point in his life." "We laughed up until the very end." After co-hosting the fourth hour on the "Today"
show for 11 years, Gifford decided to leave. "I feel so relieved because I've known
it was coming for a long, long time." While the decision may have
been shocking for fans, it turns out that Gifford had told
NBC a few years prior that she would be leaving the show. During an appearance
on "The Tonight Show," she told host Jimmy Fallon that her husband's sudden death partly
contributed to her decision, before adding, "For the first time in my life, I have the time
and the means to go and do anything I want to do." As such, Gifford shifted her focus from
broadcast news to creative pursuits based on some of her life-long passions. Among these
include writing Christian books and songs, and also establishing her non-profit
organization, "The Rock, The Road, and The Rabbi Foundation." Her first film,"The God
Who Sees," was Gifford's directorial debut, and it was viewed by more than one million people online.
Gifford told Birmingham Christian Family magazine: "Apparently it is unheard of in the Christian
world now to have this kind of reaction. We are just in awe of God's goodness and faithfulness." Gifford was undoubtedly close with her late husband, so it took several years for her
to enter the dating world again. While she reportedly started dating a few people in 2019,
she told Today that nothing was serious. However, when Gifford began dating businessman Richard
Spitz, it quickly blossomed into love. Their relationship was officially confirmed in 2021,
but unlike Kathie Lee's marriage with Frank, details of her daily life with Spitz remain
largely private. She told People in 2023, "I've discovered that by not
talking about it, it stays special." As of 2023, the two are still dating. In June 2022, Kathie Lee Gifford shared the
exciting news that she officially became a grandmother. Her grandson, Frank Michael
Gifford, was born to her son Cody and his wife Erika. In a sweet Instagram photo of
the three at the hospital, Kathie Lee wrote, "Frank Michael Gifford is here, confirming that our God is good and
merciful and faithful. And he loves us!" The public was also quick to catch on to the fact
that Cody and Erika named their baby boy after Cody's father, the late Frank Gifford. His middle
name, Michael, came from Erika's late uncle. Frankie undoubtedly brought great
joy to Kathie Lee and her family. Yet the new grandmother also had another
surprise in store — her daughter, Cassidy, gave birth to her first baby about a year after
Frankie was born. Cassidy and her husband named their baby boy Finn Thomas. Not only did Kathie
Lee become a grandmother to one grandson, but now she has two young grandsons
to spoil with her love and attention. "What would they call you? Your grandkids?" "Uh, hot." In August 2023, Kathie Lee Gifford celebrated a huge milestone: her 70th
birthday. While she has been known on the public scene for decades, fans were still likely shocked
by this milestone due to Gifford's energy and vitality. Her children posted sweet pictures of
her with them and her grandsons on social media, and she also had some other social media shoutouts
from friends and former co-workers. For example, NBC's Jill Martin posted a picture of her and
Gifford on her Instagram story, and wrote, "We grew into best friends, a ride or die who
is always there... in good times and in bad." As Gifford considers her future, it seems that
she is focusing more on family and friends, as well as her Christian-based
creative projects like books and songs. Gifford explained on
the "Whoa That's Good" podcast, "There might be people that don't know
God yet and don't know that He loves him. But there is no godless place on
this planet. There's no godless place in this cosmos and all of creation.
God, the Creator, is everywhere." Over the past 70 years, Gifford has had a
full career and played many different roles, but it's obvious that her religious
roots have remained grounded throughout.
