In August of 1997, The View premiered on ABC. The show was fighting an uphill battle. At the time, ABC’s Daytime programming at 11 a.m. was a wasteland of failed shows and low ratings. They went to Barbara Walters and yearned for an idea for the slot. Even though Barbara was behind the show, success wasn’t guaranteed. A panel made entirely of women talking about politics, sex, religion and other hot topics every day? This was unheard of on television at that time. Yet, something clicked and the show flourished. Now, they still fought hard during their first season, with Barbara calling ABC affiliates personally asking for them to air the program as many were scared to jump into a possibly controversial world. The View stuck to its morals and ideas and is now celebrating its 20th season.
The show has dealt with backlash (the Rosie/Trump scandal, Michelle Collins’ nurse comments, Whoopi’s thoughts on Cosby, etc.), cast shake-ups (Remember this season they had contributors, like Padma Lakshmi and Ana Navarro? Yeah, me either.), and ratings drops (The McCarthy to Perez years were pretty rough.) Yet, the show prevailed and we are celebrating a milestone not many daytime programs get to experience.
The View has become a political juggernaut, having politicians drop by all the time. The conversations the ladies have are really thought provoking and never boring. I think it has truly helped me create my own opinions and beliefs on many topics.
What can never be ignored is the chemistry. The problem with the lull years was that the chemistry wasn’t what it was in the past. This past season, however, has brought it back to its greatest heights. Great discussion, great banter, hilarious moments, interesting stories, and six women who you just want to sit around and chat with yourself.
Now, don’t get me wrong, I think the show has made some bad decisions in the past (Michelle Collins should still be on that panel and I need ABC to keep her around for the rest of eternity because she is the funniest person in the world), but as a whole, the show has succeeded by not shying away from anything. They will tackle anything and everything head on.
Now, of course, knowing me, you’ll know that I love The View to a creep degree. When I’m bored, I try to name all the co-hosts in order (Leave your guesses in the comments…bonus points if you can name all six contributors!) I have been to see the show live twice — once in the old studio and once in the new location near Lincoln Center — and both times have been SO exciting. I also watch the show every day at 11 a.m.
My freshman year of college was the big re-brand, with Rosie coming back and the new studio. My class schedule worked out perfectly that I had my 9 a.m. class, ran to the Student Union to grab Papa John’s when it opened at 10:30 and run back to my dorm by 11 for the show to start. I had it down to a science. I still don’t understand why I was made fun of in school…
I even applied for an internship to work on the show this past summer. I didn’t get it, but I still got to see it in person, so all is well. I love the show so much!
I am looking forward to the 20th season and am ready to celebrate in person when I’m in NYC later this year. Here’s to 20 seasons and I’ll be enjoying The View right along with ya!
(P.S. Here’s the new theme song with an accompanying music video featuring the cast. I have conflicted feelings as I hate these songs for talk shows. Keep the instrumental music! However, this is the best of the bunch.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3boSslEWmQ0