Kathie Lee Gifford TV Hostess - Born August 16, 1953 in Paris, France
Birth Name Kathryn Lee Epstein
Nickname KLG
Height 5' 5" (1.65 m)
Mini Bio (1) Kathie Lee Gifford was the co-host of the fourth hour of "TODAY," alongside Hoda Kotb from 2008 until April 5th, 2019. The Gifford-Kotb hour had been hailed as appointment television by Entertainment Weekly, and "TODAY's happy hour" by USA Today. In 2014, Gifford penned the critically acclaimed "TODAY, the Musical," featuring the hosts and crew of the show, and each month she had written a new song for the popular segment, Everyone Has a Story. She was inducted into the Broadcast & Cable Hall of Fame in 2015. Prior to NBC News, Gifford served as the co-host of "Live with Regis and Kathie Lee" for 15 years, where she received 11 Emmy nominations. She was also a correspondent for "Good Morning America" for three years. A playwright, producer, singer, songwriter and actress, Gifford has starred in numerous television programs and movies in her 40-year career. She has her own record label and has written several musicals including Broadway's SCANDALOUS, which received a Tony nomination for Best Actress in 2012. Gifford also starred on Broadway in "Putting it Together" and "Annie." Gifford authored four NY Times bestselling books including "Just When I Thought I'd Dropped My Last Egg," "I Can't Believe I Said That," "The Rock, The Road and the Rabbi", and the popular children's book "Party Animals." She recently co-wrote and recorded "He Saw Jesus", "Jesus is His Name" and "Love Me to Death." She also launched GIFFT, a line of wine with the Scheid Family Vineyards in Monterey, CA. Most recently she had her directorial debut for the short film, THE GOD WHO SEES, featuring Nicole C. Mullen. The duo co-wrote the music in the film. Gifford lends support to numerous children's organizations including Childhelp and the Association to Benefit Children, which spawned Cassidy's Place and Cody House, named after her two children. A devoted humanitarian, she received an honorary degree from Marymount University for her humanitarian work in labor relations. Gifford is on Twitter and Instagram @KathieLGifford.
- IMDb Mini Biography By: CHRISTINE GARDNER
Spouse (2)
Frank Gifford (18 October 1986 - 9 August 2015) his death 2 children M1. Cody Gifford (1990) F2. Cassidy Gifford (1993).
Paul Johnson (23 April 1976 - 26 May 1983) divorced
Trivia (35)
Studied drama and music at Oral Roberts University.
Threatened to sue the National Enquirer for articles printed about her children. [March 2000]
She was born the same year as Frank Gifford's oldest son, Jeff Gifford.
Named Maryland Junior Miss at age 17.
Has homes in Greenwich, CT; Key Largo, FL.
Was a high school cheerleader.
Mother, with Frank Gifford, of two children: son Cody Gifford (b. 1990) and daughter Cassidy Gifford (b. 1993).
Attended high school in Bowie, MD.
Tried out for the part of Tiffany Welles on Charlie's Angels (1976) and was told she wasn't pretty enough. Shelley Hack got the part and was later replaced because she wasn't a good enough actress.
Dropped out of Oral Roberts University, during her junior year, with no plans to finish.
Named her dog, Regis, after her famous former co-star, Regis Philbin.
Has released several Christian music albums over the years. 2000's The Heart of a Woman was her first pop release.
Releases her albums on her own label, On The Lamb Records. Her two most recent albums are Goodnight, Angel and Party Animals and The God Who Sees.
Her brother is Rev. David Paul Epstein, recently retired pastor of Calvary Baptist Church in Manhattan (catty-corner from Carnegie Hall).
Mrs. Gifford's father, Aaron Leon Epstein, died on November 19, 2002. He had been terminally ill for the past few years, and his illness was one of the reasons Mrs. Gifford decided to leave Live with Kelly and Ryan (1983) in 2000, after more than a decade as host.
Mrs. Gifford's dog Chardonnay, a white bichon frise given to her by husband Frank in 1988, was found dead from a coyote attack on January 28, 2003.
Worked for a time as Anita Bryant's assistant.
She was the main topic of a Season 1 South Park (1997) episode, South Park: Weight Gain 4000 (1997).
Has a Teacup Maltipoo named Bambino Vino Gifford.
Godmother of Kendall Jenner and Kylie Jenner.
Longtime friends of Caitlyn Jenner and Kris Jenner.
Stepmother of Kyle Gifford, Jeff Gifford and Vicky Gifford Kennedy.
Release of her book, "Listen to My Heart: Thoughts and Meditations on Being a Mother, and Conversations with My Son".
Release of the book, "Regis and Kathie Lee: Their Lives Together and Apart" by Norman King.
"Under the Bridge", her musical theater adaptation of the Natalie Savage Carlson's book, "The Family Under the Bridge", opens at the Zipper Theater on W37th Street in New York. [January 2005]
Release of her book, "Just When I Thought I'd Dropped My Last Egg: Life and Other Calamities". [April 2009]
Release of her cookbook, "Cooking with Regis & Kathie Lee" by Kathie Lee with Regis Philbin and Barbara Albright.
Release of her book, "I Can't Believe I Said That!: An Autobiography" by Kathie Lee with Jim Jerome.
Release of her cookbook, "Cooking with Regis & Kathie Lee" by Kathie Lee with Regis Philbin and Barbara Albright.
Her paternal grandfather was a Russian Jewish immigrant. Her other ancestry is English, German, and French.
Good friend of Regis Philbin.
Has highly praised Regis Philbin for her stardom in television production.
Talk show host/television personality and game show host Regis Philbin began working with her when she was 31. She met him on The Morning Show (Regis Philbin, Cyndy Garvey) (1983), when she replaced Ann Abernathy. The show later became Live with Kelly and Ryan (1983), where she stayed on the show, for 12 seasons. Despite her sudden departure, she's still friends to this day.
She alongside her ex-Live with Kelly and Ryan (1983) host, Regis Philbin, were both lifelong friends of Joan Rivers. Both Gifford and Philbin attended their fellow talk show hosts's funeral, when the comedienne passed away on September 7, 2014.
Had left her role as hostess on Live with Regis & Kathie Lee at the end of the 12th season. This was a very complicated year for Gifford, primarily because she wanted to pursue her acting and singing career, in addition to spending more time with her family, esp. her ailing father, who passed away in late 2002.
Personal Quotes (5)
Yes, Frank hurt me deeply, but my kids have a wonderful father and they deserve a family. about her husband Frank Gifford's extramarital affair.
"I've changed it 50 times. You show me a woman who hasn't, except for Janet Reno" - about coloring her hair.
Ridiculous! It's extremely cold in our studio, so you could be wearing a steel harness and you'd still have a little action, if you know what I mean. I do not like industrial-strength push-up bras. I wear very flimsy things. Besides, what 46-year old woman who's nursed two kids goes braless? - about rumors that she goes on the air braless
I change my hairstyle every day for the show, I'm fastidious and vain about my nails and teeth and grooming and makeup, but a perfect body, forget it. Dust to dust, wuggies to wuggies.
Mrs. Gifford on what she does first thing in the morning: "Brush my teeth and say good morning to the picture of my Daddy sitting next to my sink."
Kathryn Lee Gifford (née Epstein; born August 16, 1953) is an American television presenter, singer, songwriter, occasional actress and author. She is best known for her 15-year run (1985–2000) on the talk show Live! with Regis and Kathie Lee, which she co-hosted with Regis Philbin. She is also known for her 11-year run with Hoda Kotb, on the fourth hour of NBC's Today show (2008–2019). She has received 11 Daytime Emmy nominations and won her first Daytime Emmy in 2010 as part of the Today team. Gifford's first television role had been as Tom Kennedy's singer/sidekick on the syndicated version of Name That Tune, from 1974 to 1978. She also occasionally appeared on the first three hours of Today and was a contributing NBC News correspondent.
Personal life Kathie Lee married Paul Johnson, a Christian Composer/arranger/producer/publisher in 1976. They gained fame in Christian music, appearing on covers of Christian magazines. But the marriage was strenuous from the start and in 1981, Johnson moved out. The couple divorced in 1982.
On October 18, 1986, Kathie Lee married a second time, this time to Frank Gifford, an American football player and television sports commentator. It was his third marriage after marriages with Maxine Avis Ewart and Astrid Lindley. With Ewart he had three children.
Kathie Lee was 23 years younger than Frank. They had two children together, Cody Newton Gifford (born March 22, 1990) and Cassidy Erin Gifford (born August 2, 1993). They also shared a birthday: August 16. Frank died on August 9, 2015, from natural causes at their Greenwich, Connecticut, home, a week shy of his 85th birthday. In 2017, she released "He Saw Jesus", a very personal song Kathie Lee co-wrote (with songwriter Brett James) and dedicated to her husband. All proceeds from the song went to the international evangelical Christian humanitarian aid charity Samaritan's Purse.
