1967: 'The Phil Donahue Show' Launches
Before Oprah, there was Phil. And it was on this day in 1967 that Phil Donahue debuted his eponymous talk show in Dayton, Ohio. A little over three years later, The Phil Donahue Show — later simply Donahue — was syndicated nationwide.
Donahue was known for tackling controversial, hot-button topics (his very first guest was atheist activist Madalyn Murray O'Hair) and helped pave the way for the tabloid-style shows hosted by Maury Povich, Sally Jessy Raphael and Jerry Springer.
The Phil Donahue Show ran for a total of 29 years, and remains the longest countinuously-running syndicated talk show.