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Friday, May 25, 2007

Rosie O’Donnell departs The View early; perhaps it’s for the best

Rosie O’Donnell will not be retuning to The View, despite that her final air date was supposed to be June 20.


I’m sure Republicans everywhere are cheering.

After her particularly nasty on-air fight with co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck this week, O’Donnell has chosen to end her run with the show.

"We had hoped that Rosie would be with us until the end of her contract three weeks from now, but Rosie has informed us that she would like an early leave," said ABC daytime chief Brian Frons. "Therefore, we part ways, thank her for her tremendous contribution to 'The View' and wish her well."

O’Donnell commented that she was “extremely grateful” for her time on the show. "It's been an amazing year and I love all three women," she said.

Well, you certainly couldn’t feel the love earlier this week when she and Hasselbeck squared off once again about the Iraq war. Things quickly turned personal, with finger pointing and yelling, as O’Donnell took issue that Hasselbeck didn’t defend O’Donnell in the press when she was labeled as calling U.S. soldiers terrorists. O’Donnell called Hasselbeck “cowardly,” while Hasselbeck retorted that O’Donnell should defend her own insinuations.

Even co-host and jokester Joy Behar looked uncomfortable, as the debate switched from politics to overly personal comments about one another’s actions/beliefs. The remainder of the show seemed a little awkward, even when guest Alicia Silverstone came out. Silverstone rudely walked right by Hasselbeck and hugged the remaining three hosts. (Not cool, Alicia. Not cool.)

I’m incredibly saddened that O’Donnell’s stint on The View has ended on such a sour note. She brought such flair to the show, and turned it into must-see-TV for me. But honestly, even I’m having a tough time defending O’Donnell. Her lack of understanding for anyone else’s political views, other than her own has grown tiresome. More and more, O’Donnell didn’t seem content at simply stating her “view” and listening to the other ladies’ views. She seemed to verbally smack down anyone who didn’t agree with her politics i.e. Hasselbeck.

For someone who talks often about respect, peace and love, I wish O’Donnell would have shown a little more of it in her final broadcast. If she had issue with her co-worker and vice versa, they should have worked it out off-screen.

This isn’t the first time O’Donnell has personally attacked Hasselbeck. She once ruffled the youngest co-host’s feathers, and plenty of other 20-somethings, by quickly discounting Hasselbeck’s opinions due to her youth.

Making this story all the sadder is the fact that O’Donnell’s friend Janette Barber was escorted from The View's studios Thursday after being caught drawing mustaches and defacing posters of Hasselbeck at the show's offices, according to the New York Post. ABC confirmed that photographs were vandalized, but did not identify the perpetrator. The network did emphasize that O’Donnell wasn’t in the building.

Defacing posters? Wow. That has to be a new low. Are these people in fifth grade?

I’ve always loved O’Donnell’s easy, fun talk-show manner, but I enjoy her more when she’s simply hosting and not pontificating about the evilness of the president and the administration.

Perhaps it’s best O’Donnell left. Under her stint, The View has transitioned into a program about the view of one woman (O’Donnell,) not the views of several women, which was the original intent of the daytime talk show. Plus, Hasselbeck is pregnant, and frankly, just watching those two spar stresses me out, so I can’t imagine what it’s doing to the hormonal expectant mom.

O’Donnell is a fabulous entertainer, and I’ll watch her projects in the future. But, I hope she returns to her fun, easy talk-show fare, sans the politics.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well said, Tube Talk Girl. I'm a fan of Rosie's too, but lately I cringe when the Iraq debate starts. We know their views, already!!!! Her fight with Elisabeth was just too much.

Anonymous said...

I think more people need to be talking about the Iraq thing over and over and over until someone gets it. This war is WRONG and always has been wrong and we were lied to by our government. I am sad that people won't be hearing that anymore. I'm sad, especially for the soliders who will continue fighting this illegal war long after the View is off the air.

Anonymous said...

You're being diplomatic, I'm sure, Tube Talk Girl, but I'm sad that when a woman finally has the nerve to voice what so many of us think about the war and other equally important issues, she is considered to be "over-the-top". Two men having the same argument would be praised. tsk tsk...

Yes, it's The View and is supposed to represent different points of VIEW, but when someone as self-righteous and totally ignorant as Elizabeth is, is allowed to stay on and look cutisie as someone pulls her strings, I'd say it's time for The View to give notice and leave early also. I can't stand Elizabeth's self-indulgent arrogance, and if I were there in her presence every day I'd be constantly biting my tongue not to tear her a new one. I say good luck to Rosie and I hope she finds another venue where she can speak her mind. I may not agree with her every word, but by gosh, more often than not she is right on!

Anonymous said...

Just because people don't agree with us, it doesn't necessarily make them ignorant or self-righteous. (And I'm a liberal.) I've always enjoyed Rosie's sense of humor and insight on things, but enough with talking over anybody else with a different opinion. I share her opinions on many, many things. What I don't share is her way of treating people the way she does because they don't think the way she does. Passion is one thing. Rudeness is another. To be so bold as to say that younger people are ignorant because of their age is beyond comprehension, when it came to differing points of view. So what about people her age or older with whom she disagrees? When Barbara Walters told her on the show last week that Carter was a bad president (I actually felt sorry for Rosie on that one; she looked stunned to be put on the spot), what is Barbara's excuse for such "ignorance?"

Anyway, I could go on and on. People need to learn manners. It has nothing to do with being a louder than most, overweight, female, homosexual (all the things she's said people criticized her for). Guess what? I'm all those things. But I like to think I know how to treat my peers.

I almost forgot my main point: Thanks for a great post. I enjoyed reading it and agree with you, Tube Talk.

Anonymous said...

In this case the only person yelling over anyone was Elisabeth. And although I know many people feel Alicia Silverstone was rude in her snub of Elisabeth, Alicia was no more rude than Elisabeth yelling at a guest host who questioned the welfare of her unborn baby. I also believe that Joy has a lot of nerve feigning disbelief at the ruckus when she essentially started it with her list she knew would blow the place apart. But the most rude thing of all were the production people who refused to go to comercial, continued filming and even split screened screaming, finger wagging Elisabeth and Rosie looking like she would like to drive an axe through Elisabeth's skull. Don't tell me that rating didn't have something to do with that.

Anonymous said...

Rosie is...No "acts" like a bully. when someone doesn't agree with her she cuts them off and gets louder and louder. FINIALLY..Someone stood up to her. I don't agree with EH'S views on the war but at least she [put Rosie in her place. It was kinda like watching children ... and Rosie, turning tail and running off the playground...as "I'm not playing anymore" "You're not my friend anymore" Sound CHILDISH. What was WRONG>>Alicia Silverstone...EH is a host on a show that she was invited on and to do what she did...she should have been asked to excuse herself. Never will watch another of her movies again. Oh yeah, didn't before,as her acting sucks.

Anonymous said...

AWESOME post, Tube Talk Girl. I know you've always liked Rosie, and I think it was very fair.

Anonymous, I agree that Rosie has been acting like a "bully" of late. I just don't understand why? If she were to state her opinion without being so rude about it, I think she'd get a lot further with her cause. Now, it just seems like her message is just overshadowed by all this unpleasantness.

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