






By now we all know that Ryan Seacrest has been named the permanent co-host of "Live With Kelly and Ryan," but how does that man who made the show famous actually feel about this?
Answer: over the moon.
Regis Philbin, who manned the "Live" desk for 23 years with Kathie Lee Gifford and later Kelly Ripa, has given the hiring of Ryan two thumbs up.

The New York Post's Page Six reported on May 5, that Regis was "overheard praising" Ryan at dinner.
"He had not one bad thing to say about Ryan. He said, 'I hope he considers me a mentor,'" a source said. "He thinks he'll be able to get along with Kelly Ripa really well and that he's a great choice."
On May 1, Ryan was announced as the permanent co-host of the ABC staple after a year of a revolving door of co-hosts. After officially taking the stage, Ryan told Kelly, "Nice to see you, partner." He later said, "We were told to keep it a secret, and we're not great at that, so it's funny because I sent a text to some of my close, close friends and co-workers. Responses were this from people who know me well: 'You're engaged! You're having a baby! You're coming out of the closet!'"

Since leaving "Live" in 2011, Regis has had almost no relationship with Kelly. In February, he told Larry King, "She got very offended when I left. She thought I was leaving because of her. I was leaving because I was getting older and that wasn't right for me anymore."

Throughout most of 2016, Kelly used different hosts, but Regis was reportedly never asked to co-host with her.