It has been almost three years since the world lost the iconic television host Regis Philbin. Who better to remember the famed TV personality than his wife of 50 years and their daughters, who publicly spoke about what made the longtime host so special.
“He let everyone into his life,” Joy Philbin and their daughters Jennifer and Joanna said exclusively to People in 2020. “He turned every little daily annoyance and happiness into a story, and he shared all those little stories with people in a joyful and conversational way. It made his audience feel like they were right alongside him — because they were.”
Regis Philbin died on July 24, 2020, of heart disease in Greenwich, Connecticut, at the age of 88. His incredible career spanned more than five decades, and he holds the Guinness World Record for the most hours on U.S. television. But Regis was more than just a television personality; he was a loving husband and devoted father of four.
Regis became a dad when he welcomed his first daughter, Amy Philbin, in 1961. At the time, Regis was married to actress Catherine “Kay” Faylen, whom he tied the knot with in 1955. Nearly six years following the birth of their first child, Regis became a dad of two after welcoming his son, Daniel Philbin, in 1967. Sadly, The Regis Philbin Show host and Kay divorced in 1968 after almost 13 years of marriage.
His love life wasn’t over just yet, though. Just a year following his divorce, Regis married his second wife, Joy Philbin. The couple wed in 1970 and shortly after welcomed two children together. In 1973, Regis and Joy became the parents of their daughter, Joanna Philbin. Not even two years later, Regis became the proud dad of four after welcoming his third daughter, J.J. Philbin.
Since his death, Regis’ family has been honoring his memory in various ways. They released a statement to pay tribute to the TV personality when the news originally broke.
“We are deeply saddened to share that our beloved Regis Philbin passed away last year of natural causes, one month shy of his 89th birthday,” his loved ones told us shortly after his passing. “His family and friends are forever grateful for the time we got to spend with him — for his warmth, his legendary sense of humor, and his singular ability to make every day into something worth talking about. We thank his fans and admirers for their incredible support over his 60-year career and ask for privacy as we mourn his loss.”
If you’d like to honor Regis’ memory, his family kindly asks that donations be made to http://foodbanknyc.org/ to help people in need in his beloved New York, especially his home borough of The Bronx.
Sources
https://people.com/tv/regis-philbin-wife-joy-and-daughters-mourn-beloved-host/
closerweekly.com/posts/regis-philbins-kids-meet-the-famous-tv-hosts-4-children/
