Phil Donahue was the alternative to the Oprah Winfrey Show. Sometimes, all it would take to pick one over the other was the topic or show's guest. I felt Donahue was better than Oprah as a talk show host because it tackled the controversial, difficult, emotional, and celebrity guests without being so cautious as Oprah is with celebrities. Phil tackled issues such as homosexuality, divorce, atheism, politics, religion, and others. The show had Phil running up and down with a microphone in the audience. While I have a great respect for Oprah, Phil was the alternative until he could no longer compete with the competition. I always felt that Phil tried to understand a person's point of view, lifestyle, or choice as well as a person's mistake be it a celebrity or your neighbor. Phil never really treated his guests with preferential treatment. He may have married Marlo Thomas but I don't recall an episode with her. The show's legacy was that it was cut short of Oprah's phenomenon and I wonder what might have happened if we were allowed to choose between the two hosts. I have to say that Donahue holds a special place in my heart and nobody could take that away.
Review of Donahue
