Legendary Host Mike Douglas Dies

Mike Douglas, a talk show industry pioneer, died today, on his 81st birthday.

Cause of death is still unknown. Douglas was admitted to a Palm Beach Gardens hospital on Thursday. He had battled a bought of dehydration for a week, but most thought he was recovering well.

Douglas was host of the celebrated The Mike Douglas Show for 21 years. The show originated in Cleveland at WKYC-TV, now an NBC affliate.

The afternoon show, a forerunner of programs like The Ellen DeGeneres Show, eventually moved from Cleveland to Philadelphia and finally to Los Angeles where it remained until its cancellation in 1982.

Over the course of his talk show career (Douglas actually refered to his program as “a music show” with “lots of talk between numbers”), he hosted 6,000 shows, welcomed 30,000 guests, and, at its peak, was seen in 230 television markets.

For more about Mike Douglas, visit:

• Mike Douglas biography
• E! Online obituary
• Mike Douglas’ film and television credits