Kathie Lee Gifford won't read Kelly Ripa's book after Regis claims

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Kathie Lee Gifford is starting today off with a feud.

Former “Today” show co-host Kathie Lee Gifford announced Monday that she has no plans to read Kelly Ripa’s autobiography “Live Wire: Long-Winded Short Stories” due to comments made by Ripa regarding her former co-host Regis Philbin.

“I’m not gonna read the book. I haven’t read it. I don’t even know if it’s out yet,” Gifford said on Monday’s “Good Day New York.”

“I just know what Regis was to me. He was, for 15 years, the best partner a person could ever, ever have professionally, but he was my friend.”

Philbin, who died in July 2020 at the age of 88, co-hosted “Good Day New York” with Gifford.

“We were dear friends and after I left the show, for the next 20 years, we became better friends, dearer friends,” recalled Gifford.

“I saw him two weeks before he died and the minute I found out he had passed, I got in my car and drove to their house.”

In her book, Ripa described her relationship with Philbin as being filled with “good days and bad days.”

TODAY show co-host Kathie Lee Gifford has announced that she has no plans to read Kelly Ripa’s autobiography due to comments regarding her former co-host Regis Philbin. John Lamparski/Getty Images
“We were dear friends and after I left the show, for the next 20 years, we became better friends, dearer friends,” recalled Gifford. Peter Kramer/NBC/NBC NewsWire
Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford co-hosted “Good Day New York” together before Philbin left for his morning talk show with Ripa. Michael Dombroski/Newsday RM via Getty Images

“I don’t want to feel like I’m slamming anyone or that I’m being disrespectful. But I also want people to know it was not a cakewalk,” said the former soap opera star.

“It took years to earn my place there and earn things that are routinely given to the men I worked with. Including an office and a place to put my computer.”

The Post reached out to Gifford for comment.

“It’s sad she would try to manufacture an artificial controversy based on a book that she has never read and headlines that didn’t exist until she created them,” said a rep for Kelly Ripa.

“If she had actually read this #1 Best Seller, she would have known that Kelly was respectful and honest about this topic and how the other 98% of the book is thoughtful, fun and insightful.”

Gifford said Monday that she was flabbergasted to read about negative headlines about her late co-host.

“I saw that and I went, ‘Oh, I hope this isn’t true.’ I just hope it isn’t, because what’s the point? I don’t get it,” recounted the 69-year-old Emmy winner.

In her book, Ripa described her relationship with Philbin as being filled with “good days and bad days.” Efren Landaos/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
“It took years to earn my place there and earn things that are routinely given to the men I worked with. Including an office and a place to put my computer.” Craig Barritt/Getty Images for Persona™ Nutrition

“In all the years I knew him, I never saw him unkind to anyone. I never did. If he liked you, he teased you,” she said.

“I’m not going to say anything ugly about anybody. I never have and I’m not going to start now. My reality is something completely different from that.”

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