Saturday, June 6, 2026

New York TV Legend Joe Franklin Dead at 88, Pioneered the Celebrity Talk Show

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UPDATE: Confirmed, sadly.
EARLIER: There’s no confirmation yet, but it does seem from reports that New York TV legend Joe Franklin has died at age 88. Franklin pioneered the talk show, and had one on WOR TV in New York from 1962 to 1993. He was famous for having eclectic groups of people– like the current head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme– on the same couch. His show was famously parodied by Billy Crystal on Saturday Night Live. Born Joseph Fortgang, Joe’s nasal voice was a New York landmark. Twitter accounts from the Friars Club and Mark Simone have each confirmed Franklin’s death. It’s really the end of an era.

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Roger Friedman
Roger Friedmanhttps://www.showbiz411.com
Roger Friedman is the founder and editor-in-chief of Showbiz411. He wrote the FOX411 column on FoxNews.com from 1999 to 2009 and previously edited Fame magazine and wrote the "Intelligencer" column at New York magazine. His bylines have appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, the New York Daily News, the New York Post, Vogue, Details, and the Miami Herald. He is a voting member of the Critics Choice Awards (Film and Television branches), and his movie reviews are tracked by Rotten Tomatoes. is articles have appeared in dozens of publications over the years including New York Magazine, where he wrote the Intelligencer column in the mid 90s and covered the OJ Simpson trial, and Fox News (when it wasn't so crazy) where he covered Michael Jackson. With D.A. Pennebaker and Chris Hegedus, he co-produced the 2002 documentary "Only the Strong Survive," which screened at Directors' Fortnight at the Cannes Film Festival.

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