Star Jones Reynolds: 'I Was Fired'

[gldstwmn]

http://people.aol.com/people/article/0,26334,1208160,00.html

Star Jones Reynolds announced Tuesday morning on The View that she'll be leaving the show in July after nine years as a cohost.

"Something's been on my heart for a little bit, and after much prayer and counsel I feel like this is the right time to tell you that the show is moving in another direction for its tenth season and I will not be returning as cohost next year," she said on the air.

"That's shocking to me," interrupted Joy Behar, prompting Jones Reynolds to link hands with her cohosts.

Thanking the show's creator, Barbara Walters, "for giving me the opportunity of a lifetime," Jones Reynolds concluded by saying, "I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm absolutely sure who holds the future."

After some discussion, Walters said, "It is a new chapter for Star. It will be a new chapter for The View in the fall."

So why is Jones Reynolds leaving? Contrary to speculation that she's unhappy about the upcoming addition of Rosie O'Donnell – one of her most vocal critics – to the show this fall, she reveals exclusively in this week's PEOPLE magazine that the departure was not her choice.

"What you don't know is that my contract was not renewed for the tenth season," she tells PEOPLE. "I feel like I was fired." She adds that she was told her contract wouldn't be renewed just days before news leaked that O'Donnell would be joining The View.

Jones Reynolds, 44, was part of the original lineup with Meredith Vieira (who has already departed to replace Katie Couric on the Today show), Behar and Walters.

[DavidMn]

I dont know. From what I understand, her and Rosie were NOT exactly buddies.

[macfanken]

That's too bad, I was looking forward to the Star vs Rosie smackdown!

[DavidMn]

That's too bad, I was looking forward to the Star vs Rosie smackdown!Yes, that would be interesting indeed.:nod:

[skcin]

Jones Reynolds concluded by saying, "I'm not sure what the future holds, but I'm absolutely sure who holds the future."

Does she mean God? Or Barbara Walters? :lol:

I don't care if she leaves, she bugs.

[DavidMn]

Does she mean God? Or Barbara Walters? :lol:

I don't care if she leaves, she bugs.Those stories about her over the top wedding really bothered me too.

[goldie]

Does she mean God? Or Barbara Walters? :lol:

I don't care if she leaves, she bugs.

I'm with you, Paula, I really didn't care for Star ..... or Rosie for that matter. And actually, I don't like Meredith Viera all that much, either. :lol:

[chiliD]

Does she mean God? Or Barbara Walters? :lol:

There's a difference? :shocked: :eek:

[JazmenFlowers]

I'm with you, Paula, I really didn't care for Star ..... or Rosie for that matter. And actually, I don't like Meredith Viera all that much, either. :lol:
I know. me either. what got me was how cheap Star was...it was like, if you'll send me free **** for my wedding, I'll be sure to talk about your product on TV. I've never liked her...well, I did when she was just a legal correspondent...then she let her BOGO Payless shoes go to her head.

[CelticGypsy]

I am glad Star is not coming back to the show next Fall. I hope she packs that Elisabeth H. in her make-up bag as she gets kicked to the curb on her last day of work.

[irishgrl]

I am glad Star is not coming back to the show next Fall. I hope she packs that Elisabeth H. in her make-up bag as she gets kicked to the curb on her last day of work.
Even tho I dont watch the show, Im with YEW! Star's a phony :nod:

[SuzeQuze]

Yeah, she's horrible, about as deep as a kiddie pool. :eek: Good riddance.

[skcin]

Oooooh, this is getting good. :p

http://www.cnn.com/2006/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/28/tv.theview.reynolds.ap/index.html

Walters 'betrayed' by Reynolds' announcement
'The View' undergoing changes

Wednesday, June 28, 2006; Posted: 10:13 a.m. EDT (14:13 GMT)


NEW YORK (AP) -- The gloves are off for the women on "The View."

Creator Barbara Walters said she was "betrayed" by Star Jones Reynolds' surprise on-air announcement of her exit from the daytime talk show Tuesday. Reynolds said in a magazine interview she felt she was fired.

Either way, the "help wanted" sign is up again at the show, months after it was announced that Rosie O'Donnell was replacing Meredith Vieira in the fall.

Reynolds' exit had been rumored for months, intensifying Tuesday after reports on "Access Hollywood" and in the New York tabloids that an announcement would be coming soon.

Still, Walters said she was taken by complete surprise when Reynolds announced her departure after the first commercial break on Tuesday. The announcement had been planned for Thursday, she said.

(Reynolds will appear on CNN's "Larry King Live" Thursday to talk about the changes.)

"I love Star and I was trying to do everything I possibly could -- up until this morning when I was betrayed -- to protect her," Walters told The Associated Press. Walters also said she wasn't aware until she got off the air of Reynolds' People magazine interview. Reynolds, one of the original cast members when the show started nine years ago, said: "I feel like I was fired."

That seems to be the case. Walters said ABC network chiefs had decided last fall not to renew Reynolds' contract because its research showed that Reynolds' dramatic weight loss and 2004 wedding to banker Al Reynolds had turned viewers off. Reynolds had been criticized for a Web site that promoted companies that donated items for the wedding party's gift bags.

"We tried to talk them out of it," Walters said, "and we tried to give Star time to redeem herself in the eyes of the audience, and the research just kept getting worse."
Reynolds' spokesman, Brad Zeifman, said the announcement had always been planned for this week. Because of all the speculation, Reynolds was compelled to tell viewers, he said.

He said he finds the notion that viewers were turned off by talk of her wedding "surprising," given that some of the top-rated shows in 2004 were related to her wedding and engagement. Reynolds' recent book in which she discussed her weight loss was a best-seller, he said.

Walters said Reynolds had known for several months that she would not be coming back, before Vieira's announcement in April that she was leaving.

"I would have loved for Star to have left and not said 'I was fired,' and not make it look like the program was somehow being cruel to her," she said.

O'Donnell's hiring had nothing to do with the decision, she said. That April announcement had led to widespread speculation over whether O'Donnell and Reynolds could co-exist. O'Donnell had made several caustic remarks about Reynolds, saying that it was dishonest for her to talk about losing more than 100 pounds through diet and exercise without talking about gastric bypass surgery.

On the show Tuesday, Reynolds told the audience that "The View" had decided to move in a new direction.

"I'm not sure what the future holds," she said. "But I'm absolutely sure who holds the future."

Comic Joy Behar looked like she was shocked.

"Who am I going to fight with?" Behar said.

Reynolds replied: "Something tells me you will have somebody to fight with."

Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

[vermicious knid]

I have the TV on right now. I want to see Star get her ass beaten.

[gldstwmn]

I have the TV on right now. I want to see Star get her ass beaten.

She's not on. They told her not to come back after yesterday.

[JazmenFlowers]

She's not on. They told her not to come back after yesterday.
seriously?! :eek: awesome.

[sara1998]

She's not on. They told her not to come back after yesterday.
WOW. :shocked: No love lost. I couldn't stand her anyhow. I really don't like Rosie all that much, either, so it looks like I really won't be watching The View anymore...

[skcin]

She's not on. They told her not to come back after yesterday.


Kick. Ass. :cool:

[SuzeQuze]

Kick. Ass. :cool:

Dude. Her surprise announcement is yet another indication of her selfishness. I mean, you do not burn bridges with Baba Wawa, WTF was she thinking?

[macfanken]

Just saw it here on the west coast, I love that they've already cut Star out of the opening credits! Haha!

"We tried to let Star announce her departure and leave with dignity, but she chose another route." meeeooooowww! :lol: Don't f**k with Babba Wawwa.

[BTFLCHLD]

The only time I ever watched The View is if I was home from work in bed ill, and then I could only stand a few minutes before switching. Frankly, it is/was a bore. Where's the tacky thread? Absolute tacky to make that kind of on-air 'surprise' announcement.

[SuzeQuze]

The only time I ever watched The View is if I was home from work in bed ill, and then I could only stand a few minutes before switching. Frankly, it is/was a bore. Where's the tacky thread? Absolute tacky to make that kind of on-air 'surprise' announcement.

Completely tacky. Absolutely lacking in class. This move warrants such redundancy. I have always switched it too, the show is awful.

[Lala]

How interesting.
I watched The View just for the hot topics to watch them fight with one another (now you understand why I'm so obsessed with the relationship aspect of Fleetwood Mac).
Ever since Star lost all that weight, she looks kind of scary. I dunno, good for her I guess, but every time I see her I'm compelled to yell "I's so skinnee!" in a deep south accent.
I'm excited to see Rosie next season.

[gldstwmn]

seriously?! :eek: awesome.

She's going to be on Larry King tonight. Should be interesting.

[MacMan]

How interesting.
I watched The View just for the hot topics to watch them fight with one another (now you understand why I'm so obsessed with the relationship aspect of Fleetwood Mac).
Ever since Star lost all that weight, she looks kind of scary. I dunno, good for her I guess, but every time I see her I'm compelled to yell "I's so skinnee!" in a deep south accent.
I'm excited to see Rosie next season.

For some reason I thought Rosie was already on the show once the other woman left...

Do they run original shows in the summer?...

I never watch the show, but it used to be on late at night and I'd catch it occasionally... and yeah, the hot topics was the best part... Joy kills me - she's a funny, down to earth, tell it like it is.. kind of woman.

[ELIUD]

I love Joy also, but funny thing, the first time I saw her was on an old talk show (I don't remember which) right around the time Stevie release The Other Side of the Mirror. She was just gabbing and somebody mentioned that Stevie had lipo done and had some fat sucked out of her hips and thighs. She retorted "I think she should have the snot sucked out of her throat" or something like that. I laughed and laughed and thought 'that bitch!'. But I love her nonetheless.

p.s. Your banner is BEEYOOTEEFUL!

[GODDESS6]

Does she mean God? Or Barbara Walters? :lol:

I don't care if she leaves, she bugs.
she so bugs me too, see ya star, can't wait for the fall & rosie!!!~

[JazmenFlowers]

if you have a chance and give 2 squirts of duck **** (copyright: Diss), go watch Star and Sandra Bernhard on youtube. I love Sandra and both Star and that biotch idiot Elisabeth pretty much attacked Sandra. now how are you gonna have a guest, a comedian like Sandra on the show and take every single word so personally...just fun viewing...go watch it

[irishgrl]

now how are you gonna have a guest, a comedian like Sandra on the show and take every single word so personally...

ACK! Sandra Bernhard a comedienne? The woman is positively repulsive! her one claim to fame is being Madonna's once-upon-a-time friend :rolleyes:

That said, I still like her better than Star :nod:

[BTFLCHLD]

She's going to be on Larry King tonight. Should be interesting. Hi Chris...I took a look at cnn last night and I thought I heard mention she is on tonight? Was she on last night?

HOW TO CATCH A STARFISH:

<img src="http://i11.photobucket.com/albums/a152/BTFLCHLD/strfsh.jpg">

[SuzeQuze]

I think Sandra is totally funny and I love her irreverant outbursts. The fight with Star isn't even as bad as with Elizabeth in the end. :eek: Barbara asks her, "What do you think of Laura Bush?" and Sandra says, "I think she is heavily medicated." :lol: Thanks for the tip, Jazzy, that was a well spent 7 minutes.

<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Mh4Jtirgidc"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Mh4Jtirgidc" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"></embed></object>

[carrie721]

^^^ Holy crap, that was hilarious. Women are so effing catty! I love Sandra Bernhard, though, so Star and Elisabeth can suck it. Thanks, Jazzy, for bringing it to our attention, and thanks to Suze for posting it.

[SuzeQuze]

^^^ Holy crap, that was hilarious. Women are so effing catty! I love Sandra Bernhard, though, so Star and Elisabeth can suck it. Thanks, Jazzy, for bringing it to our attention, and thanks to Suze for posting it.

Elizabeth can really suck it. What a bim.

[golden braid]

Elizabeth can really suck it. What a bim.
I think all the women on The View can suck it.

[SuzeQuze]

I think all the women on The View can suck it.

Whoa, now see, this shows just how bad it is. When a sweet person can speak with such venom! :lol: :xoxo:

[CelticGypsy]

Sandra is so funny in that video. She tells how it really is. lol

What the h*** is wrong with Elisabeth H? You'd think Sandra insulted her mother or something?

[carrie721]

What the h*** is wrong with Elisabeth H? You'd think Sandra insulted her mother or something?

Hmmm ... maybe we've found a skeleton in the Bushes' closet? :laugh:

[skcin]

Did anyone watch Star last night? I didn't bother, but I'd love a Cliff's Notes version. :cool:

[JazmenFlowers]

Did anyone watch Star last night? I didn't bother, but I'd love a Cliff's Notes version. :cool:
I did. it was quite interesting actually. Star says she was told in April, ABC says she was told in November...Star says that the whole freebie wedding thing was all ABC's idea and that she was actually not even allowed to ask for specific things. ABC did that and then she was told to talk about it. I have to give her credit, she said she would never denegrate Barbara Walters b/c she gave her the opportunity and she learned so much from her and respects her. She said no one will ever be able to bait her or make her say anything bad about her or The View.

[strandinthewind]

I did. it was quite interesting actually. Star says she was told in April, ABC says she was told in November...Star says that the whole freebie wedding thing was all ABC's idea and that she was actually not even allowed to ask for specific things. ABC did that and then she was told to talk about it. I have to give her credit, she said she would never denegrate Barbara Walters b/c she gave her the opportunity and she learned so much from her and respects her. She said no one will ever be able to bait her or make her say anything bad about her or The View.

I have to agree Star handled herself admirably last night. I do think, however, Star was not telling the truth regarding what she knew and when. I just got that impression and I think the facts somewhat support that conclusion because she totally surprised the people on the View b y announcing it on Tues. instead of Thurs. and she gave that interview to People the week before. So, this, to me, appears to be a totaly calculated move by a woman who has been canned and has no job waiting. In the end, that I care at all is more horrifying to me :laugh:

[JazmenFlowers]

In the end, that I care at all is more horrifying to me :laugh:
I know. I thought the same thing.

yeah, my heart bleeds to a millionaire celebrity...

[ELIUD]

I watched also and feel that all she did wrong was surprise everybody at The View by making her announcement two days early. Besides the People Magazine interview, what Barbara Walters seems to be most pissed about is that Star told the truth about her being fired instead of making up some bull**** story that it was her own decision to leave the show.

I think Star is right - telling the truth about being fired is the more dignified way of leaving the show. Barbara thinks it would have been better to make up a story, but that would have left Star looking like a big liar when the truth about why she left eventually got leaked to the tabloids.

[GODDESS6]

i didn't see star last night, but i did see her this morning on the TODAY show & from what you guys have posted, she said the same things~ now i went on the record not being a fan of hers, but i thought she did wonderfully & is totally coming out as the bigger person in all of this~ i wish her well w/ whatever she choses to do w/ her future~

[MacMan]

I watched also and feel that all she did wrong was surprise everybody at The View by making her announcement two days early. Besides the People Magazine interview, what Barbara Walters seems to be most pissed about is that Star told the truth about her being fired instead of making up some bull**** story that it was her own decision to leave the show.

I think Star is right - telling the truth about being fired is the more dignified way of leaving the show. Barbara thinks it would have been better to make up a story, but that would have left Star looking like a big liar when the truth about why she left eventually got leaked to the tabloids.

I agree... The only thing she did that took them by surprise is the surprise announcement two days before...and the facts, no lie. She may have wanted to do it on Thursday but I think People posted the story before the Tuesday show even aired so she may have had little choice... But I think the way she did it on The View was dignified.... and the way she handled herself on Larry King was dignified... She took back control, which probably pissed off Babs and ABC... I think if the discussion of her being let go came up back in November and they didn't tell her about it... I'd be a little upset about not being let in on what's going on. Things can be turned around if worked at.

Anyway... I think the Producers of The View including Babs and ABC are the ones that look a little evil in the situation at this point.

[diamondsnake]

Hi everyone!

I saw the Larry King interview last night. Star seems to think that she will be getting lots of television opportunities in the future, but I think she is dillusional. She has turned herself into one of the least liked celebs in America (with a little help from Kathy Griffin). She has been kicked off The View because, frankly, no one likes her! Why does she think that anyone would be interested in watching a show with her as the main host? It makes no sense! She has no fan base, so how can she think that the sky is the limit for her?

Or, do you think that this recent "getting fired" thing will make her look better in the eyes of the public and boost her career?

Your thoughts?

[DavidMn]

I agree with Rosie BTW with regards to how Star says she lost all that weight.