Phil Donahue's show started off similar to other shows of its day, featuring celebrities and musical acts, but he soon started pushing the envelope by discussing health and social topics previously considered taboo.

The precursor to all the daytime talk shows that arose during the 1980's and 90's. Phil Donahue's show started off similar to other shows of its day, featuring celebrities and musical acts, but he soon started pushing the envelope by discussing health and social topics previously considered taboo. Eventually, the popularity of this approach proved to be his downfall, as he was soon competing with host such as Jerry Springer, Sally Jesse Raphael and Geraldo Rivera, who were willing to stoop to new depths in search of sensational topics.—Jean-Marc Rocher <[email protected]>