HOLLYWOOD – After leaving her perch on “The View,” Rosie O’Donnell confirmed on her blog that she may meet with producers this week about the possibility of succeeding Bob Barker as host of “The Price Is Right,” CBS’s franchise daytime game show.
Officials at CBS were unavailable for comment Monday, but the network has struggled for months to find a replacement for Barker, who was the iconic face of the hit morning show for 35 years.
Barker’s last original episode aired Friday.
O’Donnell has made no secret of her desire to take over the game show, but CBS’s interest apparently is a new development. In earlier blog postings, O’Donnell had written that the network didn’t “want me, boo hoo.”
CBS has been auditioning replacements for several months. Three leading candidates have been George Hamilton, the famously tan film and television star, Mark Steines, co-host of “Entertainment Tonight,” and Todd Newton, known for E! Entertainment programs such as “Coming Attractions” but who also hosts a live version of “The Price Is Right” at Bally’s in Las Vegas.
It remains unclear whether O’Donnell would move to Los Angeles, where the show is taped, if she is offered the job.
She lives outside New York with her partner and their four children. They also have a home in Miami.
Barker seemed to endorse O’Donnell over the weekend after collecting a 19th Daytime Emmy Award but wasn’t sure CBS wanted a female host.
In an interview earlier in 2007 about his replacement, Barker said, “I always compare game-show hosts to pies … . Some people like lemon, some like chocolate, some like cherry. We’re all different, and we work in different ways.
“But I would say it’d be better if they bring on someone who has had some experience. Otherwise, between knowing over 70 different games and keeping the audience enthusiastic for an hour, it could be just too overwhelming.”
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