O’Donnell recounds how her relationship with Hasselbeck ‘blew up on national TV’
Credit: Allison Michael Orenstein
NEED TO KNOW
- Rosie O’Donnell reflects on her infamous on-air fight with Elisabeth Hasselbeck, calling it a “setup” by producers
- She names Joy Behar as her favorite co-host from The View due to their long-standing friendship and comedy history
- O’Donnell says she might return as a guest for The View’s 30th anniversary but prefers not debating politics on TV
Ask Rosie O’Donnell to play “Truth or Dare” and she jokes, “This could be scary. Let’s see what happens.”
But the 64-year-old star, now back in New York City with her one-woman show, Common Knowledge, gets right to the point—as always.
Asked specifically, “Who is your most and least favorite co-host during the time on The View?” she says: “Listen, it’s known that me and Elisabeth Hasselbeck did not have a great ending to our friendship, so I would say that was the most problematic, perhaps. But we did get along right up until the end, and then it blew up on national TV. Sometimes I watch that one.”
Credit: Everett
“I can’t watch the Streisand one,” she adds referring to her idol, Barbra Streisand’s. 1997 appearance on her eponymous daytime talk show, which she admits still makes her cry. “But if the Elisabeth Hasselbeck fight is on, I’m like, ‘Let me try to remember what this felt like.’ You know?”
Back in 2007, when she and Hasselbeck were both co-hosts on The View, and with opposing political views, they had a fight over the Iraq War, which made headlines, especially due to the fact it happened on split-screen.
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The two women have both addressed their on-air argument over the years. Last October, in an interview with Australian radio show Ricki-Lee, Tim Joel, O’Donnell explained, “Our producer [was] not an on-the-fly kind of guy. He wasn’t like, Mr. Let’s-Go-To-a-Split-Screen.’ That was prepared. The whole thing, I think, was a setup.” At the time, Hasselbeck, 48, disagreed, tearfully firing back at O’Donnell’s claims with posts on her Instagram stories.
Credit: ABC
As for O’Donnell’s favorite cohost, she says “My favorite probably is Behar. I like Joy Behar. We did stand up together for many years and she used to call me ‘Little One,’ because I was a young comic in my 20’s.”
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As for making a return appearance on The View someday, she says, “Next season is the 30th anniversary and Ana Navarro mentioned that when I did her podcast recently. I think that I would, and just be a guest. I do think that for me, it’s not the best use of my time or talent to be arguing about politics with people, just in general, as a form of entertainment. It’s not where I shine the most.”
“But I am a very patriotic American. I love this country.”
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