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| Kelly Ripa |
The Madame Tussauds wax figure, which was unveiled Tuesday in New York City, looked just like Ripa with its straight blonde hair and dimples. The 40-year-old host even matched her wax figure by wearing a red dress. One major difference was that the wax figure wasn't quite as tanned.
Ripa joined Regis Philbin as a co-host of the morning talk show in 2001 after the departure of Kathie Lee Gifford in 2000.
Meantime, a replacement has not been announced for Philbin, who said he's leaving the show later this year. Philbin recently postponed his departure from the end of the summer to November.
Philbin, 79, announced in January that he would leave the morning talk seriesafter some 25 years. Disney-ABC Television Group had said at the time that it would in February name a new co-host to replace him on the program, which has seen three different co-hosts.
Philbin took time off from "LIVE! with Regis & Kelly" last year to have a blood clot removed from his leg. He also had hip replacement surgery in December 2010 and triple heart bypass surgery in 2007.
Philbin began his television career in Los Angeles, working for KABC Television, OnTheRedCarpet.com's parent company. He moved to New York in 1983 and co-hosted "The Morning Show" with Cyndy Garvey on local station WABC Television. Garvey was replaced by Kathie Lee Gifford in 1985 and the show became nationally syndicated in 1988.
Ripa is known for her acting roles in the ABC soap opera "All My Children" and the series "Hope & Faith."
Sources: http://www.ontheredcarpet.com
