Joy Behar Makes Sly Joke About Previously Being 'Forced' Off 'The View'
The comedian had been an original panelist from the show’s launch in 1997 until 2013. But after a brief hiatus, she was eventually asked back in 2015
Lou Rocco/ABC via Getty Images
Joy Behar on "The View"Joy Behar is approaching her brief hiatus from The View with a sense of humor.
On Thursday’s episode of the daytime talk show, the 80-year-old television host made a sly jab that poked fun at her two-year departure in 2013 while discussing Tina Turner's death and legacy.
"There’s something about her," Behar said, referring to the music legend's passing from natural causes on May 24 at age 83.
"I've been on this show for 26 years, right, with a small hiatus as we all know — forced," Behar paused, causing some of her co-hosts and audience members to chuckle. "For some reason, this death has gotten me in my kishkas. I don’t know what it is, something about her that she just got to me, I could start crying right now."
The comedian had been an original panelist from the show's launch in 1997 until 2013. She was eventually asked back in 2015 and has been hosting until present day.
Related: Joy Behar Rewears Suit on 'The View' She First Wore 18 Years Ago: 'I Look Younger!'
This isn’t the first time Behar has referenced her time away from The View.
During an episode airing in February, the hosts were discussing workplace friendships when Behar revealed she was "happy" to be ousted at the time since her friends had already departed the show. The daytime program has cycled through many panelists but it now features co-hosts Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Ana Navarro, Alyssa Farah Griffin and Whoopi Goldberg.
"I always have friends where I work, and if I don't have friends at the job, I will not keep the job," Behar continued. "So, when I was fired last time from this show, people say to me, 'Were you okay with that?' and my answer is, I was happy, because all my friends had left already. So, there was no reason to stay anymore. I mean it."
Related: Joy Behar Says She Has No Plans to Leave 'The View' as Show Celebrates Her 80th Birthday
The comedian echoed sentiments she made in February 2022, when she claimed she had no regrets about her tenure on The View — including her brief termination — in an interview with TIME.
"I was glad to be fired,” she said at the time. “I basically was sick of the show at that point for some reason, I don't even remember why."
Behar also addressed her controversial takes and how her stances on hot topics over the years has affected her relationship with her viewers.
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“You have a power when you have that microphone,” she explained. “People don’t like it. They don’t like it that I’m a powerful person on ‘The View’, saying things that they don’t like, but I’m sorry, that is where I’m at. I’m a powerful person on ‘The View’; I was a powerful person as a comedian holding a microphone. Too bad.”
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