Rosie O'Donnell to Depart 'The View' in Mid-June

According to ABC News, Rosie O'Donnell's days with "The View" will come to an end next month.

O'Donnell was unable to work out a contractual agreement with ABC Daytime and will leave the show in mid-June.  Barbara Walters, who currently hosts the morning chatfest alongside O'Donnell, Joy Behar and Elizabeth Hasselbeck, said that the departure is under amicable circumstances and that she wishes O'Donnell the best: "I induced Rosie to come back to television on 'The View' even for just one year. She has given the program new vigor, new excitement and wonderful hours of television. I can only be grateful to her for this year. I am very sad that ABC Daytime could not reach an agreement with her for a second year. We will all miss Rosie on 'The View,' and hope she will be back with us often next season. She remains for me a cherished friend and colleague."

Brian Frons, president of daytime-programming for the Disney-ABC Television Group, stated, "Going in we knew we would have an amazing year with her, and that anything beyond that would be gravy. But we were willing to take the chance because we understood what a coup it was to entice Ro back to daytime television. So here we are a year later, and while we've tried to come to terms on a deal that would extend her co-hosting duties on 'The View,' we find ourselves unable to agree on some key elements...So we part as friends, and hope that we can entice Rosie back next year to take part in a series of one-hour specials for us like our recent show on Autism. And maybe, if we're lucky, we'll be able to convince her to guest co-host once in a while as well."

O'Donnell, whose outspoken views and recent high-profile feud with  Donald Trump have steadily kept her in the media spotlight, says that her year with "The View" has been "an amazing experience, and one I wouldn't have traded for the world. Working with Barbara, Joy and Elisabeth has been one of the highlights of my career, but my needs for the future just didn't dovetail with what ABC was able to offer me. To all the viewers out there, I just want to say 'thank you' for opening up your hearts and your homes to me this past year. But you can always find me at rosie.com. Here's hoping there's more confetti for all of us going forward."

O'Donnell was previously, from 1996 to 2002, the host of ABC's "The Rosie O'Donnell Show," on which she heavily promoted Broadway shows and featured Broadway performers.  O'Donnell is also a performer who most recently appeared as Golde in the recent Broadway revival of Fiddler on the Roof; she has also been seen on Broadway in Seussical (as The Cat in the Hat) and in Grease (as Rizzo). O'Donnell, who began her career as a stand-up comedian, produced the Boy George musical Taboo, and film and TV credits include Tarzan, Harriet the Spy, Now and Then, Exit to Eden, A League of Their Own, Sleepless in Seattle, "Will & Grace," and "Queer as Folk." O'Donnell, who is a also known as a vocal advocate of gay and lesbian rights, is married to Kelli Carpenter O'Donnell, with whom she has four children.

A replacement for O'Donnell has not been announced.

Visit O'Donnell's website and blog at www.rosie.com.

Photo of Rosie O'Donnell by Walter McBride/Retna Ltd.

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