'Live With Kelly and Ryan' Was Just Officially Renamed

By Allison Schonter

Viewers tuning into the 9 a.m. ET hour on ABC will no longer be watching Live with Kelly and Ryan. Following Ryan Seacrest's departure from the long-running talk show last week, the syndicated series has officially been renamed to Live with Kelly and Mark, a rebranding that reflects Kelly Ripa's newest co-host, husband Mark Consuelos.

The name change marks just the latest rebranding for Live, which has aired under various hosts since 1983 locally on WABC-TV in New York City and 1988 nationwide. The beloved talk show began as The Morning Show, hosted by Regis Philbin and Cyndy Garvey, and later transformed into Live with Regis and Kathie Lee when Philbin was joined by Kathie Lee Gifford and the show rose to national prominence. After a brief period of just Live with Regis, the show was renamed to Live with Regis and Kelly in 2001 when Ripa joined the show as Gifford's replacement. Ripa has remained a mainstay on the show ever since, even as its undergone various rebrandings. In 2012, the show was renamed to Live with Kelly and Michael when Michael Strahan joined as co-host following Philbin's retirement. Seacrest, meanwhile, took over for Strahan in 2017, the show becoming Live with Kelly and Ryan. The most recent name change came amid Seacrest's exit, which was first announced in February and made official on Friday, April 14 when the final broadcast with Seacrest as co-host aired.

Consuelos made his Live debut on Monday, the launch billed as "the beginning of a new chapter." During the episode, Ripa hilariously quipped that Consuelos would be "joining me today – and permanently, until one of us dies." Conseulos, meanwhile, told his wife, "thank you for trusting me to be your co-host." He added, "Thank you America, thank you – Hayley and Mateo forever," a reference to their characters on All My Children, the soap opera on which they first met.

Consuelos joining the show came with the approval of Seacrest, who said he was "excited to pass the baton to Kelly's 'real' husband, Mark." Seacrest exited live following a six-year run. Announcing his departure in February, Seacrest said he would be "transitioning out of Live this Spring to shoot the 21st season of American Idol in LA, continue my radio show on KIIS-FM and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin Eve, and focus my summer on opening three more Ryan Seacrest Foundation Studios in pediatric hospitals across the country."

Live With Kelly & Mark airs weekdays at 9 a.m. ET on ABC. Ripa and Consuelos first met in 1995 when they were co-stars on All My Children. A year later, the couple eloped on May 1, 1996, at the Chapel of the Bells in Las Vegas. They welcomed their first child, son Michael, in 1997, followed by a daughter Lola in 2001 and youngest son Joaquin in 2003.

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