How I Got This Way

Regis Philbin was born on August 25, 1933 in New York City. He was named after his father's high school, Regis High, a Catholic boy's school. He graduated from Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx, in 1951, and earned his degree in sociology from Notre Dame University in Indiana.

Philbin started his entertainment career as a stagehand in KCOP-TV, Los Angeles. He progressed to his own local shows like "Regis Philbin's Saturday Night in St. Louis", following that as host of "A.M. Los Angeles" in 1975. He also worked on "The Tonight Show" as a page, and soon thereafter, as a news writer at a local Los Angeles station. Philbin also served in the U.S. Navy.

When he joined "Live," he had already hosted nearly a dozen talk and game shows, between 1970 and 1990, and went though a series of cohosts, before clicking with Kathie Lee. He went through a similar trial period when Gifford left the show, finally accepting Kelly Ripa as his new cohost.

Philbin has written a cookbook with Kathie Lee as well as a biography, "Who Wants to be Me?" His awards include: May 2001, winner, Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Game Show Host, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire; May 2001, winner, Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Talk Show Host, Live with Regis; 2001, TV Guide Personality of the Year; April 10, 2003, receives star on Hollywood Walk of Fame; August 20, 2004, sets Guinness World Record for "Most Hours on Camera" 15,188 hours; April 2006, inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame; June 2008, Lifetime Achievement Award from the Daytime Emmy Awards; 2009, Guinness World Record updated to 16,540.5 hours.

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