“The View”, on ABC, is an American TV chat show institution. Created by veteran news woman Barbara Walters in 1997, the talk fest is a popular staple on television for an amazing 16 seasons. Co-hosts like Meredith Vieira, Rosie O’Donnell and Lisa Ling have come and gone, but the daytime talk show still snags high ratings. Moderator Whoopi Goldberg keeps the ladies in check and makes sure hot topics remain red hot. The ladies are professional talkers, and are compensated nicely, but what’s their net worth?
Barbara Walters She’s the legendary television newswoman who broke boundaries and managed to land interviews with the popular, influential and even infamous people all over the globe. Walters paid her dues in news, hosting the evening news opposite Harry Reasoner on ‘ABC Evening News’, as the first woman to do so. She also co-hosted the respected ‘The Today Show’ with Hugh Downs, who would later join Walters on the ABC news magazine show ’20/20′. At 83, she’s a dynamic powerhouse who never seems to slow down for a minute. She recently published her memoir, “Audition: A Memoir”, where she shared many a secret about a fascinating life. As a TV institution, Walters has an estimated net worth of a newsworthy $150 million dollars.
Whoopi Goldberg Movie stars usually don’t become TV talk show hosts, but then Whoopi Goldberg is not your average Hollywood film star. Goldberg first came to widespread fame as one of the best stand-up comics of the 1980’s. Hollywood took notice, and in particular director Stephen Spielberg, who cast Goldberg in his big, period drama, “The Color Purple”, also starring talk show queen Oprah Winfrey. Goldberg continued her brilliant movie career by snagging a Best Supporting Oscar for “Ghost”, opposite Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore. She surprised many by taking a supporting, recurring role in the hit syndicated TV show, “Star Trek: The Next Generation”, playing enigmatic barkeep Guinan, complete with a cosmic hat collection larger than many a solar system. Whoopi keeps her co-workers on “The View” and fans on their toes by jacking up the daily funny. Her estimated worth is a smile worthy $45 million dollars.
Elizabeth Hasselbeck She went from TV game show survivor, on “Survivor”, to surviving the daily grind of a demanding national talk show. Hasselbeck has gotten some hassles about being a more conservative Republican in an entertainment business that seems more amiable to liberal Democrats, but that’s why she fits in so well with the ladies. Barbara Walters conceived the show as giving women of different age groups and social mindsets the freedom to express their views. Hasselbeck is married to football pro Tim Hasselbeck, and her estimated net worth is $12 million dollars. That’s a survival tactic in anybody’s book.
Joy Behar She’s an outspoken firebrand who also hails from the stand-up comedy circuit. Behar loves talk shows so much, she had another one on Headline News for awhile. After that one was canceled, Behar struck a deal with Al Gore’s cable channel, Current TV. The 70 year old talker now has ‘Joy Behar: Say Anything” to also maintain. Despite being a busy talk show mogul, Behar still has the time to write children’s books, and she recently got married. All of these profitable projects contribute to her net worth which is an estimated $8 million dollars. Say anything you want to about that amount, it’s a nice, yap happy fortune indeed.
Sherri Shepherd She’s not afraid to speak her mind, which is just what her talk show, “The View”, demands from its hosts. Before tackling a TV talk show, Shepherd was a stand-up comedian and successful actress. She had a recurring role on the hit sitcom, “Everybody Loves Raymond”, and has since co-starred with Katherine Heigl in “One For The Money”, which was a big flop at the box office and rejected by critics. Still, Shepherd has managed to do quite well financially, with her estimated worth at $10 million dollars, she’s probably not complaining when she goes to the bank.
