Kathie Lee Gifford is ready to tell the story of her remarkable life in a documentary.
TODAY.com confirms that Emmy Award-winning director Nick Nanton and executive producer and reality mogul Kris Jenner are creating a documentary about the former TODAY co-host. The film is still being shot and does not have a distributor yet.
Kathie Lee, 72, spoke about the documentary with her friend and former co-host Hoda Kotb on TODAY March 9. She said her son Cody, 35, nudged her to do the film.
“Oh gosh, I had to look at a final cut the other day pretty much, and I go, ‘How did I do it? And what happened to me? I used to look kind of good! What the heck,'” Kathie Lee joked.
Cody inspired the mother of two and grandmother of five to participate in the film as a legacy project for her family.
“But when you look at your life in total … Cody said, ‘Mom, I know you don’t want to do that. But I want you to, and Cassidy wants you to, and do it for your grandchildren because you’re not going to always be there,'” Kathie Lee said. “And it’s your chance to set the record straight about an awful lot of things.”
“Not that I care as much as I once did about that sort of thing,” she continued. “You get to the point where you don’t care. Small amount of people that you actually still truly trust.”
Kathie Lee said the documentary is “not coming for a while.” Her diverse career has included iconic stints as a morning talk show host on “Live! With Regis and Kathie Lee” from 1985 to 2000 and on TODAY from 2008 through 2019. She has released multiple albums as a singer, been the face of Carnival Cruise Lines commercials, starred on stage in musical theater and appeared onscreen in a Hallmark Christmas movie and other shows.
She was married to NFL and broadcasting legend Frank Gifford from 1986 until his death at 84 in 2015.
Kathie Lee has inspired generations of talk show hosts and reality stars, including Hoda and Kris Jenner. Hoda told her on TODAY that she credits much of her career to Kathie Lee.
“You owe me everything,” Kathie Lee joked. “Kris Jenner says the same thing in the documentary. She says ‘I owe my whole career to Kathie.’ Don’t say that, because I’ll get blamed, and I’ll be thanked.”
Her most recent projects have been books inspired by Biblical stories. Her latest novel, “Nero & Paul,” was released on March 10.
“There’s a lot going on, but these books keep me active,” Kathie Lee said. “They keep my mind incredibly active.”
Kathie Lee also cited Cody as an influence on her writing career.
“This is all Cody’s fault. He said, ‘Mom, you know how you’re so fascinated with these epic stories in the Bible? Mom, let’s make thrillers out of them,'” she said. “I try to combine my love of history, my love of the word of God, with putting on a good show.”
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