LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) — Lawrence Zeiger, better known as Larry King, a veteran broadcast journalist and interviewer who was a fixture of the American media landscape for half a century, died on Saturday. He was 89.
According to a tweet from his production company, Ora Media, King died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. A cause of death was not revealed but King was hospitalized in intensive care earlier this month with COVID-19.
On January 4th, a spokesman said he had received supplemental oxygen but at the time, said King been moved out of intensive care.
A longtime nationally syndicated radio host, King became a key part of CNN’s nighttime programming during the news network’s early years.
King’s hosting of political debates and high-profile interviews with celebrities, politicians, and media figures often found King in the midst of breaking news, particularly in the world of celebrity media.
A native of Brookyln, New York, King found his first work in media after relocating to Miami, serving as manager of Miami radio station WAHR (now WMBM) and later disc jockey and newsreader for the stations’ weekday afternoon shift.
In 1978, King became nationally syndicated a nightly Mutual Broadcasting System coast-to-coast broadcast after he took over Herb Jepko’s talk show, providing a platform for King to develop his first devoted national audience.
King joined CNN in 1985 and remained with the network until 2010 when he announced plans to step down after a final episode on December 16th, 2010.
Two years later, he partnered with Mexican oil tycoon Carlos Slim to launch Ora TV, which hosted Larry King Now. The show later expanded to streaming through a deal with Hulu.
King also launched a controversial partnership with Russian-owned RT America, which hosted Politicking with Larry King.
King won two Peabody Awards for Excellence in broadcasting for both radio and television. He was inducted into the National Radio Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 1996.
Funeral arrangements and a memorial service will be announced at a later date, according to Ora Media.
.jpg){kind=link}