Regis Philbin holds the Guinness world record for most time spent on US television. This is one of many records the late Regis Philbin holds. Regis passed away at the age of 88 due to natural causes on July 24, 2020. Almost one month to the day before his 89th birthday. Regis 60-year long career saw in host numerous talk and game shows. With Who Wants to Be A Millionaire being one of the best-known shows he has host. His fans (to whom he was known as Reeg) loved his anecdotes, self-deprecating humor, rough edges, and his unique accident. It was these qualities that kept him on television for 60 years or to be more accurate 17,000 hours.
Career
Regis Philbin Guinness record of 17,000 hours started in the 1960s when his own show b
egan airing. It was a fairly localized success being broadcast on channels local to the San Diego area. The shows he is best known for are Live and the game show Who Wants to Be A Millionaire. These two shows are the one that helped Regis Philbin gain his Guinness record. As the host of Who Wants to Be A Millionaire is where the quality his fans loved were most often on display. Specifically, he demonstrated ability to play off his own mistakes and get the audience to laugh. However, he could also refocus the attention and tension of the show in a calm and collected manner.
Additionally, Regis for a while held the record for the most money paid any game show host. Specifically, in 2000 he earned a salary of $28 million US a year. Regis Philbin Guinness record is not his only television award achievement of note having one of the nominee televisions awards. One of the most prominent being his Daytime Emmy award for outstanding talk show host. Additionally, there is his Daytime Emmy award for lifetime achievement.
