Regis Philbin Ready to Retire, Says Tom Bergeron is Perfect Replacement

Regis Philbin is getting ready to leave “Live! With Regis and Kelly.” The Emmy winning show kicked off the “Regis Farewell Celebration Season” today in preperation for Philbin’s November departure.

So who will replace Regis when he’s gone?

According to the 80-year-old talk show host, Tom Bergeron.

Philbin told Access Hollywood:

“Why not Bergeron? What is he doing? Tom Bergeron is not doing anything. He could do it and he would love to do it.”

Bergeron, of course, already has a solid hosting gig on “Dancing With the Stars.”

Philbin said:

“He wants to be a talk show host, I don’t know how they got him on that dance thing. It’s not gonna last.”

So will Bergeron do it? The DWTS host said he’d love to host “Live!” but he has a few stipulations.

Bergeron said:

“If we could maybe do it in Kansas – do everything in Kansas, then I’d be good. Yeah, yeah, something like that.”

Philbin will be leaving “Live! With Regis and Kelly” this November. Philbin has been with the show since its early days and will celebrate his 28 seasons on “Live!” during the “Farewell Celebration Season.”

“Live!” will take a look back at some of the funniest moments from the last few decades as the show’s favorite stars stop by to say goodbye to the legendary funny man.

Matt Damon, Salma Hayek, Jonah Hill, Gavin DeGraw, and Tom Selleck are all scheduled to stop by the show before Regis’ final show. “Live!” will also be modifying its daily trivia game to a sentimental version called “LIVE’s Flashback Trivia.”

Regis Philbin will be missed by fans around the country, but is “Live!” going a little overboard with a month long goodbye?