Phil Donahue, a longtime television talk show host, was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom on May 3, 2024.  The award is the nation’s highest civilian honor, presented to individuals who have made “exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or private endeavors.”

Born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1935, Philip John Donahue graduated from Notre Dame University in 1957 and married Marge Cooney in 1958.  Soon after, he took a job as the anchor of the morning newscast with WHIO-TV, moving his family to Centerville.  Interestingly, they bought a house on Cushwa Drive, across the street from Erma Bombeck and her family.  Of course, Erma and Phil both became national celebrities and they started their respective careers as neighbors right here in Centerville.

Donahue’s talk show career started in 1963, as the host of Conversation Piece, an afternoon phone-in talk show on WHIO radio. In 1967, he moved into television, as the host of The Phil Donahue Show, which established a new paradigm for daytime television talk shows, focusing on controversial issues and emphasizing audience participation.

The Phil Donahue Show turned out to be very popular with the local audience. So, in 1970, it was syndicated for national distribution. The continued success of the show across the nation necessitated a move to a bigger market area and, in 1974, the production of the show was moved from Dayton to Chicago and renamed Donahue. Ten years later, it was moved to New York City. Over the years, Donahue won numerous Emmy Awards.  He quit hosting Donahue in 1996, due to declining ratings.

In Donahue: My Own Story, he described his home in Centerville as "as far away from urban anxiety as you can get and still not have a septic tank." He has stayed in touch with old neighbors and journalism colleagues, often attending funerals and giving eulogies. Phil and his second wife, Marlo Thomas lived in Manhattan, New York, until Mr. Donahue passed away at age 88 on August 18, 2024.