CNN seeks replacement for King

July 1, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

Associated Press

NEW YORK

CNN is preparing for a summertime search to find the successor to Larry King, who announced suddenly that he’s leaving the show that has been the centerpiece of the news network’s lineup for 25 years.

Even though the host is changing, CNN will keep to the idea of a provocative interview show with newsmakers, CNN U.S. President Jon Klein said.

“Nobody else does it,” he said. “It’s an important tool in the arsenal, and we want to keep it going.”

King’s announcement Tuesday came a couple of weeks after he celebrated his 25th anniversary with a week of shows interviewing President Barack Obama, LeBron James, Bill Gates and Lady Gaga — precisely the unique blend of stars and statesmen he considered the signature of “Larry King Live.”

King said he will continue to do occasional specials for CNN after stepping down in the fall. He was already lobbying for guests for his final week Tuesday, extracting a promise to appear from ABC’s Diane Sawyer when she called in to his show to congratulate him.

The longtime radio host was a pioneer in cable television. From the first show, on which he interviewed then-New York Gov. Mario Cuomo, King’s desk was considered a valued spot for anyone interested in talking to the nation. King’s interview style was plainspoken, and critics would suggest occasionally ill-pre-pared, but he was good at making his guests feel comfortable.

Klein said King was a pioneer.

“He lured so many people to this new frontier of cable back before anybody understood what it was all about,” said Klein, who called King a “living, breathing Hall of Famer who is still doing the work.”

As cable news audiences gravitated toward politically pointed shows and newsmakers found many more outlets for interviews in recent years, King slipped in the ratings behind Fox News Channel and MSNBC — two networks that didn’t exist when he first turned on his TV microphone. During his interview with Lady Gaga, the 76-year-old broadcast veteran had people wondering if he was really connecting with a pop star a half-century his junior.

King said he felt no pressure from CNN to leave. He said he began thinking about stepping down as a plane flew him home to Los Angeles from Akron, where he interviewed James, and he reflected on his big-name guests of the week.

“I said, ‘I can’t top this,’” King recalled in an interview Tuesday.

“I’m tired of the nightly grind,” he said. “I do want to do other things, but I want to stay at CNN in some way ... . There’s a case of great mixed emotions.”

King told his staff Tuesday during a conference call he referred to as “one of the saddest 10 minutes of my life.”

CNN is in the midst of remaking its prime-time lineup and last week announced that former New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer and conservative columnist Kathleen Parker would co-host an 8 p.m. show on politics and current events.