Barbara Walters Had The Semi-Retirement Party Of The Year

In a star-studded event,  former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Michael Douglas, Oprah Winfrey and many others stopped by to help Barbara Walters celebrate her TV retirement today by making surprise appearances on her long-running daytime show The View.

The 84-year-old’s final episode as co-host of the talk show aired today and Douglas, Winfrey and Clinton were among the guests who turned out to wish her well after a career spanning over five decades.

Joining Walters and co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg, Jenny McCarthy and Sherri Shepherd at the top of the show, former U.S. Secretary of State Clinton said, “I can’t believe this day has come, and I can’t believe it’s for real.”

Actor Douglas then reunited with his old pal to reminisce about their longtime friendship and gushed to Walters, “You’re an extraordinary person, inside and out. You have the warmest heart, you are the most generous person I have ever seen, you give the greatest parties and I love you, I really do.”

Media mogul Winfrey also appeared on air to heap praise on Walters, who became America’s first female co-anchor of a network news program in the 1970’s, explaining, “You’re the reason I wanted to be in television. You shattered the glass ceiling for so many women.”

Winfrey went on to introduce a slew of female TV newscasters to the show to salute Walters, including Diane Sawyer, Arnold Schwarzenegger’s estranged wife Maria Shriver, Katie Couric and Robin Roberts.

Walters, also known for her Most Fascinating People TV interview specials, won’t be retiring completely – she plans to continue working as a producer of The View, the panel talk show she launched 17 years ago.

Photo Credit: Debby Wong / Shutterstock.com