88-year-old beloved talk show host and writer Phil Donahue sadly passed away last night. Donahue, who was best known for his iconic talk show Donahue,made waves for nearly 3 decades with groundbreaking and diverse guests featured on the show.

An outspoken ally, Donahue hosted the first ever GLAAD Media Awards in 1990. In addition to hosting, Donahue won an award and was named Media Person of the Year for “his continued excellence in coverage and support of gay and lesbian concerns.”

Donahue and wife Marlo Thomas went on to attend countless GLAAD Media Awards ceremonies, aiding in the organization’s mission to accelerate acceptance for LGBTQ people. Donahue was honored again in 2009 with a special recognition award.

On Donahue’s passing, GLAAD President and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis stated:

“Phil Donahue was one of GLAAD and the LGBTQ community’s earliest and loudest champions. In the 1980s, he revolutionized coverage of LGBTQ people and our stories on his popular daytime talk show, prioritizing fairness and accuracy when misinformation and homophobia were rampant in the media. Using his platform to elevate the personal, human story at the heart of so many issues including HIV, coming out, trans equality, women’s equality and even facilitating the first ever marriage for a same-sex couple to be broadcast on television, Donahue will forever be remembered as a trailblazer for equality and LGBTQ representation on TV. At a time when other notables were hesitant to even speak on LGBTQ issues, Donahue hosted the first ever GLAAD Media Awards in 1990, where he was honored as GLAAD’s Media Person of the Year. GLAAD also recognized his long-time allyship and legacy by giving him a Special Recognition Award at the 20th Annual GLAAD Media Awards in 2009. Our condolences and gratitude go out to his wife and tireless LGBTQ ally Marlo Thomas, as well as his family, friends, and everyone inspired by his hugely successful career as a storyteller and television changemaker.”

Donahue, which aired from the late 60s until 1996, was pioneering in its inclusiveness. Donahue spoke with everyone from politicians and religious leaders to civil rights activists and members of the LGBTQ community.

In 1990, Donahue hosted the first ever same-sex wedding to premiere on U.S. television. The ceremony featured a live studio audience and Donahue even gave the married couple Michael Marlowe and Wayne Watson the opportunity to field questions from the audience and over the phone to talk about their experience as Black, gay men.

Prior to this, in October of 1981, Donahue hosted an episode titled “Are Gays Born This Way?” In the episode, Donahue facilitated an open conversation between live studio audience members and guests Alan Bell, Ph.D. (author of “Sexual Preference”) and Lawrence Hatterer, M.D. (Professor of Psychiatry at Cornell University) about this topic generally found too taboo to discuss at the time.

Donahue has been dubbed by many as the King of Daytime Talk. Fan and friend Oprah Winfrey stated in 2002 that, “If there had been no Phil Donahue Show, there would be no ‘Oprah Winfrey’ show. He was the first to acknowledge that women are interested in more than mascara tips and cake recipes — that we’re intelligent, we’re concerned about the world around us, and we want the best possible lives for ourselves.”

The two spoke in 2002 about his decision to include his first gay guest on the show in 1968. “I was terrified,” he told Oprah. “Terrified?”

He went on to explain, “If you don’t understand those feelings, then you don’t understand homophobia. There’s a reason for the closet. As the years went by after that show, I got involved in gay politics. And through my activism, I began to realize what it must be like to be born, to live, and to die in the closet. I can’t even imagine it. Gayness is not a moral issue, yet no institution on earth has promoted homophobia more than the church. That’s what’s so ironic about the scandal in the Catholic Church. Here you have the most homophobic institution in the world with the largest closet of homosexuals.”

This groundbreaking 1968 episode was the first time countless Americans saw an out LGBTQ person on live TV.

In 1979 Donahue made headlines again when he featured “an interracial lesbian couple who have had a child by artificial insemination” on the show.”

Donahue was also the only talk show host Nelson Mandela was willing to speak with immediately following his release from prison.

Other notable guests on the show included Elton John, Gloria Steinem, Cher, Gregory Peck, Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg, Robin Williams, Dolly Parton, Muhammad Ali, and many more.

Donahue’s work received critical acclaim, earning him 9 Daytime Emmys and 21 nominations as well as a primetime Emmy for his special Donahue and Kids.

Donahue is remembered by his millions of fans, wife Marlo Thomas, and 5 children. Countless friends and fans have taken to social media to remember the talk show legend.