Oprah's bestest buddy, Gayle King, is reportedly interested in grabbing a seat on the ABC's "The View" gabfest, but doesn't want to say so because she's pals with Star Jones, too. Jones has been widely rumored to be leaving The View amongst industry insiders, but according to a story in Black Entertainment via Eurweb, the public stance of the network remains adamant that she is not leaving.
But the rumors continue to swirl, and with Oprah's expected appearance on The View today, it should be an interesting show. As for King, already a correspondent on Winfrey's show, word is that she would love to have the job. Says one source, "Gayle really wants the job in a big way. It's her absolute dream situation. She thinks it's perfect, because there are others to share the spotlight with, and she wouldn't have to deal as much with the 'Oprah's Best Friend' label that follows her everywhere. She just wants to be 'Gayle King, television personality.'"
The New York Daily News also has insiders talking about Jones and her imminent departure, even in the face of her and the station's public denials. So King "...can't publicly lobby for the job in any way. Star would certainly get upset about her friend trying to get a job she's not technically done with yet."
Still, the insider adds, "You can bet Gayle has every back-channel entity she can get working to lock up the position for her. The last thing she'd want is to make it look like she lobbied for the job and that Oprah's influence had anything to do with her getting it."
With Rosie O'Donnell scheduled to jump onboard, one must wonder about the fate of the long-standing show and their long-suffering audience.
-- Compiled from wire reports
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