Kathie Lee's Successor, Finally?

By Stephen M. Silverman

05/28/1998 at 12:00 AM EDT

It's looking very likely that the successor to Kathie Lee Gifford's old job opposite Regis Philbin on "Live!" is about to be filled. Disney, which produces the syndicated daytime show, has reportedly registered the domain name regisandkellylive.com. So, who is Kelly? That would be Kelly Ripa, of the ABC soap "All My Children." An official announcement from the network is expected on Monday, say media reports. Since September (Kathie Lee left in June after 15 years on the show), Ripa has filled in as co-host several times, and announced while serving as a guest host in November that she was pregnant. On "AMC," on which she has appeared since 1990, she plays Hayley Vaughn Santos and has twice been nominated for daytime Emmys. Other possible replacements who had been mentioned as being in the running since last summer included CNBC financial reporter Maria Bartiromo and Philbin's wife, Joy. Contacted by the Associated Press, "Live" spokeswoman Debbie Dolins said that she could not comment on Gifford's successor or even if there would be an announcement come Monday.