Meredith Vieira was joined by an all-star line-up of "View" hosts past and present for the special tribute episode on Monday, taped just three days after Barbara Walters passed away at the age of 93 on Friday.
"If not for her, I don't know where most of us will be. There was nobody like her. There isn't anyone like her and like all firsts, she's the first and there are many of us duplicates but there will never be another Barbara Walters."
Those were the words of Whoopi Goldberg as she paid tribute to legendary newscaster and her boss Barbara Walters on "The View."
Goldberg was joined by an all-star line-up of "View" hosts past and present for the special tribute episode on Monday, taped just three days after Walters passed away at the age of 93on Friday.
Among those who made an appearance were Joy Behar, Meredith Vieira, Star Jones, Debbie Matenopoulos, Lisa Ling, Sherri Shepherd, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines and Alyssa Farah Griffin.
"She was contagiously, compulsively curious and I love that about her," said Hasselbeck. "We know how well she researched. She gave her guests the chance to express themselves in a safe way and we all benefited from that."
Behar meanwhile marveled at Walters' ability to create "The View" at the age of 68, before joking about her method for securing interviews.
"Barbara was the hardest working person ever," said Behar. "I said to her, 'Why do you always get the interview?' and she said, 'Because I don't go to the bathroom.' That was the secret to her success. She was a camel in disguise!"
Vieira, one of the program's original hosts, said that working with Walters helped her realize she did not have to follow a traditional career path.
"It's okay to veer off it," said Vieira. "I owe that realization to Barbara. That is the gift she gave me."
Jones also thanked Walters while pointing out one of her lesser known skills.
"The best seat at the house at any social event was next to Barbara Walters because she could tell you anything about everybody in the room," said Jones. "At the time, she had either interviewed them, done a story on them, heard a story about them, and she would dish with the best of them. Let me tell you, going to lunch with BW, baby, you would get all the information."
Jones continued: "She was the best gossiper. She knew how to tell tales and drive the point home. I will miss that more than anything. If you wanted to know the tea, she had it."
