Phil Donahue, the legendary talk show host, has died. He was 88 years old.

Donahue died on Sunday evening after a long illness, his family confirmed to “Today” on Monday morning.

The star died at home surrounded by his loved ones, including his wife of 44 years, Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, grandchildren and his beloved golden retriever Charlie.

The family statement asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Phil Donahue/Notre Dame Scholarship Fund.

Three months before his death, Donahue was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Biden.

The former host of the “Phil Donahue Show” was emotional when he received this prestigious honor at the White House on May 3.

Thomas, who received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from Barack Obama in 2014, was present at her husband’s ceremony.

Donahue was born on December 21, 1935, grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and began his career in television and radio in the 1950s.

In 1967, his eponymous talk show premiered in Dayton, Ohio. The one-hour show involved viewers and addressed serious topics such as abuse in the Catholic Church, the Ku Klux Klan and feminism.

The show moved from Dayton to New York City in 1985. During the broadcast from 30 Rockefeller Plaza, Donahue welcomed important guests to his show such as Muhammad Ali, Whoopi Goldberg, Billy Crystal, Steve Martin and Jamie Lee Curtis.

Donahue was the first person to interview Nelson Mandela after the South African president’s release from prison in 1990. He was also the first American talk show host to record from the Soviet Union.

The show also featured the 1992 presidential primary debate between Bill Clinton and Jerry Brown.

“The Phil Donahue Show” ended in September 1996 after 29 years.

Donahue won 20 Emmy Awards for his groundbreaking work in television, 10 for outstanding host and 10 for the talk show itself.

“We grew up with the women’s movement, the consumer movement, the gay rights movement, we grew up with the anti-war movement, the environmental movement,” Donahue said in a 2001 interview.

“In the latter part of the 20th century, when I was able to appear on television in public and present the people who had the most to say on these very pressing issues, my name was there.”

In 2002, Donahue returned to television, hosting the talk show “Donahue” on MSNBC. The show was canceled in 2003.

Donahue co-directed and produced the 2007 documentary film “Body of War” about Iraq War veteran Tomas Young.

Donahue was first married to Margaret Cooney from 1958 to 1975. The couple had five children together: Michael, Kevin, Daniel, Mary Rose and James.

In 1980, Donahue married 86-year-old Thomas, who was best known for her leading role in the 1960s sitcom “That Girl.” She also played Jennifer Aniston’s mother, Sandra Green, in “Friends.”

In an interview with People published in May, the couple talked about their marriage.

“The forced quarantine during the pandemic taught us how great it is to slow down and hang out, but then the hectic schedule started again,” Thomas said.

“So we’re committed to slowing down again, and that means curling up on the couch in front of the TV with a big bowl of popcorn. I like to call it ‘Netflix and Phil,'” she added.

In the same interview, Donahue admitted that he misses his beloved talk show “occasionally.”

“Sometimes I’ll shout my question to a guest on the screen and hope they hear me somehow,” said the TV icon. “But to be honest, even though the medium has changed a little bit – the sets are fancier, the productions are more sophisticated and the hosts are thankfully more diverse – all talk shows still hold on to the one thing that formed the basis of the 7,000 episodes I’ve recorded, and that’s curiosity.”

He continued: “I still believe that despite our differences, we are all part of this big global family and that we just need to get to know each other so that we can share the world together.”