Regis Philbin loved his college alma mater, Notre Dame , so much
that when he passed away in the summer of 2020, he was buried at the school's
cemetery. Here's what else has come out about Philbin since his passing.
Just a few days after Regis Philbin died, it was revealed what led to his demise.
USA Today reported that he died of an apparent heart attack at his Greenwich,
Connecticut home. The legendary television host was suffering from a heart condition called
coronary artery disease, which is what eventually led to the attack. Furthermore,
the medical examiner revealed that Philbin had hypertension, which also played a role.
The TV personality was very candid about the health issues pertaining to his heart.
In a 2017 interview with Parade, he shared that some 30 years earlier,
he suffered serious chest pains during a commercial shoot.
Philbin later learned that he had blocked arteries. He would undergo surgery well
into his 70s and made lifestyle changes for preventive purposes, per Closer Weekly.
In August 2020, Regis Philbin was buried at the school where he completed his college studies.
He spent most of his educational years attending Catholic schools.
After graduating from Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx in 1949, Philbin left
New York for the Midwest to attend the University of Notre Dame. He would later graduate in 1953.
As one of the school's most famous alumni,
Philbin was a big donor and occasionally returned to Notre Dame to do speaking events
and interviews. In 2001, he donated $2.75 million to build a namesake studio theater at the school's
performing arts center. A year prior, he also donated $500,000 to his former high school.
He was seemingly very loved by Notre Dame, and he typically spoke highly of it as well,
which made it all the more appropriate that the school would be his final resting place.
On July 28, 2020, a private service for Philbin was held at a church,
and he was buried on the campus' Cedar Grove Cemetery, according to the South Bend Tribune.
As COVID-19 spread around the world at the start of 2020 and a global pandemic followed, various
industries were hit hard and highly affected by the changes made to stop the spread. The
entertainment industry was particularly changed, and even the people who keep it running felt the
effects. As a recognized figure in daytime and prime-time television, Regis Philbin was
especially saddened by how the pandemic shifted live shows, and it took a toll on him mentally.
His former co-host and longtime friend, Kathie Lee Gifford, revealed in October 2020 that Philbin
was heartbroken that he couldn't do the job he loved the most. Gifford said on the Today show:
"He had been depressed in the weeks and months earlier,
because of the COVID ... Regis couldn't perform anywhere, nobody was out and about,
he couldn't be Regis for people, you know? And it broke his heart."
Gifford said that he was also grieving the loss of their friend, who died of COVID-19.
But most importantly, he didn't have another outlet in which he could put
his focus and energy. Gifford said:
"He was pretty much in a depression, I think. Regis just lived to make people happy."
Just a week after Regis Philbin was laid to rest, it was reported that his multimillion-dollar
home in Greenwich, Connecticut, was sold. It was purchased for a little over $4 million,
reported Local 12. In 2019, Philbin and his wife listed their home for sale,
and it was put up for $4.6 million — a significant drop in its value from years earlier,
as Architectural Digest explained. Yet, as noted, it wasn't sold for the asking price.
The Philbins were well-recognized locals of the upscale city and longtime residents who
had lived there since 2008. The couple intended to sell their 2.59-acre property to move to
California and be closer to other relatives, according to People Magazine. In June 2020,
the sale of the house was apparently complete before the news was revealed.
But Philbin would die before he and his wife could make their final move west.
The couple was married for 50 years, and they had two children together.
He also had two other children from his first marriage — his oldest daughter Amy,
and his only son Daniel, who sadly died in 2014, per People Magazine. Philbin first got married to
Catherine Faylen in 1955, but the marriage only lasted until 1968. In 1970, he remarried for a
second and final time to his wife Joy. They met on a show they both worked on in the late '60s.
In the days before the October 2020 premiere of the game show Who Wants to be a Millionaire,
the current host Jimmy Kimmel paid tribute to Regis Philbin. Philbin was the first host of the
popular quiz show when it debuted in 1999. During his time as host, he recorded some 300 episodes
until 2009. But even after his departure, he would still make regular appearances as a guest host.
In the memorial video footage of Philbin,
he is seen on the set of the show during his early hosting years.
In the clip, Kimmel also shared a story of meeting the legendary host on his first day of filming,
as well as an interview segment with the two of them. Kimmel praised Philbin for helping turn
the show into what it became, and for paving the way for him and the previous hosts that followed.
"Regis, no one will ever be better at doing this than you. No one. Never."
He shared that the legendary television host was a valuable asset to the show. Kimmel tweeted:
"He leaves behind a beautiful family and a TV legacy that will likely go unmatched."
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