Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford seemed to have a wonderful marriage. But a 1997 scandal changed the public’s opinion and damaged both of their reputations. Now, she is setting the record straight on what really happened and defending her late husband’s infidelity. Keep reading to find out the real story, according to the former Today Show host.
Frank Gifford Caught Cheating In Shocking Footage
Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford were at the height of their careers in 1997. She was co-host of ABC’s popular daytime talk show, Live with Regis and Kathie Lee. Her husband, Frank Gifford, was enjoying his retirement from the NFL and working as a broadcaster for ABC’s Monday Night Football. But it all came crashing down after one bad decision on his part.
Frank Gifford was caught cheating on his wife with an airline stewardess, Suzen Johnson. The Globe published photos and audio recordings of the hotel room dalliance. It was a huge scandal at the time. However, Kathie Lee Gifford stood by his husband. They were married for 29 years. He passed away in 2015 from complications of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
Kathie Lee Gifford Defends Late Husband’s Infidelity
Kathie Lee and Frank Gifford tied the knot in 1986 and had two young children, Cody and Cassidy, when the scandal broke in 1997. At the time, the talk show host cited her children as a reason why she stayed in the marriage.
She left LIVE in 2000 and went on to co-host the Today Show’s fourth hour with Hoda Kotb from 2008 until 2019. Kathie Lee Gifford left to focus on other creative opportunities. She penned two books in the biblical nonfiction Ancient Evil, Living Hope series. There’s a documentary in the works about her life and career.
But she still has a lot to say about the shocking scandal thirty years later. While on the Hang Out With Sean Hannity podcast earlier this week, she clarified a common “misconception” about her husband’s infidelity. Kathie Lee Gifford denied that her husband had an affair. “No, an affair is not a tryst at a hotel one time. At all,” she told the Fox News host.
She also said that she never left their home after the scandal broke, despite what some outlets reported at the time. However, she admitted that the cheating scandal hurt her marriage. “He was my hero. It took a long, long time for me to gain trust again,” Kathie Lee Gifford said.
The former Today Show host was able to forgive her husband by leaning on her faith to get them through the difficult time. Unfortunately, the affair, or “tryst,” will forever be part of both their legacies. What do you think about her clarifying the minor details of her husband cheating on her all these years later?
Jennifer Havener grew up in a small town in Upstate New York. She earned her B.A in Writing & Literature from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. She always knew watching reality TV shows and soap operas, particularly ‘Days of Our Lives’, would come in handy someday. When she’s not writing, she’s playing with her dogs, Lola and Ruger
