Television history is littered with shows that tried to bottle lightning, but rarely do they get the formula right on the first try like Barbara Walters did in 1997. When she sat down at that modular table for the very first time, she wasn't just launching a talk show. She was conducting a sociological experiment. The concept was deceptively simple: get a group of women from different generations, backgrounds, and professional levels to just… talk. No script. No teleprompter-driven safety net. Just the "Hot Topics" of the day.
The original hosts of The View—Barbara Walters, Meredith Vieira, Star Jones, Joy Behar, and Debbie Matenopoulos—set a bar that every subsequent season has struggled to clear. It wasn't just about the diversity of their resumes. It was about the friction. You had the legendary journalist, the seasoned news anchor, the sharp-tongued lawyer, the stand-up comic, and the "kid" who barely knew how to navigate a red carpet yet.
The Architect and the Anchor: Walters and Vieira
Barbara Walters was already a titan. She’d interviewed world leaders and spent decades breaking glass ceilings at ABC News. When she decided to create The View, people thought she was pivoting to fluff. They were wrong. Walters knew that the daytime landscape was dominated by "trash TV" like Jerry Springer or overly polished "service" shows. She wanted something that felt like a living room conversation but carried the weight of a newsroom. Honestly, her presence alone gave the show the institutional gravity it needed to land big interviews while still allowing for gossip.
Meredith Vieira was the glue. Seriously. If you watch old clips from those first few seasons, Vieira is the one steering the ship with a sort of effortless, breezy grace. She had spent years at 60 Minutes and West 56th, so she had the journalistic chops to keep the conversation from devolving into total chaos. But she also had this relatable, slightly mischievous energy that made her the perfect moderator. She stayed for nine years, and many fans still argue that the show lost its true North Star when she left for The TODAY Show in 2006.
The Fire and the Friction: Behar, Jones, and Matenopoulos
Joy Behar wasn't even supposed to be a permanent fixture at first. She was originally a "fill-in" for Walters on the days Barbara was busy with 20/20. But her chemistry with the group was undeniable. Joy brought the Brooklyn attitude. She brought the comedy. More importantly, she brought a fearlessness that defined the show's early identity. She didn't care about being "polite" if a topic was worth getting heated over.
🔗 Read more: Evil Kermit: Why We Still Can’t Stop Listening to our Inner Saboteur
Then you had Star Jones. Before she became a tabloid fixture later in the 2000s, Star was a respected prosecutor and legal analyst. She brought the "professional" perspective. She was the one who could break down a Supreme Court ruling or a high-profile criminal case while simultaneously discussing the latest fashion trends. Her dynamic with the others was often where the best "Hot Topics" moments happened—she was confident, sometimes stubborn, and always ready for a debate.
And then there was Debbie.
Debbie Matenopoulos was only 22 when she was cast. Imagine that. You're barely out of college and you’re sitting next to Barbara Walters on national TV. She represented the "Gen X" voice, though at the time, the critics were brutal. They called her ditzy. They mocked her lack of life experience. But looking back, her inclusion was a stroke of genius. She provided the necessary foil to the more established women. She was the outsider, the one learning in real-time. Her firing in 1999 was the first real "drama" the show faced, proving that the table was a high-stakes environment where chemistry was the only currency that mattered.
Why the Original Dynamic Worked
People often ask why the show feels so different now. The answer isn't just about politics, though that’s a big part of it. In the beginning, the original hosts of The View weren't there to represent "left" vs. "right" in a partisan warfare sense. They represented life stages.
💡 You might also like: Emily Piggford Movies and TV Shows: Why You Recognize That Face
- Walters was the matriarch.
- Vieira was the working mom.
- Behar was the cynical friend.
- Jones was the career-driven professional.
- Matenopoulos was the youth.
Because they weren't strictly beholden to party platforms yet, the conversations felt more organic. They could disagree about a movie or a parenting technique with the same passion they brought to a political debate. It felt like a real family dinner where you might roll your eyes at your aunt but you still respected her.
The Evolution of the Table
After Matenopoulos was let go, Lisa Ling stepped in, bringing a more journalistic, global perspective that shifted the show's tone slightly. Then came Elisabeth Hasselbeck, and the "political era" truly began. But if you look at the DNA of the show, every successful host since—from Whoopi Goldberg to Sunny Hostin—is essentially playing a variation of the archetypes established by that first group.
The friction is the point. If everyone agrees, the show dies.
What Most People Forget About the Early Years
There's a common misconception that The View was a hit from day one. It actually took a minute to find its footing. Advertisers weren't sure what to make of it. Executives worried that women wouldn't want to watch other women just talking for an hour. But the ratings grew because the audience felt like they were part of the inner circle. It was the first time daytime TV didn't feel like it was talking down to women. It was talking with them.
📖 Related: Elaine Cassidy Movies and TV Shows: Why This Irish Icon Is Still Everywhere
Also, we have to talk about the physical set. That original set was cramped! It felt intimate. You could practically see the sparks flying when Star and Joy got into it. Today’s set is massive, polished, and bright, which sometimes makes the distance between the hosts feel literal as well as metaphorical.
Actionable Takeaways for Media Consumers
If you're a fan of the show or just interested in television history, there are a few things to keep in mind when looking back at the original hosts of The View:
- Watch the 1997-1998 archives: If you can find clips on YouTube or through ABC’s vaults, pay attention to the transition between "hard news" and "lifestyle." The way Meredith Vieira handles that pivot is a masterclass in hosting.
- Analyze the "Why": Notice how rarely they talked over each other in those first two seasons compared to the "crosstalk" of the modern era. There was a rhythm to the original quintet that relied on listening as much as speaking.
- Observe the Archetypes: When you watch the current panel, try to identify which "original" role each person is filling. Usually, there's a "Joy," a "Barbara," and a "Meredith" in every lineup, even if the names have changed.
- Appreciate the Risk: Remember that in 1997, a show with zero male leads was considered a massive gamble. We take it for granted now, but Walters put her entire reputation on the line for this format.
The show has changed, obviously. It’s more political now because the world is more political. But the foundation—the idea that a woman’s opinion is valid whether she’s talking about the President or a pair of shoes—was built by those five women. They didn't just host a show; they changed the way daytime television functions. And honestly, we’re still seeing the ripples of that original table every time someone turns on a camera and says, "Let's get to the Hot Topics."