Regis and Kathie Lee go 'live' from Philadelphia

The popular talk show hosts were in town to tape two episodes of their top-rated television program. "The mayor is married to the judge. What kind of town is this?" Regis Philbin joked after racing up the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art yesterday during the filming of an episode of the top-rated syndicated television show "LIVE! with Regis and Kathie Lee." More than 5,000 Philadelphians -- including a small but vocal number of Penn students -- lined up by the steps for hours to try to get tickets for one of the two episodes that were filmed yesterday and to hear Philbin crack jokes at the expense of Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell and his wife, Marjorie Rendell, a judge on the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Philadelphia. One episode aired live yesterday morning, while the second will air today. During the episodes, the two co-hosts tasted Philadelphia cheesesteaks, horsed around with Ben Franklin, Betsy Ross and Rendell, and enjoyed a performance by city native Patti LaBelle. The show was in Philadelphia for a promotional visit. Typically, television shows air special promotional episodes in order to bolster their ratings during a period when advertising rates are set. San Francisco, London and Hawaii have been the sites of previous visits of the show. As WPVI-6 Programming Manager Rebecca Campbell explained, the show "is the highest-rated program in its time period. It is great for the thousands of fans who watch [Live] everyday to watch it in person." Executive Producer Michael Gelman -- a frequent on-air personality -- added that "we thought it was a great opportunity to get to the city, and get a lot of real talented and interesting guests." Other segments of the show featured the antics of "prop-comic" Carrot Top and a parody of the 1976 film Rocky, featuring Philbin retracing the steps of the legendary Sylvester Stallone character. Philadelphia's own Boyz II Men performed during the second episode of the show. During an interview with Rendell, Philbin remarked what a "terrific job [Rendell] has done to revitalize the city and the downtown area." Gifford added, "You can eat off the streets it's so clean here." Later in the show, Gifford struggled to digest a Pat's cheesesteak. As she bit into the sandwich, Cheez Whiz oozed onto co-host Philbin's jacket. But it was quite clear what the crowd had come to see -- and it had little to do with Philadelphia. Older women begged Philbin to "take it off," while wild groups of Regis "roadies" pointed out their favorite crew members. Suburban soccer-moms who drove from as far as California and North Carolina cheered on cue from the applause cards held up by Gelman. Even Penn students joined the excited crowd. While they said they were not hard-core fans of the television couple, College freshmen April Fletcher and Meredith Chiaccio left campus by 5:45 a.m. to get seats in the show's audience. "It was definitely worth the wait," Chiaccio said. "It was cool because in between commercials, Regis and Kathie Lee would talk to us." Although the show targets an older demographic of females 25 to 54 years old, Philbin and Gifford noted their "intergenerational" appeal in an interview after the show. According to Gifford, "Kids write me and say that they schedule classes around our show. It's great." To Gelman, this is no surprise. "College age kids like the [show's] fun and cutting-edge music acts" like Matchbox 20, Barenaked Ladies and the Backstreet Boys, all of whom debuted nationally on the show.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.