Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the Live with... show formula has aired under various hosts since 1983 locally on WABC-TV in New York City and 1988 nationwide.

The show then continues with interviews with celebrity guests, musical performances, and other recurring segments, including regular features showcasing fashion, food, health, and lifestyle topics.

[3] The husband and wife breakfast chat program was popular in old time radio, beginning with Ed and Pegeen Fitzgerald, and later Dick Kollmar and Dorothy Kilgallen and Tex McCrary and Jinx Falkenburg.

However, it has also proven to be resilient against similarly formatted talk shows from other syndicators or networks, seeing programs such as George & Alana, Donny & Marie, Living It Up!

The show is broadcast live from New York City, on weekdays at 9 a.m. for stations in the Eastern Time Zone, and is tape-delayed for the rest of the country.

Although WLS-TV had carried the New York-based Live in an overnight timeslot earlier in its run, the show aired on other Chicago stations, including WGN-TV from 2002 through 2013.

Specials have included a Halloween celebration in which the co-hosts wore dozens of costumes and portrayed some of the most famous and infamous names in pop culture.

[13] The list of remotes includes Tampa, Hawaii, Monaco, Banff, San Antonio, Aspen, Walt Disney World, New Orleans, Disneyland, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Paris, Detroit, Chicago, The Bronx, Los Angeles, the USS Intrepid, Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Maui, Prince Edward Island, London, Scottsdale, the White House, Charlotte, Churchill Downs, Niagara Falls, Puerto Rico, Marina del Rey, Philadelphia, Branson, Mount Rushmore, The Bahamas, and the Dolby Theatre's set for the 85th Academy Awards.

In 1984, Garvey left the show and Philbin hired Ann Abernathy, whom he remembered from his time at KABC for her engaging personality, to assume the co-host duties.

[14] After Abernathy got married and decided to return to Los Angeles, Kathie Lee Johnson (later Gifford) joined Philbin officially on June 24, 1985.

Their chemistry proved to be successful as The Morning Show soon became number 1 in the market[15] and went on to debut in national syndication on September 5, 1988, when the title was changed to Live with Regis and Kathie Lee.

Early on, Live matched its local success with impressive national ratings and established itself as a dominant fixture in American television.

[16] Entertainment Weekly described Regis Philbin and Kathie Lee Gifford as "an agreeable mismatch" and their famous banter as "playful, edgy, and amusing.

[21][22] Seven months into Philbin's and Ripa's run, the September 11 attacks on the United States occurred, with coverage beginning twelve minutes before that day's episode would have started.

On November 21, 2011, Jerry Seinfeld was the first of 60[26] men and women to join Ripa at the co-host desk: Reggie Bush, Kyle MacLachlan, Russell Brand, Howie Mandel, Carl Edwards, Chris Harrison, Daniel Radcliffe, Michael Buckley, Michael Catherwood, Rob Lowe, Martin Short, Neil Patrick Harris, Peter Facinelli, Boomer Esiason, Ben Mulroney, Dan Abrams, Rob Thomas, David Duchovny, Pat Kiernan, Derek Hough, D. L. Hughley, Jesse Palmer, Carson Kressley, Carrie Ann Inaba, Mark Feuerstein, Jim Parsons, Nick Lachey, Jonah Hill, Michael Strahan, Apolo Anton Ohno, Joel McHale, Cat Deeley, Tyler Perry, Andy Cohen, Alec Baldwin, Josh Groban, Jerry O'Connell, Seth Meyers, Mike Greenberg, Kristin Chenoweth, Andy Samberg, Mark Consuelos, Lucy Liu, Taye Diggs, Randy Jackson, Mario Lopez, Matthew Broderick, Mary J. Blige, Ed Robertson, Michael Bublé, Matthew Morrison, Kevin Jonas, Tony Potts, Dana Carvey, Jimmy Kimmel, Kim Kardashian, L.A. Reid, Bryant Gumbel, Daniel Dae Kim, Jussie Smollett, and Sam Champion.

The former New York Giants defensive end had begun his TV career on Fox NFL Sunday, a job he said he would keep even though it shoots in Los Angeles.

Live With Kelly & Michael brought in 268,000 more audience members daily, on average, than the show attracted during the end of the Philbin run.

Although speculated to have been a reaction to Strahan's abrupt exit, an ABC staff member stated to Variety that Ripa's sudden absence was a "pre-scheduled vacation".

[33] Ripa returned on April 26, 2016, using the opening of the episode to address the reception to Strahan's exit, and ABC's continued commitment to Live as a series.

On February 16, 2023, Seacrest announced that he would be leaving Live in spring 2023, primarily due to the travel, as his primary residence is in Los Angeles, while the show tapes in New York City.

The New York Daily News gave the program a positive review: "…When it comes to the amount and playfulness of morning talk, nothing beats Live.

According to daytime television ratings, viewership averages 5 million per episode,[45] ranking #1 in all big markets, such as New York City, Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas, San Francisco, and Miami.