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Larry King poses for cameras on the red carpet.
Larry King, the award-winning TV and radio host, died Saturday morning, January 23, at the age of 87, per a statement posted to his Twitter account. King died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, the statement said. No cause of death was given, but King had been hospitalized since December with COVID-19, according to CNN.
King’s last Instagram post, as seen above, was a selfie featuring two of his sons, Chance and Cannon. He captioned the photo, “It’s a good night #ladodgers #worldseries.” King posted the photo on October 27, 2020, the night the Los Angeles Dodgers baseball team won the World Series. He was a major Dodgers fan, with his Instagram bio reading, “Fan of: Dodgers, suspenders & Frank Sinatra!”
King fathered Chance, 21, and Cannon, 20, with wife Shawn King, an actress. Larry King filed for divorce from his wife in August 2019 after 22 years of marriage, according to USA Today. King had five children, though two have died. King had his oldest and first son, 59-year-old Larry Jr., with his second wife, Annette Kaye. King had his daughter, Chaia, with Alene Akins and adopted Akins’ son, Andy.
King’s Second to Last Post Mourned the Loss of His Children
Over the summer of 2020, the successful television host shared the news that two of his children had died. Andy, 65, died “unexpectedly of a heart attack on July 28” and Chaia, 51, “passed on August 20, only a short time after having been diagnosed with lung cancer,” he shared via Instagram.
“It is with sadness and a father’s broken heart that I confirm the recent loss of two of my children, Andy King, and Chaia King,” King wrote on August 22, 2020. “Both of them were good and kind souls and they will be greatly missed.”
He continued writing, “Losing them feels so out of order. No parent should have to bury a child. My family and I thank you for your outpouring of kind sentiments and well wishes. In this moment, we need a little time and privacy to heal. I thank you for respecting that.”
King’s Twitter Account Announced His Death
— Larry King (@kingsthings) January 23, 2021
King’s Twitter account shared the news that the talk show host had died. “For 63 years and across the platforms of radio, television and digital media, Larry’s many thousands of interviews, awards, and global acclaim stand as a testament to his unique and lasting talent as a broadcaster,” the Twitter statement read.
It continued, “Additionally, while it was his name appearing in the shows’ titles, Larry always viewed his interview subjects as the true stars of his programs, and himself as merely an unbiased conduit between the guest and audience. Whether he was interviewing a U.S. president, foreign leader, celebrity, scandal-ridden personage, or an everyman, Larry liked to ask short, direct, and uncomplicated questions. He believed concise questions usually provided the best answers, and he was not wrong in that belief.”
Prior to his death announcement tweet, King’s last tweet was posted on November 26, 2020. He tweeted two photos: one, a selfie with Chance and Cannon, and one a box from Craig’s, a restaurant. He wrote, “Happy Thanksgiving! I’m thankful for my boys and dinner from Craig’s!”
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