The show began in 1983 as a local New York City program called "The Morning Show", hosted by Regis Philbin and Cyndy Garvey (then the wife of Major League Baseball player Steve Garvey). A year later, Garvey left the show and was replaced by Ann Abernathy. In 1985, after Abernathy married and moved to Los Angeles, Kathie Lee Gifford became Philbin's co-host. The show went into national syndication in 1988 as Live! with Regis and Kathie Lee. Gifford left the show in 2000; the show continued as "Live! with Regis" while Philbin and the show's producers teamed him with several potential co-hosts.