Whatever Happened To Sally Jessy Raphael?

Publish date: 2024-05-06

Just as Sally Jessy Raphael became a fixture of the syndicated daytime talk show lineup throughout the '80s and '90s, her signature red glasses also made an indelible mark on the genre. Early in her career, veteran journalist Hugh Downs advised Raphael to be normal. "He told me, 'People last in broadcasting by blending in, by being part of the scene,'" she recalled (per the Daily Mail). "Hugh said to be mild if you want a long career in broadcasting. People want people like them."

However, she was destined to stand out and her free glasses were the ticket. "Glasses were expensive, everyone knows that," Raphael told Today in 2017. "They were offering me a Pap smear and an eye test and red glasses. And I said, 'I'll take the red glasses.'" Yet, while producers weren't sold on the look, they ultimately had no choice.

"When we started, I looked at the teleprompter and I said, 'I can't read that! I'm going blind!' she added. "I had to fight to have the glasses. Producers tried to change them. Those shadowy figures objected to everything." In the years since her debut, Raphael has amassed an extensive collection of glasses in her iconic color — nearly 200, to be exact. Although she never trademarked the look, Raphael's glasses will forever be synonymous with her legacy. Necessity is the mother of invention, after all, and in this case, it created a TV icon.

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