‘The View’ Co-Host Joy Behar Defiantly Refuses To Retire As She Turns 80 – ‘Not Going Anywhere’

Radically left-wing television personality Joy Behar celebrated her 80th birthday on Friday. However, if you’re hoping this means that retirement from the ABC talk show The View is on the horizon for her, you’re in for a disappointment.

‘I Have No Plans To Retire’

To mark her 80th birthday, Behar defiantly told People Magazine that she isn’t retiring anytime soon. 

“I just signed a contract so I’ll be here for a while,” she declared, stating, “I have no plans to retire.”

“It’s really, you know, something that is an important show in many ways,” she said of The View, which first began co-hosting when it premiered back in 1997.

“Sometimes I don’t believe that, as I’ve been here since the beginning, but we’re the most-watched show in daytime. Most-watched!” Behar concluded. “I’m happy to be a part of it. So no, I’m not going anywhere. I’m having a good time.”

Related: Sharon Osbourne Torches ‘Cray-Cray’ Joy Behar For Making Tasteless Comment About Her Marriage

Behar’s Previous Retirement Comments

The New York Post reported that this is a major change from comments that Behar made back in 2020, when she said it was unlikely that she would stay on The View after her 80th birthday. 

“I don’t see myself staying for more [time]. That’s it!” Behar said at the time. “I could be wrong, but the chances of that happening … You know, time marches on. I’m not a kid.”

Though Behar was inexplicably absent from The View on Friday, her co-hosts were quick to honor her on her big day. 

“We want to start by wishing Joy a very happy birthday,” said Whoopi Goldberg. “We will have plenty of celebrating when she gets back here next week. But you know we had to say it because you know she hates it when we do.”

“So let’s say it in two languages: feliz cumpleaños,” added co-host Ana Navarro.

Behar’s Previous Firing From ‘The View’

Behar was one of the original co-hosts of The View when it premiered back in 1997, and she stayed on the show until she was fired from the series by Barbara Walters in 2013. She then returned two years later in 2015, and she has been with the talk show ever since.

In a recent interview, Behar surprisingly said that she was “glad” when she got fired from The View.

“I was glad to be fired. I basically was sick of the show at that point for some reason, I don’t even remember why,” she claimed, going on to say that she’s still not sure why she got fired. 

“We still don’t know why they dumped me,” she continued. “They still don’t know why I was sacked? That was very stupid of them. But they learned their lesson.”

Watch Behar talk more about this in the video below.

Related: Joy Behar Falls Off Her Chair In Bizarre Moment On ‘The View’

Where Is Joy? 

The Sun reported that though Behar was supposed to return to The View this week, she was still absent from the panel as of Tuesday morning’s episode. Since no official explanation has been given for Behar’s absence, fans have expressed fears that something could be wrong with her health. 

“If Joy have covid they should just tell us,” one concerned fan tweeted, with another questioning if her birthday celebrations went too far, inquiring, “What’s going on with Joy? Still celebrating her birthday?”

While it can’t be denied that Behar routinely makes headlines with her outlandishly liberal comments, she has more than her fair share of naysayers who would love nothing more than to see her throw in the towel and enjoy her final years in privacy.

It will certainly be interesting to see if Behar’s left-wing opinions become even more bizarre as she gets further into her 80s.