Larry King, the 87-year-old broadcasting legend best known for his long-running talk show on CNN, has been diagnosed with COVID-19.
The former Larry King Live host has been hospitalized at L.A.’s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Southern California has been the site of one of the country’s worst coronavirus case surges.
King’s advanced age and poor health are a cause for concern and place him at elevated risk.
King has had numerous health issues, and has suffered a heart attack, prostate and lung cancer, and type two diabetes.
Aside from his poor health, King must also deal with the fact that his loved ones cannot visit him in the hospital.
His wife of 23 years, Shawn King, 61, and their two sons, Chance and Cannon, cannot see him.
But doctors and nurses at the hospital are facilitating communication between King and his loved ones.
King and his wife are still legally married and said to be on good terms despite the fact that they were in the process of divorcing.
In August 2019, Larry filed for divorce just five months after suffering a stroke.
This has been a tragic year for the veteran television personality.
In August, two of his five children passed away within the span of a month.
King’s son Andy, 65, died suddenly on July 28 from what his family believed to be a heart attack.
He was followed by his sister, King’s daughter Chaia, 52, who died on August 19 following a battle with lung cancer.
King’s granddaughter Jillian, 31, said at the time that the 87-year-old TV show host was still recovering from his stroke and unable to travel from Los Angeles due to coronavirus, and so he had to watch his Florida-based son be buried on video.
King has three other children; Larry Jr, 58, from his brief marriage to Annette Kaye, and sons Chance, 21, and Cannon, 20, from his marriage to Shawn.
In November 2019, Larry King told news site Extra he was recovering and spending two weeks in a coma after suffering a stroke the previous March.
‘I had a stroke. Everything got better except [for] my left foot, and I have been rehabbing that every day, and they tell me I’ll be walking by Christmas,’ he said.
‘I’ve been walking with a walker. It’s been a rough year, I don’t remember anything since March.
‘I haven’t driven a car, but I’m back at work and that makes me feel great.’
In the interview Larry reassured fans that his doctors were impressed with his positive attitude: ‘My head doctor said I have an incomparable spirit.’
King hosted “Larry King Live” on CNN from 1985 until 2010.
Since 2012, he has hosted a talk show on Ora TV and RT America called “Larry King Now.”