Kathie Lee Gifford opens up about the extramarital affair that rocked her marriage

Archi Biswas Thu, July 2, 2026 at 4:21 PM UTC

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Kathie Lee Gifford opens about her husband Frank's affair. BY: MEGA

Kathie Lee Giffordopened up about her late husband Frank Gifford‘s cheating scandal in a recent interview.

Speaking toPeople, the former Live! with Regis and Kathie Leehost reflected on the emotional turmoil she endured during the affair.

Frank’s extramarital affair with former flight attendant Suzen Johnson became public in 1997 after it was exposed by a tabloid.

However, Kathie did not want to end her marriage and did everything she could to save the relationship. After a week-long separation, she returned home to reconcile with her husband.

“There’s not a day that goes by that somebody doesn’t come up to me and say, ‘I just want you to know I had separated from my husband and I went back. We went for counseling. We healed our marriage,'” she said.

Kathie Lee Gifford took a week-long break from work following Frank’s cheating scandal. BY: MEGA

“My faith was definitely tested the most during the whole year dealing with Frank’s infidelity because I thought that I had finally found my soulmate,” Kathie Lee said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.

Reflecting on the affair, Kathie said she refused to let bitterness consume her, explaining that she had always believed she had a choice to be “a blessing or a burden” and wanted to choose the former.

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Kathie Lee Gifford said she chose forgiveness and reconciliation after Frank Gifford’s affair. BY: MEGA

Kathie also said she trusts her “gut instinct” to guide her through difficult situations.

Looking back, she said that although the past does not always hold happy memories, she now “looks back on things with a deeper wisdom now and if I can share that with people and it helps them, then it’s worth it.” She also revealed that she fell into depression following the scandal.

“Nobody knows what I went through. You feel hopeless and you don’t want to live anymore,” she said.

Kathie Lee Gifford’s husband, Frank Gifford, passed away in 2015. BY: MEGA

Despite everything, she still cherishes the fond memories she shared with her late husband.

“He was a very good, dear, gentle, generous man. So many things about him that I valued as my friend, I continued to value in him as my husband and the father of my children,” she said of Frank. “But the person you loved the most in your life is the person that can hurt you the most.”

When asked whether she was looking forward to dating again, Gifford said, “I am not dating anybody right now and I don’t want to date. I’m not looking and I don’t think I’ll ever get married again.”

Kathie Lee Gifford revealed she is not dating anyone now. BY: MEGA

She acknowledged that she had opportunities to move on, but they did not work out, saying, “Frank will always be the love of my life.”

Kathie and Frank married in 1986 and shared two children, son Cody and daughter Cassidy, born in 1990 and 1993. Frank passed away on August 9, 2015, after suffering a massive cardiac arrest.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”