Regis Philbin announced Monday that he is taking an indefinite leave of absence from ‘Live with Regis and Kelly.’

The 78-year-old talk show host is having hip-replacement surgery next week in New York.

“I’ve been limping around here, and it’s really been painful,” Philbin said on Monday’s show. “So we’re going to get it done.”

Sounds like Reege is taking the time to recuperate…and to chill out over the holidays. He didn’t disclose a return date, only saying he’d be back “next year.”

No details were given on who would fill the seat next to Kelly Ripa in the interim, but I’m hoping for at least one snarky return from CNN’s Anderson Cooper, who has been hilarious in previous fill-in gigs on the show.

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