Kathie Lee Gifford Is on ‘Good Terms’ With Richard Spitz After Breakup: She ‘Was in Love’

There’s no bad blood between Kathie Lee Gifford and ex-boyfriend Richard Spitz after their breakup. The former couple “parted ways on good terms,” an insider exclusively tells Closer.

“Kathie Lee was in love with Richard, and she liked having someone to share things with, but it just didn’t work out,” the source continues.

Kathie Lee, 70, moved to Nashville, Tennessee, full-time following her departure from Today in 2019. Richard became her neighbor soon after, and the pair struck up a great connection as she got acquainted with Music City. Their relationship seemed unbreakable at first, but there were some things that they didn’t see eye-to-eye on in the end.

“She likes her privacy, but apparently Richard didn’t like any publicity at all,” the source says. “He should have known what he was getting into, dating somebody famous, but he never really thought about it. Her fame didn’t interest him at all, but over time, it apparently became an issue.”

The singer-songwriter and the businessman were photographed in Tennessee a handful of times during their relationship. Since the birth of her grandkids, Frankie, Finn and Ford, Kathie Lee has been visiting her family “as much as possible,” an insider told Closer in December 2023. But at the end of the day, she still “loves the Nashville area.”

While things ultimately didn’t work out romantically between Kathie Lee and Richard, the two are “sure to bump into each other in town,” the insider adds. The former Live With Regis and Kathie Lee host was previously married to Paul Johnson from 1976 to 1983 and to Frank Gifford from 1986 until his death in 2015.

Following news of her breakup, Kathie Lee took a trip to New York City to promote her new show, The Baxters, with her daughter, Cassidy Gifford. The mother-daughter duo stopped by her old stomping ground on Today for an interview with Hoda Kotb and Jenna Bush Hager about the project.

Luckily for Kathie Lee, Hoda, 59, has been an incredible support system after her shocking split from Richard.

“Hoda has been calling her every day and planning a visit to Nashville soon,” a source previously told Closer earlier this month. “Kathie Lee is in a difficult place emotionally right now after getting dumped, but is receiving love and support from those around her.”