Dr Phil

Dr. Phil, as straight-shooting TV host Phil McGraw is best known, and his wife, Robin, have listed their Mediterranean villa in Beverly Hills at $16.5 million. The couple is selling because they have bought a hillside view home that they've been admiring for years. The walled and gated property that they are selling sits on nearly three-quarters of an acre. It includes a main house, a detached guesthouse, an outdoor dining room and a swimming pool. There is a two-story entry, a theater, a gym, a billiard room, temperature-controlled wine storage, eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms.

Over the last quarter-century, "The Oprah Winfrey Show" introduced viewers to controversial topics, intriguing guests and Oprah's friends — many of whom later launched their own shows. Some of them reflect on the daytime queen's tenure. Dr. Phil McGraw ("Dr. Phil") Oprah told me one time, she said, "You know what, I'm like a viewer with a microphone, I ask the questions that everyone wants to know the answer to. " That's what I aim to do every episode. To have that in the back of my mind.

A reporter recently interviewing North Carolina basketball Coach Roy Williams began a question with, "I don't mean to be Dr. Phil-esque with this, but . . ." Said Williams: "Who's Dr. Phil?" It wasn't any better during Williams' tenure at Kansas, according to Jim O'Connell of the Associated Press. When the coach judged a student celebrity look-alike contest, he had to ask then-Jayhawks guard Jacque Vaughn for help. Williams, apparently unfamiliar with the popular "Seinfeld" television series, said Vaughn told him: "You never heard of Kramer?"

Update: TV host Phil McGraw and his wife, Robin, have sold their Mediterranean villa in Beverly Hills for $12 million. The gated property of nearly three-quarters of an acre has a main house, a detached guesthouse, an outdoor dining room and a swimming pool. Features include a two-story entry, a theater, a gym, a billiard room, temperature-controlled wine storage, eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms. McGraw, 60, started his daily "Dr. Phil" show in 2002. He has a doctorate in clinical psychology and is a bestselling author.

Maybe the best way to get in shape for Dr. Phil's new book on finding love [Tell, by Teresa Strasser and JD Roberto, April 6] is to follow Dr. Phil's Ultimate Weight Loss Challenge. Some abs are simply too sexy to resist. MONTE WHALEY Redondo Beach

Dr. Phil, as straight-shooting TV host Phil McGraw is best known, and his wife, Robin, have listed their Mediterranean villa in Beverly Hills at $16.5 million. The couple is selling because they have bought a hillside view home that they've been admiring for years. The walled and gated property that they are selling sits on nearly three-quarters of an acre. It includes a main house, a detached guesthouse, an outdoor dining room and a swimming pool. There is a two-story entry, a theater, a gym, a billiard room, temperature-controlled wine storage, eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms.

I was a regular viewer and fan of Dr. Phil when his program started [" 'Dr. Phil' Ratings Are Ailing," by Scott Collins, Jan. 30]. I found my interest dropping off as he became more and more self-congratulatory and the topics more tabloid. I chose not to listen to the prurient shows and sensational stories already covered ad nauseam in the regular news. I found myself switching often to "Ellen"; she made me laugh, not sick or disgusted. Why is it that these successful and talented people can't hang on to their humility?

Even by the confessional standards of the "Dr. Phil" television show, it was a whopper of an admission. The nicely dressed couple said they had roamed several states as shoplifters, stealing mostly toys, selling them on the Internet and making as much as $1 million over seven years. "I'm no lawyer or a cop," said talk-show host Phil McGraw, his Texas drawl mixed with incredulity, "but isn't that a federal crime?" The wife paused a second and then said, "Yeah, it is." Last week, a federal grand jury in San Diego agreed, handing down an indictment against Matthew Allen Eaton, 34, and his wife, Laura, 26. And, just as Dr. Phil predicted, the transcript and video of last November's show are central to the prosecution's case.

CBS Corp. named John Nogawski president of television distribution, responsible for "The Oprah Winfrey Show," "Jeopardy!" and "Dr. Phil." Nogawski will oversee all creative, business and administrative operations for domestic TV syndication, New York-based CBS said. He reports to Chief Executive Leslie Moonves.

The Early Show Denzel Washington. (N) 7 a.m. KCBS Today Barry Manilow performs; Kristin Chenoweth; gossip. (N) 7 a.m. KNBC KTLA Morning News (N) 7 a.m. KTLA Good Morning America Mel Gibson; fitness trainer Bob Greene. (N) 7 a.m. KABC Good Day L.A. (N) 7 a.m. KTTV Live With Regis and Kelly Glenn Close; Tracey Ullman. (N) 9 a.m. KABC The View George Stephanopoulos and Robin Roberts. (N) 10 a.m. KABC The Doctors Harrison Ford and Brendan Fraser ("Extraordinary Measures")

The Early Show Chef Bobby Flay. (N) 7 a.m. KCBS Today Rob Schneider; Flo Rida. (N) 7 a.m. KNBC KTLA Morning News Zac Efron and Amanda Crew; Christina Hendricks; Cloris Leachman. (N) 7 a.m. KTLA Good Morning America (N) 7 a.m. KABC Live With Regis and Kelly Michael Keaton; Ann-Margret. (N) 9 a.m. KABC The View President Barack Obama. (N) 10 a.m. KABC The Oprah Winfrey Show 3 p.m. KABC Dr. Phil 4 p.m. KCBS Tavis Smiley Pam Grier.

Dr. Phil, as straight-shooting TV host Phil McGraw is best known, and his wife, Robin, have listed their Mediterranean villa in Beverly Hills at $16.5 million. The couple is selling because they have bought a hillside view home that they've been admiring for years. The walled and gated property that they are selling sits on nearly three-quarters of an acre. It includes a main house, a detached guesthouse, an outdoor dining room and a swimming pool. There is a two-story entry, a theater, a gym, a billiard room, temperature-controlled wine storage, eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms.

The Early Show Cirque du Soleil's "Ovo." (N) 7 a.m. KCBS Today Jillian Michaels. (N) 7 a.m. KNBC KTLA Morning News (N) 7 a.m. KTLA Good Morning America Michael Kors and the winner of "Project Runway." (N) 7 a.m. KABC Good Day L.A. (N) 7 a.m. KTTV Regis and Kelly Guest co-host Anderson Cooper; Drew Brees; the "Project Runway" winner; Kate Gosselin. (N) 9 a.m. KABC The View Donald Trump; Tom Papa. (N) 10 a.m. KABC The Doctors Autism.

Re "Voting in the age of 'Dr. Phil,' " Opinion, Jan. 8 If Jonah Goldberg is going to assert that our presidential politics are in some age of "Oprah" and "Dr. Phil," he should be expected to examine, however briefly, all presidents actually elected in this so-called age. That would be George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton and the current President Bush, if you date the trend from Oprah Winfrey's 1986 emergence on the national scene. Curiously, only Clinton gets mention in the column. Goldberg also touts the just-the-facts approach of businessmen as the alternative to whatever this supposed "Oprah" phenomenon represents, but he fails to reference that President Bush is a Harvard MBA holder and former chief executive, nor that George H.W. Bush holds an economics degree from Yale and headed an oil firm.