Maury Povich

Maury Povich (born January 17, 1939, Washington, D.C., U.S.) is an American journalist, newscaster, and talk-show host best known for his television tabloid show Maury (originally known as The Maury Povich Show), which ran from 1991 to 2022. He earlier worked as a news anchor in several U.S. cities.

Early life and career

Povich is one of three children born to Ethyl (née Friedman) Povich and Shirley Povich, a famed Washington Post sportswriter. The younger Povich attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied television journalism. After graduating in 1962, he worked as a reporter and sportscaster for a Washington, D.C., television station, WTTG. There he started cohosting Panorama in 1967. The daily talk show, which covered news-making events and featured interviews, proved highly popular, and it helped raise Povich’s profile.

A Current Affair and Maury

In 1976 Povich left Panorama and began working as a news anchor in various cities, including Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. In the last city, he also hosted the show People Are Talking. By 1983, however, he was back in Washington at WTTG, cohosting Panorama and serving as an evening news anchor. However, in 1986 the channel became part of media magnate Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Broadcasting Company. Povich then moved to New York City, where he helped inaugurate the television newsmagazine show A Current Affair (1986–96). As host, he offered to his audience infotainment, a combination of news, gossip, and scandalous drama intended as entertainment.

In 1990 Povich left A Current Affair to host his own television talk show, The Maury Povich Show, which began airing the following year. The tabloid show featured everyday individuals who were involved with some type of social issue, such as teenage pregnancy, abusive relationships, adultery, or bullying. The show changed its name to Maury in 1998 but kept the same talk-show format. Through the years, however, the program began to get more sensational, and by the early 21st century many of the episodes were focusing on paternity issues. Povich’s tagline “You are (are not) the father!”—deployed when he was announcing the results of a paternity test—became well known even outside the show’s viewing audience. In 2022 the show ended after more than 30 years.

Acting and other activities

Povich’s other interests include his own production company, MoPo Productions, Inc., which he started in New York City in 1991 so that he could produce The Maury Povich Show. He also occasionally acted, appearing as himself on such TV shows as Wings, 30 Rock, How I Met Your Mother, and Black-ish. He also had a small role in Tyler Perry’s film Madea’s Big Happy Family (2011).

In 2007 Povich founded the weekly newspaper the Flathead Beacon, which covers stories about and of interest to residents of Flathead Valley, Montana, where Povich owned a home with his second wife, journalist Connie Chung. The paper initially offered print and online editions, but in 2023 it became solely a digital publication. His autobiography, Current Affairs: A Life on the Edge, written with Ken Gross, was published in 1991.