Regis Philbin really must’ve been “Lovin’ it.”
The late talk show host, who died in July 2020 aged 88, was the proud holder of a “Free McDonalds for life” card, according to his son-in-law.
Mike Schur, who played Mose on “The Office” and was co-creator of “Brooklyn Nine-Nine,” and “Parks and Recreation,” has been married to Philbin’s daughter, J. J. Philbin, since 2005.
On Wednesday, while co-hosting “The Dan LeBatard Show” with Stugotz, Shur revealed the little-known tasty fact about Philbin.
“So, he did an ad, I think, sometime in the early ’90s for McDonald’s,” Shur said on the show. “And as part of the thanks for this, he was given like a gold — not real gold — like gold-colored credit card thing that said ‘This card entitles Regis Philbin free McDonald’s for life.”
The “Who Wants to be a Millionaire” host wasn’t afraid to flash it, according to Shur.
When his wife was a child and was on road trips with her dad, the old man would get so excited when seeing the Golden Arches.
Obviously, not many people, even those working for one of the largest fast food chains in the world, knew about this life of free Mcdonald’s cards – often looking at the famed talk show host with confusion, Shur explains.
The confusion would lead to employees calling upper management to verify, but “who do you even call for that?” Shur jokingly asked.
“‘What is this? Why is Regis Philbin in this random McDonald’s demanding free $3 hamburgers?’” Shur said, describing the fast food staffers’ reactions.
But being the standup guy he is, Philbin would just pay for the food instead of causing a hassle for the workers.
Unfortunately, Shur said it never worked for his beloved father-in-law before his death.
But Philbin never stopped trying when given the opportunity.
“I like to believe that the card itself was more of a symbolic gesture,” Shur said. “But he was just like, ‘No, this is great. I get free McDonald’s.’ But no one ever informed the thousands of employees around the globe.”
Philbin died as a result of a fatal heart attack due to coronary artery disease in 2020.
