Remembering The Great Barbara Walters With Her Legendary Kardashian Interview: “You Don’t Have Any Talent”

Kardashian barbara walters

We lost a legend yesterday.

American icon, world class broadcast journalist, and television personality, Barbara Walters, passed away yesterday at the age of 93.

A pioneer, a trailblazer, a legendary news anchor, an interview specialist, Barbara Walters is one of the most prominent news personalities in American history.

She began her national broadcast career in 1961 as a reporter for NBC’s Today Show. She was elevated to co-host in 1974, and then joined ABC News two year later to become the first female anchor on an evening news program.

Walters worked as a producer and co-host of 20/20 from 1979 to 2004, and also hosted her own annual special, Barbara Walters’ 10 Most Fascinating People.

Walters created, produced, and co-hosted the ABC daytime talk show The View, on which she appeared from 1997 until her retirement in 2014.

Walters was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame in 1989, and presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences in 2000.

And while I won’t forget that she basically called Dolly Parton a joke, right to her face, in an old interview in 1977 (and then again in a another interview), her sit down with the Kardashians might be one of may favorite interviews in American television history.

I mean, it still makes me laugh over a decade later.

Back in 2011, The Kardashian family, including Kim, Khloe, Kourtney and their mother Kris, were being interviewed by the great Barbara Walters for her 10 Most Fascinating People special when she dropped THE HAMMER people still talk about today.

Trying to understand why they’re even famous (aside from Kim’s sex tape), Barbara straight up called them “talentless,” adding that that they’re really only “famous for being famous.”

She said:

“You are all often described as ‘famous for being famous.’ You don’t really act, you don’t sing, you don’t dance… you don’t have any, forgive me, ANY TALENT!”

Hot damn, does Barb let them know who the boss is.

What a way to start an interview, just absolutely body-bagging your guests for being talentless hacks. Barbara was never afraid to say the quiet part out loud. Instead of beating around the bush, she just comes right out with it and says what everyone is already thinking.

It’s almost like she’s wondering why the hell she’s even interviewing these people, and just says it for the entire world to see.

And of course, the Kardashians are basically left with nothing to say, except to admit it.

Kim at least tries to put a spin on it, saying:

“I think it’s more of a challenge to get people to fall in love with you for being you, so there is definitely a lot more pressure I think to be famous for being ourselves than playing a character.”

Kourtney interrupts Kim, confessing that they don’t have any talent:

“But I don’t think we disagree.”

And Khloe agrees:

“None of us think we have talents. None of think we can sing or act or dance.”

So uncomfortable, so honest, you gotta love it.

That’s why she’s a legend.

Relive that uncomfortable yet satisfying interview below (the “no talent” parts starts at 1:35).

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