An empty chair drew attention Wednesday when a familiar television host missed a milestone she normally celebrates on air.
Her colleagues offered birthday wishes, but viewers were still waiting for a firm date for her return.
Joy Behar was absent from “The View” on her 84th birthday as she continued recovering from a dislocated shoulder.
The longtime co-host hurt herself backstage after catching a heel, according to a representative for the ABC program.
She has missed several episodes since the injury was announced last Thursday.
Behar also missed a Tuesday night live taping of the show’s “Behind the Table” podcast in New York City.
Her absence from both events prompted viewers to ask when she would rejoin the panel.
Moderator Whoopi Goldberg opened Wednesday’s broadcast by wishing Behar a happy birthday.
“We want to wish a happy birthday to our Joy Behar,” Goldberg told the audience. The show displayed Behar’s photograph and a birthday message behind the other panelists.
Goldberg then relayed a message from Behar about how she was doing.
Goldberg said Behar joked that she shared a birthday with Vladimir Putin but did not have the “Russian plague.”
Behar’s message then explained that she was still healing after hurting her shoulder. The plague remark was a birthday joke, not a report that Behar had an infection.
The update gave viewers Behar’s own acknowledgment that recovery was continuing. It did not, however, provide a confirmed day for her return to the table.
The show had previously said she should be back around the middle of the following week.
Wednesday’s birthday passed without her return or a new firm timetable.
A representative earlier said Behar’s shoulder was not broken and had been put back in place. The representative also said she was eager to resume her place on the show quickly.
Those statements offer a more concrete picture than speculation based solely on an empty chair. They describe a shoulder injury and recovery, rather than an announced departure from the program.
The original incident disrupted last Thursday’s episode when Goldberg was already away filming a movie.
Sunny Hostin took the moderator’s center seat and told viewers about Behar’s injury. Hostin said Behar was recovering and expected back soon.
The audience reacted audibly to the news that the veteran co-host had dislocated her shoulder.
Hostin was joined that day by Sara Haines, Ana Navarro, Alyssa Farah Griffin, and guest host Sherri Shepherd.
By Wednesday, Goldberg was back and delivered the birthday greeting herself.
She had also attended Tuesday’s podcast event in Behar’s place, despite not regularly participating in that program.
Photographs from the event showed the panel together without Behar.
The sequence of missed appearances made the absence more noticeable as her birthday arrived.
Behar has been associated with “The View” since its debut in 1997. That long tenure means even a temporary change in the lineup attracts attention from regular viewers.
The show began its 30th season on September 8, only weeks before the backstage accident.
Behar faced another mobility issue last fall after breaking a toe.
At times, other hosts helped her reach her seat during that earlier recovery. The program also adjusted its opening so panelists were seated instead of walking onto the set.
That history helps explain why some fans have wondered about her future on the show. Behar has previously pushed back on the idea that she plans to retire.
Earlier this year, she also rejected descriptions of a planned work trip as a hiatus. She had traveled to London for her play, “My First Ex-Husband,” and later returned to the program.
The current absence has a different explanation: the shoulder injury announced last week. There is no announcement that Behar has quit or that the show has replaced her permanently, Trending Politics reported.
For now, her colleagues are marking her birthday while she recovers away from the cameras.
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