NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actress and comedian Jenny McCarthy will be joining ABC's popular daytime talk show "The View" in September for the start of its 17th season, the network said on Monday.
Barbara Walters, a founder of the show, said McCarthy will be a permanent co-host just days after commentator Elizabeth Hasselbeck said she was leaving the show after 10 years.
Another co-host, comedian Joy Behar, said she will end her stint next month at the end of the current season.
"Jenny brings us intelligence as well as warmth and humor. She can be serious and outrageous," said Walters, who created the show in 1997 and has said she planned to retire next summer.
McCarty, 40, has been a guest and co-host on "The View," a top-rated daytime talk program averaging 3.3 million viewers.
(Reporting by Patricia Reaney)