Good-Bye, Mary Hart!

Good-Bye, Mary Hart! Mary Hart's 29-year stint on Entertainment Tonight is coming to a close this evening, when her final show will air.

Heres to you, Mary! Before TMZ, Extra, AccessHollywood and other gossip and scandal shows, there was Entertainment Tonight with Mary Hart. A cheerful South Dakota blonde with a famously sexy pair of legs, Mary, whos married to producer Burt Sugarman and the mother of a son, began her career at ET in 1982 by interviewing Eddie Murphy when he was still a Saturday Night Live cast member . In the decades since, shes said, It seems like Ive interviewed the world. Thats not much of an exaggeration. A few years ago, Hart told TV Guide that one of her most terrifying interviews came in 1988, with the notoriously grumpy Frank Sinatra. "I was quaking in my boots," she said, but he answered every question, even about his run-ins with the press. That night, Hart recalled, she went to a Sinatra concert, where the entertainer introduced her from the stage as his friend. Hart was stunned. I was like, Hellooo, I guess that interview went fine!

As we bid farewell to the world's longest-serving entertainment news host, here are some other memorable moments from Mary Hart long and successful career:

Mary and Michael In the late 1980s, she met Michael Jackson, whom she called a masterin total control of every aspect of the production. When Hart went to see Jackson in concert, she recalled, As we walked from backstage into a stadium of 40,000, this shy, quiet guy held my hand nervously. Then, in an instant, he transformed into this wild, magical, larger-than-life superstar. It was stunning to see."

Caroline Kennedy Caroline Kennedy appeared on ET in 2005, six years after her brother JFK Jr. died in a plane crash. I was so impressed, Hart said. I expected her to be reserved, given the tragedies shes had to bear, but she was very funny and forthcoming. She dreads the spotlight and for years she thought, 'Great, let my brother represent the family he's the glamour boy!' Now she knows it's up to her. She wanted to stay private, but that's not going to happen because she's the only one left."

Marie Osmond Marie Osmond and Hart are close, long-time friends. And when Maries 18-year-old son, Michael, committed suicide earlier this year, Hart said on CBS-TV s The Early Show that the story was one of the most difficult shes ever hard to cover, because it was so personal. On the day of Michaels funeral, Hart, one of the mourners, also reported the story from outside the church.

Kathy Griffin Harts known for her inoffensive, low-key interviewing style, but she manages to hold her own even with acerbic celebrities like comedian Kathy Griffin, whose career got a big boost with her series My Life on the D-List. Who is a D-list celebrity? Hart asked Griffin during an interview. Without missing a beat, Griffin said, You! Mary, always the good sport, threw back her head and laughed.

Exercise Videos Besides her work on ET, Hart released some exercise videos in the 1980s, including Fit and Firm and Shape Up, where she appears with a line of enthusiastic young exercisers in pastel spandex. We want you to have fun! Mary says, adding later, You can reset your VCR to zero so you can always find where the beginning of the program is. Now thats vintage.

Mary Hart In Wax In 2009, Madame Tussauds wax-figure museum (Hollywood branch) unveiled a wax figure of Mary in a ruffled red evening dress and brandishing an ET microphone. What a thrill to join the ranks of Clark Gable, Jennifer Lopez and Charlie Chaplin, Hart said at the unveiling. She was probably less thrilled that a statement issued by the museum called her venerable.

Mary At ET Earlier this year, Mary announced shed be leaving ET at the end of the 2010/11 season. Ive had the privilege of spending 29 years doing something I love - how often does that happen? Mary said. Ive reached a point when I clearly realize its time for a change. There are many things I want to do in my life and Id better get on with them. We wish her the best of luck!