Ricki Lake Makes Return To Television With New Talk Show, New Style

Ricki Lake is back with a new television show and a new style to go with it, ready to tackle her third decade in the spotlight.

The Ricki Lake Show, a new syndicated daytime talk program hosted by Lake, is set to debut September 10, TV Guide reported. She was just 24 when she made her entry into the world of daytime television with Ricki Lake, a pop culture phenomenon that ran for 11 seasons.

Now at age 43 Ricki Lake is back, ready to again invade the world of television talk shows. Though she has been on television on and off in three different decades, Lake said she’s a little unsure of what to expect next.

“I left my first talk show in 2004, but it feels like an eternity because my life has changed gears so many times,” she told TV Guide. “My kids were 6 and 2 at the time. Now they’re 15 and 11. I moved from New York to L.A. I got divorced. I got married. I’ve gained and lost a thousand pounds — no exaggeration.”

Her show is a bit different than the tabloid, sensationalistic Ricki Lake that made her famous. For one of her first segments Lake did a story on an organization called Dive Pirates, which helps amputees heal through scuba diving. Another covered romance in the age of social media.

Ricki Lake makes her return to television with a renewed sense of fashion, the Los Angeles Times reported. When Lake burst onto the scene at 18 in John Waters’ Hairspray, she was “chubby, a bit frumpy,” the report noted. Things didn’t get better when her show first aired.

“They took a look at Sally Jessy Raphael and decided to copy that and put it on me,” Lake said. “So they put me in a yellow ‘Big Bird’ blazer and helmet hair.”

She eventually realized that the look was too matronly, and gradually changed to an edgier, more modern look.

In her new show, Ricki Lake has the talents of costume designer Dina Cerchione and a team of hair and makeup experts, the Los Angeles Times noted. But despite the talent at her disposal, Lake still tries for a style that fit what she calls a “quote normal unquote” size.

“I was looking for clothing that represents my everywoman persona,” Ricki Lake says. “I’m not a ‘fashionista’ — but I aspire to be.”