REGIS Philbin spoke lovingly about his late brother Frank yesterday on “Live with Regis & Kelly.”
It was the first time in years that Reege publicly mentioned his beloved kid brother, his only sibling, who passed away last weekend.
“I never talked about him because he was a very private guy,” Reege said. “I’ve respected that all these years.”
Frank Philbin, 55, a veteran pilot, died after a two-year battle with lymphoma. He’s survived by his wife, Cathy.
Reege attended Frank’s funeral and was off from “Live” Tuesday and Wednesday, returning yesterday when he talked about Frank at the top of the show.
“It was quite a shock to the whole family . . . it was one of those things that’s hard to explain,” he said.
“He was a lot younger than I was. I was at Notre Dame when he was born, so I kind of grew up not knowing him because I was out in Hollywood knocking on doors when he was in grammar school.
“He turned out to be a terrific young guy.”
Reege said Frank developed his lifelong passion for flying after being taken up in a Piper Cub by one of Reege’s retired Marine pals, jet pilot Bill Rankin.
Frank, who was 20 years Reege’s junior, was 11.
“When he came down, Frank was amazed, overwhelmed,” he said. ” ‘That’s what I want to be!’ So his whole life was pointed toward that.”
Frank spent seven years as an Air Force pilot before embarking on a 25-year career as a pilot for Delta Air Lines.
Unlike Reege, Frank shunned the spotlight – and even got angry at his brother when Reege mentioned him on the air.
“Once, years ago, when I was still working in Hollywood, I mentioned that he was a pilot in the Air Force, a captain. Oh boy did I get chewed out,” Reege said. “He said, ‘Please, I don’t want to be mentioned.’ ”
Reege said he noticed something different about Frank two- and-a-half years ago when “Live” traveled to Chicago.
“He always had a boyish look and he looked different to me. I said, ‘Frank, is everything all right?’ He said, ‘Yeah, everything’s fine. I have a little pain in my neck and lower back.’ ”
Weeks later, Frank was diagnosed with cancer of the lymph nodes.
“They said it’s incurable, can’t cure it, maybe you’ll live a couple more years,” Reege said. “They tried everything. They tried chemotherapies, stem cells. Everything. And nothing worked.
“About two weeks ago it slipped into his liver and they sent him home from Northwestern University Hospital.
“The funeral was at the same church where Frank was married. The same priest. I was one of the best men [at Frank’s wedding].
“It was quite an emotional experience.”
Reege then held up a picture of Frank and his wife, Cathy.
“I have a picture of him. I hope he doesn’t mind,” he said. “Nice picture. Wonderful guy.