Rosie O’Donnell Leaves ‘The View’, Alec Baldwin Scheduled To Appear

The rumors are true ? Rosie O?Donnell is leaving ?The View.?

Rosie explained the departure on today’s show, saying that ABC could not come up with a contract that was good for both parties. As a result, her duties on the show will come to an end mid-June.

“The View” also announced that Alec Baldwin would appear on their show this Friday to discuss the infamous voicemail situation.

The president of daytime programming for the Disney-ABC Television Group, Brian Frons, told ABCNEWS.com, “Going in we knew we would have an amazing year with [Rosie], and that anything beyond that would be gravy. But we were willing to take the chance because we understood what a coup it was to entice Ro back to daytime television. So here we are a year later, and while we’ve tried to come to terms on a deal that would extend her co-hosting duties on ‘The View,’ we find ourselves unable to agree on some key elements.”

According to Barbara Walters (who Rosie referred to as a “legend” on today’s show), the departure is an amicable one. She said on the show today that she had nothing to do with the negotiations, and said that she did not want Rosie to leave.

Donald Trump, with whom Rosie has carried on an infamous feud, has said that Walters told him she didn’t want O’Donnell on the show — a claim Walters has denied. Trump went on Fox News Channel today to claim that O’Donnell was fired by ABC because of some off-color remarks she made while hosting the Women in Communications luncheon in New York on Monday. “Barbara’s the happiest person in the world that Rosie’s been fired,” Trump said.

Walters said in a statement today, “I induced Rosie to come back to television on ‘The View’ even for just one year. She has given the program new vigor, new excitement and wonderful hours of television. I can only be grateful to her for this year. I am very sad that ABC Daytime could not reach an agreement with her for a second year. We will all miss Rosie on ‘The View,’ and hope she will be back with us often next season. She remains for me a cherished friend and colleague.”

Rosie added, “This has been an amazing experience, and one I wouldn’t have traded for the world. Working with Barbara, Joy and Elisabeth has been one of the highlights of my career, but my needs for the future just didn’t dovetail with what ABC was able to offer me. To all the viewers out there, I just want to say ‘thank you’ for opening up your hearts and your homes to me this past year. But you can always find me at rosie.com. Here’s hoping there’s more confetti for all of us going forward.”

Rosie sat down with Nancy O’Dell last September, when she first started on the show, and she admitted that her children were a big consideration when it came to her decisions. ?We had a family meeting — me, Kelly and the kids — and I said, ?you know, I?m going to go back on TV,? and they didn?t get it because they don?t really remember the [original talk show],” she revealed. “They said ?as long as you pick us up from school everyday.? We will have a meeting in January and they are going to vote, because they are going to tell me what they think about how it’s affected their life.?

It is unknown at this time if Rosie’s kids factored in to her decision.

In January, TV Week reported that Rosie was considering taking on her own talk show, and that she may take first steps towards that goal within the next four to six months.

Prior to that, rumors had spread that Rosie may leave the show to work on a ?Nip/Tuck? spinoff, which prompted Rosie to address the rumor on a December episode of ?The View,? saying, “Don’t anybody worry where Rosie’s going. She’s right here.”

With news of her departure confirmed, Frons hopes that she will return sporadically to ?The View? for one-hour specials and the occasional stint as co-host, and Rosie indicated on the show today that she would indeed return in that capacity.