'The Five' remembers Bob Beckel: 'He really was made for television'

"The Five" paid tribute to Bob Beckel, one of the original co-hosts of the long-running Fox News program who passed away at age 73. 

"Bob was one of a kind, a political legend and a great friend to many of us at Fox and at this table. We will miss him dearly," Dana Perino told viewers on Tuesday. 

"The Five" highlighted some of Beckel's most memorable moments from his "Are you kidding me" responses to his co-hosts, his turn in the dunk tank, his love for Hostess products, his legendary Christmas lights, to the iconic swear jar. 

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"It's great to see those clips because the one thing that was so interesting about Bob is that he was never going to tell you that he was in shape or in good health, but for somebody who wasn't in shape or in good health, he had more energy than anybody I knew," Greg Gutfeld said. "Like, he was non-stop, even with his pretty bad diet and, uh, and these other things…" 

"What you saw is what you got. He really was made for television. You felt like you knew him… We all knew this day was gonna happen. He was gonna get there first, but man, he packed in a lot of life," Gutfeld added.

Jesse Watters admitted he didn't have a "long overlap" with Beckel like Perino and Gutfeld but joked, "I've never been given the finger by a nicer guy."

"What a great dude. What great stories. We like to always say, you know, some of the best times on 'The Five' are in the commercial breaks and Bob in the commercial break was worse than Gutfeld," Watters quipped. "And we will miss him, and we love him, and we'll always remember him."

"Bob was just a great guy," Martha MacCallum said. "He was just a wealth of information. He loved what we do, he loved politics, he loved talking about it, he loved arguing about it. And I used to love- he used to sit on a chair outside by the studio out there, and he would just sit out there on a nice day all day long, you'd come by, he'd strike up a conversation with you. We will miss him."

Harold Ford Jr. said he knew Beckel more as a Democratic operative but also watched him on "The Five."

"He had strong point of view, he was a good, loyal Democrat, but he loved to debate. He loved an open, fair debate. He gave as good as he took… He didn't take things personally," Ford told the co-hosts. 

"I can only come at it as a viewer, but in that sense, it's fun, always enjoyable watching somebody who's comfortable in their own skin, clearly has a good soul and as a viewer, you know, he's a guy you actually did love to hate," Pete Hegseth said. 

Gutfeld later said the "secret" to Beckel's happiness was "his ability to see people as people and not as political entities."

On "America's Newsroom," Perino and Bill Hemmer hailed Beckel as a "political legend" and "wonderful friend."

"He and I spent a lot of time on the train going back and forth to DC when ‘The Five' started, and he used to come over to see us for Sunday supper… He didn't like dogs, but he adored Jasper and called him his nephew," Perino said on Tuesday, calling Beckel "a wonderful person and a very good friend."

"I've known Bob for a long time, and I just love his company. And I love this conversation," Hemmer told Perino. "I love the fact that he would hang out in the breezeway all day long… and he just talk and talk and talk and the guy- he didn't have a bad word to say about anyone and God rest his soul." 

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Sean Hannity honored his "dear friend" Monday night, saying "he and I got along great" despite their politics, saying he "had a key to my house" and that Hannity's own children would call him "Uncle Bob."

"He was always full of joy, happiness, light, sunshine. He loved God and Jesus and we miss him already. God bless you, God speed, Bob Beckel," Hannity said. 

Laura Ingraham called Beckel an "old-time liberal who you could fight with… but we always had a laugh afterward."

Beckel first joined Fox News in 2000 as a contributor providing political analysis and rejoined the network in 2011 as one of the founding hosts of "The Five."

When "The Five" premiered in July 2011, it was only supposed to have a five-week run to temporarily fill the timeslot. Instead, the show stuck around and has become one of the highest-rated shows in all cable news.

Beckel was there during the inception of "The Five" alongside Perino and Gutfeld, who've remain co-hosts of the long-running program.

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In 2015, he briefly joined CNN but later returned to "The Five" to continue his role as the show’s outspoken liberal. Fox News severed ties with Beckel in 2017.  

Prior to appearing on television as a liberal analyst and pundit, Beckel had an extensive career in politics. 

From 1977-1980, Beckel worked for the U.S. State Department, serving as the youngest deputy assistant secretary of state for the Carter administration.

Beckel also served as the national campaign manager for former Vice President Walter Mondale’s presidential campaign, where he oversaw the successful race for the Democratic nomination. 

During his career, Beckel made appearances on "CBS This Morning," "NBC Nightly News," ABC’s "Good Morning America" and "Nightline," Sunday morning news shows like "Face the Nation" and "Meet the Press" among other programs. 

He additionally co-authored the "Common Ground" columns published in USA Today with conservative commentator Cal Thomas for over 10 years. 

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Beckel had spoken publicly about his years-long battle with substance abuse, which he detailed in his 2015 memoir, "I Should Be Dead: My Life Surviving Politics, TV, and Addiction."

He is survived by his two children, who he often spoke fondly about on "The Five."  

Fox News' Brian Flood contributed to this report.