STRESSED: Rosie Out at ‘View’ Over Health Scare

Rosie O’Donnell attended the Athena Film Festival in New York Saturday, where she disclosed the details of her decision to walk away from The View, and also blasted NBC’s Brian Williams when discussing her separation from wife Michelle Rounds.

O’Donnell told reporters her doctors were concerned her second stint in the ABC talk show was putting strain on her heart: “My health got a little bit worse right before the holidays — my doctor was kind of concerned,” said O’Donnell. “I can’t really fix my personal life right away, but I can fix my job.”

She continued: “So I spoke to them at ABC, and I told them, and they understood… They’ve been unbelievably supportive and loving.”

The View co-host also had a lot of fun at the expense of NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams while opening up about her troubled marriage, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

In reference to allegations Williams has purposely misrepresented events regarding the Iraq War for more than a decade, she joked:

We’re separated; we’re not living together, and, like most married couples I know, we’re trying to figure it out. And I love her very much and she loves me.

…Maybe this is what’s the problem in my relationships. I see someone and I make s–t up like Brian Williams…I escaped on 9/11 from the Twin Towers. No, I didn’t; I got mixed up. F–king Lance Armstrong liar.

… I was in a helicopter that got hit by an RPG. I forgot I wasn’t in it. I wrote and directed A League of Their Own. Wait a minute, I was just in it. S–t, I forgot.

Rosie also said she longed for the days when Walter Cronkite was the face of news, saying, “Now we’ve got Brian f–king Williams saying ‘I discovered electricity.’ Maybe this will distract from my divorce.”

This marks the end of O’Donnell’s second stint on The View. After appearing on the show from 2006-2007, Rosie made her return last fall, and will now make her final appearance as a series regular in the coming week.

Due to a decline in ratings, it has been rumored the show may be cancelled and replaced by an additional hour of Good Morning America, later this year.