By Karu F. Daniels, AOL Black Voices

I'll bet that when Barbara Walters came up with the concept for a talk show featuring five very different and distinct female voices to show up on daytime television, she didn't imagine it becoming the pop culture mainstay that 'The View' has become.

And the controversy-inspiring gabfest is going strong into its eleventh year -- with new host Whoopi Goldberg in the driver's seat and a season premiere set for Sept. 4.

And to help celebrate all of the groundbreaking show's highs and lows, an 'E! True Hollywood Story' special will see the light of day on Sept. 8 at 5pm et/pt on the E! network.

As we all know, over the years the show has played musical chairs as hosts exited and new personalities were welcomed to the round table.

When comedienne Rosie O'Donnell joined the 'The View' in 2006 -- following the abrupt exit of Star Jones Reynolds and the departure of Meredith Vieira -- the show suddenly turned into an off-the-wall, tabloid-ready hotbed of controversy, strife and drama.

Though it's not what it originated as -- in 1997 when Walters, Vieira, Jones, comedienne Joy Behar and journalism student Debbie Matenopoulos set out for with their maiden voyage -- the shock-value induced show pulled in its highest ratings in 10 years.

For the ninety-minute special, television experts, journalists and colleagues of past and present 'View' hosts were assembled to reveal the real drama behind the talk show.

Excerpts are below...

Syracuse University Television Professor Robert Thompson on 'The View' – "The more we became invested in that family, the more interesting it became when they threatened to break apart, and, of course, the greatest moments of 'The View' are when the whole thing is going terribly wrong."

Robert Thompson on the feud between Rosie O'Donnell and Donald Trump – "You couldn't have had a more perfect storm than Donald Trump and Rosie. The whole thing was embarrassingly stupid."

WJAR-TV Providence co-anchor Larry Estepa on Meredith - "Here's a woman who went to '60 Minutes,' a job that most people would die for, and she walked away from it because of her family. She put family first. That was more important to her."

Former 'View' hairstylist Marque, on Debbie Matenopoulos – "I would go into her dressing room and she'd be crying, and I'd say, 'Deb, what's wrong with you? What's up?' She would be like, 'Oh, nothing, just having a bad day.' And then she would go and do the show."

Survivor Two cast-member Roger Bingham on Elisabeth Hasselbeck – "You've got to be continually thinking when you're on a show like 'Survivor' the alliance you have right now, five minutes from now might not be any good. It's always changing so I think all that did help prepare Elisabeth for "The View."

Robert Thompson on Rosie joining the show – "The idea that Rosie O'Donnell was going to be able to share a stage with other people, as equals, was absurd. You knew that she was going to kind of take it over, and she did. Within the first episode she took a deep breath, and she kept going."

New York Post TV critic Linda Stasi on the rocky relationship between Barbara and Star at the time of Star's exit – "Once they got into the tussle and all the backstabbing and everything, it wasn't great for women, but it certainly was great for television. It made for very good television."

Even AOL Black Voices' very own celebrity columnist Jawn Murray is featured on the show. Below are exclusive excerpts of what the renowned gossip guru weighed in on about 'The View' ...

On Meredith Vieira: "Meredith Vieira was definitely like a modern Barbara Walters. They had kind of carved out the same niche for themselves, both respected journalists, great interviewers. I think that's why she was brought on to be the moderator because Barbara saw her as a modern version of herself."

On Joy Behar: "Originally, Joy was supposed to be a part-time personality, but Joy was such a hit with the audience that they began having Joy on every day."

On Star Jones' health issues: "She was basically told that if she did not lose weight, she would die. This was something that she had a hard time articulating to her family and friends, let alone her co-hosts, so people on the show say she retreated and describe her as being a diva and isolated, but they didn't realize she was having this internal struggle where she really thought she was facing death."

On Star Jones' exit: "She thought about how she had been disrespected throughout the process. She felt that since everything had been done behind her back, she would leave on her own terms, and it caused Barbara Walters to have to follow the next day and tell the truth."

On Rosie O'Donnell and Elizabeth Hasselbeck feud: "Once Rosie got on with her very liberal, very strong opinions on all the things that she believed in, Elisabeth was the polar opposite. and they began to have these engaging debates. Almost at times, it came across as if they were about to come to blows. The verbal altercations were very, very intense."

On Rosie/Elizabeth: "That May 23rd show was very intense. Rosie and Elisabeth never spoke to each other backstage. The tension was so thick, you could cut it with a knife."