Barbara Walters retirement date announced: Last day on The View will be May 16, 2014

ABC's "The View" will say goodbye to Barbara Walters on May 16, 2014. Walters told "The View" audience this morning that she is staying true to the statement she made one year ago, when she announced her intention to retire in 2014.

Walters, who also created the hit program, will remain on "The View" as an executive producer, and will be a "lifelong member of ABC News, contributing as news warrants," says ABC. Walters has co-hosted "The View" since 1997, and has been a mainstay amidst a revolving door of "View" co-hosts. The show most recently added television personality Jenny McCarthy to the lineup, and also features Whoopi Goldberg and Sherri Shepherd.

On May 16, from 9 p.m. to 11 p.m., ABC will air a special program dedicated to Walters' life and career. This spring, ABC News headquarters will be named in her honor during a dedication ceremony, and "The View" will celebrate Walters' legacy in a week-long celebration near her retirement date.

Walt Disney Company Chairman and CEO Robert Iger expressed the depth of Walter's journalistic contributions. "In this business there are legends, there are icons, and then there is Barbara Walters," Iger told ABC News.

"She's a dear friend and colleague as well as someone I deeply admire, and it's impossible to fully convey her impact and influence on television. She broke barriers, defied convention, made history and set the standard for journalistic excellence for more than 50 years. It's hard to imagine television without her."

When Walters announced her retirement last year, she made it clear that she was not moving on to work on another television show.

"I do not want to appear on another program or climb another mountain," Walters told ABC. "I want instead to sit on a sunny field and admire the very gifted women— and OK, some men too— who will be taking my place."

There is no word on who will be taking Walters' place on "The View." Rumors that Katie Couric would be replacing Walters were emphatically denied last year.