After seven years as the host of "Chelsea Lately," Chelsea Handler is ending her E! talk show this summer. When she is off the air, there will be no other female hosts in late night. So here we make a plea to some funny women to take up the torch: 
With her improv background and impeccable comedic timing, Amy Poehler, as TV critic Ken Tucker notes, would make a perfect host ... if only she'd step away from her critically adored prime-time comedy, "Parks and Recreation." Now that the show is wrapping up, our fingers are crossed. 
Ellen DeGeneres is well-received in daytime, and given that when she took the selfie that took down Twitter at this year's Oscars, it's clear she's a slam dunk at night. Plus, as she always shows, she knows how to use humor to strong effect in her celebrity interviews. 
It would probably be tough to find anyone who doesn't want to see Tina Fey lead her own show. She shares the same improv and "Saturday Night Live" background as Poehler, and we know she can write with the best of them, thanks to her work on the small screen and at the movies. And, as she showed with her pal Poehler at the Golden Globes, Fey also makes a fantastic awards ceremony host. 
Besides being a gifted comedian, Wanda Sykes is an old pro -- she hosted and executive produced "The Wanda Sykes Show" on Fox in 2010. The show only lasted one season, but who knows what could happen if she stepped into one of the established brands? 
Like Sykes, Kathy Griffin is a veteran comic with experience hosting her own show. Unfortunately, Bravo pulled the plug on "Kathy" after two seasons. We know her now as the moderator on "The View," but Goldberg knows how to host to a broad crowd, having been the master of ceremonies for the Oscars and the Tony Awards in the past. She also had her own syndicated talk show, "The Whoopi Goldberg Show," for one season in 1992. 
Melissa McCarthy is more of a wild card, considering that she doesn't have any experience hosting. But with the dedication she's brought to her stints leading "Saturday Night Live" and her known fearlessness when it comes to physical comedy, we imagine a McCarthy-led hour would be a riot. 
Can you host a variety show and a talk show at the same time? Like her "SNL" co-stars, Maya Rudolph is a sharp and accessible comedian who can appeal to both genders. If Jimmy Fallon was plucked from his movie career to lead "Late Night," we don't see why the same couldn't happen with Rudolph. 
Yes, Sarah Silverman -- much like Chelsea Handler, should she ever reconsider her stance on broadcast TV -- would be on the saltier side for broadcast TV, but we've seen what she can do and it's funny. 
Joan Rivers broke the mold in 1986 when she stepped out on her own on with "The Late Show," and we see no reason why she couldn't return to late-night broadcast TV. "Maybe we'll see an old lady slide into 3 a.m.," she joked with CNN.
- Chelsea Handler will leave her E! show "Chelsea Lately" this summer
- But the comedian is hesitant to leave late-night TV without a female host
- Handler is said to be considering other networks and platforms
(CNN) -- Chelsea Handler's late-night television show on E!, "Chelsea Lately," will come to a close in August, freeing the comedian to create a different show elsewhere.
The "Chelsea Lately" finale date, August 26, was announced by the cable channel on Wednesday, capping months of speculation about Handler and E!'s plans to split. Her E! contract expires at the end of this year.
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"Chelsea Lately" started in July 2007 and gradually became a signature part of the E! lineup. Handler was never shy about criticizing E! on the air or off. And Handler and her representatives have been intimating for a while now that she is ready to leave E! for another television network or for a new outlet such as Netflix.
Wednesday's announcement made her exit official -- a full three months ahead of her contract expiration date. It is unclear where she will appear next.
"I myself am more surprised than anyone that I was able to hold down a job for seven years, and it was a fantastic seven years," she said in a statement. "I will always look back at my time on E! as most people look back at their time in college. I'm glad I went."
Suzanne Kolb, the president of E!, praised Handler for adding "a distinct voice to late night with her acerbic wit and fearless commentary."
While E! develops a possible new late-night show, it will run "E! News" at 11 p. m.
In an interview on CNN's "Piers Morgan Live" earlier this year, Handler discussed her status as the only female comic in late night and said, "If I decided not to do late night anymore, being the only woman in late night, it would be a problem, because then I'm leaving that space empty."
"So I kind of have to find someone to replace me," she remarked. "So that's what I'm doing right now."
There was no indication, however, that Handler will be involved in the E! development process.
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