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In decades, men have dominated late night TV. After James Corden was announced as Craig Ferguson's successor on CBS earlier this week, Kathy Griffin expresses her disappointment that yet another male star nabs the gig.

"I was interested in the Ferguson spot long before it was announced because I had a feeling things might shift," she tells The Associated Press. "My joke phrase is, 'I can start Monday.' " She recalls the response she got from an executive, "They're not considering females at this time," to which she responded, "You realize that's illegal to say in a business meeting?"

When another exec said that the absence of female hosts was "embarrassing" and that women who represent half the population should hold half of such jobs, the first exec replied, "Well, you have 'The Talk'."

Since then, Griffin never hopes much. "I walk into the (meeting) room thinking, 'I'll give it a shot.' I leave the room thinking, 'I never had a chance,' " she shares.

Chelsea Handler was the only female late-night talk show host in the last few years before she ended her E! show "Chelsea Lately". The late Joan Rivers once had her late night show on FOX but it ended after only a brief run.

In other news, Griffin denied rumors that she was pushing for Rivers' job on "Fashion Police" when the vet comedienne was still in the hospital. She told Larry King in an interview, "It's disgusting. It's not true. I know that stuff shouldn't even bother me at this stage in my career. I thought I'd heard it all, but that one hurts because it's as far from the truth as you can get. I would never take Joan's job. Joan and I had a different style. She absolutely was my mentor for sure, but no."

She added that she "would have cleared it up right then and there" if she was asked in person by the columnist who first spread the story.