Barbara Walters could tell it was time.

While having lunch with ABC executive Anne Sweeney during her 16th season on “The View,” the famed journalist cryptically requested that she jot down the year 2014 on a piece of paper.

Walters had only returned to the talk show in March 2013 following a series of health setbacks, including a fall and a case of chickenpox.

Only a few months after their lunch, Walters asked Sweeney if she still had the paper and informed the executive that she wanted to retire from the television job that had made her famous in 2014.

“She picked her date,” Sweeney said to writer Ramin Setoodeh in his 2019 book “Ladies Who Punch: The Explosive Inside Story of ‘The View.'”

The network was initially concerned about losing the pioneering newswoman who founded and co-hosted “The View,” one of its most popular (and contentious) shows since 1997.

But, as the year progressed, Walters’ health deteriorated, and it became evident that the 84-year-old could no longer work.

“One day, just as the show ended, she collapsed into the arms of a stage manager,” she wrote.

“She had to be escorted to the greenroom, where she was placed on a sofa.” The staff summoned paramedics.”

According to the book, Walters was “concerned that the sight of her on a stretcher would make it into the papers,” but she ultimately consented to visit a doctor and was back on set the next morning.

The co-hosts of ‘The View’ respond to Barbara Walters’ passing.

“Barbara acted like it was business as usual,” Setoodeh observed.

There was a lot of pomp and fanfare as Walter’s retirement date approached.

To commemorate Walters’ 17th and last season, ABC broadcast a two-hour primetime special documenting her career; the network’s news division dubbed its Upper West Side offices the Barbara Walters Building; and original “View” co-hosts like Meredith Vieira and Star Jones returned to the show.

The most recent edition of the Emmy Winner aired in May 2014, featuring special guests Hillary Clinton, Michael Douglas, and Oprah Winfrey. As she said goodbye to the audience, the woman of the hour stated she was looking forward to taking “a deep breath” and “enjoying [her] view.” 61

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Walters, on the other hand, did not remain in the background for long. She returned to the show as a guest co-host in 2014 and 2015 before eventually retiring.

The former “20/20” presenter died Friday at her New York home. She was 93 years old.