Larry King's sons have shared snippets of their family life as they paid tribute to the veteran talk show host who died at 87 on Saturday (Jan 23).

In a joint statement released a few hours after King's death, and which was also posted on his social-media accounts, his three surviving children said they are heartbroken as they mourn his death with their extended family.

The statement was signed by Larry Jr, 59, Chance, 21, and Cannon, 20.

"The world knew Larry King as a great broadcaster and interviewer, but to us he was 'dad'," they said in the statement.

"He was the man who lovingly obsessed over our daily schedules and our well-being, and who took such immense pride in our accomplishments - large, small, or imagined," they continued.

The sons said they knew without a doubt that King loved his children more than life itself.

"He was an amazing father, and he was fiercely loyal to those lucky enough to call him a friend. We will miss him every single day of our lives," they added.

King was married eight times to seven women, including to third wife Alene Akins, formerly a Playboy bunny, twice.

He was briefly married to second wife Annette Kaye, who gave birth to his son, Larry Jr, in 1961.

King adopted Akins' son Andy in 1962, and had a second child, daughter Chaia, with her before they divorced again in 1972.

He had two sons - Chance and Cannon - with seventh wife, Shawn Southwick, whom he married in 1997.

King filed for divorce from Southwick, now 61, in 2010 before they reconciled three months later. He filed for divorce again in August 2019.

King's son Andy died from a heart attack at 65 in July 2020, and daughter Chaia died from lung cancer at 51 in August 2020.

King also left behind nine grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.