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by Hoda Kotb


  One morning, I was filling in on the nine o’clock hour of Today, preparing to interview a guest about a serious topic I’ve since forgotten. In the two-minute break, I was saying hello to the guest and looking over my notes.

  Right then, Amy walked up and said, “They think you’re boring.”

  Stunned, I said, “What?”

  “They think you’re boring. Be the girl you are in my office.”

  Standby!

  And we were live.

  And there I went, boring me, interviewing some guest about who knows what, because I was wondering how not to be boring during a serious interview. What the hell just happened?! I got Amy-ed. That’s what happened. And enlightened. Boy, I would have never guessed that was the “knock” on me. I always felt like I was being safe, following the rules, getting it right. Who wouldn’t want that in a journalist? As I thought about it, NBC never told me anything was great or anything was bad. Just solid. No traction. In my defense, I guess I was trying to navigate between what I know now as serious Dateline Hoda and fun Today show Hoda. The compromise, though, was safe Hoda. (And apparently, boring Hoda.) In her office, Amy saw someone who could handle the new fourth hour. She wanted me to see it, and she wanted others to see it, too.

  Serendipitously, the New Me talk I had with my bosses about the fourth hour was getting reenforced by Amy’s behind-the-scenes push for me for the job. She had been promoted to oversee the new fourth hour. Amy says this is how a meeting about the fourth hour played out with the NBC bosses:

  “I think Hoda would be good for the fourth hour,” said Amy.

  Hmm. The bosses said they weren’t sure.

  “Strap on your vaginas, boys, and listen to me,” said the pistol.

  Thankfully, Jim Bell, the new executive producer of the Today show, backed me, too. A few weeks later, I got a call from Steve Capus’s assistant saying Steve wanted me to come to his office. I raced over.

  He said, “I have a question for you, Hoda. Do you want to host the fourth hour of the Today show?”

  Yes! Yes! Yes!

  I called Amy to let her know the news. Her response was hilarious—a mix of happiness, sarcasm, and pride: “You were wandering the halls of NBC for nine years before I came along.” Amy still says that now when she sees me, the former hapless nomad of NBC.

  17

  THE FOURTH HOUR

  When the fourth hour of the Today show hit the airwaves, the couch cushions were covered by news gals: Ann Curry, Natalie Morales, and me. We were basically all the same girl in terms of our willingness to give, or in this case, not give personal opinions about topics. We’re just not wired like that (and for good reason), when it comes to the impartial news business. But this fourth hour was supposed to be about discussing topics in a loose and fun way. Yet for us, any hint of an opinion felt like we were not maintaining the “brand” of NBC and practicing solid journalism. Sometimes we added new folks to the couch, like Today show correspondent Tiki Barber or celebrity chef Giada De Laurentiis. But no one was drawing anyone out, and that was a recipe for dull on many days. This new adventure was quite a challenge, from what to say to what to wear.

  One month into the show, Stacy London, fashion consultant and cohost of TLC’s What Not to Wear, was brought in to help me. I’d never worked on a daily program where fashionable clothes were required. I knew I did not have enough clothes. Look, I’ve just never been a shopper. Clothes aren’t my thing. I find a few things I love, and I wear the crap out of them. During my fashion intervention with Stacy (which aired on our fourth hour), we showcased how clothes-blind I am by using a revealing montage of my overexposed orange sweater (which I still love!):

  Me on the Air: Whenever I got the call to fill in on the Today show, I’d think, I know what I’m going to wear tomorrow. I’ll wear my orange sweater.

  Video Archive: Kotb wears orange sweater as she sits on Today show couch with Al Roker and Natalie Morales. Roker says, “Hoda’s got on her lucky sweater . . .”

  Video Archive: Kotb with Matt Lauer in Ireland as they hold mugs of beer and toast as she wears the same “lucky sweater.”

  Cheers to my orange sweater!

  Good lord. What can I say. That’s just me.

  So, Stacy took me shopping at Saks Fifth Avenue (just like squeaky-pants Lisa!) and offered advice on finding clothes that flattered my skin tone, body type, and age.

  We got my clothes fixed, but the rest of the ensemble was still a work in progress. We did our best each morning to create a chattier atmosphere. High-energy Amy Rosenblum was our fourth-hour leader, and she was constantly out on the floor, flailing her arms and giving us direction. She created several brilliant franchises for our hour, like “The Joy Fit Club” (someone who’d lost 100 pounds or more) and the “Ambush Makeover” (someone from the crowd is pulled into the studio for an instant makeover).

  One afternoon, Amy and I were eating lunch at Michael’s, a popular Midtown restaurant. I happened to look across the room and see a beautiful woman who I thought was Kathie Lee Gifford. “Amy, is that Kathie Lee Gifford?” I knew her only from watching Live with Regis and Kathie Lee years earlier.

  Amy looked over and confirmed, “Yes! That’s her.” Amy’s wheels began spinning. “We should have her cohost the show!”

  I thought it was a fun idea. So we walked over to Kathie Lee’s table, where she was sitting with a friend and we introduced ourselves. “We miss you on TV, Kathie Lee! How would you like to cohost our show in November?”

  Kathie Lee was very polite and told us she’d ask her assistant (and closest friend), Christine, to check her schedule. A few days later, Christine contacted NBC to confirm that Kathie Lee was available to cohost for a morning. We were very excited!

  • • •

  On November 14, 2007, Ann, Natalie, and I made room on the couch for Kathie Lee. None of us thought to strap on a seat belt. We should have, because instantly, you could feel the show lurch—in a good direction. As if someone had sprinkled in the perfect spice to make our mix more delicious. The fun began the minute we went live.

  ME:

  How does it feel waking up so early again?

  KLG:

  Oh, you know I came in from Connecticut and I was thinking, How did I do this all those years? But then you get here and people start primping you and telling you how great you look. That’s how I did it—by people lying to me the entire time.

  As the cameras rolled, so too did Kathie Lee—with everything from discussing the Drew Peterson case, to cougars who date younger men, to fielding questions from the audience.

  WOMAN:

  I want to know what you do to stay in shape.

  KLG:

  Well, thank you. I have gained about ten pounds since I left Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, and so I wear those Spanx things that are so great. But I do Pilates every day and try to walk two miles a day. And then I have a smart-mouthed son that I chase around. I actually broke my finger the other day, chasing him. So, you know, I think having children still at home gives me a reason to get up in the morning, too. Although I am creaky in the morning. I’m very gnarly. I’m becoming gnarly.

  We were all in awe of her ability to let it fly. She brought exactly what our hour needed. She didn’t have the shackles of news; she said what she thought (her favorite line is “I don’t give a rip!”), and she’s a twenty-year veteran of live talk television.

  That morning, NBC correspondent Janet Shamlian joined us for a segment on creating a lovely holiday photo card. She got a double shot of Kathie Lee.

  JANET:

  Every year I think, We didn’t get it, it didn’t work, no one was looking at the camera, and then this year . . .

  ME:

  The big reveal . . . let’s see . . .

  JANET:

  We got one! [We show a shot of Janet’s Christmas photo card.]

  ME:

  Yay!

  KLG:

  Gorgeous.

  JANET:

  This year�
�s holiday card.

  ME:

  Everybody’s smiling!

  KLG:

  It’s a little too much cleavage for Christmas, but maybe that’s just me.

  ME:

  All right. [Nervous laugh]

  KLG:

  More of a Happy New Year card . . .

  The crowd and crew exploded into laughter, but we news gals were a bit nervous. Did she just say “cleavage” on our show?! We were shocked. It seemed like we’d go to news jail just because we were in the same room with that word. Boy, were we wrong. After the show, a man who rarely crosses the street crossed the street. Phil Griffin, a big gun in the NBC News Division, walked over from his building to 30 Rock and into Studio 1A. He said, “I love this show.”

  I knew something big was happening. As Kathie Lee was leaving, I joked with her, “See you tomorrow.” She laughed.

  I thought surely she must have enjoyed tapping into her gift again.

  18

  KATHIE LEE

  After Kathie Lee’s visit, I continued working on Dateline stories and cohosting the fourth hour. Ann was extremely busy with a grueling schedule, hosting four hours of the Today show plus covering stories all over the world. Natalie was promoted to cohost of the nine o’clock hour and was also the national correspondent. I began to hear through back channels that NBC was talking with Kathie Lee about permanently cohosting the fourth hour alongside me. Among other concerns about reentering TV after an eight-year hiatus, she was adamant about getting to know me better before she signed on for the job. A lunch was set up where we could relax and talk.

  Let’s just say, somewhere over the Rainbow Room, the deal was basically sealed. NBC did not want any eyes on our meeting, so I was brought up a back way into the Rainbow Room. (It’s closed now, but at the time it was a historic, upscale restaurant and nightclub on the sixty-fifth floor of the GE Building in Rockefeller Center overlooking Midtown Manhattan.) Kathie Lee was also escorted up through a secret entrance. Seems excessive, but the Peacock knows best. Once we sat down and the food was served and the wine was poured, the clock took a lunch break, too. I don’t know what happened, but time forgot to register, and suddenly our afternoon lunch turned into predinner preparations unfolding all around us. We were four hours into our meeting! Kathie Lee had a million interesting stories, I opened up about my breast cancer and divorce and she sang to me in the restaurant. She told me about the “Everyone Has a Story” idea she had for the show (a segment we now feature monthly), and I was completely sold. We laughed, we cried, we connected. I felt like she was real.

  • • •

  A few days later, Kathie Lee invited me to her house in Connecticut to meet Frank (whom she always refers to as Frank Gifford) and her kids. Again, it was important for her to gauge our compatibility and connection before she came on board. When I arrived for dinner, I was, of course, overwhelmed by the beauty of her home. But, at the risk of sounding corny, I was more blown away by whom I met there. I loved Frank instantly. He was kind, funny, gracious, fit, and as I would learn over the months, bred with those old school manners you don’t find much anymore. I’ll never forget watching him at a work lunch we all attended several years ago and thinking, This is a real man.

  The event was for the Salvation Army and Kathie Lee was the MC. We NBC folks had our own table, and our senior producer, Tammy Filler, was arriving late. As she walked in and was maneuvering through the crowd toward the table, Frank got up from his seat, scooted around, and pulled out Tammy’s chair. He tucked her in and walked back to his seat. The telling part was that Kathie Lee didn’t look at him, like, “Oh, Frank, thank you!” Rather, it was just known that this is what he does—this is who he is all the time. Frank 101.

  Before dinner at their house that night, Frank and I chatted about his days sportscasting on Monday Night Football. After a few minutes, he pointed at Kathie Lee and cooed, “She’s a legend, this one. She is the most loyal person I’ve ever met and the most trustworthy. I don’t know you, but if you trust her and she trusts you, this will work.” That was the biggest takeaway for me that night. Frank basically said that when Kathie Lee is all in, she’s really in. And I can see that. She’s surrounded by long-term relationships. All the people Kathie Lee loves have been in her life for more than twenty years. Her driver, her assistant, her closest friends. Loyalty and commitment are huge to her. I now understood our lunch at the Rainbow Room and dinner at her home.

  On a side note: I’ve since seen many examples of Kathie Lee’s loyalty to friends and family. One evening, we were in the city together listening to cabaret. A random man approached us and began talking to her. Somehow, in passing, the man said how much he did not like watching Bill O’Reilly on television. Kathie Lee told him that, in fact, Bill was a friend of hers. Well, the man just kept on, saying very negative things about Bill. I continued to watch as Kathie Lee politely but firmly reiterated her point to the man. She touched his arm, looked him in the eye and said again that Bill O’Reilly was a friend of hers. She could have simply listened to his rant and let it go. But instead, she worked to kindly stand him down and stand up for her friend. Loyalty.

  KLG and me in Ocean Reef, Florida, 2009

  On top of all that good stuff during the Gifford dinner, I liked Kathie Lee’s kids. They’re smart, fun, and polite. If Kathie Lee had her way, Cody’s first word would’ve been “please” and Cassidy’s “thank you.” She and Frank were determined to raise their kids well and it shows. On the drive home that night, I felt like she and I could work. Nothing felt forced. Now, in all honesty, I did have plenty of concern about the potential for—how shall I say—a credibility suck. The fourth hour with Kathie Lee would demand a daily dose of fun and frivolity. I’d worked very hard over the years developing a solid set of credentials in the news business, and was unclear on how I’d manage the mix of interviewing dirty politicians and running an obstacle course in an inflatable sumo wrestler costume. I’ve garnered a few awards that I’m proud of: an Alfred I. duPont, a Peabody, and an Edward R. Murrow Award. So, I had to wonder—do they strip you of those if you’re later spotted on the air playing “How Much Can You Stuff in Your Spanx?”

  I called my agent, Carole Cooper, and asked her opinion about taking this direction and how it could impact twenty years of hard work—if it didn’t work. She wisely pointed out that it’s a new world now, one where viewers accept crossover. She gave the examples of Anderson Cooper starting out as host of The Mole and moving on to anchor the news at CNN. She also cited Meredith coanchoring the Today show and also hosting Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. I felt Carole was right, but my excitement about this new opportunity was definitely mixed with apprehension.

  • • •

  Kathie Lee and I were not allowed to talk to each other until all the paperwork was complete. When the secret deal was finally done, she called me on my cell phone and said, “Okay, when we get out of this NBC Witness Protection Program, I’m going to be your cohost.” It was crazy! Who’d have thought I’d be cohosting a morning talk show with Kathie Lee Gifford? I’m sure she was thinking the same thing about me, having already cohosted an Emmy-nominated talk show for fifteen years. But, just five months after she filled in on the fourth hour, Kathie Lee was now the official cohost.

  Our first show together aired live in April of 2008 outside of 30 Rock on the Plaza. I can take credit for the idea of doing our show outside, because it turned out to be a bad one. The idea was: we’ll know if things are “working” by using the crowd as a barometer of sorts—a laugh-o-meter. Embracing the energy of onlookers seemed like a smart decision. What we didn’t anticipate was—the noise! The noise level on the Plaza was intense—and we loved it—but we could barely hear each other, let alone the guests. Also, you just don’t consider how difficult it is to do a serious interview with a giant hamburger head, foam fingers, and a tour group from Latvia behind you. Here was another snag: not only could we not hear each other, the crowd couldn’t hear us. We were not all
owed to broadcast our exterior audio at a loud level because apparently, people are working in all the buildings that surround the Plaza. The nerve! The whole beautiful concept of holding our show outside was a bust. It’s like when you have the image of a perfect picnic in your head—and then it sucks. Blowing napkins, ants, and wet grass.

  We stuck it out for a month, and then the most gorgeous straw that ever broke the camel’s back showed up on our set. Producers booked Mexican actor Eduardo Verástegui, star of the fabulous independent film Bella. Okay, this man is ridiculously bellissimo. The sight of him takes your breath away. You simply want to spread him on a cracker. And so, that morning, when the ManGod walked outside onto our set, the crowd exploded. (That’s all you can do when you see Eduardo.) Instantly, the decibel level on the Plaza skyrocketed to the heavens—like some sort of audio orgasm. Kaboom!

  The guys in charge of the building went ballistic. “Shut it down! You are shutting this show down!” Men were actually dragging away our chairs and herding us off the set. But, y’know what? If you’re gonna go out, Eduardo is a pretty sweet swan song.

  Have I mentioned how magnificent he is?

  May 6 was our last day outside. Our poor producers had to beg the building guys for one last special favor: to let us set up a $3,000 gardening segment we had scheduled for outdoors and simply could not fit indoors. They agreed, but only if we would shh the crowd during the broadcast. And we did.

 

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