Matt Lauer

Matt Lauer

Lauer at the 2012 Time 100
Born Matthew Todd Lauer
(1957-12-30) December 30, 1957
New York City, New York, U.S.
Education Ohio University
Occupation Television journalist
Years active 1979–present
Notable credit(s) Today co-anchor
(1997–present)
Today news anchor
(1994–1997)
Salary $28,000,000 annually[1]
Spouse(s) Nancy Aspaugh (m. 1981; div. 1988)
Annette Roque (m. 1998)
Children 3
Website www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3079110/

Matthew Todd "Matt" Lauer (born December 30, 1957)[2] is an American television journalist best known as the host of NBC's The Today Show since 1997. He is also a contributor for NBC's Dateline NBC. He was previously a news anchor for The Today Show in 1994 and anchor for WNBC in New York City and a local talk-show host in Boston, Philadelphia, Providence and Richmond. He was also host of PM Magazine (or "Evening Magazine" 1980–86) and worked for ESPN in the 1980s as a sideline reporter. In the early 1990s, Lauer hosted segments of HBO Entertainment News.

Early life

Lauer was born in New York City, the son of Marilyn Kolmer (née Gentry), a boutique owner, and Jay Robert Lauer, a bicycle-company executive.[3] His parents divorced during his youth, and his father died in 1997. Lauer had become co-host of The Today Show, replacing longtime host Bryant Gumbel in early 1997, not long before his father's death.[4]

Lauer's father was of Romanian Jewish heritage, as seen on the Today Show's Finding Our Roots.[5] Lauer said, "My dad was Jewish. My mom is not. So I was not raised anything. I do feel a desire now to find something spiritual. Getting married and wanting to have kids has something to do with that."[4][6]

Career

Lauer is a graduate of the School of Media Arts and Studies (formerly the School of Telecommunications) of Ohio University. In 1997, he received his undergraduate degree from Ohio University at the age of 39. He had dropped out of Ohio University's School of Telecommunications in the Spring of 1979.[7] Lauer began his television career in 1979 as a producer of the 12 o'clock news for WOWK-TV in Huntington, West Virginia. By 1980, he had become an on-air reporter on the 6 and 11 o'clock newscasts. He then started to move around the country, hosting a number of weekly information and talk programs in Boston, Philadelphia, Providence and Richmond. He was also host of PM Magazine in Providence, RI and then in 1984 at WNEW-TV in New York City until the show's cancellation in 1986. In 1986, he co-hosted WNYW-TV's Made In New York with Jill Rappaport for its fifteen-week run on the station. He also worked for ESPN in the 1980s. In Boston, he hosted WNEV-TV's Talk of the Town in 1988.

From 1989 to 1991, Lauer hosted a three-hour live interview program, WWOR-TV's 9 Broadcast Plaza.[8] In 1990, he was hired by the Kushner-Locke Company to host a pilot called "Day In Court," executive produced by veteran producer David Sams, who helped to launch The Oprah Winfrey Show into national syndication. The program was retitled "Trial Watch" when it went to series, and ran on the NBC network for two seasons. NBC hired Rob Weller as host over Lauer when the program was picked up as a daily series. The same year, he filmed a pilot for WWE's Vince McMahon, focused on a new bodybuilding league, though he was not picked up for the series. In 1991 he appeared as the co-host (along with Willow Bay) of "Etc., Etc.", a show on The Travel Channel. Lauer moved to WNBC-TV in 1992 where he became co-anchor, alongside Jane Hanson, of the early weekday news show Today in New York. After a year, he also filled the role of Live at Five co-anchor with Sue Simmons.[8] He held that job until 1996.

NBC News

Two men shaking hands
Lauer with President Vladimir Putin prior to the 32nd G8 summit in Saint Petersburg in 2006

Lauer's on-camera presence provided him with many opportunities with NBC's national news organization while working for WNBC in New York.[9] Lauer filled in as the newsreader on The Today Show for Margaret Larson when needed from 1992 to 1993.[8] This "audition" period allowed him to join The Today Show full-time in January 1994 as news anchor, while still co-anchoring Today in New York and Live at Five.[10]

Lauer stepped in for Scott Simon, Mike Schneider and Jack Ford as the co-host of Weekend Today, and for Ann Curry as anchor of the former NBC News program NBC News at Sunrise from 1992 to 1997.[11] He had also filled in for Tom Brokaw on NBC Nightly News. As the Today Show news anchor, he also pinch-hit for Bryant Gumbel on the Today Show before being named the official co-anchor on January 6, 1997, after Gumbel stepped down.[12]

In addition to his duties on the Today Show, Lauer has also hosted programming on the Discovery Channel[13] and MSNBC.

1998-current

Beginning in 1998, Lauer embarked on what has generally been an annual five-day, globe-spanning adventure called Where in the World is Matt Lauer? on the Today Show[14] during TV sweeps. The segment was named after the PBS game show Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? from which it borrowed the theme song. This segment has sent Lauer to various locations around the World, from where he has reported on the importance of each location. In recent years, he has broadcast from locations including Bhutan, Easter Island, the Panama Canal, Iran, Hong Kong, Croatia and the Great Wall of China.[15] In 2009, NBC News announced the segment would not air in consideration of the stagnant, unstable U.S. economy.[16]

On some occasions, interviews conducted by Lauer have escalated into tense exchanges. In a June 2005 interview, Tom Cruise argued with Lauer about psychiatry and postpartum depression and called Lauer "glib".[17] In December 2008, more than three years later, Cruise said he regretted the exchange, and arm-wrestled Matt Lauer in the same studio where the confrontation took place.[18]

Lauer on the set of the Today Show, May 2009

In a June 2006 interview with Ann Coulter, Coulter responded to Lauer's questioning her criticism of September 11, 2001 widows and said, "You're getting testy with me."[19]

On December 30, 2009, during an on-set birthday party for him, Lauer introduced Abe Vigoda, star of the TV shows Barney Miller and Fish, who was standing behind the cameras. Lauer invited Vigoda to sit on the couch, where Lauer announced that Vigoda was his favorite guest on the Today show.

In November 2006, Lauer and his daughter Romy hosted the Sesame Street direct-to-DVD show Sesame Beginnings: Exploring Together. Lauer hosted The Greatest American on the Discovery Channel, which used Internet and telephone voting by viewers to select the winner. Lauer was critical of his own program since it tended to favor well-known figures over others who had less influence in pop culture.[20] Since 1998, he has co-hosted NBC's live coverage of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.[21]

Lauer had a guest appearance as himself on a live episode of Will & Grace in early 2006.[22] (Former co-host Katie Couric had a guest appearance as herself on an episode of the same NBC sitcom a few years earlier.)

On June 19, 2007, he interviewed Prince William and Prince Harry.[23]

Lauer served as the 2009 Class Day speaker at Harvard University's undergraduate commencement ceremonies on June 3, 2009.[24]

Lauer appeared as himself in the Land of the Lost movie, appearing in the beginning when Rick Marshall (Will Ferrell) appears on his show and single-handedly ruins his career.[25] Lauer appears again at the end of the film, when Marshall shows up with his new book, Matt Lauer Can Suck It. Both scenes end in violent physical confrontation between the two, with the staff trying to break them up.

On the April 5, 2012, program, Lauer announced that he had signed a new contract with NBC News. The contract will reportedly pay Lauer $25 million annually.[1]

Although it was widely reported by gossip websites that Lauer had much to do with his then co-host, Ann Curry's departure, these reports were later proven to be untrue. Ann Curry's departure was planned by then Today executive producer, Jim Bell. The plan was called "Operation Bambi". Lauer wanted Bell to delay the departure of Curry.[26][27]

Lauer has co-hosted the opening ceremonies of several Olympic Games, carrying on what his former co-host Katie Couric had done since the 2000 Summer Olympics. He co-hosted the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Summer Olympics, the 2010 Winter Olympics, and the 2012 Summer Olympics. His commentary on the 2012 opening ceremonies, along with that of co-hosts Meredith Vieira and Bob Costas, came under fierce criticism, being described as "ignorant" and "banal".[28][29][30]

During the 2014 Winter Olympics, prime-time host Bob Costas suffered a major eye infection over the first five days of primetime coverage. As a result, Lauer replaced him for the sixth day of coverage.

Lauer appeared as himself in the TV movies, Sharknado 2: The Second One and Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!.

In November 2015, Lauer led the interview with Charlie Sheen in which the actor revealed he was HIV-positive.[31]

Career timeline

Personal life

Lauer was married and divorced from Nancy Alspaugh.[2] He later married Annette Roque.[2]

Lauer has two sons, Jack Matthew and Thijs, and a daughter, Romy.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 Mirkinson, Jack (April 5, 2012). "Matt Lauer Officially Staying On At 'Today'". Huffington Post.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Matt Lauer". TVGuide.com. Retrieved April 27, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Matt Lauer Biography (1957–)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved March 17, 2009.
  4. 1 2 Jeffrey Zaslow, "The Lauer Within", interview with Matt Lauer, USA Weekend, April 30, 2000, accessed July 17, 2007.
  5. ↑ Matt Discovers His Roots on NBC's Today Show. Retrieved August 24, 2008.
  6. ↑ jweekly
  7. ↑ Ohio University Webpage
  8. 1 2 3 Matt Lauer - TODAY.com
  9. ↑ In Her Final Newscast, Sue Simmons Makes It Clear She Doesn’t Want to Leave - TVSpy
  10. ↑ Live at Five (WNBC TV series)
  11. ↑ Ann Curry - TODAY.com
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Matt Lauer – Today Show – MSNBC.com
  13. ↑ Matt Lauer – Profile, Latest News and Related Articles
  14. ↑ Where in the World is Matt Lauer? - TODAY.com
  15. ↑ MSNBC, "Where in the World is Matt Lauer?"
  16. ↑ ""Where In The World Is Matt Lauer?" Postponed Due To Economy". Huffington Post. March 13, 2009.
  17. ↑ Cruise tangles with Matt Lauer - today > entertainment - today > entertainment > movies - TODAY.com
  18. ↑ http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28162646/ "Three years after notorious Scientology rant, ‘I’m here to entertain people’", accessed January 6, 2009.
  19. ↑ http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/06185/703146-44.stm "Queen of Mean: Coulter's attacks bring political discourse to a whole new level." Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, July 4, 2006, accessed March 19, 2008.
  20. ↑ Greatest American on Discovery Channel outrage - Democratic Underground
  21. ↑ Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
  22. ↑ Will & Grace - Season 8, Episode 11: Bathroom Humor - TV.com
  23. ↑ Matt Lauer, "In Honor of Diana: Two Princes Speak on the 10th Anniversary of Their Mother's Death", transcript of interview (updated), MSNBC, June 19, 2007, accessed July 17, 2007.
  24. ↑ Matt Lauer anchors Class Day festivities | Harvard Gazette
  25. ↑ Matt Lauer Ready For His New 'Land Of The Lost' Catch-Phrase | Access Hollywood
  26. ↑ How and Why NBC Kicked Ann Curry Off Today - NYMag
  27. ↑ Stelter, Brian (April 18, 2013). "Who Can Save the ‘Today' Show?". The New York Times.
  28. ↑ NBC's broadcast of the Olympics opening ceremony was the worst video/
  29. ↑ the opening ceremonies in London from the industrial revolution to Voldemort
  30. ↑ NBC Olympics opening ceremony
  31. ↑ Kim, Eun Kyung (November 17, 2015). "Charlie Sheen reveals he's HIV positive in TODAY Show exclusive". Today.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Matt Lauer.
Media offices
Preceded by
Bryant Gumbel		 Today Co-Anchor
January 6, 1997 – present
with Katie Couric from 1997 to 2006
Meredith Vieira from 2006 to 2011
Ann Curry from 2011 to 2012
and Savannah Guthrie from 2012 to present 		Succeeded by
incumbent
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