Al Roker marked 45 years with NBC in 2023.Photo:John Lamparski/Getty
John Lamparski/Getty
Al Rokercelebrated a major milestone this week!
On Monday, the beloved weatherman andTodayco-host, 69, marked 45 years with NBC, and his co-hosts insisted on commemorating the anniversary on-air — despite Roker’s sly attempt to slip away after delivering the weather forecast.
“Ope, look at the time, I’ve got to go,” Roker joked to hisTodayco-hostsCraig Melvin,Savannah Guthrie,Hoda KotbandSheinelle Jones, who insisted he stick around for his celebration.
“Al, my friend, you are the beating heart of this show,” Guthrie, 51, said, and Kotb, 59, added, “the heartandthe soul.”
Al Roker and his ‘Today’ co-hosts celebrate his 45th anniversary at NBC.Today Show/X
Today Show/X
He joinedTodayin 1996 as a regular weatherman and has stuck around the beloved morning show ever since.
“You know, Roker, you’re like the first person most of us met when we came here,” Kotb told the NBC veteran. “And you always made every new person feel included and loved.”
According toToday’s calculations, his NBC career has consisted of 7,047 3:45 a.m. wake-ups, as well as27 Thanksgiving Day Paradesand13 Olympics.
As Melvin, 44, put it, “He’s been at the Peacock longer than I’ve been alive.”
The hosts also gave a glimpse into Roker’s WKYC field reporting days, including a clip of him with penguins at the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo and a clip of him on a hang glider. Of the latter, he joked, “It took a while for people to get me off the ground.”
Elsewhere inMonday’s episode, theTodayteam put together a short-but-sweet message that included cameos from NBC staffers likeCarson DalyandJenna Bush Hager, as well as two ofRoker’s kids, Leila, 25, and Nick, 21, and his wife of 28 years,Deborah Roberts.
“Happy, happy, happy anniversary,” said Roberts, 63. “And here’s to so many more. I’ll be popping the champagne, so come on home.”
Al Roker joined ‘Today’ in 1996.Peter Kramer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
Peter Kramer/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty
After watching the special video, Roker, Melvin and Jones, 45, each enjoyed anAperol spritz— “the official Roker drink,” per Melvin, who went on to share a sweet message of his own with Roker.
“Any time someone says, ‘What’s Al Roker like off camera?’ I tell them, ‘Even better than he is on camera,” he said, adding that Roker is “the classiest of acts” and “our North Star.”
Last month, Roker appeared onWKYCwith his former coworker, anchor Leon Bibb, to reflect on their career beginnings at the Cleveland station, which he said was a “really special time.”
Roker also revealed that his decision to leave Cleveland was “a very difficult choice.”
“And the only reason I really left was it was home,” he told WKYC. “I loved it here, and I still love it here."
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Todayairs weekdays at 7 a.m. ET on NBC.
source: people.com
