http://nypost.com/2015/02/25/deborah-norville-turns-20-on-inside-edition/

“Inside Edition” celebrates Deborah Norville’s 20th anniversary (http://radiotvtalk.blog.ajc.com/2015/02/26/deborah-norville-dalton-uga-celebrates-20-years-at-inside-edition/) as its anchor Thursday (1:30 p.m./Ch. 5) with “a sort of trip down memory lane (http://www.insideedition.com/headlines/9791-see-deborah-norvilles-most-amazing-moments-from-20-years-of-anchoring-inside-edition)” says Norville (http://www.gettyimages.ca/detail/news-photo/tim-van-ness-caricatures-of-tv-personality-deborah-norville-news-photo/168789622), adding, “We’ll include some of the stupid hair styles I thought looked good that day.”

Norville (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2972188/I-realized-lifetime-contract-family-Deborah-Norville-20-years-Inside-Edition-heartbreaking-story-led-CBS-show.html) began her “IE” run (succeeding Bill O’Reilly) on March 5, 1995 — four years after her screaming-headlines exit from “Today” (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/10/deborah-norville-breastfeeding-motherhood-career_n_6655508.html) after a stormy six months (she was replaced by Katie Couric).

“I went from being the anchor of ‘The Today Show’ to the host of a radio show,” Norville says. “A lot of people snickered: ‘Look how far she’s fallen,’ but I was grateful to be back where I started — in radio.”

Speaking of NBC and controversies, I asked Norville about suspended “NBC Nightly News” anchor Brian Williams: “I feel really terribly for Brian … but he knows it’s self-inflicted,” she says.

“It’s all his creation … and I fear it means he won’t be back on the evening news. There’s too much doubt. There will be question marks floating over his head — and I don’t think any network can afford that.”

Norville rebounded from her “Today” debacle, and “IE” remains a steady ratings-grabber, averaging 4.7 million viewers last November — second only to “Entertainment Tonight” in the genre.

“What we do is every bit as relevant and solid as what you see on the network morning shows and the latter-half of the evening news,” Norville says. “We stand by our stories and our credibility is pretty solid. We do good work that people tune in for.”

https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDeborahNorville/posts/10204647124242946?comment_id=10204650510047589&comment_tracking=%7B%22tn%22%3A%22R%22%7D

Time for me to get a bag for my head -- egads (https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDeborahNorville/posts/10204647124242946?comment_id=10204650508007538&comment_tracking=%7B%22tn%22%3A%22R0%22%7D)!!

Deborah Norville recently replied to me on Twitter (https://twitter.com/DeborahNorville/status/628683359087140864) about a Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Deborah-Norville-in-Pantyhose/1612818285659187?fref=ts) that I recently made about her::eyes:
i did. A bit embarrassed but I thank you for the compliment! :notworthy

Deborah Norville recently replied to me on Twitter (https://twitter.com/DeborahNorville/status/628683359087140864) about a Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Deborah-Norville-in-Pantyhose/1612818285659187?fref=ts) that I recently made about her::eyes:
:notworthy

You lucky guy.

I'm proud of Deborah for still hosting the program after all these years. She is so beautiful, and the best of all the IE hosts.

You lucky guy.

I'm proud of Deborah for still hosting the program after all these years. She is so beautiful, and the best of all the IE hosts.

Yeah, I kind of consider Deborah (https://twitter.com/TMC1982/status/822730738285953025) to be the Kim Basinger (https://www.facebook.com/Kim-Basinger-vs-Deborah-Norville-1454708084837800/timeline/) of news journalism (i.e. from Georgia, ravishingly beautiful and stylish, full lips, blonde hair, striking blue eyes, etc.) sans the personal baggage (http://lebeauleblog.com/2012/02/05/what-the-hell-happened-to-kim-basinger/). Granted, I was very young at the time, but I never fully understood why she was so (to be brutally to the point) hated when she took over for Jane Pauley on The Today Show. NBC basically used her maternity leave (after worrying about losing viewers to ABC's Good Morning America) as an excuse to get rid of her in favor of Katie Couric.

She's good on IE. And congrats to her. I will say I dont remember too much of the whole Today Show thing. Was she at fault?

She's good on IE. And congrats to her. I will say I dont remember too much of the whole Today Show thing. Was she at fault?

From what I've gathered, Deborah was accused of not having very good chemistry w/ her co-host, Bryant Gumbel. There was also naturally the issue of people (perhaps, mostly women) who still preferred Jane Pauley as the female anchor who saw her as a "homewrecker". They (like w/ Ann Curry many years later) assumed that NBC forced Pauley out (https://books.google.com/books?id=qP9zDuGXrGUC&pg=PA171&dq=deborah+norville+jane+pauley&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwihpN2d3vvUAhUE3WMKHf4aDU84ChDoAQgjMAA#v=onepage&q=deborah%20norville%20jane%20pauley&f=false) in favor of the "younger, sexier" Deborah Norville.

Deborah recently replied to me on Twitter again when I made a comment about her white pantsuit (https://instagram.com/p/7tiTE9ATb0/?taken-by=deborahnorville) reminding me of a bottle of milk:
https://twitter.com/DeborahNorville/status/644643305482006530

that's funny!

She's good on IE. And congrats to her. I will say I dont remember too much of the whole Today Show thing. Was she at fault?

I guess this will give some of Deborah's (https://www.datalounge.com/thread/11707006-stfu-deborah-norville) haters some more ammunition:
Report: Inside Edition Anchor Kicks Publicist, Insults Will Smith's Kids (http://gawker.com/report-inside-edition-anchor-kicks-publicist-insults-1731735451?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter)

From what I've gathered, Deborah was accused of not having very good chemistry w/ her co-host, Bryant Gumbel. There was also naturally the issue, of people (perhaps, mostly women) who still preferred Jane Pauley as the female anchor who saw her as a "homewrecker". They (like w/ Ann Curry many years later), assumed that NBC forced Pauley out in favor of the "younger, sexier" Deborah Norville.
was this around the time that Bryant Gumbel was NBC's lead golf announcer too(before they got Dick Enberg to do that job)? while Gumbel did a pretty good job on golf, he had to miss several Mondays on Today and that hurt the show with Norville at lead anchor because of that at least with Pauley, she could fill the "anchor" role quite well when Bryant was off and so could Couric. They didn't want to risk that with the Gulf War going on, so they brought in Charlie Jones on golf in 91 and 92 and then Enberg. The interesting part is that Bryant had done one golf event for NBC in the past: the 1980 Houston Open when lead announcer Don Criqui was called away by a death in the family, so he did have experience doing golf.

I guess this will give some of Deborah's (https://www.datalounge.com/thread/11707006-stfu-deborah-norville) haters some more ammunition:
Report: Inside Edition Anchor Kicks Publicist, Insults Will Smith's Kids (http://gawker.com/report-inside-edition-anchor-kicks-publicist-insults-1731735451?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter)

The idea of Deborah kicking somebody out of frustration (yet keeping her smile all of the same) is hilarious in itself. Not just because of Deborah allegedly not really showing her anger in her face, but the image of her doing that in the first place (the classic "Wolf in sheep's clothing" scenario). Maybe it's because Deborah always presents herself on camera/in public as being a proper, demure, smooth talking, Christian southern lady".:crazy:

http://www.avclub.com/article/who-hell-rolf-benirschke-8-tv-host-transitions-end-225948

2-3. Deborah Norville and Ann Curry, Today

NBC’s penchant for mismanaging a high-profile talent transition isn’t restricted to the late-night lineup. In the past 30 years, two women have fallen victim to the network’s inability to replace popular hosts with dignity, the first being Deborah Norville. Called up from NBC’s (now-defunct) early morning show, NBC News At Sunrise, Norville was made the Today news anchor in 1989—and, more notably, she was given a seat on the couch next to longtime cohosts Jane Pauley and Bryant Gumbel (http://www.avclub.com/article/who-hell-rolf-benirschke-8-tv-host-transitions-end-225948#comment-2281334906). Pauley felt she was being edged out and left Today at the end of the year to make way for Norville. The subsequent ratings decline prompted a flurry of anonymously sourced media leaks that cruelly cast Norville as a usurping ice queen. Fourteen months after ascending to the cohost slot, Norville left on maternity leave, with the NBC News president giving the press this lukewarm assurance: “I suspect she will be welcomed back.” She never returned, but she bounced back elsewhere: Norville has hosted the syndicated newsmagazine Inside Edition for 20 years.

Ann Curry’s situation in 2011-12 was similar to Norville’s in 1990-91: Previously a Today news anchor, Curry was tapped to replace the popular Meredith Vieira, and a dip in ratings ensued. The difference this time was that the most prominent resistance to Curry came primarily from within the show rather than from the viewers. Curry could never establish a strong rapport with fellow host Matt Lauer, whose lack of enthusiasm for her promotion came across on screen. Amid a familiar onslaught of salacious news reports about on-set discord, Curry signed off of Today after a year as cohost with a tearful farewell to the nation. “They’re giving me some fancy new titles,” she said with unmistakable disdain for NBC’s vain efforts to allow her some grace as she was shoved out the door. [John Teti]

You lucky guy.

I'm proud of Deborah for still hosting the program after all these years. She is so beautiful, and the best of all the IE hosts.

Timothy White (http://timothywhite.com/archives/deborah-norville) shot these lovely "supermodel" type photos of Deborah (http://www.whosay.com/status/deborahnorville/357176) from several years back:
http://timothywhite.com/sites/default/files/styles/gallery_1000/public/images/portfolio/deborahnorville_010.jpg

http://timothywhite.com/sites/default/files/styles/gallery_1000/public/images/portfolio/deborahnorville_012.jpg

http://timothywhite.com/sites/default/files/styles/gallery_1000/public/images/portfolio/deborahnorville_013.jpg :eyes:

:heart: :heart: :heart:

The tabloids which claim she is an evil woman need to be avoided like the plague.

Never listen to tabloids. They'll rot your brain.

Never listen to tabloids. They'll rot your brain.


Learned from experience, eh?

:heart: :heart: :heart:

I love it when her hair is pulled back (https://twitter.com/ralmur1/status/721076246952701952):
http://timothywhite.com/sites/default/files/styles/gallery_1000/public/images/portfolio/deborahnorville_013.jpg

https://static.wixstatic.com/media/026d42_3e8a053959ee40b58216ad582a62f46b.jpg/v1/fill/w_564,h_564,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01/026d42_3e8a053959ee40b58216ad582a62f46b.jpg

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/20707948_10155759413212859_3536912086469650892_n.jpg?oh=7e33a172271f4282d9dc985131f09156&oe=5A35706F

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DK1ytGaU8AA9z7J.jpg

She's good on IE. And congrats to her. I will say I dont remember too much of the whole Today Show thing. Was she at fault?

http://www.looper.com/13885/drama-behind-morning-tv/

Jane Pauley vs. Deborah Norville

Months after Gumbel's memo leaked, the Today show battled more bad press amid rumors that the show's anchor of 13 years, Jane Pauley, was about to be ousted by the younger, blonder Deborah Norville. According to People (http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20115927,00.html), the rumors started in September of 1989, after Norville replaced news anchor John Palmer and began sitting at the main desk alongside Pauley and Gumbel. Months later, Pauley confirmed she was, in fact, leaving after 13 years on the show. Her final morning on Today was a tearful broadcast on Dec. 23, 1989.

Plagued by tabloid scandals and unpopularity over Pauley's ousting, Norville left Today in April 1991 (http://articles.latimes.com/1991-04-06/entertainment/ca-1585_1_katie-couric) after just 14 months on the job. She was replaced by Katie Couric. Incidentally, both Pauley and Norville went on to bigger and even more lucrative careers as the hosts of Dateline and Inside Edition, respectively.

Deborah wished me a happy birthday (https://twitter.com/DeborahNorville/status/740652648639176704) yesterday even though she really didn't have to!

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CkdTpsOXIAA9pj9.jpg

Not only is Ms. Norville incredibly beautiful, but she's a very classy, caring woman to boot! :eyes:

You lucky guy.

I'm proud of Deborah for still hosting the program after all these years. She is so beautiful, and the best of all the IE hosts.

To better illustrate or emphasis my point (Deborah and red are a great match by the way :biglove:) about Deborah looking great in dark pantyhose:
TwvVoQAa7W4

https://media.giphy.com/media/XhSrD5pxMrJiE/giphy.gif

fE0QsWsXjkw

https://media.giphy.com/media/LvQeZrcWp1C6I/giphy.gif

:happyface

To better illustrate or emphasis my point (Deborah and red are a great match by the way :biglove:) about Deborah looking great in dark pantyhose:
TwvVoQAa7W4

https://media.giphy.com/media/XhSrD5pxMrJiE/giphy.gif

fE0QsWsXjkw

https://media.giphy.com/media/LvQeZrcWp1C6I/giphy.gif

:happyface

This week marked the 27th anniversary (September 5, 1989) of Deborah Norville becoming the news anchor on NBC's Today Show! Deborah herself even retweeted me (https://twitter.com/TMC1982/status/773212296650772480) when I brought it up to her! :loveya:

You lucky guy.

I'm proud of Deborah for still hosting the program after all these years. She is so beautiful, and the best of all the IE hosts.

I sometimes wonder if Deborah (http://www.insideedition.com/specials/24-wheres-deb) had a harder time being taken more seriously as a journalist because she's so beautiful? Maybe that was one of the problems that she had when she took over for Jane Pauley on The Today Show (women in effect, kind of felt threatened by her).

3GWVX9DyhLU

n86LdCzuPJc

I love it when her hair is pulled back (https://twitter.com/ralmur1/status/721076246952701952):
http://timothywhite.com/sites/default/files/styles/gallery_1000/public/images/portfolio/deborahnorville_013.jpg

https://static.wixstatic.com/media/026d42_3e8a053959ee40b58216ad582a62f46b.jpg/v1/fill/w_564,h_564,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01/026d42_3e8a053959ee40b58216ad582a62f46b.jpg

https://media.giphy.com/media/nPXL0nhSVjmE/giphy.gif

https://media.giphy.com/media/is4UTXujvDSQU/giphy.gif

https://scontent.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/1379229_602089729855099_969863029_n.jpg?oh=18b272b01930ce041b9ff779e6f13d70&oe=5921227A

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CzuyQddXEAAFFwy.jpg

https://i.ytimg.com/vi/_2zO8PBPQRk/hqdefault.jpg

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-0/p480x480/14368760_10154637675467859_2047415052511645195_n.jpg?oh=a86e2090be5a833c674ca2bd0b7690af&oe=5886029A

Feeling blue in today's (https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDeborahNorville/photos/a.391848907858.169453.137465982858/10154637675467859/?type=3) #ootd! (https://www.instagram.com/p/BKY-H0jAiAz/?taken-by=deborahnorville) Suit: Armani, Shirt: Calvin Klein :biglove:

To better illustrate or emphasis my point (Deborah and red are a great match by the way :biglove:) about Deborah looking great in dark pantyhose:
TwvVoQAa7W4

https://media.giphy.com/media/XhSrD5pxMrJiE/giphy.gif

fE0QsWsXjkw

https://media.giphy.com/media/LvQeZrcWp1C6I/giphy.gif

:happyface

Deborah at WUSA9 (http://www.wusa9.com/entertainment/television/programs/great-day-washington/host-of-inside-edition-deborah-norville-visits-dc/349292495) in Washington, DC last week!

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwrtohZVEAMACHS.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwrtrBEVEAE5Qss.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwrs4dEXAAAP2x-.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwq40eYXgAAhuTv.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwqjkqEWIAEX-eh.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwqh9vEXEAAm2jO.jpg

aIrBa1pgQtw

Who is that lovely lady in red with the boots?

http://gpbnews.org/post/inside-editon-host-deborah-norville-opens-about-her-georgia-roots

Georgia native Deborah Norville (https://twitter.com/ralmur1/status/796830616205533184) is now the longest serving female anchor on national television. She has hosted "Inside Edition" for more than 20 years. Last month, she was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame.

We asked her to reflect on her journey in the broadcasting business and how growing up in Georgia shaped her life.

Deborah at WUSA9 (http://www.wusa9.com/entertainment/television/programs/great-day-washington/host-of-inside-edition-deborah-norville-visits-dc/349292495) in Washington, DC last week!

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwrtohZVEAMACHS.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwrtrBEVEAE5Qss.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwrs4dEXAAAP2x-.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwq40eYXgAAhuTv.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CwqjkqEWIAEX-eh.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cwqh9vEXEAAm2jO.jpg

aIrBa1pgQtw

Q2XtecXNHb0

Deborah roaming around (https://www.facebook.com/1612818285659187/photos/a.1700723046868710.1073741846.1612818285659187/1700723073535374/?type=3&theater) a studio set (which she isn't allowed to do on Inside Edition, since she's always required to stand-still behind a green screen) in sharp high heeled pumps and dark pantyhose (http://www.polyvore.com/deborah_norvilles_outfit_on_anderson/set?id=200410773) for good measure, is mind blowingly sexy :eyes:. I just love how Deborah exudes confidence and control in this particular moment from Anderson Live (http://www.allthingsandersoncooper.com/2012/11/anderson-live-wednesday-november-7-2012.html).

https://media.giphy.com/media/Do71bpGVJxPmU/giphy.gif

0fJixp6YsKY&t=4s

The tabloids which claim she is an evil woman need to be avoided like the plague.

Never listen to tabloids. They'll rot your brain.

NBC probably handled the Pauley to Norville transition poorly. As soon as she arrived, they often had Deborah sit next to Jane Pauley and Bryant Gumbel as if she were the de facto third anchor. I think the underling message that was sent to some viewers was that they were grooming Deborah Norville to be Jane Pauley's inevitable successor. It felt like Deborah's ascension was too fast and forced.

And because Deborah Norville was/is an very attractive blonde haired woman, I'm guessing that it came across as NBC/Bryant Gumbel trading Jane Pauley for a "hotter and sexier trophy wife".

M0TGZroL3ro

The tabloids which claim she is an evil woman need to be avoided like the plague.

Never listen to tabloids. They'll rot your brain.

Saturday Night Live even did an All About Eve (https://books.google.com/books?id=bfuwAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA40&dq=deborah+norville+jane+pauley&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjD2LLd3fvUAhUMwmMKHYQ2BlAQ6AEIUDAI#v=onepage&q=deborah%20norville%20jane%20pauley&f=false) spoof with Jan Hooks as Jane Pauley and Kathleen Turner as Deborah Norville (http://snl.jt.org/imp.php-i=773.html).

http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/episode-3-pictured-kathleen-turner-as-deborah-norville-jan-hooks-as-picture-id141169892

I guess the last laugh is on Deborah because she's still drop dead gorgeous after all of these years, while Kathleen Turner (https://lebeauleblog.com/2011/07/04/what-the-hell-happened-to-kathleen-turner/) has turned into this:
https://lebeauleblog.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/turner-high.jpg

I sometimes wonder if Deborah (http://www.insideedition.com/specials/24-wheres-deb) had a harder time being taken more seriously as a journalist because she's so beautiful? Maybe that was one of the problems that she had when she took over for Jane Pauley on The Today Show (women in effect, kind of felt threatened by her).

3GWVX9DyhLU

n86LdCzuPJc

Katie: The Real Story (https://books.google.com/books?id=r16sg3luQpkC&pg=PA62&dq=deborah+norville+today&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjHlJD72PvUAhUUUGMKHb6QB0sQ6AEINDAD#v=onepage&q=deborah%20norville%20today&f=false)

Deborah Norville Looks Back On Her Favorite ‘Inside Edition’ Stories (http://washington.cbslocal.com/2017/09/13/deborah-norville-looks-back-on-her-favorite-inside-edition-stories/)

Saturday Night Live even did an All About Eve (https://books.google.com/books?id=bfuwAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA40&dq=deborah+norville+jane+pauley&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjD2LLd3fvUAhUMwmMKHYQ2BlAQ6AEIUDAI#v=onepage&q=deborah%20norville%20jane%20pauley&f=false) spoof with Jan Hooks as Jane Pauley and Kathleen Turner as Deborah Norville (http://snl.jt.org/imp.php-i=773.html).

http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/episode-3-pictured-kathleen-turner-as-deborah-norville-jan-hooks-as-picture-id141169892

I guess the last laugh is on Deborah because she's still drop dead gorgeous after all of these years, while Kathleen Turner (https://lebeauleblog.com/2011/07/04/what-the-hell-happened-to-kathleen-turner/) has turned into this:
https://lebeauleblog.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/turner-high.jpg


Is that really Kathleen in the picture?

From what I've gathered, Deborah was accused of not having very good chemistry w/ her co-host, Bryant Gumbel. There was also naturally the issue of people (perhaps, mostly women) who still preferred Jane Pauley as the female anchor who saw her as a "homewrecker". They (like w/ Ann Curry many years later) assumed that NBC forced Pauley out (https://books.google.com/books?id=qP9zDuGXrGUC&pg=PA171&dq=deborah+norville+jane+pauley&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwihpN2d3vvUAhUE3WMKHf4aDU84ChDoAQgjMAA#v=onepage&q=deborah%20norville%20jane%20pauley&f=false) in favor of the "younger, sexier" Deborah Norville.

http://nypost.com/2017/10/02/with-megyn-kelly-how-did-nbc-make-the-same-
mistake-again/

Megyn Kelly’s standing at NBC was made clear Monday morning, when Today
extended its breaking news coverage of the Las Vegas mass shooting into
her co-branded 9 a.m. timeslot — and didn’t invite her to participate.

Instead, Matt Lauer chaired a roundtable with co-host Savannah Guthrie and
Tom Brokaw, all of whom offered something Kelly cannot: warmth and
comfort.

Her exclusion was a marked reversal from the network’s muscular
promotional push: In the run-up to Kelly’s September 25th premiere, NBC
ran soft-focus promos rebranding her not as the prosecutorial journalist
she was at FOX but a spontaneous hugger, stopping randoms on the street
just to “connect.”

Kelly appeared on Jimmy Fallon, gifting him with a pie. She went on Ellen
in a Sumo wrestler suit and day-drank. Her first day featured a pre-dawn
bike ride to work with Al Roker, a dance party with Hoda and some advice
to “be authentic” from Kathie Lee.

NBC frontloaded Kelly’s first week with their talent: The casts of “Will &
Grace” and “This is Us,” the women of “SNL,” and Edie Falco, star of “Law
& Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders.”

As most know by now, it was a disaster. Debra Messing expressed her
regrets after Kelly asked an audience member whether he “became gay” after
watching “Will & Grace.”

“Dismayed by her comments,” Messing posted. She then implied NBC duped the
cast into thinking they were going on the actual Today show. Jane Fonda
was visibly startled when Kelly asked her, apropos of nothing, about her
plastic surgeries. “We really wanna talk about that now?” Fonda snapped.

The next day, Falco failed to appear, forcing Kelly to fill time with a
crime-sniffing dog. It was spun as Kelly’s choice to disinvite Falco.
Kelly also opted to give not one but two segments to her jailhouse phone
interviews with Lyle Menendez, who is serving life for murdering his
parents.

Kelly, 46, seemed to be having an identity crisis: The lawyer in her
nailed down Menendez’s lies, but the wanna-be Oprah in her asked weird,
inappropriate questions. Among them: “Is there any joy in your life?”

If Kelly weren’t in the network fold, she’d be mocked mercilessly on
“SNL.”

Talk shows are notoriously difficult, and greater talents have failed:
Meredith Vieira, Anderson Cooper, Katie Couric. But it’s hard to feel
sympathy for a someone making $18 million a year, who spent much of her
second episode telling us all about her (Kelly’s nickname among Fox
colleagues was “Me-Again”), and whose unique blend of self-regard and
discomfort brings to mind Deborah Norville.

For those who don’t recall, Norville was hired by NBC execs in 1989 to
replace Today show co-host Jane Pauley — herself extremely popular and
talented, but seven years older. The move was widely viewed as sexist and
ageist, and Norville, a chilly, flinty overpaid blonde ill-suited for
morning TV, lasted about a year.

Somehow, NBC has made the same mistake twice, but it’s unlikely Kelly —
who ousted the popular and talented Tamron Hall — will last that long. Her
Sunday night talk show, launched last summer, quickly tanked; her premiere
“get,” an interview with Sandy Hook denier Alex Jones, was widely
perceived as offensive and craven.

By last week’s end, “Megyn Kelly Today” lost 400,000 lead-in viewers. It
remains to be seen if she can book any celebrities — A-list or otherwise —
going forward. Her stated mission to leave viewers with a “fists in the
air” feeling is not just a failure but silly.

“Megyn Kelly Today” is unfixable because Megyn Kelly can’t exude warmth
(something Couric, bristly off-camera, excels at). She isn’t likable. She
shouldn’t care. Lean in.

Katie: The Real Story (https://books.google.com/books?id=r16sg3luQpkC&pg=PA62&dq=deborah+norville+today&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjHlJD72PvUAhUUUGMKHb6QB0sQ6AEINDAD#v=onepage&q=deborah%20norville%20today&f=false)

http://www.nickiswift.com/102549/biggest-scandals-ever-plague-today-show/

Jane Pauley was basically forced off the show

Since 1976, Jane Pauley had served as the co-anchor of Today, consistently leading the show to the top of the ratings. In 1989, however, she abruptly quit with two years left on her contract. What happened?*

She reportedly saw the writing on the wall and opted to quit instead of get fired. "I had no idea what I wanted to do, but choosing to go was surely better than being told to go," Pauley told*Life (http://ew.com/article/1995/12/22/jane-pauley-kisses-today-goodbye/).*

In 1989, NBC executives had added newsreader Deborah Norville to Today. A former anchor on*NBC News at Sunrise, Norville didn't sit behind a desk, the Today custom up to that point. Instead, she appeared right next to Pauley and Gumbel as an equal. Speculation and rumor (http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1990-07-29/features/9003030713_1_deborah-norville-bad-girls-media-criticism) held that Pauley, in her late thirties at the time, was about to get pushed aside for the younger, bubblier, and blonder Norville. (One bit of evidence: NBC paid Norville $1 million a year; Pauley got $1.2 million.)

When Pauley quit, she was replaced by Norville, but fearing another network could poach her for their own morning show, NBC tried to keep Pauley happy and in-house with a series of prime-time specials and a news magazine show called Real Life.

The brief and awkward Norville tenure

The revolving door of Today hosts in the early '90s is one of NBC's most famous personnel debacles.*Today experienced some growing pains after Norville controversially replaced Pauley. Well, not so much growing pains as shrinking pains—in the first year or so of the Norville era, Today never finished first (http://articles.latimes.com/1991-04-06/entertainment/ca-1585_1_katie-couric) in the morning news show weekly ratings.*

Viewers didn't like Norville (http://people.com/archive/todays-latest-coo-vol-35-no-11/), or they didn't like her as much as Pauley, or they didn't like how NBC handled the situation, all of which showed up as a ratings drop. In the spring of 1991, while Norville was on maternity leave, NBC told her not to come back.*

Her replacement: substitute anchor Katie Couric.

Read More: http://www.nickiswift.com/102549/biggest-scandals-ever-plague-today-show/?utm_campaign=clip