Sanibel-Captiva Daily

Willard Scott of the Today Show chilling out on Captiva Island Florida

Scott was tapped by NBC in 1980 to become its weatherman for The Today Show, replacing Bob Ryan, who replaced him at WRC-TV until 2010. After being inspired by a viewer request, Scott began his practice of wishing centenarians a happy birthday on-air in 1983.

During the 1980s, Scott routinely did weather reports on the road, interviewing locals at community festivals and landmarks. He also periodically did the program from Washington D.C., which he still considered his home. During this time, NBC executives told the bald Scott to wear a hairpiece. He complied when in New York, but refused when outside of the studio, resulting in a strange dichotomy on the air.

In 1989, The Today Show co-host Bryant Gumbel wrote an internal memo critical of the show’s personalities. The memo was leaked to the media. Gumbel said Scott “holds the show hostage to his assortment of whims, wishes, birthdays and bad taste … This guy is killing us and no one’s even trying to rein him in.”[5] This garnered enough of a backlash that Gumbel was shown making up with Scott on the show.[6]

Although he is no longer The Today Show’s full-time weatherman, Scott continues to appear twice a week on the long-running morning program to wish centenarians a happy birthday and to substitute for regular weatherman Al Roker during his absences. He appears from the studio lot of WBBH, the NBC affiliate in Fort Myers, Florida. He is also currently the commercial voice—taking over the job from the late Mason Adams—of Smucker’s jellies which sponsors his birthday tributes on The Today Show.  Credit: Via Wikipedia

Today he spends his days Sailing with Captain Mick Gurly of New Moon Sailing on Captiva. http://www.newmoonsailing.com/

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