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Ta-ta for now, Katie
It wasn’t as sappy as it could have been, but Katie Couric’s farewell on “Today” this morning did make use of the tissue box that Matt Lauer placed on the desk at the beginning of the program.
Sniff, sniff. Our Perky Katie won’t be around anymore to get us started each day with a little news and a little fun.
In case you’ve been orbiting Mars, Couric, 49, has ended her 15-year run as “Today” host to take on the challenging new gig of anchoring the “CBS Evening News.” That starts Sept. 5. During the summer, she’ll get started on her other CBS job, reporting for “60 Minutes,” and sit for countless interviews focusing on her status as the First Solo Female Network News Anchor.
But today, Couric said goodbye to fans who have been with her through good times and bad for 15 years. During a decade of that time, “Today” was the undisputed ratings champ of morning news.
“I’m feeling happy and sad and completely out of control,” said Couric, whose emotions frequently have been on display during her tenure.
Understandable, of course, considering that Couric gave birth to two children during that time and became a widow when her husband, producer Jay Monahan, died of colon cancer.
This morning’s official farewell began with a clip showing Couric getting her 5 a.m. wakeup call. Apparently getting perky that early in the morning didn’t come naturally. It required a follow-up call from her driver, lots of coffee and professional hair and makeup work.
As expected, there were plenty of Katie clips, noteworthy as much for the parade of hairstyles as the parade of interview subjects — from presidents to movie stars to Olympic athletes.
Gone from “Today” but certainly not from public view. Look for Couric to be splashed across TV, magazines and newspapers all summer long.
‘Law & Order’ turnover
First assistant district attorney Alexandra Borgia, played by Annie Parisse, was killed off in the season finale. Now we hear Dennis Farina’s detective Joe Fontana is history, too.
No word on exactly how Farina will exit. He was certainly alive when last we saw him.
Cast changes are expected on Dick Wolf’s long-running drama. Previous ADAs have been played by Angie Harmon, Jill Hennessy, Carey Lowell, Elizabeth Rohm, Richard Brooks and Michael Moriarty. The detective roster includes Christopher Noth, George Dzundza, Paul Sorvino, Benjamin Bratt and the late Jerry Orbach (whom Farina replaced in ‘04).
Actors come and go with no apparent negative effects on “L&O” because, as we’ve always known, the stories are the real stars.
Permalink | Comments (1) | Categories: News coverage
Comments
By Brian
June 2, 2006 04:16 PM | Link to this
Man I'm bummed about Dennis leaving Law & Order. Why did they get rid of Alexandra? Was it her decision or theirs?