Born:
March 08, 1959
Birthplace: San Francisco, California, United States
Trivia:
Grew up on various military bases because his father was in the Air Force. First on-air job was as a disc jockey at a country and Western radio station; reading the news on-air hooked him on broadcast journalism. Began his TV career in 1981 at a CBS affiliate in New York; was also a news anchor in Los Angeles and Chicago. Joined MSNBC in 2000. His knowledge of airplanes helped him land his first anchor role in 2000 when an Air France Concorde crashed near Paris. Has been an anchor on Weekend Today, Dateline NBC, and NBC Nightly News. In 2015 became the first African American to be named permanent solo anchor of a nightly newscast when he replaced Brian Williams on NBC Nightly News. Appeared as a newscaster in The Fugitive, Primal Fear and Miracle on 34th Street; and as himself on 30 Rock. Earned the nickname "Iron Pants" for not wanting to leave the anchor chair whenever there is breaking news.