Biography
An affable and charismatic weatherman and TV personality, Al Roker found success as the regular weathercaster for NBC's popular morning show "Today" (1952- ). A 10-time Emmy Award winner and New York native, Roker conducted numerous interviews and segments for "Today," including cooking segments and the recurring segment "Today's Dad," featuring parenting tips. As a regular NBC personality, Roker has served as host of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, The Rose Bowl Parade, and the Christmas tree lighting at Rockefeller Center. Albert Lincoln Roker was born on Aug. 20, 1954 in Queens, NY. As a young boy, Roker was fascinated by animation and cartoons. He became a member of the Cartooning & Illustration club while attending Xavier High School in New York City before going on to study graphic design and broadcast journalism at the State University of New York at Oswego. While still in college, Roker landed a job as a weekend weatherman at WTVH-TV in Syracuse, NY. Upon graduating with his BA in communications, Roker found weather casting jobs in Washington, DC and Cleveland, OH. Returning to his hometown of New York in 1983, Roker landed the position of weekend weathercaster for WNBC. As Roker began to gain more exposure, the network took notice; he soon became the weatherman for "Weekend Today" (NBC, 1987- ). Roker often sat in for Willard Scott on the weekday edition of "Today." When Scott announced his retirement from "Today" in 1996, Roker was asked to fill the weekday weatherman position on the show. Known for his catch phrase "...and here's what's happening in your neck of the woods," Roker became popular with "Today" viewers. After establishing himself as a staple on the morning show, Roker began to take on more interviews and segments. In 1997, Roker hosted the MSNBC information quiz show, "Remember This?" which earned him a Daytime Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Game Show Host that same year. Roker's recognizable voice can be heard in several animated films including "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs" (2009), "Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2" (2013) and "Kung Fu Panda 3" (2016). Roker also embarked on a writing career and over time has written more than a dozen books including The New York Times bestseller "Don't Make Me Stop this Car: Adventures in Fatherhood" in 2001. Branching out from his network career, Roker formed Al Roker Productions, a multimedia company through which he developed and produced numerous network, cable, home video, and public television projects.
