Ann Curry tried to make her outfits match her sunny disposition when cohosting NBC's TODAY — much to the chagrin of network execs, the anchor reveals in the August issue of Ladies' Home Journal.
Sitting down for the interview just prior to her June 28 exit, Curry, 55, tells LHJ (via The Huffington Post) her bosses weren't necessarily fans of the frocks and footwear the anchor donned to deliver the news with Matt Lauer every day.
"One day I wore a multicolored dress and someone asked if I was trying to be Toucan Sam. But I chose it because I thought, This will perk up America," Curry — who is still employed by NBC — told the magazine. "I'm encouraged by my bosses to wear these ridiculously high-heeled shoes because women say, 'I love your shoes!' So if it makes women happy, I'll wear them. But I'm still going to be me. . . .I've tried to wear clogs and flats on TV and it hasn't gone well with my bosses."
Another reported sticking point for Curry was her on-camera hairdos — and more specifically, the color of her locks. "I've decided not to buy into the idea that I want to stop aging," mom of two Curry explained of her views on getting older. "I've got gray hair because I won't dye it. . . .But I don't want to change the fundamental parts of me because it means changing who I am."
Replaced by Savannah Guthrie on the morning show, Curry — who continues to report occasionally for her prior program — reunited with colleague Matt Lauer for the first time since her controversial ouster on Thursday.
"I think [TODAY] was not where her real passion was . . . In her heart of hearts, I think she would admit that," NBC News president Steve Capus told The Hollywood Reporter of Curry, who kept mum when Lauer briefly interacted with her Thursday when throwing to a taped Olympics segment. "I think her real passion is built around reporting on international stories . . . I think we’ve now come up with a role that will play to her strengths."