Being an anchor on Today certainly has its perks.
Jenna Bush Hager and guest host John Legend started the Tuesday broadcast of Today by sharing the news of Free Ice Cream Cone Day at Ben & Jerry’s. However, Bush Hager felt a bit embarrassed when Legend pointed out that she could enjoy the benefit without having to wait in line.
“That’s a remarkable day,” Bush Hager admitted. “You can always tell it’s Free Cone Day because of the line at the Ben & Jerry’s in the concourse here at 30 Rock.”
“Have you ever stood in the line to get ice cream?” Legend asked, to which she confessed, “A free cone? Well, usually they bring me a free cone.”
The Today studio crew laughed as she appeared embarrassed by her confession.
“Aren’t we lucky?” Legend teased. “It’s nice to be Jenna.”
She later clarified that the fame hasn’t gotten to her head. She still stands in line for plenty of other free goodies.
She then jokingly added, “I haven’t had to wait in line on Free Cone Day — although I do appreciate the ice cream, everyone. However, I have stood in line for Krispy Kreme Donut Day,” addressing the Today crew.
The Today studio crew regularly keep it real with Bush Hager on the show. She once called the crew out for cracking jokes about her outfit right before they went live.
“Earlier, all the boys on the show said I look like a pack of cards,” she told Ego Nwodim, her guest host at the time.
Some crew members could be heard laughing behind the scenes. “I was like, ‘This is harassment.’ But not really harassment. They like to make fun of me,” Bush Hager said.
On another occasion, she claimed they “shamed” her for letting her son continue sleeping in a crib until he was four years old.
When she asked the camera if it was “normal” for her son to still be sleeping in a crib, the crew responded from behind the camera with a resounding “NO.”
Months later, she said her son eventually moved into a “big boy bed” all without her help, despite the Today crew’s criticism.
“Well, y’all had shamed me, and really the whole community had shamed me for the fact that he was in a crib. You all shamed me a little,” she said on the show. “So I said, ‘Okay Hal, I think it’s time, some friends have said it’s time to move!’ And he was not ready, he was scared.”
Today with Jenna & Friends airs on weekdays at 10/9c on NBC.
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