Willie Geist

William Russell Geist[1] (born May 3, 1975)[2][3] is an American television personality, journalist, and humorist. He is co-anchor of MSNBC's Morning Joe and anchor of Sunday Today with Willie Geist. Geist also frequently serves as a fill-in anchor on both the weekday edition and the Saturday edition of Today. Geist is a correspondent for NBC News and NBC Sports, hosting and contributing to NBC's Olympic coverage.

Not to be confused with Bill Geist.

Willie Geist
Geist in 2008
Born
William Russell Geist

(1975-05-03) May 3, 1975
Evanston, Illinois, U.S.
Alma materVanderbilt University
Occupation
  • Television personality
  • journalist
Years active1997–present
Spouse(s)
Christina Sharkey (m. 2003)
Children2
Parent(s)Bill Geist
RelativesHerbie Lewis (great-grandfather)

Geist is the author or co-author of two humor books that have appeared on The New York Times bestseller list: Good Talk, Dad – written in 2014 with his father Bill Geist[4] – and American Freak Show: The Completely Fabricated Stories of Our New National Treasures, released on October 12, 2010. His third book, the self-help satire Loaded! Become a Millionaire Overnight and Lose 20 Pounds in 2 Weeks or Your Money Back! released on May 10, 2011.

Early life

Geist was born in Evanston, Illinois, the son of broadcast journalist Bill Geist and mother Jody Geist.[2] Geist is the older brother of Libby Wildes, a documentary film producer.[5] He is the great-grandson of Hockey Hall of Fame hockey player Herbie Lewis.[6]

Geist attended George Washington Middle School in Ridgewood, New Jersey, where he began dating his future wife, Christina Sharkey.[1] He later attended Ridgewood High School, where he played basketball and was the quarterback on the football team. He attended Vanderbilt University, where he was a member of the Tennessee Alpha chapter of Phi Delta Theta.[7][8]

Career

Geist began his career as an editor and producer for CNN Sports Illustrated and subsequently a field producer and reporter for CNN Sports, where he covered the Super Bowl, the NCAA Final Four, and The Masters.[9]

Geist began substituting as a co-host on MSNBC's 6–9 a.m. morning time slot almost immediately after Don Imus was fired in late April 2007. Geist was named permanent co-host of Morning Joe, along with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski in September 2007. In late July 2009, Geist began hosting his own 30-minute program Way Too Early with Willie Geist, which airs at 5:30 a.m. immediately before Morning Joe on MSNBC.[10] In 2010, Geist began substituting for Matt Lauer as host of the Today Show and as the show's newsreader. In November 2012, Geist became an official co-host of Today and left Way Too Early. In 2016, Geist was made solo-host of the new Sunday Today that launched in April.[11] Additionally Geist contributed to NBC Sports and NBC News's coverage of the 2014 Winter Olympic Games.

Geist anchored NBC's hours-long coverage of the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting on the morning of June 12, 2016. Geist was on the air for seven successive hours in an NBC News Special Report that aired across the United States.[12]

Willie Geist later did voice work in Kung Fu Panda 3 where he voiced Sum opposite of Al Roker's Dim where their characters are twin panda brothers who are related to Po.[13]

Personal life

On May 24, 2003, Geist married his middle-school sweetheart Christina Sharkey, in Humacao, Puerto Rico.[1] The couple has a daughter, Lucie Joy, and a son, George William.[2] He is an Independent.[14]

Career timeline
  • (2004–2005): I, Max, Writer/Producer
  • (2005–present) MSNBC/NBC News/NBC Sports
    • (2005–2008): Tucker (formerly The Situation with Tucker Carlson)
    • (2006–present): Zeitgeist Host
    • (2006–2007): Scarborough Country
    • (2007–present): Morning Joe Co-Anchor
    • (2009–2012): Way Too Early Host
    • (2011–present): NBC News correspondent
    • (2012–present): NBC Sports contributor
    • (2012–2016): Today Show Third Hour Co-Anchor
    • (2012–present): Today Show 7–9 am contributor and fill-in news, Orange Room and co-anchor
    • (April 17, 2016–present): Sunday Today with Willie Geist-Anchor

References
  1. Donnelly, Shannon (June 1, 2003). "Wedding Vows/Celebrations". The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2007.
  2. "Willie Geist Biography". TVGuide.com. Archived from the original on February 27, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2018.
  3. "Willie Geist: What my father has given me". TODAY.com. June 16, 2013. Retrieved October 7, 2019.
  4. Bill Geist; Willie Geist. "Good Talk, Dad: The Birds and the Bees...and Other Conversations We Forgot to Have". Archived from the original on January 31, 2015. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  5. "The B.S. Report: 5/11". ESPN. December 5, 2011. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  6. "Willie Geist on Twitter: "@rjjohnston6 My great grandfather Herbie Lewis. Won two Cups with the Red Wings in the '30s. Hall of Famer."". Twitter. Retrieved February 23, 2016.
  7. Geist, Willie [@WillieGeist] (February 18, 2018). "Join me in wishing @ChristinaGeist a Happy Birthday!" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  8. "Willie Geist". Phi Delta Theta Fraternity. Retrieved May 13, 2020.
  9. "Willie Geist: MSNBC contributor". MSNBC. April 5, 2007. Archived from the original on April 20, 2007. Retrieved August 1, 2007.
  10. Skowronski, Lauren (July 15, 2009). "Way Too Early with Willie Geist To Debut July 27 on MSNBC". nbcumv.com. Retrieved July 16, 2009.
  11. Chris Ariens (March 31, 2016). "Willie Geist's Sunday Today Show Launches April 17 | TVNewser". Adweek.com. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  12. Mark Joyella (June 12, 2016). "Network Coverage Plans for Orlando Mass Shooting | TVNewser". Adweek.com. Retrieved September 10, 2016.
  13. "Kung Fu Panda 3 Cast". IMDb. Retrieved May 9, 2019.
  14. Fung, Katherine (November 18, 2011). "Scarborough Reveals Surprising Information About Mika Brzezinski". Huffington Post.


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