Robin Roberts | |
|---|---|
_(cropped)_(Better_Version).jpg) Roberts in 2019 | |
| Born | (1960-11-23)November 23, 1960 (age 65) Tuskegee, Alabama, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Southeastern Louisiana University |
| Occupation | News anchor |
| Years active | 1983–present |
| Spouse | |
| Parent | Lawrence E. Roberts (father) |
| Relatives | Sally-Ann Roberts (sister) |
Robin Roberts (born November 23, 1960)[1] is an American television broadcaster who co-anchorsABC'sGood Morning America.[2]
After growing up inMississippi and attendingSoutheastern Louisiana University, Roberts was a sports anchor for local TV and radio stations. Roberts was a sportscaster onESPN for 15 years (1990–2005) and the first woman to co-host NFL Primetime. She became co-anchor onGood Morning America in 2005. Roberts was inducted into theWomen's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2012. Her treatment formyelodysplastic syndrome was chronicled on the program, which earned a 2012Peabody Award for the coverage.
Roberts was born inTuskegee,Alabama,[1][3] and grew up inPass Christian,Mississippi, where she playedbasketball andtennis, among other sports. She attended Pass Christian High School and graduated as the class of 1979salutatorian.[4] She is the daughter of Lucimarian (née Tolliver) and ColonelLawrence E. Roberts, who was aTuskegee Airman.[5]
In a 2006 presentation to the student body atAbilene Christian University, Roberts credited her parents with cultivating the "three 'D's: Discipline, Determination, and 'De Lord.'"[6] She is the youngest of four, following siblings Sally-Ann, Lawrence Jr. (nicknamed Butch), and Dorothy.
Roberts attendedSoutheastern Louisiana University inHammond,Louisiana, graduatingcum laude in 1983 with a degree incommunication.[7] She followed in the footsteps of her older sisterSally-Ann Roberts, an anchor at theCBS affiliateWWL-TV inNew Orleans.[8][9]
Roberts noted on the January 14, 2007, edition ofCostas on the Radio that she was offered a scholarship to play basketball atLouisiana State University, but thought the school was too big and impersonal after visiting the campus. On her way back to Pass Christian from that visit, she saw a road sign for Southeastern Louisiana University, stopped to visit and decided to enroll. The onlyscholarship left was a tennis scholarship, and she was promised that there would be ajournalism scholarship by the time she would graduate. She went on to become a standout performer on the women's basketball team, ending her career as the school's third all-time leading scorer (1,446 points) and rebounder (1,034). Roberts is one of only three Lady Lions to score 1,000 career points and grab 1,000 career rebounds. During her senior season, she averaged a career-high 27.6 points per game. On February 5, 2011, Southeastern hosted a ceremony to retire Roberts' jersey, number 21.[10]
Roberts began her career in 1983 as a sports anchor andreporter forWDAM-TV inHattiesburg, Mississippi.[11] In 1984, she moved toWLOX-TV inBiloxi,Mississippi. In 1986, she was sports anchor and reporter forWSMV-TV inNashville,Tennessee.[12] From 1988 to 1990 she was a sports anchor and reporter atWAGA-TV inAtlanta,Georgia. While in Atlanta, she was also a radio host for radio stationV-103.
She joinedESPN as a sportscaster in February 1990, where she stayed until 2005.[13] OnSportsCenter, she used the catchphrase, "Go on with your bad self!" Roberts began to work forABC News, specifically as a featured reporter forGood Morning America in June 1995.
During this period, Roberts was also the host forABC's Wide World of Sports from 1996 to 1998.
Roberts worked at both ESPN andGood Morning America, contributing to both programs.[when?] During that time, she served primarily as the news anchor atGMA. In 2005, Roberts was promoted to co-anchor ofGood Morning America. In December 2009, Roberts was joined byGeorge Stephanopoulos as co-anchor ofGMA afterDiane Sawyer left to anchorABC World News. Under their partnership, the Roberts-Stephanopoulos team ledGood Morning America back to the top of the ratings; the program became the number-one morning show again in April 2012, beatingNBC'sToday, which had held the top spot for the previous 16 years.[14]
In the fall of 2005, Roberts anchored a series of emotional reports from the MississippiGulf Coast after it was devastated byHurricane Katrina; her hometown of Pass Christian was especially hard hit, with her old high school reduced to rubble. On February 22, 2009, Roberts hosted theAcademy Awards preshow forABC, and did so again in 2011.
In 2010, Roberts guest-starred onDisney Channel'sHannah Montana, appearing in season 4, episode 10, "Can You See the Real Me?" On May 30, 2010, Roberts drove the Pace Car for the2010 Indianapolis 500.[15]
Roberts was inducted into theWomen's Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the Hall's class of 2012 for her contributions to and impact on the game of women's basketball through her broadcasting work and play.[16] In 2014 Roberts was named one of ESPNW's Impact 25.[17]
On May 19, 2018, Roberts co-anchored thewedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St. George's Chapel in Windsor.
Roberts served as a guest host onJeopardy! for five episodes airing July 19–23, 2021, following the death ofAlex Trebek in November 2020.[18]
Roberts is the host of theDisney+ interview seriesTurning the Tables with Robin Roberts, which debuted in 2021.[19]
She performed as ana cappella backup singer/former member of the Barden Bellas inPitch Perfect 2.[when?]
In 2014, she started her own production company, Rock'n Robin Productions.[20][21] Roberts, whose father was a Tuskegee Airman, executive-produced and narrated the one-hour documentaryTuskegee Airmen: Legacy of Courage[22] which premiered onHistory on February 10, 2021.[23]
Roberts isPresbyterian and a practitioner ofTranscendental Meditation.[38]
Roberts began a romantic relationship with massage therapist Amber Laign in 2005.[39][40][41] Though friends and co-workers had known about her same-sex relationships, Roberts publicly acknowledged her sexual orientation for the first time in late December 2013.[42][43] In 2015, she was named by Equality Forum as one of their 31 Icons of the 2015LGBT History Month.[44] In September 2023, Roberts and Laign married.[45]
On October 10, 2018, Roberts was selected as a mentor for Disney's #DreamBigPrincess campaign.[46]
In 2007, Roberts was diagnosed with an early form ofbreast cancer.[47] She underwent surgery on August 3, and by January 2008 had completed eightchemotherapy treatments.[48]
In 2012, she was diagnosed withmyelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a disease of the bone marrow.[49] Be the Match Registry, a nonprofit organization run by the National Marrow Donor Program, experienced an 1,800 percent spike in donors the day Roberts went public with her illness.[50] She took a leave fromGMA to get abone marrow transplant,[51][52] and went home in October 2012.[53] She returned toGMA on February 20, 2013.[54] Roberts received a 2012 Peabody Award for how she engaged the public about her disease.
The Peabody citation credits her for "allowing her network to document and build a public service campaign around her battle with rare disease" and "inspir[ing] hundreds of potential bone marrow donors to register and heighten[ing] awareness of the need for even more donors."[55] ESPN awarded itsArthur Ashe Courage Award to Roberts at the 2013 ESPYs, and theNational Basketball Association awarded her theSager Strong Award at its award ceremony on June 20, 2019.[56][57][58][59]
Born Nov. 23, 1960 in Tuskegee, Ala.
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