NBC News chief Noah Oppenheim announced this morning that Kathie Lee Gifford has decided to exit Today show, where she has hosted the final hour of the four-hour franchise since 2008. Kathie Lee made it official to viewers during the broadcast.

Today celebrity correspondent Jenna Bush Hager, who returned to work Monday after taking a week off to mourn the death of her grandfather, President George H.W. Bush, and who often shows up on Hour 4, is odds-on fave to replace Kathie Lee, though Hager already is doing heavy lifting on the Today hour recently vacated by Megyn Kelly.

But Gifford, while paying homage to her “beautiful Egyptian goddess” co-host Hoda Kotb during this morning’s traditional “bittersweet” on-air exit announcement, said only “I know somebody wonderful will be sitting in this seat afterwards” adding, “I have my idea of who might be absolutely wonderful – but there is a great pool of talent and beauty and heart right within our family.”

Then, maybe thinking she’d said too much, Kathie Lee added, “And, if they come from outside the family they will soon become family, because you all treat everybody that way.”

Today show has a catastrophic recent history of bring in people “from outside the company” to host: aka Billy Bush, Megyn Kelly.

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