Craig Melvin Shares Surprise Reunion With His Former Intern on ‘Today’ Plaza

Craig Melvin got a blast from the past on the Thursday, September 3, episode of Today.

Per usual, Melvin and his fellow Today co-hosts started the morning by greeting fans out on the 30 Rockefeller Plaza. In the crowd, Melvin spotted a familiar face from his career past. “I met this young lady when I came outside, and I was like, ‘Oh, she looks familiar.’ And it was a reminder of how old I am,” he stated.

Melvin went on to ask the woman, named Fallon Ward, how they knew each other. “I used to be your intern when you were at WIS news station in Columbia, South Carolina,” she revealed, adding that she worked for Melvin all the way back in 2008.

“2008. That’s how old I am,” Melvin quipped before telling Ward, “It’s good to see you.” She replied, “Likewise.”

Today fans reacted to the fun reunion via Instagram. “WIS love! Been watching Craig since I was a student at USC! Go Craig!” one user wrote underneath a clip of the on-air moment. Another added, “Cool! I interned at WIS in 2022!” Someone else shared, “Love this! And she’s beautiful.”

The news station WIS also hopped in the comments, sharing a GIF of Leonardo DiCaprio excitedly pointing at a TV screen in the film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

 

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Melvin graduated from Wofford College in 2001. He got his start in broadcast journalism at WIS-TV in Columbia, South Carolina, where he worked as an evening news anchor. Melvin went on to work as a weekend anchor for the Washington, D.C., NBC outlet WRC before joining NBC News and MSNBC (now MS Now) in 2011.

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Melvin joined the Today family as a news anchor in 2018 before becoming a longtime host of the morning show’s third hour. In January 2025, he took over for Hoda Kotb as Savannah Guthrie‘s co-anchor.

Last month, radio personality Charlamagne Tha God shared funny memories of his and Melvin’s early career days in South Carolina on Today With Jenna & Sheinelle, calling Melvin “one of the most disciplined people” he knows.

“I remember we used to hang out at this club called V12 in Columbia, South Carolina. And I remember us being — I think it was my birthday party or something, so we’re in the VIP,” he shared. “And we’re just sitting back there, cooling, and somebody in the club was smoking marijuana. And I remember Craig going, ‘[Sniffs] Is that marijuana? Charlamagne, I gotta go.’”

Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones burst into laughter after Charlamagne said Melvin “skedaddled out of the club.” Jones remarked, “Well, but he made it. Now, he’s hosting the Today show.”

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