NBC will celebrate Al Roker's 40th anniversary "with NBC" Friday, Dec. 14, 2018 with a series of retrospectives and surprises.

According to Roker's bio, it appears NBC is using his 1978 hire at WKYC in Cleveland, Ohio, then an NBC O&O, as the start of his 40-year career with the company.

Roker joined "Today" officially in 1996.

Despite being popularly known for providing weather forecasts, Roker does not actually qualify as a "meteorologist' and has an inactive American Meteorological Society Television Seal.

Over the years, his role on "Today" has expanded to become more of a co-host role, especially in the third hour under both the "Today's Take" and "Today Third Hour" iterations. See full story...