Brian Williams Lobbied For Ann Curry To Fill In For Him On 'Nightly News' While He Vacationed
May 24 2013, Published 1:54 p.m. ET
Eleven months after being ousted from the TODAY show, Ann Curry sat behind the anchor desk on NBC Nightly News Thursday night, filling in for vacationing Brian Williams, who RadarOnline.com has exclusively learned lobbied his bosses to have the respected journalist sit in for him.
It was the first time Curry sat at the anchor desk in almost a year, even though she has reported for the Peacock network.
"Brian and Ann worked together on Rock Center for the past year, and he is a big supporter of hers," a source told Radar.
"Brian told his bosses that he wanted Ann to sit on for him. May 23 was the last day of the pivotal sweeps period."
Curry's fans gave her an outpouring of support after the broadcast on Thursday night, and she thanked them on Twitter.
"Thank you for all the lovely tweets about my anchoring @nbcnightlynews last night. Loveuback, Ann," the journalist wrote.
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As previously reported, Curry has been asked by NBC’s top brass to secure the first interview with Angelina Jolie after she stunned the world with the announcement that she’d secretly had a double mastectomy.
The award-winning journalist — dumped from TODAY last summer — has interviewed Jolie, 37, numerous times over the years.
Meanwhile, "Ann will also be sitting in for him on Friday night as well, and she was very happy to return. She just wants to work with no drama," the insider told Radar.