Today's Natalie Morales' "Groundbreaking" Career

• Dec 27, 2007 03:00 AM ET
• by A. Randall Barnshaw

People en Español may have named her one of 2007's "Most Beautiful People," but Natalie Morales is more than just a pretty face. She's fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, blogs for MSNBC, runs marathons and has a full-time hosting gig on Today (7 am/ET, NBC). Recently, Morales chatted with us about the show and Latinos on television.

TV Guide: How has life changed since Today added that fourth hour?
Natalie Morales: At the time, I thought "Oh, it's only one hour — no big deal." But [it's] really like adding 10 hours to the week, because you spend more time preparing. When I go home, I'm like "What hit me? Oh yeah, that extra hour." But I enjoy every minute of it.

TV Guide: Are you ever horrified by the dresses on the "Today Throws a Wedding" series?
Morales: [Laughs] We usually have designers who send us dresses… so you don't have a lot of horrendous options. Every year [I] think: "I couldn't have picked a better dress for [the bride]." So I think the viewers nail it every time.

TV Guide: Of all the celebrities you've interviewed, who was the coolest?
Morales: Paul McCartney! He was the most nerve-racking, too. [But] he was so gracious and wonderful, he made me feel at home right away…. He picked up his guitar and strummed a couple of tunes. It was amazing… a career high. And he is the cutest Beatle.

TV Guide: Given your background, do you think TV pays enough attention to Latino issues?
Morales: I was just honored by Catalina magazine for being a groundbreaking Latina, and I'm sitting there thinking, "What have I done that's so groundbreaking?" [But] if you scan through the TV, you're not seeing a lot of us on the air. People often say to me in disbelief, "Oh, you're Hispanic? I would have never guessed." And I say, "What do you mean? What is a Hispanic to you?" So I constantly want to remind people not to be judgmental or have a certain view of what we're supposed to look like.

TV Guide: What does your young son think of your work?
Morales: I've finally got him saying, "But first this is Today on NBC.…" [Laughs] For a minute there, he said "ABC" and I'm like "Nooo!"

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