i m tom brokaw with jane pauley and uncle willard, the newest member of the today family. reporter: willard came from wrc-tv in washington. and sunshine will come reporter: where he was the weather man. he began in 1950 at wrc and helped to create the popular joy boys radio program. willard played bozo the clown and even was the first ronald mcdonald. he s ronald mcdonald the hamburger happy clown reporter: he loved a laugh at his own expense. he s been juggling my career for 40 years. reporter: willard walked across the united states. maybe scattered showers by sunday. reporter: and traveled the world with today. somewhere out in the saudi desert. this is spectacular. reporter: viewers loved his birthday tributes. happy birthday to all of our friends who have birthdays today. a bunch of us get together
he brought more light and lightness to the role giving birthday shoutouts, blasting their photos to millions of people around the country. he would sometimes dress up in wild costumes, deliver the forecast at fairs, make appearances on late night tv shows and take on a role as spokesperson for various charities and other organizations. scoot gained notoriety for his role as bozo the clown and original ronald mcdonald. he wrote a couple books during his lifetime. scott spent 65 years at nbc, joining the network in 1980. but liss career started at wrc tv the nbc affiliate in washington, d.c. where other notable reporters and anchors made stops as well. like katie couric who reacted to his passing, writing in part, he played such an out-size role in high life and was as warm and loving and generous off camera
barbara starr has more about this. reporter: at dover air force base, cody patterson came home to his family as defense secretary chuck hagel paid his respects. unbearable grief for families made much worse because the government shutdown left them without death benefits. marine lance corporal michael collins remains were brought monday to dover. his mother shannon says he was a great marine. he became a marine to become somebody and he became a great marine. reporter: the white house wednesday promised a quick fix to a tragedy that had become a pr disaster. the president told wrc-tv, he acted as soon as he learned of the problem. when i heard about this story, i toll the department defense within our administrative powers we should be able to get that fixed. reporter: as hagel stood on the tarmac top aids were quickly working on a solution. the pentagon signed a contract