Former Today show anchor Matt Lauer was fired by NBC News for what its chairman called "inappropriate sexual behavior," but over the course of his long career at NBC reportedly paid him more than $100 million.
Lauer became co-anchor of Today in January 1997 after three years as the program's newsreader. Last year, he signed a new deal with the show that reportedly guaranteed him a salary of $28 million a year. (A day after his termination, Lauer issued a statement saying he is "truly sorry" and feels "sorrow and regret for the pain I have caused others by words and actions.")
The media personality has spent some of that on significant real-estate holdings. In 2016, he paid a reported $33.5-million for a 12-bedroom home in the Hamptons previously owned by Richard Gere. Strongheart Manor, as the 1902 property is known, encompasses 6.3 acres on the peninsula of North Haven. Another home Lauer owns in nearby Sag Harbor, with gardens by landscape architect Miranda Brooks, has been listed since last year. It's currently on the market for $14.9 million.
He also recently sold a New York apartment in the same Upper East Side building that convicted Ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff called home. Lauer and his soon-to-be ex-wife, Annette Roque, reportedly paid $5.882 million for the home in 2004.
In August of 2018, it was reported that he will page Roque up to $20 million in a divorce settlement.
Since Lauer's termination, it's emerged that New Zealand regulators are reviewing whether his behavior violates the country's "good character" requirement for foreign investors. Lauer and Roque reportedly paid $9.2 million for a farm on the country's South Island earlier this year.
Celebritynetworth.com estimates that Lauer is worth approximately $80 million.
Lauer is the just one high-profile media figure to be brought down by allegations of inappropriate sexual behavior. CBS News fired Charlie Rose, a co-host of its morning news show after a Washington Post report on Rose's alleged sexual misconduct was published in November. PBS also parted ways with Rose.
Sam Dangremond is a Contributing Digital Editor at Town & Country, where he covers men's style, cocktails, travel, and the social scene.
