Savannah Guthrie’s Eerie Confession: NBC Host Played ‘Kidnapping Games’ as a Child — Years Before Mom Nancy’s ‘Abduction’

‘About once a year in the summertime, cousin Terry orchestrated a kidnapping of my sister and me,’ Savannah Guthrie said in her book.MEGA; @savannahguthrie/Instagram

An eerie kidnapping confession Savannah Guthrie once made involving her mom, Nancy, has come to light as investigators continue to desperately search for the missing 84-year-old, RadarOnline.comcan reveal.

What Did Savannah Guthrie Say?

Megyn Kelly revisited audio from Savannah’s 2024 book in which she described a childhood kidnapping game her older cousin designed.

The game featured secrecy, an early morning escape, and a fake call home to tell her mother that “cousin Terry kidnapped me.”

“About once a year in the summertime, cousin Terry orchestrated a kidnapping of my sister and me,” Savannah wrote. “It went down like this. The cousins would visit for a few days at our house in Tucson. And then, on the morning they were due to leave, Terry would wake us up early, shushing us in the pre-dawn darkness as we made our escape.”

“We would all pile into her rickety station wagon and head North, the sky streaking with bright oranges and pinks as the sun rose over the colorless desert landscape. Somewhere between Phoenix and Tucson, Terry would make a pitstop and let Annie and me call home at a payphone. ‘Mom, cousin Terry kidnapped us to take us to her house.’ My mother would feign in shock, protest how terribly she would miss us, then assure us she’d drive up to retrieve us in a few days.”

What Happened to Nancy Guthrie?

Nancy Guthrie has been missing since February 1.@savannahguthrie/Instagram

The audio is particularly unnerving given the current state of affairs with Nancy, who has been missing since February 1.

She was last seen on January 31 after having dinner with her daughter, Annie, and her son-in-law, Tommaso Cioni. He dropped her off at her home later that night and was the last person to see her before she disappeared.

The next morning, when Nancy didn’t show up to a friend’s house as she was expected to, her friend attempted to contact her. After failing, she called Annie. By the time Nancy’s kids arrived at her house, she was gone, but her cellphone and wallet were left behind.

Is There a Suspect in the Nancy Guthrie Case?

A suspect in the Nancy Guthrie case has not been identified. @FBIDirectorKash/Instagram

Although investigators have been desperately trying to find Nancy and figure out who seemingly kidnapped her, they have been unsuccessful on both fronts.

The only thing known about the suspect is from surveillance footage on Nancy’s Nest camera from the day she was abducted, which showed a man wearing a mask, a glove, and appearing to have a gun in the holster of their belt.

A black glove found a few miles from Nancy’s home offered up some hope, but after running the DNA through the CODIS system, no matches were found.

What Has Savannah Said?

Savannah Guthrie said she and her siblings ‘still believe’ Nancy will be returned. @savannahguthrie/Instagram

Savannah and her siblings have made many statements along the way via Instagram, trying to appeal to the abductor(s) to bring their mom home.

In her most recent post, shared on February 16, she begged the kidnappers to “do the right thing” and told them “it’s never too late.”

She also revealed she and her siblings “still have hope” Nancy will be returned.

“And I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is that it’s never too late, and you’re not lost or alone, and it is never too late to do the right thing,” she added. “We are here, and we believe, and we believe in the essential goodness of every human being, and it’s never too late.”

Hoda Kotb Honors Savannah Guthrie With New Tribute on 20th Day of Mom Nancy’s Disappearance

Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb at the Emmy Awards – Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images

Hoda Kotb continues to show support for her longtime friend Savannah Guthrie amid the disappearance of the Today host’s 84-year-old mother, Nancy Guthrie, who has been missing since January 31.

On Friday morning, February 20, Kotb shared a photo of Savannah and Nancy on her Instagram page, writing alongside it, “

Bring her home.” She also included a picture of a yellow ribbon marked “Day 20” in the corner of the post.

Kotb and her fellow Today co-hosts, including Craig Melvin, Al Roker, and Carson Daly, have been wearing yellow ribbon pins on air to show their support for Savannah and the Guthrie family. This came as well-wishers left yellow flowers near Nancy’s home in Tucson, Arizona.

“So many people [are] placing yellow flowers near Nancy’s home and all across the city. And we got a suggestion from one of our viewers, and we’re doing the same here,” Kotb explained on the Wednesday, February 18, episode. “We have yellow roses around studio 1A, and we are all wearing ribbons as we send our love to Savannah and her family.”

Kotb, who retired from the Today show last January, has been filling in for Savannah amid her hiatus as police continue the search for her mother. She has also been sharing many Instagram posts in support of her friend, including photos, prayers, and messages of hope.

“Well, first of all, I just want to say this whole thing is breaking my heart, and I’m happy to be sitting here with you,” an emotional Kotb told her cohosts when she returned to Today on February 6. “I’ve been wandering around, going, ‘Where do we go?’ And I picture Savannah sitting there… Anyway, I just want to say good morning, and everybody’s hoping and praying for Nancy’s safe return.”

After Melvin welcomed her back to the show, Kotb added, “You know what, Craig? We always talk about our show as a family. We are a family. I’m part of the family. I’m happy to be with you, ‘cause we show up for each other. So, let’s get to it.”

Nancy was last seen at her home on January 31 and was reported missing the following day. Officials have yet to name any persons of interest in the case and have offered a $100,000 reward for information regarding Nancy’s whereabouts and alleged abductors. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos recently cleared Savannah and her family—spouses included—as suspects in the case.

‘There’s No Way Savannah’s Coming Back’: NBC Grapples With the Loss of ‘Today’ Star After Mom’s Abduction — ‘No Natural Successor’

Savannah Guthrie has not indicated what her plans are with ‘Today’ amid her mother’s apparent abduction.NBC

As NBC and Today grapple over coverage of host Savannah Guthrie’s abducted mom, Nancy, executives fear she may never return to the show, RadarOnline.com can reveal.

Nearly three weeks have passed since Nancy was seemingly forcibly taken from her Tucson, Arizona, home, and some brass behind the scenes don’t think Savannah will want to come back to her life on TV after experiencing such a soul-crushing and high-profile true crime case.

‘There’s No Way Savannah’s Coming Back’

Craig Melvin joined Savannah Guthrie as her co-host in January 2025.NBC/Universal

“There’s no way Savannah’s coming back,” one veteran executive told the Status newsletter about her longtime position on Today. “I can’t imagine she would even want to.”

The former lawyer has been the co-host of Today since 2012 and has taken on an even bigger profile since Matt Lauer’s scandalous 2017 firing.

While Hoda Kotb was elevated to join Savannah on the prime 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. hours, she retired in January 2025 to spend more time with her young adopted daughters. Craig Melvin was named Kotb’s successor.

Now, NBC is in a panic about what to do if the network’s most popular morning show star decides to leave her position after her elderly mom’s kidnapping.

Savannah Guthrie Is the ‘Glue’ that Holds ‘Today’ Show Together

Savannah Guthrie has co-hosted ‘Today’ for 13 years and is one of morning TV’s most popular personalities. NBC/Universal

Over the last few weeks, NBC has given Savannah all the time she needs to deal with her mom’s disappearance. While Kotb has returned to fill in for her former co-host, insiders stressed that it would be a major blow to Today if they lost Savannah entirely.

“If you could pick one person across the span of morning TV that a show would not want to lose, it would be Savannah,” a second veteran executive told Status about how valuable she is.

“Savannah was always the glue on that show, and without that, this whole paradigm of our morning anchor team as a family, that connective tissue has just been ripped out,” the insider added.

Hoda Kotb Is Not a ‘Long-Term Answer’

Former ‘Today’ co-host Hoda Kotb has been filling in for Savannah Guthrie. Today/YouTube

While Kotb has been a familiar and comforting face for Today viewers during Savannah’s family’s heartbreak, she’s not a viable prospect to take over should the Arizona native choose not to return to the show.

One exec said the Joy 101 founder is a temporary “band aid,” and not a “long-term answer.”

While Kotb claimed her reason for departing Today was to be a more active presence in her daughters’ lives, an insider suggested there was more to it.

“She left for a reason, which was because they weren’t paying her as much,” the spy dished.

However, Kotb sticking around for a year or two if Savannah doesn’t come back would provide the network “a chance to try out people internally, without it being an optics problem,” when it comes to an eventual replacement.

‘We Still Have Hope’

There are still no suspects or motive in Savannah Guthrie’s mother’s kidnapping. @savannahguthrie/Instagram

Savannah has not indicated her plans as she holds onto hope that her mother will be found.

As Radar previously reported, Nancy was abducted in the early morning hours of February 1 and hasn’t been heard from since. There has been no proof that the grandmother, who is in frail health and needs daily medication, is still alive. However, the Guthrie family has refused to give up.

In an Instagram video shared on February 15, Savannah pleaded with the person who took her mother: “I wanted to say to whoever has her or knows where she is, it’s never too late. And you’re not lost, or alone. And it is never too late to do the right thing.”

She added, “We still have hope.”