What can you tell me about Daryn Kagan?
—C. Booker, Ohio
Daryn Kagan, a Stanford University graduate, became a news anchor in spite of her boss at Phoenix's KTVK. It was obvious that only blondes became anchors there, and brunettes were to be the reporters. He told her that she didn't have "it," even though she created a sports reporting position for herself and worked seven days a week to prove him wrong. When her contract ended, her friend's agent took a look at her demo tape and told Kagan she needed an updated look. "She said, ‘Cut your hair. You'll be shocked how fast you get picked up,'" says Kagan, 42. She cut her hair, and CNN hired her two weeks later as a sports anchor in 1994. "I've lived every sports dream I've ever wanted—the NFL, the Super Bowl, major league baseball," she says. "I've traveled to Russia to cover figure skating." After about three years, she switched to news anchoring, and she's covered everything from wars to the Oscars. Single and living in Atlanta, the Southern California native teases that her dog and three-legged cat are her kids. "I am very happy," she declares.
