Kentuckians who knew Nancy Guthrie, family say her disappearance is a 'tragedy'

Valarie Honeycutt Spears, Lexington Herald-Leader on Feb 4, 2026

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People who knew Nancy Guthrie, mother of the “Today” show co-host Savannah Guthrie, and her husband Charlie Guthrie when they grew up in Kentucky are calling her disappearance a “tragedy.”

Law enforcement officials in Pima County confirmed Tuesday they were investigating reports that ransom notes had been received by media outlets following Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance. She was last seen Saturday night at her Tuscon, Arizona, home where she moved in the 1970s after leaving Kentucky. The sheriff’s office said Wednesday they had not identified a suspect or person of interest.

Jack Guthrie, who from 1962 to 1963 was editor of the University of Kentucky’s student newspaper, the Kentucky Kernel, told the Herald-Leader Nancy Guthrie worked on the newspaper when she attended UK. She reported on Greek life.

Guthrie, who said he was not related to Nancy Guthrie, said he did not see Nancy Guthrie after they attended UK and worked on the student newspaper together.

“She was a very nice young woman,” said Jack Guthrie. “Here’s this unbelievable tragedy happening to a very nice person that I knew back in my Kernel days.”

Nancy Guthrie was from Fort Wright in Northern Kentucky, the Herald-Leader reported in her marriage engagement announcement. Her father was Pierce F. Long of Fort Wright, the announcement said.

Ed Wilson of Louisville told the Herald-Leader Wednesday he knew Charlie Guthrie, Nancy’s Guthrie’s husband. Charlie Guthrie died of a heart attack when Savannah Guthrie was 16.

Wilson and Charlie Guthrie were both from Pineville, where Wilson said Charlie Guthrie’s father, Clyde Guthrie, was a coal company operator.

“It’s terrible. It’s something you don’t think would happen to anybody that you might have an acquaintance with,” said Wilson. “It’s really unfortunate.”

Police say they believe the 84-year-old woman was taken against her will.

“TMZ announced Tuesday it had received an unverified ransom note for Guthrie’s return. KGUN, the Scripps station in Tucson, also received a ransom note referencing Guthrie. It makes a specific demand for several million dollars in Bitcoin by Thursday and threatens to kill her if payment is not received by Monday,” WCPO reported.

Guthrie, a co-host on “Today” since 2012, revealed during the morning TV show several years ago that her parents met on a blind date at a UK men’s basketball game.

“She’s quick. She’s smart. She’s well-read. She’s curious about everything. She’s daring and adventurous,” Savannah Guthrie told TV station WCPO in Cincinnati in 2022. “She’s willing to jet off anywhere, and I really do mean jet. She once got in an F-16 in Fort Wright,” the television station reported.

“Savannah Guthrie’s father was stationed in Melbourne, Australia, when Savannah was born. They then returned to the U.S., moving to Tucson,” WCPO reported.

The Facebook Alumni group for Notre Dame Academy, a Catholic High School in Northern Kentucky, posted Wednesday: “We ask our community to join us in prayer for the safety and protection of our 1959 alumna, Nancy Long Guthrie, who is missing in Arizona.”

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