 Palmer officially joined the "Today" cast as news anchor on September 27, 1982, replacing Chris Wallace, who had read the news and served as Bryant Gumbel and Jane Pauley's Washington co-anchor.The team of Gumbel, Pauley, Palmer, Willard Scott, and Gene Shalit helped take "The Today Show" to the top of the ratings in 1986, where it stayed until the end of the decade.In the late 1980s, Palmer was the primary substitute co-host of "Today" on days when Gumbel was away.