The morning was already full of tributes when “Today” anchor Savannah Guthrie looked at her longtime colleague Hoda Kotb and conjured up another surprise.

“Well, listen, we have one last guest this hour who really wanted to wish you well on your next adventure,” Ms. Guthrie said.

Kermit the Frog jumped over the couch and began serenading Ms. Kotb with “Rainbow Connection,” a song she apparently sings to her two young daughters every night.

“Oh my God,” Ms. Kotb mouthed as she held her girls on the “Today” couch and wiped tears from her eyes.

For much of the 8 a.m. hour of NBC’s “Today” on Friday, all the big stories on a very chaotic news day – the Los Angeles fires, the sentencing of President-elect Donald J. Trump in a New York court, the Supreme Court of TikTok hearing – have been put on pause.

Instead, the show became an extended celebration of Ms. Kotb hosting “Today” for the last time. In September, Ms Kotb said in a surprise announcement that she was stepping down from her job, one of the most prominent on television, after being part of the show for 17 years. She said at the time that her recent 60th birthday made her want to spend more time with her children. NBC announced in November that a “Today” star, Craig Melvin, would replace her.

Ms. Kotb’s departure has allowed NBC to showcase something that has sometimes been elusive for the “Today” franchise: a peaceful transfer of power.

Ms. Kotb’s predecessor, Matt Lauer, didn’t get a chance to say goodbye to viewers after he was suddenly fired from the network amid allegations of sexual misconduct. When Ann Curry was forced to leave as co-host of “Today” in 2012, she all but told viewers that she wasn’t leaving willingly. “For everyone who saw me as a trailblazer, I’m sorry I couldn’t carry the ball to the finish line, but man, I tried,” she said in her final episode as co-host.

Ms. Kotb, on the other hand, leaves while she is upstairs. And the station she has called home for 26 years has made it clear it would like to give her a star-studded send-off.

Special guests — including Simone Biles, Kathie Lee Gifford, Oprah Winfrey, Gayle King, Jimmy Fallon and Jamie Lee Curtis — paid tribute to everyone on Friday, capping a week that “Today” billed as “Hoda-Bration!”

“I can’t believe you came,” Ms. Kotb said, her voice broken, as she greeted and hugged gymnast Ms. Biles at the studio.

“Of course,” Ms. Biles replied. “You showed up and supported me.”

Ms. Kotb is leaving an industry that is experiencing significant turbulence. News anchor salaries are beginning to fall sharply, and other veterans, including CNN’s Chris Wallace and Fox News’ Neil Cavuto, have also recently announced departures.

Ms. Kotb leaves “Today” in very good shape. “Today” has surpassed its rival “Good Morning America” in total viewers and all key ratings for 10 straight weeks. This is the longest such winning streak in more than a decade. Ms. Kotb is also leaving her role as host of the show’s popular 10 a.m. hour alongside Jenna Bush Hager.

During the 8 a.m. hour Friday, Ms. Guthrie and other “Today” regulars said goodbye in a video package.

“Hoda, I love you, I love you with all my heart,” Ms. Guthrie said. “As I always tell you, whether you sit next to me or not, whether we get up together at 4 a.m. or not, I will always be by your side and you will always be by my side.”

Ms. Kotb, again in tears, then looked at her colleagues and honored each of them. She told Carson Daly that he was the “secret sauce” of the show. She told Al Roker that he was her first boyfriend on “Today.” To Ms. Guthrie she said, “My God, you are my person, you are my person.”

And she told her successor, Mr. Melvin, that he “deserved this” before launching into a resounding chorus from the “Today” studio.

“Come Monday at 7 o’clock,” she said, “I will sleep soundly.”