continuing to live here. good to see you, my friend. thank you very much. i am david asman, you are watching "the evening edit" on fox business. have a great evening, we thank you so much for watching. >> he makes big-screen magic... >> he was indeed a genius. he had the eye. >> ...but his heart belongs to this tiny stage. >> they're spectacular, down to the finest detail. >> this was the place where he poured all of his love. [ woman vocalizing ] >> so how did these guys inherit his life's work? >> i was a senior in high school, and i was looking for a job that i wouldn't hate. >> you feel like you might be sitting on a gold mine? >> must their show go on? >> it would be...over. >> it would be gone. everything would be dismantled and somewhere in a dumpster. >> or will the fat lady sing? [ operatic singing ] [ door creaks ] [ wind howls ]

[ thunder rumbles ] [ bird caws ] >> i'm jamie colby, and today i'm in rolling meadows, illinois. it's a suburb of chicago. some weather, huh? i'm here to meet two brothers whose strange inheritance had some serious strings attached. >> my name is justin snyder. and in 2006, our friend and mentor bill fosser passed away, leaving my brother and me a sort of chicago institution -- his puppet opera. >> hi, justin. i'm jamie. >> jamie, nice to meet you. >> i'm told that you have something that i may never see again. >> here, follow me. >> i will. justin leads me behind the scenes of a most unusual opera house. >> all these boxes here contain costumes for various, different productions. >> wow! this is my kind of wardrobe.

if only it came in my size. the costumes are so small because the players taking the stage aren't the supersized tenors and sopranos you expect to see at the opera. they're 16-inch puppets. the maestro behind this pint-size production, justin's boss, the late bill fosser. who was bill fosser? >> bill fosser taught me everything i know about puppetry. he had a unique ability to re-create full-scale environments, but in a miniature scale. he was one of my best friends. >> fosser, born in 1928, grows up in a working-class neighborhood on chicago's west side. >> he described himself as a sickly child. he was stuck at home a lot and would experiment with household materials to try to kind of create his own puppets. >> in 1935, when bill is 7, his aunt takes him to his first

opera, verdi's "il trovatore." he's enchanted by it all -- the music, the costumes, and the stage design. >> he fell in love with the art form of opera, but he was always interested in -- in puppets and then, eventually, just combined the two. >> the boy builds a mini opera house with a velvet curtain and assembles his company of players. >> he told us that he used to offer performances to kids in the neighborhood for like a penny. >> turns out, puppet opera is an actual thing in those days. bill sees an article in the paper about a lavish restaurant in chicago that's adding a puppet opera to its bill of fare. the place is called kungsholm. >> kungsholm was a swedish smorgasbord and a puppet theater all in one. >> steve golden was six when he saw his first show at the kungsholm. that led to a lifelong career as a professional puppeteer, who

also handles purchases and acquisitions for the northwest puppet center in seattle. so, steve's childhood experience at the kungsholm left an impression. >> you came to the restaurant and you were given a complementary ticket to the puppet miniature grand opera. >> was it an institution in chicago? >> oh, was it ever? to go there was a highlight of a day. >> how fabulous. opera stars and socialites flocked to see kungsholm puppets perform arias from operas such as "madame butterfly" or "the barber of seville." so, 14-year-old bill fosser takes his best handmade puppet and talks his way into a summer job at the theater. soon, he, too, is hooked for life. he becomes an expert puppetmaker and patents a design for a puppet with more natural body movements than the ones used at the kungsholm.

>> this is one of the original kungsholm puppets. the operator would be underneath and there's a series of rods and strings. >> justin's brother, shayne snyder, is the other heir in our story. >> these two here are made by bill fosser and these were actually two of bill's favorite puppets. this is canio from "pagliacci", and this is lakmè from the opera "lakmè." >> so, it was bill who advanced this technique of the rings and the rods? >> correct. he made many improvements to the design, like giving them a little bit of a joint here and then the walking. >> can you make them walk? >> mm-hmm. >> unbelievable. >> and you can get a lot of range of movement and motions just from lifting and turning the rod. >> ingenious, but it's tough to make a buck in puppets. so, bill only works off and on at the kungsholm, though he pays the bills with another skill he perfects there. he's a sought-after stage designer at full-scale chicago

theaters. >> he was indeed a genius. he had the eye. >> actor tony mockus performed on some of bill's sets in the early days. >> every now and then, you're lucky enough to work with people who have that kind of an ability and bill has that ability. >> eventually, the kungsholm falls into disrepair, closes, and re-opens as a steakhouse with no puppets. >> bill opens his own puppet theater. he's never married, has no kids, so it's his baby. [ gasps ] oh, my! he christens it "opera in focus." >> he had the idea of, like, a camera lens in mind, so it's like looking through the lens of camera at this weird, miniature world. >> bill built this? >> he built all of this, yes, indeed. [ "the pearl fishers" plays ]

bill sort of single-handedly kept the art form alive. >> he didn't have a patron. i mean, if he were in europe, he would have been flooded with cash. >> he needs it. bill's first performances barely break even. luckily, around the same time, hollywood comes calling. >> word got around in california that if you're going to chicago, you get ahold of fosser. >> he designs the sets for "home alone" and "curly sue" and a couple of best picture winners, too. >> "the sting," "ordinary people." >> great credits, but it all was just a way to fund his miniature opera. >> in bill's heart, puppets were number one. it's what he lived for. >> in 1993, at 65, bill takes his dream retirement. he leaves the film biz and moves his puppet opera to the chicago

suburb of rolling meadows. curtains rise and fall, and after a few more years, bill realizes he needs more help and, though he doesn't say so at the time, an heir or two. he places a want ad in the newspaper. it's answered by 18-year-old justin snyder. >> when i told him that i wanted to be a puppeteer, he kind of chuckled and he said, "well, if you're gonna work here, you're gonna have to be an all-purpose evil henchman." >> what exactly does that mean? [ vocalizes ] >> natural puppeteer. >> i'll find out in act two, right after intermission. ♪ >> but first, our "strange inheritance" quiz question. the answer after the break.

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staging scenes from classic operas with 16-inch puppets for captivated audiences in the chicago suburbs. >> boy, he knew opera backwards and forwards. he knew when the tenor was going to take a breath... when the soprano would hit her high c's. you were just swept away. >> but bill's in his 70s -- the old ticker's not what it used to be, and he has no family to take over his labor of love. so, in the summer of 2000, he advertises for an apprentice. >> i was a senior in high school, and i was looking for a job that i wouldn't hate. >> justin's brother, shayne, is intrigued, too. they both interview with fosser. >> when i told him that i wanted to be a puppeteer, he kind of chuckled and he said, "well, if you're gonna work here, you're

gonna have to be an all-purpose evil henchman." >> oh, my. >> so, right off the bat, it was like a crash-course. >> bill teaches them all he knows -- how to design and mold puppets out of polyester resin, how to operate the sound, special effects, and everything else it takes to run one of the most technically sophisticated puppet shows in the world. you think i could learn how to be a puppeteer? >> we'll have you manipulating the puppets like a pro. >> here under the stage, the chairs have been shaved down until the seats rest inches from the floor. all right, guys, what am i doing here? >> all right, so here's your shot at the big time. shayne's gonna demonstrate here on his puppet. so, basically your left hand is gonna control the central mechanism of the puppets, which is front and back, and then there you go, perfect. >> okay. >> all right, and then this little lever here is the side-to-side motion of the head. >> she's turning her head. wow. >> if you twist this wheel, you'll see that her legs will start to walk. >> okay. >> and -- there you go.

>> there she goes. >> then you can control the direction of the arm by how you twist it, so i'm gonna hand that one to you. >> okay. >> and that's how you control the arm movements. >> [ vocalizes ] it is very complicated. it's a lot of different movements at the same time. >> you're a natural puppeteer. >> natural puppeteer. >> justin and shayne become bill fosser's natural puppeteers. they're hooked. >> he was like a hero to me. >> it was something that i aspired to be like. >> they skip college, remain under bill's wings, and grow into a much bigger role in the old man's life. you feel like you might have been his surrogate sons? >> definitely, and he told us that all the time, that he looked at us like we were the children that he never had. >> and the heirs he dearly wants to carry on his work. >> he just asked, "what would you think about the idea of continuing this after i'm gone?"

and i was just like, "sure, you know." >> that casual offer and acceptance put bill fosser's mind at ease. for five more years, he throws his heart into this labor of love... until it finally gives out. bill fosser exits life's stage at age 77. what was the impact of losing him? >> it was really hard. as good of a job as he did in preparing us for taking over the theater, you don't really know how unequipped you are until you're thrown into that position. >> the puppets, the stage, the costumes, the institution -- their strange inheritance turns out to be pretty valuable, too. looks to me like bill might have invested a lot of his money in this. >> for sure. >> do you know how much? >> bill told me that he had invested over a million dollars into it. it's actually -- >> holy smokes! >> yeah. >> back in the '80s, the puppets were insured by lloyd's of london for $6,000 each. >> how many were there? >> back then, i believe bill

had 32 "opera in focus" puppets. >> that's significant. >> yes. >> 192k significant. and steve golden, of the northwest puppet center, says they would go for a lot more now. at one point, bill had these appraised at about $6,000 each. >> about $6,000. >> do you think that these have held their value today? >> i would say it certainly has held its value because if you just look at every part of the makeup of it, it's worth every penny that's in there. depending on which collector finds out about it, you could possibly get $10,000 for it. >> you're trying to maintain what is a chicago institution, but you feel like you might be sitting on a gold mine? ready for one more plot twist to bill fosser's libretto? it's his final wish for the puppet opera... what did he tell you? >> ...after the break. >> here's another quiz question for you.

fantastic mr. fox? rudolph the red-nosed reindeer? or the evil other mother from "coraline"? the answer when we return. ta-da!

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>> so... it's "c," the evil other mother from the 2009 movie "coraline." >> in 2006, chicago puppeteer bill fosser dies and leaves his puppet opera to his two pupils, shayne and justin snyder. the brothers want to keep it alive. they even hire their own apprentices.

meanwhile, local reporters aren't helping. they keep reporting it's dead. >> we had to struggle with the media referring to the puppet opera in past tense. all the articles that came out would say like, "'opera in focus' was a puppet theater." >> attendance at their tiny suburban theater hits an all-time low. then, in 2011, a record rainfall floods the theater. justin's sure it's curtains. >> that was probably the end. >> but you had insurance? no insurance? >> no insurance. we had looked into insuring them, but the problem is, the monthly insurance costs were so high that it was unaffordable to us. >> luckily, the brothers had the forethought to stow their uninsured puppets high enough, and they stay dry. but the rest of the place is a mess. >> when the rains finally stopped, they brought in an industrial mold specialist who was basically like, "yeah, we have to tear this place apart." >> no. wait, it gets worse.

turns out, before he died, bill fosser made a highly unusual request to his heirs. what did he tell you? >> well, originally, what he had said is that if the puppet theater were ever to close down, he wanted us to destroy everything. >> destroy, like, "gone"? this? >> everything, yeah. >> why? >> he viewed it as the puppets are instruments, kind of like a violin being stuck in a display case somewhere and not performing its purpose. he found that idea unbearable. >> it would be...over. >> it would be dismantled and somewhere in a dumpster. >> will they need to do that? >> how much do you make doing this? >> showtime! >> that's next. what's your "strange inheritance" story? we'd love to tell it. send me an e-mail or go to our website -- strangeinheritance.com. needles.

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>> now back to "strange inheritance." >> here's where we left justin and shayne snyder, the heirs in this story. a flood in chicago closes "opera in focus," which the brothers inherited from master puppeteer bill fosser. >> we were worried that we might not be able to come back from that just 'cause of the cost involved of rebuilding it all. >> they don't have insurance, but the building does. the landlord agrees the show must go on and pays for the renovation of their 65-seat theater. >> we rebuilt it all from scratch. that was definitely a scary moment. >> but doesn't end their worries. the hiatus further depresses their bottom line. how much do you make doing this? >> we've had productions that have brought in $8,000, maybe, but then we have really poor productions that have maybe brought in $400. >> you must be a pretty wealthy guy to be able to keep this up. >> unfortunately, um, none of us are wealthy. >> are you even breaking even here?

>> it's definitely not something you're gonna become a millionaire doing. >> that apprentice ad they answered years ago led to a rewarding vocation, not a well-paying one. do you have another job? >> i carve stone for a living. my brother works at a toy factory. >> do you see yourself being able to continue this financially? >> as long as there are people out here in the audience, we'll keep doing it. >> we welcome you, our guests of all ages, to this performance of william b. fosser's puppet production of "opera in focus." >> showtime! [ applause ] >> as the lights dim and their newest production, puccini's "turandot," begins, it strikes me that i'm not listening just to opera. it's the call of a siren that proved irresistible to our two young heirs, as it was to bill fosser before them. [ operatic singing ] let me ask you this, steve. do you think that bill left these fine, young men, who were

as devoted to him as he was to them, an inheritance that's a burden or a benefit? >> burdens yield benefits. >> puppeteer steve golden, you'll recall, was seduced by these same sirens. he believes, somewhere, bill fosser is shouting "encore!" >> i think bill would be as pleased as punch that this is happening. >> and no doubt grateful to the two young men he named as his heirs all those years ago. but i wonder about that request bill made, that they should destroy all these beautiful puppets if the opera ever closed. is that a request they could ever honor? the brothers vow, succeed or fail, it will never happen. >> i feel like it's a priceless art form. we could never actually destroy anything here. i think bill knew that these puppets to us, again, just like

to him, they're like family. [ singing continues ] [ applause ] >> bill fosser might not be with them, but justin and shayne want to make sure the art of puppet opera lives on. so, every year, in honor of the man they grew to love like a father, they perform bill's favorite aria, "cielo e mar," or, "sky and sea" from la gioconda. [ operatic singing ] the fact that bill's puppet opera is still up and running, more than 60 years after he started it, that would be music to his ears.

i'm jamie colby. thanks so much for watching "strange inheritance." and remember -- you can't take it with you. [ singing continues ] >> an uptown apartment under siege. >> are you kidding? all of these? >> doesn't every new york city apartment have a soldier room? >> it's one of the biggest collections in the world. >> one man's army four decades in the making. >> when i first saw it, i was absolutely amazed. he had every soldier placed in their position. every general was placed in his position. >> but he doesn't want to leave his wife with all this. >> bob wanted to sell off the collection so carole wouldn't have to deal with it. >> what's an heir to do? turn to "strange inheritance." >> what did you think when you saw the episode about toy soldiers? >> i was knocked out. so, i reached out.

>> here we are. >> yes. ♪ ♪ >> i'm jamie colby, and today i'm strolling along the swanky streets of the upper east side of manhattan. the heir in this story reached out to us just a short time after her husband died. she wanted to talk about her strange inheritance, which she tells me takes up an entire room in her home. >> my name is carole postal, and less than one year ago, i lost my beloved husband, bob. he left me nearly 10,000 toy soldiers, which he called "the guys." >> a whole room on the upper east side -- i'm hoping it's shoes. >> uh, not quite.

>> no way. it's not shoes. it's soldiers? across glass shelves, the tiny troops stand shoulder to shoulder, ready for battle. let's see. there's george washington... generals robert e. lee and ulysses s. grant... not to mention ancient and medieval warriors. a history of world combat in one jam-packed man cave. your husband must've spent a lot of time putting this together. >> lovingly, over 40 years. >> it's really magnificent. i really did need to see this. you were right to get in touch with us. >> oh, i'm so glad you feel that way. >> i would love to learn more about it. >> i'd love to share that with you. >> can we sit and talk? >> i'd love it. >> carole tells me her late husband, bob postal, was born in 1940 in the gulf coast town of

pascagoula, mississippi, where his father ran a garment factory. a shy, intense, and artistic kid, he kept to himself. >> he used to go into his room and draw. and he loved drawing military costumes. and he loved drawing battle re-enactments. >> as a young man, bob stops drawing soldiers and becomes one. he skips college, joins the army reserves, and in 1963, is stationed at fort dix in new jersey as a cook. he's never sent to vietnam. after an honorable discharge in 1969, bob follows in his father's footsteps and jumps into the apparel business in new york city, designing women's blouses for a clothing manufacturer. >> bob had a definite keen eye for what would sell, for what was hot at the time. he was very visionary. he was a workaholic.

>> james moore worked with bob during the 1970s and 1980s. he saw bob's career boom, while his personal life went bust -- three divorces by his early 40s. one thing that does last is his new hobby -- toy soldiers. his collection is his passion. >> when i first saw it, i was absolutely amazed. he had every soldier placed in their position. every general was placed in his position. and i said, "bob, i cannot fathom how you do this, knowing you at work" -- and how impatient he was -- "how can you actually do this?" and he said, "this is my relaxation." >> bob pays 4 grand for this set of more than 100 world war i figures, most from the renowned welsh toy-soldier maker trophy miniatures. these sword-wielding knights of the crusades, some from russia's famed st. petersburg collection,

for $3k. and a rare non-war piece -- the irish state coach used by the british royal family -- a steal at 300 bucks. meanwhile, bob starts his own apparel firm, mayfair industries. it takes off in 1984, when he strikes a deal with the walt disney company to license a little mouse for use on clothing. so, he was a pioneer in the industry? >> he was. he was a pioneer. the company went from $5 million to $110 million almost overnight. >> a few years later, bob comes calling on carole, who works in licensing for turner broadcasting. he's looking to secure the apparel rights to the film classic "the wizard of oz." >> he needed to get the license from me. and he walked into my office at 7:30 in the morning, and we locked eyes, and he never left. we were together from that day onward. >> was it love at first sight? >> it was instantaneous

combustion. >> wow! that was quite a meeting. changed your life. >> it did! >> robert and carole move quickly. first, dating, then it's time to introduce her to his little friends. >> when we moved into the apartment, i said, "why do we need a two-bedroom?" "we need a room for the guys." >> roommates? >> well... and the next thing i know, boxes and boxes and boxes of soldiers are coming into the door. >> some girls might go into full retreat. not carole. the couple marry a year later. bob keeps collecting. >> did you ever say "not one more solider in this house. enough"? >> he could collect as many as his little heart desires, as far as i was concerned, as long as it didn't step out of the soldier room. >> was it an obsession or just a genuine interest? >> it was not an obsession. it was a respect. >> in 1989, bob receives a sign

of respect himself -- from billionaire publisher malcolm forbes, whose 100,000-soldier collection is one of the world's finest. forbes hosts an exclusive toy-soldier event, and bob's invited. was that a huge moment for him? >> i think, for anybody who has a passion for a hobby and they meet the... >> premier. >> ...it's something that's very special. he sort of legitimized the whole collector society of soldiers. >> after forbes' death, bob is asked to another invitation-only toy-soldier event -- the auction at christie's of the forbes collection, in 1997. >> was there any way he was missing the auction of malcolm forbes' soldiers? >> no way he was missing that auction. >> the auction brings in a whopping $700,000. too rich for bob's blood, though he does walk away with an exclusive souvenir. >> he purchased a memento -- the

solider that said "i attended the malcolm forbes auction." >> bob continues buying rare soldiers into his 70s. his miniature armies now number nearly 10,000. but by 2014, bob's health is in steep decline. he's diagnosed with advanced emphysema and confined to quarters -- with his troops. >> how important were "the guys" at the end? >> very important. he would sit in that room seven days a week, surrounded by his soldiers. that made him happy. >> maybe so, but bob doesn't want his wife to have to figure out what to do with them once he's gone. did he tell you what to do? >> he did not want to leave me with the soldiers. >> bob wanted to sell off the collection so carole wouldn't have to deal with it. >> meet the man bob drafts to

decommission his army. >> when i first walked into this room, i was just kind of in awe. 'cause there's some die-hard collectors that would really just die to have some of these sets. >> that's next. >> but first, our "strange inheritance" quiz question. the answer after the break. we love our new home. there's so much space. we have a guestroom now. but, we have aunts. you're slouching again, ted. expired, expired... expired. thanks, aunt bonnie. it's a lot of house. i hope you can keep it clean. at least geico makes bundling our home and car insurance easy. which helps us save a lot of money oh, teddy. did you get my friend request? uh, i'll have to check. (doorbell ringing) aunt joni's here!

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you can't wait to share; with ancestry. >> so, which toy soldier was the single most expensive one ever sold? it's "a." a rare 1934 prototype marching guard was sold at a christie's auction in 1994 for $4,370. >> it's 2015, and 75-year-old robert postal, suffering from advanced emphysema, is getting his affairs in order. a top priority is the 10,000 high-end toy soldiers he spent 40 years collecting. they're meticulously displayed in his manhattan soldier room. he doesn't want to leave his wife the headache of dealing with then after he dies. so he hires a hobby-store owner, matt murphy, to catalog, appraise, and prepare the troops

for sale. >> what wars are represented? >> we have world war ii... american civil war... napoleonic wars... the sudan campaign... zulu war. we have two shelves of zulu war. >> what makes bob's army valuable, according to matt, is that he focused his energy on completing many sets from high-end soldier makers, such as stanton studios, king & country, and w. britain. >> another really sought-after brand is trophy miniatures, made in wales. a set of six would sell for about $100, and now they can fetch up to $300 on ebay. >> matt says this trophy miniature would go for 500 bucks. it's a tractor for transporting troops during the boer wars in africa. this british nile riverboat, used during the 19th century --

$1,500. before matt can go through every piece, however, robert dies, at home, in september 2015, surrounded by all his guys. he's 75 years old. were you prepared to live life without him? >> no. i never thought it would come. >> and, so, you're faced with a dilemma. you're left with "the guys" -- the soldiers. then, just days after her husband's funeral, at the suggestion of a friend, carole tunes in to an episode of "strange inheritance." as chance would have it... who's this guy? ...she catches our previous story about a family and their toy-soldier inheritance. carole, what did you think when you saw the "strange inheritance" episode about toy soldiers? >> i was knocked out.

i was thrilled to see other people enjoying a passion for collecting soldiers. >> unlike bob postal, the husband and father in that story really wanted his toy-soldier collection displayed in its own museum. his children found it a bridge too far. but the episode gets our heir thinking. >> so, i reached out. >> here we are. i'll do what i can to help. what is this place, here? >> we're surrounded by about 3 million soldiers. >> that's incredible. that's next. >> here's another quiz question for you. the answer when we return. i'm a performer. -always have been. -and always will be.

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>> so, which of these popular figures had a large toy-soldier collection as a child? it's "a," winston churchill. churchill's army numbered 1,500 pieces, which he used to re-enact british victories over the french. >> when new york apparel executive robert postal dies in 2015, he leaves his widow, carole, his vast array of nearly 10,000 toy soldiers. before his death, he encouraged his wife to sell, but to whom? how big is the market today? >> market is, we would probably guess 50,000 people worldwide collect soldiers seriously, so it's tiny. it's a niche of a niche. >> jamie delson, owner of the 9,000-square-foot toy soldier company in jersey city, new jersey. i'm here doing some

reconnaissance for carole. >> this is the world's largest warehouse that holds toy soldiers. we have about 3- or 4 million soldiers here. ♪ >> some are plastic, some metal, and valuable classics cast in lead. >> people who collect plastics will spend $20 or $50 at a time. people who collect metals will spend $2,000 or $3,000 at the drop of a hat. people who collect the most expensive soldiers may pay $200, $500, or $1,000 for a single soldier. >> jamie tells me that not having original boxes can lower values anywhere from 50% to 75%. >> this is what collectors look for. serious collectors buy things that are in the box, in original boxes from the 1940s, '30s, '50s just because it's in the box, and if you look closely, they're

sewn into the box. >> so these guys are still strapped in, never touched or taken out. >> right. no box, not a lot of value. >> not a lot of fun, either. then again, how many bedrooms the postals would have needed if bob kept all the boxes! boxes or not, matt murphy, the hobby-shop owner bob hired to get "the guys" ready for sale, says it is plenty valuable. could you put a price on this collection? >> the toy-soldier market is a little down right now. but it could fetch anywhere between $85,000 to maybe $130,000. >> but those numbers are based on retail prices, so matt can only offer carole $25,000 if he wants to guarantee himself a profit. >> i do think like that. obviously, i'm in business. >> that's a far cry from the $700,000 the malcolm forbes soldiers fetched at auction back

in 1997. but carole's not insulted. more and more, "strange inheritance" gets her thinking. it's not about the money for her. >> i don't want the cash. i don't want it. i want this to be his legacy to keep them together, and i want to donate them so that other people could enjoy his collection as much as he did. >> but what if nobody's interested? or as interested as he was? that's next. what's your "strange inheritance" story? we would love to tell it. send me an e-mail or go to our website, strangeinheritance.com. looks like they picked the wrong getaway driver. they're going to be paying for this for a long time. they will, but with accident forgiveness allstate won't raise your rates just because of an accident, even if it's your fault. cut! sonny. was that good? line! the desert never lies. isn't that what i said?

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♪ >> now back to "strange inheritance." >> before he died, robert postal had planned for his wife, carole, to sell his prized collection of 10,000 rare and valuable toy soldiers. but after watching a

"strange inheritance" episode about toy soldier heirs, carole maps out a different course. she wants to find an institution to display them, in honor of her husband. for that, she needs another kind of advice. what was your initial impression of this collection? >> oh, i love it. it's one of the biggest collections in the world. >> reporting for duty -- lee drexler, an appraiser who helps clients find good homes for their bequests. step 1 is certifying a fair-market value. >> right, the teeth on the horse... >> and the bridle. >> i just love seeing the big collections of custer's last stand or civil war or world war ii or the american revolution. i mean, it's fantastic. >> honest abe, what's he worth? >> probably about $450, $500. >> lee says that's because this 6-inch, highly-detailed lincoln figure was made in england by the renowned stadden studios. ♪

what's this collection worth? >> about $300,000. >> for toy soldiers? $300,000?! if accurate, that's far more, man-for-man, than even the forbes collection -- and 12 times the $25k that matt murphy was offering. and it would certainly give me second thoughts about giving them away. what about carole? >> it's impressive, yes. so if it is worth that much, then i'm thrilled. but it wasn't ever about the money. having the soldiers find a home will be a huge part that will make me feel whole again. >> so carole and lee begin contacting new york-based museums that might be interested in housing and displaying the troops. >> our first thought, quite frankly, was west point. bob had tremendous respect for the institution. >> what did they say? >> they said no, they couldn't, with great sadness. they have no space.

>> as quickly as the door closed at west point, lee opens one at another prestigious institution -- the new york historical society. if the new york historical society were to make this happen for you, what would that mean? >> they'd be in new york, where people come from all over the world. it would be a fabulous, fabulous place. >> and your reaction if they say "game on"? >> done. >> and "game on" it is. the society does agree to give safe harbor to 5,000 of "the guys." if you split this collection up between museums, it would be easier, potentially, for them to take and more people could see it. >> it would be double the joy. >> with lee's help, a children's museum in rochester, new york, agrees to take in and display the other half of the collection. ♪ carole tells me that working

with us on this episode has helped her to grieve for robert and, in doing so, to preserve his legacy. >> that's why i reached out to you. it is my hope that people see this show and see a passion that somebody had for, in this case, soldiers, and so what i leave to the world is the robert c. postal soldier legacy collection. >> so, you never felt like you were competing with "the guys"? >> never. i was always number one. >> that's so nice to know. >> i wish it on everybody. ♪ >> remember that story about bob meeting malcolm forbes at a toy-soldier show? carole says it was one of his most treasured memories. the confederate soldier he later purchased commemorating the forbes collection remained one of bob's favorites. and right before her husband was laid to rest, carole slipped that very soldier into his suit pocket.

i'm jamie colby. thanks so much for watching "strange inheritance." i guess sometimes you can take it with you. ♪ >> this is a fox news special presentation. ♪ >> good evening from the fox news world headquarters in new york, i am bill hemmer and welcome to our special presentation of the second night of the 2020 democratic national convention. at the moment, democrats are in the process of formally nominating joe biden. in normal the convention floor would be buzzing as delegates cast their votes. there is no convention floor. the various states are

announcing their delegate count virtually. some are live, most are prerecorded. all of this looks very different tonight for night number two. here's our live delegate tracker. joe biden needs 1,191, and he will get that number this hour. some big speaker still to come, including former secretary of state john kerry and joe biden's wife jill biden. we have all the angles covered and we have our reporters in our panel ready with analysis. leslie marshall, mo elleithee, mike emanuel reporting on what's happened far tonight. we begin in milwaukee, the heart of it all. mike tobin stands by. like, what are you seeing there this evening? >> you do see a lot of empty streets but they are getting down to the meat and potatoes portion of the convention. they are calling at the roll call across america, doing it in a virtual format. it's normally very exciting in political conventions.

each state announces their delegates they are pledging to an individual candidate. the challenge is to go through all 57 states and territories and keep it exciting over video links and prerecorded segments. what they are using is a lot of familiar themes, symbolism. alabama dedicated their delegates next to the edmund pettus bridge. we heard from the father of a parkland shooting victim. we expect to hear from the parents of matthew shepard. expect to hear from pete buttigieg, tim ryan. you will see a broad mix of ethnicities as democrats continue to hammer that point that they are the party of diversity, the party of inclusion, something that's fair been very important so far in the campaign. speeches earlier from the evening, the dnc chair speaking here in milwaukee. took a moment to recognize the women's suffrage movement. >> the progressive movement has deep roots here. since today is the 100th

anniversary of the 19th amendment's ratification, we should point out that wisconsin was the first state to ratify it. what's more, in its one-word motto, forward, wisconsin captures something so important about america. >> the tradition of taking a down week while the opposing party has their convention, that's just out the window. trump came here yesterday. his son eric was in milwaukee today receiving for the campaign and endorsement from the milwaukee police association. so that continues all the time. one thing you see from the trump campaign, they continue to go around and do these rallies with people. it was limited yesterday in oshkosh to some 500 people. with some protocols. democrats make a point of no gatherings at all. they are not even knocking on doors out of precaution with the coronavirus. the milwaukee mayor, he's also going to be speaking tonight,

you can't wish this virus away. >> bill: thinks. we will be with you throughout the hour. mike tobin in milwaukee. new mexico, new jersey. governor murphy has been rather public during the covid-19 crisis for the past five months. we want to bring in fox news contributor leslie marshall, a bit of analysis. what do you think of the challenge that the dnc is up against? >> certainly they go first, so they have a bigger challenge. this is unprecedented. we have not seen conventions like this. we know working here at fox and being seen on these, there can be technical problems. we are true professionals are doing this. i have to say when we look at last night and we look at tonight again, the speakers, diverse. when you had that role, i have to say i think i liked it better than you had everybody on the convention floor, he saw a cross-section of not only the democratic party but the

diversity in a cross-section of the nation. it was exciting. in addition to that, i thought it was a really strong start tonight. there were lots of biden's most loyal and effective supporters. we saw some rising stars in the democratic party that i think we will hear more from in the years to come. i have to say i'm a bit surprised at how enthusiastic and energetic can seem when you do have some people taped, some people live, and absolutely no audience. i am pleased with what i'm seeing so far. >> bill: it is unique, and leslie, no doubt about it. wonder bring in hugo gurdon, editor in chief of the "washington examiner." we will dip in a moment because it's quite clever to see how the states pull off their message. there is north dakota we can see after the site here at the moment. hugo, the audience for years years ago on night number one was close to 26 million. apparently last night that number was below 20 million. that's about a 20% drop off.

do you chalk that up to the lack of energy, enthusiasm inside of an arena that proved to draw a crowd in the past? >> yeah, i think the lack of a crowd, the lack of the occasion is a very big deal. i have to say i disagree with leslie about the energy that she seems to get from this. i have found, i think the democrats are actually having a really pretty tough night. yesterday, last night, there was newness, novelty. so it was intriguing to watch. it began, it became a bit of a drag i think and then you have bernie sanders and michelle obama. tonight it's kind of like a repeat performance. as an added factor here that the theme of tonight is build back better. many speakers have been saying that, including for example bill clinton. but they are trying to do is to have voters think of joe biden

and the campaign as, you know, as restoring the kind of governance that they had under obama. they've got a lot of very elderly people coming out to talk about this. you had jimmy carter who is a voice-over, and it was fairly difficult to understand what he was saying. he was even on camera. a very elderly looking bill clinton. have a very elderly candidate. it's sort of highlighting the contrast the democratic party between the old guard which is represented by joe biden, and the new people like aoc, who is obviously not one of the stars of the party. >> bill: hugo, thank you. stand by. i want to note that joe biden has met the threshold and passed it, exceeding the 1,991 delegates needed. he has crossed the mark. as we continue to wait, for some of our lead speakers.

wonder bring in mo elleithee, fox news contributor, former communications director of the democratic national committee. you know about communications, that's for sure. how do you think they've been able to even meet the moment or work their way through the challenges they face? >> they are helping to define the moment. they're helping to define a new way of doing it. i don't think that's a bad thi thing. these conventions and this isn't limited just to the democrats. both party conventions over the past couple decades have turned into these elaborate extravagant made for television events. the problem is they were getting less and less air time. maybe not here on foxconn the major broadcast networks, they were getting less and less airtime every four years. because of what's going on now, for the first time, this convention has turned into a made for digital event and i

think that's really important. i'm going to be curious. you were talking about the ratings from last night. i'm curious how much digital viewership, streaming, mobile viewership has increased over the past -- since four years ago at this time. this convention is made exactly for that, with each segment, each speaker being able to be a shareable clip. it's interactive. if you're watching online, you can engage with the convention. you can turn on your camera and they can capture an image of you watching and projected onto the screen at some point. so it's a very different kind of thing. from a messaging perspective, where i disagree a bit with hugo, yeah, they had some of the old guard but they led tonight with a whole new way to do a keynote address, with 16 or 17 rising stars of the democratic party jointly delivering a keynote address as opposed to the way to spend on in the past. the jury is still out but i think it's a more engaging

convention then we saw four years ago. >> bill: we will see what we get over the next 51 minutes, give or take. standby to all the panelists. also this hour we are going to hear from the former secretary of state john kerry. he was the democratic party's nominee back in 2004, losing to president bush in that election. also tonight, colin powell, secretary of state under president bush, will speak and jill biden is the headliner. she has chosen a familiar setting. she will be at the high school classroom where she taught english. we get ready for all that. >> hi, bill. dr. jill biden back at brandywine high school in delaware tweeting out "i'm back, room 2:30 two." she will talk about what it's like to be a parent and a teacher in these unprecedented times when so many of our children are at home. they will be learning virtually as we are watching the convention. she has been out -- she sent out several tweets about her husband

and their personal life, including acute one of her sitting on his lap, saying how did you get this number? that was apparently the first thing she said when he called her that first date. she will help to humanize her husband, talking about the hardships he's had including losing his first wife and baby daughter in the '70s, leaving him alone to raise his two young sons, beau and hunter. she will also talk about the death of his son beau. he died of brain cancer in 2015. she also will tell us about what it was like to see him suffer those hardships, saying "there are times when i couldn't imagine how he did it, how he put 1 foot in front of the other and kept going. i've always understand why he does it. he does it for you." dr. jill biden, known as her family and her husband's fiercest defender. you may remember in march protesters rushed the stage of she threw herself in front of her husband to keep him safe. >> bill: room 232. we will be there later.

we want to dip in a moment. this is the state of tennessee. we believe this is live. that's a bit of a change from the other messages. let's get a taste of the flavor from milwaukee. >> targeted by a domestic terrorist who murdered 23 innocent people, injured 23 more and devastated all of us. his motive was racism and xenophobia. in the face of hate, we choose love. [speaking spanish] in the face of continued gun violence in america, we demand change. time has come to act. with one abstention the great state of texas cast 98 votes for bernie sanders and 161 votes for our next president, joe biden. >> utah. >> here in utah we have had mail-in voting for years. if you are registered to vote, you automatically get sent a ballot. it's fast. it's reliable, and it's easy for everyone to participate.

in 2016, we had turn out well over 80%. this year we are expecting even higher. that's why democrats and republicans here in utah agree. mail-in voting strengthens our democracy. utah cast 17 votes for bernie sanders and 16 votes for our next president, joe biden. >> vermont. >> the state of vermont strongly believing and economic justice, social justice, racial justice, and environmental justice proudly supporting democracy and the constitution of the united states. in the vehicle lee opposed to the authoritarian and racism of the trump administration. it's proud to cast 15 votes for vermont senator bernie sanders and nine votes for the next president of the united states, joe biden. >> the u.s. virgin islands. >> in recognition, our delegates, we bring you greetings from the virgin islands of the united states.

we are the vacation home of our nominee. white sand beaches and friendly people. joseph r. biden. >> virginia. >> three years ago, my beloved city charlottesville, virginia, was attacked by white supremacists and a young woman was killed. we were attacked again when donald trump praised those racists, turning his back on a community that just wanted peace. that was the day joe biden decided to join this battle for the soul of america. over time, my wife and i have come to know his soul. he said decent, compassionate man. he will bring this nation together. virginia casts 32 votes for bernie sanders and 91 votes for our president joe biden.

>> washington. >> as a refugee from vietnam, i knew that education was the key to finding opportunities in my new home. when having children on my own, i became an advocate to improve the public education system they gave me a chance to contribute to our america. democrats invested education because we are committed to fighting for all kids. washington casts 43 votes to senator bernie sanders and 66 votes to our next president, joe biden. >> west virginia. >> west virginians have changed the narrative of the public education. parents, teachers, and service personnel have worked together to fight for safe and welcoming schools, sufficient funding for classroom equipment, and fair wages for teachers and school service personnel. elections matter but so does activism. so let's keep fighting to guarantee a quality education for all our children and let's elect a president who will fight

alongside us. west virginia casts 34 votes for our next president, joe biden. >> wyoming. >> after our son matthew's death in wyoming, joe biden helped pass legislation to protect lgbtq americans from hate crimes. joe understands more than most our grief over matt's death. we see in joe so much of what made matt's life special. his commitment to equality, passion for social adjustments and his compassion for others. >> wyoming casts four votes for bernie sanders and 11 votes for the next president of the united states, joe biden. >> wisconsin. >> welcome back to milwaukee, wisconsin, great city. it's the place where i was born and raised right in the heart of the 53 53206 zip code. what many don't see is the joy,

the resilience and opportunity in this community. so many others across america just like it. we are hardworking people fighting to provide for their families and build a better future. we know that we build a better future for our nation by channeling wisconsin's legacy as the birthplace of the labor and progressive movement and uniting around a bold inclusive agenda that uplifts every community. in the pursuit of a more just future, one that recognizes health care as a human right and one that tackles the climate crisis and takes on racial and economic injustice, wisconsin casts 30 votes for bernie sanders and 67 for the next president of the united states of america, joseph biden. joseph r. biden. >> delaware. >> long before this train station bore his name, you see joe biden on the platform with the rest of the crowd. on his way to work or going home to his family. that's always been his northstar. living for families like his own, working people who struggled and sacrificed to

build a better life. nobody has ever had to wonder who joe biden is in it for. >> our nation faces daunting challenges but i have known joe biden for 40 years and there's nobody i trust more to lead our party, unite our country and restore our standing in the world. he's humble, he tells the truth. he treats everybody he encounters with respect and builds bridges, not walls. he's a leader made for this moment and the find i finest public servant i've ever known. >> delaware is proud to cast its 32 votes for our son and the next president, dolores joe biden. ♪

♪ >> ♪ celebrate good times, come on ♪ ♪ celebrate good times, come on ♪ ♪ let's celebrate ♪ there is a party going on right here ♪ ♪ a celebration to last throughout the years ♪ ♪ so bring your good times >> thank you to all our delegations. i am pleased to announced that vice president joe biden has officially been nominated by the democratic party as our candidate for president of the united states. vice president biden is hereby invited to deliver an acceptance speech.

>> thank you very, very much from the bottom of my heart. thank you all. it means the world to me and my family, and i'll see you on thursday. thank you, thank you, thank you. [cheers and applause] ♪ >> ♪ celebrate good times, come on ♪ ♪ celebrate good times, come on ♪ ♪ let's celebrate ♪ there's a party going on right here ♪ ♪ a dedication to last throughout the years" >> that was sweet with the grandkids. now we have an official nominee. >> we weren't quite sure what we're going to get but during

these covid times, that's what the dnc has produced. joe biden with his wife jill accepting the nomination towards the end of that video. now we know his grandkids were the ones who followed him into that classroom, room 232, we believe, at the school down the street. that's what you get. leslie, you're watching this. good music. i have to think that the consideration of trying to generate some level of enthusiasm, it's not an easy job and that was apparent. >> it's not an easy job especially digitally. i want to see those digital numbers because that's going to be the true future of america. isn't that what this messages and what democrats in this party are speaking about. the future, the soul of the future. we just almost every single box ticked with regard to democratic

legislation and issues that matter to this party and to the nation, whether it's gun violence, immigration, health care, reminding people of some terrible times in our nation's history, racism, the lgbtq communities, the list goes on. we also people that really did speak to the soul at one time in this nation, many people had great respect, admiration. i shed a tear run gold star father gold star father khizr khan spoke and you heard him speaking of charlottesville and you heard him speaking about virginia. his state. you also see the security guard who rode an elevator with joe biden speaking about somebody who "really saw her." these boxes being ticked are essential. they are not just about legislation. i think they are speaking not just democrats but many americans. when you look at the polls and what matters to them. many feel they are not seen. many of them feel they are

forgotten. many of them feel that their issues aren't being addressed. many of them feel that they are ponds in politics. they don't want that and they are looking for a savior and a rescue from that where we are now. whether it be with racial injustice, whether it be with the covid pandemic, whether it be with unemployment or just the division that we have seen in this nation. >> bill: maybe they have found it on joe biden. waiting on colin powell, john kerry, and jill biden. leslie, thank you. she is right to point out the level of diversity that you've seen. i'm wondering where the blue-collar messages. those are the voters they lost in 2016. i have yet to see the appeals to them. >> yes. i think you're right, bill. leslie is right that is a lot of boxes being ticked and being checked. i think that a lot of people look around the country, if they

are watching this are on their screens after watching it, if they are streaming it, they will be watching boxes being ticked. i don't think they are going to get anything with cheese very -- there are some appealing scenes. the biden sent home with the balloons in the little acceptance speech. it was very charming. the elevator operator talking about being seen by a joe biden. there is good human touches but what you are getting out of the whole thing is not the human touch. i agree with you. the emphasis has really been on racial justice, racial diversity. these are the sort of things the democratic party is emphasizing more now and not emphasizing, as you say, blue-collar americans who donald trump took away from

the democrats and when he broke the blue wall in 2016. there hasn't been a lot of that despite the fact that there is talk about working families and that sort of thing. you don't feel that this is the party, watching this, that is really god that is a high priority. you feel much more that it's about making sure that you've got different races. you've got gay marriage et cetera. those people representing those sorts of issues, the social issues which the democratic party is emphasizing. >> bill: they have two more nights to get to it. i am sure some of that is in the offing. i don't know how much. then you have a campaign that's going to go, i would save barn storm for 70 days. in covid days, that does not happen. if you go right about them missing the mark? a screen storm. no, i don't think so actually. i think what you're hearing is there's a bigger message. that is donald trump has let america down. he's been unable to deal with

the triple crises that we've been facing this summer with covid, the focus on racial injustice, and the economic recovery. there is some credibility to those messages, if you look at a whole host of polls that have been released in the past couple weeks. the president is struggling on all three of those issues. i have heard speaker after speaker focus on those things. even tonight during the keynote address when we heard several of the speakers talk about helping the auto industry rebound and plans to create an economy that works for everybody. i think what they are trying to do is focus on that big umbrella message and then different speakers are going to focus on different elements. there's going to be something in this convention that speaks to you, whether you live in the heart of an urban area, whether you live in the suburbs, whether you work in a factory, whether you work on a farm. there's going to be something

that speaks to you and they have tried to -- there is evidence of that throughout the first day and a half of this convention. >> bill: mo, thank you. standby again. a number of big names have already spoken tonight including former president bill clinton. senior political correspondent mike emanuel ports live in washington to giv bring us up to speed. >> 17 rising stars of the democratic party combined to give the keynote address. that included a woman who ran for governor in georgia, making this closing argument. >> we stand with joe biden because this isn't just about defeating donald trump. we are in this to win for america. so let's get it done. >> democrats in the nation heard from two former presidents, jimmy carter and bill clinton. mr. carter highlighted joe biden's experience, character, indecency saying those qualities can bring the country together and restore america's greatness.

mr. clinton blasted president trump's leadership as spending hours a day watching tv and zapping people on social media during the coronavirus pandemic. >> at a time like this, the oval office should be a command center. instead it's a storm center. it's only chaos. one thing never changes. his determination to deny responsibility and shift the blame. the buck never stops there. >> also on the big national stage for the youngest woman ever elected to congress, new york's alexandria ocasio-cortez, a high profile freshman in congress. >> a movement striving to recognize and repair the wounds of racial injustice, colonization, misogyny and homophobia. and to propose and build reimagined systems of immigration and foreign policy that turn away from the violence and xenophobia of our past.

>> the striking thing about this as someone who's covered conventions, the lack of crowd reaction. it's not the fault of the democratic party. it's a casualty of covid-19, but the buzz in the arena is noticeably missing. >> bill: i might have met you in philadelphia in the year 2000, mike. nice to see you in washington. the battleground state of pennsylvania announced its votes live from scranton. that's where joe biden was born in pennsylvania. it's going to get a lot of attention. bryan llenas is in the state capital city of harrisburg tonight. >> good evening. today you said pennsylvania holds the keys to the kingdom for joe biden victory but if president trump wants to prevent that from happening, he's going have to rely heavily on rural voters and blue-collar workers. frankly he needs that to offset what's expected to be gains for the democrats with black voters as well as suburban voters.

remember, president trump won in 2016 by just 44,000 votes in pennsylvania. he did it by running up the score in those rural communities. he flipped three important counties. erie county in the western part of the state and the republicans feel like the president need to keep those counties and maybe run up the score even more those counties this time around. we visited farms in central pennsylvania today and we met with one dairy farmer, jason naylor. he is a trump supporter. we asked, does president trump's trade war and the tariffs, does it affect his vote this time around? he said no, not really. in fact he says that the democratic governor tom wolf's response by shutting down the restaurants in response to the covid-19 pandemic has affected him more. >> we've had some highs and lows, doing the trade discussions with china and the whole mess that happen there.

that did hurt as a little bit. i see more effects from what we're doing hear, hear with our governor than i do from president trump. him keeping businesses closed. our restaurants. it's hurting me personally the most. >> milk prices dropping because of that. naylor by the way is 38 years old and he says you know what, there are a lot of young new generation farmers in central pennsylvania that are open to biden's message. the problem is he says the campaign hasn't done any outreach in his neighborhood or with his neighbors and there you go. how can you be there if you don't have any outreach? >> bill: bryan llenas, harrisburg p.a. about a minute to go before john kerry goes out. let's go to battleground state of ohio. kevin corke is in columbus again tonight. kevin. >> evening, bill. i want to share this figure with you. there are about 866,000 veterans here in the buckeye state. about a quarter of those, more than 200,000, are between the

ages of 60 and 70. tonight's emphasis by democrats on security and, thomistic and international, which certainly seem to resonate with a large number of folks here in the buckeye state. we heard from susan rice, she said by electing joe biden the country will resume its proper place in the world. >> as president, joe biden will bring in end to this dark chapter in our nations history. he will restore and renew american leadership around the world, updating it and reinvigorating it for the challenges we face going further into the 21st century. >> there's a huge challenge for democrats, as you know, bill. a number of military folks here are very pro-trump. that will be a tall mountain for them to climb if they are to wrest back the state which went red in 2016. >> bill: kevin, nice to see you in columbus. kevin corke. if the timing is right,

john kerry will be out any moment. he lost his bid for the presidency by losing ohio in 2004 by 118,000 votes to george bush. with the victory, president bush started his second term. as we await the former secretary of state to appear, colin powell will follow him and then a bit later in the half hour, dr. jill biden will be at the school where she just -- where she once taught english. alexandria ocasio-cortez was there to put the name of bernie sanders the nomination. largely symbolic. sanders did not have a shot at getting the delegates needed. joe biden clearly cover the threshold. she talked about a country that was based on colonization and xenophobic and suggesting that this is the time to write those wrongs of america's past. that was her message and we have heard from some republican critics perhaps about the theme

this convention to be a bit grim. in painting a picture of a country well on its heels with no great future ahead. if you don't like donald trump, he would very much have liked number one because it was all about criticizing him as a person and his policies and as commander in chief. knight number two, they have mixed in more of the appeal to diversity for americans trying to capture those voters. some democratic observers believe the diversity vote in america has already been captured by this party. what they need to do is reach out to the blue-collar voters that they lost in 2016, places like you would find in northeastern ohio and western pennsylvania. the voters that hillary clinton lost a donald trump which gave him the white house today. former secretary of state john kerry now ready so we will dip back in and listen.

>> hi, i'm john kerry. for the eight years of the obama-biden administration, we lead by example. we eliminated the threat of an iran with a nuclear weapon. we built a 68 nation coalition to destroy isis. we forged 195 nation agreements to attack climate change. we stopped ebola. before it became a pandemic. donald trump inherited a growing economy and a more peaceful world and like everything else he inherited, he bankrupted it. when this president goes overseas, it isn't a goodwill mission. it's a blooper reel. he breaks up with our allies and rights love letters to dictators. america deserves a president who is looked up to, not laughed at. donald trump pretends russia didn't attack our elections, and now he does nothing about russia putting a bounty on our troops. so he won't defend our country.e doesn't know how to defend

our troops. the only person he's interested in defending is himself. this is the bottom line. our interests, our ideals, and our brave men and women in uniform can't afford four more years of donald trump. our troops can't get out of harm's way by hiding in the white house bunker. they need a president who will stand up for them, and president biden will. joe's moral compass has always pointed in the right direction from the fight to break the back of apartheid to the struggle to wake up the world to genocide in the balkans. joe understands that none of the issues of this world, not nuclear weapons, not the challenge of building back better after covid, not terrorism and certainly not the climate crisis, none can be resolved without bringing nations together with strength and humility. joe understands our values don't limit our power. they magnified. he knows you can't spread

democracy around the world if you don't practice it at home. and he knows that even the united states of america needs friends on this planet. before donald trump, we used to talk about american exceptionalism. the only thing exceptional about the incoherent trump foreign policy is that it's made our nation more isolated than ever before. joe biden knows we aren't exceptional because we bluster that we are. we are exceptional because we do exceptional things. on june 6, 1944, young americans gave their lives on the beaches of normandy to liberate the world from tyranny. out of the ashes of that war, we made peace and rebuilt the wor world. that was and remains exceptional. it is the opposite of everything donald trump stands for. this moment is a fight for the security of america and the

world. only joe biden can make america lead like america again. if you agree, text join 230330. thank you. >> bill: john kerry with his address. colin powell is up momentarily. talking about the bottom-line and leadership overseas and he said when donald trump goes overseas it's a blooper reel. i've got about 30 seconds for each of you. leslie marshall, your impressions so far but we are watching. >> well, i want to go back to -- john kerry said what a lot of people feel, that the united states is really not sitting at the table, if you will, on the international stage and with our allies and that our reputation has suffered in the past four years. i want to talk about what you said about the working class. it's what put donald trump over the finish line in 2016. hillary clinton ignored her husband. my husband love hearing me say this.

ladies, don't ignore your husband. he said hillary, do not forget about the disenfranchised working-class blue-collar voter. in pennsylvania and i think throughout this nation joe biden is viewed very differently than hillary by the working class because he is viewed as one of them. one of the problems we have with the minority voters and certainly with the youth is getting people out to vote. maybe amidst this pandemic where people can chose to go out and vote or mail their ballot in. it perhaps might make it easier especially for some of those working-class voters, especially minority workers, working-class voters majority of the population can't get the day off from work to do so. the bottom line is what we are hearing over and over. he mentioned last night and tonight, it's what we're looking at that makes a person one term. right now what american voters are saying, our concern is covid.

it's not been handled well. our concern is the economy. it's not good. a majority see racial injustice that still has not gone away. >> bill: leslie, thank you. hugo, i'm going to try to squeeze you in before i have to break away. >> i would say john kerry hit some good points. i think trump is vulnerable to the suggestion that he's lost allies and that america does need friends abroad. i think he whiffed on the question of isis. it was actually barack obama's wesitohri.o o tegha i ini donai i ru tadmpmpmp tulyalve srogroro position b caasbotrt t ly abou aboubou lle tacttacsit isi isi wctllct styroeded hisath.ch.c bl:ilhu nkyo momove, i'veot5 otcoots do do? do dold tmpadmp ne-poe-tnll octobe, ad with w w whe middl me ass in at, joe biden has an eight-point lead with the

middle-class. that's a pretty remarkable swing. it's driven, as leslie said, by the economic recovery in the handling of covid. that's what's flipping these middle-class voters and that's what this convention needs to keep hitting on. >> bill: former secretary of state colin powell about to appear. he said he can't vote for donald trump. >> a young immigrant left a dirt farm in jamaica and set out for america. three years later, a ship pulled into new york harbor at a young jamaican woman gazed up at the statue of liberty for the first time. they became my parents. they inspired me to finish college and join the army. this began a journey of service that would take me from basic training to combat in vietnam come up the ranks to serve as chairman of the joint chiefs of staff and secretary of state. the values i learned growing up in the south bronx and serving in uniform were the same values that joe biden's parents instilled in him in scranton, pennsylvania. i support joe biden for the presidency of the united states

because those values still define him, and we need to restore those values to the white house. our country needs a commander in chief who takes care of our troops in the same way he would his own family. for joe biden, that doesn't mean teaching. it comes from the experience he shares with millions of military families, sending his beloved son off to war and praying he would come home safe. joe biden will be a president we will all be proud to salute. with joe biden in the white house you will never doubt he will stand with our friends and stand up to our adversaries, never the other way around. he will trust our diplomats and our intelligence community, not the flattery of dictators and despots. he will make it his job to know when anyone dares to threaten us. he will stand up to our adversaries with strength and experience. they will know he means business. i support joe biden because beginning on day one, he will restore america's leadership and our moral authority. he will be a president who knows

that america is strongest when, as he has said, we lead both by the power of our example and the example of our power. he will restore america's leadership in the world and restore the alliances we need to address the dangers that threaten our nation from climate change to nuclear proliferation. today we are a country divided and we have a president doing everything in his power to make it that way and keep us that way. what a difference it will make to have a president who unites us, restores our strength and our soul. i still believe that in our hearts, we are the same america that brought my parents to our shores, and america that inspires freedom around the world. that's the america joe biden will lead as our next president. thank you very much. >> bill: colin powell from the dnc video provided to us. he has not been seen that often in public lately. a couple good lines. he will stand with our friends, number adversaries. he says about joe biden. and he leads with the power of

example and the example of our power. want to get to mike emanuel because mike, we are about to see dr. jill biden. she was an english teacher in that classroom down the road, room number 232. we saw her for a moment there and she will be back in about 7 minutes from now. what's your expectation for what she has to say? >> a huge moment on the national stage for dr. jill biden who has a passion about education. perhaps we'll get a sense of what her platform might be as a potential first lady of the united states. but the bigger point is likely that she will try to humanize joe biden. she has been by his side for the past 43 years, has been with him during times of triumph. eight years in the obama white house. also after times of great tragedy. for example, losing his son, beau, to brain cancer about five years ago and there a lot of people suggest that she essentially stepped into the vacuum by the loss of his son and is really his closest confidant at this point.

somebody joe biden goes to what he has difficult decisions to make, was a key player when it came to figuring out the running mate decision. the hugest decision of the campaign so far. expect jill biden, dr. jill biden to put a human face on joe biden, not just a politician we've seen but the behind-the-scenes stories, how he's handled triumph and adversity in their lives over the past 43 years. >> bill: you very much right. she is likely his closest advisor. i think you're right about that and has been for decades. she has also been a firm supporter of u.s. veterans and our troops. i would expect to hear some of that tonight also. >> i think there's no question about that. to give you a sense of who she would be as the next first lady of the united states, perhaps in contrast to who melania trump is, currently the first lady of the united states, who michelle obama was, who she worked closely with when she was the vice president's wife. basically a chance for her to come out and say here's who i

am. here's who i know joe biden to be. here's where his heart is. you may not always get the words right coming out of his mouth but she can say i know his heart, i have seen him in good times and bad. this is where he intends to bring the country together to lead the country going forward. if you trust in him and give him your vote. >> bill: thank you, mike. good stuff, mike emanuel live in washington, d.c. we are watching a video. it runs about 8 minutes long. it is the dr. jill biden introduction video, officially that's what it's being called from the convention organizers tonight. lastly, let's think about how he comes out of this convention after thursday night. does he go back to delaware? does he hunker down or does he look at the calendar and say i have 70 days to finish this. >> bill, certainly needs to get out there to a degree that at the same time you have to social distance. you have to wear a mask and you

have to lead by example. that's very difficult during a covid pandemic when some states that you'd want to visit, like florida, are surging, like my own state, and spiking and that's not good but we will move beyond it. what i also want to think is that in the future, because he has two interviews set with him and kamala harris, his vp on the ticket now, with abc. i'm hoping he will sit down with people like you, bret baier, chris wallace, and others for hard questions and hard interviews, some of which donald trump has done like he did with chris wallace. he needs to do that. or jonathan swan. he needs to do that. i think he comes out of this stronger and the reason is because i think a lot of people know joe biden as a career politician. some know joe biden as the man who lost his wife, his daughter, and then his son later in life. some know him as the vice president with barack obama. but i think just hearing from all these different individuals and especially the woman who

knows him best coming up, dr. jill biden, i think that may change some people's minds because they don't really know the man maybe and they know policy. and you can google the policies but can you google that much about the man? lindsey graham said that joe biden was one of the nicest people he'd ever met. i think it's funny that out there today, jill biden, dr. biden is tweeting "how did you get this number?" those were her first words to vice president joe biden, now officially the democratic nominee. >> bill: "people" magazine, apparently he and kamala harris had done an interview and a photo shoot. that will be distributed sometime soon we believe. we also know that "abc news" has an opportunity to interview the former vice president. that will air over the weekend. we'll see what he does with the questions and answers and where he takes the campaign. but go back to the question about what you do once you -- i like to say once you leave milwaukee but that's not the

case because no one is there. how do you manage the next 70 days for a candidate who has chosen to stay home for the last several months? >> it's a crucial question for his campaign, bill. he has benefited hugely from the fact that he has stayed out of the limelight. a lot of pundits have said and i think they are right, that he, his best chance of winning is if the election is a referendum on trump. with joe biden being able to stay in his basement of his house, occasionally putting out a video, he can present himself as doing this because of social distancing requirements. it's the responsible way of being, but it's also politically hugely advantageous to him because it means the focus is always on president trump and his response to the virus and everything else. people are focused on trump and it makes the election a

referendum about trump. what trump wants to try to do in the next 70 days is make it an election which is a decision between the two people. i imagine that joe biden's campaign will be persuading the candidate as much as possible to continue the way things are. he can't do it nearly as much as he's been able to up until now. now he's the official nominee. he has to come out but he's already made it plain that neither he nor his vice presidential running mate are going to be doing the tough interviews. we have seen a soft one with cardi b. you mention one with "people" magazine. the more -- the campaign wants to make sure he isn't put on the spot. during the primaries, he stumbled and bumbled and tripped up again and again and again. there was a real question, a

legitimate question that arose about his intellectual faculties. people had said he lost a step. i think most of us recognized he had lost several steps. i think the campaign will want to limit his public appearances as much as possible to continue what we have had for the last four months which is everybody focus on trump. >> bill: i guess we're going to find out very soon. , i want to drop into this video in the moment they will get the introduction from the biden family. lay out the 70 days. how do you think he best campaigns? >> look, it's sort of what i was talking about earlier. this is the first all digital campaign. it's a virtual campaign. as much as people are talking about maybe a lack of energy out of this convention, what seems to be happening, you saw it with michelle obama last night we are going to see it with joe biden tonight i suspect is sort of a trading of energy for intimacy. there is something to be said about that. there's something to be said about people being able --

he's not going to go out and do these big rallies where he's asking all of us in communities across the country to come to him. he can't do that. instead he is coming to us through our screens, our mobile devices. that's a different dynamic. it's a different feel. i think you're going to see this campaign continue. i would suspect you're going to see a lot of this from the trump campaign as well, as much as the president wants to do big rallies. they are going to be forced to bring the campaign into people's homes as opposed to asking people to come to them so i suspect you're going to see a very active campaign. he does do a lot of press interviews. they are not here. they are not on other major news networks. they are on local tv in the battleground states. he does a ton of those interviews. that stuff matters. i want to make one other point if i can come of the run-up to this video that's airing, the biden family introduction was a video narrated by cindy mccain talking about the relationship

between joe biden in her late husband john mccain. joe biden came the eulogy at senator mccain's funeral. the service in arizona, he said how john and i didn't agree on a lot of things that i always questions his policies but i never question his motivation motivations. i have to say it's a refreshing notion, the fact that this video is even being aired is refreshing in this age where you don't see a lot of senators who would be willing to go out on a limb and say that about their colleagues on the other side of the aisle. those kinds of moments humanized joe biden just as much as whatever jill biden is going to say tonight and help remind people that politics doesn't have to feel the way it feels right now. i don't think you can oversell how important it is. >> bill: thank you, mo. she is charismatic. she has a great sense of humor. loyal friend and wife, that's clear from the example in the way she carries her relationship with her husband. i want to drop in, a few moments

left in this video and then dr. jill biden will make her address tonight. >> hold this family together. and i know that you will make us whole again. >> you never stop grieving ever. but you do have to find purpose. >> please welcome, my husband, joe biden. >> running for president. >> the future first lady of the united states. >> that's right, there you go. >> if dr. biden is our first lady, the country will be getting one of the best humans that we have. >> she has been through some really tough things in her own life and she knows how hard it can be. >> the american people in their heart know that she will fight like hell for me. >> we need community.

we need to depend on others for our strength. all american families, we all need each other. >> and now, please welcome dr. jill biden. >> i have always loved the sounds of a classroom, the quiet that sparks with possibility just before students shuffle in, the murmur of ideas bouncing back and forth as we explore the world together. the laughter and tiny moments of surprise you find in materials you've taught a million times. when i taught english here at brandywine high school, i would spend my summer preparing for the school year about to start, filled with anticipation.

but this client is heavy. you can hear the anxiety that echoes down empty hallways. there is no scent of new notebooks or freshly waxed floors. the rooms are dark as the bright young faces that should fill them are now confined to boxes on a computer screen. i hear it from so many of you, the frustration of parents juggling work while they support their children's learning. afraid their kids might get sick from school. the concern of every person working without enough protection. the despair in the lines that stretch out before food banks. and the indescribable sorrow that follows every lonely last breath when the ventilators turn

off. as a mother and grandmother, as an american, i am heartbroken by the magnitude of this loss, by the failure to protect our communities, by every precious and irreplaceable life gone. like so many of you, i am left asking, how do i keep my family safe? you know, motherhood came to me in a way i never expected. i fell in love with a man and two little boys standing in the wreckage of unthinkable loss. mourning a wife, a mother, a daughter, sister. i never imagined at the age of 26 i would be asking myself, how do you make a broken family whole? still, joe always told the boys

mommy sent jill to us. how could i argue with her? so we figured it out together in those big moments that would go by too fast. thanksgivings and state championships, birthdays and weddings. in the mundane ones that we didn't even know were shaping our lives. reading stories piled on the couch, rowdy sunday dinners and silly arguments. listening to the faint sounds of laughter that would flow downstairs as joe put the kids to bed every night while i studied for grad school or graded papers under the pale yellow kitchen lamp. the dinner dishes waiting in the sink. we found that love holds a family together. love makes us flexible and resilient. it allows us to become more than

ourselves together and though it can't protect us from the sorrows of life, it gives us refuge, a home. how do you make a broken family hole? the same way you make a nation whole, with love and understanding and with small acts of kindness, with bravery, with unwavering faith. you show up for each other in big ways and small ones again and again. it's what so many of you are doing right now for your loved ones, for complete strangers, for your communities. there are those who want to tell us that our country is hopelessly divided, that our differences are irreconcilable. but that's not what i have seen over these last few months. we are coming together and holding onto each other.

we are finding mercy and grace in the moments we might have once taken for granted. we are seeing that our differences are precious and our similarities infinite. we have shown that the heart of this nation still beats with kindness and courage. that's the soul of america joe biden is fighting for now. after our son beau died of cancer, i wondered if i would ever smile or feel joy again. it was summer but there was no warmth left for me. four days after beau's funeral, i watched joe shave and put on his suit. i saw him steel himself in the mirror, take a breath, put his shoulders back, and walk out