authorities they wanted to use pipe bombs and guns to trap and kill motorists on a california freeway during rush hour. how they planned to gun down students in a college cafeteria. a major breach of hillary clinton's mpaign. a top p affer for bernie sananrs fired for accessing clinton's private files. the dnc taking action as the rivals gear up for tomorrow night's big debate. courtside crash. lebron james slams into a fan. the 250-pound superstar collides with the wife e another star athlete taken out of the arena on a stretcher. her condition this morning and what lebron is saying about it. and the force finally y arrives, "star wars" storming into theaters overnight. >> it was amazing. >> i have to go back and watch it again and then again and then again and then again. >> the movie already breaking

answered. and good morning, america. happy friday. standing room only at midnight. theaters all across the country last night, 41 of them, of course, for "the force awakens." it is finally here. >> and, dan, you're e eing it tonight. >> yes, i'm eier going to dress up as boba fett orueen amidala. >> trust me you'll want to see it again and again and again. >> cool, i need to clear my schedule. >> more on that in jusa minute. but we begin with h ose stunnini new details from san bernardino. enrique marquez, the childhood friend of syed farook arrested on terror charges revealing to authorities the neighbors had planned other attacks. this all comes@as president obama visits the victims in san bernardino this evening. abc's chief investigative correspondent brian ross is here with all of those details. good morning, brian. >> reporter: good morning, amy. it could have been so much worse, authorities say today. if syed farook had followed through on his other terror plot for southern california with attacks on a college cafeteria anana crowded freeway atatush hour.

criminal complaint filed against farook's longtime friend enrique marquez. marquez was brought to court in the back of this fbi vehicle after ten straight days of interrogation. he wore handcuffs during a brief court hearing when he said little other than yes when asked if he understood the charges against him. but according to prosecutors, he has freely revealed that he and his longtime friend, syed farook, planned terror attacks some four years ago when he first t ught the two assault rifles used in the san bernardino attacks. the earlier plots involved an attack on students in this cafeteria o o thiss riverside community college, where farook and marquez attended classes. >> i was kind of shocked and saw a picture on the news, it was him. >> reporter: the other plot was aimed this california freeway during afternoon rush hour. the plan was for farooooto throw pipi bombs onto the freeeey and farook allegedly planned to then move among stopped vehicles

shot into vehicles from a position on a nearby h hlside. accocoing to the federal complaint, it was farook who persuaded marquez to convert to islam some eight years ago and then radicalized him using online videos from al qaeda inclcling the extremist preaching of the now-dead american anwar al awlaki. authorities also charge that farook got marquez to marry a russian woman who was an extended member of farook's u.s. marquez confed to his friends it was a sham. >> he sa he married her for the visa da and gave her 5 or 10 grand, whatever the money was. >> reporter: in the months before the attack, according to the complaint, marquez wrote this on facebook "my life turned ridiculous. involved in terrorist plots, drugs, anti-social behavior, marriage, might go to prison for fraud, et cetera." prosecutors say there is currently no evidence that marquez was part of the terror attack that killed 14 people in

but hours after that attack, they say marquez called 911 threatening suicide, asked why by the operator marquez said i don't know. my neighghr, he did the san bernardino shooting. the expletive used my gun in the shooting. you saide used your gun? yes, oh, my god. what was the guy's name that had your gun? it's syed farook. this morning, marquez is being held without bail after his first appearance in court and be back in court for a bail hearing next week on monday. if convicted on these chargegehe could face up to 35 years in prison, amy. >> and, brian, much of the trouble marquez is in is from his own admissions before he had a lawyer. >> that's right, the fbi repeatedly said to him you have a right to remain silent and he continued to talk and may have talked himself well into prison for a long time. >> thank you. we move to the race for president now and some trouble for bernie sanders' campaign ahead of tomorrow's big debate forced to fire a top staffer who

improperly accessed hillary clinton's campaign files as our new abc news/"washington post" poll shows clinton with a commanding 31-point lead nationwide and we have more from cecilia vega in new hampshire. >> reporter: george, good morning to you. some big headlines this morning. the allegations that the sanders got an internal look on how the clinton campaign is using data. ahead of the big debate. overnight a major campaign violation, a bernie sanders staffer fired accused of breaking the rules tapping into rival hillary clinton's confidential campaign database that conwains valuable information about voters from around the country. as a result, the democratic national committee temporarily suspending the vermont senator's campaign from accessing the party's voter file. a major blow just as the race for the white house heats up before the crucial iowa caucuses.

software flaw saying a glitch briefly rifling campaigns to seech other's private data. that's when the breach occurred. a sanders spokesman saying that behavior is unacceptable and th staffer was immediately fired. this new campapan turmoil coming just as sanders, clinton and former maryland governor martin o'malley prepare to face off in the final debate of 2015. poststhe's already lookingngar past election day. >> i started writing my inauguration speech as opposed tomorrow, look, the answer is, yes. ofofupporters who want to see him go all the way. this week the sanders campaign hitting the 2 million contribution mark mainly from small donations less than $3$ each. overnight, hillary clinton also racking up campaign cash, her daughter chelsea there for the first time to help drum up those dollars. the star-studded new york city

fund-raiser with celebrities like drew barrymore and katiti holmes posting this saying mothers and daughters #wearewithhillary. so far no response from the clinton team but ramifications for bernie sanders and hihicampaign could be huge.e. not ing able to access voter the campaign. you can bet all this will come up right here in new hampshire tomorrow night. >> they'll hope that suspension doesn't hold. cecilia, thanks very much. leles talk about the debate and the democratic campaign with matthew dowd, our chief political analyst. we saw that commanding lead for hillary clinton, 31 points nationwide, but sanders does have some real strength. >> he does and if you take a look at the comparison between bernie sanders now and barack obama in 2007, when barack obama was 28 points behind hillary clinton and ended up winning iowa and then going on and securing the nomination, so they're very much in the same place. hillary clinton has a commanding lead. but bernie sananrs just like donald trump on the other side

he's got the biggest crowds of anybody other than donald trump. he has the largest number of contributors that anybody's ever seen in the course of f presidential race and his voters are very fervevt, again, very much like donald trump, so he has a shot, i think the question is is can he overcome -- >> so far at least he's ahead in new hampshire according to the most recent polls and saw this strange situation yesterday. vladimir putin at his year-end press conference praising donald trump and donald trump praisin him back, a little bit of a bromance developing. does this have any political implications? >> they ought to get silvio berlusconi and call them incredible ego trio. whatever they call it. what's going to happen, donald trump's supporters will say, that's right. he's not even elected president and people who don't like donald trump are going to say he has the support of a dictator from

russia, it will split along the supporters and opponents' lines, but his supporters will love the fact that putin is saying great things about donald trump. >> okay, matthew d dd, thanks very much. we'll be headed to new hampshire and our whole political team will be there with the debate moderated by david muir and martha raddatz. tomorrow night, i'll anchor special coverage at 8:00 and be there live sunday morning with "this week." we turn to who many are calling the most hated man in america. the drug company executive who became notorious for jacking up t t price of a life-saving drug by more than 5,000%. he is now free on $5 million bond this morning after being arrested for fraud. abc's linsey davis is here with that story. good morning, linsey. >> reporter: good morning, amy. earlier this month martin shkreli tweeted, i hate being in the news. well, this morning he's back in headlines again, this time accused of fraud, a ponzi scheme, but overnight a representative for shkreli issued a statement saying, ponzi victims do not make yet mr. shkreli's investors enjoyed strong results. this morning, the so-called bad

boy ofofharmaceuticals infamous for increasing the price of a drug from $13.50 to $750 a tablet out of jail o o$5 million bail after being arrereed thursday morning for unrelated fraud charges. >> shkreli essentially ran his companies like a ponzi scheme. >> reporter: court documents allege martin shkreli, the 32-year-old hedge fund ceo allegedly got millions from investors and when he lost their money through a series of bad trad took money in new investors to pay off the old ones and started a company drugs s d selling them for higher prices. using that money to pay off his hedge fund investors. >> these charges in today's indictment highlight the brazenss and breadth of shkreli's schemes and the deceit. >> reporter: shkreli pled not we interviewed him back in september. after he increased the price of aids and cancer by more than 5,000%, donald trump called him

>> there was a lot of vitriol out there targeting you, onef the headlines even saying that you were the most hated mamain america. >> i'm n n a greedy person. >> reporter: but at a later event -- >> i could have raised it higher and made more profits for our shareholders which is my primary duty. >> reporter: the 32-year-old posting hours of video of himself online, eating, sleeping, on his computer, turning heads for tweets like this one, 50 to 100 date solicitations a day y r me. the worlrls most eligible bachelor. sorry, but you have to be a shareholder to meet me. >> i don't really care about people hating me. who gives a [ bleep ]. >> reporter: he purchased the only copy of a wu tang clan album by promising he wouldn't release it pubcly. he is confident he will be cleared of all charges and online people are joking his attorney should actually raise their fees 5,000% to represent him.

and the u.s. attororys general don't know where he got the money. >> police tweeted last night that they didn't seize -- this was a seizure arrest so didn't get the wu tang clan album. >> thank you, linsey. another young man behaving badly, the most wanted teenager in the cououry ethan crouch escaped wiwi just probation after killing four while driving drunk. he on the run now, pursued by the fbi and u.s. marshals and d tt gutman has s e latest. >> reporter: investigators telling abc news the teen fugitive infamous for that so-called affluenza defense in court may have a huge head start on authorities. >> i believe theplanned in time their g gaway to give them the maximum amount of time to be gone before we started looking for them. >> reporter: abc news learning investigators are tracking the family's phones, financial records and possible passports. concernenethe teen has fled thth country. >> with the amount of wealth that these people have, there's a tremendous amount of different

plane. >> reporter: in 2013 the then 16-year-old loaded himself with booze and his truck with friends, he pleaded guilty to killing four%in this horrific drunk driving crash. his sentenen, ten years' probation and zero jail time. his legal team argued he suffered from affluenza. that he was too spoiled to know right from wrong. investigators say shortly after this video was posted to twitter, purportedly showing him at a boozy party, couch vanished. now on the run authorities believe with his mother. >> do you recall eper didiiplining ethan for anything? >> sometimes i would take little things away from him or we would just discuss the problems. >> reporter: but now his mother may be the one to suffer consequences. it is a felony to aid and abet a fufutive and the sheriffffells us if there's any way to prosecute her they will. but ethan couch, because he's still considered a juvenile under ththlaw, he's unlikely to face any jail time if apprehended. george.

>> hard to believe, okay, matt gutman, thanks very much. dan harris here with the other top stories starting with a major battle with isis overseas. for the firsrstime in months is carried out a significant attack in northern iraq near their stronghold of mosul. hundreds of fighters launching at least four coordinated attacks but they were repelled by american air strikes and by kurdish and canadian forces. this does raise concerns that isis can still launch a major assault despite months of coalition air strikes. back in this country, in chicago, they're bracing for a day of demonstratitis as the police officer charged in n e shooting death of laquan mcdonald is set to appear in court. protesters are planning to block traffic near midway airport and in areas of the downtown. in los angeles, nearly 1900 public school students are being relocated because of health concerns stemming from a massive gas leak. infrared video shows the gas in purple hovering over porter ranch, the ongoing methane leak at a storage facility already has forced hundreds of families

to evacuate. pope francis has paved the way for mother teresa to become a saint. he h now recognized the second miracle attributed to mother teresa known#as, quote, the saint t the gutter for her r rk with the poor.r. she's expected to be canonized next september. and finally, check this out. an amazing reaction to a convenience store holdup. look what happened when a shop owner in new york was confronted by a masked man wielding a shotgun. what does he use to fight back? he throws the slipipr at the dude. the gunman turns and runs and the store owner operering with door, pretty incredible. the owner, by the way, was later asked if he's going to upgrade security and he said, no, he's sticking with the slippepe >> i mean -- >>hat's probably not something that police would recommend, though, if a shotgun is pointed at you. >> that's probably c crect. >> his intuition worked in that moment. >> it did. all right, now let's talk about a scary moment at the cleveland cavaliers game last

night, lebron james chasing after a ball slamming into the wife of another star athlete and she was taken out of the arena on a stretcher and kendis gibson has the story. >> reporter: as 6'8", 250-pound lebron james scrambled for a loose ball possession, he follows the ball into the courtside seats, then a frightening collision -- >> made contact right here. >> reporter: with a petite woman sitting in a courtside seat. >> she is still laying down. they're trying to help her up right now but she istill down on the ground on her back. >> reporter: that t man, ellie day, the wife of one of the top golfers in the world pga champion jason day. >> a phenomenal talent. >> reporter: he was by her side seen wearing all black. after several moments of laying on the floor, ellie strapped into a stretcher wearing a neck brace rushed to the hospital. jason running after her. after the game, relief from leleon who went over to check on ellie during a time-out.

>> obviously, you know, her health is very important and, you know, hopefully she's doing well. the guys told us that she's doing great now. >> reporter: fororgood morning america," kendis gibson, abc news, new york. >> lebron so concerned about this tweeted out a sweet message, "ellie day, i hope you're doing okay. my apologieses hope you guys come back to another game soon, love lj." >> she might sit in the second row. >> yeah, absolutely. >> you're powering through this morning. >> was it all the screaming at the cavs game? >> absolutely, go, cavs. yeah. i don't sound good. hopefully i look okay. >> you look fabulous. so does ginger but not that destructive storm out there in the northwest? they got smacked again. they'll get another one by nday. look at i-90 in n shington statat wrecks on the highway. these photos closer to the coast, eight plus inches of rain, a sinkhole, landslide. people trapped and like i said there's more to come. through the sierra winter storm

montana and idaho. flood watches coastally. there you can see the storm coming through, the second cold front by sunday. some of the heavier rains great for northern california but we don't want it that fast. your local weather in 3030 seconds.plan on another windy day in the area with hig around 30 degrees in many spots. along this cold front,t, passing snow shower may occur, , inly along and north of a waterloo-maquoketa

line. while no major issues are anticipated, a brief reduction in visibility could occur in any snow shower . we'll see our coldest night of december so far tonight, with lows in the mid-teens. plan on a nice saturday with highs back in the mid-30s. mid-upper 40s are >> and great news for the southwestern united states. you're going to see yourself next time you see me. i'll be back and i'll show off the map. >> all right. >> so excited for you, ginger. >> tomorrow is the big day. it's fantastic. >> all right, ginger. . and so much more ahead this morning. the former prep school student convicted of sexual assault speaking out for the first time, why he says he has no regrets. only on "gma" this morning.( and "sports ililstrated" ver supermodel arrested in hot water over free gifts. and the force is finally with us. the most anticipatedovie in the galaxy is open. t.j. holols is with all those e lucky fans who saw the first shows.

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nigig fire in cedar rapipi. the fire depapament responded to the area of i avenue and first street northwest. they got on scene around 10 o'clock last night, and stayed there for a couple of hours. first responders t tk one person to the hospital who had set up a tent in that area. the fire department hasn't said how severe the person's injuries were or how the fire started. iowans using medicaid now have more time to sign up for a new program in the transition from a public to private system. the federal government ordered the state yesterday to delay the transition until march 1st.

the extra time wiwi help the state move half a million people to one of four private insurance companies. governor branstad had originally wanted to make the switch by january 1st. and now here's your first alert forecast. plan on anothewindy day in the area with highs around 30 degrees in many spots. along this cold front, a passing snow shower may occur, mainly along and north of a waterloo-maquoketa line. while no major issues are anticipated, a brief reduction in visibility could occur in any snow shower . we'll see our coldest night of december so far tonight, with lows in the mid-teens. plan on a nice saturday with highs back in the id-30s. mid-upper 40s ar still on track for sunday with a chance of rain bybyvening. have a great

welcome back to "gma" and

t.j. holmes stormtrooper awakens" midnight shshing last night. he's got his game face on for the biggest movie of the year and we'll talk to a lot of fs who saw it last night but we promise no spoilers. >> don't spoil it for anyone because there's just this moment -- >> okay, stop. >> you don't want to ruin it for anyone else. i said my peace. the neighbor of those san bernardino killers arrested on terror charges. enrique marquez revealing to authorities he had plotted with syed farook to attack a community college and ambush drivers on the highway. he is back in court on monday. plus, adele fans desperately trying to get seats to her upcoming tour getting shut out online. adele fighting back against scalpers who bought so many seats and raised the prices. and we want you to take a look at this christmas photo released by the royal family overnight.

prince george and princess charlotte with their mom and dad. >> that is so sweet. >> look at that little baby smile. so great. more on that but we begin with the former prep school student accused of assaulting a classmate. owen labrie is speaking out since his conviction that you'll only see on "gma" today and gio benitez who followed the story all summer is here. >> reporter: labrie is appealing that conviction with the new hampshire supreme court but among other things the young man whose story made national headlines is spending time building a chapel. it was a trial that lived in the headlis this summer. an alleged sex assault. one e the premiere boardidi schools in this country. >> i was raped. >> reporter: a 15-year-old st. paul school student claiming she was raped by a fellow schoolmate owen labrie. >> this someone was going to get what he wanted and not take no for an answer. >> it hadn't my intention going into the night of having`sex. >> reporter: they convicted him on misdemeanor sexual assault. this is owen labrie now, out free while he appeals his

one-year prison sentence. instead of studying at harvard's divinity school as he planned he is now buiuiing a chapel speaking out for the first time since his conviction. the now 20-year-old still insisting he had done nothing wrong, telling "newsweek" in an exclusive interview it was the only thing that sustained me knowing that i had told the truth. i had done what was right. i walked out of the courthouse with my chin up. >> he's adamant a aut his innocence in this. but he's also resigned to the consequences. >> reporter: labrie expressing no regret about refusing plea deals that would have required him to admit to sex with the girl but put him behind bars for less than a month with no sex offender registration telling the magazine, he'd handle his legal decisions the exact same way, but he wears the sex offender@label like a scarlet letter. >> it's a fairly smallown up ere and, you know, people come up to him, you know, and use words that you can't use on television. he's gotten a lot of support. there were a lot of classmates

and their parents who gave to a legal defense fund and he gets it from alalsides. >> reporter: now at home with his divorced parents, the once harvard-bound superstar student is under strict curfew. somememes he says even defiantly ill wearing his st. paul's shirts. >> how could someone so smart with such a bright future ahead of them, whatever you think about what may have happened that night, how could he have risked so much? >> reporter: and perhaps most surprising, "neweek" tells us that he is personally trying to handle his appeal himself reaching lawyers and experts across the country to prove his point but he could still face charges for deleting messages on facebook during that investigation. now we've tried to reach the accuser's family about this interview but we have not heard back. it is a very, very complicated case. >> at least it seems like he's making the best of his time. gio, thanks very much. "newsweek's" exclusive with owen labrie hits the stands next

week. now to that dramatic rescue on the highway. a police officer springing into action stopping a runaway truck caught on camera and now hearing from that t ficer and abc's reena ninan has the story. >> he might be passed out. >> do you want to stop him? >> reporter: this morning, we're hearing for the first time from the heroic officer who stopped this semitractor trailer barreling down a nebraska highway. >> knew what we needed to do, lt comfortable doing it so did it. >> repepter: senator todd volk leaping on and into the semi's cab taking over the wheel as the driver was suffering a seizure. >> but i just had the perfect angle, there's not much speed left in me. >> reporter: sprinting at 20 miles per hour stopping the ten tons of moving steel before anyone was injured. >> there's so many different possibilities that could have happened even before. >> reporter: many who saw it ink sergeant volk looks like a stuntman. >> open the door when i tell you. >> reporter: similar to tom cruise attempting to stop a plane as it takes off in

"mission: impossible" and this scene in "the transporter" looking eerily similar. sergeant volsays he did what needs done. >> my wife keeps telling m mthis might be o o of the crazier ones. >> reporter: the driver grateful for the officer jumping into action. for "good morning america," reena ninan, abc news, new york. >> amazing what he did. coming up, we have supermodel bar refaeli arrested. the "sports illustrated" cover model suspected of tax evasion, did all those celebrity freebies land her in trouble with the law? and those long lines for "star wars" fans. t.j. holmes is there for "the force awakens," a lot of excitement all across the country and around the world

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and we are back now with the story ofne of the most beautiful women in the world facingngome ugly charges. permodel bar refaeli has been arrested in israel charged with tax evasion for failing to report income and free gifts including luxury cars.

abc's linzie janis here with the story. hey, linzie. >> good morning, george. she's the "sports illustrated" cover model who has turned looking good in a bikini into a multimillion-dollar fortune but this morning authorities accusing her of mishandling those millions. >> right here for me. >> reporter: this morning, bar refaeli this morning best known for this steamy 2009 "sports illustrated" cover and for dating leonardo dicaprio is being investigated for allegedly failing to pay taxes on millions in income. israeli authorities alleging refaeli lili about living tside of israel evenenutting a swanky apartment in her mothth's name to be exempt from paying taxes on earnings abroad. investigators arresting and questioning both women for several hours then confiscating their passports. overnight, their lawyer saying they did nothing wroro telling israeli media there's no drama and this is just a civil dispute.

the 30-year-old swimsuit model is also allegegey accused of failing to report t ndreds of thousands of dollars in free gifts including a rent-free apartment and free use of luxury cars. >> the taxing authority is saying, you have t tclaim that product and the value of that product in the same way you would have to claim a paycheck that was provided to you in exchange for your services. >> reporter: r raeli who received a style icon award in 2013 reportedly earned over $2.3 million that year, working on campaigns for brands including the gap and samsung. >> this case is going to be a wake-up call for many individuals who are accustomed to receiving big gifts in exchange for using their image, using their likeness to promote a product. >> reporter: refaeli and her mother have been barred from traveling abroad for six months without permission from israeli authorities, both could face serious fines and, of course, if she can't travel that's s und to

affectcter income going forwrwd. >> and this is bound to impact so many others running to their cpas to make sure theyave all their ts crossed. >> staying inside the lines. that's right. copping up next -- record-breaking sales for "star wars" tickets making them such a commodity online. one has them listed for up to $225 for a pair. t.j. holmes is with lucky fans who have lucky tickets in their

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today, 1 out of every 4 it is 7:46 and we have been talking about it all morning, the wait finally over. fans flocking to theaters overnight and early this morning to see "star wars: the force awakens." among them, t.j. holmes. he's at a theater down the block fromoms. good morning, t.j. >> good morning, and what's better than with your eggs and bacon in the morning than a litttt "star wars." the film played all night playing all morning, yes, 2:00 a.m. show, 5:00 a.m. show, 7:00 a.m. shows. you cannot miss this movie, i got my fans, i got my stormtroopers. everybody is gooooto go but what did people think l lt night? some of the first to get in line, check them out. it's finally here, the wait is

>> i told my mom all i wanted for christmas was for the "star wars" to begin. >> we're really excited. >>@i might die when i watch this movie. >> reporter: they're coming out in full force to see the newest installment of "star wars." >> we wanted him to be princess leia, he refused. >> reporter: even a wedding in line in l.a. theaters everywhere are prepping for r e huge onslaught of f faithful fans, some venues even adding extra security. >> clearly, this is one of the biggest nights in moviegoing history and we'll be ready for it across the board. >> nothing will stand in our way. >> reporter: fandango breaks an all-time record, most ticket sales on their site ever, even% before opening night. >> it's true, all of it. >> reporter: so what's the verdict? >> the force has awakened. for sure. >> it was amazing. >> it feels totally true to the old films. >> oh, it was an emotional roller coaster. >> it redeemed the prequels entirely, thank god.

>> i have spent the last almost 20 hours watching the past six movies and i can't believe that after that all that i wanot prepar for it. i have to go back and watch it again and then again andndhen again. >> and, lara, i must admit since the time i was a little boy this is the money shot i have been waiting for my entirirlife. >> he's got his game face on. >> i have to tell people -- yes, it was crazy last ght. it was crazy last night and a lot of places were sold out but a lot of people think, well, i can't gegetickets. yes, there are millions of tickets still available to see the show this weekend. a lot saying they're coming back twice. even some folks i talked to last night,t,hey had never seen any of the previous six movies but they wanted to see this to be a part of the cultural experience and that's exactly what it was last night. >> that's awesome. that's great. we also, t.j., have some pictures of very young fans, check out this one. >> ah. >> i love that.

mark zuckerberg with his newborn dressed up -- what's he dressed asasdan? >> that't'obi-wan kenobi. >> she. >> she looks like a slightly annoyed version of obi-wan kenobi, i would say. >> i wonder why. then i know you have a photo, a video for us. >> i made a little video of my son alexander in the bathtub. don't worry. yoda, i gave him c3po and put the droid's head in his mouth. i warned him that might adversely make it malfunction. he ignored me. >> you're a bona fide nerd on e "star wars" stuff. >> i'm a nerd on a lot of stuff. it came out when i was 6 or 7 and i had a little brother. my mom used to bring u uin the middle of the movie and leave us until we stopped caring. >> the answer is yes to my question. >> yes. >> can't wait to hear what you

>> 2:30. >> allllright, okay. we'll get a review from dan in a bit. can there be too much christmas? take a look at the mom who piled all these gifts under the tree. she's now facing an online fire storm after posting this online. she's here live to tell her side

of the story when we come back. the snow is starting to fall and our loved ones are gathered all around, so share that extra joy in your heart and make this christmas even more special than the last. walmart. big news! the new sprint lte plus network is faster than verizon and at&t... based on data from the world's foremost authority on independent measurement. to celebrate, we're gonna cut some prices in half. switch to sprint and save 50% on verizon, at&t or t-mobile rates. no gimmicks. no tricks. it's the biggest offer in u.s. wireless history! what about verizon? 5050off. at&t too? 50% off. even t-mobile? 50% off. and now, get the hottest samsung smartphones and receive a free 32" led samsung tv.

and off you go and off you go, and off you go, for every step, every stride, every start, begin strong with the lasting energy of 100% whole grain quaker oats... and off you go. back here on "gma." december wants to remind you, hey, i can be cold. this morning, this cold, one bew the feels like in denver. 4 below in north platte. 18 in chicago, look at dallas at 26, oh, my goodness, 19 in indianapolis and that cold shifts east by tomorrow morning, a freeze watch in place all the % way south to tallahassee. doesn't last long, though. mild next week.

by s sint. "good morning america" is brought to you by quaker, off you go.u go.student killed this week will honor her life today. the center point united methodist church is

holding a visitataon today for emmalee jacobs who died on monday after a hit and run on the ames campus. she just graduated from center point-urbana high school last may. jacobs put a lot of her time into her center pnt united methodist church youth programs. hehe pastor says she'll be greatly missed. the visitation is today from 4 to 8 this evening. the funeral will be tomorrow morning at 10:30 at center-point urbana high school. a company out of texas has agreed to stop sending confusing mail to iowans. that's because a recent postcard looks like it's from the government. kramerdirect has also agreed to pay 5 thousand dollars. that money is for the enforcement of iowa's consumer fraud laws. the post-card was directete toward iowans turning 65. it asked them to mail back their birth date and phone number to get information about medicare and other "senior benefits". iowa attorney general tom miller says their contact information was actually used for insurance agents to use in sale pitches. t company is denying that it did anything wrong. and now here's yoururirst alert

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good morning, america. it's 8:00 a.m., and we have the mom under fire f f over 300 presents under her family's

tree. shamed hundreds of thousands of times online for this photo. for the first time. hello from the other side backlash over tickets to adele's huge concert tour, fans crying foul l ter concert tickets sold out in minutes now being resold for thousands of dollars. how adele tried to stop the scalping and help her heartbroken fans. underneath the tree new overnight, will and kate reveal their royal christmas card. charlotte and george steal the show playing in the family's backyard. new details now about the little prince and princess. and the perfect holiday cks for your weekend. cool tricks from "gma" viewers to decorate your home in a flash, all ahead as we say -- >> all: good morning, america. >> gnd good morning, america. happy friday.

one week to go till christmas. and there they are. our diy exexrts helping you crack those christmas dilemmas. all kinds of tricks to help you with this holiday. >> i like that garland as a pom-pom. >> yeah. >> that's a good idea. >> or a feather boa. >> that too and then we also have live in times square, the mom whose christmas tree photo caused a major online uproar. she says all those presents are in the christmas spirit but some say she isn't actually getting the true meaning of the holiday. we're going to hear what she has to say directly from her coming up next in a "gma" exclusive. >> that sounds great. also, powering up your phone. we all know that sinking feeling when your battery starts t tdie. becky worley has tested the newest backup batteries on the market. i'm excited about this and she'll tell us which ones should be on your christmas list. >> that is all coming up. first let's get to dan harris with the morning rundown. >> hey, thank you. the big story, the longtime friend of one of the san bernardino attackers is now being held without bail until his appearance i icourt on mondnd.

enrique marquez bought the rifles that syed farook and his wife used to kill 14 people and prosecutors say he has freely revealed that he and farook planned attacks on a local highway and in a college cafeteria back in 2011 and 2012. meanwhile, the fbi arrested a man in pennsylvania they say who tried to help isis by running more thaha50 twitter acacunts posting names of u.s. military members. and in upstate new york the owner of a pizza shop has pleaded guilty to trying to help isis bplotting to kill american soldiers. in the race for president this morning a stop staffer in the bernie sanders campaign has been fired for accessing hillary clinton's confidential data. the democratic national committee is blocking sanders' team from accessing the party's voter files which are considered crucial heading into the iowa caucuses. new details and a shocking crime this morning. a newlywed stabbed in a random attack in the middle of a drugstore. she has now died, and the suspect, an mba graduate with no

criminal record, is now facing new charges. abc's mara schiavocampo has the details. >> reporter: the charges against a petite 40-year-old financial adviser have been upgraded hours after her alleged victim died from her injuries. rohinie bisesar now facing second degree murder charges in what police say was a completely random attack. >> we still can find no correlation between the two. we still believe them to be complete strangers. >> reportete police say bisesar,r, a professional with no criminal history, attacked a woman at a drugstore last week and stabbed the victim without provocation leaving her in critical condition. late wednesday, 28-year-old rosemarie junor succumbed to her injuries. junor worked at a private clinic in toronto and had been married less than a year.% her family devastated by the loss. >> we're all trying our best to make sense and to try to figure out exactly what happened and why. >> reporter: police say bisesar

rhe run for four days. shortly befofo her arrest, a canadian newspaper says they received an e-mail from her account saying in part, "something has been happening to me and this is not my normal self" adding, "i am sorry about the incidence." >> that kind of evidence exhibiting mental illness could be used mounting a defense of not crimininly responsible. >> reporter: bisesar has not yet entered a plea and is expected back in court this morning. for "good morning america," mara schiavocampo, abc news, new york. >> mara, thank you. new concerns about the safety of infants in car seats this morning. a survey out this morning finds more than 90% of new parents made a serious mistake while installing their car seat or buckling up their baby, which coulsignificantly increaue the risk of injury or death in a crash. experts are calling onon manufacturers to come up with more user-friendly designs. and finally, everybody loves a feel-good story on a friday. so, check out what happenein a burger king in south carolina. workers gagaered together and went to get nancy mart everybody

out of the kitchen where she was at work cleaning. when they finally got her out, her mop still in hand, there was a big surprise for her. it was her son who hadadust tten home from serving overseas in the u.s. military. you can't hear it, but what she's saying there is, oh, i am not going to stop hugging you. >> oh, man, yoyocan see it. >> that is so beautiful. especially at christmas. >> i usually like to do something snarky at the end of a newscast but that video was too good to pass up. >> good choice. >> let's move on then. >> okay. >> let's go to lara. >> you had such a nice moment there, dan. here's what's coming up on our "gma morning menu," the woman being shamed online for putting tow many gifts under the tree. she's already live telling her side of the story. and the adele ticket backlash. so many fans desperate lyly trying to get seats for the star's upcoming tour. how she's fighting for her fans. [ cheers and applause ]

all that coming up from times square on "good morning america." i sure had a l l on my mind when i got out of the hospital after a dvt blood clot. what about my family? my li'l buddy? and what if this happened again? i was given warfarin in the hospital but i wondered if this was the right treatment for me. then my doctor told me about eliquis. eliquis treats dvt and pe blood clots and reduces the risk of them happening again. not only does eliquis treat dvt and pe blood clots, but eliquis s so had significantltlless major bleeding than the standard treatment. knowing eliquis had both... turned around my thinking. don't stop eliquis unless your doctor tells you to. eliquis can cause serious and in rare e ses fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. if you had a spinal injeion while on eliquis call your doctor right away if you have tingling, numbness, or muscle weakness. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily... and it may take longer than usual for bleeding to stop. seek immediate medical care for sudden signs of bleeding,

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welcome back to "gma."

just one week until christmas but one mother of three is feeling backlash now, not the spirit of ththseason after posting this photo on instagram. her christmas tree surrounded, actually dwarfed, by hundreds of presents. critics say she's spling her kids. well, she is firing back and we're going to talk to emma tapping live in just a moment. but first her story. how do you know if there really are too many gifts up the tree? one mom found out after sharing this photo of her family's massive present pile on instagram sparking a christmtm controversy.y. the stack of 300 gifts shared by mother of three emma tapping instantly going viral after outraged critics shared it with the #toomanypresents. one post shared over 100,000 times captioned the tidal wave of yuletide loot. time for all the materialistic parents to compete and broadcast how many presents their kids have. others calling it disgusting and a perfect example of spoiled brats, but tapping is fighting

"i refuse to reply to people messaging me telling me how i should spend my christmas. how about concentrating on your own." she also points out that some of the gifts are for adult fily members and that the e eire bounty cost just $2300 a aing please try and remember this is about three little children, their christmas, their tree. and emma tapping joins us now speaking out about this for the first time about all this backlash. >> thanks for having me. >> i understand to each his own but when you put it out on social media, you open yourself up for criticism. why did you put it out there, this photo? >> i put it t t there, i put up the decorations me and my daughter made and put it up every year on facebook which is closed t tmy facebook friends and upon instagram for it to be shared all over the world and the way i see it is thousands of pictures go up on instagram every single day, do we have the right to judge people just

or a better -- >> would you do it again? >> yes, i'd do it again. absolutely. nobody is going to tell me how i spend my christmas. >> some of the backlash includes people saying you're spoiling your children and been insensitive to those who have less, completely taking away the christmas spirit that some people think is about, you know, giving and not getting and that your children are being spoiled. were there certain comments that hurt you more than others? >> comments about the children obviously, but since it's come out, america has kind of been protective over me and on social media said she's just a mum. she pays for them herself. they're her own children. let her do what she wants to do. >> go ahead. >> so, what have you told your kids about it? >> the kids just know it's normal christmas, and i said don't read anything obviously because i don't -- you know, my eldest is on social media. everybody knows that knoo my kids know they're lovely, lovely kids and i'm hoping that i can

public, especially america, get as far as america and show how i save money all year round and how i save up to get my christmases this way. >> 300 presents under r e tree, 85 for your two girls, 30 for your son. >> yes. >> i know you don't want to give away, but what could you possibly have insidid that they need? >> a lot of things are things they need because i don't spoil them throughout the year. so they get their clothes for the year. they get their smelly, their bubble baths, theirir perfumes, makeke for the older one for the year because if they want anything else, they have to save up for that themselves. >> what's a smelly? >> a smelly is like -- >> thank you for asking that. >> is thth very british? yes, very british. >> i'm really sorry. smellies is your bubble baths and your soaps and your little hand lotions. >> girls love those. >> so,o,e don't have to buy shampoo or bubble bath throughout the year once christmas is done. >> $2300 the equivalent in the u.s. and you say you know how to save and you've got some tips

that for the christmas`season. yes, i'vbeen doing it for years. and i mean one of the presents under there, mom, please don't judge but it's a $100 coat for $5. >> because you buyuyhings when thth go on sale in the summer -- >> yeah. >> or i -- it's another british way, i haggle. i will haggle. >> i haggle too. >> yeah, i love a haggle and i think it's important for people to know how to fight the major stores and get a bit of money -- >> did you haggle over any of the smellies? >> oh, yes, absolutete. i know what days to hit the sales, the january sales. >> i have to say, i did not like that picture but you make a pretty good case. >> thank you. >> i think to each his own. >> thank you very much. that's how i feel. you know, i hope everybody has a christmas s their way but if the picture offendnddon't look. >ust stroll up, right? >> exactly because i'm being blasted as a bad mother when there's grown men and women with three little children at christmaste -- >> right, and if you're saving

year round and this is the way you do it -- >> it wasn't excessive spending but maybe excessive wrapping. >> listen, thank you for coming on. >> thank you very much. >> thank you. >> thank y y. >> we're going to move on to that backlash over adele tickets. fans are crying foul after her concert tickets sold out in minutes wnline. some seats priced below 100 being scalped for thousands. abc's rebecca jarvis with more on what happened. incredible. what is more depressing than an adele song? well, apparently if you're trying to buy tickets to her upcoming north american tour, that is it. fans taking to twitter this morning voicing their frustratns while the scalperc, the resellers, they have already swooped in with tickets at outrageous prices. so hello from the other side >> reporter: perhaps this fan

i've clicked refresh a thousand times" after tickets for her 56-state north american tour sold out in under an hour. prices originally set for $39.50 to $149.50 on ticketmaster but scalpers immediately flooding the internet with resales of those seats. many at more than 8,000% markups. we found tickets on stubhub going for as much as $11,000 so how are regular adele fans supposed to afford to see their idol? the ticket scalping market is now an $8 billion a year industry. the president of ticketmaster telling "the new york times" that artists who charge the least suffer from scalpers the most. they use lightning quick computer programs to monopolize ticket buying and upcharge t tstubhub and vivid seats. to kourptszact this artists like adele teamed up with song kick, a site that specializes in ticket sales through artist sites andndan clubs. they sold 235,000 tickets for adele on this tour, they say,

blocking at least 53,000 scalpers saving the real fans $6.3 million in markups. but there e re heavy restrictions on the site in north america, and it accounts for only 8% of available adele tickets. heartbroken fans venting their anger online. one posting this scene from the movie "mean girls." asking "how many of you feel personallyictimized by ticketmaster?" one person w wting "attempting to buy adele tickets is more depressing than an adele song." >> whenever there is a big tour there is a huge rush for tickets and occasionally compuers go down for awhile. >> never in my memory has it happened on this scale. >> oh, the pain. how do you score tickets to one of those shows? manyf the true fans who did get tickets yesterday, they did it through the ticketmaster app on their phone and joined adele's fan club and got access to presales but check with your credit card company, they do frequently also

give people access to presale e and a lot of the tickets get sold through presale. >> very good tips. thank yoso much, rebecca. i have this happening to me more and more now, that panicked feeling because it's happening like every day when your phone battery is about to die. yeah, i know, what are you going to do? abc's becky woey joins us from san francisco with a solution to that digital dilemma. an exclusive reveal l the top pickckin backup batteries for your phone. take it away, becky. >> reporter: amy, you are so right. there is no worse feeling than having 10% left on your phone and knowing you have to be connected. so, bring in the battery packs. they are flooding the market so consumers can recharge on the go but choosing the right one is a lot more complicated than you think. so we put them through their paces to help you stay charged. a dying phone, ah. products like these can save the day, but with brand names you may never have heard of coming

sizes, how do you decide? enter mark smirniotis from gadget website, the wire cutter. barteries, they're all the same. just buy the cheap one. >> no, absolutely not. >> reporter: mark breaks the backup batteries into categories by physical size and factors and many things including cost, shape and features of the pack. is that a lilit? >> in a lot t these they do throw on a little flashlight. >> reporter: "gma" also teaming up with cadex electronics in the battery testing industry to put up 17 different backup batteries through a test. >> this is the cadex 7400-c battery analyzer. we'll use it to test the capasity of dferent batteries. >> reporter: the test looks to see how mucuc of the batteries' listed capacity meaning the amount of available charge on the box is delivered. gary tests three of each model then mark analyzes the results and make his top picks. in the credit card size if you need a few extra hours on your phone, at the top of the list, the amazonbasics portable power

bank currently listed for less than $5 or this incipio offgrid, $40 model forphones and for the small pack category, that's about the size of a deck of cards, giving you at least two or three full charges, the easyacc power bank is the toto pick at t 7. and while much of your buying decision is based on how you plan to use the battery. >> it depends on what you really need. >> reporter: the real power in picking one of these lifesavers is doing your homework and buying one that's been tested and reviewed. we posted all the informatioioon our website, goodmorningamerica.com on yahoo! but here's the deal, the best backup battery is probably the one you have charged and with you, so enter battery cases. u keep them on your r one all the time. when the phone charges, the backup battery charges too, set it and forget it. apple just announcing their version last week, the cost $99. now, our friends over at thehe wire cutter say that this anchor battery case is also a top pick at just 40 bucks. amy, i know you have to be a phoneaholic in t ts job, so merrrrchristmas.

>> oh. >> it makes the phone so heavy but you like it, george. >> oh, george. >> example. >> that's right. >> george has angemanagement problems. >> no, his phone is too heavy. that's the problem. >> i got a good 85 in there. >> all right. but it's weighing, what, like a ton of bricks in your pocket. i hate it. >> this is fascinating. as much as i'd like to hear about it, we have weather to get toto >> all right. happy friday, everybody. this is colin, this is liam. you guys are from new jersey but you like the dolphins and then you said, wait, you like what time, collin? >> the giants. >> i'm very confused. you need to get your wardrobe fixed. let's go ahead and start with the forecast and talk about some lake-effect snow. already snowing and even flurries in areaeanorth and west of chicago but from the u.p. of michigan all the way through the lower peninsula, you'll get a little bit, nothing like what's going to happen for the beginning of the weekend. south plan on another windy day in the area with highs around 30 degrees in many spots.

along this cold front, a passing snow shower may occur, mainly along and north of a waterloo-maquoketa line. while no major issues are anticipated, a brief reducucon in visibility could occur in any snow shower . we'll see our coldest night of december so far tonight, with lows in the mid-teens. plan on a nice saturday with highs back in the mid-30s. mid-upper 40s e still on track fofosunday with a chance of rain by evening. have a great weekend! >> that's a nice message. keep calm and watch "gma." lara. >> yeah. >> that's beautiful. ginger, thank you and now get in here because it's time for "pop nene" and i don't know if you've noticed but i'm a little hoarse. doing my best brenda vaccaro today, so dan has offered to help me. >> that's right. >> i'll pass the baton to dan and i will just intercorrect.

of my journalistic career. the fourth time is a charm. nwa being named into the rock and roll hall of fame led by dr. dreher and ice cube. their biopic "straight outta compton" a straight out hit at the box office and a great movie for anybody who hasn't seen it. >> time for a musical change. >> yep. >> there we go. >> thank you, lara. driving me crazy >> that is, can you rec -- can anybody -- >> a little "jungle love." >> the rock and roll hall of fame is feelelg some love for "jungle "love, steveveiller, deep purple, chicago and cheap trick, pop pioneers, the class of 2016 will be inducted with a ticketed ceremony at the barclay center. >> number two, go. >> in the world of the great jimmy buffett, it's 5:00 somewhere. >> amen. >> good line. >> amen. >> parrot heads are raising a glass to this son of a son of a sailor with an item -- i don't know.

news that he will make "margaritaville: the musical." it's been percolating for awhile but took him some time to find the right ople to take his story to t stage. he has frankarshall who has a few producing credits on broadway and worked on major movies like "indiana jones" and d "back to the future" and maybe they'll find that lost shaker of salt. >> thank you. thank you. >> lara wrote that. i take no responsibility for the bad puns. >> no, but you delivered it well. >> this last o o is actually i picked it for you. so -- >> you did? >> yes. >> all right. here we go. finally, everyone, and we mean everyone seems to be excited about "star wars." just take a look at these flightless friends at the edinburgh zoo. >> edinboro. >> you're gng to correct me -- >> i'm producing and directing. . >> happy feet and incendiary in centrally related news -- >> you had to hear them. did you hear them? >> that's really how they sound. >> really. >> really? >> yes. that's how -- >> that's what chewbacca does

they would talk next. >> in semi related news this photo was on the cover of "the new york post." was brought to my attention that chewie and i wear the same color lipstick if you're wondering, it's blankety by mac and we'll be right back.campaign to help struggling families, but

his efforts also come with another message. hassan selim is a religious leader at the islamic center of cedar rapids. he recently started a gofundme capaign to raise 30- tusand dollars for the salvation army to help struggling families. selim says he wants to help his neighbors and c cate a positive message surrounding the muslim community. if you want to help, you can find a link to his gofundme page with this story on kcrg dot com. the salvation army in cedar rapids hopes it spread some holidadacheer. more than 25050 people turned out for a holiday meal yesterday afternoon. extra volunteers came together to make it happen. the salvation army is still working to reach its 790- thousand dollar christmas campaign goal. it still needs to raise about 330-thousand dollars. the money helps fund programs throughout the year.

plan on another windy day in the area with highs around 30 degrees in many spots. along this cold front, a passing snow shower may occur, mainly along and north of a waterloo-maquoketa line. while no major issues are anticipated, a brief reduction in visibility could occur in any snow shower . we'll see our coldest night of december so far tonight, with lows in the mid-teens. plan on a nice saturday with highs back in the mid-30s. mid-upper 40s are still on track for sunday with a chance of rain by evening. have a great weekend!

well, i just learned something on this friday morning but look at that great holiday card right there.

the royal family just released this morning. princess charlotte's first christmas. there is big brother prince george right by her side taking a few steps right there. >> a big step coming up after the holiday. >> nursery school starts for ince georgee in january. love lookingng at those pictures. ginger, we cannot wait to see your pictures. this is your last day before becoming a mom. >> so great. >> what a trouper working up until the veryy last day. >> what else was going to do? really. >> i don't know, rest. >> we've been tracking -- >> there it is. >> every@ step of the day. >> the adorable baby bump growing.g. >> look at i i pop. >> eddie, thank you very much. eddie took those photos. that great laugh you hear, that one, that's him taking those pictures. so sweet. >> we want to send you off on your maternity leave with a little surprise so cue the surprise. [ cheers and applause ] >> oh, my gosh. >> oh, my goodness. >> wow.

>> thanks a lot, you guys. this is outstanding and not at all -- that is obviously nonalcoholic. >> no, it's -- >> i made it this far. i can do another couple days. >> my mom was drinkingeers on the nightht i was born. i think that's why i'm so short. but go for it. >> thank you very much. >> how are you feeling? you come in every morning with a hugemile on your face and full of positivity. i know it can't have always been easy. >> i feel like i'm lucky because i've had a really good pregnancy and everyone has been so supportive. thank you, you guys, because it does make a difference with rking with all t t peoplee behind me. i'm going to get a little emotional. >> do you like your -- >> yeah, that's beautiful. >> are you nervous. >> i'm so nervous. i'm staying up at night once in a while in the middle o othe nighgh which we wake up at 3:30 in the morning. that's been the hardest part. i feel him moving and there's a real human in here, i feel. >> happening. >> and you're about to meet him. >> you'll be a great mom. >o ginger. >> to ginger. >> thank you so much. [ cheers and applause ]

>> cheers. >> i'll see you in a bit. don't worry, i'm coming back. people keep asking that. no, i'm not going to makak e by jump off a mountain too soon. >> we can't wait to meet him. >> congratulations. >> thank you very much. we have a great story we turn to. a christmas miracle for more than 100 christians, a dangerous mission. "20/20" anchor elizabebe vargas with ann incredible story. >> these 149 iraqi refugees are from the oldest christian city in iraq. isis invaded their town telling them they had 24 hours to convert to islam or be killed. instead, they fled to a church in the nearby city of irbil where they've been living in a church courtyard for 15 months, that is, untilwo americans, came up with a daring and risky

as joseph and michele assad enter the courtyard of this church it's all systems go for the mission of mercy that will soon release 149 iraqi christians from the tyranny of isis. >> when they began bombing two children and a woman died. >> reporter: their bags are packed. the charter plane is ready. with tears and heartbreak they have said their good-byes. then suddenly a bombshell. the airport at irbil closes as they are ready to launch air stkes against isis attacks in syria. 4848 hours laterer the airspace opens and this modern exodus from the shadow of isis begins. inside the buses, people are oblivious to the threat outside. >> very good. >> reporter: the buses arrive safely at the airport. for most of them this is their fit time flying.

theuggage cartsnd check-in process, everything is a new experience. the flight is called. and then the first glimpse of their chartered airbus a320 that will carry them away. >> it's a real plane. >> reporter: the passengers settle in. and the pne pushes back wh no delay. the lights dim and on takeoff, a cheer goes up. as on a wing and a prayer the people break free of the bonds of their bloodied country. and those people will spe their first christmas in slovakia, all been paid for by donations. glenn beck did a show on this and they raise more than $12 million from listeners, also the hudson insnstute is paying the salary for joe and michele assad, a lot of people chipping in to help them.

>> many countries turned them away. >> 12 countries turned those christian refugees down before slovakia said yes and there are millions and millions more muslim refugees. we're still encountering a lot of anti-refugee sentiment h%re in the u.s. and around the world. >> cannot wait to see the reses of thihi piece on "20/20" tonight at 10:00, 9:00 central right on abc. outside to lara. all season long we're celebrating macy's annual believe campaign helping bring joy to children with life-threatening medical conditions. macy's will donate $1 up to 1 million to make-a-wish for every stamped letter to santa you drop off at one of these special believe boxes at macy's. or submit online. we want to introduce you to a brave young woman whose wish was to lend a voice to a special animated holiday story, reena ninan has it for you. >> reporter: 'tis the season to believe and when it comes to believing, 17-year-old taylor hay is an expert.

she was diagnosed withh non-hodgkins lymphoblastic lymphoma. >> i had allergic reactions and hospitalized five weeks straight. >> reporter: difficult though the time was it cementete in her a deep sense of faith. >> having plaintiff and faith is so important and just to believe everything is going to get better. >> reporter: it was only appropriate then when taylor and an aspiring child actress was given a chance to have a wish granted she asked to voice a role in the holiday special "yes, virginia," the story of a little girl and the importance of believing in santa claus. >> where have you been. >> went to see santa. >> reporter: taylor voiced taylor, a character named after and made to look just le her. she's so much fun. she's so bubbly and so energetic. >> santa brought me a train set. >> he brought mow a dollhouse. >> i got a bow and arrow. >> it was a blast to be able to voice her. >> reporter: for taylor and her motherhe making of "yes,

virginia" is just what the doctor ordered. >> it meant everything to her which of course meant everything to me to see my daughter doing what she loved. >> reporter: today taylor is cancer-free, a full time college student and proof positive of the power and importance of believing. >> i wouldn't chang my wish for the world. >> reporter: for "good morning america," reeee ninan, abc news, new york. >> that is great and you can hear taylor on "yes, virginia" on abc, 8:30, 7:30 central and if you want to help grant a wish drop a letter at your local macy's's in the box or submit one online. go to our website to find out more. right now over to ginger. >> yes, come on over here. i'm with the ladies fromm louisiana and triplets. i don't know how your mom did it. i only have one coming from texas. you are how old? >> 16. >> 16 today. 16, 16 and 16 and hopefully yoyore staying warm because we're going to get cold tomorrow.

boston, panama city, 38. don't worry, if yououre sticking around for nextt week we are becoming much more mild. christmas eve in the mid-60s in new york city, atlanta, right up into the mid-70s, even detroit getting to 54. all plan on another windy day in the area withthighs around 30 degrees in many spots. along this cold front, a passing snow shower may occur, mainly along and north a waterloo-maquoketa line. while no major r sues are anticipated, a brief reduction in visibility could occur this weather report brought to you byoys "r" us. did you know it's national ugly christmas sweater day. yeah, we celebrated a day early. maybe you saw it with our big showdown. although, lara, you looked beautiful. robin did take the top honors and the cake literally though we want to thank our friends at country crock for presenting the big surprise, an ugly sweater

cake made for the occasioio and we've takak a little chunk out of it right here. >> it is real cake. >> might be able to finish it by next season. >> we'll save you a piece, momma. coming up on "gma," sister-in-lawle solutions to your christmas dilemmas, our holiday hackers are with us to show you how to get it done.

christmas with a holiday installment of "there's a hack for that." simple shortcuts for things to make life a little easier and abc's sara haines is our hack reporter. >> i am a hack reporter and you can read that two ways actually. tips and tricks to make christmas merrier. all of these come from "gma" viewers so we'll start with jaime scoco with amy and runs a blog called hot and grace where she writes about her family, home, design, crafts. pretty much everything and you are showing us how to take thanksgiving and/or halloween and turn it into the holidays, christmas. >> i love that. >> yes. >> so i had a lot of pumpkins left over after thanksgiving and i didn't want to just throw them out but they didt go with my ristmas decorations so i thought i would turn them into a snowman so all you need. you just need three pumpkins and you'll spray paint them all white and then you're going to

>> you'll hot glue them together so they don't fall apart. >> and need buttons and a little carrrr. >> anything that you find at your house that you could use to make the eyes and nose and the mouth. >> you can get super creative with this. >> you can. >> kids can help and -- >> keep your girls away from the hot glue gun. this is fun. >> wrap a little scarf around it. >> with continue sell. >> adorable and won't melt. >> i hope not. after halloween it might be melting. thank you. >> okay. next up we have, no, it's not dan harris, he wouldn't have a hack. >> i'm super crafty. >> no, he's not. he's not. next we have janell inez but she has her own web series called handan and a surefire way to spruce up an imperfecec christmas tree. think charlie brown. >> we'll about to turn that frown upside down with a little bit of garland. >> the tree. >> this is the tree.

>> longing for more branches. >> looks like it neeee something to eat. >> we'll feed it with garland. you wrap it around like so -- >> get on over here, dan. >> do something. >> wrap it around, fill it in. shove it in there. >> okay, all right. here we go. >> fill the holes like so. >> all right. >> dan, you'ree not helping. >> she's doing all the work. >> this how you treat your wife at home. >> this is exactly how he looks at home. >> and add stuffeng? >> we want to show everyone right here if you guys, our reveal. >> beautiful. >> this is the one dan did not do. >> yes. >> this is amazing. >> and it's easy. >> everything at home and you're done. >> get everyone involvlv. the whole mily. now we have one more, i don't want to miss you, tanya. >> tanya. >> i was told this. so tanya stewart. now she posted aideo on facebook that went viral and it's been viewed 17 million times. this is called thinking outside

of the box. show ginger and amy -- >> how many types have you lost half of your box. i'll show you how to turn it into one box. take it,oal it to increase it. you'll turn and fold it and crease it again. you're going to take -- absolutely and take your scissors, at the creases and you're going to make a slit on each side -- >> you're turning it into a new box. >> then you're going to do the -- there you go. you're going to bend them in. >> nice. >> you're going to fold. >> yeah. >> all right. >> one box. >> amy, you did it. >> you did it. >> that is a great one. thank you, tanya. [ cheers and applause ] >> for more go to

and coming up bruce willis

willis is one of the biggest action stars of all time now making his broadway debut in stephen king's " "sery" taken hostage byy his greatest fan laurie metcalf. juju chang sat down with the star. >> reporter: we saw him must many his way through five "die-hard" blockbusters so bedridden in "misery" may seem surprising by a return to his early acting days. theater flecking a different muscle? >> well -- yeah, there's no stopping. it's all live. >> reporter: live theater is a family business these days. oldest daughter rumer finished her broadway run in chicago after winning "dancing with the stars." >> rumer and val the champions. >> you shed a tear or two. >> yes, i did. >> mr. tough guy. >> i'm'mery proud of r. >> reporter: bruce also proud of his current lay based on the

stephen king novel about a crazed fan who takes a famous writer hostage after a car wreck and ultimately tortures him. >> what's the nickname for it. >> the "misery" go-round. here's annie's shrine. who is this, mr. man? >> handsome gu >> the latest book. >> this is awesome. >> you better start showing me a little more appreciation around here, mr. man. >> reporter: the movie that made looemgs of number one fans think twice before picking up a sledgehammer. >> i'm your number one fan. >> what goes through your mind as you're about to hobble him? >> don't miss. >> reporter: the psycho number one fan on stage, laurie metcalf who won a string of emmys as rosie tomboloann's brash little sister. >> my child has oreo breath. >> we've both been fortunate to work in theater and films and tv and as i'vegotten older i think sometimes i just choose projects based on who the person is that you want to work with.

>> so you didn't rewatch the movie? >> misery. >> kathy bates is iconic in it and it would just stick in my head. >> i wanted it to be our thing, you know, just our idea of trying to scare a thousand people. >> what's that? >> that is so -- >> how could this come in handy. >> it so gives me the chills to look at it. >> the hobbleizer. >> oh, my gosh. >> it's for the best. >> pretty please. >> can you feel the anxiety as the sledgehammer is about to erupt. >> they know that scene is coming. >> i get anxious about it knowing -- >> he doesn't like to look down at his own feet. >> i don't like to look down at my own feet. we look after each other. >> i'm your number one fan and trust me there ain't no number two. >> reporter: juju chang, abc news, new york.

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"good morning america" is brought to you by fitbit. find your fit. >> so if you've already seen "star wars" you may want to check out "in the heart of the sea." ron howard's epic movie tells the story that inspired "moby dick." abc's rachel smith caught up with the stars. >> it's the sweeping sea faring g epic tale.

"the essex" sunk by a whale in 1820. this true story was the inspiration for the novel "moby dick." >> top of the loft. take the helm. >> reporter: in "in the heart of the sea" stars chris hemsworth, benjamin walker and tom holland as "essex" crew members hunting for whale oil. seems like you had a bonding thing. >> we all starved together, didn't we? >> yeah, something about suffering that brings you close together. >> reporter: to convincingly play starving men adrift at sea for months they all went on a highly restricted diet. i'd love to know what the conversation was like in between takes on set. >> food. >> food, really. >> always. >> it gotot catty. there was a lot of like did you see ed had a cheeseburger last night. >> did he eat a piece of chocolate? >> yeah. >> prepare to abandon ship. >> we can't roll away home. >> reporter: bececse it was such an intense diet, did that help you get into character even more? >> i think like when you change your physique you're like embodying a new person so half

the job is done. >> as i live and breathe he's mine. >> i was? us fascinated by the story and why some men choose to defy all odds and push. >> these guys are going out for years on end on these voyages to get whale oil. are they ego driven, brave? >> i think a lot didn't have a choice. that was the industryynd it was like going off to war. this he didn't come back, some of them a lot of the time. >> and it was the only way to light the lamp in your house really so it's easy to be judgmental of them b b they were working with what they knew. >> do you guys have a greater respect for nature after this film? >> massively. >> oh, yes, especially the sea. >> oh, man, i'm not going back to sea any time soon. >> we were cursed. >> reporter: for "good morning america," rachel smith, abc news, new york. >> and "in the heart of the sea" is in theaters right now. >> guess what, we have some more

baby news before we go. yes, we'd like to welcome a new addition to the "gma" family. look at that. our correspondent tom llamas and her wife has a new baby girl, juliette elizabeth. congratulations, ginger. good luck.ier wife has a new baby girl, juliette elizabeth. congratulations, ginger. good luck.ser wife has a new baby girl, juliette elizabeth. congratulations, ginger. good luck.r wife has a new baby girl, juliette elizabeth. congratulations, ginger. good luck. wife has a new baby girl, juliette elizabeth.are stumping through iowa today and this weekend following the e nal 2015 gop debate, earlier this week. senator marco rubio will be talking to voters in dubuque following stops in other cities yesterday. he spoke at a town hall in muscatine. today, rubio will hold a town hallllt giese sheet metal in dubuque. that will be at 12:45 this afternoon. carly fiorina will also be

dubuque today. she has two other stops planned, as well. fiorina will start in clinton at 11 this morning. then she will go to dubuque. fiorina's town hall there starts at 2 o'clock this afternoon. finally, she finishes off her day with a christmas reception davenport at 5 this evening. republican presidential frontrunner donald trump will be coming to cedar rapids tomorrow. he plans to hold an event at the veterans memorial coliseumt 2 o'clock. in a recent abc news/ washington post poll, trump is leading the other 13 gop candidates at 38 percent support. and now here's your first alert forecast. plan on another windy day in the area with highs around 30 degrees in many spots.

along this cold front, a passing snow shower may occur, mainly along g d north of a waterloo-maquoketa line. while no major issues are anticipated, a brief reduction in visibility could occur in any snow shower . we'll see our coldest night of december so far tonight, with lows in the mid-teens. plan on a nice saturday with highs back in the mid-30s. mid-upper 40s are still on track for sunday with a chance of rain by evening. have a great weekend! you're watching kcrg-tv9. now,