this is "nightline." >> tonight, anna nicole smith. the blond bombshell who rocketed into pop culture and reality tv fame. ten years after her death, the daughter she never knew. growing up far from the spotlight, what her father's saying about the anna nicole only he knew. >> it was almost like a split personality. when the camera was going, she was a whole different thing. plus a total mind dunk. shaquille o'neal is used to making big-time jams. but now he's doing it with no hands. >> i'm about to get into ninja mode on you. >> he's going full ninja on me! >> we're mastering the art of focus. like athletes simone biles and serena williams. can i beat shaq with the ultimate dunk?

"newsies." the cult classic about a ragtag group of newsboys who seize the day. ♪ time to seize the day >> rebelling against their corporate masters, making a return to the big screen. but first the "nightline 5." >> to do the best for your pet, you should know more about the food you choose. with beyond you have a natural pet food that goes beyond telling ingredients to showing where they come from. beyond assuming the source is safe to knowing it is. beyond asking for trust to earning it. because honestly, our pets deserve it. beyond. natural pet food. >> number one in just 60 seconds.

good evening. thanks for joining us. tonight we're meeting the daughter of anna nicole smith, dannielynn burkhead, now 10. she is the spitting image of her famous mother, a "playboy" model who married an 89-year-old billionaire whose life ended tragically with a prescription drug overdose. a rare look at the private side and the legacy of a woman who once captivated so many. here's abc's deborah roberts. >> reporter: she was the original reality celebrity. >> i'm not going to comment on that. >> reporter: famous for being famous. married to an aging oil tycoon who won and lost a fortune and starred in one unforgettable reality show. this week marks ten years since the larger than life platinum blond known as anna nicole smith -- >> at 2:49 this afternoon, anna nicole smith had died. >> reporter: of an accidental drug overdose in a florida hotel

room. she was just 39 years old. tonight, a rare glimpse of the little girl anna nicole left behind and her father, larry burkhead. how much is she like her mom? >> i would say she is fearless like her mom. she can work me like her mom could work people. she gets what she wants. i could stand right next to my daughter and we could look like twins, and the first thing they'll say is, "anna nicole, spitting image of the mother." >> reporter: burkhead is raising his 10-year-old outside louisville, kentucky, far from the hollywood glare her mother adored. dannielynn's the classic fifth grader, obsessed with snapchat. >> wow, so beautiful. >> reporter: fast food. >> what's your favorite? >> french fries. >> reporter: dreams of travel. >> i want to go to washington, d.c. so bad. i want to see all the monuments. >> reporter: unlike her mom, dannielynn is shy. though she did appear once in a kid's guess campaign as a way to share something special with her

mother, larry says. >> i've had companies call and ask her to model, and the answer is no. she doesn't show any interest. she wants to be a kid. >> reporter: a kid without the wealth or trappings of her mom's celebrity. >> people think she's got millions and millions of dollars. one of her friends came up to her and said, i saw on youtube you're one of the richest kids in the the world. >> what does she say? >> she asked me where the money was. i said, i'm still looking for it. >> how do you earn a living? >> photography. also work in real estate and i flip houses. >> reporter: it's a wonderfully normal life for the daughter of the flamboyant platinum blond whose life took one dramatic turn after another. in 2000 the budding star tells abc her first marriage collapsed after a year, leaving her broke and alone to raise her baby boy. she made her way to houston where she stumbled into strip tease dancing. >> the day that i went on to dance the first time, i ran out

because i was so horrified and so ashamed of myself. but i looked out and saw all this money. and i was like, wow. it was like $50. like, whoa. $50? back then, that was a lot of money for me. >> reporter: one day she finds love on the job when 86-year-old oil baron jay howard marshall comes to the club. >> he got a little twinkle in his eyes. he asked me to dance for him. and i did. >> reporter: three years later, she marries the tycoon, 60 years her senior. only after she gets a shot at fame with an offer from "playboy." >> anna nicole stood out because of her face. she had that look. she was kind of almost the embodiment of a bombshell, from marilyn monroe. that was her appeal. >> reporter: a gig modeling for guess jeans propels her to superstardom.

but her lavish lifestyle comes to an end after her husband dies after 14 months of marriage with no mention of anna in his will. >> he always promised me, once we're married, half of everything is mine. that was his promise to me. >> reporter: in the years ahead, the battle for marshall's millions would take the former stripper all the way to the steps of the supreme court. but ultimately she'd never see a penny of her late husband's money. without those millions, she finds a new way to make money, reality tv. ♪ anna anna anna nicole the show's an instant smash. >> i like fast men, i like fast cars, i like fast food. >> reporter: comedic moments aside, the show pulls back the curtain on a life that appears out of control. >> i've been up since 4:00 a.m. >> reporter: anna's slurred voice and strange behavior leading to rumors of substance

abuse. >> she had prescription medication? >> she had prescription medication. she had pain from her breast enhancement surgery, from her back, all this stuff she's getting treated for. did she take it like she was supposed to? no. >> reporter: it's during filming anna nicole meets photographer larry burkhead. >> two thumbs up. >> at kentucky's annual barnstable brown derby party. through his lens he's not seeing the train wreck everybody else is. >> the thing about anna, it was almost a split personality. when the camera was going, she was a whole different thing. that was me to me an act than it was the real person she was. >> why did you stay in the midst of that circus-like atmosphere? >> i packed a couple of times to go. and she was crying and she said, if you go and pack, you're going to be feeling really stupid, because, and she took my hand and put it on her stomach. she said, because we're going to have a baby. >> reporter: he says after a fight anna runs off to the bahamas and gives birth to

daughter dannielynn. then an unspeakable tragedy. just three days after dannielynn's birth, anna nicole's beloved son daniel dies at age 20 of an accidental overdose while visiting his new baby sister. >> i knew anna would be in no shape on her own after losing daniel, close as they were, to take care of my daughter. >> reporter: but proving that dannielynn's his daughter will be a messy public battle with anna nicole's lawyer friend also claiming he's the father. in the midst of that legal controversy -- >> if you could please respond to the hard rock -- >> reporter: just after the birth of her daughter and reeling from the death of her son -- >> she's not breathing and she's not responsive. she's actually anna nicole smith. >> reporter: anna nicole smith is found dead in a south florida hotel. two months later, a dna test proved burkhead's paternity. dannielynn, anna nicole's legacy, entrusted to him. does she know how her mother

died and why her mother died? >> the way i've told dannielynn in the past is that, your mom took some medicines and she might have not taken them correctly or the right way. and the doctors couldn't help her, and they tried. >> reporter: through her artwork dannielynn expresses a connection with the mother she's never known. the 10-year-old's words about her drawing brings her dad to tears. >> i'll let you read it, i can't read it. >> ever since my mother's death, a friend of hers said she would send me pretty butterflies so butterflies chase me everywhere and i let the butterfly come out of my pencil and fly on my paper with its wings of the love. beautiful. so this is the way she thinks of her mother. being here with her through beautiful butterflies. >> it's her dealing with it her own way, her own pace. it takes a strong little girl to write something like that. >> reporter: for "nightline" i'm deborah roberts in louisville,

kentucky. up next, shaquille o'neal and i have cookies on the brain. our totally mental slam dunk competition. and later -- ♪ look at me >> "newsies" is coming back to the big screen. can the king of new york conquer of box office? yeah. keep breathing. keep breathing. im breating, let's go. you make it protective. can you go a little faster? just trying to be safe. you make it hard working. hey guys. you make it so everyone's happy. going further to make life better. that's ford. and that's how you become america's best-selling brand.

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turns out this was a different slam dunk contest, using technology that harnesses the power of brain waves. did i mention it involves cookies? >> i'm about to get into ninja mode. >> he's going full ninja on me! >> reporter: i'm going head to head with shaquille o'neal. >> put your right hand up. >> yes, sir. >> reporter: in a battle that's not about brawn -- >> he's intimidating me. >> reporter: but all about the power of our brains. he's challenging me to a dunk-off. an oreo dunk-off. so how many oreos have you eaten today? >> 197. >> reporter: there's a catch. no hands allowed. these cookies only get dunked if we can do it with our minds. literally using brain waves and a lot of concentration. shaq is no stranger to the dunk. >> the no-look shot. >> reporter: i've got my own basketball skills. using my powers of focus to make this shot with the guys of "dude perfect."

of course, it only took me 36 tries. but on this day we're aiming for a different target. we came to see shaq at new york's chelsea market, birthplace of the oreo, to talk about this emerging technology that harnesses mind power. >> i feel like we're on hallowed ground. >> we are on hallowed ground. >> how's your dunk ratio here? >> i'm an old school dunker. bite, boom, finish it off. >> reporter: what started off as a light-hearted exchange quickly turned into a deeper, more candid conversation about mental toughness. >> step back and talk to me a little bit about slam dunking and any kind of technique that involves concentration. >> well, you have to have supreme focus at anything in life. business, relationships, children. most of the time i have supreme focus. especially in my championship years. >> reporter: it's that focus, his mental fortitude, to which he credits his success. >> shaquille o'neal! >> reporter: 15 all-star games. four championships.

three finals mvp awards. the list goes on and on. not to mention backboard-breaking dunks. he was a hall of famer in almost every respect. except for his horrible free throws. over his career, he barely made half his attempts. a lot of people take shots at you for your free throw record. >> i don't know why i shot 100%. >> did you? >> i never missed. you ever seen me miss a free throw? >> no, sir, i never did. can't say that i -- no. >> i don't know why they try to take shots. i was told, you won't ever be anything. imagine being 6'9" and not being picked because you can't play. after everybody would leave i would just practice, i would just dream. next thing you know, i created a character called shaq that turned out to be one of the best basketball players in the world. >> reporter: call it drive. call it being in the zone. that supreme focus is something elite athletes all seem to

share. in this master class video, tennis legend serena williams tries to explain it. >> my dad always said, tennis is 70% mental. i've won most of my matches, probably all of my grand slams, because of upstairs. not anything else. >> reporter: nfl legend peyton manning also says football is a mental game. >> i think as a quarterback, i think it's your job to prepare, to have an appreciation and respect for the cerebral part of the game. >> reporter: and simone biles, perhaps the greatest gymnast of all-time, says she goes totally into the zone. >> i hear the crowd cheering and most of the time like your body's on auto pilot. so sometimes even after i do a floor routine, i'm like, did i really just do that? >> reporter: shaq knows greatness when he sees it. he ran into biles at the super bowl. the five-time gold medallist standing tall at 4'8". >> what's fascinating to me is the simone biles shot with you

that went viral. it was such a great reminder that size doesn't matter when it comes to excellence. >> i'm definitely a fan. know who she is. the greatest thing, i asked her for the picture, she didn't ask me. i wanted the picture with her. she was just so remarkable. they tried to get a little controversy through the olympics. but just supreme focus, was still able to win. >> reporter: right now shaq's harnessing his mental muscle to sink a different shot. >> we're introducing hands-free dunking. >> it feels space age but this is important technology. >> it is modern technology. it's fun. >> when shaquille o'neal is trying to move that oreo, what's actually happening is that device is detecting a change in brain waves and interpreting that as meaning, move the oreo. >> reporter: we wanted to know more. we spoke to neurologist dr. lara markhughes, specializing in epileptic surgery at mt. sinai. she says this technology uses eeg to measure the brain's electric activity. >> this machine records somebody's brain waves in

realtime. this is happening everywhere in every field. we're beginning to be able to use signal from the eeg to tell a fake arm or fake leg what to do. >> reporter: she predicts much of our world in the future will be controlled by our brains. >> regular people will use eeg data to communicate with the world. >> reporter: but for now, all i'm thinking about is how i'm going to beat shaq. >> this is where i finish you off right here. >> oh, geez! >> reporter: in the end, yes, i wasn't thinking hard enough. >> oh, man! i have been outdone by shaq. >> reporter: that's the way the cookie crumbles. up next -- ♪ now it's time to seize the day ♪ >> we seize the day with the cast of "newsies." why this cult classic's political message is still relevant.

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chance to party like it's 1899. ♪ look at me >> reporter: "newsies." an unlikely musical production about determined paper boys launching a strike against titans of industry. >> we strike! >> reporter: the tony award-winning show has entertained 2.5 million fans on broadway and across north america for years. based on a true story, you may recall the 1992 christian bale film version. >> what do you say? >> yes! >> reporter: our parent company, disney, is bringing their cult classic back to the big screen in a new 2017 movie version filmed before a live studio audience. >> the story of kids coming together and overthrowing the adults. >> reporter: jack kelly, played by jeremy jordan, leads the revolution. >> pulitzer and hirsch thing we're nothing. are we nothing? no! >> reporter: cara lindsay plays katherine. >> are you following me?

>> the only thing i'm following is a story. >> reporter: chasing a wig story. >> she's stepping into very dangerous territory. she's deciding to report on the newsboys strike. in 1889 that's very risky for a young female. >> reporter: a story exposing harsh child labor practices in new york city at the turn of the century. >> i think my favorite thing about this show is the political activist aspect of it. the fact that it's young kids who are really standing up. >> reporter: for the actors on stage, bringing the show to the masses in cinema is an opportunity to reach a wider audience without breaking the bank. >> there are people all over the country that just can't afford to pay money for these incredible theater seats. >> reporter: a story of social change and protest highlighted with high-energy show tunes.

>> our disney magic is something a little bit different. i think it's a soulful experience. it's a human experience. ♪ >> and "newsies" is in cinemas worldwide february 16th, 18th, 22nd. thanks for watching abc news. as always we're online at abcnews.com and our "nightline" facebook page. good night, america, have a great weekend.

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