this is "nightline." >> tonight, selma blair's brave battle. >> there were times when i couldn't take it, and i was really struggling with how am i going to get by in life. >> the actress revealing her struggle with multiple sclerosis to our robin roberts. her triumphant return to the spotlight, and what she wants the world to know. plus, the crisis in venezuela, riots in the street, hunger and free fall and face-to-face with a defiant dick ta tater and the queen of pop surprises one couple with "king of my heart."

♪ [cheers and applause] "nightline" will be right back.

selma blair, the interview, here's robin roberts. >> how are you doing? >> i am doing very well. i am very happy to see you, being able to, you know, just

put out what being in the middle of an aggressive forge of multiple sclerosis is like. >> reporter: selma blair has a message for the world. multiple sclerosis may have affected her voice but not the power of her words. >> when i first got m.s. i had no idea what it was or how it would affect me, and so my speech, as you'll notice is, i have spas moddic disphone yeah right now. it is interesting to put it out there, to be here to say this is what my particular case looks like right now. and it could be very different in a year, for the better. >> reporter: the actress, speaking for the first time about the disease she's been battling for years. ? it's called a snowflake disease because it's different filike a fingerprint for everyone. >> reporter: she made an emotional return to the red carpet, for the first time since

going public with her diagnosis, attending the oscar party for vanity fair along with her cane. >> it took so much time. >> reporter: her tears of happiness earning cheers from the press line. the actress became a household name is movies like "legally blond" and "cruel intentions". >> sara michelle geller said i'm really helping to change people's lives. i can't bend my left leg for well. >> reporter: for years her illness was a mystery, the 46-year-old suffering troubling symptoms. >> i was drinking. i was in pain. i wasn't always drinking. but there were times when i couldn't take, and i was really struggling with how am i going to get by in life and not taken seriously by doctors.

single mother. you're exhausted. financial burden, blah, blah, blah. premenopausal. nobody said get an mri, check it out. rememb . >> reporter: you would suggest that and they would. >> yeah, and i got to a point where i said i need to go to work and stay awake. i dropped my son off at school and before i got home i had to pull over and take a nap. and i was ashamed, and i was doing the best i could. and i was a great mother, but it was killing me. >> reporter: m.s. is a chronic, unpredictable unpredictable disease and can cause problem with vision, balance and muscle control. before she was diagnosed, selma sought out the help of fellow actor michael j. fox who has lived with parkinson's for nearly 30 years. >> i reached out to him and dm d

him and said i don't know who to tell, but i'm dropping things. i'm doing strange things. i have a tremor. my pinky won't stop moving. my leg, i can't feel, it's bouncing. and i said i'm sorry if this is inappropriate. i don't know who to turn to. and i don't know him. it was because he was a celebrity, an actor that came out and still talks about it. he got in touch with me, and we began a conversation. and my m.s. hits in spots that make at that very plus u plus, i was like, i have michael j. fox's e-mail now. >> reporter: wouldn't it be funny if i fell in? it was a fall in front of a doctor that lead to her diagnosis last august. when you were first diagnosed what went through your mind? >> i cried. i had tears. they weren't tears of panic. they were tears of knowing i now

had to give in to a body that had loss of control. and there was some relief in that. because ever since my son was born i was in an m.s. flare up and didn't know. and i was giving it everything to seem normal. i wasn't totally worried, but i did have about ten minutes of crying. and then immediately got on the phone with my manager, because i had to be in atlanta the next day. ly i had to finish a movie. >> reporter: it's at least two to three times more common in women than men. how importadifficult was it to with your son? >> not at all. but he had already seen that i was falling and doing things and i was always laughing and he'd imitate me. and i'd be that's fine but don't

do that out of the house, because people will think you're a jerk. and i did tell him i had multiple sclerosis, and he almost cried and said will it kill you? and i said no. we never know what kills us, arthur, but this is not the doctor telling me i'm dying. and he was like, oh, okay, and that was it. >> reporter: for selma, her diagnosis has also given her a new mission. >> if i can help anyone or help anyone be more empathetic to someone that might seem like me or a lot worse, god forbid than, you know, that's the least i can do right now. >> adaptive clothing for people with disabilities. >> i think people need the confidence to not feel invisible once you have an illness. >> reporter: beautiful. >> that is kind of where my mind-set is, you know. >> reporter: and she's still an actress, people.

>> i'm still an actress. mama's still got to bring home the bacon. i'm a single mom. >> reporter: and selma is still working. part of an upcoming sci-fi drama series called "another life." >> what compelled me to come forward was authentic gratitude for all the people who were holding my secret at netflix and on the movie after. when it's a huge thing fire people wi for people with disabilities minor or major, that you can still find a way, hopefully if you persist, to still get to work. >> reporter: her message of perce percent vierns moving even the press. coppola snapped this saying she turned around, put her left hand in the air and paused four a second as she was determined to control her body.

i took pmy favorite shot and captured one of the most vulnerable human moments i have ever captured. what's your prognosis? >> the doctor said at the time he said 90% of my abilities back. so this is, this is to say let's meet again next year and see if i'm better. if i'm not and i can still have a conversation that's good enough. i was a little scared of talking and even my neurologist said no, this will bring a lot of awareness, because no one has the energy to talk when they're in flare up. but i do. because i love a camera. >> reporter: well, baby, you got a date. i'll see new a year. >> okay. i can't wait. >> and vanity fair's feeture is live on vanity fair.com.

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now to the escalating tension in venezuela where the people are rising up against their defiant dictator. nicolas maduro sat down with abc's tom llamas. >> reporter: you think the u.s. wants to invade

nicolas madiuro is the defiant and now disputed leader of venezuela, following in the footsteps of hugo chavez, gaining power i 2013. many consider him a dictator. he's largely responsible for his country's economic collapse. the reason why americans have sent tons of aid and maduro said that is part of a political ploy. ploy. in a rare interview, maduro sat down with abc news in the presidential palace. we at abc news have been covering venezuela for years. we have seen people eating out of the trash in caracas, they say are you to blame.

yet, a stream of humanity has flood out of venezuela, with millions leaving for neighboring countries. on the surface, the streets of caracas may be bustling. but stop anyone and they will tell you of a loved one or neighbor planning to leave. you think maduro is destroying your country? >> he already did destroy the country. he already did it. >> reporter: if you had an opportunity to speak to president maduro, what would you tell him? >> go away right now. go away right now. >> reporter: those against maduro clash violently with the military. they support political newcomer juan guaido, guaido, who is backed by the united states and more than 50 other countries

partnered with the u.s. to send humanitarian aid trucks into venezuela this past weekend. but some were set ablaze. why is that a victory for you when people in your country are starving and need medical supplies? at least four people died, and hundreds of others were injured in that bloody clash while maduro danced on state tv. as venezuelans were clashing with the national guard, aid trucks were set on fire, you were salsa dancing on tv, why? why?

maduro telling me this isn't about hunger and human rights but oil and money. for venezuelan residents the protests have become deeply personal. personal. the 49-year-old retired teacher and her family once enjoyed a

middle class lifestyle but in the last three years, her family has started to feel the impact. the memory of the life they once had now a painful reminder. for her and many venezuelans, juan guaido provides a sliver of hope in his defiance of maduro's government. maduro's brutal tactics just one of the reasons why he's still in power. human rights groups point out that those who challenge him meet a dangerous end. why are people who protest you end up either dead or in jail? r in jail?

[ speaking in foreign language ] >> the president of the united states, donald j. trump. >> reporter: the united states imposing fresh sanctions on venezuela over the foreign humanitarian aid this weekend. and in a war of words, the trump administration gave opposition leader guaido their full support. do you fear president trump? ident trump? as the struggle for power

between maduro and guy doutoe continues to play out, so many struggle to stay alive. [ speaking in foreign language ] the little food they have comes from the government once a month. she says some days begging is the only way she can feed her children. her children.

with empty shelves and empty stomachs, all this family has are dreams. dreams of a better future. >> and our thanks to abc's tom llamas in venezuela for us. next mehere, the love story taylor swift is singing for. s singing for. it's absolute con in 30,000 precision parts. or it isn't. it's inspected by mercedes-benz factory-trained technicians. or it isn't. it's backed by an unlimited mileage warranty, or it isn't. for those who never settle, it's either mercedes-benz certified pre-owned,

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♪ ♪ like tryin' on ♪ finally, tonight, it's a proposal and taylor swift just said yes. ? a >> and if you'd give a warm welcome to my friend taylor. >> the singer dropping in on an

engagement party with a special serenade. ♪ >> alex gold schmitt arranged it for his fiance, swift played at that party in l.a. he e-mailed to thank her for writing the song and she reached out wanting to be part of the celebration. [cheers and applause] pretty cool. we want to thank you for watching "nightline" tonight. for full episodes we propose you