foundation mixed in. >> wow that's a lot. we'll talk to you good morning, america. on this wednesday morning, the brewing battle over mask guidelines across the country. texas bans mandates for government properties including public schools sparking outrage. governors expressing concern over those new cdc guidelines as more businesses roll back their rules. hyatt becoming the first hotel chain to lift mask requirements for vaccinated guests. all this, as there are still risks for even those who are fully vaccinated. new calls this morning to end the fighting in the middle east. president biden privately taking a tougher tone with the israeli prime minister as the violent clashes continue. we are live in the region again this morning. investigation intensifies. the new york attorney general

now joins the criminal probe into the trump organization investigating what a spokesman calls potential crimes. no charges. fallout from the investigation into the fatal police shooting of andrew brown jr. protesters taking to the streets in north carolina, the district attorney calling the shooting justified, playing some of the body camera footage. what the brown family's attorney is saying this morning. brazen kidnapping attempt. the terrifying moments caught on camera, an 11-year-old girl kicking and punching, fighting off an attacker who was armed with a knife. how deputies tracked down the suspect. abc news exclusionive. the hero teacher who stopped the school shooting in idaho disarming a sixth grade girl. >> i just looked at her and said he needs to put you in handcuffs. >> she's speaking out for the first time only on "gma" this morning.

travel warning. the new alert about rental scams. the homes you see on social media that aren't really for rent. what you can do to avoid getting ripped off. and celebrating the heartbreak kid. charles grodin, known for his roles in "beethoven," "the great muppet caper" and "midnight run." >> these things go down. these things -- >> the actor, writer and comedian passed away at 86. tributes pouring in this morning. and we certainly do say good morning, america. we appreciate you being with us on this busy wednesday morning. >> and we begin with the latest on the covid crisis. the u.s. seeing a possible turning point with 16 states reporting no deaths on monday as officials say rates of new cases and hospital admissions at their lowest since the pandemic began. >> and breaking right now, europe will soon be open to vaccinated americans, but there is more fallout over the new cdc guidance on masks. texas governor greg abbott is

blocking local mask mandates. that includes public schools, lot of parents raising questions. dr. richard besser will join us in a moment. marcus moore is in houston. good morning, marcus. >> reporter: good morning. this is a huge development here in texas and one that's brought about a swift reaction, particularly among those connected to elementary schools like the one, because most of those kids have not been vaccinated. this morning, a major battle over masks, texas governor greg abbott issuing an executive order banning mask mandates for government properties across the state including public schools starting may 21st any official who tries to mandate masks even for unvaccinated residents could face a $1,000 fine. public schools have until june 4th to end their mask mandates. houston's mayor calling the executive order a, quote, overreach already pushing back on the ban tweeting, if you are a city employee and you have not been fully vaccinated, you must wear your mask. >> you don't run the city of

houston and the city employees and the city facilities. the mayor does. >> reporter: teachers outraged. >> the message that you're sending to our educators is that we don't care about protecting your life. >> reporter: the american academy of pediatr protect children from covid-19 especially those under age 12 who are not yet eligible for the vaccine. this as governors share their concerns with the white house expressing their confusion about the new cdc guidelines in a private call with the biden administration. >> we had to scramble and we didn't really have the same uniformity of message that i think we've had up until now. >> reporter: some pointing to the possibility of another covid outbreak with more than 60% of americans still not fully vaccinated including children and more companies rule back their rules. hyatt becoming the first hotel megachain to lift mask requirements for vaccinated guests. but there are still risks for those who are fully vaccinated,

especially if they are immunocompromised. the vaccine may not be as effective for them. 39-year-old maria hoffman from charleston, south carolina, is fully vaccinated, but as a kidney transplant patient, she is continuing to practice social distancing and wear a mask. >> i don't look like i had a kids knee transplant. if you walked by me down the street you're never going to know i had a kidney transplant but i'm high risk. you still need to act like the person next to you has something that you don't know about. >> reporter: some hope a step toward returning to normal. >> marcus, thank you. stay dry. for more we are joined by dr. richard besser, former acting director of the cdc and ceo of the robert wood johnson foundation. okay, rich, you heard the reporting about the governor of texas not going to enforce a mask mandate including in public schools. this as we know, kids under the age of 12 not even eligible for

the vaccines. as a pediatrician as well, rich, what is your take on this, rich? >> yeah, you know, robin, i think what it says to me is there are a lot of states in america where there's major pushback with the government telling you you have to do something. but that doesn't mean that you can change your behavior and that it's safe. so what i hope, even in states where governments are saying there's no longer a mandate, people recognize that to keep children safe you need to continue to wear masks indoors. i expect the cdc will be revisiting their school guidance for the fall, but until then, i would encourage everyone whether it's required or not to follow that guidance and make sure that children are wearing their masks. >> but because you know there's a lot of concern. you talk with parents all the time and their kids are unvaccinated and to see that the mandates are dropping, a lot of states, a lot of businesses not requiring masks indoors, what do you say to parents?

>> well, a couple things, one is that if your child is 12 or older, i highly recommend vaccination. it's safe, it's effective and it can help protect your children. for younger children, i would say continue to follow the guidance but a couple of things to recognize. thankfully the younger you are, the less likely it is to have severe disease, to be hospitalized and thankfully to die and in every state across the country the numbers are going down. so if that continues, i would expect over time that we are going to see loosening of the requirements and the rstrictions in people's lives because it will become increasingly safe to do so, but we have to continue to keep our eyes on what's going on overseas because as -- what india is showing to us as variants spring up we coud become at risk again in the united states so we have to pay close attention. >> we do have to play close attention. i want to talk more about it. you talk about the cdc guidelines. there could be changes yet

again. there's so much confusion. can you help us navigate because as we see, thankfully, the number of covid deaths and hospitalizations are on the decline, and we want to keep moving in that direction. so what do we do so we don't lose that type of progress that we're seeing? >> yeah, i mean, one of the hardest things to deal with in a pandemic is the fact that things are uncertain and no guidance is ever final so as you learn more, as the situation changes, you adjust and you adapt and you change guidance and that's confusing and in this period right now where there's a lot of change, thankfully in the united states it's positive change with declining cases and deaths and hospitalizations, we're going to see a lot of different things taking place in different states and that's going to be confusing but hopefully we'll learn from that and hopefully we'll continue on the trajectory we're on right now where cases are going down, people are getting back to their lives and there's a sense of optimism. >> that's the direction we want

to continue. dr. richard besser, always good to have you back here with us on "good morning america." you take care. >> great to see you, robin. >> all right. michael. >> thank you, robin. now to the crisis in the middle east. israel carrying out more attacks on gaza as palestinians across the region stage a general strike in protest. with calls for a cease-fire intensifying this is also shaping up as a test for the biden administration. chief white house correspondent cecilia vega is covering this from washington and matt gutman is on the ground in israel. hey, matt. >> reporter: hey, michael. overnight, hamas offering a truce under two conditions. one, israel stop all incursions into the al aqsa mosque here in jerusalem and the other that it doesn not evict more than two dozen families from the neighborhood you see right behind me. now, this checkpoint last night, the site of ferocious clashes between israeli forces and palestinian protesters, the es and what they call as, stun n skunk water at the protesters here.

now, overnight, hamas also continuing to lob rockets into israel. israel with a massive air sortie, more than 50 warplanes striking gaza taking down buildings, israel saying it's trying to target hamas leadership. now, officials in gaza are telling us that the infrastructure there has been crippled. water pipes, sewage pipes destroyed. there's almost no electricity and they are critically short of fuel and there are now nearly 60,000 palestinians who are homeless which is intensifying calls for a cease-fire here, michael. >> matt, all right. cecilia, the president is ramping up pressure behind the scenes. >> reporter: one official at the white house told me the focus for this administration remains quiet and intensive diplomacy but privately the president is ramping up the pressure. more details about the phone call he had with benjamin netanyahu. sources are saying biden took a tougher tone conveying to israel that the u.s. as an ally can only provide diplomatic cover for so much longer given those

growing calls for an immediate cease-fire from the international community, from democrats on capitol hill. now, i was traveling with the president when he was in michigan yesterday. you can see him. he was on the tarmac there talking with congresswomen including rashida tlaib. the first palestinian american to serve in the house. we're told she faced him to do more, but despite this push from the left, in his own party, the president is not calling, michael, for an immediate cease-fire, he says the focus needs to remain this quiet behind-the-scenes diplomacy we're seeing. >> a lot of eyes on the crisis, thank you so much. breaking news overnight. in the legal jeopardy pacing former president trump. the new york attorney general joined the criminal investigation into the trump organization. our chief washington correspondent jon karl has the latest. good morning, jon. >> reporter: good morning, george, and the latest reminder of the legal jeopardy facing the former president.

we learned overnight new york's two leading prosecutors have in veigat the trump general, which had already been investigating the trump organization for possible civil charges, announced the move saying, quote, we have informed the trump organization that our investigation into the organization is no longer purely civil in nature. we are now actively investigating the trump organization in a criminal capacity along with the manhattan d.a. the attorney general gave no indication, george, as to why the move was announced or what exactly they were investigating. but as you remember, it was the new york district attorney that had a long legal battle with donald trump and the trump organization that went all the way to the supreme court to get trump's taxes. they did get trump's taxes and other financial records, there's been no response yet from the former president, but he has called both of these investigations in the past a politically motivated witch-hunt and, of course, the manhattan

d.a. and the new york attorney general are both democrats. >> all signs that the pressure is increasing with those investigations. jon karl, thanks very much. robin. now to the fallout this morning from that announcement out of north carolina. no charges against the officer who shot and killed andrew brown jr. the district attorney calling the shooting justified. victor oquendo has the latest for us. >> reporter: overnight, protesters back on the streets of elizabeth city, north carolina. the protest ever since andrew brown jr. was shot and killed have been peaceful. the d.a. saying the shooting death of andrew brown jr. was justified. >> based upon my review of the facts of this case i have determined that the shooting of andrew brown on april 21st, 2021, was justified. >> reporter: brown was killed while deputies served a warrant for drug charges. although the long-awaited body camera video has not been made public, the d.a. played parts of it tuesday. you see heavily armed officers running toward brown's car as he

was behind the wheel. one deputy gripping the door handle when brown puts the car in reverse. the d.a. saying that's the deputy's arm making contact with the hood of the car. when the car comes to a stop brown is boxed in. his house behind him deputies surrounding the front. he ignores commands putting the car in drive. the d.a. said he hits that same deputy again and that's when they opened fire. >> stop, stop. >> reporter: brown driving through an open lot as officers continue shooting. when deputies catch up, brown had crashed into a tree and they called for help. brown's death certificate stating he died within minutes of a penetrating gunshot wound of the head. the d.a. finding brown used his car as a weapon. >> the law enforcement officers were duty bound to stand their ground. >> reportr: the family's attorneys say they are disappointed calling the actions of the officers criminally negligent. >> the fact is these officers shot a man in the back of the head and killed him. they fired into another person's

house, into their kitchen, they fired in the direction of their own officers, and they fired across a school zone during school hours. >> reporter: the entire interaction between andrew brown jr. and deputies just 44 seconds, the sheriff here saying that those deputies will not lose their jobs but will be disciplined and retrained. guys. >> all right, victor, thank you. michael. we're going to turn now to tonight's showdown between lebron james and steph curry. they met four times in the nba finals but this time it's under different circumstances. the nba champs facing off in a play-in game for the playoffs. t.j. holmes has a preview. good morning. >> steph versus lebron is a bona fide nba rivalry. we've seen them go at it plenty of times before but never the way we're about to see it tonight, that is because we are seeing a one-game scenario between steph and lebron, winner guaranteed a spot in the

playoffs. we've never seen it before because this is the first year the nba has ever done this play-in tournament where the bottom four teams in each conference have to battle it out for the last two spots in the playoffs. these are two of the best in the nba, so why are they at the bottom? both teams had injuries this year, were plagued by injuries, so they ended up in this bottom rung if you will so now -- we're used to seeing them in the championship, in the finals. to get to see them, please stay up and watch this game. >> they both ended the season on hot streaks. but lebron got injured in the last game, is he okay? >> come on. he's going to be fine. no excuses, he was out about a month and a half with a nasty injury and the nba is doing this now, this play-in scenario to build up excitement and for teams with a shorter season give them more of a chance to get in. implementing it full time. this will be a great night. >> got you excited. >> the game is at 10:00. i know y'all got bedtimes.

>> last night's were blow-outs. hopefully will be better tonight.>>xciting to see these this point in the postseason. >> you'll be tired tomorrow. won't you? >> i'm tired now. >> you did a great job but espn's malika andrews will break it down a little more to help people understand, but you did a great job. >> wow. you send me off to start my day. [ laughter ] >> no. >> that's kind of like saying good job, but -- >> but. >> can we talk about the wnba? >> yes. >> the nba is wrapping up and wnba just getting started and sabrina ionescu making history last night in liberty's big win overhe lynx, the point guard, get this, notched the first triple-double of her career. 24 points, 12 assists, 10 rebounds, t.j., 23 years old. she is the youngest player in the history of tnb do so and first ever for the liberty. this is only her sixth game. her sixth career game because her rookie year she was injured

a great deal so in six games -- >> making it look a little too easy. >> uh-huh, she's good. >> we'll be watching her. following a lot of other headlines including an attempted kidnapping in broad daylight. you see this 11-year-old girl fighting off the attacker. we'll tell you how the police tracked down the suspect. and that hero teacher who helped stop a school shooting telling her story for the first time. rob in for ginger, good morning, rob. >> good morning, robin. beautiful day here in the east but another rough day across parts of the south. texas, between san antonio and houston, seven to eight inches of rain, 66-mile-per-hour winds in katy, texas, and that rain is now heading across southeast texas. new severe thunderstorm watches and flash flood watches and that includes lake charles which had a lot of rain the last couple of days. time now for your rainy cities sponsored by amazon.

good morning, and welcome to a wind whipped wednesday. the winds are dangerous starting at 5:00 this evening through 5:00 tomorrow morning. that wind advisory in affect. so breezy the next couple days. cooler than average and warmer starting this weekend. mud to upper 50s along the coast into san francisco. 60s around the bay and a few 70s inland as temperatures are below average. tonight how about 40s out pseudo. my act weather seven day fo stay right there, everybody. we'll be right back. (groan, bleat) there once was a colt who was raised by goats. he strugedt first

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fleece vibes. if you can't afford your medicine, only at old navy, and old navy.com . starting today larger police presence in some neighborhoods hit hard by the pandemic. that includes mid market plaza and the tender loin in san francisco. mid market vibrancy and safely plan hopes to reduce violent crime and drug sales. along with the increased police presence the plan also includes community ambassadorsneing people with needed services. now with a look athe roads this morning. out of the east bay you're going to face slow traffic all the way down through berkley speeds tracking around 29-22 miles per hour. and the area the bay bridge toll plaza is just going to be our hot spot all morning long.

metering lights came on at 6:12 also issued a high wind advisory for the bay bridge and busy traveling westbound. thank you meteorologist mike has a ♪ look... if your wireless carrier was a guy,

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if you look right now around san francisco, that's those winds gusting more than 30 miles per hour for several hours now and they will continue to do that in fact gusts up to 50 miles per hour everywhere possible except for the east bay and santa clara valley from 5:00 this evening and 5:00 tomorrow. that's going to mean choppy water if you're taking a ferry and some nasty cross winds on our bridges. mike thank you. coming up on abc news exclusive the hero teacher who stopped a school shooting in idaho speaking only with good morning america.

another update in about 30 minutes you can always check us at abc 7 news got come see you soon.

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so every touch will protect like the first. pampers take this back? >> what, are you nuts? we got george stephanopoulos' pizza. >> babes, who is george snuffleupagus? >> that's big bird's friend. back here on "gma," that's rachel, monica and phoebes. all starstruck by our very own george stephanopoulos. that was just four episodes into the series. >> feels like yesterday. >> i'm starstruck, george. >> i know, really. for the long-awaited reunion of "friends." >> are you blushing? >> of course, i am, yes. >> george is blushing. >> we didn't even get to the part where they described

certain parts of your anatomy. >> they said he has a cute butt. >> oh, yeah, that part. >> i can't hear anything right now. [ laughter ] >> don't worry, we got plenty of time coming up in our next hour. how about some news, guys. talk about the headlines. including that battle over the new cdc mask guidelines. texas governor greg abbott blocked local mask mandates including public schools and a lot are raising questions. breaking news, europe soon be opn to vaccinated americans. more on that in our next hour. the house passed a bill to address the rise in hate crimes and violence against asian-americans during the pandemic and expand efforts of reporting hate crimes more accessible at the local and state levels. it goes to president biden next. also right now, spencer turnbull pitching mlb's fifth no-hitter this season after the detroit tigers blanked the seattle mariners on tuesday night, 5-0. turnbull struck out nine batters and walked two all while picking up his third win of the season.

and we have a lot more ahead including our exclusive with that hero teacher who helped stop a school shooting disarming the shooter, a sixth grade girl, and the new alert about a vacation rental scam that is coming up. >> right now a look at that terrifying kidnapping attempt caught on camera. a man tried to abduct an 11-year-old girl who managed to fight him off. he is in custody. janai norman has the details. good morning, janai. >> reporter: george, good morning. terrifying is absolutely right. in the video you see that it looks like the suspect drove by once and spotted the little girl as she waited for the school bus along a fairly busy road, he then drives back around and that's when according to police got out of his van and tried to abduct that 11-year-old girl. this morning, a community on edge after the brazen attempted abduction of an 11-year-old girl at a florida bus stop all caught justefore 7:00 a.m. this white minivan seen approachinghe young giting anehea man o police s w

her dragging her toward the van. >> she could tell something is wrong because he gets out and runs straight towards her. she's able to get up and face him. >> reporter: the girl kicking and punching successfully fighting off the attacker identified overnight as jared stanga who officials say has a criminal history including sexual offenses. this morning, the sheriff chip simmons praising that young victim. >> 11-year-old girl who is my hero, by the way. she fought. she fought. she survived it. >> reporter: the sheriff says within moments a massive dragnet was launched. more than 50 deputies going door to door looking for the suspect and blasting these images of his vehicle with a noticeable chrome bumper. according to investigators, when deputies located the suspect hours later, he had attempted to paint that van but still allegedly had st

his arm from his intended target's blue toy slime. and when we talk about how quickly a child can be taken, this whole ordeal unfolded in less than 15 seconds but you just heard the police official there calling that little girl a hero. she wasn't going without a fight. this morning, she's okay and that suspect is in custody, george. >> thank goodness for that. janai, thanks very much. michael. now to the hero teacher who disarmed a sixth grader after the girl opened fire inside her idaho school. this morning, that teacher speaking out for the first time. amy joins us with the story. good morning, amy. >> yes, it is every teacher's nightmare hearing gunshots ring out inside their school. well, on this day, in idaho, one teacher confronting the danger instead of running the other way taking the girl's gun away likely saving so many lives in the process. this morning, the hero teacher who stopped a school shooting in idaho earlier this month now breaking her silence. >> it was a little girl and my brain couldn't quite grasp that and so i looked at her and i

just quietly said, are you the shooter, and she just watched me and i just walked up to her and i put my hand over her hand and i just slowly pulled the gun out of her hand and she allowed me to. she didn't fight. she didn't give it to me, but she didn't fight and then after i got the gun, i just pulled her into a hug because i thought this little girl has a mom somewhere that doesn't realize she's having a breakdown and she's hurting people. >> reporter: krista gneiting, a middle school math teacher, was preparing her students when she heard a gunshot. >> i got up and walked to my door and looked out and i just saw one person in the hallway quite a ways down and it was our janitor and i shut the door and i came back in and then i heard two more shots, and so i just told my students, we are going to leave, we're going to run to the high school. you're going to run hard. you're not going to look back and now is the time to get up and go. >> reporter: authorities say a sixth grade girl pulled a

handgun out of her backpack and started shooting inside rigby middle school. she then moved outside where she continued to fire. >> we heard one gunshot and then right after we heard another and we heard multiple kids screaming and my friends and i were freaking out and we were hiding in the corner of our classroom. >> reporter: three people were injured. two students and a custodian were rushed to the hospital. >> one of the boys just started talking about, ouch, i'm shot, and i just looked at him and i said are you shot? and he said, yes. >> reporter: moments after trying to help the boy, gneiting looked up and saw a gun. >> i knew when i saw that gun i had to get the gun. >> reporter: hugging the girl as she called 911 with her cell phone waiting and embracing until police arrived. >> after a little while the girl started talking to me and i could just really tell she was very unhappy and i just kept

hugging her and loving her and trying to let her know that we're going to get through this together, and so i looked at her and i just said, he needs to put you in handcuffs, and she didn't respond. she just let him and he was very gentle and very kind and he just went ahead and took her and put her in the police car. >> reporter: the girl going through an apparent crisis, gneiting calming her down when she and her students needed it most. >> i do believe that my being there helped her because she calmed down and she was able to just watch me and to stay calm and to let me approach her so i do know that my calmness definitely must have affected her. >> reporter: the prosecutor's office telling abc news the girl is still in custody and has been charged. gneiting hoping people can forgive her for what she has done. >> she's just barely starting in life and just needs some help. everybody makes mistakes. i think we need to make sure we get her help and get her back

into where she loves herself so that she can function in society. >> reporter: now, krista went on to say that she does want to meet with that young student once officials say it's okay. she hopes she gets the support she needs. a teacher. even her remarks there at the end about how she hopes that this young girl gets the help that she obviously needs. >> boy, so much empathy and so much courage at the same time. >> thank you, amy. coming up, with so many americans booking vacations, the new home rental scam and how you can protect yourself. becky worley will tell us all about it when we come back. all about it when we come back. ♪who can take a sunrise♪ ♪sprinkle it with dew♪ ♪cover it in choc'late and a miracle or two♪ ♪the candy man♪ ♪ ♪'cause he mixes it with love♪

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we are back now with "gma investigates" and that vacation rental warning. short-term rentals are up 66% nationwide over the same time last year, but experts are now seeing a new scam. fake holiday rentals. that beach home you saw on social media may not be a safe bet. becky worley is at an actual rental. where are you in california? good morning, becky. where are you? >> reporter: i'm in san rafael, california, robin, at an airbnb we rented. it's fun and funky, but it's already hard to book and that increased demand leading to a warning, scammers are sensing an opportunity to place fake listings on social media stealing thousands and ruining vacations.

tybee island, georgia, it's a vacationer's paradise, totally instagramable and like many gorgeous summer vacation spots, that social media allure has caused a problem. >> this is the worst year i've ever seen with online scams. >> reporter: this woman manages tybee's main tourism facebook page. >> waiting for people to post dates and when they want to stay because the island is completely booked. the scammers are loving this. they are offering their property which is not their property. >> reporter: she says unsuspecting visitors are shown photos taken from other websites offering low-priced rentals and then messaged privately to send a gee posit. -- a deposit. casey says she put down a deposit for a fourth of july rental home. >> i lost out on $200 but it could have been more. >> reporter: more because only with charissa's help that she

determined it was a fake listings. i checked out listings on my home island of maui. one example i found on craigslist, it's a $400 a night oceanfront property on maui. this listing looks gorgeous. the craigslist post is using the same photos as this vrbo listing which goes for $4,550 a night. the actual rental cost, ten times the price of the fake. the craigslist post was later taken down, but when i reached out to the person who posted the fake listing, he sends me a contract and adds a link so i can transfer the deposit, more than $1700. and he includes an address for the rental but it's not even the same house as was pictured online. my producer and i go there, standing in the driveway i use the spotty cell phone coverage to place a video call to the real owner, the one listed in the county records. do you rent this house? >> no, i have never rented it since i bought it. >> reporter: does he know the person who sent me the contract and asked for a deposit? >> no, never heard of the name

at all. >> reporter: this is such an awful situation that someone could just show up at your front gate. they're out thousands of dollars and they have no place to stay. >> it's a sad situation. >> reporter: "gma" reached out to the person who sent the contract and they told us they were sorry and their assistant made the mistake. to avoid vacation rental scams, the biggest red flag -- >> when they're offering you a 50% discount if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. >> reporter: the owners of this house tell me that twice people have shown up on the doorstep with luggage saying they rented the house on craigslist but it was a fake listing and in each case the families were out almost $3,000, robin. >> oh, my gosh, you hate to hear that. how can folks avoid these rental scandals, becky? >> reporter: you want to rent from a reputable company like airbnb or vrbo. they act as an escrowcompany so

these type of caps don't happen as readily on these sites. then if you are dealing directly with an owner, you want to make sure they are who they say they are and check the county records, it shows you who owns the property. finally, if you have any skepticism, pick up the phone and call. many of these scammers only want to email and that's a red flag, robin. >> that's all good advice as always. hey, becky, tell the homeowners digging their decor. really groovy. >> pretty funky, right? >> very much so. >> '50s themed. >> thank you as always, becky. coming up, celebrating the life and legacy of charles grodin. the tributes pouring in this morning. and next, our "play of the day."

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♪ push it real good ♪ back now with our "play of the day," and a water workout like you have never seen before. check out this professional barefoot water skier. now, watch this move. backwards push-ups. yes. on the water. off the back of his boat. he tells "gma" he's been barefoot waterskiing, george, since his dad taught him at 7 years old. said the hardest part of that trick is the core strength that is needed. the individual joe has been viewed more than a million times on tiktok. one person commenting this is the closest thing to a superpower i have ever seen. >> something. >> well done, ben. well done. >> use your core. >> oh, boy.

coming up, jennifer hudson tells us about playing the legendary aretha franklin. she is joining us live. cannot wait for that. we'll be back. nnot wait for tha. we'll be back. there's confidence. where there's teamwork... whth e's joy for us all. wehere to kear where there's teamwork... walk in or schedule your covid-19 vaccine with cvs pharmacy at target. new projects means new project managers. you need to hire. i need indeed. indeed you do. the moment you sponsor a job on indeed you get a short list of quality candidates from our resume database. claim your $75 credit, when you post your first job at indeed.com/home with less moderate-to-severe eczema why hide your skin if you can help heal your skin from within.

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ro for you hey jobino. >> starting again with the bay bridge toll plaza. i want to get to the back up that we're facing the metering lights came on at 6:12 and things have not let up. a crash on the san matteo bridge in the eastbound direction. minor injuries involved on eastbound 92 at the foster city boulevard off ramp. hi everybody wind advisory goes up at 5:00 this evening through 5:00 tomorrow morning. winds gusting up to 60 miles per hour. could pose damage outside of the south bay and also santa clara valley and east bay values. temperatures coolest today and tomorrow. a warming trend begins saturday.

coming up the first look inpseudothe highly anticipated friends reunion. the cast revealing never before heard secrets from the set. another abc news update in 30 minutes. check us out at abc 7 news dolt come. this is a no-nonsense message from three. small business insurance usually forces you to piece together multiple policies. that's why three was created. it's one policy that covers everything you need... leaving those old policies in the dust. three. no nonsense. just common sense. so it's another day. leavin yeah- that'solicies what most people think. but in business it's never just another day. every day is the day. there's the day your store has its biggest sale. the day you have a make or break presentation.

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good morning, america. it's 8:00 a.m. the battle over mask guidelines across the country. texas bans mandates for government properties including public schools sparking outrage. governors express concern over those new cdc guidelines as more businesses roll back their rules. "gma" health alert. the new guidelines for colon cancer testing. why 45 is the new 50. the new screenings hoping to save millions of lives as the number of young people with ise. ♪ the greatest ♪ he's a titan of tv. now, don francisco who hosted the longest running variety show in history is opening up in a new memoir about his pursuit of the american dream. >> good morning, america.

♪ i'll be there for you ♪ >> you know what that classic theme song means, this morning, we're saying, how you doing? >> oh, my god. >> i'm chandler. could i be wearing any more clothes? >> inside the highly anticipated "friends" reunion. >> we were on a break. >> from the re-created sets to the famous mementos the gang snatched from the show and hugh it feels to be back together. ♪ r-e-s-p-e-c-t ♪ >> and r-e-s-p-e-c-t. ♪ find out what it means to me. >> jennifer hudson is here live on her incredible transformation into the queen of soul and the exclusive first look at the new trailer for "respect" and j. hud is saying -- >> good morning, america. ♪ ♪ your kisses sweeter than honey ♪ ♪ and guess what, so is my

money ♪ >> i know, you're telling me to speak but i got to hear it. ♪ give it to, just a, just a ♪ >> good morning, america. happy to have you with us on this wednesday. we're also happy to have the harlem gospel choir. they can sang. >> i could listen all morning. they are helping us celebrate the queen of soul as we get set to talk to jennifer hudson talking about portraying aretha franklin in her new movie, "respect." there she is. can't wait for that. >> great to see them all out in times square. it is opening up and can feel the difference. we'll start with the latesten the covid crisis. more fallout over the guidance egbbt is blocking local mandates. marcus moore is in houston with the latest. good morning, marcus. >> reporter: george, good morning. the reaction to the governor's decision has been swift and this

morning, some are raising questions about what this will mean for kids at elementary schools like the one where we are this morning because most kids, younger than 12, are not yet eligible to get vaccinated. this morning, a major battle over masks, texas governor greg abbott issuing an executive order banning mask mandates for government properties across the state including public schools starting may 21st any official who tries to mandate masks even for unvaccinated residents could face a thousand dollar fine. public schools have until june 4th to end their mask mandates teachers outraged. >> the message that you're sending to our educators is that we don't care about protecting your li>>r:he amerin emy ofnttoonnue wearing masks saying in a statement, masks are still an important way to protect children from covid-19 especially those under age 12 who are not yet eligible for the vaccine. robin spoke to dr. richard

besser about it. >> you heard the reporting about the governor of texas not enforcing a mask mandate including in public schools. this as we know kids under the age of 12 not even eligible for the vaccines. as a pediatrician as well, rich what, is your take on this? >> i think what it says to me there are a lot of states in america where there's major pushback with the government telling you have to do something, but that doesn't mean you can change your behavior and that it's safe. so what i hope even in states where governments are saying there's no longer a mandate, people recognize that to keep children safe, you need to continue to wear masks indoors. >> reporter: public schools here in texas have to end those mask mandates by june 4th which would leave just a week before the end of the school year, but still the governor's decision spark a feeling of relief for some and real concern for others, michael. >> thank you so much for that. now we turn to that breaking news this morning, that europe

may soon be open to vaccinated americans, but it's complicated. ian pannell joins us from london with what we know. good morning, ian. >> reporter: yeah, good morning, michael. that's right. could it be rome or even here in london this summer? well, eu officials and politicians hotly debating and disagreeing on whether and how to open up to tourists this summer. here's the good news. this morning, ambassadors from the 27-member european union passing a recommendation saying travelers from other countries like the u.s. should be allowed in with some kind of covid passport and testing but here's the bad news. it's not a binding agreement, not yet and heated negotiations are under way with the politicians at the eu parliament, but everyone knows time is slipping away for people to plan their summer vacations and in the end if these talks fail, well, countries might go ahead and make their own decisions, so, robin, don't pack your bags just yet. we're not quite there. but we definitely are getting closer. >> we're getting there but not

quite there yet. you're right, ian. coming up we have a first look inside the highly anticipated "friends" reunion, the cast revealing secrets from the set and even bringing back one of their most famous scenes. and we are celebrating the life and legacy of charles grodin. the tributes pouring in this morning for the actor and comedian. and jennifer hudson is going to join us live telling us about portraying aretha franklin in "respect" all coming up on "gma." ♪ freedom ♪ ♪ freedom, freedom, oh, freedom ♪ ♪ freedom, freedom ♪ my antidepressant helps, but there are times i still feel depressed and make excuses not to go out. is it just me? no, many people taking antidepressants still have some symptoms. when taken with an antidepressant, rexulti was proven to reduce depression symptoms an extra 62% compared to the antidepressant alone.

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like a natural woman ♪ welcome back to "gma." that's the harlem gospel choir singing "a natural woman." one of my favorites. jennifer hudson joins us live this morning to talk about portraying aretha franklin in "respect." >> and tomorrow on "gma," ginger is going to be live in mexico bringing us to a place in peril from climate change. looking forward to that. >> now to our cover story. it's the one with the "friends" reunion. it's the one with the "friends" reunion. i love that. a first look at the cast revealing behind-the-scenes secrets exclusively in the latest issue of "people" magazine. amy back with the deets. >> the world has been waiting for 17 years to see and before it hits our tv screens the cast sat down with "people" magazine to talk about their hit show and why they will be friends forever. take a look. ♪ no one told you that was gonna

be this way ♪ >> reporter: it was the show that introduced us to six unforgettable friends. >> you hide my clothes, i'm wearing everything you own. >> oh, my god. >> look at me, i'm chandler, could i be wearing any more clothes? >> reporter: now more than 17 years after they said good-bye -- >> we were on a break! >> reporter: the gang reuniting for a highly anticipated special out next week on hbo max. >> jennifer aniston was the first to cry. >> rachel always cries. >> that's not true. >> reporter: "people" magazine getting in on all the behind-the-scenes action. >> well, they meticulously re-created the sets like the full sets, everything was completely identical to the day they said good-bye. >> reporter: the cast revealing their on screen chemistry real . >> lobster. >> reporter: jennifer calling lisa kudrow and courteney cox her sisters who ate lunch together every day. >> we got george stephanopoulos'

pizza. >> phoebes. who is george snuffleupagus. >> who swiped mementos. >> matt took an i love friends license plate frame and put it on david schwimmer's car. >> how you doing? and said david did not realize it for a week. >> reporter: jennifer aniston took a dress from monica's closet that to this day she still wears. >> what chandler bing's job. >> that iconic -- >> has something to do with trans funding. >> he's a trans monster. >> that is anot even a word. >> reporter: where monica and rachel lose their apartment to chandler and joey. >> no! >> reporter: expect a little bit of that fun in the special too. >> david asks trivia questions about the series to the other actors. they also did a table read of a partial episode. the one with the jellyfish. >> jellyfish sting, it hurts. >> reporter: how is this show stayed relevant all these years?

matthew perry says it comes down to the stories. "friends" made character driven jokes about people and people are going to come back time and time again and watch that. and the "people" magazine exclusive with the cast of "friends" hits newsstands this friday and i got to sit down with the cast for their first on camera interview. you can watch that next tuesday right here on "gma." let's say they were having a lot of fun. like there was a lot of fun being had. >> they genuinely -- >> 100%. >> love each other. >> to see them together again is magic. >> when you watch those clips it brings you back. you were quoting everyone. >> i love it. i can't. >> it was just a break. we were on a break. >> looking forward to this interview next week. we'll turn a "gma" health alert. colon cancer screenings due to an alarming rise in young people and erielle reshef has details.

good morning, erielle. >> reporter: good morning, to you, michael. when it comes to colorectal cancer screenings 45 is the new 50. doctors say earlier detection is key with this disease. this morning, the new national recommendation that adults of average risk should begin screening for colorectal cancer at 45 instead of 50. it comes after an alarming uptick in cases in young people. >> average risk means any individual that does not have a hereditary or genetic predisposition for colorectal cancer. >> reporter: last summer the world stunned when actor chadwick boseman passed away at just 43 after quietly battling colon cancer for four years. rates remain remarkably higher among black americans who are 20% more likely to be diagnosed over white americans and 40% more likely to die from the disease. more than 50,000 americans are projected to die from colorectal

cancer this year alone and by 2030 the rate of diagnosis is on track to nearly double in people under 50 but doctors say it is treatable and even curable if caught early. just ask 40-year-old sasha roth. three years ago at age 37 she began suffering from g.i. issues and after a screening she was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer, turns out she had lynch syndrome, a heredity condition that makes patients more likely to develop certain cancers like colorectal cancer at young ages. after undergoing six months of immu immunotherapy now sasha is cancer-free. >> what i learned and what most of my friends and family have learned if you have symptoms you need to address them. >> reporter: doctors hoping this new recommendation leads to more screenings, a push for increased awareness and ultimately saves lives. >> if you're 45 and older time to get a colonoscopy. think of it as a colon cleanse. not a bad procedure.

it could save your life. >> reporter: important reminder there, now insurance companies will be required to cover the cost of these screenings and, george, as you can imagine doctors say this will impact millions. >> boy, it certainly will. thanks very much. and now we turn to celebrating charles grodin. the actor, writer and comedian passed away at 86. tributes pouring in with former co-star robert de niro calling charles as good a person as he was an actor. chris connelly has more on his life and his legacy. good morning, chris. >> reporter: good morning, george. from rom-coms to sitcoms opposite movie stars or the muppets charles grodin didn't need pratt falls or punch lines to make you laugh. he could do it with a glance, a facial expression or even a pause. more than enough to make his deadpan humor come alive. >> you seen any suspicious looking characters? >> reporter: he was already a character actor and reliable comedic man with 30 years on screen and tv when charles

grodin turbocharged his career in "midnight run." >> these things go down. >> all right. >> these things go -- >> reporter: hilariously obstinate and eccentric his mob accountant mined comedy gold opposite a slow-burning exasperated robert de niro. >> you guys are the dumbest bounty hunters i've ever seen. >> reporter: whether falling for cybill shepherd in "the heartbreak kid" or singing with miss piggy in "the great muppet caper,". ♪ miss piggy, it's you ♪ >> reporter: charles grodin could make people laugh. even when they weren't expecting to with deadpan drawlery in films such as "dave." >> tell you, dave, i've been over this stuff a bunch of times. it doesn't add up. if i ran my business this way i'd abe out of business. >> reporter: or bonnie hunt, kids and a really big st.

bernard. >> my family likes you more than they like me, why? >> reporter: playing a beset dad in the "beethoven" movie. >> whoa, dad. >> reporter: beneath his calm conventi conventionally handsome exterior was a spirit that came out to play during his subversion sinkly mischievous talk show appearances like with david letterman. >> i have very little tolerance for talk show hosts anymore. >> reporter: in the mid '90s he'd have his own talk show. >> how is your family. >> not well. >> reporter: news of his death brought fans and comedy legends to social media to remember him and to pay him tribute. words of praise echoed by so many celebrating all the sly smarts and skills he brought to his work. >> see you in the next life. >> see you in the next life. >> reporter: and the laughter that always followed. charles grodin also successful author. the title of his first book taken from something an english woman said to him as he was about to shoot a scene. it was called "it would be so

nice if you weren't here." millions of movie lovers were glad indeed and grateful he was here. guys. >> he made such a mark, didn't he? he really did. let's go to rob. >> hey, good morning again, george. video of one of five tornados that were reported yesterday in texas between san antonio and houston. there was some damage in the houston area with some thunderstorms that had winds over 60 miles an hour and potentially areas with a tree into a home. threat today, going to be more across the high plains, low coming across the rockies will drop some snow behind it. rapid city through western nebraska will see damaging wind, large hail and isolated tornadoes. good morning, and welcome to a wind whipped wednesday. the winds are dangerous starting at 5:00 this evening through 5:00 tomorrow morning. that wind advisory in affect. so breezy the next couple days.

cooler than average and warmer starting this weekend. mud to upper 50s along the coast into san francisco. 60s around the bay and a few 70s inland as temperatures are below average. tonight how about 40s out pseudo. my act weather seven day fofofofofofofofofofofofofofofofo ♪ofofofofofofofofofofofofofofofo to you to our series "second time around." one of my fave song, shlimar. how one couple gave love a second chance after divorce. meet steven and violet. they found each other in college and married soon after. but their marriage hit a breaking .20 years in. >> we weren't there for each other as we shoul a so it was say , conscis uncoupling. >> reporter: the pair deciding to divorce but remaining close as friends which made all the difference for the relationship. >> we had a chance to work on

ourselves and recognizing that, you know, we owned part of that. >> yeah, almost like healing apart then healing together as two complete people. >> yeah. >> reporter: the pair getting back together and remarrying after two years apart. and now they're happier than ever. >> we've grown up together and i've got this wonderful woman next to me and why which pts i repair what was already -- it was a great story. i think that was what was exciting for me is to give an opportunity to do it like with a fresh view and having a second chance, a real second chance. >> reporter: violet and steven hoping their love story can help others. >> there's hope and just worken what you have and communicate and be respectful and kind and you never know. a second round might be better than the first one. >> such a lovely couple. very happy for them. let's check in with match maker paul c. brunson back on "gma." a wonderful love story when you can see people who once divorced

are reunited. so what's the starting point, do you think? >> yeah, good to see you again. i tell you what, the key here is to realize this, a lot of people don't understand that relationships require stress, right? just like your muscle needs stress and needs hyper trophy to grow relationships need harmony, disharmony and then the reconnection. so, therefore, when we disconnect, that coo be an opportunity not to end the relationship, but to repair it and so it's very important to understand this, we all need therapy. and if you can't see an actual therapist, maybe that means reading relationship books together as a couple. maybe that means listening to a podcast together as a couple. that's on relationships. or watching segments just like this on "good morning america" together as a couple, any opportunity to repair is an opportunity to grow. >> you're talking about communication here. so -- yeah, right.

so what are the keys to doing it. >> yeah. >> communicating. >> absolutely. i love it. communication we all know is important but what's most important within communication is to that it's all about the context and not the content. so let's say that you're arguing over a toilet seat, right, going up or down, that's actually the content. the foundation is always going to be about one of three things, i say, you're either arguing about trust, or respect or power. so, therefore, the next time that you're in a disagreement, right, you're having a problem communicating, try to get off of the actual topic and look at the foundation, let's focus on resolving the cause instead of just looking at the symptoms. >> i've heard you say when it comes to strong relationships, it's all about making bids, bids. what do you mean by that? >> oh, it's all about the bid,

robin. i think that a bid is just an acknowledgement saying, i see you, i love you. it could be a compliment. it could be, noyou know, be a kiss, cooking dinner, any express of love and so, therefore, if you want to have a great relationship, you want it to feel like a tennis game of bids, right? you are serving up bids every day all day but when you receive them, you validate. you say, thank you, right? you acknowledge. every time you affirm your partner you give them confidence to show up and love them even more. >> when is it comes to kids, because some divorced couples, children are involved. if that is the case, if there's kids, what should you keep in mind here, paul? >> i tell you what, all kids have opinion, even when my boys were babies they had opinions, right? so the key is to acknowledge their opinions, and you will be fascinated to find out that if

you show up for them. you listen to your kids, and they may have the same question every day, just the fact that you're there, you're patient, it will reassure them and it will give them confidence in the recoupling. >> paul c. brunson, love the energy that you bring to "gma." got to have you back. thank you. thank you, thank you. >> i tell you what, much love. much love. >> back at ya. you should be here because jennifer hudson, she's going to talk live about portraying aretha franklin, yes, in the blockbuster "respect." ♪ think, think, let yourself be free ♪ ♪ freedom ♪

building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions, this is abc7 news. >> good morning, everyone. here's jobina with traffic. >> thank you, good morning, everyone. look at this. the richmond san rafael bridge is very busy for people making their way westbound right now. it is stop and go. the good news is travelers westbound, it will pick up towards the center of the bridge. the bay bridge toll plaza has not let up on the back up. metering lights on. a crash on san mateo bridge, eastbound 92 at the foster city ball vrd, that has

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hey bay area, live with kelly and ryan is coming up. >> we will talk about the movie blast beat, plus sleep week continues. >> that's at 9:00 on abc7. good morning, watching the winds this morning as you can see right here. from san francisco and sfo, they are still running a good 35 miles per hour. those are going to spread across most of the neighborhoods except for the east bay valleys and the santa clara valleys. potentially damaging winds are possible. our coolest days are today and tomorrow because of the winds.

much warmer starting this weekend. >> thank you. we will have another abc7 news update in about 30 minutes. you can find us at abc7 news.com. ♪ oh ♪ ♪ your kiss is sweeter than honey ♪ ♪ well, guess what, so is my money ♪ ♪ all i want you to do for me. welcome back to "gma," everybody. so great to have the harlem gospel choir singing aretha franklin songs for us in anticipation of our talk to the woman playing the queen of soul in the new movie "respect." >> a little doo-wop. portraying miss franklin,

academy award winning actress, jennifer hudson. j-hud is here live. she is in chicago this morning. it is so good to have you back on "gma" and i love hearing the choir, the harlem gospel choir out there and everybody is excited about this film. we're excited where you are in chicago. it is at the harold washington cultural center, the site, the actual site of the historic regal theater and that's where aretha franklin was officially crowned the queen of soul by a chicago deejay. so what does it mean for you to be there this morning, jennifer? >> it is like -- it feels special. you could feel the energy. you know, it's still here. it's still present. and it's in chicago, which is my hometown as well. so i couldn't imagine a better place to be -- to kick this off in, you know, so i think it's special to all of us for that reason, of course. >> you know what else is

special? aretha personally chose you for this role. i mean what an honor that is. so how did that all happen? >> whoo, oh, my goodness. the crazy thing is that was over 15 years ago. it was right when i won my oscar for "dream girls" we had our first conversation. you can only imagine how i feel now, like, whoa, it's here. it's done. to see it actually manifest, and for her to choose me is -- i can't even begin to put it into words. i do not take it lightly and i just think it's like -- it's a dream come true. i don't want to sound cheesy, but it is. >> and after -- after she made that decision, you all had a lot and i mean a lot of conversations. what were they like? >> you know, we spoke weekly. you know, and then i got to tribute her i don't know how many times throughout my career. i feel as though in the midst of

those conversations she taught me more about life while in the midst of teaching me about her life and when i got to portray her, that's when i realized, like, really she was really speaking from experience. it wasn't just someone telling you anything, but to know those were words of wisdom coming from the queen of soul hers. and it kind of helped me embody the story that much more. >> she hand picks you. you have all these heartfelt conversations, but it's still got to be daunting to play aret aretha franklin. how did you psych yourself up for the filming? >> whoo, well, i told myself, well, if she said i could do it, i guess i can. i better try, you know. and i remember when we first met, the very first meeting and we sat at the table. she said are you shy or something? i said, well i am sitting at the table talking to miss aretha franklin. she's an icon, a legend and a

national treasure that i have the utmost respect for. so with that in mind, those nerves are passion and so i can't help to be like, oh, my god. you just can't wake up in the morning and think you're going to be aretha franklin. it doesn't work like that and i'm highly aware of it. so i still do my homework even after filming like, okay, i got to go back to aretha school. i feel like she put me back in music which i still am in to this day. >> you know, aretha had an unforgettable and extensive catalog of songs. we've heard the harlem gospel choir singing them all morning long. we've been singing along with them as well. >> what song did you feel the most -- >> me too. >> that's good. they're that good. which song did you feel the most pressure about singing for the movie? >> i want to say all of them. i mean think about it. they're all so iconic. i think the one that stopped me in my tracks the most when i realized like, whoa, jennifer, do you realize what you're

singing was "respect." when i got to "respect," sometimes you have to stop and have that moment like oh, my god. that was my oh, my god definitely "respect." but then all of her songs are iconic and legendary so all of them. >> yeah, all of them. but you -- if you had to select your favorite, what is your favorite? jennifer hudson, what is your favorite aretha franklin song? >> that is so hard, but i like the songs that she wrote. one of my favorites is "all the king's horses," "oh me, oh my," i sang for her in tribute on my 30th birthday. if you don't know it, look it up. okay and then, ooh, "ain't no way" which her sister wrote but

i love that song. but i love them all. i'm a fan first. >> as we all are. we're all a fan of aretha. we're all a fan of you. >> thank you. >> your son david hasn't seen the movie yet. is he an aretha franklin fan? >> yes, he is. he heard me rehearsing the other day and he decided he needed to get on the piano and play "respect." and then one time she called me and we were -- me and my son were in the parking lot leaving the grocery store and aretha called and he said, mom, is that aretha franklin on the phone? i was like, yes, david, it is. then she loved to cook and he loves to cook so it was a whole conversation about him cooking and what she cooked. so, yeah, he really loved aretha just like his momma. >> i'm looking at that picture of david and i'm going what happened to that little boy? >> i know, right. >> he is a grown man now. >> look at him. >> look at him. >> he is not -- he's not little now. he's almost 12. he wears the same size shoe as i do and i give him by the summer he'll be taller than me, no

doubt. >> jennifer, we really love having you on the show. we cannot wait for this movie. thank you so much for joining us this morning. >> thank you. hit- >> thas fohaving me. >> -- on august 13th. coming up an exclusive first look at the movie's new trailer. you do not want to miss that. ♪ you make me feel ♪ ♪ you make me feel ♪ ♪ you make me feel like a natural woman ♪

welcome back to "gma" from mamaroneck, new york, a beautiful day up and down the east coast. let's take you to the west. angel fire, new mexico, they opened for summer season. they're still getting winter snow there. a couple of inches falling there. could see 20 inches in parts of northern montana today. on the flip side of things in the east we will see temperatures skyrocketing. it'll be the warmest day of the year so far, might hit 90 in philadelphia. that would certainly be the first 90 of the year. 87 in d.c. good morning, i'm abc 7 news meteorologist mike nico. winds and cooler temperatures the big story. total sunshine out to the coast. looking at my seven day forececc now to our exclusive first

look at the new trailer for "respect" which is being released only in theaters on august 13th. this segment is sponsored by mgm and i'm going to let the movie ke it aynnif.sh t finally share, this trailer with you. i hope to see you all in theaters with your family, mother, father, kids, your entire community. come out and see this film. i pray that it feeds your soul the same way it fed mine. can't wait to see you guys in theaters. here's the trailer of "respect." ♪ >> you're special. you have a talent they call genius. ♪ ♪ you better think, think about what you're trying to do to me ♪ >> how old is she? >> just 10 but her voice is going on 30, honey. ♪ think, think, think ♪ ♪ let your mind be free ♪ >> how many albums have you had? >> four. >> and no hits.

>> i need you to focus and avoid frivolous distractions. ♪ oh, freedom, freedom ♪ >> hey, find the songs that move you and until you do that you ain't going nowhere. ♪ freedom ♪ >> i need a change. i want to sing what i want to sing. ♪ r-e-s-p-e-c-t ♪ >> okay. ♪ find out what it means to me ♪ >> you really like it? >> we love it, re-re. ♪ re, re, re, re ♪ >> that's really good. ♪ r-e-s-p-e-c-t, find out what it means to me ♪ >> i got a single by this new chick named aretha franklin. ♪ a little respect when you come home hey, baby just a little bit ♪ >> i'm honored to present aretha franklin. >> you're not about to mess this up for me. >> ladies and gentlemen, miss aretha franklin. ♪ morning

rain ♪ >> this song goes out to anyone who's ever felt mistreated. ♪ i used to feel so uninspired ♪ >> you need to take a break. >> i know how to run my business. >> have you lost your mind? >> maybe i found it. >> i believe i have the chills. ♪ you make me feel ♪ ♪ you make me feel ♪ >> do you see what she is? ♪ feel like a natural woman ♪ >> she's a miracle. >> announcer: "respect," watch this academic year has been, um, challenging. but i think there's so much success to celebrate. woman: it's been a year like no other. man: yet, for educators across california, the care, compassion, and teaching has never stopped. woman: addressing their unique needs...

man: ...and providing a safe learning environment students could count on. woman: join us in honoring the work of educators. together, we will build a better california for all of us.

back here on "gma," the nba postseason has just tipped off but with a twist. this year eight teams have to battle it out to even get into the playoffs, including last season's nba champs,

lakers. espn nba reporter malika adams -- excuse me, malika andrews joins me to break it all down. so good to see you. t.j. did his best in our first half hour to kind of -- because this is a new twist that we're seeing right here. can you enlighten us with what's going on, malika? >> well, you mentioned it, robin. there are eight teams, four in each conference that are trying to play their way into the playoffs. so tonight as you mentioned the golden state warriors and lakers will face off against each other. the winner of that game, robin, they are going to get into the playoffs. now, the loser still have one more chance. they get to play against the san antonio spurs or the memphis grizzly, the winner of that gets into the playoffs as well. ultimately two teams from each conference will get in as part of the eight teams in each conference in the playoffs, robin. >> so why did the nba add this little twist here? >> yeah, that's a good question. we know, right, that fans love a game seven but game sevens don't happen all that often. the drama, the intrigue, it comes down to everything is in one game and so this is the

closest they can manufacture to that. now it's largely worked. down the stretch of the regular season, we saw stars playing in games because they mattered. that usually doesn't happen where we see the stars playing up until the very end of the regular season. >> yeah, that was a difference. ayoffs but couldn't do that this year. so we have tonight the lakers going up against the warriors. lebron and steph curry curry a two-time mvp and lebron says, go ahead and give him mvp again this year. what do you think? >> uh-huh. >> uh-huh. >> well, let's be realistic, robin. as great as steph curry is this going win the mvp awardut steph curry is always ng because he is one of the best if not the best shooter in the history of the league. for the last couple of years, a

couple years ago the warriors were a dynasty. this group shifted a little bit, right? draymond green says this group of war records are enjoying being the hunters instead of the hunted for a change. >> the play-in tournament. after that is all said and done and we get down to the playoffs -- look into your crystal ball, malika, what do you see? >> whoo, what do i see? one of the things about this, robin, is this one of the most exciting postseasons in recent memory and that's because where we talked about those dynasties right now, the brooklyn nets, they have the potential to be there because they have the superstars like kyrie irving, kevin durant and james harden, but they have been injured. you can never count out the lakers until they're truly out or any team that has lebron but this is interesting because this could also be a season where a team like the utah jazz, the phoenix suns who have had really great regular season, the philadelphia 76ers and milwaukee bucks could emerge victorious. this is must watch because it

could be anyone. >> i'm proud of you, girl. malika andrews, thank you. thank you for breaking it down. we will be watching and check back with you i'm sure throughout the playoffs. you can see tonight's exciting doubleheader, the spurs versus the grizzlies at 7:30 eastern and then the lakers and the warriors at 10:00 eastern on espn. not going to get any sleep, george. >> not tonight. robin, thanks. we turn to tv legend don francisco. the host of the longest running variety show of all time "sabado gigante," for more than 50 years and now he's opening up about his life and career in his new memoir, "a will to live." victor oquendo sat down to talk with him about it. good morning, victor. >> reporter: good morning, george. for latinos he is like johnny carson and david letterman all wrapped into one and wrote a new during the pandemic, opening up

reflecting on his career in front of the camera and opening up about the man behind the legion. ♪ >> reporter: the show that dominated saturday nights on ar ce known for its steady stream of latin-american icons. ♪ outrageous antics, and a showcase for high-profile americans to reach latinos from around the world. behind the success of guinness world record's longest variety show of all time is this man, don francisco whose real name is mario kreutzberger. >> don francisco! [ speaking foreign language ] >> reporter: at 19 he was next in line to take over the family clothing business. then he saw television for the first time. it was love at first sight.

three years later in 1962 he started hosting his show. for the english speaking audience how do you explain what your show was like? >> this was an extravaganza show. your show is like soup. we had everything. we had interviews. we had sketches. we had singers. we were adding every week something different to the basic ingredients. >> reporter: the show came to an end in 2015. back then he showed me around his trophy room or what he calls his -- [speaking foreign language] he's worked on a number of projects since but the pandemic put everything on hold. he decided to write his second book -- [ speaking foreign language ] why did you decide to write this book during this time? >> well, first, it was a coincidence. i had time to do it first. i had so many things to tell the audience. everything i was feeling the last 20 years i went back sometimes to my beginnings and my feelings. >> reporter: for the first time he's focusing on his mental

health as he accepts life as an 80-year-old. why did you start speaking with a psychiatrist? >> because this is a new life and i am trying to do my best in this maybe the last part of my life. i don't know for how long. >> how much better do you feel mentally? >> i'm not sure i'm just doing that maybe three, four months. i don't feel a big difference. i think it's helping me, but it's slow. >> reporter: he's also confronting criticism about the show on the heels of the me too movement. looking back on your show, do you wish you handled things a little differently? >> times are changing and everything has to change. the position of women and men at the same level, think that is something very important. >> would you do your show differently now? >> oh, complete. we have to do it different. >> reporter: but one thing would remain the same he is deeply superstition. you always have a -- you used to

carry around a lucky charm with you. >> yeah. do you still have it? >> yes. >> is it on you? >> yes. [ speaking foreign language ] >> can we see it real quick? >> a piece of stick. it is always under my ring. >> reporter: his new book -- [speaking foreign language] -- "the will to live" is out now in spanish and will be released in

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"good morning america" is sponsored by apoquel. next to you apoquel is a dog's best friend. our thanks to the harlem gospel choir for celebrating the queen of soul. have a great day, everybody. ♪ all i'm asking ♪

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building a better bay area, moving forward, finding solutions. this is abc7 news. >> good morning, i'm kumasi aaron with abc7. jobina is here with a look at traffic. >> for anyone making their way towards the toll plaza, i hope you have a great play list because you will be sitting there for a bit. the metering lights on at 6:12 and the backup has not let up. it is extended into the maze. looking at the richmond san rafael bridge, a back up approaching westbound commute that will not let up. and through the east bay, look at the long stretch of red coming from richmond through emeryville, the average speeds are around 24 miles per hour. good morning. winds have been very fast on the coast in san francisco, up to 35 to 36 miles per hour. they spread during the evening and overnight hours. we have the wind advisory for everybody but the east bay

valleys and the santa clara valleys. today and tomorrow, our coolest days, warming trend starts >> announcer: it's "live with kelly and ryan!" today, from the hit series, "ncis," wilmer valderrama. and setting up a restful environment for a restful night sleep as we continue "live's sleep week." plus, your thoughts and comments on another addition of "inbox." all next on "live!" ♪ ♪ [cheers and applause] and now, here are kelly ripa and ryan seacrest! [cheers and applause] ♪ ♪ >> ryan: hi, deja. usa. oh, yeah. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ [cheers and applause]