[ cheers and applause ] [ cheers and applause ] this morning on "early today," on alert. the hunt is on for a suspected serial killer with links to stabbings in several states. mcnugget rage. video of an ohio woman going berserk at a fast foot restaurant. and tarmac tantrum. a fed-up flight attendant unleashes his wrath on jetblue a fed-up flight attendant unleashes his wrath on jetblue passengers. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning. welcome to our viewers across the nation, including the pacific time zone. i'm lynn berry. today we begin with serial

killer terror. a multi-state manhunt is under way for a knife-wielding suspect believed to be behind a string of deadly attacks. police in michigan have released a sketch of a white man they believe is responsible for the stabbings of 15 men, almost all of them black, in the flint area. five of the stabbings were fatal. authorities in virginia believe the suspect may also be responsible for three violent incidents in leesburg. they say they don't know if he's targeting black men or if he simply encounters them while walking late at night. police are not yet ready to call the attacks racially motivated. a former stealth bomber engineer faces life in prison after being convicted of selling u.s. military secrets to china. yesterday a federal jury in hawaii found noshir gowadia guilty on multiple counts, including helping china design a stealth cruise missile. prosecutors say the 66-year-old passed on design information that would allow missiles to avoid infrared detection.

his attorney plans to appeal the decision. flagrantly defying the united nations security council, iran has begun using new equipment to enrich uranium more efficiently. that's according to the international atomic energy agency, which said yesterday that iran has started using a second set of centrifuge machines to enrich uranium to 20% purity. at that level, the element could be turned into weapons-grade material much more quickly than less enriched uranium. despite western suspicions, tehran maintains its nuclear activities are for peaceful purposes only. well, the skies were anything but friendly yesterday for one long-time flight attendant whose meltdown after a trip from pittsburgh to new york john f. kennedy airport has landed him in hot water. the jetblue steward now faces charges after allegedly cursing out passengers and then fleeing the plane via the emergency exit slide.

nbc's katy tur has more. >> anything you want to say to the passengers? >> reporter: he had a smirk on his face but said nothing to crews. though steven slater was all smiles with port authority police, earlier in the day sources say he was anything but happy. it all happened when flight 1052 from pittsburgh to jfk was landing. a female passenger stood up to get her things from an overhead compartment while the plane was still taxiing, according to sources. as slater approached the woman to tell her to sit down, one of her bags hit him in the head, leaving a mark. sources say slater asked for an apology. instead the woman swore at him. the steward returned the choice words, according to sources, and then got on the p.a. system and said, to the expletive, expletive that told me to expletive off, it's been a good 28 years. >> idiots come in all shapes and sizes and colors. >> people can be, you know,

abusive to airline attendants. i just, you know, feel bad for the guy. >> reporter: after effectively quitting, sources say slater then grabbed two beers from the gallery, pulled the emergency hatch, deployed the slides, slid down with his own luggage, ran for his car, and drove home. neighbors said slater, who seemed like a quiet, unassuming man, hightailed it down what is normally a quiet street. >> all i see is a gentleman in a jeep flying down the block, running, parked the car, and ran into his house. >> reporter: police arrested him at this beachfront duplex he rents in belle harbor, queens. >> well, for his actions, steven slater, who's been a flight attendant since 1990, could face up to seven years in jail. and now here's a look at some other stories making news early today in america. police in ohio have released surveillance video of a customer flying into a rage at a mcdonald's drive-through after she was told she couldn't order

chicken mcnuggets during breakfast time. as you can see the irate customer tries to climb through the window and punches the employee. she was arrested and charged with vandalism. she's been sentenced to 60 days in jail and ordered to pay $600 for the damages. a south carolina deputy is out of a job after being caught on surveillance video beating an inmate dozens of times with a baton. the inmate reportedly suffered a broken leg and other minor lacerations that required stitches. state police and the fbi are now investigating whether the inmate's civil rights were violated. a florida manatee has been rehabilitated after being tangled in fishing line for up to two months. veterinarians had hoped to remove the fishing line on site but they decided to take it to a nearby zoo for surgery instead. the san francisco giants paid tribute to their city's native son on the 15th anniversary of his death. dead heads were out to remember jerry garcia during a giants-cubs game.

former bandmates even sang the national anthem and garcia's daughter threw out the first pitch. now for a look at your national and regional weather, here is meteorologist bill karins with the forecast, who is just looking for an excuse to tie-dye a tie. >> yes and eat the jerry garcia ice cream. >> always a good reason for that. >> i know there is. let's talk about what happens weather wise around the country. it's the heat again. that's the story. where it is and where it isn't. yesterday 100 in dallas, 99 in kansas city. everywhere in red is where it was 90 degrees or warmer. much of the country. notice where it wasn't. four corner region, northern rockies. look at the cool weather up and down the west coast. it was, you know, 60s. that's it. everywhere else in the country is complaining about how hot it is, you'd love a couple of hot days. l.a., 77. that's in the city. the coast and lax, more like the upper 60s, a little warmer

downtown. sacramento, 86 is belong average for you. medford at 88 and 67 in seattle. you can see it clearly with the clouds. look here. you can see clouds dipping and dropping to the south. that's the direction it's coming from, alaska, british columbia, pacific northwest. that's why you're so cool today. it's just the opposite for friends out here in arizona and utah. still getting that heat pump f yesterday, sunny, beautiful, 84, santa rosa, california, 73, tucson a little steamy with a high of 102. salem 74. we'll take a look at warmer temperatures that will be on the way a little later.

>> all right, bill. thank you. waiting for the fed, mcdonald's on a high, and where are the best and worst taxi drivers? your early morning business headlines straight ahead. you won't believe the plans bris tal palin's jilted fiance levi johnston has for the future. red sox split a triple play in seattle and saints march into the white house. you're watching "early today."

good morning, and welcome back to "early today." i'm lynn berry, and here are some of your top headlines this morning. cutbacks are in store for the pentagon in an effort to rein in $100 billion of spending in five years. yesterday defense secretary robert gates said he would close a military command, restrict the use of contractors, and slash the number of generals and admirals across the armed forces. police say an escaped killer who broke out of an arizona prison with two others has been captured in wyoming.

now just one other fugitive is on the loose along with a suspected female accomplice, who, according to authorities, helped the group bust out of jail. in china the death toll from a landslide in a northern province has more than doubled since yesterday. at least 702 people have been killed. more than 1,000 others are missing. mother nature is also wreaking havoc in russia. a moscow official says the heat wave there combined with smog, caused by ongoing wildfires, has doubled the infant mortality rate in russian capital. and now here's an early look at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 10,698 after gaining 45 points yesterday. the s&p added 6, and the nasdaq rose 17. taking a look at overseas trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei lost 21 points, while in hong kong the hang seng fell 327. stocks were up yesterday, but action was limited with many traders sitting on the sidelines

waiting to hear what the federal reserve has to say later today about the economy. the federal reserve's interest rate-setting panel meets under pressure to bolster the now flat recovery. in carefully chosen words, the group is expected to downgrade its former optimism on the health of the economy while keeping interest rates at historic lows. yesterday researchers from the san francisco regional fed were uncharacteristically blunt with their language, warning a double dip recession is possible. volume was the lightest of the year yesterday, but there were still winners and losers. mcdonald's shares hit an all-time high after the company reported its stronger than expected july sales, thanks to new summer drinks. hewlett-packard was the biggest drag on the dow tumbling 8% after chief executive mark hurd's resignation late friday. shares had already dropped 10% in after-hours trade friday night. research in motion boosted

the nasdaq up 3.5% on news the company was working out blackberry concerns with saudi arabia. elsewhere, mortgage giant freddie mac needs another $1.8 billion in taxpayer aid, bringing its government bailout total over two years to more than $64 billion. honda is recalling some 400,000 accords and civics to address ignition switch problems. chrysler cut losses in the second quarter and says it's firmly on the road to profitability and a successful public stock offering. and, finally, despite being the most expensive, an annual travel poll ranks london's taxis the best in the world. new york's yellow taxis tied with paris for the rudest. and cabbies in rome were voted the worst drivers in the world. well, coming up, walk-off homers, grand slam homers, even birthday homers. >> plus, the mariners may be having a season to forget, but last night they pulled off a play to remember. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. the incredible heat wave

continues for the middle of the country, and a lot of that heat is spreading east. your regional forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports yesterday, the boston red sox escaped from new york with a split after a close- fought win over the yankees.

here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. no team is more banged up than the red sox. yet they're still in the a.l. east race after beating the new york yankees. we'll pick it up in the seventh, and the yanks threatening. down 2-0, the sacks full. jon lester came up big, struck out curtis granderson. yanks would leave the bases full. mark teixeira cut the lead in half with his 26th homer of the year in the eighth. fifth homer in the last seven games. yankees down 2-1. table set for teixeira to be the hero in the ninth, but jonathan papelbon struck him out. red sox won it, 2-1. rays also won. they're a game and a half back. what has gotten into the orioles? they've won six of their last seven. tied at two in the tenth when brian roberts sent everybody home with a smile. walk-off home run. orioles beat the white sox, 3-2. it's been a tough year for the mariners. they fired their manager yesterday, but they did pull off a rare triple play against the a's. around the horn. 5-4-3, and made it look easy. they won it, 3-1. happy 21st birthday to the braves' jason hayward.

celebrated in style with a solo homer, and atlanta was up, 2-0. but houston crashed the party in the seventh. chris johnson, a single to left. in came two. the start of the play was cut off off by the catcher, then airmailed it into the left, trying to toss it to third. everybody come on down. that cleared them. astros scored six in the inning and won it, 10-4. now to cincinnati, cards flew the coop in the fourth against the reds. skip schumaker, grand slam to center. cards put up seven in the inning and won it, 7-3. and, finally, the who dat nation converged upon the white house yesterday when the president greeted the super bowl champ, the new orleans saints. the president, a self-proclaimed bears fan, received a saints jersey from drew brees and then joked that he couldn't get away with wearing it in chicago. that's your early look at sports on "early today." i'm fred roggin. well, rocker rod stewart is doing it yet again, but actress jennifer aniston says she probably never will. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, when it comes to serving your country, there's

one family in iowa that's got everyone beaay ."yoing "early today." w

well, welcome back. i promised warmer temperatures. it's going to take a little bit but we're going to get there. today cool in seattle, san francisco on the chilly side. you have to go to the desert areas to get the hot stuff.

wednesday, a little warmer, 73 to 78 in seattle. a little better by thursday. the end of the week looking nice. 88 in portland, 96 in medford, 76 seattle. beautiful for the end of the week. still relatively cool down here on the coast of california. we still haven't changed that weather pattern, at least not yet. if you're watching us on knfd, 7/39 news in san diego. relive energy and attitude found in rock and roll music making through its many iconic images at the taking aim exhibit at the museum of photographic arts. that's your pacific event of the day. >> bill, thank you. and now here's an early look at this morning's headlines in entertainment. levi johnston is doing anything but sit at home crying about losing bristol palin. reality reports he's working on a reality show, loving livei. plans to run for the same job

that started the governor of wasilla, alaska. "national enquirer" reports a disaster. kate had a diva-like meltdown and stayed for just two hours of the scheduled two-day trip. 41-year-old actress jennifer aniston admitted to billy bush of "access hollywood" that while she won't totally rule it out, right now she doesn't want children. that's not the case for 65-year-old rocker rod stewart. he's going to be a dad again, actually for the seventh time. stewart and his 39-year-old wife penny lancaster announced they're expecting their second child together. stewart also has five other children from two previous marriages. how about that in. >> it's amazing. >> why would that be, bill? >> i think 65 is the new 35. >> yeah. >> good time to have a family. >> starting a trend.

don't give your wife any ideas down the line. >> by those numbers i've got another 25 or so years to go. >> good luck with that. and this ones comes to us from kwll news channel 7 in waterloo, iowa, where one family is sticking together through some very challenging times. mom linda, a major in the national guard, will stay home this time, but four of her children and one nephew are all deploying to afghanistan this week. all five are carrying the same memento in their wallets, a family photo with everyone dressed in their uniforms taken on the fourth of july. wow. >> good looking family. >> unbelievable. that must be really difficult for them but we wish them all the best of luck. i'm lynn berry, and this is "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

thrill-seekers got a chance to star in their very own action sequence in germany. that's where thousands of fantasy fans participated in the largest live role-play event of the world simply known as conquest. the mission -- players bring a dream world to life as they battle to their imaginary death, complete with quirky costumes and weapons, nonlethal, of course. well, with a fear of heights, here's a place i definitely don't want to be. 87 feet above water. competing in italy's world cliff-diving championships. 50,000 fans held their breaths as daredevils showed off some impressive stunts.

and if those moves aren't frightening enough, the winning diver nailed his handstand/somersault combo and hit the water at nearly 60 miles per hour. well, did your mother ever tell you to stop acting like a pig? well, you may be perfect for this competition in france. contestants had to imitate a pig's squeal throughout its life. so dressed in pig's attire, they acted out giving birth, mating, and even being slaughtered. those who managed to do their best wilbur walked away with a cup and over 600 bucks, which doesn't seem like quite enough to go through that humiliation. >> "charlotte's web" was kind of cute. that was not. >> no. that was a little creepy. well, time now for an early look at some of the stories we'll follow throughout the day here on nbc. once again voters across the country head to the polls. ahead of november's midterm elections, primary races are being held in connecticut, colorado, minnesota, and georgia. lawmakers from the house of

representatives will be at work instead of on their summer break. house speaker nancy pelosi called them back into session to vote on a $26 billion state aid package that includes funding to help prevent teacher layoffs. and we'll get an update on how the government's national tally is shaping up. at a news conference, the census bureau director will discuss quality assurance and data processing issues. all day long you can stay on top of the very latest developments in those stories and others as they break on msnbc. and tonight be sure to watch brian williams with "nbc nightly news." and, finally, here's a look at what's coming up later this morning on the "today" show. hear from a passenger who witnessed a flight attendant's tirade and emergency chute exit aboard a jetblue flight. and new details on a corporate sex scandal at hewlett-packard. and now keep it on this channel for continuing local news, weather, sports, and more. i'm lynn berry. thanks for watching "early today," just your first stop of the day, today on your nbc station.

have a good one.