good morning. done deal. the house gives late night approval to the massive tax cults giving the way for president obama to sign it into law. it will mean more money in your pocket but will it give the economy a much needed rest? he can also use the internet. will he start leaking sensitive documents again? we will talk to him live. >> and he is larry king is not

hanging up the famous sus spenders for good. good morning. welcome to "today". >> early christmas present for many americans who will not see a tax increase. >> after hours of debate and one last failed bid by liberal democrats to change the way estates are taxed. critics point out the bill will add almost a trillion dollars to the deficit. >> almost two years after she was nearly killed, charlie

returned to the hospital where she was rushed to following the attack. >> we will look back at some of the fun times we have had here on today during the past year. >> roughly right outside don don. ree hours outside london whe julian assange will be staying after a significant victory he went from being one of the most wanted men in the world to one of its least likely house guests. >> he has been in the newspapers lately. >> yes. >> and he will come telling of

paul. yes. >> thursday night he stepped out of a british courthouse and stood before a worldwide audience confident and upbeat. >> sit great to smell the fresh air of london again. >> he denied allegations of sexual misconduct that led to his arrest. >> i hope to continue my work and continue to protest my innocence in this matter. >> reporter: in court the judge raised his bail requirements to $370,000 and added more restrictive conditions, including a curfew, daily visits to police and electronic monitoring so authorities can track his movements. by night fall, assange was relaxing by his mother's side. >> every politician should spend some time in solitary confinement. actually some of them should spend a lot of time. >> reporter: and this morning,

mr. assange tells me that he does not yet have the electronic monitoring tag that will be placed on him. one of the bail requirements. he will be receiving that when he makes his visit to a local police station. he's allowed to go to the police station between 3:00 and 5:00 p.m. this community is so small, those are the only hours the police station will be open. >> peter alexander, thank you very much. julian assange joins us live now. good morning to you. >> merry christmas. >> good morning to you. this is a major legal victory for you, you have been released on bail but not without restrictions as peter just mentioned. you've got a curfew, you have got to report to the police on a daily basis, you will have to wear an electronic monitoring device, you said yesterday, if justice is not always an outcome, at least it is not dead yet. your response to the events in the last 24 hours? >> it's very nice to be out in the sun, in snow and amongst

good and courageous friends. we should remember that this is not the beginning of the end, rather it is merely the end of the beginning. we hear credible reports today in the guardian newspaper concerning what we heard yesterday, that there is something like an espionage indictment, made secretly against me in the united states. >> actually what i think you're referring to is that prosecutors are trying to figure out if in addition to receiving leaked documents perhaps from private first class bradley manning, you also supplied private manning with software that he loaded into a computer that allowed him to receive those classified documents. did you do that? >> i have no information about what you're referring to. we don't know what the grounds of that investigation is. in fact, like the swedish investigation, the whole damned thing is kept secret.

we saw three court cases here and every single one of those, the argument that no evidence whatsoever was needed to be presented to the court to extradite me for hearings in sweden, were secret, a gag ordered was attempted to be placed upon my swedish attorney and the requested conditions for my extradition to sweden was that i would be held incommunicado. something is very wrong with that situation and something is wrong in the united states that such an investigation against me and in effect my organization and indeed now we have received serious calls from the "new york times" as well, that all that is to be conducted in secret. >> let's move on to the personal situation with the charges being leveled against you in sweden by these two women in separate incidents. they claim that you are guilty of rape and molestation and illegal coercion.

this is going to boil down or is this going to boil down to a very high stakes case of he said/she said? and if so, why are you confident that you'll be able to prevail? >> it is an incredible allegation of rape and in the beginning, double rape reported around the world. in fact, according to google, if you look on the internet, my name is mentioned in one-tenth of dimensions of rape. all the way back two pages about helen of troy. so this has been a very successful smear campaign so far. but i think it's -- its days are numbered and people are starting to wonder, is what is claimed really true and if it is true, where is the evidence? why has no evidence been provided even to me and my defense attorneys? >> you have declared your

innocence in this case and it raises a very obvious question, if you believe that you are innocent and you can prove that, why fight extradition to sweden? why not go back and answer the questions? >> i stayed for nearly 40 days in sweden. the matter was dropped entirely within 24 hours after the charge was made. subsequently, pushed by a politician to another prosecutor, not the senior prosecutor in stockholm, again, i spent time there to clear my name. received permission to leave the country for my work and did so. i came to the uk back and forth, registered my name with authorities here in case there was an issue. when there was an issue, we went in within nine hours of being called. it is not the case that i or any other person should have to fly off to foreign states without the provision of any evidence whatsoever.

that is simply not acceptable to me and it should not be acceptable to any person. >> let me move on back to the subject of wikileaks and the documents you have released and the documents you promised to release. now that you're free on bail, you do have access to the internet, mr. assange, do you plan to accelerate your plans to release further documents? >> as we have seen wikileaks is a robust organization, during my time in solitary confinement in the basement of a victorian prison, we continued to release, our media partners continued to write stories and just said, i see in the guardian, our prime british media partner, india is accused of systemic use of torture. nearly 1,200 cases of torture in kashmir. important revelations from this material continue to come out. we have approximately 200,000 cables into 250,000.

>> obviously much more to come. julian assange, mr. assange, i thank you for joining us this morning. morning. >> you're welcome. obviously remains defiant. >> no question, defiant to the charges in sweden and determined to continue his work with wikileaks. obviously, some people consider him a hero, other people consider him a villain who has put the national security of this country in jeopardy. and it depends where you sit. >> exactly. >> your perspective on it. >> much to follow on this story, obviously. and now to washington and that massive tax package approved by congress last late night. kelly o'donnell has details. kelly, good morning. >> good morning, meredith. there was a talk marathon with some house democrats saying they had received phone calls from the president, urging them to get it done. and just before midnight, they did. so everyone's tax rates stay the same, unemployment benefit

checks keep coming. and $858 billion gets added to the deficit. a done deal. >> on this vote, the yeas are 277, the nays are 148. the motion is adopted. >> reporter: but getting there was uglier than expected. after hours of delay, house liberals came up with their own changes to the president's tax cut compromise. that the house concur to the senate amendment to the house amendment to the senate amendment with the amendment adopted in the committee of the whole. >> reporter: that gave liberals a way to prove they fought against some tax breaks for the wealthy. >> there's nothing in this bill that's fiscal sanity! it's insanity. we fixed the debt by closing tax loopholes and now you want to give them away. shame on you. >> reporter: in another tug of war, senate republicans blasted the size and cost of a more than $1 trillion bill to keep the government open for business. >> members on this side of the

aisle increasingly felt concerned about the way we do business. >> reporter: frustrated democrats were forced to scrap the bill, and kill $8 billion of earmarked pet projects. >> i'm a little confused about some of the righteous indignation coming from the republican side of the aisle. >> reporter: republicans derailed the bill, even though many of them had requested earmarks themselves. >> let's guess who has earmarks in there! the minority leader! >> reporter: the newest gop senator, illinois's mark kirk. of in an unusual display, interrupted john mccain to celebrate. >> did we just win? >> this may be a seminal moment in the recent history of the united states' senate. because for the first time since i've been here, we stood up and said, enough. stop. >> reporter: democrats were taken aback. >> it's not who wins, who loses. i'll tell you right now, the american people are losing every day we have this bickering that goes on.

>> reporter: so with that big bill put aside, they will put together a package that will keep the government's bills paid for a couple of months. and the senate will be working this weekend to consider the s.t.a.r.t. treaty with russia and things like immigration reform and an attempt to repeal the don't ask, don't tell military policy. matt? >> kelly, thank you very much. kelly o'donnell on capitol hill. massachusetts democratic senator john kerry also on capitol hill this morning, and he joins us now. senator kerry, nice to see you. good morning. good morning, senator kerry. how are you? >> i'm great, matt. nice to see you. >> you too. let's talk about this tax cut deal. it was voted on in the house last night. so much talk about compromise. who wins, who loses. in your gut, is this the best deal you could have gotten under these circumstances? >> absolutely. and i think that who wins -- i think the american people win for the short-term. it will depend entirely on what the congress is capable of doing next year. you know, we're running behind

every country in the world that's industrialized or industriali industrializing. we have an enormous challenge to get our deficit under control and to create jobs. if all we do is this tax bill and we don't invest in america and begin to make long-term plans as to how to deal with the structural deficit, we're in trouble. >> right. >> so this is step one. >> you talk about the deficit and jobs. i mean, this is going to cost $850 that gets tacked right on to the deficit. the justification for it seems to be it will fuel the economy and great jobs. do we have proof of that? some plans in the last couple years to create jobs has not worked. >> it's going to create some jobs, matt. it's not the solution to america's problems. but at this particular moment, facing the economic challenges we do, this is, i think, a good plan. the key is the long-term. this plan is not good for the long-term. does it add to the deficit in

the short term? yes. but it will have, i'm convinced, a positive impact in the short term on the economy. the key now, the follow on steps we need to take. $600 billion is going to be invested in the next 20 years in new energy projects, new green energy around the world. 90% of that investment right now is going to be outside the united states. what we need to do is join that revolution and others. you saw the test scores out of singapore and out of china the other day. shanghai. you know, the united states is falling behind in science and math. engineering. we need to really gear up over the course of this next year. i'm convinced president obama will lay out a major agenda that will challenge people on the right and the left to step up and find compromise in order to get the country moving. >> let me get your response real quickly on one last topic before i let you go. the s.t.a.r.t. treaty.

the senate is going to start debate on that. your republican colleague, john kyle of arizona has said that democrats are trying to jam this through before the holiday break. i mean, this does -- you laugh, but this involves nuclear weapons, our national security, and the future security of the world. is it really smart to rush this or squeeze this in before a holiday break? >> well, first of all, we're not rushing it, and we're not squeezing it in. the original s.t.a.r.t. treaty which took place when the soviet union fell in 1992 was far more complicated, a far bigger cut, far more dramatic at the time. it took the senate five days total to do that. and while it did it, it did three or four other bills at the same time. the second s.t.a.r.t. treaty took two days, the moscow treaty took two days. we've been working on this treaty, matt, since last year in june. we have 60 senators or more who have taken part in briefings, they have been part of this process. we have been on this bill now. this will be the third day today. there is no question that we can

do our job as one general said, you know, we've got 150,000 troops -- >> right. >> -- in harm's way over christmas. they're doing their job, the united states senate needs to do its job. we can get this done. >> senator john kerry. senator, happy holidays. thank you for joining us this morning. >> same to you. thank you very much. vice president joe biden will be david gregory's exclusive guest this sunday on "meet the press". >> and now a check of the morning's top stories back at the news desk after feeling under the weather, welcome back. >> good morning, you guys, and good morning to all of you. in the news this morning, counter terrorist units are on alert for suspicious behavior this holiday season, although they say there are no specific threats to the united states at this time. insurgents in iraq claim al qaeda is planning attacks in the united states and europe. security officials are concerned that terrorists may try to exploit the psychological impact of an attack during the holidays. in a rare move on thursday, the food and drug administration revoked its approval for a

cancer treatment. the fda said that blockbuster breast cancer drug avass tin does not provide enough benefit to, quote, outweigh the significant risk to patients. now to wall street and trish regan at the new york stock exchange. trish, what are investors watching? >> reporter: europe is definitely in focus again. there's some concern about ireland that's shaking investors a little bit. meanwhile, investors are really looking forward to the last two weeks on wall street to close out the year and they're hoping for a santa claus rally. there are some better economic numbers out there that are encouraging people to think that maybe perhaps we might be turning the corner, although those jobless numbers continue to persist. technology on focus today, and oracle and rimm reported good numbers after the bell. >> all right. trish regan this morning. thanks a lot, trish. and the king has left his throne. last night late night interviewing legend larry king retired his washington, d.c., i never

thought it would last this long or come to this. i don't know what to say except to you, my audience, thank you. and instead of goodbye, how about so long. >> his star-studded fair well included a serenade from tony benefit and a declaration of larry king day from governor schwarzenegger of california. king will still host four specials a year for cnn. it is now 19 past, let's go back to matt and meredith. that's sweet. right? >> my sincere congratulations to larry king. >> there was an impersonation of him that was dead on. >> hello, mr. roker. >> hello. our friends out west, they're going to get in on all the winter action now. the pineapple express, the oimure streaming out of the pacific, right smack dab into california.

look at that rain streaming in. los angeles into san francisco, it's going to spread even further north later today. we have got winter storm warnings, winter storm watches, winter weather advisories from california all the way into the rockies. we're talking about anywhere from three to seven inches of rain, three to seven inches of rain between friday and sunday. snowfall amounts, some areas picking up five feet of snow in the sierras and the rockies. you can see across the golden gate bridge, a wet commute right now and towards napa, heavy showers approaching interstate 80 with moisture spilling off the pacific. the heaviest rain we will see will be out towards napa at times for now. as you move through the weekend, heavy rain at times shifting south along the coast. in and out of the rain and gusty winds for the weekend and probably the heaviest rain will arrive on tuesday.

>> still ahead, the brave security guard who opened fire at the school board gunman. but first this is "today" on gunman.[ female announcer ] safeway talks made-for-you meals. when you don't have to cook, you have time for other things. yeah, like what? i don't know. fishing. fishing?! i, uh, i said wishing. [ female announcer ] when we do the cooking, you do the enjoying. safeway. ingredients for life.

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yeah, wait. what is that? love. smells like ham. [ female announcer ] serve a main course brimming with comfort and joy. safeway. ingredients for life. jufd ahead the fun we had in 2010. after your local news. ahead the fun we had in peggy.a 2010. after your local news. us ah 2010. after your local news. r ahen 2010. > after your local news. > after your local news.head th > after your local news.t aheadn no, no, no...pe- (phones ringing) so pretty. want better customer service? switch to discover ranked #1 in customer loyalty. it pays to discover. wabout readingl and put it here. introducing nookcolor. experience books, magazines, newspapers and children's books like never before. nookcolor by barnes & noble.

good morning, everybody. time is 7:26. checking in with mike and the latest on an accident he has been following. >> palo alto up through middlefield road. avoid the area and head over to central expressway. the intersection closed after a major accident there. police expect to be on scene for a couple more hours. that's the reason they closed the on ramp and off-ramp. use an alternate for that portion of the area. the bay bridge despite rainy weather and slick conditions, a lighter wld because it is friday.

you will have the back up going to the overcrossing, but the rain is out there. >> the rain is moving across and not everybody is seeing the rain. it comes and goes moveing for south to north around fremont and the moisture is spilling in. a cool afternoon with the clouds and a few raindrops at times. 40s to mitt 50s. southerly winds for the weekend and we will bring up the temperatures and still have rain off and on all wait through the middle ok.nextee w more news after the break.

the state is ordering pge and to reduce pressure on n two natural gas lines as the cold snap is hitting the bay area. a lot of people use natural gas to heat homes. it is utility needs to cut pressure by 20% in the oakland to fremont line and the fremont to milpitas line. they blast pg&e for welding the pipe that ex-blowed in san bruno killing eight people. more local news in a half hour and the "today" show returns in less than a minute. see you back in a bit. ee

♪ you and me baby we're stuck ♪ you and me baby we're stuck like glue ♪ it's friday, december 17, 2010. christmas is one week away. we're going to show you some of the ways we made fools of ourselves in 2010. not enough time to show you all the ways. inside studio 1a, i'm meredith with matt. also ahead, a behind the scenes peek at the fun i had shooting a very, very small part for the new movie "gulliver's travels." >> of course we have serious news to cover as well.

charla gnash, the connecticut woman who was viciously attacked by a friend's pet chimpanzee goes back to the hospital that saved her life. let's go back to that florida school board shoot-out caught on tape last week. in a moment we'll talk to the security chief who brought down the gunman. but first, nbc's mark potter is in panama city, florida, with the latest. mark, good morning. >> reporter: members of the school board say they are convinced that mike jones saved their lives and they and the members of the community here say that no matter what mike says, he really is their hero. at a news conference in panama city, school board security chief mike jones tried to convince everyone he's not a hero, but no one bought it. >> i'm just glad they're all here and alive. i'm not a hero, folks, i just done my job. >> yes, you are. [ applause ] >> leave, you may leave, you may leave. >> reporter: on tuesday when clay duke threatened the school

board with a handgun, mark jones ran to the scene. when duke started shooting, jones opened fire. jones wounded duke who then shot and killed himself. jones thought he was too late fearing duke had killed superintendent bill husfelt. but it turned out he was right on time. >> when the superintendent came from behind that counter, and franklin harrison came and hugged me neck, that's when i lost it. and i cried just like i am now. but just to see him, it was like seeing a newborn baby for the first time. >> reporter: mike jones is no stranger to panama city. for more than two decades, he's been known as salvage santa, for fixing bicycles and providing gifts for needy children at christmas time. >> what a giving community, i love them. >> reporter: and love is returned.

school board member ginger littleton who used her purse in an unsuccessful attempt to use her purse to fwrart hthis wart attacker. is an unsuccessful attempt to -- even rebecca duke called him a hero. >> i know you were just doing what you were trained to do and i'm sorry that god had to choose you to do that because you are a kind, sweet, generous man, with all the things you do at christmas time. >> reporter: mike expressed his concern for the gunman's family saying his heart goes out to them. meredith? >> mark potter, thank you very much. mike jones and his wife are with us inside the room where the shooth out took place. good to you both. >> good morning. >> i want to know how you are feeling physically. right after the shooting you

suffered some heart complications. are you doing okay? >> i'm tired right now. i didn't sleep at all last night. i guess when the adrenaline dump, what my doctor said when they met us at the hospital, my heart took off and wouldn't slow down for some reason. >> i can imagine. being in that room right now where you exchanged gunfire with clay, i guess there were 14 shots fired. most of the holes have been covered up. there is one that is still showing, how are you feeling emotionally? >> well, this morning i'm a lot better. i think it helped a lot yesterday. i did about 25 interviews yesterday. every time i see the superintendent, i lose it. i start crying. >>fixin' to do it.

i didn't open the door hardly at all. i heard the first gunshot so i engaged him right then. i couldn't wait any longer. >> at that point did you think that the superintendent was dead? >> yes, ma'am. >> so when he stood up, that's when you say you lost it?

>> right. when i wentzwzwzwzwzwzwzwzwzwzwi went blank. i couldn't hear anything. all of the sudden the superintendent and franklin harrison, the school board attorney came up, i lost it right then. i could not believe they were alive. that man was two feet from them when he pulled the trigger. >> after 20 years on the police force before becoming a security guard, never having fired your gun before. the first thing that came to your mind after the shooting is what is the community going to think of me. what were you worried about? >> taking a life from someone. i am known as salvage santa. and this jolly, nice guy, and

known in the church. i just didn't want my fellow parish onners thinking badly of what had i done. there is not many people in this lifetime that have done that. i'm not proud of it. i just did my job. i done what i was trained to do and thank god that all that kicked in when this happened. >> colleen, members of the community are calling mike a hero this morning. is that how you see him? >> absolutely. he didn't have to go in that room. he could have waited until all the other police officers showed up as back up. he couldn't. he has a big heart. he always feels responsible for the world. that's his nature and it didn't surprise me at all that he ran into that building, into that room. >> mike, you are, obviously considered a hero by members of

the community but you are known for the things you do every day as salvage santa. we did contact schwinn and they wanted to donate 500 bikes and helmets. you have changed so many lives. how has this experience changed your life? >> 500 bicycles? >> we changed it that way. once again focusing on the kids instead of yourself. >> you might want to call an ambulance. my heart's fixin' to race again. that is so awesome. there's so many kids in our community that need help. we still had 300, 400, 500 kids on the pick an angel tree. i went on the radio station and asked for some help for them as

well. this is awesome. >> we wish -- mike, we wish you -- >> i don't know what to say. >> you don't have to say a thing. we want to say thank you for joining us. and i know the school board wants to thank you for all your efforts as well. merry christmas to you both. >> thank you for having us. >> now let's head outside for a check of the weather with al. >> we have got all of our friends down here. this is a huge crowd. yeah. whoa. man. let's check your weather and see what's going on. we are talking about the potential of a big, big storm, sunday morning, it's off the carolina coast, moves up the coast and brings snow from washington, d.c. to boston. but if it moves closer to shore, we could be talking about heavy snow from washington, d.c., new york city, boston on into new england. it's still too early to tell

what track this thing's going to take, if it moves further out, we're not going to see any snow in new york city, maybe a little light snow in boston. you can check the weather channel over the weekend, see what's going on, but in the meantime, we're talking about a lot of rain today down in the southeast, as this storm system develops. and out west, heavy rain, a lot of snow, winds up in the pacific northwest. lake-effect snow continues in the eastern great lakes, syracuse will pick up another four to six inches of snow today, sunny skies through the central plains. that >> here's a soggy looking bay bridge toll plaza and light rain at the moment. the rest of the bay area with pockets of rain around mountain view and a lot of moisture. the heft heaviest rain will be aimed in on the central california coastline, but rain off and on. cool temperatures and breezy and mild to start off the weekend.

we will see off and on rain all wait through the middle of next week with heavy rain likely late on tuesday. >> don't forget to check your weather any i'm on the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. this weekend, we're talking about a big one. that's right. because sunday night, football night in america. oh, man. the packers, taking on the patriots in gillette stadium. the last ten times it snowed in new england, the patriots came out victorious. out of the last three games, they scored like 140 points, to 15 for their opponents. this is going to be a big one. cloudy and cold, temperatures mid to upper 20s, on sunday night, football night in america. meredith, patriots playing. meredith. >> up next, kate middleton's lunch date with the royal family. g here,

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♪ [ grandma ] okay. ♪ ah. then we will all do it together. treats. teets...teets...teets... yeah. look at this. [ female announcer ] it seems like the best family traditions always start in the kitchen. ♪ rice krispies®. happy holidays. we're back now at 7:44. kate middleton doesn't become an official member of the royal family until april 29. but she took a big step toward that on thursday when she attended her first family reunion. stephanie gosk is at buckingham palace with details. >> reporter: good morning, matt, on a rare snowy day in london. it's intimidating for anyone to meet the future in-laws anywhere, but imagine meeting

the entire extended family. aunts, uncles, cousins who also happen to be dukes, duchesss, princes and princesses and the party's being thrown by your fiance's grandmother, the queen of england. kate middleton isn't officially a member of the royal family yet, but an invitation to the queen's annual christmas lunch ---both kate and william attended the annual gathering at buckingham palace on thursday. >> this is the first time she met the entire royal family in one place at the same time and royal experts say it had to be an extremely daunting experience. >> and kate has only met the queen once before. >> the whole notion that kate and the queen have had lunches together or cups of tea by themselves is not true. really kate has had very little interaction with the queen because the queen stays busy.

>> reporter: kate is smiling from ear to ear, perhaps a sign that everyone went well, perhaps a sign that the future princess was relieved it was over. >> there's so much that the go wrong, so the fact that she emerged from this meeting with a smile from ear to ear is an indication of how it went. >> it is quite a stuffing environment. the royals at christmas is a very regimented, what is the day before christmas eve and the day itself is run like clock work with precision. >> reporter: but this year, prince william, a rescue pilot for the royal air force will be on duty at his air base in wales. convenient for kate who will get to spend the day with her family. once a princess, there will be no escaping a royal christmas. the palace has been asked for new guidelines for wedding

paraphernalia. they only want things that are permanent and significant. no the doubt that tea towel news is going to come as a crushing blow for women across this country. >> and for some of us men too, thanks, stephanie.

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"gi "gulliver's travels" comes out on christmas day. they called in a little known actress by the name of meredith viera to play a liliputian. imagine our surprise. it wasn't until i went to the cannes film festival in may that i realized what a great actor meredith had become. to be working with the giants of the motion picture industry was pretty impressive. even if it meant playing one of the little people. but our meredith made the most of her two-day shoot. she got to develop her own character. >> not a tramp, but the friendly girl. >> display her extraordinary talent. >> we'll miss you.

>> what if this is really huge? would you be anastasia? >> yes. >> and even spent quality time with her co-stars. >> i have also found it works just to get naked. that's how i made it. these are pictures that i have liked for a long time and i just put them up. they inspire me. i don't know why i did that. >> anding th inthen it was time to work. her one line consisted of just two words. but meredith gave it her all and in the end it really paid off. i cannot wait to see the finished product. >> well, you want to wait a little bit. they cut my scene. >> no! >> i'm not in the movie.

>> the director's cut? >> but you're not in the movie? >> that wasn't even the end. if i was in that movie, it was by far the best scene of the movie. >> they cut it? >> they had two scenes that sort of screamed ending so they cut out mine. >> that happened to kevin costner once and he had a big career. so now you have potentially good karma coming. >> in truth, rob letterman and jack black called me and told me. they said the same thing, a lot of famous people have been cut from movies. >> but you got a call from jack black? >> and i got a call from my lawyer. so it's all going to be fine. >> and then it turns ugly. >> it was funny how. . >> you were a friendly town member? >> hello, santa.

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>> good morning. 7:56 and i'm brent cannon. mike has an update on the situation in palo alto. >> we have the sigalert which was canceled. the san antonio on and off-ramps are open, but avoid westbound san antonio starting and taking you over to middle field. that side of the road is closed by the major accident at middlefield and san antonio. a car went into a tree and a lot of police activity. through the area, it's typical even forever a friday. northbound 101. jammed up and an earlier accident cleared, but quite a distraction. it's causing the slow down and causes a ripple effect. >> we did have rain earlier. things kind of calmed down and

showers actually kind of moved on from san francisco and oakland. light mist there and you can see how the moisture it's falling in the form of heavy snow. turning breezy and this afternoon highs in the 40s and 50s and the story for the weekend is this is not nonstop rain. it's in and out at times and heaviest rain from santa cruz southward and the bay area sees the heaviest rain coming up tuesday and wednesday of next week.we 7:57. more news after the break. ♪electronic santa song

♪electronic santa song

>>. >> two men will stand trial in the death of chauncy bailey despite charges against them. a judge said they will stand trial for the killing of three men in 2007. one of them was the oakland journalist. the former leader of the bakery said evidence favorable to the defense should have been propertied to a grand jury last year. more local news in a half hour and the "today" show returns in less than a minute. see you in a bit.

i knew if i lived long enough, my dreams would come true, and they have. >> can you spot fakes? why'd you look at -- >> hey, hey! >> roker! >> 8:00 now on a friday morning. it's the 17th day of december, 2010. beautifully chilly morning here in the northeast. perfect for the holiday season. and we've got a huge crowd gathered as we watch some of the highlights, the fun highlights, of our last year. coming up, a stroll down memory lane. >> yeah.

you know videotapes can be our friend, but in our case, not so much. but we had a lot of fun over the year and we'll show you some of the highlights. or lowlights, depending on how you look at it. >> is that -- >> no, that's you. >> no, that's natalie. >> no, that's me. >> but there's you, mr. wise guy. >> anyway, we've got a lot of that coming up. but before we get to that, let's go inside. ann curry back from being a little under the weather. she's at the news desk with all the headlines. >> thanks so much, matt. in the news this morning, wikileaks founder julian assange appeared on this program this morning and called for the rape and document release investigation against him to be conducted in the open. >> something is wrong in the united states that such an investigation against me and, in effect, my organization, and, indeed, now, we see serious calls against "the new york times" as well, that all of that is to be conducted in secret. >> assange is under house arrest after being freed on bail thursday after spending nine days in a british jail.

this afternoon, president obama will sign a massive bipartisan tax bill approved by the house overnight. it extends tax cuts and jobless benefits and includes a new cut in social security taxes. meantime, senate democratic leaders walked away last fright from a $1.3 trillion spending plan that includes $8 billion in earmarks. federal officials plan to roll out a new public education campaign with advice on surviving a nuclear attack. they urge people not to flee and instead to seek shelter indoors. actress julie andrews says her husband, filmmaker blake edwards, will be, "missed beyond words." edwards wrote, produced, and directed nearly 50 films, including the "pink panther" series and "breakfast at tiffany's." he won lifetime achievement awards from both the writer's guild and the motion picture academy. blake edwards died late wednesday from complications of pneumonia. he was 88 years old. it is now 8:02. let's go back outside for a

check of the weather with al. hey, al. >> how you doing there? they just got engaged! congratulations. what's your name? >> rachel and tyler. >> so you're not going to get anymore words in. >> let's check your weather, see what's happening. ci'll show you for today, pick ty, pocatello, idaho. cold. 26 degrees. some areas picking up up to 10 inches of rain in the upper elevations. a lot of mountain snows, lake-effect snow, eastern great lakes. more wet weather as that low pressure works its way up the coast. looking at showers in northern california, northern florida into southern georgia. lake-effect snow and then windy conditions in the pacific nort here's a look at san jose right now where you can see we still have clouds and a little bit of light rain falling. you can see the showers there. the showers have moved out of the area into the sacramento

valley. but plenty of moisture will continue to bring rain off and on at times turning windy for saturday. then heavy rains for the coastal areas sunday and monday followed up by more rounds of rain at least through wednesday of next week. temperatures staying close to 60 around the inland valleys. >> that's your latest weather. a look back at this year and all the fun we had, right after this. ♪ [ laughter ] ♪ [ male announcer ] for tim and richard smucker, giving a gift of their delicious jam always made the holidays just a little bit sweeter. we forgot to put our names on them! richard, i think they'll know who it's from. ♪ thank you, boys. you're welcome. you're welcome. [ male announcer ] happy holidays from our family to yours. i love christmas.

we get double miles on every purchase. so we earned a holiday trip to the big apple twice as fast! dinner! [ garth ] we get double miles every time we use our card. and since double miles add up fast, we can bring the whole gang! it's hard to beat double miles! i want a maze, a sword, a... oww! [ male announcer ] get the venture card from capital one and earn double miles on every purchase, every day. go to capitalone.com. i wonder what it could be?! what's in your wallet?

i wonder what it could be?! hi. chili's tonight? do i know you? yeah. your mother's brother went to summer camp with my uncle's friend's accountant. we're practically family. jason? who? my mom's brother's accountant. yeah. that guy is a maniac. okay. i love jason. isn't he a riot? chili's $20 dinner for two. all you need is somebody to go with. share one appetizer, choose two entrees. now with crispy fried shrimp. just $20 for two at chili's. back now at 8:07, as "today" celebrates 2010, the cold weather around the holidays can mean only one thing. >> it's time for our annual look back at the good times we have had in the past year.

♪ hello ♪ good morning ♪ hello ♪ good morning ♪ hello ♪ america right about now you're turning your lights down ♪ ♪ hello ♪ good morning >> very nice. >> i miss you. >> i missed you too. >> you are the epitome of aging gracefully. >> thank you very much. >> if we were to get involved in a paint ball competition the four of us, who do you think would win?

>> ann. >> why do you say that so quickly? >> she can take you on. >> they're real and they're spectacular. >> yes, they are. >> that's the point. >> i'm not going to get into the "american idol" story and speculate about who's going to replace those judges, but just note, meredith is not here. meredith takes one day off and she doesn't waste any time getting to the couch. you say the side of the package is very important? >> it actually is important because the trick some of thesethese retailers will use is to shrink the size of the package. >> i'm sorry. something struck me as funny. >> do you have a load in your pants? no. >> we're going to end this madness.

>> it's tuesday or booze day, wednesday to you, it's wines day here. >> why do you continue to mock our show? >> have you seen your show? >> we talked to sting when we were walking out. he is so sexy. >> hoda. >> no. it was embarrassing. >> hoda had to change her spanx if you know what i mean. ♪ wave your hands in the air like you don't care ♪ ♪ we're going to party like it's the end of the world. you know it doesn't matter as long as we got each other ♪

♪ cut it up match it up cut it up ♪ ♪ it ain't the end of the world ♪ >> our producer for the day is meredith vieira. what do you want us to do? >> i want you to snap it up. >> the happiest of happy hours, whooo! >> the gang's all here. ♪ i want a ticket to a place called canada ♪ >> kevin, and i should say for the record, yay! ♪ >> and i'm holding in my hand a piece of olympic history. >> who's wearing these pants?

>> golfers. >> there's a snowball with your name on it, lauer. ♪ hey, al, i can see what's happening in your neck of the woods. >> i like this. >> the eye of the wind. ♪ ♪ so much beauty in the world ♪ all together now ♪ there is beauty in the world ♪ >> it is an unbelievable scene

here, it's impossible to have a dry eye. >> don't forget, everybody, do what you can to lend a hand today. ♪ ♪ unforgettable ♪ don't stop ♪ the party don't stop ♪ no one can tell me that i'm doing wrong ♪ ♪ you're pulling through it

♪ i want to do it ♪ ♪ sing it, new york >> we talked to these folks because they potentially had the best dancers so i know who that will take. >> too bad they call them the bush tax cuts. maybe they would have a better chance of being extended if they were the lauer tax cuts. ♪ >> who do you think took longer

to do their hair this morning, robert downy jr. or the situation? >> let's see them again. >> just ahead, i knew if i lived long enough, my dreams would come true and they have. anthony, i want a commitment from you that you're not going to mess around. >> you're hot. >> i knew you guys were drunk. ♪ >> all right, let me bring out our last model. >> oh, there you are. >> oh, no! ♪ >> thank you, new york.

thank you! ♪ >> would it bother you if i did this? >> absolutely. >> i have been staring at that for the entire segment. >> that's my favorite. >> oh, no, we have a fire. ♪ >> are we loving that? >> not really. ♪ you and me baby we're stuck like glue ♪ ♪ stuck like glue ♪ you and me baby we're stuck like glue ♪ ♪ oh, oh, >> this is a special no makeup

zone edition of "today." >> here it is. this is us. >> this is the real me. i'm scaring little children at home right now. ♪ ♪ check it out ♪ check it out >> that is so cool, natalie, bob marley called and said he wanted his hat back. >> if left to my own devices, that is what i look like. >> you look different. >> i knew i should have taken the train. ♪

>> i know you guys never make mistakes, but we do here. >> you're right, mr. roker. it's amazing. >> natalie morales. >> now here's brian williams with what's coming up tonight. >> we're back. i'm sorry. let's go inside, ann curry is standing by with a -- no we did that already. >> what's coming up? >> it's your line! >> off the air. >>. ♪ when i see your face >> you have children ages 13 to 18. why did you stop? >> i stopped because i was caught on the couch necking with my boyfriend.

>> the shorelines here that have now been oiled. >> taking one for the team, swallowing a bug for breakfast there, mark. ♪ >> that's not funny. here's the billboard. right in front of our hotel. and take a look at that, who'sa liliputian with the parted red hair? that is our own investmeredith ruling cannes. ♪ i don't need anything but you ♪ ♪ we will we will rock you

♪ thank you for being a friend ♪ travel down the road and back again ♪ >> me, a drink with jam and bread ♪ ♪ that will bring us back to doe ♪ >> this will go down as one of the strangest things we have ever done. ♪ ♪ going to go all night ♪ we're going to light it up ♪ like it's dyno mite >> do your co-workers get on your nerves? what are you implying? >> nothing about you, it's matt lauer i'm thinking about. ♪ note

♪ today's going to be a good day ♪ ♪ today's going to be a good good day ♪ listen ♪ ♪

>> boy, that was fantastic. >> a lot of good times there. >> we had fun. >> we had a lot of fun. >> erica gets to keep her job. >> she prodeuce uproproduces fo. >> not bad. >> nice job. >> yeah, great job. >> we'll be back with much more

after your local news and weather. [ woman ] we try to be perfect. we pretend high-heels don't hurt and that we can handle anything life throws at us. but there are times that we need a moment to remember. we're only human. that's more than enough. your moment. your dove™.

hellllllo...that one, everyone looks great. [ female announcer ] when you make your christmas cards at hallmark.com... my show, perfect. ♪ la la la la la la laaa ♪ [ daughter ] dad! sorry. aww yeah! that one! [ female announcer ] ...we address and mail them for you... [ little boy ] now that's a good one. [ indistinct conversations ] [ female announcer ] ...which gives you more... done! [ female announcer ] ...family time. let's go decorate the tree. [ female announcer ] cards that mail themselves, at hallmark.com. [ daughter ] so, the one where everyone looks great, right? [ mom ] right. [ daughter ] so, the one where everyone looks great, right?

have you tried honey bunches of oats with real strawberries? wow. it's seriously strawberry. they're everywhere. it's in the bunches, on the flakes, even real strawberries in the mix. can i have some more? honey bunches of oats with real strawberries. it's delicious. nobody does it quite like us. we've taken all we know about reading and put it here. introducing nook color. experience millions of books like never before. relax with the magazines you love. anytime, anywhere share your favorite books

with your favorite people. and watch in amazement as your children's stories come to life. books, magazines, newspapers, and children's books, all at your fingertips. nookcolor by barnes and noble. good morning, once again. the time is 8:26. i'm brent cannon. lots of rain and trouble spots. >> it was friday light we thought but we have significant accidents. southbound 280 jammed. look, speeds below 15 miles per hour approaching 380 where there is an accident, flooding reported for 380 and 101 earlier. eastbound 92 an accident just clearing and slowing in both directions for 101 at 92. a live look at the san mateo bridge, where you can see the peninsula side, slick roads.

>> showing you an interesting picture, we have strong winds out of the west. and not so much as it spills into san jose. as you go to the north bay, up can see some showers heading off to the north and east away from the delta. but lots of clouds and moisture streaming on in. rain off and on today. highs running cool, 40s to low 50s today. we're going to be stuck with rain off and on through the middle part of next week. the time is 8:27. more news after the break.

a fair well ceremony is set in the east bay for more than 100 national guardsmen heading to afghanistan. from the 170th police company will leave for fort bliss texas and spend a year in afghanistan conducting security operations. this morning's farewell ceremony is set for 10:30 at dieablo valley college. we'll see you in a bit.

8:30 on this friday morning, the 17th day of december, 2010. and this is two-time oscar winner kevin spacey collecting toys for our 17th annual toy drive. he was nominated for a golden

global for one of his movies. we'll talk about that when he catch up. the woman who was attacked by a friend's pet chimpanzee, recently she had a reunion with the medical team that saved her life. we'll show you that reunion coming up. on a different note. who doesn't like a christmas tree? what do you think of christmas trees made by the skyler family? jenna bush hager is here and she's going to have a fantastic dish that celebrates america's melting pot. let's bring in the manager of -- good morning, happy holidays to you. you've done this for us in the past. love this. tell me what's new this year. >> we have got new, since al wasn't here last year, let me just share one thing with you.

you can see they have the laser operating in the plaza. and in the studio, you guys are featured in the lobby there in the studio. >> and there's meredith as a liliputian. >> and there's an ice rink and the tree here at rockefeller center over on this side and then we have radio city music hall which we have added new this year. >> that's great. >> and a the nutcracker christmas. >> do you have that on an lcd screen? >> technology has come to railroads. you can download pictures from the camera or you can see the camera's getting a good shot of that. and we have got santa and the reindeer. he's right up there.

>> this is so cool. >> this is always cool. >> it's great, we enjoy bringing this to you guys and to all the folks because railroad and christmas go together. they have for many, many years and it's a great way to bring the family together. >> now you have lionel train stores? >> yes, we do have lionel train stores. >> the folks at lionel train hooking us up this holiday. >> let's get the weather. >> let's check your weather, shall we? our weekend ahead, saturday we have got snow showers in the eastern great lakes, heavy rain

up and down the west coast with heavy snows inland, mild in florida, but there will be heavy rain. sunday, we're keeping an eye on a possible nor'easter that could bring heavy snow to the northeast. a lot of heavy snow in the rockies. the cascade mountain we've been watching off and on rain around the bay area. there's san francisco. you can see light rain. around san jose we've seen the rain move out of town. in oakland, some of the rain towards the delta. lots of snow flying in the sierra. we could be measuring snow by the foot as we head towards the weekend. cool day today, 40s and 50s and turning windy later tonight into tomorrow. a bit warmer for the weekend but all of that moisture will drop rain off and on through wednesday of next week. >> and that's your latest weather. can we do something on a personal note? we coulder like to offer our condolences to the friends and family members to a guy named

bill donovan who was a graphic artist for 19 years. he died this week of cancer. he was 58 years old. he was a guy that always left us smiling. he loved surfing, motorcycles and most of all he loved his wife and his daughter. he will be missed and our condolences again to the donovan family. we're back in a moment. this is "today" on nbc. lots of lotions promised healing. this one actually does it. [ female announcer ] gold bond ultimate healing lotion. nothing feels like it, smells like it, heals like it. gold bond. this stuff really works.

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we are back at 8:37. it has been nearly two years since charla nash was viciously mauled by a friend's chimpanzee. she survived due to the staff of stanford hospital. >> thank you for coming, it means a lot to us.

>> charla is a patient that this hospital will never forget. with her brother by her side and the trauma surgeon who helped save her life, she walked the hallways of a place few thought she would leave alive. 22 months ago she was rushed her clinging to life after a brutal attack she does not remember to this day. >> he's killing my friend? >> who's killing your friend? >> my chimpanzee. >> your chimpanzee is killing your sfrend? >> hurry up, please? >> the medical staff who saved charla nash's wife. >> we have our staff and our nurses here. they want to introduce themselves. >> i'm sue evans, i was in the e.r. the night you came in. >> i didn't get a hug. >> it was charla's chance to

personally thank the team that refused to give up on her. >> i just wondered what made you think i could make it through this? >> the second i met brianna, we all knew that's what got you through this. because you had something to live for and work for. it's amazing where you have come. >> they all came out to greet a very special patient. >> hi, i'm debbie mullins. i was a surgical tech, but i was there for you. >> thank you for your help. >> you're welcome. >> if it wasn't for these people here, i wouldn't be standing here. you all did a great job, thank you. merry christmas to everyone. >> aftshe now lives in an assis

living center outside of boston. she's hoping to be a candidate for face and hands transplant. attorneys for charla nash are taking steps to sue the state of connecticut for $150 million saying the state failed to prevent the attack on charla. a $2 million lawsuit has been filed against the estate of charla herold. >> if we don't have a stettalment within the next six months, we should have a trial. >> she traveled to stanford for a special day with a special group of people. >> the work they had to do to keep me alive, i really appreciate everyone. it was nice. >> a reunion at christmas time with a team that refused to give up on charla nash, for a nurse who cared for her, a patient she will admire forever. >> my three days with her, i'm going to remember for the rest

of my life. it was obviously it was an accident that doesn't happen, but also with her strength and, you know, i walked in that room and she made it through the e.r., she made it through surgery, she made it to us, she made it out of here. it's just so amazing that, you know, i'll never forget that. >> people at the hospital say that charla is now working on improving her strength so she can be a candidate for a facial transplant and a hand transplant. up next, two-time oscar winner kevin spacey, but first this is "today" on nbc. lightning fast. lightning strong.

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two-time academy award

winner kevin spacey has made his mark playing some very complex characters. he's at it once again in his latest film about the rise and fall of jack abramoff. you were a little surprised? >> i was a little surprised. i'm very honored and grateful for it because we'll talk about my director in a minute that he directed me to this performance. so for me, it feels like a tribute to george and his work and our friendship. but also the movie only opens today. so i'm very grateful that the members of the hollywood foreign press watched their screenings. >> when they see kevin spacey attached to a movie, they go find these screeners, they like you a lot and want to know what you're involved with. >> i am very fortunate to be nominated many times over the years. >> you say your director drew

you to this. basically it was a posting on a facebook wall that you would be great in this role. >> i don't think the managers were doing their job. but at a certain point, there was i think some dispute about who some of the producers wanted to have play this part. and journal wrote on his facebook page that i would be a good candidate. so we got in touch and george flew over to london. and we spent the day together. and we found that we had this fascination and at times frustration with the american political system. and this story was ripe for storytelling. >> i'm glad you're leading me in that lobbying

industry and what the film tries expose, although it's a very funny film and we have tried to make it very entertaining is the hypocrisy that exists to this day with respect to so much power and money invading the political process. >> was that a fly by to check out his mannerisms and his voice, or did you just want to pick his brain a little bit? >> it was both. i wanted to have a chance to meet the man. i didn't do any research prior to going and seeing him. because a lot of people made a lot of opinions about him and he was sort of really vilified in the media. and my job is not to play a sort of one note villainous character, but try to understand, with some degree of empathy put yourself in someone else's shoes and see how did these insufficients happen. >> he was at the premier, i understand? >> his kids were there.

>> did they like the film? >> they liked the film. i think parts of it are painful to watch, but i played him as a fully rounded human being. >> when hi saw him, was he happy that -- >> i think he was disappointed mostly that it wasn't george clooney playing it. >> the director, you mentioned earlier, george higenlooper passed away while promoting this film. what a tragedy. >> a little more than a month ago. it's been incredibly strange to go out and launching this movie without george by my side. he used to giggle off camera as we were doing scenes, i would have to say, george, shut up, we're doing scenes. he was exuberant and he loved

politics. he was at a rally when he passed away. but his cousin won the election and i thought that was a pretty good sign. since he didn't run a negative campaign, it was hopeful. >> i mentioned that you just got a golden globe nomination for this and i also wanted to mention that your production company was behind "social network" which received six nominations. this has been a big year for you. >> i am enormously proud of my partner who went to the academy awards as my assistant and now he might be going -- it's an incredible story, number one. but the book that the film is based on, we got incredibly lucky that sony pictures generally doesn't do movies about people talking in rooms. it's a story about relationships and david fisher did an extraordinary job and we're incredibly proud of it. >> i know you're doing a lot

more theater of t. you're going to do richard ii? >> and for the holidays, you head back to your new hometown of london? >> i do. >> which is great. enjoy them. congratulations on "casino jack" and it opens today in new york and los angeles. l thacacwie k or i mis " aybcod non.th

back now at 8:50 with our special series, education nation "today." a very special encounter for the five kids that appear in the documentary. here's nbc's education correspondent rehema ellis. >> reporter: the struggle for a good education in america comes to life in the film that showcases children's dreams. >> i want to be a nurse. >> i want to be a doctor. >>. >> reporter: and dpis appointment. in waiting for superman t five kids help turn up the heat in the national debate about education reform. >> people are getting engaged again on this issue. people are connecting to it through these kids. >> let's see if you can do this whole interview without smiling, okay? >> reporter: now these kids are connected to a world you could never imagine. they were cover kids on parade,

and they got an invite to a world famous house. >> tell me all the different feelings you're feeling. >> nervous, happy, excited, all these -- but like unexplainable. >> reporter: no surprise, the filmmaker made a minimovie about the children's special visit, a visit he says happened because of a chance encounter. >> a friend of mine came up and said i want to meet bianca. he said i want to meet her. i said this gentleman works at the white house. she said you work at the white house? i want to meet the president. >> what do you say to him? >> do you want to play basketball? >> what are you going to say to him? >> if i don't pass out? >> hey, how are you guys? good to see you. >> i'm excited. >> for what? >> for today.

>> you can't let other people tell you what to do. >> i got to meet the president. >> thank you, francisco. >> five kids, dazzled by where a movie has taken them and what they have done for a cause. for "today," rehema ellis, nbc news, new york. >> and during our education nation initiative back in september, american express pledged to do their part to benefit education in >> g good d mornrning.g. >> this is one big check for a million dollars. with all the charities out there, what made you decide to put the money towards donors choose. >> we are so proud to present

this donation to donors choose. this program is supporting the lives of students and teachers. plus we know that our community is really passionate about the great work that charles and hiss team at donors choose are doing. so on behalf of american express, i'm very pleased to present you with this check. >> thank you so, so much. this is incredible. >> what does this money mean to this organization? >> this amazing gift means that 70,000 kids in 2,500 classrooms across america are going to get the books t art supplies, the microscopes the field trips that they need to learn when their teachers' project are brought to life. >> you log on and decide what you want to do with education, and you can do it. >> anybody with even $5 to give can be an education fi philanthropi

philanthropist. >> we're back after your local news.

good morning, checking in with mike we've been keeping a tab on hot spots. 880. >> an 880 slowdown starts every day, even on a friday, things jamming up around the coliseum. but traffic is flowing pretty well on the right.

travel times reflect the same. 21 minutes and 24 slow out of the calecott tunnel and that's typical. look at the east shore freeway, very nice but you have the backup at thre mola remos r te. ♪

♪ you can find your feet and you can find your way ♪ ♪ you can find yourself in bed at the end of the day ♪ ♪ you can find some fun on a tropical isthmus ♪ ♪but you'll never find my... ♪ you can find it in your heart to be patient with me ♪ ♪ you can find a new star for the top of the tree ♪ ♪ i don't mean to be coy and i don't mean to be vicious ♪ ♪ but you'll never find my christmas ♪ we've all heard the saying, all that's gold does not glitter. an camera shows an elderly woman with two men suspected of selling her a fool's gold bar. the victim withdrew money in order to buy what they shout was a bar of gold valued to be twice

that much but it turns out to be fool's gold. have a great friday morning. we'll see you back here in a bit.

we're back now with mor "today" on a monday morning. it is the 17th day of december, 2010. that christmas tree just looks better and better as the holiday is fast approaching. people from all around the world ready to descend on rockefeller plaza, do a little sigh seeing, a little shopping. we've got a lot of those people in our plaza this morning. we thank them for stopping by. i'm matt lauer along with natalie morales and al roker. we all know julian assange has been released from a british jail where he was awaiting

extradition to sweden. he's now going to fight that extradition on charges of sexual molestation. we spoke to him in a live interview from outside london early this morning. coming up in just a couple of minutes, you'll hear what julian assange had to say about the charges against him and of course the whole idea of wikileaks, the documents that have been released. >> now under house arrest but at a mansion. >> mansion arrest. >> exactly. also ahead, what could have been an enormous tragedy. you all remember that shocking video that we saw earlier this week. an armed man held florida school board members at gunpoint and started shooting. after he started firing, a brave security guard shot him and managed to save everyone else. despite his incredible bravery, he does not consider himself a hero. we'll hear from him and his wife in just a moment. he's truly the most humble man in america. >> he's a hero. >> absolutely. >> he is a hero. >> you look in the dictionary, you'll see his picture. as we move around new york

city, you get a real sense of how great the food is around new york. well, we're going to take you along with martha samuelson and show you how the different cultures and cuisines are all coming together to create the new american holiday table. jenna is taste testing and she's going to give us a sample. before we get to that, let's go inside. ann has all the headlines. good morning once again, everybody. in the news, president obama today signs the $850 billion bill package of tax cut extensions passed by the house overnight. it includes a renewal of expired long-term jobless benefits. meantime the senate abandoned a $1.3 trillion spending bill and is working on a smaller version to keep the government funded into the new year. wikileaks founder julian assange appeared on this program this morning and denounced the sex crime allegations against him. >> this has been a very successful smear campaign so far, but i think its days are

numbered and people are starting to wonder is what is claimed really true, and if it is true, where's the evidence. >> assange is under house arrest after being freed on bail on thursday. wintry weather is blamed for at least five traffic deaths thursday in the midwest and the south, including three in alabama. drivers in roanoke, virginia, were tested by snow and freezing drizzle that forced stores to close early. dangerous toxins from cigarette smoke may stick around long after a smoker moves out of the home. according to a stewedy scientists call thirdhand smoke can endanger non-smokers who move in for months. walmart is recalling 2.2 million space heaters sold between october 2001 and october 2009. they can pose a fire and burn hazard. nasa has made an amazing discovery on titan, one of saturn's moons. it's a volcano spewing slushy

ice instead of lava. since the surface of titan is frozen, scientists believe there may be heat underground, an essential ingredient for sustaining life. new hope for americans confined to wheelchairs. it's called the rewalk exo skelton and it's a computerize can move a person's legs while maintaining safety and balance. it will become available next year in the united states. not all reindeers have shiny noses so reindeer in norway are getting fitted with a new winter accessory, reflective collars, to cut down on traffic accidents. it is now four minutes past the hour. let's go back outside to matt. >> thank you very much. al, this lady said here she wants some warmer weather. >> well, around may i think we'll be able to help her out. this is the greatest snow suit i have ever seen. who's this? >> this is hudson. he wanted to come say high to

nana and papa in seattle today. >> this is just fabulous. i love it. how old is he? >> he's six months. >> congratulations. merry christmas! >> merry christmas, al! >> don't leave him out in the sun too long. that's why he has a diaper on, he'll have a puddle. let's check it out and show you what's going on. for today, we've got the pineapple express rocketing into the west coast bringing a lot of ' heav the coast,+ mountain snows. y-j(p' see the rain is alread9$ developing along5. the west$t 7. inland snowfal amounts, somer areas picking upyç 5 to 7 feet snow. you can see the winter storm warnings, watches and advisories extending to the rockies. rainfall, we're talking anywhere from 5 to 7 inches of rain. some areas locally in the upslope mountain regions could pick up to 10 inches of rain. a lot of stuff going on. here's a look at san jose. we have light rain or drizzle,

take your pick. we have rain in the santa clara valley heading towards palo alto. more substantial rain inland out towards santa rosa. you can see the moisture spilling off the pacific. should see highs in the 40s to mid-40s. we'll see more mild temperatures to start off the weekend with rain drops off an on through the weekend into early next week. your latest weather. of course we're in the midst of our toy drive. joseph bloomenthal is here this for a second year in a row. we are donating 20,000 books. literacy is the key to learning and we're thrilled to be part of it. >> we appreciate that. thank you so much. >> thank you very much. >> now let's head back inside to natalie. >> al, thank you. security chief mike jones is being hailed a hero for taking down a gunman at a florida school board meeting earlier

this week. meredith spoke to jones and his wife, colleen, earlier this morning. she began by asking him at what point did he know he had to get into that room. >> when i was looking through the door and i saw him square his back to me and put both arms in front of him with his weapon, then i knew he was fixing to do -- i hadn't even opened the door hardly at all and i heard the first gunshot. so i engaged him right then. i couldn't wait any longer. >> at that point did you think that the superintendent was dead? >> yes, ma'am. >> so when he stood up, that's when you say you lost it? >> when i went down the aisle and took the gun out of mr. duke's hand and threw it over to the side, it was kind of like everything just went blank. i couldn't hear anything and i was just like in a wind tunnel

or something. all of a sudden the superintendent and franklin harrison, the school board attorney, came up and i lost it right then. i could not believe they were alive. that man was two feet from him when he pulled the trigger. >> now, mike, this is something that you said 20 years on the police force and being a security guard, never had fired your gun at someone and it has weighed heavily on you since. i know you sought counsel with your preacher to get right with god, as you said. the first thing that came to your mind after the shooting is what is the community going to think of me. what were you worried about? >> you know, taking a life from someone. i'm known as salvage santa, and this jolly nice guy, you know, in the church. i just didn't want my fellow parishioners thinking bad about what i had done. taking a life is a very serious thing. there's not very many people in

this lifetime that say they have done that. i'm not -- i'm not proud of it. i just did my job. i done what i was trained to do. thank god that all that kicked in when this happened. >> you know, colleen, the members of the community are calling mike a hero, whether he likes it or not. is that how you see him this morning? >> absolutely. absolutely. he didn't have to go into that room. he could have waited till all the other police officers showed up as backup. he just -- he couldn't. he's got a big heart. he has -- he always feels like he's responsible for the world. and that's -- that's his nature and it didn't surprise me at all that he ran into that building, into that room. >> you know, mike, you are obviously considered a hero by the members of your community but you're also known for the things that you do every day as salvage santa to help the needy kids in your area. we did contact schwinn and they wanted to donate 500 bikes and helmets to your cause so those

will be coming your way in time for christmas. you've changed so many lives, mike. this experience on tuesday, how has it changed your life? >> 500 bikes? is that what you said? >> well, it certainly changed it that way. once again focusing on the kids instead of yourself. >> you might want to call an ambulance, my heart is racing. wow, that is so awesome, you know. there's so many kids in our community that need help. you know, i'm on the board of directors of the salvation army and we still had three or four or 500 kids still on the pick an angel tree this week. i went on the radio station today before this shooting and asked for some help for them as well. wow, this is awesome. >> what a sweet, sweet man. again, that was meredith earlier with mike jones and his wife, colleen. coming up next, how the traditional christmas meal is changing. jenna bush ha hager takes us on

culinary tour of new york right after this. is changing. so i went back to my doctor again. we chose symbicort to help control my asthma symptoms all day and night. [ man ] symbicort improves my lung function, starting within 15 minutes. symbicort will not replace a rescue inhaler for sudden symptoms. it is a combination of two medicines and should not be taken more often than prescribed. symbicort contains formoterol. medicines like formoterol increase the risk of death from asthma problems, and children and adolescents may have an increased risk of being hospitalized for asthma problems. symbicort is not for people whose asthma is well controlled with a long-term asthma control medicine like inhaled corticosteroids. once your asthma is well controlled, your doctor will decide if you can stop symbicort without loss of control, and prescribe a long-term asthma control medicine. be sure to see your doctor if your asthma does not improve or gets worse. symbicort is a good choice to help control my asthma all day and night. [ inhales ] [ exhales ] ask your doctor if symbicort is a good choice for you. [ male announcer ] if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help.

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this morning jenna bush hager is taking us in search of some great eats that are probably unlike anything you've ever had before for the holidays. >> that's right. esteemed chef marcus samuelsson, author of the "new american table" took me on the journey to find the meaning of the new holiday meal and it's definitely not your parents' turkey and mashed potatoes. filipino rolls and salmon. it may seem like simply ethnic dishes, yet a day spent eating with chef marcus samuelsson in new york prove they symbolize so much more during this holiday season. >> how would you define the new american meal? >> i know one thing, it's yummy. that's what i know it is. but it will always change and for each family, it's different. >> and to taste these different cuisines we didn't need to travel far. first to brooklyn, new york, to

a family who mench merged their cultures to a filipino-swedish christmas. >> is this a typical meal in sweden? >> absolutely. you could not have a christmas dinner without meatballs. it's on every christmas table. >> another swedish holiday staple, herring, which i was a little afraid to try. >> it's very swedish. >> it took my mom about five years to appreciate this. >> i wonder if it will take me five minutes. let's see. ooh! good. >> 7now one thing that's good is nothing -- >> every time i make it i think of my father who taught me how to cook. so now i definitely cook better than he does. i will say that. >> next, harlem to christian lopez and leslie's, where latin cuisine and traditions were promised. we started with what helps keep

the people warm, where christian's family originated. >> so this is ecuadorean hot shock lat. >> absolutely. >> the ceremonial christmas eve dish, right? >> that looks good. >> it's pork shoulder. >> very important that you use your hands because actually using a knife will affect the taste. it's a very rustic kind of meal. so get your hands dirty. >> it's really, really good. how important is it to you that your daughter is raised respecting different types of food, different types of cultures? >> it's extremely importanant. we want for her to really $eh- nt for her to really to always want to try$2 new things. >> oh, she do you likedc it?

>> this is like the turkey in your christmas dinner, right? >> yes. it's the main dish. we have also -- >> and i notice there's no forks, right? >> dig in. >> you have to take a chance. >> we have to take a chance? i like that. >> what's amazing is that it's not just a bread, sourdough made with one of the oldest grains in the world. >> this is sort of like your fork too, right? >> absolutely. we have new americana which is sort of rooted in traditional america but also the tastes=]! immigrants and tastes of the society, and i think >> reporter: three families sharing traditions on their own

new american tables. food that across all cultures this holiday, we have much to celebrate. we should mention that marcus's love of his new home harlem has inspired him to open a new restaurant, the red rooster and it opens tonight. >> this story has us all salivating. >> and you brought us some stuff. >> if you want to try it. they put it with the swedish sauce and it's traditional with corn nuts and the sauce. and if anybody really wants to dig in. and then this is t as they say in america, cheers. >> happy holidays. >> eat, drink and be merry, right? >> still to come, the ultimate

holiday gift guide for everyone on your list. after these messages. and melt with you ♪ stop thd ♪ i'll stop the world ♪ ♪ i will stop the world ♪ ♪ you've seen the difference ♪ ♪ and it's getting better all the time ♪ ♪ i will stop the world ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world and melt with you ♪ ♪ i'll stop the world ♪

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maybe this sounds familiar, 3:00 a.m. feedings, baby blankets, teaching your children right from wrong.

maria met one woman who's doing just that for dozens of babies. maria, good morning. >> good morning, and these are baby elephants, they're orphans and they're part of a very memorable extended family in nairobi, kenya. at six weeks old, she's waking up. nearby, 18 other orphans are in need of a stretch, a push and even a morning cuddle. their keepers guide them every step of the way. for over 30 years the davis shelter wildlife trust has been rescuing babies like these. and they're teaching them what their moms would have taught them had they not been victims of poaching. before he was rescued, he went by his dying mother's side for hours. those kinds of traumatic memories are one of the many reasons keepers stay with the elephants 24 hours a day, even sleep with them at night and feed them ever three hours. >> they all have different

characters. some are very cheerful, very playful, very calm, very shy. >> how did you guys figure out to use a blanket? he has spent the last 50 years living with and learning from orphaned african elephants as the species is increasingly threatened by human conflict and ivory poaching. >> all that we know has come from her. how to give them the care that they need. >> daphne is the widow of famed conservationist david shelton. this has become her life's work. >> so there wasn't this big research team, it was you? >> no none of the reserves could help us. they had never ever been able to raise an infant elephant themselves. >> reporter: now a world renowned expert, she has successfully raised 130 elephants into adult hood and released them into the wild. but it has not been without

heart break. one of the first orphans she raised from infancy died from grief when daphne took a brief trip. >> you learn the hard way. >> reporter: ever since, the keepers rotate each night so no baby grows too attached. the work has always been part of the family with the help of daughters julie and angela. >> when you see the elephants growing a huge herd there and she can stand back and say, but for i, it's a good feeling. >> you have to love them, because an elephant can read your heart. >> reporter: it turns out the biggest lesson learned is that elephants are as human as the rest of us. >> they absolutely are and if you're looking for a great christmas gift, you can foster a baby elephant in your child's name and follow their progress as they grow up.

you can go to todayshow.com. >> thanks, maria. still to come, we're going to show you how to spruce up your traditional holidays with christmas trees. if you think all batteries are the same... consider this: these duracell batteries were given... to the mattel children's hospital, u.c.l.a. because when it comes to kids and healing... you're not just powering a toy. you're powering a smile. duracell. trusted everywhere.

good morning, it's 9:26. busy on the wet roads. >> it was not a pleasant friday. lighter volume allows things no matter how heavy to clear up early. we have the metering lights on. still some wet roads but not so bad at the toll plaza. you can't even see the peninsula side. we're getting into that weather. the south bay shows general slowing but over the santa cruz really jamming down. i would imagine something went through there. >> and it's still happening. around the west side of the

santa cruz mountains to the west of san jose, up to the north bay pretty substantial rain across the higher hilltops in the north bay. look at the upper level winds aiming in like an arrow, firing in wave after wave of rain. 40s and 50s for high and for the weekend, rain at times heaviest for the santa cruz mountains and hilltops in the north bay. more rain for the middle part of next week. the time is 9:26. re news after the brk. af

twizzlers. the twist you can't resist. 9:26, a bay area important og fehr wants to be part of the community and will spend millions of dollars doing it. he owns the army on 14th and mission streets in san francisco. you may recall several protests years ago. he wants to turn part of it into a community center while he

continues to produce porn in a different section. he insists children will not be exposed to the xxx content. comprehensixpren extensive works. the teenagers accused of setting a south bay elementary school on fire are expected in court today to enter pleas. they are being charged with arson and are expected to be tried as adults. the july fire caused $10 million in damage to trace elementary school in san jose. more local news for you coming up in about 30 minutes. the "today" show returns in less than a minute. [ female announcer ] safeway talks gift ideas. music makes a great gift. i like rock, hip-hop, country... and you are telling me this, why? i...uh...thought you might be my secret santa? no. i'm giving for skunk. uh, i can hear you. no. not you. the other skunk.

[ female announcer ] safeway is the place to stock up on itunes gift cards. right now, save $6 on a $40 4-pack. keep 'em on hand. only at safeway. ingredients for life. you may have heard of the big wedding coming up next year. well, prepare to say goodbye to 2010, a lot of people are looking forward to the new year and the royal wedding of prince william and kate middleton monday on "today." we're going to talk to the author of a new biography. i don't know where he gets that. >> some people, they know how to rake it in. we'll be talking about our holiday gift guide. >> and we have a profile of the couples' baby too. >> they have been together eight

years. there's always a few people on that list every year that are very, very hard to buy for, right? this morning, "instyle" magazine ensures you have something for everyone, from your co-workers to picky teens. we have got some unique ideas to suit every taste. >> especially for people who haven't actually bought their tree yet. like me, they need to kind of get on the --. also coming up, we have got some amazing holiday recipes. but first we have got amy robach who has a look at what's coming up this weekend on "today." >> we're going to look at how the popular website the huffington post is trying to lift the stigma of divorce. and you mentioned next year's royal wedding, coming up

how prince william's late mother princess diana is playing a big role in the runup to the ceremony. the doctor who underwent that double hand transplant goes home for the holidays. and saturday marks one week until christmas. if you haven't started your shopping yet, ann hasn't bought a tree, some people haven't started shopping yet. don't worry, we have some last minute gift ideas for you. >> now let's get a check of the weekend weather. do we have a snowy white christmas planned for anybody here on the northeast? i'm kind of waiting for it. >> i haven't planned it, but i'll start working on it. here's what we have planned for your weekend, we have a lot of snow in the midwest, cloudy in the northeast. we are looking at a storm developing along the southeastern atlantic coast that by sunday may be causing some major snow in new england and

new york if it stays close enough to the coast. here's a look at san francisco. we have a little bit of a break from the rain for the moment. san jose still seeing lighter pockets of rain. here's how the rainfall projections should stack up. heaviest totals in the santa cruz mountains and coastal range of the north bay. little less across the valley. look for gusty winds tonight into tomorrow. rain off and on all the way through wednesday of next week. coming up next, we have the ultimate holiday gift guide. thrit isafr th.is ♪ would you like me to read you a story? you can't read. [ grandma ] 'twas the night before christmas, and all through the house... whoa, that's grandma. [ grandma ] ...nothing was stirring, not kara, not maya...

how does she do that? magic. [ grandma ] ...grandma loves you. [ both ] goodnight, grandma. [ female announcer ] be there to read them a story every night. read it to me again. [ female announcer ] hallmark recordable storybooks. this christmas, make it wonderful at your hallmark gold crown store. aren't absorbed properly unless taken with food. he recommended citracal. it's different -- it's calcium citrate, so it can be absorbed with or without food. also available in small, easy-to-swallow petites. tracal. [ male announcer ] got a cold? [ sniffles ] [ male announcer ] not sure what to take? now click on the robitussin relief finder at robitussin.com.

click on your symptoms. get the right relief. ♪ makes the cold aisle easy. ♪ the robitussin relief finder. it's that simple. we get double miles on every purchase. so we earned a holiday trip to the big apple twice as fast! dinner! [ garth ] we get double miles every time we use our card. and since double miles add up fast, we can bring the whole gang! it's hard to beat double miles! i want a maze, a sword, a... oww! [ male announcer ] get the venture card from capital one and earn double miles on every purchase, every day. go to capitalone.com. i wonder what it could be?! what's in your wallet? start with cookie dough. ♪ add frosting. [ giggles ] [ female announcer ] then sprinkles. [ both giggle ] [ female announcer ] fun. easy.

[ child ] wow. [ female announcer ] at pillsbury.com. all day friday and saturday, get countdown to christmas doorbusters at sears. this nikon twelve mega pixel camera is only eighty-nine, ninety-nine. plus, 7am through noon saturday get an extra 10% off all tools, even sale prices. sears. be the santa you want to be. we always make time for just us cousins. like the other night at olive garden. hey susan, you gotta tell the aunt jessie story again. -yes, you do! -ok, ok. joe: love that story. try olive garden's two new scaloppini dishes. pan-seared chicken breasts in a lemon-herb glaze. or sauteed pork in a creamy white wine sauce. both served with asiago filled tortelloni. with our unlimited salad and breadsticks. this is like being back at the kids' table. [ laughter ] olive garden. when you're here, you're family.

"today's" holiday gift guide is brought to you by target. expect more, pay less. >> this morning on "today's" holiday gift guide, a gift for everyone on your list. lisa arbiter is editor of instyle. first the gift for the fashionista. >> everyone fashionista knows that -- they have been reissuing some of their best sellers. this is a trio of those for about $66. >> this is for your kindle, right? >> they are kindle covers, they come in great prints and they're

$85. >> and you can't go wrong with lip gloss. >> and five come in this kit and it's a nice array of neutrals and bright. they're all sheer so they're easy to wear. and that's $50. >> and if you want a little bit of a splurge here, you've got the glittery shirt. >> because this is a t-shirt and because the sequins are matte, you can dress it down with jeans and a cardigan. >> this is very cool. >> this is a combination of a camera and swim goggles. if you have a snorkeler or a skin diver in your life, this is for them. >> this is actually a very good deal? >> this is $30, feels great, nice, denim shirt. ted's and gap got together to make this bhybrid.

>> and tell me about these really cool headphones. >> gorgeous is not really a word you use for headphones but these really are. these are based on the design of aviator sunglasses. >> uh-huh. >> so they have this great design, they're $150. >> all right, now for the little fries. >> this is in the cuteness category. van made these for kids. they're $32 to $37. >> my son's a huge fan. >> this is the price for the most adorable. >> everybody was dying for some of these. >> these are thing a majig. they're just too cute, you cannot resist them. >> love it. >> and i love the little mouths. >> and they're such a great price. >> $13, and you can get them on amazon.com.

>> they make your laugh. okay, cool, cool. how awesome is this? >> this right here is a skate board. >> three wheels instead of four, so it's got better maneuverability and it's small enough for somebody to fit in their backpack. if you have an artist in your life, this is a great kit. it's in a nice box that makes storage easier. $26. >> and now for the teens. >> you're not going to get any eye rolls if you give any of these gifts. >> these are very hip items for them. >> these are very hip, you can wear them one at a time or in multiples. >> it's faux leather? >> yes. >> speaking of faux leather. every teen wants to be cool, so you can get her a faux leather express jacket for $98. >> it's all about games this season. >> this is rock band iii. it's very addictive, they can

play at home with the family or online with friends. >> very cool. and now what are these here? >> these are miniskorts. >> a keyboard with her leather jacket. lisa, thank you very much. great ideas as always. coming up next, christmas trees with a twist, but first, these messages. ♪ i'm gonna get it, i know i'm gonna get it. ♪ ♪ i can't wait ♪ every little step, brings me closer to the gift. can't be late. ♪ rip it open in a second and 's time to play. ♪ ♪ i was up all night in anticipation feeling electric jewels of jubilation. ♪ ♪ yule tide carols from the local congregation. ♪ ♪ make it tough to hold my patience in check. ♪ ♪ is it time yet, is it time, i can't wait. ♪ ♪ is it time yet, is it time, i can't wait. ♪

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jeff -- eat a snickers... please. why? every time you get hungry, you turn into a diva. a diva? yes, a diva. [ aretha ] okay. thank you. better? [ male announcer ] you're not you when you're hungry. better. [ male announcer ] snickers satisfies. "today" celebrates christmas is brought to you by snickers brand. snickers satisfies. >> this morning on "today" celebrates christmas, some untraditional ideas for your traditional home. the lifestyle editor for guild group has some gorgeous new ways you can branch out. good morning. >> good morning. thanks for having me. >> it's great to have you, you look beautiful and you know

about style and this is a stylish tree. >> yes. this is sort of our traditional with a twist tree. and it's sort of a fashionable version of a partridge in a pear tree. >> that explains the feathers. >> we were really inspired, if you decorate your home, you can use any inspiration to decorate your tree. black is the universal color of fashion so we started with these black ball ornaments and started from there. and believe it or not, black is one of the most popular colors, big trend this season for the holidays. >> that is surprising. >> it is surprising. >> you talk about that you can use anything. look at this, this is so great. and i was just hearing from somebody i know that works here actually, he said that once they were so poor, he and his friends they actually went out and got branchs and made their own christmas tree. >> it's a great nondenominational christmas tree. we have been hearing of trends,

there's people who are going out there and hiring decorators to decorate their home for christmas. but this is so easy. you can use any branches you want. >> you've got one of these to put them in, and make sure it's very secure. >> and you just decorate with any ornaments that you like. and we chose a winter white theme. love these crystals and these little votive holders, they actually have battery operated candles in there. >> the battery operated is a better way to go. we don't want any fire hazards. there's a lot of multicolored options. >> it's all about color when it comes to trees this season. you can get a tree in every color under the rainbow. these are all from christmas central.com and they're every size starting at $54 up to over $45 for these colored trees. black, this tree over here is actually the most popular color. >> wow. >> of colored trees that are

sold. >> that is interesting. >> can you believe that? >> it certainly makes a fashion statement. it's very dramatic. >> and we chose sort of a silver tree, a throw back to the old '50s aluminum tree and decorated it with technicolor tear drops and a big star from cb-2. we just put that star on top with floral wire. you can attach anything to a tree with floral wire. >> this is probably the most expensive tree. you said this was designed by an architect? >> this is called the possibility tree. >> it's the possibility that he doesn't have any cleanup. >> no cleanup. this is by author richard babcock created this for his family, because he was tired of hauling a tree, cleaning up after it, watering it. this is such a sleek, modern design, these are wood and they're just slats and you hang it from the ceiling. you can hang it high and put

presents underneath and you can use any ornament that you want. >> he's used the overnightments just as the branches are. >> you cannot even have a tree, you can have a decal. you can put the gifts right over here? >> and this is a wall decal. it's a giant stick they're you peel and stick. this is actually a limited edition from an author named christopher dabble. it's not just a sticker, it's a work of art and if you wanted to, you could leave it up all year long. they're about 1$125 and a lot o well known artists actually created their versions of trees. >> you have given us lots of options if we haven't gotten a tree yet. coming up, delicious holiday cookie recipes. but first, this is "today" on

nbc.

this morning on "today's" holiday kitchen, we are baking a fresh batch of christmas cookies. we have got marion, john, anthony and elena. good morning, everybody. >> good morning. >> all right, well, let's get started. i always like this. >> you know, al, this is on everybody's table at christmas. >> what is this called? >> it's truefully. >> it's these little round balls that we saute or fry. >> right. >> and then i'll leave that second product to john. so let's begin with this. this is a dough we made with some regular flour. >> right. >> rye whisky.

12 eggs, you roll it out, you cut it and that's how you make your balls. i like to brown it and then put it in the saute pan. and then i'm going to turn it over to my cookie. >> how did i get stuck with you this holiday season? i just want to know. >> in any event, i am deep frying the dough until it's lightly brown. you'll take them out, we'll put them on the tray here, and basically what i have done is have it here and now i'm making sauce, it's a little dangerous here, i have honey already in, we have some walnuts, some lemon, watch my mom, she's crazy this holiday season. a little salt. we warm it up and now these are the cooked dough. you'll take this and place it right on top. >> yes. >> and it will look like this and we certain this. >> why are you talking like that? >> you pour the honey in.

>> ann, why don't you take it over? >> that's all right. that's all right. it happens to the best of us. >> during the holidays, this is what we have. it's warm, they're really delicious. look what we started here. i've been toasting some almond paste and some confectionery sugar together. it's just going to take a second. and then what we're going to do is take this off. andi inthen if you can help me, love. we want to try to add this to the mixture. i'm going to add a little salt. >> the dough smells so wonderful. how do you find this almond

taste? >> in the store. you're going to mix that together. >> we're going to pretend we did that. then what happens. >> we're going to get it going like this. it sets up in the refrigerator. put it in one of these disposable -- >> or like a baggie. >> we're going to squeeze, it's a little goey and delicious. you're going to add a little pine nuts, you're going to set your oven at 350, 12 to 14 minutes. >> i can't wait to taste this. >> and you've got stained glass cookies. you make these with the kids? >> this is such a fun recipe, it's a classic sugar dough and you get one of these cookie cutters and you obviously take the sides out. >> right. >> and then we'll just do that. >> and then you keep that in there? >> and then you do a little one. and what we have done, is we have chopped lifesavers and

basically you sprinkle the lifesavers in the middle and you bake it like that at 325. and this is what it comes out. it's really fun to get the kids involved, they can chop the lifesavers, they can eat the lifesavers. that was a christopher columbus hat on the boat. so if it's good enough for him. >> you have to cut

good morning, it's 9:56. if you planned to take b.a.r.t.

this morning you may want to find another way. delays because of a problem and in the meantime you can expect delays. let's check the rainy forecast with rob. >> we are seeing a lot of wet roadways around the bay area and we'll see plenty more for the weekend today. breezy conditions and kind of cool temperatures outside as well. 40s and 50s outside turning breezy towards this weekend and weekend plan on on and off again rain. rain through the middle part of next week. a sandwich shop that fell victim to its own popularity will start taking orders again. the planning commission says ike's can open a larger shop one block from the store that closed in september. the chronicle reports the new sandwich shop will be at church and 16th streets in the castro district. the original ike's made neighbors angry because of massive crowds and long lines.

the new restaurant will open in february. southern northern california hooter's restaurants could be in hot water. the national organization for women has filed complaints against hooter's in san francisco, san bruno, sacramento and orange county. the sacramento based group says the restaurant is breaking the law by providing sexual entertainment people under the age of 18. they say sexual entertainment businesses must check i.d.'s at the door. complaints were filed with the california attorney jen. the new board president is trying to get more people to right b.a.r.t. and wants to have trains run 45 minutes to an hour longer past midnight on saturday nights to help people who are at parties and shows and other events. more local news for you in about 30 minutes. the "today" show returns in a minute. [ female announcer ] safeway talks hostess gifts.

you know what i want for the holidays? do tell. true love. true love is a myth. [ gasps ] you're a myth! excuse me? [ female announcer ] it's the thought that counts. and the gift. safeway. ingredients for life. is the perfect choice for holiday gatherings. martinelli's is non-alcoholic, festive like champagne, and tastes great! martinelli's: since 1868.

that smells scrumptious. yummy! smells delightful. awesome! i'm not smelling anything. [ female announcer ] everything for holiday baking. just add love. safeway. ingredients for life. captions paid for by nbc-universal television [ female announcer ] everything for holiday baking. just add love. it's friday, everybody! december 17th. we're coming to you from the msnbc.com digital cafe here at 30 rock. we've got a great crowd of people here enjoying the most wonderful time of the year. >> and kathie lee said earlier, that was the most wonderful song of the year. >> no when andy williams sangs

it, when i do. >> we're at msnbc.com digital cafe which is -- we've got a rowdy crowd. >> i think they are were expecting drinks. we'll see what we can do. >> we just have some for us. >> so these are called nose warmers. okay? they are coffee, bailey's, grand marnier, frangelico and some dark cream. it is a hot cocoa -- >> toddy. the lactose thing. so go ahead. boy, do i miss whipped cream. i miss cheese so badly, i can't tell you. >> you stopped all dairy products. >> yeah, but there's stuff that they make that is lactose-free. >> exactly. so there is a new study out -- >> and we sort of knew this. >> it tells you that if you get

more beauty slip you're prettier. if you get more sleep you're prettier. >> the more sleep you get, the prettier you appear to people. i must be grandma moses because i sleep about two hours a night. i get no sleep. >> why don't you sleep? >> you know, i don't know why. a lot of it is hormonal. all right? enjoy your sleep while you're sleeping because guess what? after 55, you won't. >> here's the thing. we want to know that -- let's do our practice laugh again -- one, two, three -- that's genius. >> perfect! >> i interviewed at one point a whole bunch of models. the one thing that they said that all preserved their beauty is they all sleep and -- get this -- they told me eight but more like ten hours a night.

>> that's a lot of rest. >> isn't the reason because they don't eat then. they said if we're asleep we won't be eating and we can't gain weight. they don't have children, you're right. >> when i sleep a long time i look terrible. >> i know. >> that's not the time we laugh. >> i love this guy. >> i used to like him until a few minutes ago. >> no, but they say sleep like a baby. well, a baby doesn't sleep. that's a misnomer. that's ridiculous. >> you're absolutely right. >> but i don't know, i haven't literally slept a night through, hoda, in 20 -- more than 21 years, since i was pregnant with cody. it's got to be hormonal. >> mariah carey has something to look forward to. she's pregnant with -- twins. she and nick canon are going to have twins. but he announced it i think on his radio show. >> here's the funny part. >> go.

>> that mariah carey apparently makes goats produce more milk. >> she does. >> is that anything to do with the cuddle cups? i don't know. >> here's the deal. there's a farmer who plays this song -- ♪ ♪ all i want for christmas is you ♪ >> he says when he plays this song, his cows produce more milk. they play all kinds of music -- >> that's my point. just wait until she's nursing. i mean -- >> goats. >> goats. all right. >> goats or cows, doesn't matter. they're mammals. mine got so huge -- >> oh, no, please don't tell us about that. >> that's what you're supposed to go -- how huge did they get? >> she's always talking about them. >> somebody thought this was a good idea. >> this live audience situation

is not working well for us. >> one day frank looked at me and he said don't aim those things at me. you can't believe how gargantuan they get. >> you're still talking about them. >> have we moved on? >> no, that's your topic, the robe, you could tie it -- >> i know all those stories. >> larry king last night said his good-byes. his final show was last night. he was flanked by his two young kids. >> darling boys. >> and it was very poignant. he's been so many years out there and -- >> he was get-to guy for years. i remember when i was going through different things in life, you knew that you were going to get your story out if you went on larry king. and i sat with him many times. >> seems like just a really sweet guy. >> he's a good guy. sounds like his family situation is healing up. he's not going to disappear.

bill maher said it is the end of a show, not the end of a man. >> piers morgan is going to start up. >> we wish him the best. that's the way we roll. >> how you guys doing? good. we don't care really, but that's good. so we have our best manners. we always talk about people who don't have great manners but these are our best mannered people. >> and we agree with this. totally. drew brees, number one positive examp example. helping new orleans rebuild. it is not with what he just does publicly. in private he is about as -- i started crying when he was here with us a couple weeks ago. i said if i can raise a son half the man you are, i will be grateful. >> when he is talking to you, he's all yours. >> he's fun to look at. >> he's hot. >> he's very cute. >> but we love his wife brittany. >> you know what i didn't know, hoda? i wish you told me. i only met one one time before. he has a birthmark on this side.

and i, like an idiot, i said somebody got to you last week in the game. i thought he had just been hurt. >> what did he say? >> he said well that's a birthmark, but yeah, it probably looks that way. i said i'm so sorry. he was so great about it. >> he's the best. so cute. he proposed to his wife in french, in paris. that was the proposal. that's sweet. >> he's like perfect. look, this is something -- something we think is stupid. >> this looks like a regular piece of handkerchief or something. but it is so much more than that. >> allegedly. >> if you have a phone and you don't feel like turning it off because -- >> you're lazy. >> it is called a phone-kerchief. you wrap it in this special hander chhand kerchief and it won't ring. >> that's another thing you got to remember. it slips right out of it. turn your phone off! >> turn yourhone off.

listen to kathie lee. here's one of our most favorite parts of friday. bobbie thomas! >> i'm not part of the cuddle cup conversation. how many people here knit? anybody knit? oh, good. lot of people knit. knitting is hot. i need to get into knitting but i have some cool things for people who knit you may not have heard of. first, glow in the dark needles. if you want to knit in the dark at night -- you know about that? also these really great pottery bowls from the woman who called herself red hot pottery. this bowl in the front will help keep your string from getle tangled. it is this little lip, you pull it out. for the cool hipsters, wool and the gang offers these kits. sara, come on over. you can pick up a kit -- >> oh, look at.

it gives instructions for the beginners. >> i love the pouty thing. >> we do. >> why do models always pout like they're the most miserable people in the world. >> because they're hungry. >> starving. >> who makes your dress? >> jcpenney. $10 on sale. >> what? bob bobbie thomas has the best clothes. all right, miss sara. >> i am sweating. not meant for indoors, that's for sure. >> we're giving away things because we like to give free things away. >> we're doing our tivo sweepstakes again. starting today through thursday, december 23rd, we'll be giving away five tivos each day at random. you have to go to klg a lchlt g and hoe g and hod hoda.com for your chance. >> can you believe that they showed up and they don't get one and you have to get on the website to get it? they are present. >> they've had nothing. >> it is a digital age. they're all holding mobile phones. they can logon as we speak.

it is -- want to read the language right -- it is a one-year subscription as well for tivo. thanks, klg and hoda. still to come, you guys in this crowd will able to ask us anything you want. >> oh, no. >> don't go to him. do not ask him. but first, up next, two women who are going to be so happy because they got a makeover this morning. right after this. ♪ daisy, do-do a dollop our family-owned company makes daisy... with 100% natural farm-fresh cream. no artificial ingredients. no preservatives. and no added hormones. ♪ better with a dollop here ♪ fresher with a dollop there ♪ ♪ wholesome in every way ♪ daisy, do a dollop ♪ daisy, do-do a dollop

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we are back. we're back with our "plaz am pl "ambush makeovers." >> our crack makeover team found two lucky ladies on the plaza.

today stylest and contributor to the stars ♪ louis licari la-la-la-la-la >> and jill martin. >> they have been hard at work for the last three hours. >> it was cold out there. we found two ladies that were so excited and both of them with short hair cuts, both of them full of the holiday spirit. >> let's begin with miss lima moore. she is 95 years old. i can't wait to see nima, living in bradford, tennessee her entire life. yesterday was her very first time on a plane. her four daughters really wanted to surprise her with a brand-new look for at long as they can remember, she's had the exact same look. listen to her story. >> well, in the freezing cold is the moore family reunion. i know you're celebrating your 95-year-old mom. why does she deserve this? >> she's the best mom in the world. yesterday was her first flight and she loved it.

my dad never would fly and we just wanted to give her a new york look. >> well, are you ready to get rid of that gray hair? we are going to make you look ten years younger. >> i'm ready. >> oh, my gosh, we can't wait to see nema. her daughters are right here. daughters, wave. you guys keep your blindfolds on until i give you the green light, okay. here is nema moore before. all right, nema, let's see the new you. >> woo! >> oh, my gosh. hi! don't look, don't look. she was looking. >> you guys ready? take off your blindfolds. >> nema, you ready to see yourself? that is you! you look beautiful. >> you look gorgeous.

>> louis, tell us about the hair. >> nema was beautiful before, but nema, you're even more beautiful now. >> you big baby, suck it up! >> i'm going to be tough guy now. she looks great. she's got blonde hair. we took away the gray. the gray will blend with the blonde. she'll never had have roots. we just updated her hair-do by giving her this little layered thing she can use her fingers to dry. >> everyone's boo hooing. tell us what you guys think. >> she was beautiful the way she was but i've never seen her look like this. i've never seen her with eye makeup. >> but the suit? >> those are actually jeans. i wanted to give her a great pair of jeans from talbot's. these little money bags were pinned to her panties, to her bra, to everything on her body. when i finally was able to take them off, i put this blazer on from talbot's but they will fit back over these. >> a big round of applause.

>> how precious is she. what a blessing to have their mom at this age. okay. lynn ruba is our second lady, 55 from iowa. s she's been married to jerry for 36 years. they have two children. it's been a dream to be on ambush a makeover. she wanted to go from small town girl to glamour girl. let's see her story. >> all right, i want to show you the dance. this is why we picked lynn. ready? >> pick me! pick me! >> they haven't stopped bouncing since we brought them inside. hopefully you will when we bring you out in the reveal. but why does your sister deserve this? >> because she watches your show every day and she wants a makeover. she watches "ambush makeover" all the time. >> so this is a dream come true? >> this is a dream come true. yes. >> what do you hope to look like after this makeover? >> just awesome. just wonderful. >> we are going to make you look

awesome. you ready to go? >> yes. yes. >> she's more than ready. she's here with her sister elaine and daughter jen. let's take one last look before at lynn. now let's bring the new lynn out. >> oh, my goodness. >> wow! oh! >> elaine and jen. take a look at her. >> she didn't even recognize you at first. >> you want to see yourself? turn around and look. >> oh! >> they were out there at 6:00 this morning. i saw you guys. >> we saw you guys. >> tell us about her hair. that is so saucy. >> isn't it great? i made her into brunette which showed off her skin color, gave her the great new lipstick to go with the hair color.

again arson's haircut. he's so good. >> jill, tell us about this va-vavoom thing. >> i put her in something, she goes you have anything in leopard? this is from talbot's. she can wear with the skirt or with a great pair of jeans. >> let's get nema. >> come on, nema. congratulations, both ladies look just beautiful. still to come, o.ovyour hol. [ grandma ] okay. ♪ ah. then we will all do it together. treats. teets...teets...teets... yeah. look at this. [ female announcer ] it seems like the best family traditions always start in the kitchen. ♪ rice krispies®. happy holidays. rice krispies®. funny how nature just knows how to make things

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the middle of this special moment and i need to run off to the bathroom. i'm fed up with always having to put my bladder's needs ahead of my daughter. so today i'm finally talking to my doctor about overactive bladder. [ female announcer ] if you're suffering, today is the day to talk to your doctor and ask about prescription toviaz. one toviaz pill a day significantly reduces sudden urges and accidents all day and all night. plus, toviaz comes with a simple plan with tips on food and drink choices. if you have certain stomach problems or glaucoma or cannot empty your bladder, you should not take toviaz. toviaz can cause blurred vision and drowsiness, so use caution when driving or doing unsafe tasks. the most common side effects are dry mouth and constipation. [ jackie ] i asked my doctor about toviaz. and today i'm looking forward to my daughter's wedding. [ female announcer ] why wait? ask about toviaz today.

we're back with our weekly series we call "three two one live with sara haines." >> it's live all right. that's when miss sara dives into the crowd to find people with the most intriguing questions. >> be very careful because we're right here. >> gabriel la from florida has a question about the holidays. >> hi, kathie lee and hoda. what's your favorite holiday carol? >> favorite carol. >> carol. >> carol. >> christmas carol. >> christmas carol. i don't know. i like them all. which one do you like? >> very, very o obscure one called "the star carol." but one that everybody would know would probably be -- ♪ have yourself -- >> no, that's not a carol. carol is spiritual. >> no! jingle bells is a carol. >> no, it's not. it's a pop song. >> who things jingle bells is a carol? >> you're wrong. >> no, it's got to have -- a carol is a spiritual one.

that's not one. "o holy night." >> i think we should google that and find out if it is true. >> "jingle bells" is a new pop hit. emily from iowa -- yes -- has a question. >> we are hosting a holiday party saturday night and we need a festive cocktail. >> i like that one we had yesterday. >> we had one yesterday from family circle magazine. >> it had champagne -- >> it was really good. cranberries! yes, it was really lovely with cranberries floating in it and some sugar along the -- >> it was very -- >> that would be the word. along the rim. >> okay. next up we've got mike from west virginia. he has a question about some holiday memories. >> i bet he does. >> i'm sure he does. >> i want to know what your all's most awkward holiday moment was. >> poor kathie lee.

>> awkward? >> that's easy for me, hoda. you think. i was so excited to come downstairs and see what was under the tree that i didn't wear any pants. >> that was last year. >> and my daddy was with the camera going and the family loved to show that every year. yeah. a guy like you would like that, yeah. >> i still feel badly about this one. my sister secretly said, look, mom and dad got me this doll, she pointed to it and don't tell everyone. i was stupid. i go she loves that doll. and shy my parents gave it to me. >> did you give it to her. >> yes, i gave it back to her. of course i did. >> now mark from rhode island has a question about life experiences. >> oh, no. >> a lot of people are on vacation this time of year. we're on vacation. i'm just wondering what your wildest vacation experiences were. >> that's none of your business. >> who do you think you are?

>> wheer's e're on tv, mark. >> the wildest -- >> no, we're not going to go there. >> i hope it is going to be this one. >> i've got -- we see some new orleans saints stuff right here. >> do you a question? >> bring it. come on over. ♪ keurig is the way to brew fresh, delicious coffee in under a minute. way to brew. [ female announcer ] so with keurig, every cup tastes like it's brewed just for you. ♪ because it is. choose. brew. enjoy. keurig. choose. brew. enjoy.

naturally colorful vegetables are often a good source of vitamins, fiber, or minerals. and who brings you more natural colors than campbell's condensed soups? campbell's.® it's amazing what soup can do.™ good morning, let's check your forecast first with rob. >> we are seeing a lot of wet roadways and plenty more for the weekend today. obviously rain at times, breezy conditions and kind of cool temperatures outside as well. 40s and 50s outside. turning breezing towards this evening and the weekend plan on on again and off again rain along with gusty winds for saturday and rain through the middle parts of neee

appears to be slipping through san francisco's fingers, the organizers of the america's cup says san francisco has until today to submit a acceptable bid for the race. with no change, the race organizers appear to be moving on. the race's ceo is apparently in rhode island this morning talking to officials there. a person close to the talks says negotiations in rhode island have intensified.

the 2013 regatta location happens to be or cal's ceo elle son. palo alto is undefeated this season and going against centennial. tonight's game is at 7:30 and up can see it on csn california. tomorrow night they will play for the open division state championships. game time is 7:30 also on csn, california. thousands of people in need will not go hungry thanks to the glide foundation in san francisco. guide and its volunteers are set to fill and handout 5,000 bags of groceries this morning. they started at 7:30 and lasts until 12:30. some 300 gap employees are also there helping at 330 elis

street. thank you for joining us this morning. the "today" show continues next. have a great weekend. we're back in our studio on this try-day friday counting down to the holidays and trying to get some fun gadgets to give and to get. >> who better to come up with his toys than the author of "gadget nation," friend steve greenburg. >> these are all holiday helpers. look, this right here, these are garland twist ties. come in gold and burgundy. you can get six for $12.99. put them on to a string of lights or garland and it is a lot prettier than using ugly twist ties. good price and they are pretty.

if you don't have the space to store a tree or whatnot, this is a pull-up tree. >> what? >> all you do is put this pole up, take this thing. >> stop it! >> that is crazy. >> you have an instant tree here. >> that's kind of weird looking actually. it holds 60 ornaments and 400 lights already put on it. boom, instant tree. >> you are kidding! that's what we needed. >> $179. >> that's hilarious. >> hanging garland on the doorway, sometimes you put nails in there. this is pretty cool. this is an instant garland hanger. it holds up by pressure. no nails, no hooks. it is kind of spring-loaded. you can string your garland on it. it is pretty looking. this is $80 from the hammacher schlemmer people. to put your lights on your roof and whatnot, this right here is the tool vest and this is from

hammacher schlemmer also. going up and down the ladder, you have everything with you. the back here is a place to hold your string of lights. very cool. >> whoa. >> about $8. also from hammacher schlemmer -- >> hammacher schlemmer? what is that? >> that is a huge, huge catalog company. 57th street here in the city. >> okay. i've never heard of it. i don't buy those kind of things. >> these are madea vodka from holland. l.e.d. lights. you can customize it. 255 characters. >> how much is that? >> $40 and $50. >> after doing the roof you need a little vodka. >> you have to order those? >> yeah. >> some people need to be told that. >> this is a cool camera from i

nikon. five optical zoom. instant projector built in. after you take the pictures. you can show the pictures. you can show the pictures on the wall. again it is kind of bright in here. you can do a slide show. it actually has music inside. you can do that as well. folks at nikon. of course you have to have music for a party. this is a thing called would wi. you plug your speaker system into it. anything you lay it on top of becomes a speaker. it changes the sound of anything. it enhances the sound. >> can you get me that for christmas? get me that. it's $80. that is terrible! you are going to wrap it and put it in a box. >> you asked, you received. >> listen to the door. it really is amazing. anything you put it on, it

enhances sound of it. wowie 1. >> $80. >> give it to her, steve. >> no. i want a gift from kathie lee wrapped in a box. >> you're getting a gift. >> this is the smallest microwave in the world. it is called the i-wave cube. it is about a cubic foot. you can put it on the serving table so people can warm up food. >> can you get a plate in? >> it is small. you can warm up a little appetizer or a slice of dessert. >> you're spitting, steve. please. >> i'm so excited! >> but you're going to have to calm down. >> portable, 12 pounds. it costs about $99. finally, after the party is over, you have to have -- okay. >> put on the shower cap. >> there is the shower cap. it can go on any kind of -- >> so you don't have to fool

with saran wrap. >> thank you, steve. >> i'm sorry about the shower. >> that's all right. hoda got something out of this. >> she's getting speakers. >>llordo yars,t oudollars, you two can get the designer look on your holiday table. ever wish vegetables didn't taste so vegetably? well, v8 v-fusion juice gives you a full serving of vegetables, plus a full serving of fruit. but it just tastes like fruit. v8. what's your number?

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you don't get 100% daily value of any vitamins. unless you do this. but total is the cereal that gives you 100% daily value of 11 essential vitamins and minerals and crunchy oat clusters. total. are you getting 100%? so christmas eve is just seven days away. whether you haven't done a thing or have it all set up for your

tree and the table top, there is always room for improvements. >> lifegoesstrong blogger preston bailey has ways to make your christmas party spectacular. >> who makes a more spectacular party than preston? >> first, what are you doing for your tables? >> where you going? why are you leaving us? >> just give you some ideas. this is all about candies. of course the kids are going to want to go crazy, but very simple way of doing it. topiary shape constructing it. the wonderful part of the table is everything is recyclable. these are the shopping bags that you get. that you use as placemats. it is interesting, one of my favorite -- >> oh. >> -- albums of all time is yours. >> my christmas one in. >> it was years ago. >> which one? >> i still listen. '92, '93. >> "born for you" or -- >> i have 16. >> excuse me! you can't remember. >> i got warehouses full of

them. >> at any rate, if you remember the grandmothers and aunts are always saving the papers? they open the presents so carefully. the way to do this is just -- >> how smart. >> with flowers, you can certainly create -- >> you just cut around them. >> make little placemats. >> exactly. the idea of christmas is to recycle, to have fun with your kids. i mean what -- >> save a little money, too. >> what colors are you using? >> i like white. i like the purity, winter white with splotches of red. >> by the way, somebody gave me your book as a christmas present. >> they did? >> i'm not plugging anyone but -- >> i thought these were olives! those aren't olives, those are stones. >> no, cranberries. >> nuts. those are nuts. cranberries, you can go crazy.

>> this is beautiful, this setting right here. >> absolutely you can use them around the candle. of course the usual garlands that you make. it is really about -- >> you have some pictures of think of some other tables that you set that we have in our little vault. tell us about some of these. beautiful. >> this is a party of someone in manhattan behind her house. every year we set up this tent and they entertain for three days with different guests. this way they cover everyone at once. >> they have splee separate parties so everybody can come. >> tell us what you did here. >> this is the exact same space, another year. >> what are you doing this year? what's your theme? >> this year is winter wonderland. very clean. this year is wonderful. you get all of those christmas cards and you don't know what to do with them. put a little ribbon around them and hang them on their tree. >> that's a lovely idea. >> it is really great because everybody comes in and they actually see the cards that they gave you that is not in the

garbage. at least it is on the tree. >> everybody's spitting today. i don't know what it is! >> it's freezing. >> so great to see you. >> have a happy holiday, press son. >> thank you so much. enjoy holiday. >> how hollywood has come alive in the toy stores. we'll show you the dolls that are rocking the aisles. ♪ [ female announcer ] tide with acti-lift technology helps remove many dry stains as if they were fresh. dad may try to ruin your style, but dry stains won't. ♪ tide with acti-lift. style is an option. clean is not. get acti-lift in these tide detergents.

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leftover desserts, bodroo now. and hurry beforehe interns getere. thanks but i already have some yummy black fort cake black forest cake? ♪ so? [ female announcer ] need a guilt free treat? y yoplait light. i've lost weight.

[ female anc ] with 3licious flavors aroundoriech. plait. it is so good. remember the days when it was enough to play with barbie or raggedly ann? the world of dolls has changed. >> no one is rocking these babies to sleep because today celebrity dolls are all the rage. what's so hot about it? "newsweek" has the lowdown. you wrote an online article about these celebrity dolls. >> tee tookwe took a lot of cel dolls and posed them in portrait

shots. >> that's weird. >> creepy, but okay. >> little odd, but okay. who is that? >> that's jake jigyllenhaal and taylor swift riding on horseback together. >> of course they are. >> this is our white house christmas party shot. >> do people crack up at this? >> yes. >> is there a lot of money to be made in these celebrity dolls? >> spice girls dolls made $250,000 million. the britney spears doll sold 7 million copies. a lot of people want to play with justin bieber, too. there is about 1 million of these shipped for this christmas. this doll sings. ♪ baby oh thought you'd always be mine ♪ >> okay. >> i can see the appeal for the tween set with that. >> i'm not going to show it but it also has a tattoo of the

seagull on his hip. >> no way! >> don't show us. >> this is taylor swift. >> sometimes you don't know who they are. >> sometimes the celebrities get mad and they make them redo the doll. >> does taylor get money off of this? >> yes. the taylor doll also sings. >> cass does love taylor swift. >> these are about $15. >> this is from "alice in wonderland." that's creepy. >> we have daniel ratliff, johnny depp, jake gyllenhaal. for jake they had to actually use super man's body because he was so buffed up in the role of "the prince of persia." these are $200. >> that's a lot. >> if i were michelle obama i would not be pleased with this one down here. the lid and the look. >> i don't think president obama would like his either though. >> we got to see these. nobody wants that. okay? tell us about those two. >> there is some outrage in the

doll community they kept putting out michelle obama dolls and they didn't look like michelle obama. this is from ashton drake, $130. >> we think that looks like our doctor we have on the air. >> these are twilight dolls. this is the taylor lautner doll. goes for about $140. mattel does a cheaper line of the twilight dolls for about $25 for kids. >> cool. who buys all these, by the way. >> kids but also collectors. more expensive dolls are for collectors. >> it is a huge industry. >> they want to be with the celebrities. they want them to look like the selects. these, speak of celebrities, these are two dolls that were specially made. >> who are they? betty and veronica. >> i haven't worn my hair like that -- >> please. i like it. i look thin. >> they used the head of the prince of persia princess doll

for your doll, hoda. >> you didn't need to say that on air. >> whose did they use for me? >> they used one of the twilight man dolls. >> that's about all right. thank you so much, it's been a pleasure. >> look at bobbie thomas hanging out in the back. >> bobbie, come hang with us for a minute. why wouldn't you? >> have a great holiday. we will be back lightning fast. lightning strong.

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we have a couple more dolls to show you. >> these are the hearts for hearts girls. each girl represents girls from all over the world. >> it is cool, each comes with a little book with their story. it also gives like a bracelet for the child to wear. you get to learn about different cultures from all over the country. >> the great thing is that the portion of the purchase price is

all donated to children's causes in the country of the origin of the doll. this is the little usa girl. she's all american. >> mine's from i think kenya. >> i thought it was ethiopia. >> they're $24.99 at target or toys "r" us.com. allrightee. you know what's been going on all along. our annual holiday toy drive has sent out more than $20 million in gifts to children. it is like priceless. you can put a price on it but it is truly priceless. >> it has been such a pleasure to help them. we'd like to thank every who contributed whether in the plaza or online or on the sofa. today we welcome a first-time donation from citi. terry o'neil is executive vice president with the company. >> that means money. what are you going to give us for the children? >> citi is honored to donate $25,000 to the "today" show toy drive. in the spirit of giving back this holiday season to children in need, we've also partnered with toys for tots to donate up

to $100,000 to that charity. >> that's awesome. thank you so much. >> have you done your christmas shopping done yet? >> i am almost through. >> 20% of the people have not yet started and 10% of the people are already finished. most people are like -- >> i've just got a couple more things. i don't do a lot of it anyway. >> where are you? >> i'm in the 20% that's going to start this weekend. i like that. pressure. pressure. pressure. >> everybody at home can make a donation to our toy drive at well. get details at klgandhoda.com. >> we encourage you to give. next week we have a really fun guy. duran duran. >> two of the guys. >> as we sign off, we'll leave you with this. >> it's been a crazy week! hey, everybody, welcome to

fun-day, monday. >> yes! people like this! >> donny and marie are here. >> i just want more camera time! >> merry christmas, hoda. >> look at you. >> riding high, baby. >> and i yanked it. >> oh, my gosh, hoda woman. >> o oh, yeah, we'll explain. >> don't hate me because i'm beautiful. ♪ >> that's the way you do it. >> her name is zoda? yod snachlt. >> it's hoda. >> that's not nancy pelosi, is it? >> nancy pelosi? >> xoxo. ♪

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