on the broadcast tonight, opening day. high fives and high anxiety as facebook's big payday gets off to a rough start. tonight, cnbc's maria bartaromo helps make sense of a roller coaster day. the evidence. just released in the trayvon martin case, including final images of the florida teenager minutes before he died. do the photos and the video help explain what happened that night? a health risk tonight for baby boomers. a dangerous disease many don't know they have. a proposal that all boomers should be tested. and attention kmart shoppers. when this man saw his local kmart was closing, he knew he had an opportunity to make a buck. instead, he decided to make a difference. "nightly news" begins now.

good evening. brian has the night off. i'm leston holt. it's the technology empire built on the willingness of people around the world, 900 million active users at last count, to share the details of their lives. and finally today, after much hype, facebook is sharing its fortunes. it went public today in one of the most anticipated public offerings in years, opening on the nasdaq under the symbol fb, but despite soaring expectations and some early likes among eager investors, facebook shares this afternoon closed barely above their opening price. it was a rough opening day in more ways than one for the social networking giant, and cnbc's maria bartaromo is here with more. good evening. >> good evening, thank you so much. it's just eight years after computer hacker mark zuckerberg sat in his dorm room in harvard university and created what is now known as facebook. today, he took the company

public, and day one was a bit of a bumpy ride. facebook barely managed to meet its ipo price. ending a long and tumultuous day for the much hyped company. >> let's do this. >> it started with 28-year-old ceo mark zuckerberg ceremonially ringing a bell at 6:30 pacific time after staying up all night with employees at the company's menlo park headquarters. but the first trade scheduled for 11:00 a.m. was delayed by overwhelming trading volume that also swamped sites like etrade. >> facebook ipo was the biggest, nasdaq had tested all week long, but obviously, it still overwhelmed the system. >> finally, at 11:30 -- >> now it is officially a public company available for everybody to buy shares should they desire. >> the first trade at $42.05, up nearly 11% from the ipo price. on facebook's website, this update from the ceo.

mark zuckerberg listed a company on nasdaq, but the stock dropped quickly soon after, trading well below expectations, and making matters worse, the volume continued to cause problems with communications. >> what went wrong today is when people put in buy orders and other people put in sell orders, they never got the word or confirmation on whether the order went through. >> even by 1:00 p.m., those problems continued with nasdaq e-mailing traders saying they were working to deliver pending trade execution status messages from the facebook ipo. once those confirmations started coming in around 2:00 p.m., the stock starting dropping again, closing just 23 cents above the ipo price. what went wrong? many analysts believe it was overvalued from the get go. as of today, facebook is being valued at $104 billion. making it bigger than companies like mcdonald's or visa. carly was ceo of lucent when it

went public in 1996, the largest ipo in history at that time. she said it's now up to facebook from here. >> i think what is much more important is can this company really monetize those 900 million relationships? >> now, let's not forget, with all of the noise around the deal and the sloppy trading, facebook was still able to raise $16 billion on a day that the market was weak and of course the dow has been down 12 of the last 13 trading sessions. so it's been a tough time, so lester, yes, not as strong as expected, but a strong capital raise nonetheless, huge numbers. >> watching it play off, i'm left wondering who had the worse day, facebook or nasdaq? >> good question. i think it probably was nasdaq. these deals are very, very competitive to get. nasdaq fought to get the listing of facebook. they got it and then they were overwhelmed by the volume and had real trouble executing today. a lot of people never even got their confirmation reports. in other words, they thought they bought at $40, they actually bought at $42. a lot of confusion here.

>> thanks very much. good to have you here. maceback's day comes at the end of another dismal day on wall street. the dow was down 73 point today. its 12th lost in 13 sessions and that's the longest losing streak since 1974. the nasdaq was down, just under 35 points, and the s & p 500 fell more than 9, wrapping up their worst weekly losses of the year. in north carolina tonight, the jurors in the john edwards campaign corruption trial have gone home. they're resume their deliberations on monday. the jury got the case this morning after 17 days of testimony, much of it emotional, focusing on edwards' secret affair with rielle hunter and the anguish of his wife elizabeth. jurors made several requests for specific evidence and deliberated for about five hours before the judge sent them home for the weekend. now to florida and the newly released documents, audio recordings, and photos in the trayvon martin case. new images showing us what trayvon martin looked like just

before the fatal shooting and what george zimmerman looked like afterwards. plus, we're hearing what some of the witnesses saw that night. nbc's kerry sanders reports now from sanford, florida. >> these are the last known images of trayvon martin, moments before his death. the 17-year-old captured on surveillance tape at a nearby 7-eleven, picking up skittles and an iced tea. until now, many pictures of the victim provided by his parents have shown him as a youngster, but the medical examiner says the day he died, martin was 5'11", 158 pounds. the case now centers on what happened next. was neighborhood watch captain george zimmerman, pictured here after the shooting, aggressive or defensive? was the shooting with his cal tech 9 millimeter justified or second degree murder? at 5'7", zimmerman was four inches shorter than martin but 42 pounds heavier. in the police photos, zimmerman

is clearly bloodied and according to his doctor, likely suffered a broken nose. >> tell me what you heard or witnessed. >> we pretty much heard someone yelling outside. >> there are 22 witnesses, most of their police interviews recorded. >> i looked and didn't see anything. >> not one actually saw what or who initiated the fight. witness number six saw martin on top of zimmerman. >> the guy on top in the black hoodie was pretty much throwing down blows on the guy kind of mma style. >> then, the 911 calls. one caller picked up this cry for help. >> so you think he's yelling help? >> yes. >> it's been unclear whose voice that was. martin's mother said it was her son, but when his father listened to the tape, an investigator writes, mr. martin clearly emotionally impacted by the recording, quietly responded, no. >> in a recorded interview, zimmerman's father told police the cry for help was from his

son. >> that is absolutely positively george zimmerman. myself, my wife, family members, and friends, know that that is george zimmerman. there is no doubt who is yelling for help. >> in the 183 pages of documents, one lead detective writes the encounter between george zimmerman and trayvon martin was ultimately avoidable by zimmerman. if zimmerman had remained in his vehicle and awaited the arrival of law enforcement. the mountain of evidence released so far does not include the text messages from trayvon martin's phone nor does it include the police interrogation of accused murderer, george zimmerman. lester. >> kerry sanders in florida tonight. thanks, kerry. health news tonight, and a sweeping new proposal aimed at america's millions of baby boomers. the cdc wants all boomers to be tested for a dangerous viral infection many don't know they have. hepatitis c. more now from chief science correspondent, robert bazell.

>> under the proposed cdc guidelines, those in their 40s, 50s, and 60s should get a hepatitis c test at least once. more than 3 million americans already have hepatitis c, a liver illness transmitted by contaminated needles, blood transfusions prior to 1992 when widespread screening for the virus began, and possible sex wbl contact. and 75% of those are baby boomers. born between 1945 and 1965. according to the cdc, 1 in 30 boomers has been infected with hepatitis c and most do thought know it. the virus can cause serious liver diseases. including cirrhosis and liver cancer. still, people can remain without symptoms for decades. cdc officials estimate that the new recommendations for testing could detect hundreds of thousands of new cases. the need for testing is becoming more pressing now because new drugs to treat hepatitis c have

come on the market, and if people know they have the virus, serious complications can be treated or prevented. lester. >> robert bazell here in new york with us. thanks. president obama is starting a diplomatic marathon tonight. his first mission, hosting world leaders at camp david for the g-8 economic summit. topic number one, the debt crisis in europe. earlier today, the president met for the first time with france's new leader, francois hollande at the white house. tomorrow, all eyes will be on the president's home town of chicago, which is hosting the nato summit this weekend. when it comes to security for all of the visiting heads of state, chicago is going all out. the protests are already under way. about 3,000, many dressed as robin hood, gathered in daley plaza and marched through the loop business direct, and there were no clashes with police, just two arrests reported. because the rest of the weekend could be another story, parts of chicago will be on a virtual lockdown. nbc's katy tur reports.

>> as dozens of heads of state and their staff members and security details descend upon chicago, the opposition is already gearing up. >> no more nato. >> welcome to nato, chicago 2012. >> we're going to be loud, boisterous, vibrant. and 100% peaceful. >> the city has only issued three permits for marches and rallies, but thousands of protesters are expected. >> i don't think it's going to be as bad as what everyone says it is. >> the summit will be held at mccormick place. around it, miles of road closures, rail service interruptions, and even a military enforced no-fly zone. major attractions like chicago's art institute will close for the weekend. business owners fear all of the hassle will mean a lack of customers. >> we normally do several hundred people for lunch. we have nine reservations. >> as for the businesses staying open, some like this starbucks have added a protective film to the windows to prevent against shattered glass.

the concern, violence like this, seen in the 1999 seattle world trade organization meeting. is this overblown? >> yes. very overblown. >> former secret service agent turned security consultant said seattle's 900 police officers were outmanned while chicago has a force of 12,000 at the ready. >> the city is prepared. they have the right talent. >> chicago mayor rahm emanuel sees the summit more as an opportunity for world exposure. >> on tourism, third largest city in america, ranked tenth. we move up to ninth, 25,000 more jobs and economic growth. >> a promise of future dollars chicago leaders hope outweigh potential risk. katy tur, nbc news, chicago. we've got a lot more to tell you on this friday night on "nightly news." two big things to watch this weekend. a stunning eclipse and a historic new mission to space from the real life inspiration

for hollywood's ironman.

this is how it looked last year. and if you want to see it for real this year, you'll have to live on the west coast. it's a rare annular or ring eclipse where the moon travels in front of the sun and blocks it except for a thin so-called ring of fire around the edge. it's due to happen sunday evening at 6:30 local time on the west coast. if you're in the viewing area, don't look directly at the eclipse because you could damage your eyes seriously. the other big space news this weekend involves a grocery run of sorts now that the u.s. has retired nasa's space shuttle fleet, a private company will for the first time fly a nasa mission to resupply the international space station.

here's nbc's tom costello. >> if all goes as planned, the rocket sitting on pad 40 at cape canaveral will forever change the way nasa does business. spacex is the first private company ever selected to carry nasa cargo. >> private spacecraft to come back from orbit. >> the man who runs spacex is south african born elon musk. >> this looks remarkably similar to the "apollo." >> they're sort of -- have this gumdrop shape. >> if his name sounds familiar -- >> i am ironman. >> he was the inspiration for the tony stark character in the ironman movies. but while tony stark's passion was robots and weapons, elon musk has always been passionate about space. today, the ironman costume stands on the floor at spacex headquarters in los angeles. so you're ironman? >> well, i am ironman in certain respects.

>> a billionaire entrepreneur and inventor who founded paypal and the electric car company tesla motors, musk has built spacex from the ground up, and he's now competing against some very big commercial names to become the first private company to win nasa contracts to carry cargo and eventually humans into space. >> spacex is determined to win, but in human space flight, there's a very thin margin for error. it's a lesson nasa had to learn the hard way. over the past 45 years, 17 nasa astronauts have died in three separate tragedies. >> one big concern is where there are private company taking the place of nasa might one day choose to put profits ahead of safety. >> but musk insists safety is good business. >> there's not a single decision we have made where we said let's make it cheaper and less reliable. never once. >> his ultimate goal, a manned mission to mars, but tonight, he's focused on the first unmanned commercial cargo

mission to the space station. tom costello, nbc news, los angeles. up next, we'll tell you the story of one of america's wounded warriors and a dramatic new mission opening soon at a theater near you.

now a story about resilience. army colonel greg gatson has been a soldier since his days at west point and has fought for his country for the past 20 years. in 2007, he suffered a devastating injury, and now his life has taken another unexpected turn. nbc's mara schiavocampo reports from honolulu. >> did you ever in your life think you would be an action movie star? >> no. >> though he served in kuwait, bosnia, afghanistan, and iraq, army colonel greg gatson was still surprised to be cast as a hero in "battleship," a big budget movie based on the classic boardgame.

the role isn't just a new chapter in his career but his life. five years ago, he was severely injured in iraq when his armored vehicle hit a roadside bomb. >> i couldn't feel my legs. i knew i wasn't in good shape. >> gatson lost both legs, at first deciding to isolate himself, he quickly realized he had plenty of fight left. >> i couldn't stand quitting, i couldn't stand the silence, just giving up. >> so he got up, literally, becoming the first soldier in the country to test a new kind of high powered prosthetic leg. he went back to school getting a masters and honorary degree and became co-captain of the new york giants. his motivational pep talk leading the team all the way to a 2007 super bowl win. and now he's still on active duty and making his acting debut in this movie from universal pictures, a division of nbc universal. >> i'm half a man. >> a performance driven by his real life struggle.

>> his power, his inner strength was so unique. >> colonel gatson's part in the film not only renewed his sense of confidence, but it continues to inspire service men and women around the country. >> very motivating to see him back on his feet. >> standing tall and moving forward. >> you're really truly not going to be exactly the way you were before. if that's where you're trying to go, you're going in the wrong direction. you're going backwards. >> one soldier winning battles on screen -- >> i got this. >> -- and in life. mara schiavocampo, nbc news, honolulu. when we come back here tonight, how a kmart closing gave one man a perfect opportunity to make a difference for so many families.

time now for our "making a difference" report. when a store closes, it could be a depressing event. in one kentucky town, a generous local businessman who has never forgotten his roots, decided to make the best of it and make life a little easier for a lot of people. nbc's kevin tibbles has the story.

>> it was "attention kmart shoppers" in every single aisle. when winchester, kentucky, businessman rankin paynter went to the close-out sale at his local kmart, he got to thinking about a big-time blue light special. >> i looked around and said what is going to happen to all this merchandise you don't sell? >> that's when one of the blue lights went off in paynter's head. why not buy it all and donate it to local charity? >> i said, lock your doors and give me a percentage and i'll buy it all now. >> the clothing, shoes, and household items are all going to the clark county services for contribution to those in need. >> this will be the first year we have enough hats and gloves for all of the children we serve. >> paynter is a self made man with a very successful jewelry exchange business who has never forgotten his roots. >> i was raised poor. >> it took four cash registers nearly eight hours to ring it all up.

the final tab, just under $20,000. >> it's not only going to help me out. it's going to help a lot of the community. there's a lot of poor people here that don't have. >> they even had to rent a warehouse so volunteers could sort through the merchandise. the fact that he could have made money by selling it all just didn't factor into it. >> somebody asked me, rankin, you could have made $30,000, $40,000. i looked around and i said, i'm not going hungry this fall. and i'm not going to be cold. >> sharing his good fortune with the less fortunate means a lot of other folks won't be cold, either. kevin tibbles, nbc news, chicago. that's our broadcast for this friday night. thank you for being with us. i'm lester holt. brian will be back here on monday. i'll see you a bit later for "dateline" friday and tomorrow morning for "today." have a great weekend and good night, everyone.

and good evening, everyone. i'm jessica aguirre. >> and i'm raj mathai. what's your status? for facebook it's sold. to millions of investors but it was a bumpy ride today. there it is. from coast to coast and from harvard to menlo park to wall street, the biggest ipo in history making headlines even after the closing bell. our business and tech reporter scott budman has been at facebook headquarters since