good morning. clear and present danger. millions across the country preparing for a severe weather system preparing for strong winds, damaging hail and even possibly deadly tornadoes. it starts tonight and won't be over for several days. dylan is on top of it all. show of faith. pilgrims flocking to the vatican to witness two popes, including pope john paul ii, become saints. it's not without controversy. we're there live. and a big reveal. incredible reaction of a man whose daughter just gave him the best news of his life. watch. >> all right. >> the news and the reaction that has millions of internet users sharing his joy "today,"

saturday, april 26th, 2014. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with lester holt and erica hill, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on a saturday morning. i'm lester holt. >> and i'm erica hill alongside jenna wolfe and dylan dreyer. that video you just showed a snippet of we were just told went to over 2 million views. a lot of people loving this man's reaction to what? well, you'll have to wait and see. >> what, you don't have a chair? >> nochlt i figured i would stand. >> is that what we're going to do? >> i don't know what's going on. >> i'll give you my chair. i noticed you were taller than me. >> that's what you noticed.

we have a lot of news to get to this morning, including tough talk from president obama as the u.s. and its allies face off against russia. now new sanctions are likely coming. with the grim search for bodies from that south korean ferry on hold for now we're getting the first look inside the doomed ship, photos posted by a student who sadly is still missing. >> heartbreaking. as we shift gears, a story that has a lot of people talking this morning, buffalo bills cheerleaders will not be on the field this season after several former cheerleaders sued, claiming they were groped, worked long hours with little pay and had to endure things such as the so-called jiggle test. the severe weather trek with millions of people in its path. dylan is tracking it. >> that's why i'm standing. >> i get it now. >> this is how it works today. storms have not yet developed.

this whole system is getting its act together. heavier rain to the east of vegas here. this will be our trigger mechanism for how the storms fire up, especially this afternoon and into this evening. we have really warm air out ahead of this, 10 to 15 degrees above average and really cold air, 20 degrees below average behind it. that clash of air mass means we have strong storms in a huge swath from basically parts of southeastern south dakota all the way down into southwestern texas. the biggest threat today will be large hail, also damaging winds and a few isolated tornadoes. but then as we go into tomorrow, sunday is our bigger threat. this whole thing moves eastward a little bit more. we are looking at still that slight risk of strong storms. look at how huge this is, from nebraska, texas, over into parts of tennessee, even into kentucky and parts of mississippi. it's the strong risk of storms, this area in orange, encompassing most of arkansas, but also including southern

missouri, northern louisiana, northeastern texas and eastern oklahoma. this is where we could see our possible tornado outbreak. it is going to be a huge, active day tomorrow. and we have to watch out for the severity of those storms. now we already had a line of storms move through in parts of north carolina with some damage overnight. now, it has been a remarkably quiet year so far. with this in the forecast, that could all start to change today. the weekend is already off to a rough start, with at least one confirmed tornado in north carolina and other storms causing a lot of damage elsewhere. >> we've got debris right here. the car is trying to move. and it's on the ground. >> luckily, no reports of serious injuries. in another part of north carolina, hail sent local police running for cover. meanwhile, in so-called tornado alley, in oklahoma, some unusual preparations have been made. shipping containers weld ed

together and reinforced with concrete and dirt berm. >> when this is done, we'll have dirt with a cement cap on top on three sides. >> an improvised tornado shelter for a cash-strapped school system. all 225 kids should fit inside. >> it can't be built fast enough. we're nervous every time a storm comes over. >> understandable concern when just over a year ago -- >> this is nothing like i've ever seen before, kevin. >> an ef-5 tornado hit a school 35 miles away in moore, oklahoma, killing seven children, 24 people total in that town. and three years ago tomorrow, an ef-4 ripped through tuscaloosa and birmingham, alabama, killing 64 people. 158 more died just a month later after an ef-5 tornado flattened a large part of joplin, missouri. now, this is the latest we've ever gone in a calendar year without a death caused by a tornado. hopefully, that's a streak we

would very much like to continue, but very dangerous storms could be brewing today. as i mentioned, everyone in their path should remain alert and head to safety if necessary. erica? >> dylan, thanks. heading now to the latest in that ferry disaster out of south korea. four more crew members were detained by authorities. this morning, we are seeing more pictures inside that boat taken as the disaster unfolded. bill neely is in south korea with more on that. good morning, bill. >> reporter: good morning, erica. real frustration here for the families of more than 100 missing students with searching suspended today. and with a storm approaching, it may stay suspended for some days to come. the police boats are returning empty. no bodies have been brought ashore for a day. they wait for 115 still missing. the rescuers withdrawn, due to strong currents and high tides. the families fear their children

will never be found. fishing nets have been strung under boats of the sunken ferry. a circle of eight miles to stop bodies from being swept out to sea. the weather here is set to deteriorate and that will hamper the recovery of the bodies much to the fury of the families, who say that operation is already far too slow. divers report seeing children clutching each other. 48 crammed together in one room. they just can't get them out. these photos were posted by one of the students who is still missing. the ship is sinking, he wrote. more than two dozen students huddled here without life jackets. prosecutors say they were the victims of negligence. investigators found cargo restraints on the ferry's sister ship didn't work. life rafts on the sunken ferry couldn't be freed. the cargo was overweight, the steering faulty.

four more crew members have now been arrested meaning all 15 crew responsible for navigating the ship are now in custody. they say they tried to stabilize it, but couldn't. the long wait goes on for so many families. they have cried their way to exhaustion, most now get medical help. doctors say they're traumatized and trapped, too, waiting for a search that, for now, is going nowhere. but the investigation hasn't stopped prosecutors from building a case against the ferry operators, who they suspect broke so many safety rules. erica? >> bill neely for us this morning. bill, thank you. turning now to the crisis in ukraine. late last night the white house announced that the g-7 nations are set to impose new sanctions against russia, which could come as early as monday. this comes as the president is in the middle of an overseas trip.

is he in malaysia. kristen welker is at the the white house for us. good morning. >> reporter: lester, good morning, as the president is in malaysia, the third stop on his trip, by the way, the white house released this statement. condemning russia's actions and stating that the g-7 leaders agreed on imposing more sanctions. given the urgency of securing the opportunity for a successful and peaceful democratic vote next month in ukraine's presidential electrics we have committed to act urgently to intensify targeted sanctions and measu measures. all this comes after president obama held a conference call with the g-7 leaders yesterday while he was in south korea. and while the white house wants to impose sanctions on russia's economic sector, european allies not willing to go as far.

they say punishing russia's economy would also hurt their business interests. the president will meet with the prime minister and college students and likely discuss the tragedy of the missing airplane. lester? >> kristen, thank you. millions of people are flocking to the vatican this weekend for the papal canonization ceremony. pope john paul ii and pope john xxiii will become saints. it is not without controversy. anne thompson is outside the vatican this morning. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, erica. i spoke to the mayor of the city of rome who says he is confident that their city can handle the influx of pilgrims. 4 million bottles of water for those thirsty pilgrims and, of course, efforts to redirect the eternal city's eternal traffic.

the ceremonies to make john paul ii and john xxiii saints will take place tomorrow morning. those two popes are arguably the most influential popes of the 20th century. they both then enjoyed great popularity but are not without controversy, as you said. john paul ii has many critics who say he did not do enough or did very little to stop the sex abuse crisis and john xxiii, he is the pope who initiated the reform to the second vatican council, still opposed by some conservative catholics some 50 years later. despite all the criticism, both men will be made saints tomorrow. the only question now is will the weather hold? rain is forecast. erica? >> we'll cross our fingers. anne thompson, thank you. nbc news will have live coverage of the papal canonization. lester will be here, anchoring our special.

time now for a look at the morning's other stories we're following. jenna is here with that. good morning, everyone. it is day 50 in the quest for the missing malaysian airlines jet. so far they've come up empty. katy tur is in australia with more. >> reporter: good morning, jenna. bluefin 21 is searching a six-mile radius under pinger location number two, the location that has the strongest silk nal. if they don't hear anything they'll move on to a broader radius around that same signal. so far no sign of a plane. we are on day 50, as you said. meanwhile, families are as angry as other. more than 100 staged a sit-in, demand i demanding to meet with the malaysian ambassador, who they say didn't show up for a meeting. still, day 50 and no sign of the plane. >> unbelievable.

katy tur, thank you very much. a high school student in connecticut is facing murder charge this is morning after allegedly slashing a classmate to death inside their school. 16-year-old sanchez was stabbed multiple times in the morning of her junior prom. authorities are looking into whether she was attacked after turning down an invitation to the prom. expected to be indicted on federal fraud charges. under fbi investigation for alleged campaign finance violations. the republican lawmaker made headlines back in january for threatening to throw a reporter over the capitol hill balcony. investigators are trying to determine this morning what sparked a massive explosion in the chicago suburb of long grove, rattling residents for miles. about a dozen homes in the neighborhood were damaged, but

no reports of injury. so there are bad neighbors and then there are big, bad neighbors. the difference? mainly their appetite. in south daytona, florida, this big bad neighbor, check it out, one of two seven-foot alligators found in someone's backyard. neighbors say they were pulling weeds, minding their own business, enjoying the day when they heard some noise and looked over the fence and saw an alligator in a pen and another nearby. apparently they have been there for years and raised from eggs. so, that happens. >> as opposed to those who just fell out of trees? >> the neighbor didn't know. oh, those are interesting eggs. i'll get back to you in a couple of weeks. >> look at you, seven-foot alligators. kind of glad they're not my neighbors. >> amen. dylan is back with a look at the rest of the country's forecast. >> the rest of the country, a little unsettled. snow in parts of the rockies. rain in the northeast.

at 6:00 this evening, not really a whole lot of severe storms going on. as we continue through this evening into tonight, we'll see the storms fire up through eastern oklahoma, missouri and especially into arkansas. as we go into 1:00 pm sunday, you can see the activity just gets a little more enhanced through the day. lasts through sunday night. we're going to see another round of strong storms possible on sunday as well. aspen, colorado, you could end up with six to nine inches of snow out of this. this is more of a ski resort snow storm. look at all the rain in parts of midwest and into arkansas. there's the possibility we could end up with three to four inches of rain. on top of this severe storm that could produce damaging winds and tornadoes, especially on sunday, we could see some flooding with these storms. just because we could end up with four inches of rain. again that slight risk of south dakota down into texas for . >> and right now we're seeing clearing skies and a crescent moon over san francisco, west wind at 9 miles per hour but

plenty chilly in the north bay. 37 degrees this morning in napa and upper 40s in san jose. we still have some clouds that will clear to partly cloudy skies during the afternoon and then we're going to get more clouds into this evening. we'll have a chance of some light rain dropping in as we head towards tomorrow morning. today's highs, cool with that sunshine. we're looking at highs in the mid 60s san jose, low 60s san francisco and more 60s towards the tri-valley. >> and that's the latest forecast, lester. all right, dylan. now to the future of college sports and what could be a dramatic change in the landscape if the players are allowed to unionize. ron mott has more on what it all means. >> reporter: defined as workers under federal law, northwestern university football players were eligible to vote on unionizing, long-term medical care, practice conditions and, most controversially, compensation.

>> i do see pay and the athletes getting a so-called cut of the revenue from television contracts and the like as ultimately being an issue. >> reporter: the results will be sealed while the national labor relations board hears the university's appeal. >> you don't think they're employees. they're students. extended medical benefits for players, four-year scholarship, these are things that northwestern university already does. >> reporter: for years, a vigorous debate about fairness has been throughout college sports. with millionaire coaches, packed stadiums, the young athletes deserve a bigger share. ncaa said turning student athletes into employees and changing the relationship between students and their universities is certainly not the answer. >> reporter: some are declaring victory for athletes, ncaa appears ready to overhaul their

rules, including lifting restrictions on how much food they can eat. ncaa governing board approved further study giving colleges in the largest and most lucrative conferences leeway in rules. >> they understand change is afoot. they don't want to let this issue get away from them. >> reporter: outside northwestern campus, students weighed in. >> education and exercising passion, that should be kept separate from business. >> i do believe players should be compensated for the amount of hard work they put into promoting the school's image. >> reporter: a game changer that's become serious business. for "today," ron mott, nbc news. four years now after the bp oil spill, there is still an impact that lingers. crude oil pumped into the gulf of mexico for 87 days, you may recall, when the deepwater horizon oil platform exploded, damaging what was already a delicate ecosystem.

wildlife advocates say the effects are still being felt. the weather channel's dave malkopf has the story. >> reporter: four years after the bp oil spill disaster -- >> hundreds and hundreds of nets here. >> reporter: director with the national wildlife federation took us 20 miles into the marsh where that black tar choked the life out of what was once a baby pelican nursery. >> it's sad and sickening to watch the loss of a place like this. >> reporter: as recently as last year, there were pelicans here. now just dead sticks. >> you had anywhere from 25 to 30 feet of thick tar. >> reporter: four years on, the tar is a problem. it's the oily sheen nobody ever cleaned up. so what you're seeing now is the effects of it moving the food chain that's predictable from what we know about past spills. the sheen was absorbed by tiny bacteria. >> the real question is what are the long-term effects. >> reporter: wildlife officials

worry it could be working its way into dolphins and other large predators. >> still seeing increased numbers of dead dolphins coming ashore. >> reporter: it's true a number of things may be killing dolphins along the gulf coast. scientists and lawyers are still trying to work out the oil's exact environmental impact here. bp says they've already spent $14 billion in clean-up efforts and the company heads back to trial early next year for damages. since the spill, many animal habitats here simply eroded away. >> those areas. >> reporter: used to be a land bridge here, islands around here. now they don't exist. >> they don't exist. >> reporter: just one mile north and you'll find some good news. state bird of louisiana is thriving, their eggs ready to hatch next month. despite losing their old home to the oil spill. >> they're going to move where they have to move. it's just that we're running out

of places for them to go to. >> reporter: for "today," dave malkopf, at the mouth of the mississippi river in louisiana. up next, if you want to see pure joy on one man's face, well, it's coming up in our next story. the video that is exploding online this morning with 4 million views. and yours is coming up. first this is "tod

we're back on this saturday morning with a video that has a potential to melt even the coldest of hearts. >> jenna is over in the orange room with the big news and the price of reaction for one man. >> this is a fun story. this one really defines viral video. it was post aid week ago. in the last 24 hours it went from million to 4 million views. justin hickey captured the moment she told her father that he would be a grandpa for the

first time. his reaction? it just makes you smile. check this out. >> you should probably read it. >> really? >> yeah. i'm 10 weeks. >> gives you chills. parents are awesome sometimes, right? jessica gave a little backstory to the video on this site. told my dad he's going to be a grandpa. i'm his only child and my mother pass add way 20 years ago. he has been asking us for grandchildren since our wedding night. i think he's happy. i think he's definitely happy. it makes me think about the first time you told your parents they're going to be grandparents. i remember telling my parents and my dad's reaction is still priceless. i'll let him think about that. dylan, what about you?

>> no pressure. this is how rumors start. i'm not telling my parents anything. >> direct all those questions now to jenna. >> what? >> no. >> good stuff. love it. still to come on "today," it may sound like something out of a science fiction movie, but it's not. a blind man is now able to see, thanks to his .

good morning to you. looking live from our camera in emeryville at the bay bridge and you can see just about every single twinkling light. thanks for joining us i'm kris sanchez along with meteorologist rob mayeda who has a look at a chilly start to the day.

>> it is quite cool in the areas in the north bay that cleared out. 30s this morning. 50s with clear skies in san francisco but see in san jose still mostly cloudy but let's it talk more about the chilly temperatures in the north bay. 38 in napa, 39 degrees in santa rosa, quite a bit colder than yesterday when we had the rain flying and a lot more moisture in the air keeping the temperatures up in the north bay. today, partly cloudy skies through the day and then by the evening we will see the clouds thicken up again and tonight into tomorrow morning we'll see a chance of seeing some rain showers dropping back into the bay area as that next system goes on by. we'll see highs today in the mid 60s in san jose, low 60s around san francisco, and mid 60s and partly cloudy skies out near the tri-valley. chris? >> thanks, rob. new this morning, a high-speed crash killed two people overnight on highway 101. the chp says the driver was speeding near the willow road exit just before 2:00 this morning where she lost control, hit a tree, and then became airborne and slammed into a second tree. the driver and a male passenger were pronounced dead at the

scene. willow road exit was shut down until about 3:30 this morning. >> a high tech ceo out on bail after allegedly beating a driver unconscious in mill valley. police say the attacker founder and former ceo of iron data, jeffrey smock, was on his bicycle when a traffic dispute occurred between him and the driver on april 16th around 5:00 in the evening. that's when officers got calls of a man laying on a street on east blithedale and camino alto. witnesses told police it looked like the male driver had been hit by a car. police say other drivers had to step in to stop the assault. police did arrest smock on felony assault with a deadly weapon charges. the district attorney is considering whether or not to press further charges. now to a follow-up on the deadly tour bus crash in glen county. the fedex truck was not on fire before it slammed into a bus filled with high school students. that's the only new information revealed in a preliminary report

from the ntsb which contradicts what witnesses thought they saw. it's been two weeks since the crash on the interstate. dozens of teenagers were headed to humboldt state university. ten died in that collision. determining the cause of the crash could take months. more news coming up for you at 7:00. all the day's news at 7:00. more local news here in 30 minutes. now here's more of the "today" show.

back now on a saturday morning, april 26th, 2014. little drizzley out there on th plaza here in new york city. but that is not stopping our friends out there. we'll stop out and say hello in just a minute. coming up in this half hour, behind the scenes of "the voice" now that the live shows are finally under way, the excitement and competition are both at all-time highs. erica, dylan and jenna and i flew out to los angeles. photoshopping is not anything new but for a baby, really? does this baby need

photoshopping? i think not. reacting and saying why they needed to touch up that cute little boy. >> get rid of the drool. >> make him look a few weeks younger. >> just the basics. >> would anyone care for a catuccino? not only can you get a cup of coffee but play with cats too because sometimes you have the urge for both. believe it or not this is turning out to be one of the hottest spots in new york city for cat and coffee lover. >> only in new york. we begin this half hour with something of a medical marvel that feels like it's straight out of the future. a man who has been blind for nearly two decades actually starting to see again thanks to his new bionic eye. john yang has the story. >> reporter: for nearly 15 years, roger ponce lived in a world of darkness, robbed of his sight by an incurable genetic eye disease. >> it's scary and frustrating. myself, i just learned different ways to cope with it.

>> reporter: now thanks to cutting edge technology, he's getting some of his vision back. he can see outlines and shapes, making out his cat and, most important, his grandchildren. >> every day, he sees something new and something new happens. so, every day, we just don't know. >> it might be something small but something every day something new is happening. >> he was diagnosed with retinitis pigmentosa. sufferers gradually lose their sight. first side vision and night vergs vision and then central vision. cases that can cause near blindness. he is only the fourth person to get a high-tech implant that seems straight out of the 1970s tv series "the 6 million dollar man." >> gentlemen, we can rebuild him. we have the technology. >> patients wear glasses equipped with a small video

camera to capture visual images. those images are converted into electrical pulses which stimulate the remaining healthy cells on the retina, which send a signal through the optic nerve to the brain allowing the patient to see the image. >> they detect edges of objects, of people. and from that, they can figure out what it is that's in front of them. >> reporter: roger and terri say it's nothing but a miracle. >> what do you say to people who are giving your husband back his vision? how do you thank them for that? >> reporter: giving him back what he thought he lostforever. >> little by little. i'm mighty happy. >> reporter: for "today," john yang, nbc news, chicago. >> such a cool story. dylan is outside on the plaza with a check of the weather. hey, dylan. >> i brought out my most waterproof jacket and it's not raining anymore. you're celebrating 50 today.

nice little smile on here. where are you from? >> hawaii. >> wow! and you're spending it in new york? i would have gone to hawaii to celebrate my birthday, so that works out. we're looking for the rain to come to an end in the northeast. we're talking about these storms breaking out, temperatures running 10 to 15 degrees below average out in parts of nevada and the rockies. on the eastern side of that dip in the jet stream, we've got really warm temperatures, running 10 to 15 degrees above average. whenever you have a clash in air masses like that, you have the potential of strong storms. add some moisture and that's exactly what we're going to see especially later on today. from south dakota into texas, that area in red is our best chance later this afternoon and especially into this evening where we could see isolated tornadoes. it's more or less damaging winds and the hail, too, along with the and starting to see some clearing skies around the bay area except closer to san jose

where the clouds are lingering. boy, the temperatures have really dropped off. in the north bay this morning waking up to the 30s. 44 right now in livermore, partly cloudy skies to start the day and as we head towards this evening mostly cloudy leading up to a chance of rain coming in tonight into early sunday and clearing skies heading into sunday afternoon. we're going to see our temperatures today in the low to mid 60s around san jose. only near 60 in san francisco. mid 60s into the north bay and around the inland east. and today's top spot brings us to philadelphia, pennsylvania, where hundreds of volunteers are ready to help clean up the city. this is just one of many events happening all across the country. you can see live pictures there, everybody getting ready in their bright green shirts. volunteers will clean, maintain and beautify three area projects as part of the 13th annual comcast share day, the parent company of nbc universal and our thanks to wcau for helping us out with that. it's absolutely incredible, the

people that turn out. a busy and amazing day today. lester? >> thanks, dylan. few secret service members are being hailed as heroes after sivg a woman who was having a heart attack in the middle of the street. those intense moments caught on tape. kristen welker has more for us. >> reporter: at the start of the busy tourist season in the nation's capital, security camera video captures the dramatic moments when secret service officers race to the aid of a woman on pennsylvania avenue near washington's most famous address. >> i thought maybe she had just fainted but when i first arrived over there, i noticed she was foaming at the mouth, having trouble breathing. at that point, it only got worse. >> reporter: uniformed secret service officers william grimmer and thomas hammond were on regular patrol when a tourist from dallas suffered a heart attack on her way to check in at

a hotel with her husband. >> reporter: using chest compressions, she started to breathe again, rushed to the hospital. >> it's rewarding in itself to know that she's okay at this point. >> reporter: a proud moment for an agency after officers were sent home from the negletherlan >> we had to attend to a medical call, a little more serious than we're used to, but it went down pretty flawlessly. >> reporter: kristen welker, nbc news, washington. to add a piece of history up on the auction block, the story behind this letter written just before the titanic sank. first these messages. [ female announcer ] what if getting ready every morning was quick and easy? makeup. nails. now advanced teeth whitening is simple with the new colgate® optic white™ toothbrush plus whitening pen. just brush.

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a fascinating piece of history is going up on the auction block this morning. it is a letter written on the i tit titanic. eva hart was taking the titanic to start a new life with her parents. she has had a box of toffee and a photo of this ship. at the bottom eva added her own

message, heaps of hugs and kisses. >> all of those kisses come from the heart. >> reporter: eva wrote these words the day the titanic hit the iceberg and sank. she and her mother survived, her mother did not. >> her father had on a coat and he gave it to her mother to keep her warm. the letter was found in the pocket of the coat. >> you hold mommy's hand and be a good little girl. >> reporter: in 1991 she told nbc news what happened. >> it was terribly crowded.

you are being strung aboard a boat saying be a good girl. >> reporter: this unique letter is expected to fetch at least $160,000 at today's auction. >> to the best of our knowledge this was literally a matter of hours before it collided with the iceberg. >> reporter: now the touching words of the little girl unaware of the horrors she was about to see on the auction block. want to turn it over to dylan in the orange room with our fan of the day. >> we are celebrating a 40th birthday. i will let you take it away. >> the week in today gang's goes behind the scenes at "the

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♪ every kiss begins with kay.♪ back now on a saturday morning with a fantastic group outing we all took recently. if you're watching "the voice" on monday night, you may have noticed the familiar faces on the crowd, our friend, carson daly, giving us a nice shout out. >> a behind the scenes tour before they went live for the first time this season. it was a trip to remember. now in its sixth season, every monday and tuesday, 10 million americans tune in to watch "the voice." >> well done. >> headliners adam levine, black shelton, usher and shakira form teams of would-be superstars all vying to be this year's winner. it takes a staff and crew of 600 people to put on one live show with 12 set changes and more

than 1,900 lights. the studio audience, made up of 850 fans. >> i couldn't help but notice. >> make that 854 fans. ♪ all my pictures >> at stake, a record deal and the title of "the voice." team blake's stay-at-home mom sisaundra lewis says she's living her dream. >> i'm going to leave it and let the american public do what they need to do and i hope that they will vote for me to stay on and continue this journey and this dream. ♪ i've been laying here praying praying she won't call ♪ >> i still have to pinch myself. is this real life? am i really doing this? ♪ you'll get it and you'll be gone i'll be crying ♪ >> hours before performing live,

the remaining artists show no signs of nerves. >> this is a great area here. this is where the artists are just before they go on stage for the live shows. >> show of hands, for how many of you is this the best ride you've ever been on your life, hands down? really? really? that's awesome. >> i've also been to six flags. >> six flags is a close second. close second. we're huge fans of yours. >> likewise. >> we wish you guys all the best. >> hey, i'm ready. >> but on live tv you never know what will happen. >> we'll cue you. >> sneak peek behind the scenes experience of "the voice" will continue tomorrow on "today." three of the best backup singers around or so they will tell you as i join "the voice's" house band. >> we're good when the sound is down. >> can you play really loud? >> not lester. >> exactly. >> when our sound is down. lester is fantastic. >> what was the song we did?

>> signed sa eed sealed deliver >> i love that song. i can't get enough. love that song. good song. >> don't forget, can you watch "the voice" live monday and tuesday night starting at 8:00, 7:00 central here on nbc. still to come, the little prince photo shopped? we'll show you the before and the after. >> looks adorable. >> what are they doing? changing him?

still to come on "today," banned in buffalo, bills cheerleaders put on ice after a lawsuit claiming horrible working conditions. we'll have the latest. plus some might consider it the perfect way to spend a saturday or

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good morning to you. looking live at alcatraz and the golden gate bridge in the distance. no fog to speak of but low temperatures for sure. thanks so much for joining us. i'm kris sanchez along with meteorologist rob mayeda and bur is what your forecast is saying. >> that's right. you know we have temperatures in

the 30s and 40s in the north bay, 39 in santa rosa, 38 in napa, 49 in san jose. we've got some clouds still in the south bay helping to keep our temperatures up. that is helping right now. as we head towards the afternoon, partly cloudy skies, highs in the mid 60s around san jose. san francisco near 60. cool day and breezy for the north bay. highs in the mid 60s and pleasonton and livermore highs in the mid 60s and our trend here over the next few days, it's going to be pretty interesting. this time tomorrow morning a few showers but notice what happens monday and tuesday. the numbers around san jose gusting into the mid 80s. from winter-like conditions at times this weekend to temperatures close to 90 in the valleys by wednesday. chris? >> thanks. a high-speed crash killed two overnight on highway 101. chp says the driver was speeding near the willow road exit just before 2:00 this morning when she lost control and hit a tree. the car became airborne and slammed into a second tree. the driver and the male passenger were pronounced dead

at the scene. willow road exit was shut down until about 3:30 this morning. a high-tech ceo is out on bail this morning after allegedly beating a driver unconscious in mill valley. police say the attacker founder and former ceo of iron data, jeffrey smock, was on his bicycle when a traffic dispute happened between him and the driver on april 16th around 5:00 in the evening. officers got calls of a man laying in the street on east blithedale and camino alto. police say other drivers had to step in to stop the assault. police did arrest smock on felony assault with deadly weapon charges and the district attorney is considering whether to file formally those charges. still ahead on "today in the bay," a sight for sore eyes or stick out like a thumb? why a house in a historic bay area neighborhood is getting flack for its hollywood inspired look. that story and the rest of the day's news at 7:00.

more local news in 30 minutes. here's more of the today show.

goodod morning. it's saturday, april 26, 2014. clear and present danger. a severe weather system hours away from posing a threat to millions of people in its path. already at least one tornado has touched down. dylan is warning the worst may be yet to come. count down to sainthood. hundreds of thousands are already gathered ready to witness history. and photo shopping prince george? a magazine defends its cover after touching up a photo of a little prince. is this all much ado about nothing? what do you think about that?

>> i think it is funny that you use the phrase much ado about nothing when talking about certain individuals. >> even certain pictures we tweet. >> i have to be honest i love the filters. they were actually photo shopping like sweet rolls of baby fat that would be different. i would like more of a tan pretty much every day. >> i think he tweeted about that after words. >> you called the royal baby pasty. we do want to begin with the weather system that could bring damaging tornadoes starting as early as tonight. >> kind of getting started. this whole storm system is getting its act together. last night we had a round of severe storms move through north carolina. we have reports of several tornadoes. we have one confirmed northeastern north carolina.

along with the storms -- you can see people running from the hail. golf ball sized hail falling from the sky. it was intense with these storms. you can see the funnel clouds developing. we did have confirmed one tornado. we did see damage but have not gotten reports of injury. that is good news. that is storm system number one. it is moving away. there are lingering showers in new england. this is where the next storm system is gathering just to the east of las vegas. you have warm, moist air coming in from the south and very cold air back behind it. we are going to see scattered storms. this area we could see very strong storms. the threat today is for large hail, straight line wind gusts. then it takes a turn for the worst on sunday. we still have the same setup, warm moist air.

on sunday we could see from nebraska right into mississippi the threat of strong storms but right around arkansas and the bordering states we could see possibly a supercell outbreak with several large tornadoes. this is an area we have to focus on for sunday afternoon. on monday the area of orange shifts into tennessee and parts of mississippi. that could be where a possible tornado outbreak is likely on monday. we have to focus especially sunday into monday for some of these very strong storms. turning to the growing crisis in ukraine and the push for peace. u.s. sanctions against russia could come as early as monday after announcement last night that the g-7 nations are ready to move forward with the nations. jim maseda is in ukraine this morning. >> reporter: both sides are

beefing up their positions and check points. we are seeing for the first time the ukrainian military's new tactics. we came across tense but professional ukrainian forces yesterday setting up a massive concrete road block. and there are now similar road blocks surrounding that town. rather than launch a major attack and risk not only many casualties but giving president putin an excuse to send russian military over the border they opted to cut off the towns from reenforcement, supplies and weapons while o.s.c.e. military observers try to negotiate a peaceful surrender. on friday pro-russian militants abducted a member of the team

and hold them. elsewhere russia is escalating the tension. they are currently running ground and air maneuvers close to and even going over ukraine's border showcasing state-of-the-art s 300 antimissile systems. according to the pentagon russian troops are halting invasion only to stop and peel off left and right only to test reactions. it feels more like war than peace here. we want to take a look at more top stories. here with th headlines. >> hey, >> officials in south korea saying four more crew members detained. the search has been suspended because of the weather. divers have covered 187 bodies

so far from the disaster. we go to afghanistan where five nato troops died today in a helicopter crash. afghan officials are calling it the deadliest incident so far this year for international forces. a teenager in connecticut facing murder charges after allegedly slashing a teenager to death inside their high school. investigators are looking into whether she was attacked after turning down an invitation to the prom. st. peters square is packed. more than 1 million people are expected to show up to see pope francis declare saints. we are learning former pope

benedict xvi will attend the ceremony. and if you are sitting at home wondering how big the tallest water slide in the world is you probably need more sleep. that being said a guinness world record judge certified that the new water slide in kansas city is the tallest in the world. water park officials say it is 170 feet. i was going to ask dylan if she would join me. i put it out there, who wants to come with me? >> would you do it? >> in five seconds. >> we are two people. we got a whole group of -- >> you are not raising your

hand. >> feels like a story in the making that i'm not going to be a part of. >> this is like a voice thing? >> i'm not getting on that water slide. >> i'll see you at the bottom. >> yes. i'm dropping pens, all excited. quiet season from the sidelines for the buffalo bills, losing their turns out it could be a quiet season for the buffalo bills losing their cheerleaders. kristen dahlgren is here to tell us all about it. >> it is unclear how long they will be out. the manager of the squad pulled them after a lawsuit claims cheering for the nfl was not the dream job they had hoped for. >> reporter: on any given sunday millions tune in but they are not all just watching the action on the field. >> i like watching them dance. >> i watch the jills a little. i'm married.

my wife is right over there. >> reporter: smiling cheerleaders become a huge part of the nfl experience. now the buffalo bills cheerleaders, the buffalo jills are taking a hit. just days after five former cheerleaders filed suit their manager company has pulled them all from the sideline. the former cheerleaders say they often work in a degrading environment. >> everything from standing in front of us with a clipboard and having us do a jiggle test to see what parts of our body were jiggling. >> reporter: sp the suit claims with hundreds of hours of practices they made below minimum wage. >> we paid for everything from tights to let's stick to gas many to appearances. >> reporter: in an e-mail to nbc news stephanie madison, wrote all that i can confirm is that

all jills activities is suspended. the buffalo bills said the team would not comment on pending litigation. similar lawsuits were filed by former cheerleaders with cincinnati bengals and oakland raiders leaving many to wonder if the bad publicity could take the shine off the sideline. >> it is bad publicity for the teams and the league. >> reporter: the jills who file suit say they just want the squad to quote clean up its act. >> they don't really know what we do on a daily basis and how much time is put in. >> they say they made just a few hundred bucks a year. in march the department of labor announced it closed the investigation of the raiders saying the raiders are exempt from paying minimum wage because the cheerleaders are classified as, quote, seasonal amusement.

admit it or not there are a lot of disappointed fans. >> coming up on monday two of the former cheerleaders will be speaking out live on this program. this program, here on "today." the royal family is back home this morning after their three-week tour down under. prince george was the obvious darling, of course. we can't get enough of him and those fantastic cheeks. a digital touchup has some asking whether it was really necessary. kerry sanders takes a closer look. >> reporter: photographed on an easter sunday visit to the zoo, prince george graces the cover of the current issue of "us" weekly. was the 9-month-old royal heir airbrushed? >> it changes the coloring of his hair and eyes. >> his cheeks are rosier. >> that is ridiculous. >> reporter: on social media, a royal fuss with tweets like, can we not photoshop babies? and why would they do this?

baffled. "us weekly" defended itself in a statement saying the original image was dark and bluish in tone and needed to be given an overall color shift and printing purposes. by no means did we go in and alter the color of his eyes or cheeks in this process. one tweeted this is a photo basic. color correction for skin tone. some believe this controversy is a tad dated. after all, this is a world where everyone's constantly stopping to take a selfie. and the pictures are then uploaded to a approximate. ps like instagram where they can look like this, this or this. with photo shop all too common in the magazine industry, experts say the prince george cover pales in comparison to the unrealistic standards of beauty often portrayed on newsstands. >> there's a difference between enhancing an image and lying in an image. >> reporter: some celebs are

fighting back. nikki minaj posted unedited photos from her suit. and lorde, quote, one edited so my skin is perfect and one real. remember, flaws are okay. and while he won't remember any of this, young george has become an unlikely poster child. in the debate over digital retouching. kerry sanders, nbc news, tampa. >> it ain't easy being george. dylan is out on the plaza with a check of the country's forecast. good morning, dylan. >> quick hello to the allegheny clarion valley. this is much easier to travel with. we are going to see decent weather in the forecast today. the middle of the country, we could see strong storms. we'll have to keep a close eye on that area in red for hail,

winds and potential downpours and a strong risk, especially in . kansas tomorrow >> cool temperatures and some clearing skies to kick off your saturday, but by the evening we're going to see the clouds filling in again leading to a chance of some rain after midnight tonight. on into tomorrow morning and then clearing again as we get into sunday afternoon. today's highs cool, even with the sunshine, mid 60s around san jose, only near 60 in san francisco and into the north bay highs in the mid 60s. friday valley temperatures today mid-60s. tuesday and wednesday, highs climbing to the mid to upper 80s inland through the middle part of the week. >> and that is your latest forecast. erica? >> dylan, thank you. up next, why wou ♪ ♪

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so, how do you take yours? welcome back on a saturday morning. there's a new cafe here in new york city where people don't mind waiting for hours to get inside. >> it's first of its kind in the united states. once you're in, you'll find cool cats everywhere. >> literally. >> joelle garguilo checks it

out. >> can i get you a cat'achino? >> what? >> you heard it correctly. some calling it crazy, others a perfect idea. everyone can call it this. the cat cafe. >> we're here, encouraging a larger conversation wiabout cat health. >> reporter: north shore animal league of america a four-day pop-up shop here in new york city. people tend to cuddle up to cute kitties while sipping their coffee and, yes, all of these fantastic felines are up for adoption. >> hey, sweetie, what's your name? >> reporter: while it's the first of its kind in america, the people behind it are, well, copy cats. cafes like this are big in europe and asia. >> this cat cafe may be on to something. >> reporter: the way to get in may not require nine lives but you will need patience. >> i've been waiting on line for

an hour. >> reporter: rivalling that of the hottest clubs. the cat cafe, coffee's free, food's free, even the feline. s are free. ask yourself this, can you really put a pricing it on companionship? joelle garguilo. >> i'm allergic to cats so -- >> not going to work out very well for you then. >> just have the cat'achino. lester takes on late night. wait until you see what happens when he teams up with with seth meyers. i love this video. this is "today" on nbc. ♪ ♪ [ barks ] whoo!

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lester is out working on making some new friends on nbc. late night host seth meyers

recently spent the day with our very serious host lester holt. take a look. >> are you lost? >> no, i'm seth. they asked us to hang out. they want us to be friends. >> good evening. i'm lester holt nbc news. i don't appreciate jokes, goofs or spoofs. friendship is about respect and you cannot respect a clown. thank you. >> for real? >> i'm sorry, are you eating a plate ofam. i eat neutral foods. it keeps me unbiased on the air. what is that orange and red triangle on your plate? >> pizza. >> the italian food dish for children. >> you know what pizza is. >> you are not a man. >> i am a man. >> i did see one of your shows once. >> really? >> once. you see a headline, then make fun of it and then they laugh. >> the monologue joke. >> it's disgusting. >> great. >> it's like a five-minute

sketch. the entire thing is hysterical. >> i loved it. i saw it yesterday and thought i hope people don't really think i'm that stuffy. >> i think people know that you're not. >> i think it shows the great comedic timing you have. you were shooting that a long time. >> we were in 30 rock, went over to bryant park, in our carousel scene there where i said i was thrilld with joy. the writers were terrific. they sent this to me and said we've got to do it. >> it's hilarious. >> you have to watch the whole thing. >> i look forward to the next installment. >> seth is a great guy. thanks for letting me do

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good morning. i'm kris sanchez. coming up next on "today in the bay," seeking justice. we investigate military sexual assault cases and why the state of california is now getting involved. plus, a make-over for a historic bay area home. why some neighbors say they don't want it up and they want it to go away. and more rain is in the forecast this weekend. looking live at the clouds looming. rob mayeda will show us when we can expect the next round of showers.

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from nbc bay area, this is "today in the bay." good saturday morning to you. looking live at alcatraz and the golden gate bridge there in the distance, no fog, but it is a chilly start to this saturday morning. we're glad to have you with us. i am kris sanchez along with meteorologist rob mayeda and i'm trying not to whine about this february forecast. >> it does seem chilly out there, kris. the places that have cleared out north of san francisco down into the 30s this