good wednesday morning. coming up on "early today," nfl under fire. from the bears' jim mcmahon to hundreds of former players, america's most powerful sport is under pressure for painkillers and narcotics. pet danger, dog and cat treats that can hurt or kill your furry family members are being taken off store shelves. voter nation, tuesday results are in and we have the winners and losers for you. plus, 20 million bees on the loose in one place. this season's winner of "the voice" and a $60 million mistake. it's wednesday, may 21st. "early today" starts right now. good morning.

i'm richard lui. the votes are in. here are some primary results. in kentucky, senate republican leader mitch mcconnell will take on alison lundergan grimes. mcconnell got close to 60% of the vote to defeat his challenger, matt bevin. in georgia, it's going to be a runoff there. no candidate came near the 50% that was needed in the seven-candidate primary field. right now it looks like congressman jack kingston will face david purdue in july. in idaho's high-stakes primary mike simpson, an ally of john boehner, has 62% of the vote over tea party candidate brian smith with almost all of the precincts reporting there. and just because the clintons are stumping for you, well, it doesn't mean you got the victory. in pennsylvania, marjorie margulies whose son is married to chelsea clinton lost her old house state to brendan boyle. the planned execution of a missouri ie has been put on hold. a u.s. supreme court justice issuing the order overnight to

suspend the execution of russell bucklew. there was little more than an hour to spare. protesters across the state you remember urged them to stop. it would have been the first since the botched execution of an oklahoma inmate last month. bucklew's stay was issued over concern over a rare medical condition. a federal judge has struck down pennsylvania's ban on gay marriage. that means same-sex unions are legal in that state and throughout the entire northeast. pennsylvania's attorney general previously called the ban unconstitutional and refused to defend it. nbc's tracie potts is in washington for us this morning with more. tracie, is it the end of the road for this ban, or might we see this go to the supreme court? >> reporter: very likely not the end of the road for this ban, richard. good morning, everyone. because the supreme court has gotten involved in utah, they could certainly get involved here. what we're waiting to find out this morning is whether the state's republican governor who opposes same-sex marriage will appeal this case.

they rallied around the state after a federal judge ruled pennsylvania's 18-year-old ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. >> the justice has been done for a long time, and we are going to stop it today. >> reporter: philadelphia's mayor called it an historic day. county offices there stayed open late last night to handle applications. the state's attorney general voiced her support. >> i think that where there's inequality in one group of people or one class of people, then there's inequality amongst all of us. >> reporter: 11 couples sued plus a widow, one couple's teenage daughters and the aclu. governor tom corbett hasn't said if he'll appeal. there's been a flurry of activity just this week. on monday, a judge struck down oregon's same-sex marriage ban. the same day a federal judge ordered utah to recognize 1,000 couples who married before the u.s. supreme court stepped in this. yesterday a federal court put marriages in idaho on hold,

pending an appeal. nearly half the nation's residents, 44%, now live in a state where same-sex couples can marry. but when you break that down, what it means is, it's allowed in some states but not happening in some states, richard, because there's 25 states that allow same-sex marriage to happen, but there are 6 where they're tied up in the courts. there's been a stay issued, so they're not really performing those marriage ceremonies. most states, 19, but there are a few states where it's allowed but it's not actually happening at this point. >> tracie potts, back. do anything fun? >> reporter: i did. i went down south, back to my roots. >> i love the south myself. tracie potts, thank you so much. now to a group of retired nfl players. they claim that the league placed its profits above their health. in a lawsuit the players say the nfl supplied them with drugs illegally to conceal injuries. nbc's ron mott has more. >> reporter: the lawsuit alleges nfl teams illegally gave players

drugs to mask serious injuries they were never told about in some cases, all in an effort former players argue to keep them on the field and the money rolling in. baltimore attorney steve silverman filed the suit in u.s. district court in san francisco. >> so basically what you have in the nfl is a bunch of anesthesized gladiators every week and the nfl is simply putting profit before players, and it's as simple as that. >> reporter: eight former players including jim mcmahon are named as plaintiffs in the lawsuit. and attorney silverman says nearly 600 ex-players have signed on in support. mcmahon, famous for his toughness and durability, says in the lawsuit he played with a broken neck and ankle during his career without being told by team doctors and trainers. instead getting painkillers and sent back into games, later becoming addicted. the lawsuit said the drugs were administered to players without prescriptions. >> roger, do you have any comment on the lawsuit that was filed in baltimore today against

the league about painkillers? >> i don't, barry. i was only made aware of it just briefly. i don't believe any of our attorneys have had an opportunity to look at it. and as you know, i've been in meetings all day. >> reporter: the nfl remains america's most popular support despite negative publicity about concussions. last year the league settled a lawsuit for $765 million, but a federal judge rejected it saying the amount is insufficient. >> nbc's ron mott reporting for us there. now to as many as 20 million bees let loose after a truck carrying them turned over. the driver and two passengers were stung 50 to 100 times. bee handlers called to the delaware highway scene there used smoke and water to calm the insects down. one of them told nbc philadelphia that the bees were going to maine to pollinate blueberries there. experts say about 90% of those bees unfortunately lost during the accident. a lot of bees there. last month's average global

temperature tied the hottest april on record four years ago. bill karins. >> yeah, these records go back to the '70s. they use satellites and estimate the global temperatures. april was either the first or second depending which agency you're going to go by. >> in the last 40 years. >> mostly because of siberia, by the way. huge heat wave. a huge portion of it, too. let's talk about yesterday in our country because we had active weather in the midwest. severe weather season. this is what you expect to see. i'm still impressed every time i see baseball-sized hail. just the stuff falling from the sky was shattering windshields. this is from naperville, illinois. we also saw a big thunderstorm that was outside of denver yesterday. denver only had a high of 73. but they've been seeing a lot of bad storms as of late. they did actually have one storm that reported a tornado with that. as far as the highs went, 70 in san diego. 71 in san francisco. and we were at 72 there in seattle. today is going to be similar temperatures, on the coolish-type side. our storm continues to spin over

nevada. hit-and-miss showers and storms. drier than yesterday morning. the forecast goes like this. we slowly watch that storm system heading into the intermountain west. from salt lake city to billings, showers and storms for you. but in many areas of the west and northwest, a very typical average rain day. enjoy that. that's yourit does not look lik any significant heat headed to the west any time soon. looks like we do a pattern shift as we go through memorial weekend and the next week. on the cooler side. all the heat in the middle of the country. >> the weather outside your window. how long you been doing that? door? >> i always use window. >> how many years? >> six. >> six years. outside your window. >> i'll go back and get you tape. >> thanks for putting up with

me. netflix expands. plus a danger warning over treats for your dogs and cats. you're watching "early today." your home and auto insurance together. i'll just press this, and you'll save on both. ding! ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, llllet's get ready to bundlllllle... [ holding final syllable ] oh, yeah, sorry! let's get ready to bundle and save. now, that's progressive. oh, i think i broke my spleen! home insurance provided and serviced by third party insurers. when you find the one... you just know. new almay smart shade makeup made it easy with just three skintone-adjusting shades to choose from... not hundreds. new almay tonemimic technology intuitively transforms to your skintone. it's my one... and only. almay. i cthis year aloneore places offi hit new york...ist. and texas!

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not hundreds. new almay tonemimic technology intuitively transforms to your skintone. it's my one... and only. almay. welcome back. at least 118 people are dead in nigeria after two car bombs exploded in the city of jost. the terrorist group boko haram is believed to be responsible. it is that same group that kidnapped 276 girls more than a month ago. they missed each other by only 400 feet. new rules at newark's airport following that near miss last month. one plane was cleared to land as another was cleared to take off on runways that intersected one another. the faa says planes will no longer use that procedure. police found his wife fatally shot in their home. now l.a. police are saying that jayce called 911 and told them

he did it. their children are both under 10 and reportedly home at that time. marijuana use may be keeping the fbi from hiring good hackers. applicants are disqualified. the director says the agency may need to reevaluate those rules. it cost $60 million a texas high school football stadium that rivals many a college venue, but the state champs will have to play elsewhere next season. engineers found support structures were not designed to handle the expected weight. let's get down to business. netflix will expand into germany, france and others reaching nearly 50 countries around the globe. the internet video service has about 48 million subscribers including 13 million outside the u.s. billionaire investor warren buffett met with a group of young entrepreneurs called the tycoons of tomorrow. the oracle of omaha served as a judge among kids 9 to 14. wow, i would have been nervous. they were part of a group of finalists in the national grow your own business competition. all right, petco will stop selling dog and cat treats made

in china by the end of the year. the fda reports nearly 5,000 pet illnesses and 1,000 dog deaths after eating jerky treats made in china. gm adding recalls covering 2.4 million cars and trucks. that makes 29 recalls totalling almost 14 million vehicles in the u.s. this year alone. gm has hired 35 new safety investigators and says more recalls are likely in the future. google putting aside 20 to $30 billion to buy foreign companies and overseas rights held outside the u.s. google has also overtaken apple as the most valuable brand but not when it comes to cash on hand. it had $59 billion to apple's $150 billion. paul mccartney falls ill, cancels concerts. plus we have enough sports highlights to fill your wednesday morning, so don't go anywhere. e cream graveyard. if it doesn't work fast...

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this morning on "today," outlet knock-offs. the look at quality of clothing you're getting at factory outlet stores. why those deals may be too good to be true. that's ahead on "today." now to sports. we start with the nba eastern conference finals. take a look. >> he does it! he does it. they count the basket. >> 0.1 second left, indiana gets the lucky tap before the first

half. paul george scores, gets 14 points in total. that put miami in a seven-point hole. but miami's defense steps up. lebron james steals. dwyane wade follows up with that dunk. part of a 12-2 miami run to win 87-83. the series now tied 1-1. they had a 1.7% chance of winning. of getting the number one nba draft pick. the cleveland cavaliers, they did it again. that's 3 of the last 4 years. but it was the daughter of the bucks' co-owner who stole the show. dad let mallory eden there represent at the draft, and she did. her twitter following ballooned from 250 to over 24,000 after being on tv. too bad the bucks, which had a 25% of getting the number one pick, got number two. super bowl lii in 2018 will be played in minnesota. congratulations. >> well, they're happy.

the vikings' new $1 billion stadium will host the 2018 big game which could mean tens of millions in tax acash. 1992 was the last time. it's scheduled to be finished in 2014. future super bowl cities, by the way, they include super bowl xlix in glendale, arizona. super bowl l in santa clara, california. should be san francisco. and super bowl li in houston, texas. i'm so excited. good news from hall of famer jim kelly, the buffalo bills' great is done with chemotherapy. it doesn't mean his battle with sinus cancer is over. he's just saying i'm still fighting. and he is. a lot of folks rooting for him. a massive sinkhole opens at a tennessee university. it's 40 feet wide and 40 feet deep. officials say construction caused it to grow. they're greg to fill it with rock and concrete. i don't want to be that guy operating the crane in the hole. that's probably not the best job to have. "early today" is brought to you by just for men autostop.

the foolproof way to get rid of gray. just ahead, a winner has been declared on "the voice." plus neil patrick harris is penning an autobiography, but who will get to play a part in it. you're watching "early today." ♪ here's a good one seattle... what did geico say the mariner? we could save you a boatload! ♪ foghorn sounds loudly ♪ what's seattle's favorite noise? the puget sound! ♪ foghorn sounds loudly ♪ all right, never mind doesn't matter. this is a classic. what does an alien seamstress sew with? a space needle! ♪ foghorn sounds loudly continuously ♪ oh come off it captain! geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. when you find the one...

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still running in the morning? yeah. getting your vegetables every day? when i can. [ bop ] [ male announcer ] could've had a v8. two full servings of vegetables for only 50 delicious calories. two full servings of vegetables it used to take me forever to get a smoky eye look just right. until i discovered this... almay's intense i color collection for my hazel eyes. almay intense i-color in four color collections you have to try it for yourself. so simple. so me. almay. the mustard seed that makes french's yellow mustard. 100% natural from me to you. with 40% more free, there's more to love. french's. naturally amazing. welcome back. i mentioned earlier that it looks to be relatively on the cooler-type side in the west over the next five to even ten days. no sign of any big heat waves

coming. how much rain will we get? one of our long-term computer models is showing very little in the way of california as the expected time of year. it could be some enjoyable and dry weather. of course, if you're hoping for that rain, doesn't look like we're going to get it any time soon. today, a nice mild day from portland to seattle to medford. ry enjoyable weather pattern. typical in san francisco. a little cooler than you'd probably expect in l.a. at 70. vegas, 83 this time of year is on the cooler side. that doesn't look to change even into thursday. more status quo. no extremes, which is good. >> okay. nice and moderate. thank you so much. the winner of "the voice" has finally been crowned. >> the winner of "the voice" is -- josh kaufman! wins it for team usher! >> usher has a lot to smile about. that's because josh kaufman was on his team. got the

coveted deal with universal public records and $100 grand. usher is the first coach not named adam or blake to come out on top. second place went to jake worthington and third place to kristina grimmie. congratulations. on "dancing with the stars," meryl davis won the mirrorball trophy. davis beat out "full house" actress candace cameron bure and amy purdy. ex-beatle paul mccartney canceled his entire japan tour. he caught an unspecified illness. he is scheduled to play next week in south korea, but as of now, the future is up in the air. kim kardashian taking her daughter, north west, on a stroll yesterday. while shopping at high-end boutiques ahead of her wedding with kanye west. it's this start in florence, italy, right? well, it's a place that evidently has a little bit of a special meaning. >> in a new interview, kanye west revealed daughter north was

conceived in florence. or as north calls that, a pretty good name for a girl. >> yeah. there you go. >> hard to get over that north west name. >> it is. >> so if you've ever dreamed of being neil patrick harris, readers will play nph and get the chance to make their own decisio decisions. how is that going to work? >> i don't know. i loved those books as a kid. you choose this direction, go to page this or page that. >> so it's going to be a digital po book of some sort. neil patrick harris, always a creative guy. i'm richard lui. this is "early today," we hope it's just your first stop of the day right here on nbc. you can hide uneven skin tone from here. and here. but what about here? [ female announcer ] neutrogena® visibly even daily moisturizer

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leading the news in "the washington post," planned homeland security headquarters long delayed and overbudget and now in doubt. the construction of the massive new headquarters is running more than $1.5 billion over budget. the report says it's 11 years behind schedule and may never be completed. and from yahoo! news, teen faces life in prison over hash brownies. the 19-year-old faces a felony instead of a misdemeanor. the 19-year-old from texas used hash oil rather than pot. that allowed the state to weigh it as a whole. some other stories we are keeping an eye on for you, eight people in iran have allegedly been arrested for this

version in order to repent on state tv. pharrell responded on state tv saying it is beyond sad these kids were arrested for trying to expressed happiness. students were on hand at the white house for its first ever talent show. there were xylophones, singing routines and a guest appearance from actress sarah jessica parker. the goal was to encourage the arts in education. and "wheel of fortune's" pat sajak sparking an online firestorm after tweeting i now believe global warming alarmists are unpatriotic racists knowing misleading for their own ends. say jack has hosted "wheel of fortune" for more than 30 years. he has not been quiet on this issue. this baseball pitcher is no scaredy cat. tara is her name and she's the first feline to throw an opening pitch. >> tries to. >> remember this housecat made quite a splash when she saved a little boy from being attacked from a neighborhood dog. with help from her owner, tara tried to paw the ball.

it just falls, though. >> she's more of a football tackler than a thrower. >> i would agree with that. evidently the way they had planned it where they drilled a hole in the ball. >> fishing line. >> it didn't work. >> "a" for effort, "f" for execution. later today, president obama welcomes super bowl champions the seattle seahawks to the white house to honor the team. the visit has become tradition. the first super bowl champions to visit the white house were the 1969 new york jets. on this day in 1980, the empire strikes back. the second movie in the "star wars" series was released. >> as any "star wars" addict knows, it's not the actors, it's the special effects that steal the show. the movie is filmed from beginning to end with elaborate special effects such as this battle between the good guys and the bad guys, armed with huge walking tanks. >> i am your father. i'm richard lui along with bill karins. the entire team, thank for watching "early today." have a good one.

this is "today in the bay". >> well, good morning to you. >> lots to get to this morning. let's first check that forecast. >> good morning to you. >> we have a nice looking day. temperatures are going to jump up into the upper 70s. tomorrow, we continue that climb. i have your full forecast. temperatures getting hot by the weekend. let's say good morning and welcome in. >> looking over here toward the east shore freeway. you make them out center screen. over crossing westbound 80. let's look at the map