coming up on "early today" this memorial day, california shooting, the gunman's parents contacted mental health professionals last month. he managed to convince the authorities that he wasn't a threat. a parent of one of the shooting victims speaks out. >> ion't care who you are, i don't care where you live, this can happen to you. >> honoring the troops, president obama's surprise visit and message to our soldiers and the rest of us about how long we'll be in afghanistan. plus, the boat that hit the whale forcing passengers overboard before it hit the rocks. a huge day in the world of sports. we've got you covered. and it is memorial day, a time to thank the men, women and families that keep our nation free. "early today" starts right now.

good morning. i'm frances rivera. this morning we're learning more about the 22-year-old gunman behind a deadly attack in isla vista, california. authorities say elliot rodger killed six people and injured another 13 before turning the gun on himself near the university of california santa barbara. according to police, the manifesto he left behind indicates he had been planning the attack for quite some time. nbc's jennifer bjorkland has the latest. >> reporter: chaos and a convoluted chain of events. people scramble. this was the third murder scene left in the wake of alleged gunman elliot rodger. >> tomorrow is the day of retributi retribution. the day in which i will have my revenge against humanity. >> reporter: the video of what he planned uploading even as he

was embarking on his killing spree. earlier videos last month alarmed his family who called mental health experts for a welfare check. and as rodger recalled in a 140-page manifesto he sent to his parents minutes before the shooting, he told deputies at his door it was all a misunderstanding. thankfully, he wrote, all suspicion of me was dropped. >> he did not meet the criteria for an involuntary mental health hold. >> reporter: sheriff bill brown says with no indication he was an immediate threat to himself or others, there was nothing else they could do. no way to predict this carnage. the first three deaths by stabbing, rodger's roommate identified now as three men from northern california shot in front of a sorority house, 19-year-old veronika weiss. her friends at home distraught. >> she was innocent. didn't deserve this. >> reporter: and 22-year-old katie cooper just weeks from graduating down the street shot

in that deli chris martinez, a sophomore english major. >> he was the most warm, loving, kind-hearted kid you could ask for. >> reporter: heartbreak on a scale that has no measure. jennifer bjorkland, nbc news, santa barbara. now to a whirlwind trip overseas. president obama just arrived back at andrews air force base after he secretly flew to afg n afghanistan sunday for a surprise visit with active duty troops. president obama also tipped his hand at what america's role will be moving forward in afghanistan, the site of this nation's longest war. nbc's tracie potts is in washington, d.c. he did not meet with president karzai, why not? >> reporter: they couldn't work it out. timewise the president was only on the ground for a few hours. he couldn't get to the presidential palace and probably security concerns about that as well. karzai wasn't coming to the air

base where president obama was, so they ended up talking by phone. but the president said he did want to be there to thank the troops in person. >> i'm here on a single mission, and that is to thank you for your extraordinary service. >> reporter: he was on the ground just four hours and only spoke to afghan president hamid karzai by phone after taking off from bagram air base. president obama promised many of these troops will be home by new year's. >> and our combat mission will be over. america's war in afghanistan will come to a responsible end. >> reporter: but we still don't know how many will stay. it could be as many as 10,000. the president told karzai they'll talk again before he announces that publicly. that could come wednesday when mr. obama delivers the commencement speech at west point. for now, he's focused on making sure these soldiers can be seen at v.a. hospitals when they get home. >> our combat mission here will come to an end, but our obligations to you and your

families have only just begun. >> i hope that they get that rectified. >> reporter: the v.a. investigation was on the minds of veterans rolling through d.c. this weekend. >> it's an 18 and a half months for my cases to be even seen by the board. so it's frustrating. >> reporter: and it's not over. and that's because president obama's expecting a preliminary report from that v.a. investigation some time this week. >> all right. we'll see what that has to say. tracie potts rt reporting from washington, d.c. three people missing after possibly caught in a massive landslide in colorado. the landslide estimated to have been two miles wide, four miles long and up to 250 feet deep. according to the sheriff's office a witness described hearing a noise that sounded much like a freight train. officials say rescue crews are at the scene. the memorial day weekend didn't go quite as planned for a group of five boaters in california. they had to jump ship after their boat hit a whale. according to the san mateo

county sheriff's office the boat's engine was disabled when it collided with the whale about five to ten miles from the shore. strong waves then pushed the vessel toward the rocky coast. all five boaters made it to shore safely. the whale wasn't harmed and swam off on its way. people across the country are paying their respects to military veterans on this memorial day weekend. in the nation's capitol thousands of motorcycles rumbled through the streets. it was all part of the annual rolling thunder rally which aims to bring attention to military veterans, particularly prisoners of war and those still missing in action. every year the rally attracts motorcycle enthusiasts from all over the united states. well, those bacon cheeseburgers you're defrosting now planning on grilling today will cost you a little bit more. strong demand, disease and drought have put pricing pressure on many of the key ingredients from the bun to the bacon. for consumers that means you can expect to pay around 32 cents more per burger than you did just a year ago according to usda calculations. so you either get that 32 cents

more or it's hot dogs this time of year for you. >> yeah. i don't know, maybe one of each. >> maybe one of each. throw in a steak too. >> instead of two burgers maybe just one. >> how are we doing with grilling weather though? >> we're not bad in many areas. maybe hot in the desert southwest. we have gotten toasty in areas like arizona. talk about the national forecast across the country today. there's a lot of outdoor activities planned for memorials, some parades of course. and in the west we're not doing too bad. we had a front move through the northwest with some light rain, and that's about it. that's starting to clear out at least. we are watching all the wet weather in the middle of the country and very nice on the eastern seaboard. as far as the west goes we had the front move through. now you can see some of the light rain has moved with it. back behind the front is what we call an upper level low, kind of a pesky storm sit up the coastline of california. it is bringing another round in

the west we're looking okay. know notice how hot it is in the desert southwest. 103 today, a pair for phoenix and vegas. it's summer like heat there. definitely get by the pool or somewhere to keep yourself cool. in the northwest won't be cloudy and one of the hottest spots in the country today, 105. >> the heat peaks tuesday or wednesday in the southwest. >> grab the sunscreen. stock up now. bill, thank you. an exclusive interview with ukraine's new president and $100 bills stashed around the city, plus pope francis is making waves in the holy land and making progress in a push for peace. save them.

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now to the final day of pope francis' historic mission to the holy land. the pope visited two of the holiest places in islam. the pontiff also issued a stunning invitation that puts him squarely in the mideast peace process. nbc's ann thompson has more. >> reporter: pope francis's day of deliberate acts with powerful messages began with his arrival flying directly to the palestinian territories from jordan, bypassing israel on the way in. the first pope to do so. in his meeting with president mahmoud abass, francis recognized the territory as "the state of palestine." then he made an unannounced stop at a graffiti covered section. israel insists necessary for

security. that wall is why clara fought her way through the crowd with bethlehem's major square to see the pope. carrying a poster asking him to save her house, which is surrounded by the wall. >> i see only walls, cameras and tower. >> reporter: but perhaps the biggest surprise came during the mass in the square. when francis invited abass and israeli president perez to the vatican to pray for peace. they accepted. it's not just a divide between the palestinians and israelis that concerns the pope, there is also a divide within christianity itself. he prayed with the leader of orthodox christians on the site where christ was crucified. the latest act of unity between two churches once separated for more than 900 years.

>> nbc's ann thompson reporting from jerusalem. other stories making news this morning, the white house may have just outed the cia's top officer in the afghan city of kabul according to report from "the washington post," the officer's name was accidentally included on a list of attendees to the president's surprise troop visit. the list was quickly revised. the white house declined to comment. ukraine may have its new president. exit polls suggest billionaire petro poroshenko has won. he'll have his hands full with conflict along the russian border. cnbc talked to him about that in an exclusive interview. >> -- you could have a legitimate president. and now today just starting from today we have legitimate president. >> he went onto say that nothing could stop them from achieving peace in ukraine. a new age scavenger hunt going down in the san francisco

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welcome back. you're looking at a live picture of arlington national cemetery where more than 400,000 of america's bravest military men and women have been laid to rest over the past 150 years. there's no place more poignant to reflect on their sacrifice on this memorial day. time to bring some sports headlines now. we start with the nba western conference finals. >> there's jackson, tosses up the rebound and scores. >> oklahoma city's big man was back on the court. an injured calf kept ibaka out of the first two games but not game three. he scored 15 and helped his team outrebound san antonio 52-36. the spurs dialed up three pointers to answer before the half. but westbrook topped with his own. the thunder break it open in the fourth with defense and fast break points oklahoma city wins it 106-97. san antonio leads the series

2-1. in the nhl rangers, canadiens game four, madison square gardens, game tied 2-2 in overtime. >> very careful trying to play it a second time. can't do it. goal! >> three balls and two strikes to utley with a runner at second base. the pitch and a strike three. and josh beckett has thrown the 11th no-hitter in los angeles history. >> king of the diamond. the sixth win of this affiliate. now to the indy 500. scott dickson lost shot at the checkered flag. his crash into the wall ends his day. a chance to win his fourth indy 500 had to get past ryan hunter reay on the final lap. >> checkered flag is in the air.

here comes castro -- he won't get there. florida's ryan hunter reay wins the indianapolis 500. >> that was the second closest finish in indy 500 history. he didn't win anything, but kurt busch had a day at the races to remember after finishing sixth in the indy 500. he hopped on a plane and flew to charlotte to race in the coca-cola 600. his quest to complete the double and to finish both races ended when he blew an engine with just 120 laps to go. j jimmie johnson notches his first victory of the season. rory mcilroy bounces back from heartbreak. he rallies from seven strokes behind to win the bmw championship by one shot. and finally, a dad caught the best minor league baseball. watch here. first homer of the season and it's just over the fence. look who's there to catch it.

dear old dad. early father's day gift. just incredible. "early today" is brought to you by just for men mustache and beard, champions of facial hair. and just ahead on "early today," bill karins will give us this year's hurricane forecast and details you've been waiting behind kim kardashian and kanye west multimillion dollar wedding.

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this is the strongest may hurricane we've ever seen. winds up to 155 miles per hour. category 4 at one point. beautiful eye beginning to slowly weaken. will never affect any land areas, which does bring us into the topic of conversation regarding the predictions from noaa for the atlantic hurricane season. they're predicting average to below average season. the important numbers are the hurricanes and major hurricanes somewhere between three to six and one to two. we don't know if any of those will hit land or not. hopefully they won't. bill, thank you very much. x-men soars and blended bombs at the box office. "x-men: days of future past" pulled in $110 million in the u.s. the adam sandler and drew barrymore ended in third. second place, "godzilla" took a steep drop. it's kanye's first and kim's

third. yes, their wedding. it happened and reportedly went off without too much drama saturday in florence italy. step dad bruce jenner escorted kim down the aisle. followed by a 20-minute speech or some are calling it a rant by kanye. >> i think a 20-minute speech by every groom in every wedding. >> he called the kardashians the most remarkable people of any time. jay-z skipped the ceremony. more important, to spend time with the family in the hamptons and wife beyonce. congrats to emma watson for graduating from brown university. she took five years to get her degree in english literature which isn't bad considering she performed in seven films in that time. i'm frances rivera and this is "early today." we hope it's your first stop of the day on nbc. hey, buddy? oh, hey, flo. you want to see something cool? snapshot, from progressive. my insurance company told me not to talk to people like you.

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leading the news in the arizona daily sun, containment on northern arizona wildfire implgs up. officials say the 21-square-mile slide fire which started tuesday is now 25% contained thanks to calmer winds. some evacuation orders are likely to be lifted today. and on nbcnews.com, south korea ups its reward for tips on mysterious ferry billionaire. there's a $500,000 bounty on the ferry owner who prosecutors say didn't spend enough on safety. the april 16th disaster left more than 300 people dead or missing. and some other stories we're watching this morning, happy birthday to america's oldest citizen, they call her mother talley and she's 115. she was born in 1899 when

mckinly was president. and new rules for self-driving cars in california. among other things there's now to be a person sitting in the driver's seat when the computer takes control. that should help with the minor freak-outs that other motorists have when passing by a driverless car. some say what's the point. in unusual situations -- you don't always get what you expect. >> this is classic. it's one of the most recognizable voices in the world today. there he is. just a little bit higher. that was morgan freeman on the science channel sucking helium. it's exploded on the web almost 9 million views in just three days. all right, sink or swim? that was a true test for the boats racing in the skooner ri ga ta in key west. the teams had to build their own boats made of plywood and duct tape. materials were limited to a four by eight sheet of plywood, two

eight-foot 2 x 4s. >> those were pretty good. like kayaks. >> i would never be able to tell. >> that's creative. >> now for a look ahead and a look back. in honor of memorial day, the president will deliver remarks at arlington national cemete cemetery. he will also lay a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier. in 1977 george h.willig scaled the south world trade center. he was arrested at the top and earned the nickname the human fly. in the end he was charged one penny per story for his crime paying up just $1.10. and happy birthday today to rocker lenny kravts who turns 50. hank williams jr. is 65 and stevie nix is 66.

good monday morning to you, it's 4:30. i'm scott mcgrew. >> i'm laura garcia-cannon. a lot to get to on this memorial day morning. >> temperatures are very comfortable and you step outside and don't need a light jacket across the board from san francisco to the south bay and even the peninsula and the east bay. you can see from our emeryville camera things are crystal clear at the coast and another warm day headed our way and temperatures coming down from where they have been all weekend long and still be a nice weekend or really a nice day compared to the weekend that we had. you can see if you're still off today, 60s at the coast today,