really giving money to families displaced due to the flooding. >> have to watch out for our neighbors, right? we're all in it together. thanks for joining us this morning as well. we'll be back at 7:25 with a live local news update. >> have a great day. inteligencia de estados unidos we're live in washington and havana. in court this morning, the boston bombing suspect makes a

first court appearance in more than a year and a half with the start of his trial less than a month away. head's up, a man enjoying a bike ride gets an unexpected surprise. a deer leaping out of nowhere directly into his path. what he says saved him from serious injury, today, thursday, december 18th, 2014. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" with matt lauer and savannah guthrie live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> good morning, watching that deer video, no one cringing more than the guy next to me. >> been deer, done that. we'll talk about that in a bit, but that's not looking good. >> by the way, no one injured, including the deer in that.

what a busy 24 hours. the u.s. is now confirming it was north korea behind the hacking of sony pictures. while the studio has decided to cancel the release of the controversial movie, "the interview," we'll get reactions from hollywood in a moment, but let's get to pete williams. pete, what can you tell us? >> reporter: matt, good morning, u.s. officials are satisfied the devastating attack on sony entertainment came at the direction of north korea. nay are not certain exactly how it worked. u.s. intelligence and law enforcement officials say they've concluded that the cyber attack on the sony studios was directed by the government of north korea. >> hello, north korea! >> reporter: apparent retaliation for the studio's plan to release "the interview" involving a plot to kill the leader of north korea. >> take him out. >> you want us to kill the leader of north korea? >> reporter: it was launched outside north korea, not saying

where, but it was directed by north korea, state sponsored, and investigate eres are looking into whether they had help from current or former sony employees. computer security experts say some of the malware in the attack was similar to computer code used before in hacking attacks to south korea's businesses. it's unusual for u.s. to blame another country, given the unpredictable nature of kim jung un. >> to see a cyber attack on a western target is something they are happy about, so when i think we blame them, they are delighted to get the credit. >> reporter: the u.s. government has not yet formally put accusation in writing with any kind of public statement. officials say it's because they have not decided what the appropriate response should be. the hackers threatened unspec y unspecified attacks on theaters, but president obama says there was never any evidence the threats were credible, and he's encouraging people to go to the movies.

matt, savannah? >> pete williams, pete, thank you very much. >> well, in the wake of the hacks and violence pete mentioned, sony took the unprecedented step of cancelling the movie's release. it's a decision not sitting well with a lot of people, particularly in hollywood. we are in los angeles with that part of the story. hi, joe, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, savannah. sony pictures says they have no further release plans for "the interview," a plan rocking hollywood, angering celebrities, and raising fears this has a chilling effect on the industry. the movie, "the interview," is no longer coming soon. instead, posters for sony's embattled film are coming down. >> never seen anything like this in ten years covering hollywood, and i can't imagine how they'll dig themselves out. >> reporter: celebrities are outraged they cancelled the release, and ben stiller tweeted, hard to believe this is the response to a threat to freedom of expression here in america, and from rob lowe, wow, everyone caved.

the hackers won, an utter and complete victory for them. moviegoers agree. >> it's a shame it's come to this. unfortunately, this is what they wanted, and this is what they are getting. >> reporter: sony made the decision after the country's largest theater chains announced they were pulling the movie, concerned when the hackers threatened locations showing the film. in a statement, sony says we respect and understand our partners' decisions and share their paramount interest in the safety of employees and theater goers. >> they pull the release of "the interview" has ripple effects throughout hollywood. >> reporter: in the wake of the health care, there's a movie project stars steve carrell set in north korea is no longer moving forward at 20th century fox, and he tweeted, sad day for corrective expression. >> are we going to allow ourselves to be bullied when a dictatorship or another regime doesn't like the way it's depicted in a movie, a book, an

article, whatever it may be. >> reporter: there's speck it could be released on demand so people can watch it on their own tvs at home, but a stony spokesperson says the company will not release the film, and that includes vod. savannah? >> thank you. shawn henry investigated cyber terrorism attacks, assistant director of the fbi, now president of crowd strike services, which specializes in cybersecurity. good morning. >> morning. >> so now the u.s. is saying it's north korea who did it. the ball is in our court. there has to be some response, doesn't there? >> certainly has to be some response. we have to demonstrate to all countries around the world what the red lines are and what happens if you cross the line. i think, though, we have to talk about this, shooting from the hip is not appropriate. we got to discuss this because this will have long ranging implications whenever we do this. we don't want to escalate beyond the point of no return. >> you could see a situation

where we strike back, you escalate it, and there's all out cyber war fair between the countries. >> that's absolutely right. i see this as weapons of mass destruction or nuclear issue. we need discussions, not just with north korea, but through china, likely. remember, also, there are other nations who have this capability, china, russia, iran, and others. we have to be careful, have strong discussions, draws lines, demonstrate to the world what happens if there's this type of atta attack, but do it in a special way. >> yeah. richard, turning to you, i mean, north korea itself, talk about sanctions. this is a country already facing huge economic sanctions. we know -- let's say there's a counter attack from a cyber perspective. this is a country that famously, its citizens have no lights. the sat light pictures shows it's dark there, what do we do? >> they are susceptible to an take, not many computers there at all, most people have

absolutely no access to the internet. the factories, the few that operate, are not automated at all. if we were to get in some kind of tit for tat cyber war,s u.s. has more to lose than north korea. it's hard to find hackers. they want to carry out attacks, but they do not have a large pool to draw from, so they carry out attacks in third countries, most often china. >> i think it's worth pausing for a moment thinking about what happened here. in a matter of weeks, these hackers were able to bring a major global corporation, essentially to its knees, to surrender, giving the hackers exactly what they want, meeting their demands. what do you think of that? do you feel sony had any choice in. >> tell you what, savannah, the american public has to understand this is not the first time we have seen attacks by nation states against u.s. companies. there's other attacks, other countries actually have capabilities and are inside our corporate networks right now.

this is going to require strong government policy by the united states. >> the wakeup call? >> without a doubt. >> ygentlemen, thank you very much. glad to have you here. matt? >> savannah, thank you very much. we are learning more about the historic prisoner swap and secret talks ushering in a new era of the relations between the u.s. and cuba, but they are facing opposition from members on capitol hill and amongst some of the cuban-american population in miami. our nbc chief foreign affairs correspondent, good morning. >> no longer foe, the today the united states and cuba begin a new chapter taking the first steps in more than a half century to establish diplomatic relations. cuba, frozen in time by the u.s. embargo, could become america's newest trading partner. >> we'll begin to normalize relations between our two countries. through these changes, we intend

to create more opportunities for the american and cuban people. >> reporter: secretary of state kerry will travel to cuba to work on plans for a u.s. embassy and a cuban embassy in washington. cuba will be removed likely from the list of u.s. terrorist states. they'll permit more travel and trade and use of debit cards. there could be internet access, an information revolution for its people. >> we must learn the art of coexisting in a civilized manner despite our differences. >> reporter: all made possible by secret negotiations including at the vatican, pressure if the first latin american pope, a deal involving the return of three remaining prisoners in cuba to the u.s. granted by castro in exchange of cuba's release from prison a top american spy back to the u.s.,

and the humanitarian release of the state contractor alan gross who cheered as he entered u.s. air space and got a call from president obama before an emotional arrival at andrews air force base. >> great to be back. >> all these people supported you for so long. >> it's been a heck of a trip. it brought great comfort to me knowing i was not forgotten. >> reporter: on capitol hill, marco rubio, the son of refugees, talked about the historic shift. >> this proves his policy is more than naive, but ignorant of how the world works. >> reporter: now, both sides test each other's intentions. will cuba promote more dissent? so far, they are releasing prisoners as promised. matt? >> all right, thank you very much. how is the news received in cuba? nbc's mark potter is in ha sflan. mark, you made many trips to

cuba in the past. is the mood there this morning different? >> reporter: absolutely. the people here are elated, matt. in cuba, the announcement in washington and havana about the diplomatic openings are being celebrated as wonderful news. there's absolutely no controversy here. for years, the cuban people wanted better relations with the u.s., thinking that that could help end the trade embargo and also improve their lives economically and politically, but the biggest celebrations here so far have been for the release of those three cuban prisoners let loose by the u.s. on wednesday. they, plus two others, released earlier are known as the the cuban five, considered national heros, and they were seen on national television last night embracing the cuban president, raul castro. other cubans, many here believe the easing of travel restrictions by the u.s., trading, easier financing bring more goods here, more opportunity, more money to an

island long been strapped economically, matt. >> so when you say they are ela elated, they feel their lives are going to change dramatically in the near term? >> reporter: they think their lives are going to change dramatically sometime. they are hopeful. i must tell you there's many people here who are a little concerned about whether this will actually occur begin the tortured relationship between the u.s. and cuba over the the years. also, the up and down nature of u.s. politics. they are watching it carefully. there are many people here who believe this is the best opportunity that they have had in decades to see actual and dramatic change, matt? >> all right, mark potter in havana, thank you very much. we turn to natalie with a sad story from los angeles. >> a horrible story. three killed and nine others injured in california wednesday night when a car crashed into a crowd leaving a church christmas concert. the driver is now in police custody on suspicion of dui.

a holiday outing in redondo beach, california turned tragic after a driver ran a red light plowing into pedestrians leaving a christmas pageant. a woman in a white car was driving north on the pacific coast highway when she ran the light striking the group as they left a performance from st. james church. >> the crosswalk was full, and the light was red, they ran the red light and just bodies started flying. it was horrible. >> mostly children. like 8 and 10-year-olds. yeah, so sad. most of them are really hurt bad. >> reporter: the police say after hilting the pedestrians, the woman crashed head-on into a second vehicle. she was later detained for suspicion of dui and vehicular manslaughter. a ped was knocked in the air and landed on the windshield of a passing suv. >> we got up to 12 people

transported into area hospitals up to three hospitals, many in critical condition. >> pretty bad, but i'm hoping everybody's going to be okay. >> security is tight around the federal courthouse in boston today as the boston bomber appears in court for the first time in a year and a half. it is the final pretrial hearing before jury selection begins next month. he's charged in the 2013 bombings of the boston marathon that killed three people and injured more than 260 others. his brother was killed during their attempt to avoid capture. over the top shoplifting scheme foiled out of florida walmart store. in this video, you can see two men walk into the store and grab a shopping cart. for the next few minutes, the men walk in the store, load up the cart with toys and a barbie car, but as they approach the exit, one man clutches his chest

and falls to the ground like he was having a heart take. he did not get much attention. the other man slipped out the door without paying, cart full and all, but police identified the suspects from the video, and they arrested them a few days later. >> found in the barbie dream car speeding off? >> no. >> what was supposed to be a quiet sunday right was anything but. you saw this before, but take a look at what happened to a cyclist in the san francisco bay area. he captured his misadventure with the helmet cam, riding down the hill in california when -- ouch, out of nowhere, that deer jumped over the wheels slamming into him. he did land on his back, hit his head on the pavement with a mild concussion, but, thankfully, he was wearing a helmet. that's why you wear the helmet. he is okay. the deer ran off. >> the deer had a go pro also. when you see that side, it's not as pretty. >> that's painful. >> i had it happen. no fun.

ended up in surgery because of it. oh, there we go. >> matt goes splat, nice headline. apparently, i ride for the u.s. team now. >> and there's the aftermath. the guy got a deal because his bike was under a bus. >> wow! >> run along. >> sorry. >> go do the weather. >> we are looking at snow right now, kansas city moving into st. louis. we got some light snow moving in. you can see in kansas city as well, streets are snow covered, but traffic moving already. as we move along in the day, you'll see the snow moves through kansas city and st. louis and dies out. we have more moisture down through the gulf coast as this low pressure forms. heavy showers and thunderstorms. this system will cause problems for the weekend into early next week. we're looking at areas picking up about two to three inches of rain down through southern

louisiana, just outside, heavier rain into eastern texas. we'll get to your local forecast coming up in the next 30 days -- i'm sorry. oh c'mon mate, open it already! i can't wait! oooooooooh! dude. good morning to you. the time now 7:18. let's take a look at the radar. we're going to get a little bit of a break from the heavy rain for today. temps in the 50s right now, a little bit of fog out there, travel cautiously. showers return as we head

throughout this evening and another ready round of rain or friday. hope you have a great day. that's your latest weather. >> thank you very much. >> good morning, everybody. >> carson. >> did you miss me? >> yes. did you grow that in the time you were gone? >> yes. it's no shave november? >> no, it's been a month since then. >> i'll get to that. are you listening to serial, the most popular podcast? you wake up with serial on your mind, not lucky charms, but this murder mystery that took place back in 1999, and there's been this end episodic release. i'm only on episode 5. no spoilers, please. this morning, what we know, episode 12, out, listening parties already started. we've got a serial finale bingo board there. phil writes in, i've hung my in

meeting do not disturb sign on my office door and made a mug of coffee, time to settle in for serial. this is what's happening before serial and after. it is taking its toll. it's a phenomena, unbelievable. later in the half hour, you'll hear from the host, and also peter alexander's going to the scene of the murder. if you're a serial fan, it's good. >> i brought this up in the makeup room, and there were, like, nine people who said, we love that thing. we're addicted to that. >> so cool because it's like radio. i listen to it. you have not been this excited since the "war of the worlds" broadcast. >> i listened to it live. >> i know you did. >> thank you for that. >> wow. >> thank you, carson. >> also ahead, the big news covered on this show on 2014 on wednesday. well -- >> well, today we're going to look back at some of the lighter moments that we've had during the year. including that disaster. but, first, this is "today" on

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we're not just selling the at famohottestwear, shoes of the holiday season. we're selling straight up "i'm going to kiss sara marcus under the mistletoe" confidence. this year give them converse from famous footwear. victory is yours. >> announcer: you're watching "today in the bay." >> a very good morning to you. it is 7:26 now, i'm laura garcia-cannon. large rallies are planned across the bay area for what many are call being racial injustice. it stems for the death of unarmed men at the hands of police and the resulting grand jury decisions not to charge the officers. in the south bay civil rights groups are planning to march peacefully to san jose police headquarters to demand the firing of an officer accused of tweeting anti-protest statements. >> now doubt you've seen the green hills but now we're getting our first look at how much the recent rainfall is

helping relieve the drought. the one on the left shows how much of the state was in exceptional drought. the dark maroon color last week. the map on the right shows this week after several of our major storms rolled through, a significant area of northern california has gone from exceptional drought to extreme drought. still bad but not as bad. we got to celebrate any kind of victory we can, christina. >> 23% of the state coming out of that exceptional drought. that is worth a celebration. there's more rain on the way. good morning to you. we're looking at some light shower activity out there as you make your way out that front door, but we will see the sun shine over the bay area for today. that rain is going to come back, though, as of tonight. so temperatures will be on the cool side. you'll see the cloud increasing toward the end of the day. we don't get our next round of heavy stuff until around 2:00 a.m. friday. that will continue through your friday afternoon. we'll be here to guide you through it. here's mike to guide you right

now! >> there's some of the beautiful sunshine but in the sunshine, a crash involving a number of vehicles on the northbound side. it quickly cleared, about 15 minutes until everything was cleared because slower drive has rippled back there palo alto and coming out of mountain view. the southbound and northbound routes continues to build. out to saratoga, a quick backup. very slow both directions 238 through hayward and approaching the bay bridge plaza as well. >> we'll have another update for you in about half an hour. hope to see you then. ♪

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♪ jingle bells, jingle bells ♪ jingle all the way jazzing it up because we're in the final stretch. 7:30 now on a thursday morning, the 18th of december, 2014. that means a week to go until christmas. a lot of people out there. i wonder if they've done their holiday shopping. >> no. a bit left to do. good morning, everyone. we'll look at what's making headlines today. u.s. officials now believe the cyber attack on sony pictures was, in fact, directed by the government of north korea. that hack and threats of violence against moviegoers have led sony to cancel the release of "the interview" which started

it all as a mauvevy about a plot to kill north korea's leader. a crowd of people leaving a church pageant in redondo beach was hit by a suspected drunk driver overnight. three killed, nine others injured. a woman is being held for vehicular manslaughter and suspected dui. and boston marathon bombing suspect dzhokhar tsarnaev is appearing in federal court this morning for the first time since his arraignment last year. his appearance should be the last in the case before jury selection for his trial begins on january 5th. and coming up, they're back, as jeff rossen has told us. so have they cleaned up their act? brace yourselves for this one. a "rossen reports" follow-up that you have to see after a team exposed some top retailers putting returned underwear back on the rack as new. will they do it again? >> it happened. well, and the year of fun we've had here on "today" from "sharknado" to the spas of

sochi. of course, plenty of games and gaffes. >> lots to take a look at there. let's start this half hour, though, with the most popular podcast ever. serial takes an in-depth look at a real-life murder. every aspect of that case that happened back in 1999. and millions of listeners are gearing up for today's final installment. here's peter alexander. >> reporter: it's the heavily anticipated finale of an unlikely national phenomena. >> serial, one story told week by week. >> reporter: millions breathlessly waiting to listen to the latest clues into a 1999 baltimore murder. >> wood lawn high school students. >> something's not -- doesn't make sense here in this case. and so it really is just me trying to figure that out. >> reporter: the podcast serial revisits the case of then-17-year-old honor student adn adnan sayed convicted of killing his girlfriend. >> as for physical evidence, there was none.

>> reporter: from behind bars where he's serving a life sentence, sayed tells host sara he's innocent. >> no one's ever been able to find any evidence. i had no reason to kill her. >> reporter: prosecutors won't comment because of a pending appeal. new evidence could poke holes in sayed's conviction. >> if someone is lying, and i really wanted to figure out who. >> reporter: in court the state's key witness says her murder took place just behind this best buy. and he saw the suspect afterward at a set of pay phones out front. today there aren't any pay phones here and serial is questioning whether there were any. >> it will swing you back and forth from guilt to innocence. >> reporter: serial's inspired obsessed fans like robert wood to do their own investigating. >> you get to a point where you want to get to the bottom of it as much as anyone else. >> reporter: you personally do. >> i do. >> reporter: so popular it's even provided fodder for online spoofs. >> nobody knows who did it but

you. and the person who did it. >> reporter: while serial wraps up today, 15 years after the murder -- >> for the last year i've spent -- >> reporter: -- the intrigue is more alive than ever. for "today," peter alexander, nbc news, wood lawn, maryland. >> so three of us here are about to dive into this. >> i just downloaded mine. >> you're addicted. you love it. >> i'm addicted. >> i was in a restaurant in l.a. and someone was telling me about it just last week. and every cable leaned in and said "are you talking about serial"? >> what do you love about it? >> for me being a radio guy, the theater of the mind going back to the 1950s, i'm sitting in my car riveted by this tale being told. i love this american life. it's produced well. it's captivating. it's a true story. and it's just unbelievable. >> it's true. i think you're engaged in it because you're just listening to it, so your mind is really active. you're not just a passive receiver of the information. you're imagining what does the suspect look like? >> you said that's the first time i've ever seen a picture of the suspect.

i had only imagined him in my mind. >> exactly. >> did he look like you thought? >> i don't know, yeah. yes and no. >> and the host, sara, does a really good job of being the tour guide through this murder mystery and putting you right in the crime scene with all the phone calls, all the interviews and she's narrow it had down. a lot of people today. >> i don't know what's going to happen. >> don't say anything because i'm going to start it tomorrow. >> downloading it right now. >> get a check of the weather. this is not exactly a serial case of weather, but we will bring you the next few days. so for tomorrow, we are looking at a mess in the pacific northwest. rain, snow. look for sunshine in the midplains. wet weather through the gulf coast. that storm system's going to get itself together, push to the east. but pretty decent travel weather northeast, great lakes. saturday, more rain through the southeast. gorgeous weather through the northeast. a mess in the pacific northwest. that's where our travel troubles will be. and on sunday, we're watching this system along the southeastern atlantic coast.

we're going to keep an eye on that. a wintry mix in the upper mississippi river valley. pacific northwest and into the western plains, a mix of rain, snow and sleet. that's what's 7:35, good morning. i'm meteorologist christina loren. we're getting a little bit of a break from that heavy rainfall. at this point just some light, pesky showers. that's going to be the trend for today. by tonight the heavy rain returns, 54 on the peninsula, right around 59 degrees on the east short. tomorrow morning more rain moves in and we'll see a nice prolonged period of dry weather, saturday all the way through next week. >> that's your latest weather. . >> that's your latest weather. >> thank you, al. coming up next, are you buying used underwear? you could be and not even know it. wait until you see what jeff rossen and his team have cooked up for you this time. a little song, a little

dance, you know the rest. don't miss our look back at the fun we had in 2014. but first these messages. surface: so's my surface, it's just as powerful. mac: you can you write with a pen? surface: you can say that again. surface: i really like my surface pro 3. mac: hey what's that, is it a kickstand? surface: touchscreen too, it's pretty slick, man. mac: it comes apart i see. surface: it's got a usb. mac: i think i like your surface pro 3. surface: no seriously where can i get one. is a really big deal.u with aches, fever and chills- there's no such thing as a little flu. so why treat it like it's a little cold? there's something that works differently than over-the-counter remedies. attack the flu virus at its source with prescription tamiflu.

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our national correspondent, hi, jeff. >> reporter: good morning, guys. we have done a lot of hidden camera reports over the years, none of them have the country saying ew quite like this. it was 2010, we found major u.s. stores as you said returning used under wear. we watched them put them back on the shelves as new. e-mailers still e-mail me. >> it's the grossest story you have ever done. >> just for you, savannah, for you at home, we are back at it visiting those same chains with our hidden cameras rolling. as if they got their act. >> we are back! our rossen reports team shopping for underwear at some of the country's biggest brand name stores and what our hidden camera finds this time is enough to gross you out. in 2010, our nbc news investigation uncovered a dirty

little secret about new underwear. >> i'd like to return this. >> reporter: major retail chains taking back used underwear and putting them back on the shelves as new. we found them doing it at victoria's secret, nordstroms, wal-mart, macy's, bloomingdales, gap and marshalls. at the time when they caught them the stores told us they'd re-educate their staff. so today, four years later, we're buying under wear and swimsuits at those same chains. and putting the emto the test again. did they learn their lesson? we're doing the exact same thing as last time, ripping off all the tags, i'm using this marker with two little black dots right on the label. that way we know it's ours. right away, good news, we return our used underwear to macy's, they end up in a clear plastic bag with other damaged items.

>> there you go. >> reporter: at bloomingdale's, the clerk takes the under wear to the back room never to be seen again, nordstrom and the gap come out clean, too. it doesn't take long to find them right back on the table for sale as new. remember, we know it's our under wear from those two little black dots on the tack. now to marshalls. things get even worse. we buy a set of under wear and swimsuits. don't 40, all the tags are off. we removed the protective leaner from the bathing suit so it looks used. when we return them the sales woman wastes no time putting on new tags. we watch our bikini and underwear carted out, put right back on the rack as if they were brand-new. but the sales woman assures our

producer that never happens. >> like used? >> no. . >> so if it looks like it's used, you won't sell it, right? >> think again. but what we found at wal-mart could be the post-blatant. here is our producer returning the underwear. watch this, the sales clerk staples new tags on right in front of us. she tosses the used underwear into a cart full of returns. the associate going through them seems to realize they have been used. but the very next day, guess where we find our underwear? right back on the rack for sale. we buy them again so you don't. >> those are brand-new? >> of course. >> in a statement to nbc news, wal-mart acknowledging our results are absolutely unacceptable. victoria's secret telling us,

what we found on hidden camera is a clear violation of their policy. marshalls says they're disappointed their procedures were not followed and all three companies again promising to re-educate their staff. but we've heard that before. by the way, don't worry, we've bought back all the under wear again at all the stores, bottom line, experts say, you should wash all new underwear and swimsuits before you wear them. be extra safe, make sure they're in the back. can you go back and get me the fresh stuff before it hits the shelf. >> i didn't hear anything after good morning jeff. >> let's give a shout out to your poor producer, who had to humiliate herself by returning them. >> they have been humiliateing themselves a lot. thank you giovana. >> a troubling story. >> thanks. >> they were so close to the break. we really were. >> up to the finish line. up next, carson reveals the

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you're watching "today in the bay." and a good thursday morning to you. it's 7:56. i'm sam brock. we are monitoring several high-profile court cases today. attorneys for suspended state senator leland yee will be back in court for another hearing to face a series of charges including racketeering and corruption. lawyers will ask a judge to split up the cases so yee can be tried separately. a south bay summer camp counselor who pleaded not guilty to inappropriately touching children could find out today when he will stand trial. 20-year-old nicholas larmier was arrested last year. he's accused of sexually assaulting four girls, all under the age of 7 while he worked as a teacher's aide at a ymca child care center.

we're nearing the end of the work week. you've fought your way through rainy weather this week. it's not over just yet. let check in with christina. >> you're right on point, sam. more rain heads in as we move toward tomorrow. san francisco, plenty of low cloud. we're one of the only major airports across the nation with flight delays if you're trying to get out of town. 66-minute delays due to the low ceilings. the other other place is miami, 30-minute delays. and actually that just improved. temps in the 60s, as we head throughout tonight, the rain improves. more on that in a moment. here's mike. >> i expected this to start moving better but it's enough of a distraction, north 101 through palo alto to be a jam all the way into mountain view. apparently that's enough of a distraction to show you slowing south in through redwood city as

well. there is a slow drive recovering out of san leandro for both directions off the nimitz freeway. >> some problem spots out there. we'll see you in 25 minutes. (vo) nourished. rescued.

protected. given new hope. during the subaru "share the love" event, subaru owners feel it, too. because when you take home a new subaru, we donate 250 dollars to helping those in need. we'll have given 50 million dollars over seven years. love. it's what makes a subaru, a subaru.

it's 8:00 on today. >> do you look at other kids at school and envy the lives they have? >> sometimes, yeah. they get to have things and i can't have nothing. >> willie creates a special space for some special kids. plus what a year it's been. we have celebrated in sochi, mastered the art of selfie and welcomed new little additions to our family. a look back at the fun we had in

2014. and crazy about craig, craig wayne boyd is back for a special live performance "today," thursday, december 18th, 2014. good morning, kansas city. >> hey, new orleans, first trip to new york city. >> good morning, seattle, go hawks! >> good morning, alabama! >> merry christmas from ohio university. >>. i came from indiana to get my red rider bb gun, merry christmas. >> good morning, everyone, welcome back to "today,"

december 18th, 2014, seven days until christmas. i have to give you props for this song. you're going back to the '80s. >> it's a great song. >> i love this. >> is that your pick? >> wow. >> i detect a note of sarcasm. >> that's awesome. >> coming up in our next hour, we're going one-on-one with oprah, one of the driving forces behind the movie "selma." >> tonight is the first ever "people" magazine awards. it features appearances and performances by jennifer aniston, 5 seconds of summer and much more. you can catch it all here on nbc. let's get a check of the top stories with natalie at the news desk. good morning, everyone. u.s. officials say north korea was behind the sony attack.

the security breach of e e-mails was apparently in retaliation for sony's plan to release the movie "the interview", a comedy about a plot to kill north korea's leader. they cancelled the release after theater chains expressed concern about threats of violence. the u.s. is moving quickly to restore ties with cuba following the historic announcement of a cold war hostility. events began unfolding on wednesday with a prisoner swap that included alan gross who was held for five years. came word that washington and havana conducted secret negotiations and were pressured by pope francis. marco rubio led republican opposition calling it ignorant of the way the world works. a man in texas is recovering from gunshot wounds after being attacked while leaving work.

>> the staff at kccn in waco, texas, is still in shock this morning. shortly after he finished his weather cast, she was shot and wounded as he left the station. authorities say crawford got into his car, a man walked up and pulled out a handgun and fired several times. heavily armed police roped off the parking lot. crime scene technicians searching for clues counted 12 shell casings. crawford managed to drive a short distance crashing his car near a group of construction workers who called for help. he told police he did not recognize his attacker. that morning crawford posted a picture with his colleagues holding a trophy for wearing an ugly sweater contest. he's our superman and posted images of the symbol. >> all of us are trying to be journalists, but it's kind of

hard to be journalists when one of your colleagues is in the hospital. >> reporter: crawford is in stable condition as police continue to search for a suspect. nbc news, houston. >> we do wish him a speedy recovery. basketball fans in san antonio were treated to an instant classic, not one, not two, but three buzzer-beaters. the spurs hosting the grizzlies. he launches the three and beats the buzzer at the end of regulation they hit the three-pointer. that tied the game up and sent it into overtime. at the end of overtime, tim duncan with that buzzer-beater sending to a second overtime. the grizzlies won in triple overtime. what an incredible game. 8:05 right now. let's get another check of the weather with al roker.

>> thanks so much, natalie. all you want for christmas is to be on "today." your list is done then. very good. let's show you, it's just what you want and it's the right size. let's show you what we have for today. we have icy conditions and 8:06. good morning to you. i'm meteorologist christina loren. i haven't been able to show you this camera from mt. hamilton until today, but you can see finally the sky is opening up. we're going to get some sunshine today and what i also want to draw to your attention, take a look how green these hills are turning. as we head throughout the day today. we will stay mostly dry, mix of sun and clouds, temperatures chilly enough for a coat all day long, 55 degrees on the

peninsula, east shore at 59. sun and clouds, rain moves in by tonight. more on that in moments. and that's your latest weather. >> it's one of our favorite times of the year. we get to look back at the fun and whack i can things that happened. >> and we'll have craig wayne boyd. he will perform live. first, these messages.

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all right. we are back at 8:09 with the lighter side of 2014. >> from the plaza to sochi, this year fee cured a lot of music, laughs, for them a lot of wine and selfies. >> stop whineing. [ music playing ] ♪ welcome to new york

♪ >> everybody have a nice weekend? >> yeah. >> anything special? >> i got married. >> i did a little spring cleaning. >> yes. i got married this weekend! yes, yeah. >> at one moment, that was my favorite moment. can i share it? >> really in. >> take a look. >> i believe i am four months pregnant. raise it up to savannah and louis, upcoming baby. kraelgss. what i always love about having hoda co-host with us on the show, we do all this preparation. we have all these notes we take, meticulous notes. this is what hoda prepared for the entire show, takes the script and throws it away. savannah and pike have a beautiful baby girl and she is

stunning! i think she may be pooping. look at that one. >> i was up all night working on that ♪ >> today they're back together. >> rock, paper, scissors. ♪ >> take it to the head. >> ah! >> well, we talked about our tears. we didn't want to -- you talked about clowns. >> oh. o! >> tamron. >> ah! >> before i come on and be a co-host, i want to appoint you to head up noaa. >> that was big. >> hello, everybody! oh, what a great day.

ho. >> ha, ha, ha. >> we are a part of the sochi olympics. okay. we have vodka. six are water, one is not. are they all vodka? >> one, two, three. >> oh! >> down down down down up. >> do you realize at one time you were an award winning journalist? >> let the games begin! >> ba, ba, ba, ba. >> you do mean the winter olympics, right? it feels a little like summer. >> does anybody know how to say in russia you can stop waving? ♪ you don't like this song ♪ i'm up all night to get lucky ♪ we're all up with this song ♪ we're up all night to get

lucky [ music playing ] >> we are making matt and al soup. >> i don't know how to skate. >> i believe i leave on monday. >> you are taking the red eye home? >> ha ha. >> today's takes off. >> it's pandemonium this morning as 15,000 "one direction" fans have packed universal, orlandory sort. >> hey! >> whew! >> there is something i always wanted to do, i'm king of the world! >> ah, mommy! >> united, united, whoa whoa whoa whoa. >> we landed here on mendenhall glacier. you want me to go up that?

i did it! >> we have to take a glacier selfie. ♪ >> not bad, right, guys? >> it's time to raid savannah's closet. [ music playing ] >> i have a couple tattoos! >> they don't bother me. >> ah! >> hey, guys. >> who wants matt's pants? >> what is happening? >> i love this. it's like order. everything in rows. >> you know what's super fun? flossing. >> what do you think got the highest s.a.t. scores? savannah. >> no way, not true. >> willie and i will give test

tick lar exams in an hour. >> go easy on him, my friend in there. >> yo. >> the daly baby has left the orange womb. >> the trend that is sweeping the nation this morning. all you need is a lamp and an angry face. >> natalie morales i accept your ice bucket challenge on behalf of the als association. >> wow! >> awesome! take it away! >> let the rokerthon begin #rokerthon. >> #rokerthon. >> i went to, he makes your calm. we give new meaning to a place -- >> three, two, one! ah! ♪ rokerthon. >>! wing ♪ i'm soul man!

♪ ah! is there that's what's trending today. >> this is one of those ones where we go naked through the crowd and no one would even notice. >> i look pretty, lauer. ♪ >> come on, willie! sing it! sing it! >> i have the say, you are welcome. >> aaahhh! >> run! >> ah! ♪ ♪ >> let's get some birthday wishes from our friend willard scott. no, willie, we have no time for

th tha . that's what i was thinking. let's get my weekend started. >> oh. >> go! >> that's what matt sounds like when he doesn't get his bottle. >> ah sclnl. >> let's hear it! [ music playing ] 12340e9s in the jungle ♪ the mighty jungle ♪ the lion sleeps tonight ♪ >> jerry, if you don't mind, thank you so much. i recommend you do this at home. carry on ♪ one more day ♪ one day more ♪ >> oceans in the stream shots that is what we are ♪ no one in between.

>> are we still on the air? ♪ >> she was in the ocean ♪ go rise with all the -- ♪ actually stung in the middle ♪ i hear laughter in the rain ♪ walking hand-in-hand ♪ with the one i love ♪ all right, here we go ♪ baby, why not play it ♪ yeah! >> here we are on the red carpet of the 86th annual oscars. >> it's the craziest tag team ever, you two. ♪ >> i love tequila. my lips don't lie. >> i love you, too. >> ♪ >> can i touch it? >> please, be honored.

>> that's still real nice. ♪ . >> oh, yeah, you get to work with two beautiful girls and they pay you? do you get paid? you should pick up your check with a gun in the mail. ♪ ♪ today with cuts ♪ go ♪ wake me up when it's all over ♪ when i'm wiseer and i'm older ♪ all this time i have found ♪ in my eyes ♪ i didn't know i was on ♪ let me know if you feel like

happiness is the truth ♪ come on, if you know ♪ happiness is you ♪ clap along if you feel that's what you want to do ♪ on the count down all american jesus ♪ growing up in a little big house ♪ making out on the living room couch ♪ going out on saturday night ♪ a little nice fixer upper ♪ we're all all right ♪ time to get it all ♪ i'll know now ♪ in those skinny jeans on the floor ♪ and i know now ♪ wait a minute ♪ let me break you down ♪ wait a minute

♪ bang bang into my heart ♪ i know you want it ♪ bang bang all over you ♪ bang bang, bang bang bang ♪ bang bang ♪ bang bang bang ♪ bang bang straight to your heart ♪ bang bang straight to my heart ♪ i'll let you have it ♪ wait a minute ♪ let me take you down ♪ wait a minute, whew! ♪ >> what do you think? first person poon? >> thank you. it's not my first american poon. >>ly never eat this the same way again. >> oh, yeah, sure. >> that's a big bite. >> matt, get in here, we have a situation. >> you should see your teeth. >> yes. >> three, two, one!

♪ ♪ these are the days we will never forget ♪ these are the days ♪ these are the days ♪ these are the days ♪ these are the days ♪ [ cheers ] [ applause ] >> wow! >> manned handling each other. >> every year they put that towing, editors here.

>> total labor of love. we bow to you. >> we had so much fun. >> we can't wait until next year. >> as you saw, music played a huge role in our year and with christmas now a week away, it's all about the holiday songs. carson. >> that's right. >> have you the most popular of the year. >> you may think santa is the king of christmas, you are wrong, spotify gave it to? spotify top ten streaming songs this year, michael, they call it the buble effect. he has top five. a mr. christmas. after thanksgiving until about now, they see a 147% spike on his streams on spotify. we thought we'd go down the list for your favorite christmas songs, matt, yours was. >> that song, "home for

christmas." it's great, makes me feel like at home for christmas. >> celine dion, who picked her? savannah? >> i think "o holy notice" is the most perfect song. i'm sorry, celine dion, the post-exquisite version. >> extreme for "herald the angels sing". >> or the charlie brown. >> kelly clarkson, "my grown up christmas" natalie. >> i love that song. the words are so powerful. >> i heard so much of johnny mathis, mel torme, when run dnc came out, crit christmas in harlem, i thought that was my music not my parents. >> you did not make kathie lee

christmas song? >> all right. >> kathie lee, not run dmc. >> take us to break with a kathie lee christmas song. you're watching today in the bay. >> good thursday morning to you, it's 8:26. i'm sam brock. new this morning, menlo park police need your help finding the men they say beat up a store cashier before taking off with $18,000 in cash. on tuesday police say four armed masked men stormed the market demanding money from the cash register, then punched the cashier several times in the face. if you are just starting out right now on your commute, let's check in with mike. >> all right, sam, good morning to you. looking over here, tough morning for palo alto, redwood city, mountain view, here north of

university over towards willow, a lot more traffic kicking in. let's look at your map. crash north of there, enough of a distraction to have folks jammed up in the area. that may have cleared up. a burst of traffic indicating, of course, redwood city. northbound routes, tough drives for 280 and 85. earlier crashes have cleared, as well, so a smoother drive throughout. slow drive between both the san mateo and dunbarton bridges. slowing past the coliseum, but the bay bridge toll plaza pretty mild. back to you. >> that 101 situation could cause trouble for drivers. see you again in 25. sweetie, i'd love a hazelnut.

mom? dad? big uncle wayne? hot chocolate. green tea. uh, decaf, cuz. wow. i'm dying for an herbal tea. the all new keurig 2.0.

. >> we are back now 8:30 on a thursday morning the 18th day of december, 2014. look at that. >> that is craig wayne boyd, the winner of "the voice" 2014, collecting toys from our people in the crowd. we have more about that young

man right there. >> as you can imagine winning a couple nights ago. >> the king of "the voice." >> we had a 75% chance of winning, the look on his face on both face, unbelievable. >> amazing. look forward to seeing craig. also ahead, willie shines the light on great tips. he is giving them a remarkable place to enjoy. we will catch up with them in a bit. plus, what is it like to be directed by anythingly that jolie? savannah caught up with two of the stars of angelina's new movie "unbroken." . >> we head into the weekend. we have snow in the northwest. gulf coast looking at rain in the lower mississippi valley. saturday rain moves into the southeast, sunny, chili here in the northeast. sunday, sunday! more wet weather in the pacific

northwest. with snow as you 8:31. we're going to get a little bit of a dry break for today. good morning to you, i'm meteorologist christina loren. this is your radar. i want to show it to you because there's really nothing going on and this is the first time all week long this time of the morning where we didn't have anything to show you on there. now, temperatures are going to end up in the 60s for today. a mix of sun and clouds, but don't get too comfortable. uncomfortable, the rain is going to return throughout your friday. good news is, a prolonged break all the way through this weekend and next week. that's the latest weather. next half hour we talk with oprah winfreyant her new film "selma." carson has gone into the orange room to make 2015 even better. >> with the new year approaching, it's time to think about changes you want to make in your life. we will talk about a new series in january called start today.

every day a team of experts joins us, all checking to give you guys tips to help you moving forward, first, you got to let us know what it is you want to make changes in the new year. maybe you want to cut fat out of your diet. maybe you want to start saving for your retirement. head over to today.com, give us a quick video of what you want to do to start today. maybe we'll call you. >> carson, thanks, coming up. >> sorry, look at me. >> coming up next, willie is standing by to reveal the results on the shine the light project on a great group of kid. first. >> this is "today" on

i am an electric crew foreman

out of the cupertino service center. i was born and raised in the cupertino area. it's a fantastic area to work. the new technology that we are installing out in the field is important for the customers because system reliability i believe is number one. pg&e is always trying to plan for the future and we are always trying to build something stronger and bigger and more reliable. i love living here and i love the community i serve. nobody wants to be without power. i don't want my family to be without power. it's much more personal to me for that reason. i don't think there's any place i really would rather be. gang is back alt 8:35 with more of our ongoing series spot a light.

willie has more on shining the light on homes willness shelters. willie is here to share some results. good morning. >> good morning. . we talked about this two weeks ago, a new study came out, 2.5 million children are homeless him we came here the bush's family residence is in brooklyn. we wanted to shine a light and spruce up tear space, the common place, make it a safe, comfortable place to be. behind these doors, for the last few weeks, we had an army of people do nateing tear time, resources, materials to make this what we feel is a really special place. here's a look at how we pulled it off. >> what it means to be homeless, to be at the bottom of society's social class and having nowhere to go. >> reporter: we first got a clips through the eyes of 14-year-old dock nikkei victor at a homeless child. do you look at kids at school

and envy the lives they have? >> sometimes, yes. they get to have what they want. i can't have nothing. i got to show what i have. >> reporter: for many kids living in the shelter, there is one place they can go to get away from it all. though it isn't much, this rec room is their safe space. >> the thing is when we come out of school, we can go to the recreation to play and do homework. >> we could play any game you want to play. >> a lot of kids coming into the shelter, it's a little scary. for them to come in and there is a space truly made for them, it allows them to just be kids. >> reporter: now it's just an empty room, but intrait celebrity designer elaine griffin is here to give it a little love. >> what do you want to see your room as? what dooum do you want to do? here? >> i wish we had a pool in here. >> games. >> one is arts and crafts, one

is video games. >> basketball! >> thank you. >> a treehouse! >> for some design inspiration, elaine and i checked out the children's museum of manhattan. >> we really want to recreate the atmosphere we see here, it's nurtureing, it's educational. it's entertaining. >> reporter: it's loud! >> one of the things i think all the kids were very adamant about was something you can climb, maybe with a sliding board. what if we took this wall, if we hut in lots of hoops, so it's more a test of your eye-hand coordination, which is good. >> take a jump shot from there, you miss the rebound goes into the homework zone, in the hangout zone, we can't have that, chaos. >> we can paint up and down, in like a "w". >> when you are ready, i will

get the high spots. you know what i mean, curtis? something like this will blow their minds. >> that's the bad part about this, watching that reaction. that being unveiled. that's what makes it all worth it. >> if i ran the world, things would be a lot easier for people, having proeb proper food, shelter, water, clothes and the love they deserve. i would make them feel human. >> good job! >> okay. guys. you think we should wait a few more hours? oh, you want to see it now. let's take one more look if we can, we got here a few weeks ago. this is a nice big open space. it didn't have a lot of character to it. are you ready, guys? you sure you are ready? let's open the doors, check out your new playroom. >> oh my gosh! >> oh, i love it!

>> . >> reporter: what do you think? >> oh my gosh! >> you guys like it? >> wow! >> oh my god! >> look at those smiles. >> we like the slide, willie. >> yep. the slide is pretty popular. >> find the slide. >> there is something over here i want to show you. ask, you shall receive. >> okay. >> it's a fast slide, willie. >> it's about half the length of the slide. >> oh! >> guys, there is some more

stuff i want to show you. this little hangout area we built for you. it's your playroom. come on. >> oh, gosh. >> i love a little kids' cave. >> you can relax. >> i like the colors. it's so vibrant. >> i want to bring in our great friend elaine griffin. >> so long slide, tv and the play the room. >> you are killing me! i had so much fun. >> reporter: let's talk about what you did. we walked into this room, it was a blank canvass a month or so ago. >> a dreary canvass. >> reporter: talk about what you did. >> the kids asked forbe three things, an indoor spa. they wanted a zone, we divided a place for homework, great furniture at ikea. no. 2, they wanted to climb!

>> reporter: yes. >> so we built this incredible treehouse. can you imagine the engineer to get this? we're on the 3rd floor here. >> reporter: it's a tricked out treehouse people up in connecticut donated their time and materials. amazing job they did. let bring in mark mend el from the great space. what a change. this is what you all do every day? >> it's called the 300 places for kids to play, have a great time. this is more than we imagined, with your help, with your design, these kids are having a great time. >> basketball. >> reporter: a part of what we wanted to do is people can do this through you or other organizations where they live we hope it serves as an inspiration. >> unfortunately with ewe have homeless children in the united states. they can call us, get connected

there with. >> reporter: domenic, can you come in here, please, dominique, willie, stevens college in missouri, what do you think? you like the room? >> yes, it's amazing, oh my god. >> reporter: i understand you have something you want to say? >> we are a women's college in missouri. we have been following your story. we are so impressed. we know that you have hope and dreams and we want to help you with that. >> okay. >> so when you finish high school, we want to give you a scholarship to come to stevens college. we'll take care of everything [ applause ] >> we have your room, your board, we'll make sure you got everything you need to succeed. we know you will be a great achieving woman. >> reporter: you got to keep your grades up. but i know you will. >> oh my gosh. >> reporter: if you keep it up, you got a scholarship awaiting you in a couple years.

>> thank you so much. >> mark, thank you, elaine, an amazing job. dominique, congratulations. >> oh my gosh. >> reporter: guys, send it back to you. >> dominique, congratulations. >> hey, don't, forgive, too, if people want to do nate they can go to sheen a light.com/willie. up next, savannah catches up with two stars after angelina jolie's movie "unbroken." first, thi (vo) nourished. rescued. protected. given new hope. during the subaru "share the love" event,

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hollywood's award season is almost upon us. and the movie "unbroken" directed by angelina jolie is getting a lot of buzz. it's the inspiring story of a man who spent years in a japanese prisoner of war camp. >> are you going to kill him? >> let them shoot me, i don't

give-a-damnen. >> that's not how it works. you will be making it to the end of the war life. that's how they do it. that's our revenge. >> garrett headland plays commander fitzgerald. and gentleman, good morning to you. one of many powerful scenes in this movie. i have to ask you guys, you have a book that is belove bid a lot of people. you had real characters, people who actually lived. you have your director, someone like angelina jolie. on a scale of one to ten, was ten super intimidating, was this like an 11? >> gosh. it's something that i mean the book now has generated such a buzz and has shown the world who it is, it inspired us tremendously. >> the thing, both of you got a chance to meet louis?

>> yeah, we did. >> what was that like? >> it was very special he was a great storyteller. there is a sense of responsibility that happens, you meet someone who met the person you are playing, you saw it in front of him. you feel you have a sex of duty, you know. we pushed ourselves as best we could. >> both of you had to go through a physical transformation for these roles. your character and you spend e spent years in a prison campch what was that like to prepare physically for a role like this? >> when you look at it at the end of the day, we're trying to do what we can to sort of you know look at a percentage, most of these guys lost half their body weight. most of them lost their lines.

for me, being in a p.o.w. camp, i had three or four weeks to lose everything i could. this guy was on rocky waters for a while. >> for a long time. >> wet, cold, you lose your body fat. so you get really cold really fast. >> i heard angelina director has a no whineing pool around the set, is that right? >> leading by example, we didn't want to complain around angelina jolie. >> everyone is in the barracks, i'm so hungry, but everyone lost so much weight. you feel like crap, angelina walks in, you go, my gosh, you guys look great. >> yes, how was she as a director by the way? >> what was that experience like? >> angie, she can do everything she puts her mind to. it was phenomenal. it told a wonderful story.

so it was exciting to work with her on it. it really tells a remarkable story. actually, her hero as well and so she took such an extreme amount of passion with her on this project. it really brought louis with her. >> do you feel like she's an actor, herself, that she kind of brought something special to the directing of this? >> i think she has an empathy of what she's going through. she has been there. she's seen it from the pence she's very hands on, she will be figuring out props. i remember one day, she was like physicaling out how the ending scene should go, expire. she was like she kind of climbed in, put my head on her lap i was like, is this real life? she's always like that, let's figure it out together.

she has a curiosity of what you have to bring and what your insights are. >> jacks said she was rehearseing his stuvents i got to the barracks, she was sitting in my seat like this. >> yeah. >> it's an amazing performance from both of you. thank you so much for being here. good to talk to you. >> thank you for having us. >> thank you so much. "unbroken" from our sister company universal opposite on christmas day. here's matt and carson. >> here is craig wayne boyd, your "voice" ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ [ female announcer ] get your taste of the season, at raley's, bel air, and nob hill.

[ female announcer ] get your taste of the season, .... craig wayne boyd managed to get in a nap somehow after winning "the voice" he is back to enjoy his new single "my baby has a smile on her face. ladies and gentlemen, here he is, craig wayne boyd. [ music playing ] ♪ she rolls out of bed ♪ wipes the tears out of her eyes ♪ we stayed up a little late

last night ♪ i guess i must be doing something right ♪ 'cause my baby's got a smile on her face ♪ my baby's got a smile on her face, oh, yeah ♪ all right ♪ as soon as i get to work ♪ i call her on the phone ♪ i wanna tell her that i love er ♪ i can't wait 'til i get home ♪ she doesn't say a word

♪ when i walk in ♪ looks like we might not get much sleep again ♪ 'cause my baby's got a smile on her face ♪ that's right ♪ my baby's got a smile on her face ♪ that's right ♪ my baby is my best friend ♪ been walking around with this silly grin ♪ 'cause my baby's got a smile on her face ♪ a smile on her face

♪ yeah ♪ well, my baby's got a smile on her face ♪ yeah ♪ my baby's got a smile on her face ♪ yeah, i wanna make it last forever ♪ my baby's got you're watching today in the bay. >> good thursday morning to you. it's 8:56. i am sam brock. hopefully that country music put you in a good mood. happening today, thousands of low income families in the south bay are getting a much needed boost this morning just in time for the holidays. sacred heart community services plans to pass out 3,300 boxes of

food today and tomorrow, and next week sacred heart will pass out more than 17,000 toys and books to south bay children. the belmont redwood shores school district has collected close to 20,000 dollars to help the families of students who lost belongings in last week's flooding. rising water forced them out, the school district originally looking for $500, they raised $20,000.

[ music playing ] >> from nbc news, this is" today's" take with al roker, natalie morales, willie geist and tamron hall. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> welcome to "today" on this thursday morning, december 18th, 2014, exactly a week to go until christmas. >> willie as we saw did a beautiful shine a light if brooklyn. we will share more on the project coming up. those kids still happy, enjoying that new place space him tamron is off giving a commencement

address, good luck, tamron, if you are watching. let's get to this big stare. >> i hate to say i told you so. >> did you call this? >> that sony interview, i said yesterday, this film will never see the light of day. they were going to can sell it. now sony announced yesterday, they are dropping the christmas day release of "the interview." everybody knows, it's a movie with seth rogen, james franco, they play journalists that will kill the north korean leader. five of the top nation chains told sony, they were not going to show it. >> when i saw that out yesterday, i thought, this is it. it will have to go. sure enough. >> they were jumping e-mails, putting out personal information. now the other thing, the other shoe to drop, the u.s. government said, guess what? oh, what a shock, it's north korea. >> right. >> the only thing about that is that then north korea, who has

been doing the illegal activities is the one who wins. you know, censorship in the united states is not something i'd like to see. >> it's modern day warfare, it's an attack on freedom of expression. i think a lot of people in hollywood were essentially saying that same thing. >> except, listen. i think it got ratcheted up to another level, once the cyber bullies or terrorists put out that they were going to, they inferred. >> like a threat, to hurt people. you make a threat and you call back 9/11. >> if you are a theater owner, can you in good conscience say we're going to put that movie out there. whether it was credible or not, who is going to take that risk? >> exactly, it made me uncomfortable if people did go in defiance and something happened. >> earlier, we had a piece talking about some of the celebrity tweets.

>> right. >> judd apatow is only guaranteeing it would have been seen by more people than it would before, legally or illegally. >> you wonder, say theyped to go direct to on demand, would you even dare as a cable company to stream it on demand? >> no, it will be illegal is what he means, people will somehow find it online and pass it around. >> supposedly, originally, in that illegal hack, they dumped it to a couple websites, that and "annie". >> and "spectre" the screen plays were already being hacked into. >> michael moore says, dear, sony hackers, now that you want hollywood, i'd like less romantic comedys, there could be something good that comes out of this. >> we like the romantic comedys. >> i think it's a new day when

you talk about cyber warfare. this is cyber warfare. i feel they've thrown the first bomb so to speak. >> it will be interesting what the government response will be. you know other countries will be responding. >> this is largely a japanese-based company. >> we have seen not to this level. not in another country. we have seen it all year long with these hackers, they think it's funny no put people's personal information out. a year ago, my family's information was put on the internet. i had a new baby, i was feeding my baby. i got a prank call and then one after another, after another, these people had my telephone number and my address and so barbara. >> that's scary. >> it's scary. >> and it's really, i wish we lived in a world where i didn't have to fear like that, where we didn't get worried about having our personal information put out there for everybody to see. >> you know, it's interesting, someone made good point on

twitter yesterday, obviously, "time" magazine gave the ebola as the story of the year, i thisty hackers certainly deserve, i think that's what you are seeing here is they're responsible for some of the major attacks in this past year in some of the major story lines we have been covering. well, here's a really sweet story i think. i don't know, you tell me how you feel about this. remember, we told you about this guy, he was planning a trip around the world with his then girlfriend elizabeth gallagher, incredible terrorism. as we said, around the world. >> he bought the tickets. with her name. they're in canada, he's canadian. elizabeth gallagher. they broke up. so jordan still wanted to travel, so he offered elizabeth's ticket to anywoman with the same name. it had to match the passport and it had to be a canadian woman as well. after months of searching for elizabeth gallagher, he has

found the elizabeth gallagher. >> really? >> yes. >> she's cute. >> she's cute, of course she's cute. >> he turned down five or six before that. >> he turned down 18. >> yes. >> this is like "the botch lar." . >> it's like a hollywood movie script right here. >> seriously. >> she's a 23-year-old student from nova scotia. only pick here, is she hitched? a serious boyfriend and they're actually planning to boy a house together. they're getting a puppy together. can you imagine he's not all that pleased. >> can you imagine saying, merry christmas, i will be traveling with a man this holiday, not you. >> she is leaving for monday for europe. >> merry christmas, honey. >> there is a sweet side to this story. they did set up a foundation for a tick forward to help people finance trips for people who want to travel around the world. >> that is great. some good came out of it. >> you destroy one relationship,

then you move to build up others. >> they'll be fine. >> perfect. >> hey, we mentioned, willie is not here, he's in brooklyn for our shine the light. he kicked off the great effort to spotlight child homelessness. he will bring a little of a home to one shelter in brooke len by overhauling theoremty rec space. willie, what a great moment when you were in there to unveil the transformation. >> it's so sweet. >> how is it going, bud? >> reporter: it's so sweet. the project, this last month, all the blood, sweat, tears, to see that reaction made it all worthwhile for so many people that donated their time. when we first shared this story last month, we were overwhelmed by people whoped to help, to offer things and touch your lives in some way, guys with eactually couldn't fit everything into that beautiful new room. we moved over here to mount baptist church and some of your

friends from the biggest toy companies in the world, hasbrought and others, wants to make your trip exciting. why don't you step in there and see what you find. go for it, guys. what do you think, guys? you see something you like? it's yours. you don't have to just look at it. go for it. >> open! >> wow. >> open. >> . >> they're waiting their turn, trying to let each other help themselves. >> guys, let's bring in vanessa burton. you run this family residence,

the camera is here, if you would him tell me what this room, what this means to the kids. >> oh my god, there is so over welling. it is so beautiful. this is beautiful. >> reporter: well, thank you for sharing the space with us and the work you do. we were here a month. you are in practice every day. thank you. miss dominique, you ready for college, my friend? >> yep. >> reporter: are you excited? what do you think about this day? >> i mean, it couldn't get any better. words can't explain how i feel right now. i never, ever thought that i would get a scholarship. like this means a lot to me. >> reporter: you showed us what a special young woman you are, how smart you are. we know you will end up wherever you want to end up in life. hopefully this gives you a little motivation.

>> willie, for folks that donated, she is such sa role modem. for folks that didn't see it earlier. tell them what you are talking about with stevens college. >> reporter: when dominique told her story to us a month or so ago, the flood lines the phone lines lit up. they wanted to know more about her and how they can help and help this residents, so stevens college, a school in missouri was watching. they offered her a full academic scholarship. if she keeps her grades up, they will raise money for a computer and books and all those things that come with it. we know what a bright young woman dominique is. she is continue to excel. hopefully, she will end up at stevens or wherever she wants to. >> thanks so much. that's how you change a community. you bring up, raise up the people. >> it gets to the season of giving. >> we love it, willie, thank you so much.

let's get a check of the weather, al. >> first this all right. we have snow along i-70 right now. look at st. louis and kansas city. we got the snow coming down. nothing too horrible. a couple inches, maybe. >> that will be the worse you can see, streets are fairly wet, they're watching this moisture push to the north. it dissipates. the big story will be down south, heavy storms firing up. >> that will be the story for the weekend a good morning to you. we just received word from the california drought monitor 23% of the state now out of exceptional drought, with the inclusion of the entire bay area, and we received 6% to 10% increase in all of our major reservoirs across the state, so it's looking good. we still have to conserve, but there is more rain on the way.

today a nice dry break, tonight the rain returns, heavy downpours tomorrow morning, clearing out by friday night. saturday looks good, kicking off a dry spell that will continue well into your christmas week. and that's your latest weather. >> al, thank you. oprah winfrey is back on the big screen starring in the new movie "selma" it's a role she movie "selma" it's a role she has turned down at first. ring ring!... progresso! it's ok that your soup tastes like my homemade. it's our slow simmered vegetables and tender white meat chicken. apology accepted. i'm watching you soup people. make it progresso or make it yourself making a pie that pops is surprisingly easy. just unroll, fill, top, bake and... wow. this is your best ever thank you. pillsbury pie crust. make the holidays pop. i'm j-e-f-f and i have copd. i'm l-i-s-a and i have copd,

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>> i caught up with one of the producers and stars in the film oprah winfrey to talk about why she took the role. >> it is unacceptable that they use tear power to keep us voiceless. >> i agreed to do and be a part of this film, because i believed in the work and this is the history of our country, not just one person. there is a reason why the movie is called "selma" and not qualified "king" because it's about that period in our history when there were no voting rights for people of color in this country. >> the film chronicles is various struggles of dr. martin luther king, jr. and his marchers to march peacefully to selma, milwaukee, leading to the passage of the historic 1965 voting rights act. >> i am here trying to rescue folks. >> oprah plays real life activist annie lee cooper, a

role she initially turned down. >> i thought i can't play another woman that hits somebody. must i hit somebody in every film i do. if you going him annie lee cooper, you will see that photograph with her lying on the ground with the sheriffs deputies straddled her. something about the ritual of this black woman who had been a domestic worker. her name has been in a lot of history books. the courage and determination that would take with somebody. i wanted to pay homage to that on screen. so that's why i said yes to that. >> it comes out now and some would say more than coincidentally. at a time ferguson, a time of eric garner. >> i don't think that's coincidence. films with historical events have i think an obligation to allow people to see the es tense of the truth, also what i think this film does, it allows people

to see there was a strategy, there was a clear intention and there was leadership in that people weren't just out there willie nilly on those freedom rides. they weren't just out there marching in the streets, throwing things, venting their anger. >> that there was control, rigorous discipline. >> and do you think there could be a lesson learned about that, when people see this film as far as what we are seeing today? >> yeah, you know what i think it's wonderful what we are seeing in terms of peaceful demonstrations. i think what those peaceful demonstrations need is leadership and intentions, like we're demonstrating to get what? these are our demands for what? and i haven't seen now a clear leader emerging, just like in selma, once it was just about voting rights, it was a black problem. after bloody sunday, it became

america's problem the same thing happened in our country with eric garner, everybody saw on film what happened to mr. garner. there were people of all races who said this is wrong, we have to do something about this. so i think having the intention, there is wrong, we have to do something about it. now, what is it we want to do? what is it we want to do? >> wow, that's so powerful. >> when you realize, it's just 50 years, not that long ago. we still have a ways to go. >> we have come so far, we have a long way to go. >> it comes out yvette mass day. coming up next, do you know what it is? it's a good one, free shipping day, all the details, you don't want to miss out. >> later, what is a better way to sweeten a kid's life than with cookies?

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feel anticipation. feel glade. sc johnson, a family company. taking a look at your headlines this morning, a you? study finds a link between air pollution and increased risk in autism. pregnant women exposed to tiny airborne particles from smoke stacks and cars may face twice the risk of having a child with autism. it's highest in the third trimester. the greatest the exposure the greatest the risk. not all mothers exposed to air pollution will have kids with autism. new research may mean new hope for stroke patients. they find a device that can extract blood clots from broken arteries can significantly improve a patient's ability to recover if used within six hours of that stroke. some doctors call the so-called

stench retriever results exciting and a new era in stroke treatment. good news, if you are not done with your holiday shopping, as we mentioned, today is free shipping day. more than 1,100 merchants are taking part. many will guarantee delivery by christmas eve. for a list of participants, check out free shipping day.com. pet owners, 'tis the season to keep a closer eye on your pets. animal health company says you should keep holiday food such as sugar free baked gods, fruit cake and chocolate out of your pet's reach and turkey bones and aluminum foil can cause intestinal blockages. as for decorations, be warned that holly, miscletoe are all toxic to pets. a cyclist in california has an amazing story to tell and the video to prove it. sas pat love was out for a ride

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vicks nyquil severe. helps relieve your ugliest, nastiest, roughest, toughest cold symptoms. vicks nyquil severe. with maximum symptom fighting ingredients. ♪ you're watching today in the bay. >> good morning to you. it's 9:26 on your thursday. i'm sam brock. we could find out more details today about san francisco's bid to host the 2024 summer olympics. mayor ed lee is expected to meet with the media to talk about the city's plans. giants president larry baer, who is helping head up the campaign is also expected to speak. the u.s. olympic committee is expected to decide next month which of the four finalists will be submitted to the international olympic committee. other cities in competition are los angeles, boston, and washington, d.c.. well, new this morning, no doubt you've seen the green hills, but now our first look at how much the recent rainfall is

helping to relieve the drought. take a look at these pictures. that map on the left-hand side of the screen shows how much the state was in exceptional drought conditions, dark maroon color. map on the right, this week after several major storms rolled through, there's an improvement. you can see a significant area of northern california has gone from exceptional drought to extreme drought. it's bad, it's still bad, but not quite as dire as the circumstances were. we're going to have a look at weather and traffic right after this break.

9:28. welcome back. taking a live look at san francisco. you can see here the low clouds and something that's not unusual, flight delays as a result of those low ceilings, so you're going to find flight delays out of los angeles, as well. everywhere else, right on time. all your major airports across the nation. we actually have quiet weather for today, temps in the 60s. if you are going to be traveling around the bay area, keep in mind it's slick out there, but no active weather on the way

until tonight. more on that today at 11:00. here's mike and your drive. >> good morning, a bit of active traffic, maybe less active than you'd like. northbound 880 compresses here up to high street, but things are starting to move better with five or ten minutes of big delays here. heading up towards the bay bridge toll plaza, fast track lanes are moving well, cash lane with a slower drive. map overall looking at a pretty light volume of traffic. same through oakland. recovery for san mateo and redwood city to palo alto. northbound 101 still the slowest spot through san jose and into mountain view and west 237 as is usual, one of your last to show the westbound slowdown. back to you. >> northbound 101, always that fly in the ointment. thank you very much, mike. see you again in 25 minutes.

. >> welcome back to "today" on a thursday morning, december 18th. hi, guys, out there on the plaza. natalie morales wonders how, willie is in brooklyn for shine a light project. we have been showing you all week the last month, all of these great light shows at people's homes. >> this is the ultimate. if you could take, i thought if i could somehow combine "star wars" and christmas, a man answered my prayers. he engineers a light display set perfectly.

this is my prayer, my christmas wish. >> people want world peace. he wants "star wars" and lights. >> hit it! [ music playing ] . >> this, my friends, is epic! yes, 100,000 bulbs set to one of the greatest themes every written by mr. john williams "star wars." >> could you play the same song over and over. >> i think he does the cantina band as well. >> you think he leaves that on all night long? the neighbors. >> oh my gosh. >> unbelievable. >> nothing has ever made al more happy. >> i don't know the engineering that goes behind that. >> all i do, i know i can barely put the guy tar on, it looks like it's on fire.

>> this man has created a masterpie masterpiece. >> i am going to give up the weather. keep rolling. weathe weather. >> you have been doing this to the theme song of "star wars". >> star wars, nothing but star wars. coming for you [ music playing ] we are through gulf coast. >> look at this, showers and thunderstorms. >> come on, al. >> bill murray did perhaps one of the greatest skits as a lounge lizard, ♪ star wars ♪ nothing but star wars ♪ we are looking at sunshine, saturday, wet weather through the gulf coast. a real mess with snow, rain, ice, beautiful weather, texas into the southwest. southeast looking a little on

the wet side, sunday, sunday! more rain through the southeast. again, the mess continues this is the drought response you are looking for. we're digging out of it slowly but surely. 23% of the state as of this morning officially out of exceptional drought. now we're still in the extreme drought category, but that's the entire bay area, and a 6% to 10% increase to major reservoirs across the state of california. that's good news this morning. temps in the 50s for today. as we get into your weekend, starting to dry out, but another round of rain on the way for friday. . >> and that's your latest weather. now to a story that has all the right ingredients. they have cooked up a sweet idea, volunteers bake all season and use the profits to send six

kids and tear families on a much needed vacation. >> i'm getting stronger. >> reporter: this 7-year-old has no idea he's about to receive the surprise of his young life. while he's at home in upstate new york receiving massage and physical therapy for the genetic condition that crippled him, a group of firefighters, new york stay troopers and the non-profit baking memories for kids are about to present him with a week-long vacation to florida. >> it's an awesome kid that has to work so hard at everything. he's as much as we try to include him, there's days he has to stay on the side lines. he will have an experience. he will be with other kids like him. it will do him so much good. >> reporter: he has spinal muscular atrophy, a condition that deprives of of the ability to walk and is in a wheelchair his entire life. >> when are you not in the

chair, it feels like kind of like draft. >> he has cried a couple times, mommy, when will i ever walk? i never said to him, i don't want to steal hope, i know barring a miracle, it's unlikely. >> it's been an especially tough 84 for caleb and his family. one year ago this week, his father david was struck and killed in a road side accident on duty as a state trooper. >> he wrote a letter to daddy, this is heart breaking, daddy, please come home from heaven. >> baking memories from kids, saw news about david's death and contacted the new york state troop torres coordinate the surprised. >> when people step up and do something good. it shows they meant something, it shows his diagnosis is meaningful. it's very important for everyone. >> from november to christmas volunteers baked chocolate chip cookies, sell them online the proceeds pay for the family of a

sick child to spend a week at florida's amusement parks. >> you are the most special princess in the world. >> reporter: he came up with a mission after he faced his own battle with test tick lar cancer is there when you are 46 and you get cancer, you lived a good life him when you are three, four, five, ten, you have that, you don't understand why that's happening to you. you want to do everything possible to help them. >> reporter: since 2012, frank has sold more than 6,000 containers of cookies. caleb will be the 12th recipient of a florida get away. >> do you know why i'm here today? >> why? >> i'm here to give you, your brother, your family, a trip to universal studios and all of the florida amusement parks. >> whoa. >> because you are the most special boy in the world. >> whoa. >> are you excited? ? yeah. are we going today? because the party just starred. >> how about some cookies? you want some cookies?

these are really good cookies. >> by combining the sweet cookies and a vacation, each family gets a happy distraction during a challengesing time. >> every day it hurts that david isn't here. i'm glad we have something positive this week. >> so sweet, caleb and his family hit florida for their big vacation in march. so start packing. there is one week left to boy these incredible cookies from bakkeing memories from kids. until they do it again next year, a perfect holiday gift. >> it's the perfect holidaygy. an amazing job. for more information to purchase for more information to purchase these is a really big deal.u with aches, fever and chills- there's no such thing as a little flu. so why treat it like it's a little cold? there's something that works differently

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>> latter right. good morning. >> hi. good morning. >> first, take us to the movies. we have two big movies out this weekend. >> right, "the hobbit" is out. i am so excited about this one. this is the end of the hobbit trilogy. they spent the last 15 years doing the "lord of the rings" and "hobbit" movies, it's all coming to an end. we will see our old favorites. they're all coming back for this movie. it has something for everyone, including action sequences, i cannot wait. >> 45 minutes? >> i think it's about three hours. >> they need to have a bathroom break in the middle. >> exactly. it is based on the 1937 book, it's fantastic. it will probably be the biggest movie of december. >> how about "annie?" >> i am so excited. she made history for the youngest for an oscar.

this year the first actress that is black to play "annie". >> and a golden globe as well. >> she is joined by an a list cast. jamie foxx is in it. yes, everyone has their own scene, cameron diaz, she has had some fun. >> tv meets radio. i heart radio jingle ball all star? >> this is tonight. it is an awesome concert pharrell, maroon 5 i will do a trend forecast. amazing head bands. i knew it was going to be the must have accessory of the winter. i got one. i want one. >> you can wear this in january? >> i know the holiday accessory.

speaking of music, the new album "suckers" was debuted yesterday. everybody is talking about this, charli xcx was here. >> it's very definitive in terms of a punk funk and electron ka. it's fun, a little rebellious. no. 18 on itunes. it's a great listen. >> okay. we think it's -- >> we do not like this. >> it seems creepy. >> tell us all about it. >> it's a social media driven take on the alarm clock. you can sign up to wake up at say 6:00 a.m. instead of getting an alarm clock, you will get a call from a stranger that will wake you up. >> do they know your number? >> there are a million subscribers who are all monitored. >> how is that possible?

>> they're all monitored. >> they suicidal somebody? >> who is up at the same. >> if are you a morning person, you can choose to be the wakeer. >> your brain actually, studies prove you are able to wake up faster if you are engaged. >> if are you scared. when i'm scared, i jump out of bed. >> the call is coming from pence the house! >> thank you so much for that creepy app. not everything elts weekend. coming up next, your office holiday party is coming up. you have no idea what to wear or not to wear. >> we have festive fashions for >> we have festive fashions for every oc wellllll... ♪ ♪ earlyfit ♪ latefit ♪ risefit ♪ fallfit ♪ ballfit ♪ wallfit ♪ pingfit ♪ pongfit ♪ pingfit ♪ pongfit ♪ rowfit ♪ throwfit ♪ slowfit ♪ olliefit ♪ oopsfit

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we're selling "here comes your future daughter-in-law" confidence this year give exclusive carlos santana boots. only from famous footwear. victory is yours. it's the time of year that calls for a lot of wardrobe changes, whether it's your neighbor's christmas party this weekend or a big few year's eve band. >> or an office party. if you want to dress to impress, here with every holiday occasion, how to be chic on a real girl's budget. i am shocked when you told me where you got it and how much.

>> kohl's, laura conrad, $live. >> so amazing. >> office holiday parties. >> let's get the story with kylie. >> let's start with kylie. this is a jacard dress in leopard. it's an indentt printed text into the fabric. it has that shine on it, too. it steps it up for the holiday. the pumps really take it to the next level. one of my tips, faux fur. it looks expensive. when you do it in an act saysry like this infinity scarf, it pulls it off in a much more high end looking way, the earrings a great statement, too. it's all about this whole monochromatic trend that's

happening. mix and match different pieces and tie it together. >> we did the blue. >> well, it's velvet. i hear you also have had that. >> it's velvety smooth. >> the light adds that. the played tie. >> you can wear every year. >> new year's eve, thanks so much. >> jamey wright, josh, come on out. they're all set for their night out. this is what i think, it's one night of the year to go all out. that's what we did here. jamey wright is wearing a draped, long sleeve shop from lane bryant. it accomplishes something elegant. the draping makes it flattering, creates that hour-glass figure, every woman wants. in the makes skirt, it brings it to a more elegant sophisticated place. >> what about josh? >> josh in the tweed, super

cool. we mixed and matched fancy and casual. the jeans make it a little cool. the bow tie with the pocket square taking it to the next level. >> they are real life couple. they are getting together at the neighbor's for christmas. >> we did it in a very trendy way. not keyesy. we chose the same pattern, that red played which alludes to a cozy holiday party and this is actually neutral the palette. layerred in both of their outfits we have have chunky nin. >> i love cory sort of matches her look. you guys look great. happy holidays. >> guys, we are back in a moment. first this is "today" on nbc. everybody dance!

. well, tomorrow is the final day of our toy drive, tanks to everyone's generous spirit, get this, we have shipped more than $22 million worth of gets to children all across the country. >> with those donations the ceo of abrams books, michael, goods to see you again. >> good to see you again. >> you have been so generous. a book is such an important gift to give. what do have you this year? >> we are thrilled to do nate over 15,000 new books to the "today" toy drive with the value of over $425,000 to families in need. >> new diaries of a wimpy kid. >> this is the f. 1 world wide best seller right now. >> why are books so important this time of year? >> this book, this series, has turned millions into leaders. readers make leaders. >> thank you so much

you're watching today in the bay. >> well, good morning, everyone, 9:56, i'm scott mcgrew. we're monitoring several high profile court cases today. attorneys for suspended state

senator leland yee will be back in court for another procedural hearing. yee and 27 other people face a series of charges, including racketeering and corruption. today lawyers will ask a judge to split up the cases so yee can be tried separately. a south bay summer camp counselor who pleaded not guilty to inappropriately touching children could find out today when he will finally stand trial. 20-year-old nicolas laramie was arrested last year accused of sexually assaulting four girls under the age of seven at a ymca childcare center in morgan hill. well, let's get a check of your weather this morning. >> thank you. temps in the 50s and 60s for today. the wind is going to increase before we see our next round of heavy rain. that will arrive as we head throughout tonight, but for today, a nice break, a mix of sun and clouds. in fact, at times you're going to get two to three hours of full sunshine for today, especially in the south bay. more rain and wind moves in

tomorrow, then a nice long stretch of dry weather. first week of january, though, looks like we're going to get hammered again with more heavy rain. first here's mike and your drive. >> we might get hours of sunshine, that's a treat. over here we're looking at a bit of a backup. fast track moving better than the cash lanes. bay bridge toll plaza, still the slowest drive west 580 and, of course, the approach to the toll plaza. oakland also recovering from the morning commute. a smoother drive on both sides of the bay. southbound northbound 101 and west 237 still slow, but south 17 between bear creek and summit is going to be slow because of a tree removal project going on through 1:00 p.m., so keep that in mind if you're heading over the hill. back to you. >> all right, mike, thanks. another local news update in half an hour. see you then.

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from nbc news, this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. hey, everybody, it is thirsty thursday, december 18th. guess what today is, hoda? >> free shipping day? >> yes, and we have a great show for you today, a story about finding true love, you'll find a couple that dated in college, then broke up and lost track of each other and we don't want to give away too much of the story. >> very cute proposing. >> we just gave it away. >> don't you hear about this

story when you go to high school reunions and stuff, people that dated in high school, they realize that was their true love. >> timing isn't great, you think you shouldn't get engaged or married because you haven't been out in the world yesterday. >> and two ladies came in from the cold, they got a lot of primping and pampering. we'll show you those results. >> if you have children in your life, you'll want to take them -- take a page from one of the young girls' books. her mom wrote in to tell us how she's changing the lives of other kids. it is unbelievable how she turned a real tragic situation in her life into something so extraordinary. >> i can't wait to meet her. yesterday, i went to radio city christmas -- >> i was going to read your book. >> i read "'twas the night before christmas." if you can, they're wonderful kids on stage, if you can go to radio city, i know the tickets can be pricey, it is so worth it, the santa stuff and all that, we did book reading right before. and some rockettes.

they told me to pose like that. >> you're taller than the rockettes. >> well, i had on heels. >> and you found a hat! >> that was unnecessary. >> i'm happy for you. >> thank you. what about you. >> i had a big day yesterday. i went home and had a bunch of podcasts. but then last night we got a visit from our grandson, frank's grandson, from his marriage to his first wife, maxine, michael kennedy, and his beautiful wife mary have their first -- one of frank's first great grandsons and that is little makai michael. >> that's a beautiful picture, by the way. >> i was going to go to bed at 8:00 because i was wiped. two hours later, with this baby, i couldn't put him down. he's so sweet. >> i love how frank has his eyes closed. >> i know. it was heaven. heaven around the fireplace. and then my sister sends me this. you know what this is? this is my niece shani who gave birth two and a half weeks ago.

that is her in her size 2 jeans. >> are you sure that wasn't taken last year. >> just taken the other day. yesterday. the day before yesterday. that is depressing. >> she was only 82 pounds when she got pregnant. she's tiny, barely 5 feet tall. but still, you gain 22 pounds, and she's not doing a thing except nursing that baby and loving on it. if you really want to hate somebody, really be mad about that. >> all right. >> some women take 22 years to lose 22 pounds. >> or never do. >> most of us, so okay. >> so you probably know this by now that sony has officially pulled the plug on the movie "the interview." they say it was in reaction to the movie houses around the country who were not going to show the film because they were worried about attacks, that there were some threats of attacks of some said 9/11-style attacks. so sony was basically saying, well, because they decided not to show them, we're going to pull it and also pull it from dvd and from everywhere. and a lot of people in hollywood

are kind of ticked because -- >> for lots of different reasons, but most saying, it is freedom of expression, you know, the first amendment and we're setting a precedent. >> some are talking about it like let's pretend there is an editorial in the washington post and someone didn't like it and they threatened. but if you run that, we're going to do these kinds of attacks. or if you have that book in the library, if you don't take that book out, we're going to do x, y and z. jimmy kimmel was upset about it last night and started his show this way. >> yesterday the attackers, whoever they are, threatened to physically attack movie theaters if they dare to show the movie. they threatened 9/11-type terror attacks. today, in response to those threats, the nation's five biggest movie theater chains announced they will not allow the movie to be shown and personally i think those theater owners should be ashamed of themselves. i think allowing a ruthless dictator of another country to

decide what american people can and cannot see in our country is against everything, like, we're supposed to stand for, right? >> not going comedy at all. he went straight for it. >> i guess the twitter world, whatever it is called, just went crazy with lots of people, you know, having their say about it. like who's next? if this precedent is set. the other part of it, as professionals who own the theaters and let's just say they took a stand and said, no, you're going to show it, we said -- and say something did happen, you know, they're protecting their brand, they're protecting hopefully the people that come to the -- i see both sides. remember what happened in the movie theater in colorado? >> i think we're also saying the fbi was saying that those -- they didn't see credible threats. anyone can make a threat. can they carry it out? the idea of the threat is enough to keep people away from the movies anyway. there is one movie theater in dallas that said we're going to

do something our own way. they stood up and they decided that they weren't going to show that movie, but they are going to show another one. remember "team america world police"? >> it is big. >> this one starring as a cartoon character kim jong-il, and this was co-written by the "south park" creators. anyway. i want to hear a little bit of it. ♪ no one listens no one understands ♪ >> anyway -- >> he's kind of cuddly. >> kind of a -- >> oh, he's lonely. >> so sony did release a statement, by the way. they say this, in light of the decision by the majority of our exhibitors not to show the film interview, we have decided not to move forward with the plan december 25th theatrical release. those who attack us stole our intellectual property, private e-mails and sensitive and proprietary material and sought to destroy our spirit and morale, all apparently to thwart the movie of a release of a movie they don't like.

we stand by our film and their right to free expression and are extremely disappointed by the outcome. >> i wish people could keep their messages pithier. i guess it is time. >> it is time -- >> wait, before you do it. we were just looking at "ok," we do our okay or not okay. i want to say thank you to them because they put in two other people who are having a good time. >> keira knightley and emma thompson, okay. >> we're not the only two. >> and the other thing is, as we were looking at it, hoda said, what is nip man? if anybody can tell us if you used nip man -- >> is it lotion and what is it doing? as seen on celebrity instagram. what are celebrities doing with nip man? very weird. i thought it was porno when we

saw it. look at this thing and it is right there. right in our faces. >> yeah. >> what is it? >> let us know, would you? >> here is something you're going to like. an ihoda that kathie lee is going to enjoy. because in the spirit of christmas, and back where i am, it is time to do a little kathie lee and hoda. finally, finally the day has come. let's play that baby. >> oh, winter wonderland. >> look at the snow. ♪ sleigh bells ring are you listening ♪ ♪ in the lane snow is glistening ♪ ♪ a beautiful sight we're happy tonight ♪ ♪ walking in a winter wonder land ♪ ♪ gone away is the blue bird ♪ ♪ here to stay is the new bird ♪ ♪ he sings a love song >> when i recorded that -- what did i say -- >> 7 months old.

>> would you turn it down so i can think? i was seven months pregnant with cassidy when i recorded this. >> beautiful, by the way. >> thank you. warner bros. record. i had done a podcast the other day with idina menzel who came out with a cd, just fantastic. i don't put myself up with great singers by any means. >> go to itunes, download a kathie lee song. you know what, it will make your holiday. do it. >> thank you, hoda. that's very, very kind of you. >> sirius xm. >> we only know why you would do such a thing, we do not know why -- >> go to sirius radio channel 108. >> we're not doing okay or not okay? >> no, we're out of time. two women from our plaza got glammed up in time for the weekend holiday party. and you can't hurry love. we're going to meet a couple brought together by an online dating site, but their before story will shock you. >> we'll talk to them righ walmart has everything you need to make your signature christmas dish. mine is mouthwatering mashed potatoes. i mix my russets with milk, butter,

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with prescription tamiflu. and call your doctor right away. tamiflu is fda approved to treat the flu in people 2 weeks and older whose flu symptoms started within the last two days. before taking tamiflu tell your doctor if you're pregnant, nursing, have serious health conditions, or take other medicines. if you develop an allergic reaction, a severe rash, or signs of unusual behavior, stop taking tamiflu and call your doctor immediately. children and adolescents in particular may be at an increased risk of seizures, confusion or abnormal behavior. the most common side effects are mild to moderate nausea and vomiting. ask your doctor about tamiflu and attack the flu virus at its source. choosing is half the fun.. because there's a little something delicious... for everyone. hershey's miniatures, choose your own delicious. especially around the holidays. i was pinchin' more than pennies! but thanks to fingerhut.com, now we can shop over 150,000 items

from brands like samsung, keurig, fisher price. happy holidays to me. all you gotta do is click on over to fingerhut.com and get the credit you deserve to get all kinds of great stuff. [ doorbell rings ] oh, i hope it's the microfiber recliner! [ laughs ] ahhh. ♪ if you're single in the city and looking for love, you may find yourself on a lot of dates, but it can be a challenge to find the one. >> well, christie ely and peter tabora didn't need to find new love, they needed to find each other again. they dated throughout college, but after graduating they went their separate ways, never speaking to each other. >> six years later, a dating site matched christie to peter and as they say, the rest is history. their love story caught our eye when it was written in "the new york times" a year ago. we thought we would catch up

with them as they celebrate their first anniversary. >> and also with us is dr. ish major. >> how crazy is this whole situation? were you close to getting married back in college? were you talking or thinking about it or not that serious? >> it was pretty serious. every once in a while it would come up. we were very young, so i think you know, it was never a serious consideration -- >> who broke it off? >> we were actually -- >> sort of a mutual -- >> no. someone suggested it. >> christie was wanting to go to law school and our relationship was relatively co-dependent at that point in our lives. we fe she was one foot in, one foot out of the relationship, we decided it was time. >> i think we were both -- i was wanting to have some independence and kind of grow up on my own and so -- >> see the world a little bit. >> exactly. and he kind of said, okay, you know. >> you dated other people. there you were. were you thinking about each

other all the while or just -- >> for sure. >> always in the back of your mind. >> nobody ever measured up, huh? either of you got married to another person? >> no. and every so often i would send her an e-mail, she was in san diego in law school, she was in d.c. and i was traveling around and i would shoot her an e-mail and it was never -- kind of deflected each time. >> it is crazy you were, like, on an online website and they put you two together. >> i know. >> someone knew, right? >> yeah. it was definitely sort of surreal when that happened. and so -- >> what was your reaction? >> i was, like, oh, my god, it was very -- a little bit embarrassing, but -- >> sometimes people aren't ready at that early age, right? >> yeah, exactly. the ultimatums in those types of relationships never work. if you're in a situation that issed no headed where you want it to go, it is a nice reminder to get the courage like peter

did, i need to walk away while we're still hole before we ruin something good. >> i hear stories sort of like yours a little bit, people in high school rekindle. is it common? >> it is a common thing if you do it how these folks did it. they did it the right way. we need to experience something, achieve the personal goals, now you can come back to the relationship as a complete person, not looking for anybody to complete you. you want to share each other's life now. >> first of all, we should point out that you're expecting. >> yes. >> i love that. >> very exciting. >> we decided to give you a little -- >> a "today" show onsie. >> are you guys so excited? >> thank you, appreciate it. >> when is this little child coming to the world? >> hopefully the first week of june so -- yeah, so -- >> we're really excited. i mean, i'm -- i've never been not looking forward to something, looking forward to something so much at the same time. >> your life will change. >> but, yeah, we're really excited. >> we're so happy for you.

what website was it that put you together? >> match.com. >> oh, my god, crazy, awesome. congratulations. >> god bless with the baby. thank you, darling. >> always a pleasure. will two lucky ladies fall in love with their new looks? find out when they face the mirror for "ambush makeovers." if you're out of gift ideas, give your friends and family the experience of a lifetime. we'll show you some coming up experience of a lifetime. we'll show you some coming up wellllll... ♪ ♪ earlyfit ♪ latefit ♪ risefit ♪ fallfit ♪ ballfit ♪ wallfit ♪ pingfit ♪ pongfit ♪ pingfit ♪ pongfit ♪ rowfit ♪ throwfit ♪ slowfit ♪ olliefit ♪ oopsfit ♪ otisfit ♪ thiswayfit ♪ thatwayfit ♪ daddyfit ♪ pappyfit ♪ datefit ♪ weightfit ♪ goalfit ♪ gooooooalfit ♪ stepfit ♪ stairfit ♪ smartfit ♪ heartfit ♪ spinfit ♪ bikefit ♪ hikefit ♪ yikesfit ♪ wheeeeefit ♪ wowfit ♪ whoafit ♪ findyourfit ♪ it's all fitbit for all those last-minutet to walmgifting occasions.eat stuff thanks melissa! it's so great! you're welcome. great gift! love this! happy holidays!

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♪ it is time for our holiday gift guide.

if you're still scrambling to find the perfect present for the hard to buy for people, we have just the thing, and you don't even have to hit the crowded malls. >> give your loved ones the gift of a fun and memorable experience. and here with something for every age is yvette rios from "latina" magazine. hello! nice to see you! welcome. it is always nice to go through something with someone. >> absolutely. >> right? >> so this is about building memories, making -- giving someone a gift of something very special and unique. >> you say go online and go to getyourguide.com. >> it is a phenomenal website. it aggregates adventure gifts from all over the country. >> many, many. >> many, many, many. basically, you can logon and say what town you're going to be guying the gift for someone and they'll tell you what the experiences are there. we have a couple that are really cool. >> what is it? >> there is a 14-mile journey down the snake river in wyoming it's the best.

and you go in a canoe, stop at a luxurious spot, they camp, they make delicious food for you, it is gorgeous. this is a lemur adventure. this is in florida at one of my favorite places. it is called jungle island. it is so fun. you take the kids, $56, they get to spend time with a bunch of lemurs, crawl all over them, play with them, it is a lot of fun. >> it's for kids of all ages? >> yes. >> how expensive are these kinds of things? >> i tried to stick to under $100. all of these are affordable memory-making gifts. >> okay. >> you like a site called cloud nine living. >> yes. this is another site that also aggregates a lot of great experience gifts. these are more kind of adventure -- i mean, educational in nature. so, like, for instance if you know someone who wants to learn to fly, for $130, you can fly an airplane in baltimore, maryland, for the very first time with an faa certified aviation specialist. >> what do you mean you can fly an airplane? >> i literally can fly a little cessna airport. >> you sit in the pilot seat -- >> you're the co-pilot. >> you're the co-pilot, they hand over the reins to you once

the plane -- >> is that legal? >> it is legal. for a lot of people it's a bucket list thing to learn to fly. it's a great gift for someone to have that. >> what if someone likes to drive stock cars. >> a lot of people do. >> nascar is huge. you can drive a stock car for $89. a great experience gift if you know someone who is really into nascar and driving and so it is pretty cool. >> you would think the insurance on that alone with be prohibitive, right? >> right, it would. >> okay. >> you can do it. these are all things you can give people that -- >> what happens if you crash the car? are you responsible for all -- >> i don't know about that. >> yvette -- >> i would imagine you would not be held responsible if it is your first time. >> i think you would be. >> me too! >> how about whale watching? that is so fun. >> whale watching off the coast of california, you can see all kinds of whales, humpbacks, beluga, it is beautiful, well worth the trip. and it is just a great experience that everyone will remember. >> now, for kids who are adventurous, not scared to sleep out with the wild things -- >> yes. >> there is a place for them?

>> exactly. we have a bunch of where the wild things are type adventures for kids where they can spend the night at a museum, first one is dozing with dinos at the field museum in chicago. amazing experience. they get to actually sleep under the dinosaurs. so cool! >> pajamas and penguins. >> pajamas and penguins. how cool is this? this is at the california academy. you get to sleep right by the giant tank with all the fish. >> sleeping bags. that's cool. >> sleeping bags, so cool. >> washington, d.c. has something, kid spy. >> the spy museum, they have very cool operation secret slumber. they get a secret dossier with they get disguises and spend the night trying to solve crimes. >> and the carnegie -- >> carnegie science center. they have a science after dark program where the kids spend the night, they can play with all the cool gadgets and run all over the museum all night long. >> if you like flower arranging, there is a place for you too. hello! >> it is so popular now. all sorts of young people are

taking flower arranging classes. go to sites like for $30 and up. >> they were all great. thank you so much. they're out of their hair and makeup chairs, ready to see you used to sleep like a champ. then boom... what happened? stress, fun, bad habits kids, now what? let's build a new, smarter bed using the dualair chambers to sense your movement, heartbeat, breathing. introducing the sleep number bed with sleepiq™ technology. it tracks your sleep and tells you how to adjust for a good, better and an awesome night. the difference? try adjusting up or down. you'll know cuz sleep iq™ tells you. give the gift of amazing sleep, only at a sleep number store. find our best buy rated c2 queen mattress with sleepiq. know better sleep with sleep number. which means you get unlimited. talk, text and data for only $45 a month. no contracts... no surprises. what about hidden fees? nope. what about funny business? no... bamboozling? what is "bamboozling"? it's like "malarkey." no... good.

hmm. get america's largest and most dependable 4g lte networks for half the cost. you can bring your own phone or, for a limited time, get a 50-dollar gift card when you buy a samsung galaxy s3. straight talk wireless. only at walmart. you've been part of this family for as long as i can remember. and you just mean so much to all of us. the holidays wouldn't be the same without your crescent rolls. we got you a little something. we got you jeans. it's about time. pipin' hot pillsbury crescent rolls. make your holidays pop! walmwith an intel processor the hfor great performance. yeah, i'm using it to video chat with santa. no way! yeah. he's naughty. get the top 100 gifts at unbeatable prices. like the hp stream laptop with intel inside. you're watching today in the bay. >> well, good morning, everyone, 10:26 i'm scott mcgrew. menlo park police need help finding men who took off with

$18,000 in cash. on tuesday, police say four armed masked men stormed into the el rancho market on willow road, demanded money, then punched the cashier several times in the face. happening today, thousands of low income families in the south bay getting a much needed boost just in time for the holidays. sacred heart community services plans to pass out 3,300 boxes of food today and tomorrow. next week sacred heart will pass out more than 17,000 toys and books to south bay children. well, a look at weather and traffic coming up after the break.

welcome back, i'm meteorologist christina loren. temps today on the cool side, but we're actually going to get a break from that heavy rain, just some pesky showers, mix of sun and clouds by tonight, into tomorrow, more rain and gusty wind on the way, then we'll get into a prolonged break of dry weather that extends well into next week, but there is more rain in the forecast. we're going it tell you about it, plus time out friday's storm to your doorstep today at 11:00. first here's mike and your drive. >> all right, southbound 101 starting to recover after a crash just cleared. this is your curves through san rafael. look at the map, slowing north bay right there. really quickly improving. also a crash there on the peninsula southbound towards sierra point parkway causing late slowing towards south san francisco. also a crash west 80 at powell has cleared out of the roadway. late slowing towards the berkley

curve. metering lights on the bay bridge. rest of the bay looking good. san mateo little slow and down through the santa cruz mountains still slow. back to you. >> thanks. make sure to join us at 11:00 for our big newscast. we'll see you then. we're back with more of "today" on this thirsty thursday. >> and we're ready to reveal our "ambush makeovers" for two lucky ladies swept off the chilly plaza for a total head to toe do-over. guess who is responsible for the brand-new looks? >> our talented makeover team, "today" contributor and stylist to the stars -- >> everybody now -- >> louis licari. and "today" contributor and author, and guinness world record -- >> the list is long. >> jill martin. how was it? chilly out? >> it was chilly, it was fun. everyone is in the festive spirit, if i can speak right, and having a good old time. >> good. >> breeann sampson is our first lucky lady, from sharon,

pennsylvania. not only is she a new mom, but she's a classically trained opera singer who recently opened up a performing arts studio with her husband, with a baby and her beauty routine is not existent, no makeup, hasn't cut her hair since the baby was born, never colored it, she's ready for a new look. let's listen to her story. >> we only picked you so we can hang with alexander. i know you want this for your wife. tell us why. >> she's the best person -- the best mom i know and she puts everybody in front of herself and i'm so excited for her that she gets this opportunity. >> you're going to be so gorgeous. excited to see mom? high five! >> baby is here! alexander is here with his dad nick and mother-in-law barb. please keep your blindfolds on for a second. okay? all right. here is one last look at breeann before. bring out the new you.

>> oh, my gosh. >> hello. >> hello. >> are you ready? take off your blindfolds. >> oh, my gosh. >> i don't think the baby recognizes her. >> hello. >> are you ready to see yourself with your new haircut? >> yes. >> spin around, sweetie. >> oh, my gosh! >> oh, my gosh. >> i don't think he recognizes her, does he? >> oh, my gosh. >> look at you, your little boy does not recognize you. >> let's see if he recognizes. >> hi. >> that's mom. >> hi. >> i'm surprised he didn't cry. >> tell us about -- >> this is a great arson haircut. he took a bob, he layered it up, made it a little rougher to keep it younger. she looks fantastic. >> i love it. amazing. >> homage to you kathie lee, we made it close -- >> am i that blonde, really? it looks good on her. >> what do you guys think? >> oh, my goodness. >> she looks beautiful.

>> are we talking to alexander? >> he's going to eat everything. >> she dabbles in opera. >> dabbles? >> i did. >> do you want to give us a little -- >> that is hot. beautiful. >> built in color blocking so this is new by shani, available at nordstrom and the earrings are kendra scott. >> beautiful, thank you. >> our second lady is jamie, 40 from camdentown, missouri. she's a mom of two, trying to get a ph.d. in science of education. she wears little or no makeup, puts had her hair in a ponytail and she's out the door. she wants a new look to show off at the billy joel concert tonight. let's listen to her story. >> another hubby who really wants it for his wife. tell us why she's so fabulous. >> she's the greatest wife in the world, the greatest mother

in the world and we're here in new york celebrating her birthday to see billy joel and so she -- we're excited about this. >> we're going to make you an uptown girl. excited? >> yes, very excited. i can't wait. >> an unbelievable show. she is here with her husband lance and daughter courtney. keep those blindfolds on, please. we'll take one last look at jamie before and bring the new jamie out. >> wow! >> oh, another out of the park -- out of the park. okay. you guys, take off your blindfolds. >> wow! >> are you ready? >> i'm ready. oh, my gosh. look at that color! louis, awesome job. >> thank you. >> it is very sexy. >> look right there. >> another arson. >> both haircuts. this is a longer version of -- very similar haircut, but a little longer in the front. notice the texture and the

layering. it makes all the difference to keep it contemporary. she has more hair than four women, i have to say. colorwise, she had beautiful natural color, but i added this red tint. golden based keeps it natural. and, again the makeup. >> lance, what do you think? >> it is awesome. >> courtney? >> she looks great. >> sweet. >> tell us about that gorgeous -- i love that color. >> it is the holiday also, her birthday. it is adriana papel. >> just beautiful. >> let's bring breeann back out. big round of applause for both of our ladies. >> great job. she dedicated her life to giving back to kids, but she's just a kid herself. >> our "everyone has a story" winner comin

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♪ everyone has a moment that changes their life ♪ today we meet our newest "everyone has a story" winner,

jessica. her mom kathleen wrote in to tell us how proud she was of her daughter she adopted at the age of 5. >> jessica was abandoned at birth and now at 12 she has dedicated her young life to giving back to others. we'll meet the family in a moment. but first, let's listen to what kathleen had to say in her letter to us. >> i'm writing on behalf of my daughter jessica. jessica was abandoned after birth by her birth parents due to facial defects. she went on to spend the first five years of her life in a chinese orphanage. jessica had two major surgeries without a mommy by her side to cover her. she lived without having a single thing that she could call her own. not a stuffed animal, not a pair of socks that were hers. my family and i adopted jessica a few days after her fifth birthday in 2007. she skipped out of the adoption office holding our hands and smiling and has remained that way ever since. fast-forward to one day in 2012

when jesse was cleaning her room. she decided on her own to donate many of her stuffed animals to the local fire department to keep in their trucks for kids they meet on call. she didn't want any other child to be scared, alone, injured without a stuffed animal to hug. her little idea, her heart full of caring and love, spawned a nonprofit we care bears to provide instant comfort to kids in unbearable situations. through her daily work, she has provided more than 130,000 stuffed animals to first responders and other organizations that work with kids in hard places. jessica's story is literally one of a child who started her life with no hope, left to die, and survived and makes her goal in life to give back. people often ask jessica if she feels grateful or lucky to be adopted. but the truth of the matter is, that it is our family that is grateful and blessed to be able to call this beautiful girl ours. >> jessica! yea!

>> we're very blessed to have jessica here with her mom and dad kathleen and bob. what a wonderful story we get to bring to everybody. >> i love watching jessica's face, watching that. did you love watching that? >> some pictures i never saw before. >> did you know your mom had written us this letter? >> monday morning she told me. >> right before we talked to you. >> yes. >> you didn't want to get her hopes up. >> kathleen, why did you and your husband decide to adopt from china in the first place? >> we were looking to expand our family and deciding the ways that that could be done. when we found out about international adoption, we specifically china and children who need homes, special needs children who wait and languish until they're 5 years old without parents. sometimes older. >> were you terribly lonely, sweetie, then? >> i really don't remember.

so, yeah. >> did you know right away you had a special daughter here? >> yeah, i can't imagine her being lonely. she always had a sunny disposition. i think as one of the older kids in the orphanage, she probably ruled the orphanage. so, yeah, she -- like the video said, we left the adoption agency, she grabbed my hand and kathleen's hand and started skipping out and we knew we were going to be a good family then. she let us be her parents. >> there is a special song just for your family. >> yes. >> coming up from broadway's laura osnis. >> a wonderful singer. >> tony nominated. >> a wonderful singer. >> tony nominated. just wonderful. they're going to love you. >> a wonderful singer. >>at famous footwear we're not just selling the hottest shoes of the holiday season. we're selling "here comes your future daughter-in-law" confidence this year give exclusive carlos santana boots.

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♪ everyone has a moment we're back. it is time for you to hear the song that david friedman and i wrote just for you. please welcome broadway performer, tony nominee, miss laura osnes singing "how do

miracles happen." ♪ ♪ suffer the little children to come unto me ♪ ♪ and forbid them not for such is the kingdom of heaven ♪ ♪ she was born into a cold world ♪ ♪ void of comfort void of care ♪ ♪ she was left to die and wonder why ♪ ♪ this world is so unfair ♪ ♪ but no one there to tuck her in ♪ ♪ to hug or kiss her face ♪ ♪ she learned how

to live there all alone ♪ ♪ in that sad and lonely place ♪ ♪ how do miracles happen just when all hope is gone ♪ ♪ how does love breakthrough ♪ ♪ the darkness and lead us to the dawn ♪ ♪ miracles can happen when one lucky little girl ♪ ♪ uses her discomfort to give comfort to the world ♪ ♪ she was found and taken home ♪ ♪ by parents who made sure that she no longer would be alone ♪ ♪ and with all their loving care and help from god above ♪ ♪ she took all her heartache from the past ♪ ♪ and turned it into love ♪ how do miracles happen

how do miracles take place ♪ ♪ how does someone turn a life of pain ♪ ♪ into a life of grace ♪ ♪ a miracle did happen ♪ ♪ when one brave little girl turned her pain into a gift ♪ ♪ and gave it to the world ♪ ♪ she started life with trouble ♪ ♪ but somehow she understood that something that seemed evil could be truly used for good ♪ ♪ and so she survived creating good and bad ♪ ♪ so others wouldn't suffer in the same way that she had ♪ ♪ how do miracles happen i think it's plain to see ♪ ♪ they don't come from out of nowhere ♪ ♪ they don't come from out of thin air ♪ ♪ miracles come through people

like you and me ♪ ♪ that's how miracles happen ♪ >> that was beautiful, laura. thank you. >> there is more. we'll be back in a moment. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

we're back with "everyone has a story" honoring a special girl and her family. we were treated to a performance by laura osnes perform ageing ae lyric opera house in chicago.

and david friedman and the creative team behind the "today" show musical. >> what did you think of the song? >> i really liked it. it was really, really good. >> did it capture you? >> yes. >> what did you think, mom? >> lovely. i cried from the introduction. >> such a beautiful version. >> what do you think, dad? you matter too? dads matter too. >> i was surprised such a big voice came out of such a -- >> we want to give you something, jessica. because you're doing such great work for other kids, we wanted to help you do the work that you're doing so thanks to kohl's cares, vermont teddy bear, we collected over 150 stuffed animals to give out to kids in need. >> thank you! >> made a special bear just for you. >> you deserve to have a little fun on your first trip to new york. so tonight ellen stardust diner has invited you and your family to a complementary dinner. >> you'll love that. people sing at the table. >> so much fun. >> it is awesome. >> after that, guess what they're doing?

they're going to broadway to see matilda! >> yea. >> thank you for everything you do. >> thank you. you make the world a better place for kids. thank you for raising a beautiful child. tomorrow, his an her holiday fashions and last minute homemade christmas decor. >> and getting through the season and keeping your relationship in tact. that comes from matthew hussey and a special guest. >> and ten minutes to calm. have an awesome thirsty thursday, everybody. we'll see you on try day friday. >> i love try day friday. the end of the week. nice talking to you. a hot chocolate?

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nbc bay area news starts now. >> right now at 11:00, a brief break before the next storm. when it is expected to hit the bay area. plus -- >> six hours we were up to $4,000 and by the next morning it was $8,000. >> an outpouring of support to help those affected by recent flooding on the peninsula. but first, a bay area plea for racial justice nationwide. good morning and thanks for joining us, i'm kris sanchez. >> and i'm scott mcgrew. rallies in response to what many areal