francisco, we'll see highs in the upper 60s for all of the outdoor activities going on over the next few days. i don't know if you see it beautiful, but looking good. looking great in oakland for the traffic flow. 880 moves without a problem through this portion of the nimitz. slowing a bit south through hayward and fremont. typical other side of the bay. palo alto looks nice as well. there's some haze in the air. there was earlier fog, but no reports of any problems around the bay, so that's good. that could be your thing. you're looking good. looking good. do the double finger point. yeah. here we go. no one's ever done that before. right. copyright that. yeah, this this sells it. there you go. you know, it's all good. everybody loves it. this sunrise is gorgeous today. hope you get a chance to go enjoy it. absolutely. well, that's what's happening for us here on today in the bay. good thursday morning. here >> yeah. we're talking even more cold snow and ice.

it's february 20th. this is "today." winter's wrath. nearly 100 million people across the country coping with bone-chilling temperatures this morning while parts of the east coast are hit with the region's biggest snowstorm in years, leading to accidents, power outages, and a new round of flight delays. is any relief on the way? al's forecast straight ahead. long live the king. president trump's eyebrow-raising post on social media as he ratchets up his remaking of the federal government. new firings and targeting new agencies in a broad signaling a major break with ukraine, calling the president a dictator. >> the only thing he was good at was playing joe biden like a fiddle. >> we are live with the latest. breaking overnight, hamas hands over the bodies of four hostages. the youngest victim of the brutal october 7th attack

believed to be among them. we're live with the emotional reaction across israel this morning. midair collision. the search for answers in the crash between two small planes in arizona. just ahead, our inside look at that investigation. denied. the judge in the idaho college murders case rejects bryan kohberger's request to throw out crucial dna evidence. how that affects the long awaited trial. all that, plus panda push. the new campaign to bring even more of the black and white beauties to the u.s. and color war. the dress that divided social media ten years ago toy. >> i figured if we were yelling about it, maybe the rest of the internet would. >> but really, was it black and blue or white and gold? all will be revealed with the dress here in our studio in living color. today, thursday, february 20, 2025. >> announcer: from nbc news,

this is "today" with savannah guthrie and craig melvin. live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. hi, everybody. good morning. welcome to "today." nice to have you with us on this thursday morning. hi, willie. >> good to see you, savannah. i'm here on an important day. it's the tenth anniversary of the debate over the dress. and we have been debating already this morning. others see something completely different. >> do you really see black and blue? >> what do you see? >> i see white and gold. it was a simpler time, and we want to revisit that. have a little fun this morning. jenna bush hager is going to wear the dress and we're going to resolve this once and for all. >> once and for all. it ends here. we can't fix the weather, but we can fix the dress today. >> once again this morning, we have that extreme winter weather. i want to show you a live look at charleston, west virginia where people there are dealing with heavy snow and ice. >> if it seems like this winter has been particularly harsh, well, it has. this storm is the sixth in a nonstop parade over the past weeks, and it comes as many

areas are coping with cold. more than a hundred record lows could be set tomorrow morning. >> here you can see why. nearly 100 million people are under cold alerts. some areas 35 degrees below average. the good news though, there is some relief in sight. >> and there's al roker. we'll get his forecast in just a moment. let's get started. nbc's priscilla thompson in dallas. 14 degrees in dallas, texas. good morning. >> reporter: savannah, good morning, and a frigid one here in dallas. look at this. you have the water coming out of fountains like this, freezing literally midair because of how cold it is. 14 here like you said, but it feels more like 4 degrees right now, and that is the kind of bitter cold that folks are waking up to across the country. this morning, snow, ice, and freezing temperatures as 95 million people are under cold weather alerts from the plains to the southeast.

the east coast battered with snow and ice. southeastern virginia facing one of their biggest snowstorms in years with over 12 inches piling up in some areas making for treacherous travel. this car spinning out in virginia beach on slick, snowy roads. two people in suffolk, virginia had to be rescued from freezing waters after a crash left their car partially submerged. that arctic blast also sweeping through the lone star state. >> it's incredibly cold, but i'm space heater in here to keep me warm. >> reporter: the manager of this food truck spending the day battling frozen pipes. >> we have a lot of people who love our coffee. it makes me sad to say, i can't make your coffee. >> reporter: no coffee today unfortunately. meanwhile in eastern kentucky, heavy snow also causing multiple accidents on the interstate in lexington. in areas still recovering from this week's deadly flooding.

>> we're still dealing with flooding. we've had a snowstorm on top of that. now we're going to deal with frigid temperatures, but folks, there's light at the end of the tunnel. >> reporter: and here in texas, this is the other thing we're seeing. folks who did not cover their plants, a lot of those plants are now frozen solid. that is going to be an issue once all of this melts, but i will tell you while it is going to be cold today, there is good news in the forecast. the sun is supposed to be out. so a little bit of sunshine even as we are continuing to deal with these bitter cold temperatures. savannah? . >> i tnk we see it peeking up behind you. pretty sunrise there in dallas. stay warm. al's over at the wall with what you can expect. how's it looking? >> we're going to have 36 million of us under winter weather advisories for the most part, but some winter storm warnings because of that lake-effect snow. you can still see washington is going to get a few snow showers. we will probably see some here in the northeast as this low pulls away.

cold winds, the snow showers. more accumulating snow for cape cod. we're also looking at lake effect snow from erie to just west of buffalo. could upwards of another 5 inches, also stretching into syracuse. 97 million people from bismarck all the way to corpus christi, and back to wilmington and norfolk under cold advisories, cold weather watches and warnings. it feels right now like 19 below in kansas city. 4 below in dallas. 7 in boston. 13 in washington, d.c. so for today, we're looking for that warmth, but none of it around indnapolis, you'll be at 21. 45 in new orlean overnight tomorrow, we're looking at a windchill in wichita of minus 7. 32 in rockport. 5 in norfolk. here's the good news, temperatures warm up. by monday, it's 42 in milwaukee. 59 st. louse. d.c. will be double nickels at 55. let's go to washington now. there are new targets this morning in the trump

administration's ongoing push to shrink the federal work force. the secretary of defense now planning roughly $50 billion in cuts to the military's budget. that could include the dismissal of top generals. it could happen as soon as this week. let's get to nbc's senior white house correspondent garrett haake with the details. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, and while the white house suffered another legal setback overnight on its immigration agenda, but in the president's efforts to slash federal spending and employment, it's full steam ahead. now it's the pentagon in the cost-cutting crosshairs in the department of government efficiency as the impact of those federal firings continues to be felt around the country. a legal showdown looming over a key part of president trump's agenda. overnight an appeals court ruling that his executive order limiting birthright citizenship will remain blocked. another court had ruled the order violates the constitution which extends american citizenship to anyone born on u.s. soil. >> we'll end up winning that court inin the supme court. >> reporter: but the president is moving forward on another priority, reshaping the federal government with new changes

potentially reaching the nation's military and social security. as he requires that more federal departments line up with his agenda, trump also posting, quote, long live the king yesterday, while aiming to get rid of new york city's congestion pricing. the white house following up with doctored images. new york's governor writing, we're a nation of laws, not ruled by a king. the major material changes from elon musk's department of government efficiency continue. >> you take a look at doge and you see what's happening. >> reporter: this morning the pentagon is it in the cost cutting cross hairs with elon musk's department of government efficiency. now inside the defense department according to senior officials. secretary of defense pete hegseth ordering the brass to cut the defense budget by $50 billion while five sources tell nbc news generals and high-ranking officers may also be on the chopping block. many of those closely associated with former biden defense secretary lloyd austin or who have worked on programs seen as politically out of line with the

trump agenda. yesterday the president also floating a new use for any doge-related savings. >> we're thinking about giving 20% back to the american citizens and 20% down to pay back debt. >> reporter: but any such spending would require congressional action, and the president did not say where the remaining money would go. >> we're not some deep state that, like, has ulterior motives. i want to go to work and i want to help veterans. >> reporter: in december, andrew lennox started a job he considered a calling at the va hospital working as an administrative officer. he says his firing by email late last week surprised even his direct supervisors. what does that tell you about the reasoning behind it? >> it was arbitrary, and it wasn't thought out. >> garrett, this all comes as the house of representatives working on its own potential budget and budget cuts. the future of medicaid in question. what do you know about that? >> reporter: savannah, this has been a mess. congress has been slowly putting together this massive tax and border policy bill as the

president has demanded. house republicans have been eyeing the $880 billion or so in the medicaid health care safety net program as a place they could reform or potentially do steep cuts to pay for other priorities, but now the president has said in his recent fox news interview that medicaid will join medicare and social security as programs the spending bill won't touch. all of it ends up as a giant math problem for the president who has promised huge savings to pay for tax cuts and not to touch the three most expensive thin the federal government does. it's not at all clear how they plan to solve that problem or when they might be able to do it, savannah. >> garrett, thank you very much. now to the escalating war of words over the war in ukraine. even as the whitite house shes to end the fighting, president trump is going after his ukrainian counterpart falsely blaming ukraine for the invasion and now labeling president zelenskyy a dictator. nbc's chief foreign

correspondent richard engel joins us now from ukraine. richard, what's the latest there? >> reporter: good morning, willie. for ukraine, this is even more than just a war of words. this country is dependent on the united states to defend against russian attacks that are destroying cities all across the country. this is the city of kharkiv, and it is frequently targeted by russian missiles and drones. in fact, overnight at least two ukrainian civilians were killed in russian strikes according to local officials. president trump said on air force one that he trusts russia to negotiate in good faith an end to this war. ukrainians are not convinced. ♪♪ president trump is escalating his attacks on president zelenskyy describing the ukrainian president as a dictator who's been conning the u.s. out of billions in aid. >> the only thing he was really good at was playing joe biden like a fiddle. >> reporter: trump said he's negotiating to end the war with russia, adding this ominous threat.

>> a dictator without elections, zelenskyy better move fast or o he's not going to have a country left >> reporter: president trump lashed out after president zelenskyy accused him of parroting russian disinformation, in particular, trump's false claim that ukraine started the war three years ago even though it was russia that invaded. a senior ukrainian official tells nbc news relations soured after zelenskyy refused to sign a document presented by a trump official promising to give the united states 50% of ukraine's rare earth mineral rights. president putin is clearly pleased by the rift between his enemy and its most powerful backer, complimenting president trump saying, he's ready for a summit and it will be a pleasure to meet donald. in washington, some pushback including from republicans. >> make no mistake about it. that invasion was the responsibility of one human being on the face of this planet. it was vladimir putin.

>> reporter: in the eastern city of kharkiv, ukrainian civilians feel increasingly abandoned by the united states. at a school this morning previously supported by usaid, and now without that funding, children learn underground out of reach from russian bombs and missiles. this is a math teacher. what do you make of what trump is saying and doing about ukraine? >> it is very sad because we feel we have lost a partner and a friend. we hope that president trump will change his position. president trump's envoy keith kellogg is meeting with president zelenskyy. willie? >> richard engel in ukraine. thank you so much. now to the breaking news overnight tied to the war in gaza. hamas has handed the bodies of four hostages back to israel. among them, the youngest taken on october 7th. keir simmons is following this story.

good morning to you. >> reporter: savannah, good morning to you. the family of the three of the fallen hostages have described themselves as in turmoil this week. now this morning, these images. the bodies believed to be shiri bibas, her two sons, ariel and kfir. the bodies, carried out in caskets in front of a crowd by hamas. prime minister benjamin netanyahu described today as a very difficult and shocking day for the country. in one of the defining images of october 7th, shiri bibas was seen in a heart wrenching video, taken while having her boys in her arms. her sons were 4, and not even 1. they became a rallying cry with a push for a hostage deal, with many wearing orange in solidarity with ariel and kfir's hair. the dad was released earlier this month. israeli air strikes repeating that message and propaganda slogans today. hamas has not provided any

evidence for that. ten hostages. six believed still alive are set to be released as the first phase of this ceasefire deal in exchange for hundreds of palestinian prisoners, savannah, but this morning there's still no agreement on a second phase with a release of more hostages. savannah. >> keir, thank you very much. now to a string of alarming plane crashes. putting a spotlight on air travel. investigators searching for answers after a fatal midair collision between two small planes near tucson, arizona. nbc's liz kreutz has the latest. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. officials say two people have died in that crash this arizona. it's unclear if there were any other injuries, but it comes after five high profile airline crashes in just the last three weeks. all of these incidents putting renewed scrutiny on both air travel and the faa.

this is the charred aftermath of yet another aviation accident. another one involving two private planes outside tucson. >> a fire. >> reporter: officials say a cessna and a lance airport, each with two people on board collided near a small airport that does not have an air traffic control tower. the ntsb says the airplane landed uneventually, the lance airplane crashed on the runway and caught fire, tilling two people. witnesses nearby capturing a plume of smoke. it accommodation -- comes just two days after the harrowing crash land ing in toronto, forcing an emergency evacuation for all people on board. the fatal crash in philadelphia and the devastating midair collision of an army black hawk and american airlines plane which killed all 67 people involved. the family of one of the victims now taking legal action, seeking $250 million from both the army and faa for alleged wrongdoing. neither agency commented on the filing. all of these incidents putting a

spotlight on the safety of air travel. over the weekend, the trump administration fired nearly 300 people from the faa. according to the union representing employees. among those terminated, maintenance mechanics, environmental protection specialists, and aviation safety assistants. in a letter to employees, the acting faa administrator defended the firings saying the agency has retained employees who perform safety functions. what kind of impact could those layoffs have? >> we have an aviation system that is not new. it's an older system, and it needs a lot of maintenance. so i'm more concerned about the flights being reduced because of this than i am the safety. >> reporter: as investigators arrive in arizona, this latest crash adding to the growing list of troubling incidents in the air. we should point out it's not uncommon for small airports to have what the faa has an uncontrolled field, meaning there is no air traffic

control tower, and it's up to the pilots to announce their distances. they'll gather flight track data from both planes to better understand what happened. >> thank you very much. 18 after the hour brings us to mr. roker. looks like a pretty clean map, but the truth is a little more complicated. >> well, it is, but not so bad. left over snow showers here in the northeast. sunshine through the southeast. very cold, but sunny down through texas. sunny skies up into the plains. again, brutally cold. snow in the northern rockies, but up and down the west coast, quiet and y. we'll get to your local forecast in the next 30 seconds.

and temperatures warming up. headed for the mid 60s. and then back down to the 30s. for the inland areas. tonight. tomorrow it's a little bit warmer as the sunshine continues. and this weekend is looking so nice. some of the warmer temperatures we've seen so far this year with highs and lows 70. and that continues at least through the middle of next week. no significant rain chances here, but we will see and that's you and that's your latest weather. guys? >> thanks, al. >> al, thank you. ahead this morning, a major decision on key dna evidence in the idaho college murder cases. laura jarrett following the story for us. hi, laura. >> hey there. good morning. a series of key rulings just in from the judge, and guys, he did

not mince words. i'm going to break down why this could be fatal for the defense case. >> we'll see you in a minute. also ahead on a much lighter note, could more pandas be making their w

coming up, w coming up, what do you see? black and blue or gold and white? >> a full decade after the question that broke the internet, i see both. this morning, we'll try to end this once and for all. jenna will model the dress live in living color after your local news. ♪ xiidra treats the signs and symptoms of dry eye disease. don't use if allergic to xiidra and seek medical help if needed. common side effects include eye irritation, discomfort, blurred vision, and unusual taste sensation. don't touch container p to your eye or any surface. before using xiidra, remove contact lenses and wait fifteen minutes before re-inserting.

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is 726 i'm laura garcia. here's a look at our top stories, including a blow for san francisco's presidio trust. i'm ginger conejero saab in san francisco's presidio national park, the trump administration taking aim at the ferally funded body that runs this park. in a new executive order. president trump has issued the commencing the reduction of federal bureaucracy executive order, eliminating the presidio trust and three other entities. the trust works in partnership with the national park service and parks conservancy to maintain and operate this 1500 acre park, which has been a national historic landmark since 1962. the head of the trust now has 14 days to issue a report confirming compliance. one east san jose restaurant owner is rattled after thieves targeted her business twice within about one hour. surveillance video shows the moment someone shattered the window early yesterday morning. she says two people broke in and stole the cash register. shortly after, that, video showed someone else

entering through the same broken window and leaving with aprons. busy fit meals is located on mckee road. it only happened. it only opened actually three months ago. let's get a look at the forecast on this thursday morning with meteorologist kari hall. and we are waking up to sunshine. it's a cool morning, but we'll be making it into the mid 60s. a little bit warmer than it was yesterday and also throughout the weekend. that trend continues with highs in the low 70s for the inland valleys, and it looks nice through at least the middle of next week. laura, thanks so much, kari, and don't forget to join us for our today in the bay live streaming newscast at 8 a.m. aspiring chefs take note one weekend pop-up in san francisco is ready to cook up all the recipes for success in the restau

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you are just too good how do you stand it i don't think i could ♪ ♪ she's a terror she's a tarter we don't mean to show bias but galinda you're a martyr ♪ ♪ but these things are ♪ ♪ i could watch it a hundred times. >> that was great. >> 7:30, the "wicked" dance that went viral from that blockbuster. are you pretending this is a spoiler? >> i don't want to watch it. i'm waiting for it to come out on peacock. it's coming out soon. just fyi, you have seen it. i was there. >> it's true. > i love e peacock love. you're going to tell us where we can stream it coming up in pop start. >> just wait for it. we have it for you in just a little bit. there's a lot of news to get to this half hour including developments in a very closely watched case. >> the defense of the idaho college murders has been fighting to exclude key dna evidence from the trial. now the judge is weighing in. >> it was a big ruling. nbc senior legal correspondent laura jarrett's got the detail. hi, laura. good morning.

>> good morning to you. after months of this case seeming to drag on with little movement, it is now moving at hyper speed, as the trial gets closer and closer with the judge now handing down a series of rulings that will have a huge impact on what the jury ultimately hears. this morning, a major setback for bryan kohberger's defense. multiple new rulings from the judge set to oversee this quadruple murder trial knocking down all of the defense team's efforts to get key evidence tossed out. >> this is state v. kohberger. >> reporter: cell phone and e-mail records, surveillance footage, even kohberger's past amazon purchases, all fair game. but most significant of all, the judge refusing to toss out dna evidence linking kohberger to the crime scene, including dna investigators found on the button of a knife sheathe left near the bodies of two victims, a statistical match to a swab taken from kohberger's cheek

duringis arrest in 2022. >> our first point is it was an illegal search. >> reporter: the judge appearing deeply skeptical to toss out that dna. at a hearing last month. >> when there's a dna match between the dna and the sheath and mr. kohberger, isn't that probable cause every day and twice on sunday? >> reporter: now finding no constitutional violation from investigators initially running the dna through public ancestry websites to build a list of possible suspects, explaining kohberger exposed his dna to the public by leaving it on the sheath, thus forfeiting any reasonable expectation of privacy in the dna left behind. the judge similarly not persuaded that investigators couldn't sift through the trash outside his parents' home once they zeroed in on him saying, by throwing away an item of trash containing his dna, defendant cannot object to the testing of that dna. these latest rulings a significant boost for prosecutors heading into trial

this summer as they seek to try kohberger for the murders of college students ethan chapin, xana kernodle, madison mogen, and kaylee goncalves. the judge also throwing cold water on the defense team's claim that they misrepresented the account of a surviving roommate finding her statements to police remarkably consistent, but if not, then fodder for cross-examination. and the goncalves family saying it's a dble-edged sword in waiting, you want the right decisions to be made but you also want them to be made quickly. adding, in the big picture of life, justice is just moments away. >> perhaps not unexpected, but a big blow to the defense. where do they go from here? >> it was a motion to suppress. that's about how the evidence was obtained. they said it was illegal. the judge didn't agree. they have an opportunity for more motions ahead of trial. they try to limit the sort of damage that could be done for what would go to the jury. that's still another opportunity, but this is going

to be hard. they cannot appeal these rulings. they have to wait until after a verdict. >> thank you for the update. coming up, an alarming incident at a tennis match putting athletes' safety in the spotlight. a u.s. open champion visibly upset after spotting an apparently fixated fan in the stands. what she and police are saying this morning. also ahead, the announcement from one of the nation's most beloved zoos feeling a new wave of pandemonium. plenty more panda puns on the way. >> i can't bear it. >> oh, stop it. >> sorry. enia gravis, season to season, ultomiris is continuous symptom control, with improvement in activities of daily living and reduced muscle weakness. and ultomiris is the only long-acting gmg treatment with the freedom of just 6 to 7 infusions per year, for a predictable routine i can count on. ultomiris may lower your immune system's ability to fight infections, increasing your chance of serious meningococcal and other infections

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we're 7:39 now. look at the national panda cam this morning. bow lee, starting their day on bamboo. >> the big question this morning, could more pandas soon be joining them here in the united states? >> nbc's ryan nobles is at the national zoo for us. hey, ryan. what are you hearing? >> reporter: hey, guys. good morning. there's been so much excitement in the nation's capital about the return of pandas to the united states. they returned to washington in october. they made their public debut in january, and now zoo atlanta in georgia is teasing the possibility of even more pandas coming to the united states in the very near future. >> pandemonium's back. >> reporter: big news this morning for fans of these unbearably cute pictures. -- creatures. >> good morning. i cannot handle.

>> reporter: georgia zoo atlanta announcing it's, quote, engaging in dialogue with partners in china on the future giant panda program. the zoo also says it's preparing by looking at ways to expand its panda conservation center which was home to giant pandas for more than two decades, but it sat empty since october when the city's beloved bears turned to china. long lines of visitors stopping bye to say good-bye before they left. >> going to see the pandas. >> reporter: now atlanta is hopeful the play ful black and white bears will be back soon. just last month, americans celebrating the return of pandas to the nation's capital. 3-year-olds bao li and qing bao, getting a fresh start in fresh snow, the smithsonian national zoo's newest residence, drawing big crowds for their public debut, even in the cold winter weather. >> it feels great to see these pandas again. it's so cool and i just miss

them so much. >> reporter: in 2023, the national zoo said good-bye to its previous pandas. mei xiang, tien tien, not knowing when or if giant pandas would ever return, but after a $25 million renovation of its own, a new agreement was reached with china to bring the bears back. >> we're ready to have the people here to fall in love with them like we have. >> reporter: only four u.s. zoos have welcomed pandas with long-term loan agreements from china since pan-diplomacy began in 1972, after president richard nixon's historic visit. these days, just four pandas currently live in the u.s., the two in d.c. and another pair in san diego. but no matter where you live, these panda cams are available from both zoos to capture all the cuteness as it happens in realtime.

>> so, ryan, when might we see some of these new pandas? >> reporter: right now, willie, zoo atlanta says they do not have a formal agreement with china to bring pandas back to atlanta, but the fact they made this big announcement around the expansion of their exhibition is a pretty good sign they feel confident that it will happen soon, and atlanta may not be the only place to welcome pandas. the zoo in san francisco also teasing the possibility of pandas coming there in the near future and i think we can all agree there's no such thing as too many pandas. right, guys? >> totally agree. ryan nobles is our brian fantana on panda watch. ryan, thank you so much. >> al, what you got? we were talking about the cold air. you said, well, if the planet is warming, how come it's so cold? we thought we would answer that for you. arctic air is contained by this polar vortex. it keeps it up there in the arctic. however, as the planet is warming, climate change has

caused significant warming up into the arctic. as that warm air comes up into the arctic, that weakens the polar vortex, that boundary, and it allows that cold air to move south, and that is why climate change, the global planet warming actually allows some parts of the country to be colder than usual. for today, that cold air goes all the way down to texas, we got snowshowers, great lakes, some snow in the northern rockies and plenty of sunshine up and down will be a nice one. we're starting out with sunshine, and temperatures are headed for the mid to upper 60s for today. 68 in concord and 66 in san jose. san francisco will be 64 for the maximum temperature and 68 in santa rosa and in napa. tomorrow is about the same, but we start to see a few low 70s and more widespread 70 on the map on saturday. so

and that's your latest weather. >> thank you, uncle al. >> thank you, al. all right. you don't have to wait for a main course pop start. we got the latest from apple tv plus. the king of the streamer. coach ted lasso has been dethroned. the lumon team has taken the title for the platform's most watched series ever. >> the four of you have become known as the face of severance reform. >> we're not in trouble? >> i don't think so. he said we're famous. >> all of us equally or one of us as the star? >> people love this. >> i never would have thought ted lasso would get dethroned. everybody's watching "severance." "severance" returned. if you haven't seen it, here's the deal. "severance" follows employees who have gone through surgery that divides their memories like seeing the dress as black and

blue or white and gold. and that's it. no, there's a division between their work lives and personal lives. it's a whole thing. >> they come out, and they're outing. >> like a belly button. >> like a belly button. got it. >> new episodes up for friday. >> that's it. >> officially a hit. more pop start is on the way. i thought you were wearing the dress. >> that comes later. >> this is the boost. >> we'll do boost first. >> i can't give it away. jenna will model the black and blue dress coming up. >> it's white and gold. >> it will happen after this. >> beige. ♪♪ still taking yours? everyday! nature made. made with quality. made to care for you, every day. with over 50 years of expertise behind every bottle. nature made, the #1 pharmacist recommended vitamin and supplement brand.

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jenna has pulled up a chair with a morning boost. . >> are you all ready to boost it? we have thrown a lot of live weddings, but if we ever want a read with jenna ceremony, check out these bookworm, hannah, turning the page on old damaged books and transforming them into gorgeous decorations. it included a full diy book arch, a book wall, and open books spread all around the table. y'all know what i'm doing. when i redo my vows with henry hagger, let's just do a full book theme. >> that's right. do it in a library. >> why not? >> where's the boost? that was the boost? >> i knew carson wasn't going to like this. he doesn't like books. >> that's supposed to boost me?

for the rest of the day? i'm thinking of book arches, make it through the day. >> women love weddings, plus books. >> very selfish. you're selfish. >> no, i am not. >> that was a very selfish boost. this is turning into an anti-boost. >> it's an attack on the boost. >> i want to tell you those two will get a happy ending, and carson, one day i'm going to get you to read and it will be wonderful. i'm going to send you hooked on phonics. >> you got me to read and i read two books this year and they were both read with jenna picks. i finished two. "amazing grace adams," and what was the other one? "the wedding people." several years behind on the list. >> i prefer to just support the motion picture industry. >> that's smart. that's smart. it's time for your wardrobe change. >> i have to go. sorry, guys. >> marking ten years of the dress. i think you know the one that people see. >> bye. >> blue and black or you may be seeing white and gold or maybe it's switching up. we have the actual dress, and al was going to wear it, but now jenna, i believe is going to go put it on. >> it looks better on jenna.

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hayward hall of justice, where we can expect a second day of disruption in the courtrooms in alameda county superior court as the court workers are goingng to be extending their one day strike, which was yesterday, into a second day. you can see them setting up here behind me. they have been in the process of negotiating a new contract after their last contract expired this past december. workers say they're understaffed and overworked, that new hires aren't trained adequately and say they aren't paid enough. superior court spokesperson says training and staffing have not been the union's focus during negotiations, and that the courts have done their best to retain workers in the face of an annual budget cut of nearly $4.5 million. time now to get a look at that forecast for this thursday morning with meteorologist kari hall. we're starting out cool, but it's going to be a really nice day. take a look at all the sunshine we're seeing from walnut creek to san francisco. it's going to continue to be all clear throughout the day and temperatures warming up. so as you're stepping out the door, it is 43 in danville and 51 in san

jose. but we're headed for the mid 60s for this afternoon and expect warmer weaer for the weekend. back to you. thanks so much. make sure to join us for our today in the bay live streaming newscast, starting in minutes at 8 a.m. the perfect

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it's 8:00 owner "today," coming up, arctic blast, extreme cold, heavy nice, blanketing the country this morning, creating dangerous conditions on the roads. al's full forecast just ahead, including when relief will be on the way. then, alarming incident, the moment a major tennis star turned for help during the match. >> this is very concerning. >> after spotting a man in the stands as described as fix sated w fixated with her. the full story just ahead. and color me confused, is it blue and black or white and gold, the question that divided the internet. >> have you heard about the dress seen around the world? >> what color do you see? ten years later, we're looking back on that phenomenon and putting an end to the debate with the dress itself in our studio. all that, plus robert de niro, live. >> i'm going to talk now, and you're going to shut it. >> ed burns stops by studio 1a. >> you're worried about hurting

my feelings, you failed. >> and prince, back on the big screen. >> in the waters of lake minnetonka. >> what's? >> it's all coming up today, thursday, february 20th, 2025. ♪ from palace, maine. >> today i'm turning 21. >> from birmingham, michigan. >> here with my mom. >> on a girls trip from mexico, missouri. >> good morning to my mom and dad, love you grandma evlie. >> celebrating braden's 16th birthday. >> from buffalo, new york. shout out from plainfield, new hampshire. >> hi, kathy. >> from wake forest, north carolina. >> visiting the "today" show. >> for aubrey's 10th birthday. >> double digits let's go, welcome back to "today," that's a happy crowd, jumping up and down, in joy, and to keep warm. it's chilly out there. craig is off this week, enjoying

time off. we've got willie here, haven't laughed inappropriately yes. on the breaks. >> there's still an hourur left. i'm going to get you. if you're in the market for a new set of wheels, vicky nguyen will explore a growing and unexpected trend when it comes to car shopping, and show you where to get the best deals. we're going to begin with the harsh winter weather holding a firm grip on much of the country. 100 million of us waking up to bitter cold from the rockies all the way to the east coast, lows reaching negative 8 in kansas city. negative 5 in minneapolis. meanwhile, southeastern virginia facing one of the region's biggest snowstorms 10 inches accumulating overnight. al has a busy plate. what's up? >> norfolk's snowfall, that's the biggest they have had in 14 years. right now, we've got 37 million people impacted by winter weather advisories, winter storm warnings. you can see on the radar right now, we are seeing some more

snow showers come through. you'll probably pick up maybe anywhere from 5 to 8 inches of snow between erie, syracuse, the heaviest snow is just about done, the system pushing through, accumulating snow for cape cod and the new england isislands outhere. we are expecting heavier snow, lake erie, right to the west of syracuse. we have 97 million people, the dakotas down to texas, back to florida, and the southeastern atlantic coast under winter weather advisories, winter cold weather advisories. a windchill of 14 in traverse city right now. minus 13 in tulsa. for today, we're going to be looking at record-setting temperatures, only 21 in minneapolis, 29 new york city. houston at 41 degrees, and then tomorrow morning, the bulk of that cold air really from rock port, texas, roanoke, up into st. louis and we get a break heading into next week, early next week, temperatures rebound nicely. by monday, cincinnati, you're at 50.

little rock, 66. charleston, 62 degrees, and albany, new york, in the low 40s. hold on another 24 hours. things start getting better. >> it's down right springy, if we can hang in there. thank you so much. there are new developments on the delta air lines plane crash in toronto this week. delta is offering passengers who were on the flight $30,000 apiece. airline officials telling customers the offer has no strings attached and does not affect rights. the plane was carrying 76 passengers and four crew members when it burst into flames and flipped upside down. everyone did survive, but 21 people were injured and taken to the hospital. the cause of the crash still under investigation. now to the disturbing incident rocking the sports world this morning. british tennis star, former u.s. open winner, emma began crying in a match in dubai after she spotted a man in the stands, according to the women's tennis association had approached her a day earlier and exhibited,

quote, fixated behavior. nbc's maggie vespa has got the story. >> this video is so tough to watch. the visibly emotional tennis star quickly turning to the referee for help, and then momentlater, security ejecting the man who they say has now been banned from all wta events, at least for now. raducanu, tragically, for what it's worth has experienced, as do appear to be a growing number of professional female athletes. >> we cannot hear what is going on, but it doesn't loogood, does it. >> it happened early in a second round match at the dubai championships. 22-year-old british tennis star turning to an umpire in tears. >> this is very very concerning. >> this morning, the women's tennis association revealing a man who just one day earlier had approached raducanu and exhibited fixated behavior was in the first few rows during emma's match. she shot to stardom in 2021

winning the u.s. open at 19. but the spotlight quickly proving dangerous. in 2022, a british man was convicted of stalking her and placed under a five-year restraining order. >> he showed up at her home on three separate o occasions yeah, he stole things from her parent's home. >> the incident on the court sparking memories of a harrowing scene with another young tennis player more than 30 years ago. in 1993, star player, monica seles was stabbed in the back during a tournament in germany by a member of the crowd. though she returned to playing, she later said the attack left lasting psychological damage, and today, many female athletes are still wary. >> they fear i'm being stalked and i don't know what to do or who to go to. >> last month, gabby thomas said a group of men had been aggressively following her at

various airports, despite her private travel schedule. tennis star coco gauff and simone biles commenting that similar incidents have also happened to them. also last month, authorities charging a texas man with stalking wnba star caitlin clark after he sent lewd threats on social media and drove to her home. the judge in the case entering a not guilty plea on the suspect's behalf. this morning, emma calling her experience difficult but saying i'll be okay, and proud of how i came back. so for its part, the women's tennis association says it has developed a wide range of security measures to protect players, including working with what they call threat specialists. we reached out to authorities in dubai hoping to learn more about the man in the stands. at this point it's no reason to believe it's the same person for stalking raducanu. >> happy to see you in real life.

usually you're out there in the cold freezing. >> i'm hurting for priscilla this morning. i know the feeling. >> nice and toasty in here. >> thank you so much for having me. a 2-year-old chihuahua henry is back home with his owner this morning after a wild adventure on a california freeway. here he is running down interstate 5 in san diego. drivers doing everything they could to try to wrangle him, keep him from running into traffic. they just couldn't seem to get ahold of the elusive pup. one driver says this went on for ten minutes. a man was able to grab ahold of him when he ran under a car. thankfully he was micro chipped and officials were able to track down his relieved owner! >> wow. >> now you know. we have covered the news, carson. >> are we micro chipping our teenagers yet, the teens, so we can follow them. >> got the apps. >> not a bad idea. in "popstart," behind the scenes of a new collaboration, sabrina carpenter, and dolly parton, all the fun they had making the music video.

first, do you see blue and black or white and gold when you look at the dress. ten years later, this is still dividing the nation. jenna is about to settle the decade's long debate. under the robe, the dress itself. it will be revealed right after this. [screams] five immersive worlds [lightning strikes] one amazing theme park our universe will never be the same mia? oh, youve got to see this epic universe, only at universal orlando resort you built this? it was easy once i found the parts. looks like you need a break. the general gives you one with flexible payment options. look, a chemical reaction! oh! [robotic sound] for a great low rate, go with the general. hit it again, gen! [clears throat] sounds like you need to vaporize that sore throat.

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to sell this mom van. this is the greatest day of my life! (dramatic sigh) the saddest day of my life! (♪♪) [beep beep] (♪♪) ♪ we are back at 8:12 with one of the great debates of our time. the origins of the universe, no, it's a simple question that divide ed the internet exactly ten years ago. what color is this dress? >> this is how this is going to work. 99% of you are going to see blue and black. >> white and gold. >> savannah will see white and gold and debate about it. this is a phenomenal, incredible situation here. millions of people weighed in about this dress. all around the years ten years ago. >> here with a look back at the craze, it's white and gold, and you agree with me. jenna standing by in the dress. don't tell us yet. don't show us yet. >> i won't show you, but take a

look, you guys. i'm going to show you now. it is clearly blue and black, right? and that's what made this whole thing so mind blowing because the answer is not what we expect. take a look. throughout modern history, there have been some iconic dresses. from those worn by princess diana and j. lo to marilyn monroe, but if you asked someone about the dress, there's a good chance they'll bring up this, a lace dress from british retailer, roman originals. it was the dress that launched a million tweets with the internet unable to agree on its color. >> have you heard about the dress seen around the world? >> what color do you see? >> some people see white and gold? >> that is gold to you? >> others are seeing blue and black. >> this is black and blue. >> how did the cze begin? with a simple text.

cecilia blezdell sent this photo to her briz to be daughter grace, ask fg she thought this blue and black dress was. grace saw it as white with gold lace. the poorly lit photo made its way online, and it was seen by a manager. >> i turned to my colleagues, and said, hey, guys, what color is this dress? within five minutes, there were 20 people behind my desk just screaming at each other, and i figured, if we were yelling about it, maybe the rest of the internet would. >> kate was right. buzzfeed launched a poll which sparked the biggest debate of the year with 67% of the people saying it was white and gold, and only 33% saying blue and black. >> i had dozens of text messages. i couldn't load twitter because my mentions were crashing my phone, and everyone was yelling at me that i was ruining their lives. >> reporter: that post was seen by 16 million people in just six hours. there were 7.6 million tweets debating the dress, and roman

original sold out of the dress in 34 minutes. celebrities chimed in with jimmy fallon arguing it's clearly gold and white, and taylor swift writing, it's obviously blue and black. even the halloween industry cashed in on the viral story. why did so many people see the blue and black dress as white and gold? >> it was the perfect storm to create an optical illusion. >> dr. sarah told us it's all about how your brain perceives the background lighting of the photo. >> if a person saw the dress in a shadow, there's more blue light in a shadow. they immediately think, oh. there's blue light there. i'm going to filter out that blue light, and i'm actually going to see the dress much more white and gold. >> and now, even ten years later, the debate still illicits strong emotions. >> do you remember this? >> i do unfortunately. >> what colors do you see? >> i see gold and white. >> right now i see blue and black. >> i've always seen blue and black. >> i've always seen white and gold.

>> i see white and gold. >> i see blue and gold. >> that wasn't even an option. >> the dress will be seared in our collective memory forever, but maybe that's not a bad thing. >> things go viral all the time for really negative reasons. to have something as low stakes and fun as the dress, i think is wonderful. >> okay. obviously this dress is blue and black. >> that's the answer. >> but in the photo, and some of the photos, i saw white and gold. >> they put that in. they put that picture. >> the dress is black and blue, period. >> that's what it is. >> put that picture back up. white and gold. >> that's blue and black. >> you don't see blue and black. >> are you disputing this? that is a black and blue dress. >> it's right there. this is the answer to the world's mystery. >> in the photo, it is white and gold. in reality --

>> all i have to say is horizontal stripes aren't great on anybody. they did make one of these dresses -- it came in a couple of colors, but not white and gold. they made one white and gold isn't that great?. by the way, the dress is from roman originals. it's no longer available because it was for sale ten years ago. i had a 1-year-old. >> it looks great on you by the way. it didn't seem like you liked it, and it looks great on you. >> usually when you put something on from ten years ago, it doesn't look so great. >> you'll wear it the whole fourth hour. it looks cute. >> can i say in that piece we saw taylor swift herself saw black and blue, clearly that's the answer. taylor is never wrong. >> what did oprah say? >> oprah, taylor and beyonce. all three, black and blue. >> can we think buzzfeed, they went viral for this. this dress was in their offices. they loaned it to me. i need to go to prom or something. >> that was fun.

>> you guys -- >> what else can we do that's just dumb and fun? >> why don't y'all go to today.com and vote on this dress. >> what are we voting on? we have the answer. >> what do you see in the photo? >> carson and i are sitting here for those of you at home. it is a black and blue dress, period. >> in that photo -- >> we're talking about reality. >> people at home don't know the source of the photo. the photo itself could have been a white and gold dress. >> you didn't listen to what the optometrist said. >> i don't care. >> the optometrist said it's the way we see it. do you see white or gold or -- >> it's time. >> the debate is over. the photo, not the dress. last word, al. >> you wear it well. that's all that matters. >> al is exhausted by this. >> where was anybody in the control room about a minute ago? we could have ended this a lot earlier. thank you for that. >> debbie downer. >> it's black and blue. >> thank you. >> let's move on. snowshowers in the

northeast, and around the great lakes. very cold. texas all the way up into the plains, some snow in the nortrn rockies. theyhe'r you did not win this. >> it's still going. >> you can stop. you can stop. >> if anybody looked at this, and said, that is gold and white, we could have a debate. >> we're not debating. it's blue and black. >> the issue is, is the photo -- what do you see in the photo?

not in reality. >> that's questioning the photo. >> this is like spending time with my family at christmas. let's move on. >> pop start. pop start. >> we have the truth. >> first up is "wicked." let's roll the tape. ♪ ♪ so if you care to find me out to the western sky ♪ ♪ has someone told me lately everyone deserves a chance to fly ♪ ♪ >> that's a black cape by the way. if you had to restrain yourself in the theater when you saw this, you've been dying to belt out "defying gravity," mark your calendars. "wicked" will be streaming exclusively on peacock. you can find a sing-along veterans administration -- version, and there's another date. june 8th. that's when cynthia erivo will be hosting the tony awards. she won a tony herself, and you know that's going to be an awesome show. >> if she wins the oscar, she

would be an egot. >> that's right. she's one away. next up is prince. here's another musical movie clip for you. ♪ ♪ it's such a shame how it had to rain purple rain ♪ ♪ purple rain ♪ we can all agree -- it's purple there. >> why are we listening? s the movie is headed back to the theaters for one day only. the 40-year-old oscar winner is headed back to the big screen with new video and audio restorations and you can check out "purple rain" march 5th. next up, amanda seyfried, she plays mickey, a philadelphia police officer when a series of murders start in her neighborhood, mickey discovers that her own personal story might be related to the case. here's another "popstart" exclusive sneak peek. >> these women are good people.

the men, they're a different story. >> it's our job to protect them. >> i'm worried about you. >> there's a killer on the loose, mickey. >> looks like someone's going after these girls. >> then they have to know to watch their backs. >> i'm looking into this. >> not a detective. >> what is that supposed to mean? >> you seem to take it personally and you won't tell me why. >> i'm in. >> yeah. that looks good. all eight episodes of "long bright river" streaming on peacock. they're on a roll right now. >> i have been saying it a lot. >> okay. that is march 13th. next up, dolly parton and sabrina carpenter, they teamed up for a new spin on carpenter's hit "please, please, please." channeling a thelma and louise vibe, and they're giving us a sneak peek behind the scenes of that music video. ♪ heartbreak is one thing, my ego's another ♪ ♪ i beg you don't embarrass me

like the others ♪ >> hey, what are you doing? >> i like those two together. >> the harmony. they're up top. they're high. high harmony. >> if they wanted a lower range, we're available. masculine. >> we need more of that dynamic duo. take a listen to this sweet exchange from another behind-the-scenes moment. >> you'll be this old one day? >> i can't wait. i hope i look like you. >> they look like sisters. >> what they write the story of dolly parton, sabrina has to be there. >> it's writing itself. got to connect some dots. finally, zero day. in just a bit, we'll chat with the series star, robert de niro, but look closely. you might see a familiar face in this clip. >> national tensions remain high since the zero day attack and the overall mood remains cautious with the country slowly

emerging. many offices are opening. or planning to shortly. air traffic remains limited on a commuter rail system is on a reduced schedule. only a nation state could execute an attack on this scale, and one suspect at the top in every list, russia. >> oh yeah. that's how craig melvin feels every morning. smashing. >> when they see me. >> how did you get that part? >> i think it was just acting ability, you know -- >> did you know the producer? >> maybe. >> our former boss. >> our dear friend, noah oppenheim. >> thanks, guys. >> congratulations. >> it's robert de niro's show. yes, it's great. i'm really excited. >> you're the creator, executive producer. you got robert de niro. we are so proud of you. you are our friend, and boss for many years. >> no wonder you left. >> we want to say congratulations. what's it been like?

now you're, like, a hollywood mogul. >> not exactly. it's been a ton of fun. i miss you guys so much. i love you all, and it's so nice to be back here with you guys, and i really appreciate it. excited for everyone to see the show. >> if you had still been head of this news organization, would you have allowed a six-minute debate on the black and blue? >> i would have done a whole hour on it. i can't think of anything more important going on in the world today. >> i'm four episodes in of six, and i'm not saying this just because we're friends. it is so good. you can't stop watching and you hit that next episode button immediately. >> we played it on "popstart". >> it was incredible, and we didn't know it at the time. >> it's great. > he's cong back in the third hour. we've got robert de niro and noah. "zero day" streaming on netflix. we're back in a minute.

♪♪ ♪ i've been snowing ♪ >> hello, how are you? >> good to see you. we are back at 8:30. the cold here in new york and across much of the country. not enough to stop all of these good people from joining us in our little corner of rockefeller plaza. >> good morning, you guys. guess who's here? an amazing film maker, ed burns. he has assembled an all-star cast for his new movie. it's about navigating marriage and middle age. something none of us know anything about. we'll talk to him about that, and the hilarious way his wife christi turlington burns inspired him. >> speaking of marriage, we'll shake things up. it's national margarita day. mixologist has been working on

this whole thing for us. you know what he told me, all tequilas are a mezcal,s but not all mezare tequila. >> this is not the blue and black dress thing? and in the third hour, if you've got a stiff neck, sore back, don't miss today's checklist from choosing the right pillow to shoes. small changes can make a big difference in the body. >> i love that. and justin sylvester is back as our jenna and friends cohost, and we'll be treated to a very special performance by the eli young band. >> it's cold. tell us about it. >> it'll be getting better. let's look at your weekend ahead. we start off with tomorrow. mostly sunny around the great lakes, mid atlantic states. eastern half of the country, much of the country sunny, and warming out in the plains. saturday, that warmth starts to make its way east with showers and wind in the pacific northwest. few showers along the gulf, and then sunday, sunday, sunny and cold in the east, but not quite as bad mild in the midwest. another storm making its way

into the pacific northwest and the western plains. good. thursday morning, i'm meteorologist kari hall. it's going to be nice and sunny. warm weather all across the bay area. even after this cool start, we're headed for the mid to upper 60s for today, and we'll repeat that again tomorrow. it may be even warmer in a few spots, like the south county, which will reach into the low 70s, but then we see those 70 spreading across the bay area. some warmer temperatures on saturday, 71 in dublin and palo and that is your latest weather. what's coming up there, savannah? >> we are catching up with a legend, robert de niro, marking a career first for him. the fun he had at "snl" 50, and so much more. but first, this is "today" on nbc. t first, this is "day"bu o

icon, two-time oscar winner, mr. robert de niro. in the new netflix series we just talked about, zero day, he takes on the role of the respected former president who the country turns to after a cyberattack causes chaos and concern. here's a sneak peek. >> this isn't about the government or the 1% or whatever the hell you want to call it. it's about somebody out there to hates us and stands against everything that we stand for, everything that makes us who we are, and they found a way to hurt us. it's that simple. right now these people need to get back to work and get those people out, and you need to let them. you want to stand by and offer your support and prayers? that's great, but please do it from behind the barricade.

>> robert de niro. good morning. it's good to see you again. >> good to see. >> you was it a monologue like that that said, this is a good role? i want to do this. >> no. i was wanting to do something in new york for a few months' stay in the city and do something, so i talked to my agent and said, a limited series would be one -- something like that. he introduced me to eric newman and we spoke, and he had something which was interesting, and then i read a treatment of it, and it was good, and he had noah oppemheim and mike schmidt, and these guys know this world, and they did a terrific job, very smart. i said, let me, you know, let me do it. >> they have a lot of experience in the news business and brought some of those timely issues and what ends up being of course, a. is that what kind of brought you into it? >> yeah. i mean, there's a lot of -- when you have that much time, you can do a lot of different things, and add those

fictional story, but there are a lot of layers to your character. is that what kind of brought you into it? >> yeah. i mean, there's a lot of -- when you have that much time, you can do a lot of different things, and add those layers. so that is also good. it's more work. it's hard. it's not like doing a movie where this was, like, three features back to back. >> yeah. >> but that's okay. >> i was surprised to hear there was a first left after your storied and legendary career. but this really is your first lead role in a television series. >> yeah. >> did it feel different? i mean, other than the workload, and three features back to back. were there ways in which you had to adjust? >> well, there was a pace that we had to keep up with. i had to keep up with, and a lot of infortion and the scenes -- the dialogue, which collects position that i had to know, and didn't have much leeway either way, in what i was saying. so i had to keep -- keep being ready to do that for this long period of time. i likened it to swimming the english channel to england looking behind me. i don't see france looking

ahead. i don't see england. i have to keep swimming and that's what it was, but it was good. >> it was challenging. you actually have some swimming scenes in the role. >> that was the easy part. >> exactly. you know, i have a cameo in the role. i'm playing the role of savannah guthrie. do you have any acting notes for me? >> i noticed that. no, no. it was very good. >> i'm very method, i wake up as savannah guthrie. i got to bed as savannah guthrie. >> you were great. >> you were at "snl" 50 the other day. i loved this skit with debbie downer. can i play a little bit? okay. let's roll it. >> can i have a tequila and a soda with a straw? >> are you talking to me? you talking to me? >> is that supposed to be a joke? >> no. i'm asking. i have dry eye and it's hard to discern if you were talking to me. >> just give me a drink. >> it's so good and i know you had fun because if we keep the

video rolling a little bit, i think you're about to crack up. yep. here you go. you're starting to -- i think that's robert de niro's i'm about to laugh face. is it? >> in the rehearsal, i laughed. it was funny. i was trying to keep it straight when we actually did it. >> how did you like being back with everybody in the 50th? >> it's always great. it's terrific, and i was happy -- really happy to be part of it. >> yeah. i hear you're a morning person. >> i am. >> does this qualify or is this pushing the concept? >> i'm up all hours. >> we're making margaritas. too early for that? >> too early for that. well, it's 8:00 a.m. somewhere. congratulations on "zero day." thank you so much. it's excellent and we're happy to have you here. the cocreators of "zero day" will be back with him on the third hour. the streaming show is on netftflix. coming up, we'll sit down with another hollywood treasure,

mr. ed burns. and if you're a married couple,

welcome back. ed burns is a hollywood triple threat, writer, director, actor. he burst onto the scene 30 years ago with his indie hit "the brothers mcmullen," and went on to star in "saving private ryan", but he's stayed true to his filmmaker roots. in his latest project called millers and marriage, it follows three siblings as they reexamine life and love in middle age. >> you never ask me about work anymore. >> we have been married for 15 years, right? >> you're tired of hearing it? >> you never ask me about work. no, never. >> that's because it upsets you. >> why would it upset me?e. i don'know. if i don't ask you about it, that way i can't

>> because you're either pissed off you didn't sell a painting or you can't get your agent on the phone. i don't know. if i don't ask you about it, that way i can't hurt your feelings. >> all right. if you are worried about hurting my feelings, you failed. >> good morning. it's good to see you. >> good to see you. >> this is a great film with a lot of different twists. you have three siblings, three marriages, and then some. lots of -- i don't know. inner workings and marriage at this phase is not something we often see movies about. >> it's funny. i think the original idea for the film came at a dinner party with, like, friends in their 50s and we were talking about indie cinema in the '90s and, you know, if you were a gen x-er, in your 20s, every experience you had, there was a movie about it. >> reality bites. >> singles. even slacker. my first film. brothers mcmullen, right. now that we find ourselves in our 50s, there are no films about us. our story is not being told. >> that's not right. >> that was the original idea. >> you know, i think we can make middle age great again.

it's certainly complicated. tell me about these siblings and their -- it's marital ups and downs and a lot of people will identify with this. >> two things i was looking at. one is when you become an empty nester, you know, how do you redefine your marriage, you know, how do you redefine yourself? i am no longer actively parenting. what do i do? then also a big thing that i wanted to explore with that, is all three of the couples, at least one or both of the folks are an artist, and what is it like to be someone in middle age, do i have anything left to say? do i have the passion to say it? if i do, in e case of gretchen's character, will anyone care. those were kind of the things that i was curious about. >> gretchen mull, minnie driver. >> yeah. >> look at this. this is an incredible cast. it's funny because a lot of these marriages are going well. that's a spoiler alert and you

have one of the most, like, noted, lovely marriages that people know about. you and christy turlington burns. you can't make a movie about that because that would be boring. >> you did have a little homage to christi about this. >> there's a scene at the beginning of the movie where gretchen is making her morning smoothie, and it annoys her husband. because the sound of the blender woke her up. i'm definitely guilty of make ing my smoothies as christy gets on the phone in the kitchen. she's like, thanks. >> ds she recognize it right away? >> immediately. it's been a running gag in our marriage for 22, 21 years? >> this is not something that's been reported before. i don't think most people know and i love this fun fact about you. you and christy have been married a long time. your brother married christy's sister. they have been married a long time. >> they have been married a long time. >> who met who first?

there you guys are. you're so cute. >> we were first, and they kind of -- as we would do, like, group vacations, you know, couple vacations, there was a little flirtation going on between them, but nothing kind of came of it. >> did you guys say, what about this? >> we were, like, you cannot- this can't be some sort of fling or anything. at our wedding, we look over and they're dancing on the dance floor. >> at your wedding? >> that's when it started. i figured maybe they thought it's safe now. they're married. we can't screw this up. >> epic. last time you were here, you finished a script. where are we now? >> shooting april 1st. connie britton is back as molly. mike is back as the younger brother, patrick. it's called "the family mcmullen," the sequel, and it's really like the two brothers, and connie, sort of like the brothers and sister-in-law

mcmullen. i killed off the oldest brother kw quite honestly, to give connie a bigger part and more to do. it's a little bit of a spoiler, but it's really now she's one of the primary characters in it. >> i love it. thank you for writing stories about us. >> it's another gen x story. >> i'm here for it. "millers in marriage." really good to see you, and it's on theaters and digital tomorrow. all right. just ahead, grab the salt and the lime. we are gettinghe party started a little bit early for national margarita day, but first this is "today" on nbc.

all right. welcome back. all right. welcome back. it's time to find that lost shaker of salt because we are heading right to margaritaville, everybody. national margarita day actually falls on saturday, but we didn't want to miss out on the fun.

that's why called in jose maria donde, he's the beverage manager and head mixologist as the bedford stone street. jose maria, you and i have spent all morning giving me a history lesson on tequila which as i all tequilas are mezcal, but we were talking about smokey mezcals but not all mezcals are tequila. when you say tequila it's from a region. region, like, champagne is a region. is that correct? >> mezcal means agave, and for everything that is distilled out of agave is going to be a mezcal, and tequila, is from the region of tequila, and it became tequila pretty much, but there's different denominations, and different -- >> you need a pie chart. >> lots of spectrums. >> we'll make a couple of different margaritas. we'll start with the classic. we want to use agave nectar on this one.

so we're going to do a simple start with a classic. we always want to use fresh lime juice. we want to use agave nectar on this one. so we're gng to do a simple syrup, pretty much, agave nectar and water. it's really important to use an agave -- a tequila blanco. we'll do blanco. >> why don't you want to use the others? >> i think blanco works good for margarita because it's a little more bright. it's really delicate, a really well balanced, and we're going to use the reposado for something else. then you want to shake. >> there are so many variations of it. >> a margarita is really versatile. so i feel like they're different for everyone, and tequila is an upper. it makes you happy. it makes you want to celebrate. >> yes, it is. >> it is an upper, true. >> so that's why every time you drink tequila, you feel like you want to party. you want to dance, and then -- then with the citrus and agave,

it's just the perfect balance to be honest for a perfect moment. any moment pretty much. >> what are some of the variations here? a little strawberry action? >> this one we're going to do pretty much strawberry margarita which is going to be similar, but strawberry in a different tropical note. so we're going to use again, fresh lime juice. >> same tequila, right? >> we're actually going to see a reposado. >> oh, you are. it's aged between three to six months. the oak from the barrel is going to give a nice caramel, woody flavor. we're going to use the strawberry from france, really nice. it's not like a super sweet margarita, and use that tequila. then you also want to shake it up. >> shake it up. >> of course. is there a trick to the shake? i mean, it looks cool when you do it. >> do you want to give it a try?

>> that's where i was headed. >> any technique? >> if you dadance a lile bit, you just got to find some rhythm. >> yeah, willie. >> don't take my joke, please. >> now we're going to -- just strain it in there. >> why would you have a regular margarita when you can have this? >> let's do mango. we don't have time. but let's do mango. tell us what we need to do here. >> this one is going to be the spicy tropical guy. we have mango picante. >> spicy and tropical, my middle names. >> so what should we do? >> we're going to use actually a serrano tincture. this is pretty much juice in serranos, and you're going to help me too? lime juice and a mango liqueur, >> just pureed mango?

>> this is a mango liqueur, and then this. ththen we'reoing to do the full tequila right there. the blanco of course. and give that a shake. make sure it's nice and sealed. the same thing. like a marraca. >> somebody's done this before. >> wow. >> you know margaritas is my loveanguage. >> we've got time for one more. >> one more. >> we have -- let me just pour this guy real fast. >> that's really nice. >> where's our glass? >> this is right here. >> this is blanco. >> that was the tincture. >> what about the cobra clutch here? >> cobra clutch. >> i'm going right away. so this actually is a classic one. this is from san diego. a bartender from san diego. the cobra clutch is named ter actually a wrestler move. >> is that a move? >> yeaeah. right? so it is a wrestling.

it has a spike because we use -- i've seen on this one. it's about mezcal. >> do you remember drinking this afterwards? >> that's a good question. sometimes, i think. mezcal is -- it's always good. it doesn't really give you a hangover unless you finish the bottle pretty much, right? >> there it is, al. >> shake it, shake it, shake it. shake it like a polaroid picture. >> and just strain it. >> what's this for? >> this is absinthe. so cobra is going to have a little bit of absinthe. >> this is going to be -- >> you want to mix up some of these on your own on saturday. scan the qr code and head to today.com/food for those recipes?

jose maria, thank you. good morning. it is 856. i'm marcus washington. activities in courthouses across alameda county are once again at a crawl today. this is after union workers made the surprise decision to extend their strike into a second day. service workers are picketing outside of criminal, civil and juvenile courts countywide. the union cites issues with staffing and inadequate training, saying that workers have been without a contract since december. the courts, meanwhile, argue the problem is actually over staffing. and yesterday, leaders promised nonunion staffers would step in to cover any workflow issues. happening now are bob redell is in hayward hall of justice this morning. he'll have a live update for us

this morning on the third hour of "today," r