including his heir apparent saif, who was arrested while trying to flea tripoli disguised as a woman. hours ago he showed up at a hotel in tripoli mainly occupied by journalist. he told the bbc that his father, moammar gadhafi, is alive and well. another son escaped house arrest. a fourth son was reportedly killed, but none of that is confirmed. msnbc will keep bringing you the latest on this still volatile and undecided situation in libya. "first look" is up next. enemy at large, troops battle in tripoli while the question is where is gadhafi? a tense standoff. and spellcheck fail. an ohio road crew installs a highway sign with an embarrassing mistake. good morning, everyone, i'm lynn berry. those stories and more are straight ahead.

this is "first look" on more than. we begin with a power struggle. the manhunt for moammar gadhafi continues as libya's rebel forces surround the missing leader's tripoli compound. there is still fierce fighting in the capital. all of this as one of gadhafi's sons thought to have been captured makes a bizarre appearance. nbc's brian mooar has the latest from washington. brian, good morning. >> reporter: hi, lynn. a spokesman for the rebels says the fight will not be over until they get gadhafi. libyan rebels have overrun gadhafi's seat of power, some with no more than axes, spear guns, and sheer determination. this morning the country and

world are looking ahead to a new libya. on vacation in martha's vineyard, president obama saluted the libyan people. >> your vefrlgz your own, and -- revolution is your own, and your sacrifices have been extraordinary. now the libya that you deserve is within your reach. >> reporter: six months after the revolution started, gadhafi's regime is all but crushed. >> it was messy, but it worked in the sense now we have the rebels in tripoli and the regime of moammar gadhafi is over. >> reporter: still some loyalist refuse to give up. gadhafi's son and heir apparent appeared overnight to mock the rebels who believed he was in custody. the fighting continue in the capital. >> there are many snipers from gadhafi military. >> reporter: street by street, a deadly end game. >> the people won the battle. gadhafi is gone. he's not dead yet, but he's dead. >> reporter: a fight for a new libya. now the libyan people oppressed

for so long face the daunting task of deciding their own future. lynn? >> brian mooar for us in washington. thank you. last night on "the rachel maddow show," racheled asked veteran journalist dan rather who has interviewed gadhafi three times, if he knows what to expect from the libyan leader at this point. >> based on what little i know about him, i have been eyeball to eyeball with him, he must be going through some version of on the one hand saying death before dishonor, i'll go down fighting, i'll go down in flames, i'll be a martyr. but say what you want about moammar gadhafi, very strange and dangerous man, but he cares about his family. he's got to be weird about his family. i would think on the one hand it's fight to the finish, never give in, whatever it takes. on the other hand, saying maybe, just maybe i can get away to, say, russia, and maybe negotiate some way that my family can be taken care of. he must have struckled with it

in the last 24 hours. you said something earlier that i think is important. this situation has not been resolved. it's a great moment. the regime has fallen. but the question, and i think it's a question in the viewer's mind, what now, what next? answer, we don't know, and the libyans themselves don't know. >> don't miss out on rachel maddow's unique take on politics and the day's top stories, weeknights at 9:00 eastern on msnbc, the place for politics. back here at home, millions of east coast residents are bracing for irene. the first atlantic hurricane of the season. now a category 2 storm with sustained winds of 100 miles per hour. current forecasts have irene on track to hit the southern bahamas today, and then make u.s. landfall in eastern florida and the carolinas by the end of the week. possibly as a major hurricane. chris clackum reports. >> reporter: as it blew through puerto rico early monday, irene

was barely a category 1. still the first hurricane of the atlantic season knocked over several structures and knocked out power to at least 800,000 customers, half the hand is. then had officials in the dominican republic scrambling as it picked up power and speed. it's the path irene takes after that that has u.s. forecasts very concerned. and many in florida already preparing. >> why wait? i mean, i'm not panicking, i just want to be ready. >> reporter: most models have irene skirting the southeastern seaboard by friday, after delivering what may be a 115 mile-per-hour blow to the bahamas thursday. forecaster say there's no system over the u.s. to stop irene from strengthening. >> in addition to that, the water temperature will be very warm. the storm will be traveling over the gulf stream, and for that reason, we could easily, easily be talking about a major hurricane threatening the u.s. coast. >> reporter: and for now,

threatening florida, georgia, and mainly the two carolinas. chris clackum, nbc news. there's been a stunning twist this week in the sexual assault case against former imf chief dominique strauss-kahn. he is due back in a new york city courtroom today, and he could soon be cleared of all charge. nbc's kurt gregory has details. >> reporter: the manhattan district attorney's office filed papers monday recommending that a judge drop some or all charge again former imf chief dominique strauss-kahn. the filing followed a meeting between prosecutors and lawyers for strauss-kahn and the woman who accused him of sexually assaulting her in a new york hotel room in may. dialu's lawyer says it assaults his right to justice. >> he's not only turned his back on this innocent victim, but he's turned his back on the

forensic, medical, and other physical evidence in this case. >> reporter: legal experts say the dismissal of charge boils down to diallo's credibility and questions about the strength of evidence that a forcible encounter took place. strauss-kahn's attorney have maintained his innocence. the disgraced financier is due back in courts today. he could walk away a free man. with the effect of the allegations against him unknown. nbc news. here's a first look at some of the other news going on around america. a police officer in california was critically wounded when a gunman opened fire during a standoff. after collapsing, the officer was dragged to safety, and then taken to the hospital where he's listed in stable condition. police say the suspect killed his baby daughter and then set fire to his home where his body and that was his mother-in-law were later found. a pile of dirty money is expected to fetch a big sum at

an illinois auction. the federal government is selling a collection of rare $501,000 bills found in the home of chicago mobster frank "the breeze" calabrese. the entire collection adds up to $728,000. all proceeds are expected to go toward the $27 million calabrese owes the government and families connected to his racketeering conviction. and in ohio, a work crew apparently forgot to use spellcheck before installing an interstate sign. look closely there. drivers headed to cincinnati may have done a double take after noticing the word "south" misspelled. officials were notified, and the sign was repaired. how does that happen? and now for a look at the national weather, we turn to meteorologist todd santos. he has your weather channel forecast. todd? >> i carefully spellchecked everything. >> i hope so. every chyron has been pooled

over with a fine tooth comb. a busy day as far as weather's concerned. big concerns across puerto rico back toward the dominican republic where some of the rain bands associated with hurricane irene still affecting puerto rico where we've now had just over three feet of rainfall since june 1. you try to put those numbers together, that's almost two feet above average. so i don't know -- try to get that through your head somehow. there's a look at slowly moving out of puerto rico itself. still a few showers there, headed toward the turks and caicos. likely to be in the area later on this afternoon and evening. of course, we're kind of on the outside fringe of this. you're talking about a category 2 storm. max sustained winds at 100 mile-per-hour. it is expected to turn off toward the northwest through the next 24 to 36 hours. still good convection, and the center of circulation rights about there, to the north of the dominican republic. heavy rainfall a possibility there. even down toward haiti, port-au-prince not out of the range at least for the rain showers associated with the system. but here's at least a quick look

at what we're expecting. one of the biggest things to mention here is that the forecast band will get very close to florida. includes florida, especially once you get through late thursday into friday. look at that, though. some of the intensity forecasts bringing this up to major hurricane status as early as later tomorrow, late tonight, early tomorrow morning. then once you get into thursday, you're talking about a category three storm. as it nears florida over warm waters, we cuba talking about a cat 4 off the coastline. there's the timeline. now is the time to prepare across the carolinas, into florida, southeast georgia. by sunday a potential landfall through the eastern carolinas. again, i say potential considering we've slowly seen the track inch a little farther east last few updates. we'll keep a close eye on irene. the latest at weather.com. showers and thunderstorms across areas of southern minnesota toward minneapolis. at this point we'll get some of that in toward chicago, especially by later this afternoon. keep that in minds travelwise. much of the east coast coming in quiet with the exception of northern and even down toward southern florida, showers and thunderstorms expected for your tuesday. lynn? >> all right.

thank you very much. a major shakeup at standard & poor's. and a battle over a serial mascot ruffles some feathers. your first look at this morning's business headlines is straight ahead. coming up, the giants win big, but they suffer a bigger loss. terrelle pryor enters the nfl. emotions run high at the little league world series. [ woman ] jogging stroller. you've been stuck in the garage while i took refuge from the pollen that made me sneeze.

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welcome back to "first look," i'm lynn berry. here's some of the top stories making news. a seventh person has died in this month's stage collapse in indiana. the latest victim was a 24-year-old woman who was there to support organ donation after the tragedy. a lawyer for casey anthony says she's back in florida and ready to report for probation on check fraud charges this friday if her appeal fails. her attorneys argue she's already served the probation sentence while she was jailed on

a murder charge in her daughter's death. richard branson says actress kate winslett rescued his 90-year-old mother from his burning caribbean home. winslett was staying there with her children when a lightning strike from hurricane irene set off the fire. no one was injured. a magnitude 5.3 earthquake rattled colorado overnight. the quake was the state's strongest in almost four decades. so far there's been no word of any injuries, but there have been reports of damage to several homes. and a data report shows the number of americans on food stamps has jumped 74% since just before the start of the 2000 financial crisis. 2007, rather. almost 46 million americans rely on food stamps. that is 15% of the population. and now here your first look at lou wall street will kick off

the day. the dow opens at 10,854 after adding 37 points yesterday. the s&p went up a fraction. the nasdaq gained three. taking a look at overseas trading this morning. in tokyo, the nikkei grew 104 points. while in hong kong the hang seng rose 388. just weeks after standard and poor's slashed the nation's prized aaa credit rating, the company's chief is stepping down. the company announced yesterday president deaf insharvin sharma leaving and will be replaced by a citigroup executive. the resignation comes as the agency faces a justice department inquiry over its rating of sub prime mortgage securities. however, s&p says the move has been in the works for months. back on wall street, gold shot up nearly 2%, hitting an all-time record high. just shy of $1,900 an ounce. bank of america fell sharply again, down almost 8%.

the nation's largest bank has sheds more than 50% of its value this year. meanwhile, hewlett-packard got back some of the 20% it lost on friday after announcing the end of its p.c. business. h.p. was up more than 3%. lowe's inched up 1% on news of a $5 billion stock repurchase program. boeing got a boost from a $1.6 billion helicopter deal from the british royal air force. meanwhile, reports say delta airlines will likely award boeing an $8.6 billion contract as early as this week. elsewhere, fewer folks fell behind on their car payments during the second quarter, according to transunion. goldman sachs of lower in late trade on news that chief lloyd blankfeinhas hired a prominent criminal defense lawyer. and finally a toucan controversy. the maya initiative has been

asked by kellogg's ton trademark the toucan logo, fearing consumers might confuse the mascot with froot loops' masscotted toucan sam. coming up, a first for detroit pitcher justin verlander. and the rangers' mike napoli shows the red sox you do not mess with texas. a jaw-dropping at-the-wall catch in minneapolis. a vacation on a budget with expedia. make it work. booking a flight by itself is an uh-oh. see if we can "stitch" together a better deal. that's a hint, antoine. ooh! see what anandra did? booking your flight and hotel at the same time gets you prices hotels and airlines won't let expedia show separately. book it. major wow factor! where you book matters. expedia.

finally, there's a choice for my patients with an irregular heartbeat called atrial fibrillation, or afib, that's not caused by a heart valve problem. today we have pradaxa to reduce the risk of a stroke caused by a clot.

in a clinical trial, pradaxa 150 mg reduced stroke risk 35% more than warfarin. and with pradaxa, there's no need for those regular blood tests. pradaxa is progress. pradaxa can cause serious, sometimes fatal, bleeding. don't take pradaxa if you have abnormal bleeding, and seek immediate medical care for unexpected signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. pradaxa may increase your bleeding risk if you're 75 or older, have kidney problems or a bleeding condition, like stomach ulcers. or if you take aspirin products, nsaids, or blood thinners. tell your doctor about all medicines you take, any planned medical or dental procedures, and don't stop taking pradaxa without your doctor's approval, as stopping may increase your stroke risk. other side effects include indigestion, stomach pain, upset, or burning. if you have afib not caused by a heart valve problem, ask your doctor if pradaxa can reduce your risk of a stroke.

welcome back to "first look," i'm lynn berry. in sports, it was the red sox in the opener of their four-game series with the rangers. >> reporter: good morning, the raiders and red sox could play each other in the post season. if last night's game was any indication on how that would go, boston is in trouble. here we go to pick it up in the sixth in arlington. the rangers led it 1-0. looking for more, mike napoli founded the three-run bomb. that's all texas would need. they shut out the sox 4-0. and justin better lander struck out eight and picked up his league-leading ninth of the year. they beat the rays 5-2. this catch may take the cake. vlad guerrero shot to center, ben rav eevere made the grab be

crashing into the wall. the catch of the night and perhaps the catch of the season. football, oakland raider picked up terrelle pryor in the supplemental draft. former ohio state quarterback will be eligible to play week six of the regular season. times look ready for the season to start. in the fourth, he stumbled at the line of scrimmage, then off to the races. 97 yards to pay dirt. that will help the rookie make the team. giants won 41-13. it wasn't all good news. they lost cornerback terrell thomas for the season. and a touching moment in the little league world series. the no hitter pitch, but with the 10-run lead was pulled so he could pitch later this week. that's when his emotions got the best of him. wanted to stay in so badly, he began to cry. teammates tried to cheer him up. brandon miller came to complete the no hitter. hugs for landon who proves that baseball is much more than just a game for these youngsters.

that's your first look at sport. i'm fred roggin. >> buddy. tough lesson there. i know. for another quick look at the weather, here's meteorologist todd santos who will try not to cry through your forecast. >> i know. i was trying not to cry. >> like every kid -- >> he just wanted the glory, lynn. >> exactly. perfect baseball weather across a good portion of the east coast. once you get toward florida, that's where we're seeing the better chance of showers and thunderstorms. some of the stronger thunderstorms especially around minneapolis toward almost des moines, chicago, as well, getting into some of that by this afternoon. that's the area of the country we're watching for potential severe weather. to the west coast, beautiful in san francisco. seattle, maybe a passing shower. honolulu quiet for today sbomp tomorrow, we may see a better chance for showers. 88 degrees at that point. notice we're back in the 80s as well here in new york city. 82, chicago still holding on to thunderstorms. and florida at least through wednesday, potential for sunshine in through miami. keep in mind the track of irene has a lot to do with what we're talking about, especially late

week into the weekend. things to know -- time to prepare is now. certainly for florida, if you extend through the eastern half of florida, the carolinas, coastal georgia, as well. and of course we'll keep a close eye on it, and you can get the latest at weather.com. thank you very much. an 11-year-old actor has harsh words for his adult co-star. actor ryan gosselin proves to me, yes, he is perfect. your first look at entertainment is ahead. are in mint condition. [ female announcer ] vets agree, a healthy checkup starts inside. our breakthrough iams premium protection formula is developed with vets with cutting edge ingredients for the lifelong health of your pet. [ dog ] healthy inside and out. come on, up high! [ female announcer ] iams premium protection. our most advanced iams nutrition. ever. [ dog ] i am an iams dog. ♪ woof. hut! go! here it comes! right on the numbers! boom! get it! spin! oh, nice hands!

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welcome back, i'm lynn berry. it's time now for entertainment news. "late show" host david letterman is making light of death threat made against him on an extremist web site. in last night's monologue,

letterman joked about whether his insurance policy covers jihad and told audience members he thinks of them as a human shield. tmz reports denise richards has turned down an offer to appear on "21/2 men" because she thinks her ex, charlie sheen, would make her life miserable. don't you think he does already? reps say ben affleck and jennifer garner are expecting their third child. 11-year-old actor jared gilmore, offered advice for his replacement saying be careful around january jones because "she's not as approachable as the others. she's really serious about what she does, everyone else is so nice." that's got to hurt. and ryan gosselin can add peace maker to his list of talents. the 30-year-old actor broke up a fight between new york men in the city after one accused the other of stealing a painting. ryan stepped in, calmed them

down. he paid for the painting, and then went on his way. the best part of this, it was all caught on some girl's cell phone camera. she finds out it's the guy from "the notebook" and squeals like a 13-year-old girl. >> are you sure that wasn't you there? you sure? >> wait, that's actually -- that's where i was maybe just a little. >> nice. i'm lynn berri, this is "first look" on msnbc. stay tuned. "way too early with willie good night" start now. the fight for tripoli is a long way from over as moammar gadhafi's forces keep up the fight for a man in hiding. question is -- how did gadhafi's son saif, the one reported to have been arrested by rebels, turn up at a hotel and hold an impromptu briefing for foreign journalists? president obama keeps tabs on the situation from his vacation even as new polls come out reminding him he's in for a serious fight for re-election. the question is -- does