today. have a great halloween night. save me the junior mints. the last word with lawrence cain controversy. the current gop presidential front run ser forced to answer allegations of sexual harassment. fast track. a horrific 180-mile-an-hour wipeout at a las vegas motorcycle race. and tusk tussle. a 45-year-old zoo elephant ends up on the wrong side of an unfriendly shove. good morning. i'm lynn berry. those stories and more straight ahead. this is "first look" on msnbc. we begin this morning with

damage control. gop presidential hopeful herman cain got a lesson in campaign crisis management after news broke that he faced allegations of sexual harassment back in the '90s. referring to his recent poll run-up and what he calls, quote, a witch hunt, cain joked yesterday that now he knows what it's like to be at the top. nbc's tracie potts joins us with the very latest on this. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. cain says now because he's leading in the polls in iowa, there's a target on his back. ♪ for it was grace herman cain insists there's a reason 20-year-old sexual harassment allegations came to light right after he won iowa's latest poll. >> i have not idea who's egging this on. who's on this witch hunt. >> reporter: cain now recalls more details about one of his two accusers, a female co-worker at the national restaurant association who complained he stood too close with hand

gestures that made her uncomfortable. cain denies any wrongdoing. >> in all of my 40 years of business experience i have never sexually harassed anyone. >> reporter: nbc confirmed at least one employee received a five-figure payout that board members and the human resources manager were unaware of. >> she had no clue about any of this that would seem to question either the thoroughness or the scope of the investigation. >> reporter: also cain says he has an attorney looking into whether a charity started by his chief of staff give him $40,000 to start his campaign. that's illegal. perry is running a new ad in iowa if you're looking for a slick guy with teleprompter skills, we already got that, he's destroying our country.

>> reporter: iowa's caucuses are two months away, but the deadline to get on the south carolina ballot is today. >> all right, tracie potts, thank you very much. meanwhile, presidential contender rick perry is attracting attention of his own. based on a stump speech he gave in new hampshire friday night. now, the video of the texas governor's address to the conservative group cornerstone action has gone viral. it's hard to say what the mood was like in the room, but characterizations of perry's performance have ranged from passionate to odd to questions about his sobriety. what we do know is he appeared more loose and animated than we've ever seen him so far during his campaign. >> this is such a cool state. i mean, come on, live free or die? i mean, come on, you know, that's -- you got to love that, right? gold is good. if you've got any in the backyard, because, you know, if they print any more money over there in washington, the gold will be good. are that!

20% flat tax, put it on there, take your deductions off, send it in. >> now, perry's camp claims the condensed clips have been, quote, manipulated by left wing organizations. a federal investigation is under way to find out what caused a jetblue plane to keep passengers on the tarmac for more than seven hours during this weekend's freak snowstorm. hartford, connecticut's, bradley international airport was inundated with diverted flights during saturday's storm however jetblue faces fines up to $27,000 for each passenger, or roughly $3 million, after those on board endured hours in the dark without food or bathroom facilities. in this recording, a jetblue pilot pleads with the control tower. >> i have a paraplegic on board that needs to come off. i have a diabetic on here that has an issue. i need to have the cops on board.

>> new tarmac delay rules require they let passengers off the plane after three hours. here's your "first look" at other news going on around america today. long lines at the gas pump caused tempers to flare up in connecticut. passions went by the wayside as drivers waited for close to an hour to fuel up two days after a rare snowstorm crippled the area. police were called in to bring order to the chaotic situation, but no arrests were made. snowstorm clean-up inside new york city's central park revealed shocking damage to the national landmark. over 1,000 trees suffered damage prompting one by stander to call the southern half of the park a tree cemetery. park officials are scrambling to clear it in time for the new york city marathon, just six days away. this video is unbelievable. one senior citizen proved he is anything but brittle after a nasty spill on a las vegas speedway. ouch. the 69-year-old professional

racer was riding 180 miles an hour when he fell off his bike and slid several feet. the accident saturday left him with only a broken pinkie and a few stitches on his knuckles. amazing. and finally, new york city's 39th annual village halloween parade once again turned into a spookfest. this year's cast of bizarre and creepy costume participants were joined by an assembly of eyeballs. the puppeteers and eyeballs led the theme of eye of the beholder. get it? now for your look at national weather, we turn to bill karins with the weather forecast. >> good morning. did you have a fun halloween? >> i did. passed out some candy. >> a lot of zombies this year. >> heard you got a taste of the village parade on your way to work. >> yes. >> it's always nice to come to work and people are partying.

>> people are still celebrating? yes. >> luckily we usually go to sleep before work than partying, but would be more interesting show. we are looking for the most part, people still trying to recover up in new england. temperatures are still chilly, most people will hopefully have found a place to shelter instead of being their homes. we will have a couple of chilly nights in a row. we didn't melt a lot of the snow yesterday and we won't melt a lot today with temperatures just getting up to the mid 40s. we are freezing outside the big cities, big cities, temperatures mostly in the 40s. later today, for those of you around hartford, connecticut, temperatures in the 40s. even with the sun, you still have all that ice on the ground, that keeps temperatures that much cooler. we don't have the pavement to warm it up much either. temperatures will be warmer in the big cities. we will eventually melt a lot of this snow. i think by the weekend it will be gone in most cases. especially thursday and friday, those day we have a chance of

getting into the mid to upper 50s. hopefully we can get back to a normal life and get the power lines repaired. this coastal storm will miss us it did bring heavy rain down to florida yesterday. the next winter storm is already forming this one is just for the rockies. it won't move across the country like the last one did. this one today will be up in areas of wyoming. that's where we have winter storm warnings. denver, you are in a winter storm watch. it will be your second snowstorm in two weeks. here's a look at snowfall forecast. this isn't going to be a blockbuster winter event. still an early season snow. because good six inches in cheyenne will get your attention. denver, three to circumstances inches is my forecast. that doesn't even start until later tonight to tomorrow, lynn. overall a nice day around the country. i can't believe we're talking about another winter storm already. >> i can't either. thank you very much. coming up, euro debt claims its first american casualty. japan squeezes the dollar. and zombies doing their bit for the american economy.

your "first look" at this morning's business headlines are straight ahead. coming up. an overtime thriller between chargers and chiefs. cc sabathia gets a new deal. and a storybook ending for tony la russa. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. so i took my heartburn pill and some antacids. we're having mexican tonight, so another pill then? unless we eat later, then pill later? if i get a snack now, pill now? skip the snack, pill later...

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welcome back to "first look," i'm lynn berry. here's some of the top stories making news this morning. president obama has been given a clean bill of health after the second physical exam of presidency last week. his doctor says the president is in, quote, excellent health and is tobacco free. the justice department has filed a lawsuit to stop the enforcement of parts of south carolina's new immigration law, saying they're unconstitutional and interfere with federal authority. similar suits have been filed against laws in arizona and alabama. the fbi has released surveillance video and documents from a decade-long espionage probe in the u.s. that led to

the biggest spy swap since the cold war. the video shows how russian spy anna chapman and others passed instructions, information and cash to one another. ten spies were arrested in 2010 and traded for four russian spies convicted of spying for the west. the doctor charged in michael jackson's death is expected to reveal today whether he plans to testify at his involuntary manslaughter trial. yesterday under tough cross-examination the defense's propofol expert admitted he never would have used the drug under a similar situation. and a 45-year-old elephant at a netherlands zoo was shoved into a trench by another elephant sunday, causing him to break a tusk. he managed to climb out with some help the next day. here's your "first look" at how wall street will kick off the day. the dow opens at 11,955 after dropping 276 points yesterday. the s&p sank 31 points. the nasdaq tumbled 52.

looking at oversees trading this morning, in tokyo, the nikkei skidded 152 points, while in hong kong the hang seng plunged 494. halloween was a scary day on wall street as the european debt crisis claimed its first major american victim. mf global holdings, a brokerage run by former new jersey governor and goldman sachs chief jon corzine, filed for bankruptcy, crippled by big bets made on european debt. "the new york times" reports mf global is also being investigated for hundreds of millions in customer money gone missing. financials were hit hard, morgan stanley fell almost 9%, jpmorgan chase, which has $1.2 billion in claims against mf global, also fell. also the dollar shot up to a three-month high after japan intervened to curb its currency appreciation. that set energy and natural resource shares sharply lower. alcoa dropped 7%.

freeport copper and gold lost almost 6. on all that news, wall street's so-called fear index jumped 22%. still, it was hard to say good-bye to october. both the dow and the s&p started the month at year lows. yesterday the dow closed october up more than 1,000 points. its best month in nine years. it was the s&p's best month in almost 20 years. in earnings, allstate posted a sharp profit drop losing more than $1 million loss on natural disasters. elsewhere a trade group reported consumer spending on home entertainment rose for the first time in over three years. finally, zombies are no laughing matter. business analysts 24/7 wall street have calculated the zombie economy, which includes movies, video games, costumes and everything else zombie is worth $5 billion a year to the american economy. well, la russa says so long. c.c. is staying put, and breakup winnipeg. plus, the kansas city chiefs had

all the energy in their monday night football match-up with the chargers. your "first look" at sports is straight ahead.

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the chargers, seconds away from beating the chiefs when they literally fumbled the game away. we go to kansas city. not an easy place to play. chargers moments away from pulling out a win. under a minute to go, chiefs with no time-outs, all san diego had to do was burn the clock and kick the winning field goal. easy for me to say. philip rivers fumbled a snap, kansas city recovered and forced overtime. you won't get a second chance after that. ryan succop hit the 30-yard field goal for the win. chiefs win but in reality the chargers lost in o.t. 23-20. baseball, tony la russa going out on top. he announced his retirement three days after winning the world series. he managed for 33 years and won three titles. he's the only manager to retire after winning it all. cc sabathia won't be going anywhere. signed a five-year, $122 million extension to stay with the yanks. c.c. had until midnight to opt out of his existing deal but decided to stay in the bronx. >> worst thing in the world as well, hockey and msg, rangers jumped out to an early lead against the sharks. dubinsky to derek stephen. kept it going with three goals

in the second. callahan had a pair. somehow some way tapped in the rebound while falling to the ice. rangers beat the sharks 5-2. predators and blackhawks needed overtime. stalberg, stop and pop, put on the brakes and ripped one past the goalie. chicago won 5-4 in o.t. finally wild finish between panthers and jets. final minute. winnipeg down one and score the equalizer. wait a minute. the referee waved it off because of a high stick. take another look. kyle wellwood got a piece of it. kane batted it in higher than the net, but the stick can't be higher than the cross bar and that's a goal. jets tied it. completed a comeback in the shootout. wellwood with the game-winner. now for another look at the weather, here is nbc meteorologist bill karins with your weather forecast. good morning. >> good morning. hard to believe we still have like a million people without power. connecticut is still probably the worst of it. i guess that's where the leaves were just strong enough to hold

on. areas of massachusetts, vermont and new hampshire made out better than you did. southern new york has some issues and new jersey, too a storm system off the coast, but unlike the last one this one is heading out to sea. just clouds today, and then the sunshine this afternoon for everyone. a nice day, still on the chilly side, especially up there in new england where we have snow on the ground. only in the 40s today. a slow process of melting the snow and it will get better as we go throughout the week. middle of the country, beautiful start to your november. 75 in kansas city today. st. louis will be nice, chicago. you can't complain being in the low to mid 60s to start your november. southeast looks fine. we're also nice in texas. the changing weather is all here in the rockies. it's typical, by the way. denver, one of their snowiest months of the year is november. it's no surprise we have another storm heading your way. today, a cold front goes through yesterday in the mid 60s in denver and sunny. for your wednesday it will be snowing and about 33. we will do it all over again in

colorado. right now, not a huge blockbuster storm, lynn. areas like denver, cheyenne, maybe a half foot at most. >> thank you very much. coming up, jessica simpson lets the cat out of the bag. plus life imitates reality tv. stop me if you thought this was coming. >> please. don't do it. >> we're going to do it. after just 72 days, kim kardashian calls it quits on her marriage. your "first look" at entertainment is straight ahead. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. my mother froze everything.

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welcome back to "first look." i'm lynn berry. well, just ten weeks after their lavish made for tv wedding, and

less than a month after their wedding special aired, kim kardashian is divorcing pro basketball player kris humphreys. >> i want my wedding gift back. >> the crystal? no. here's mark varger. this is a day you have long waited for. >> reporter: what started in a made for tv fairy tale fashion in august met the harsh halloween reality of court documents, reality tv star kim kardashian filed for divorce from kris humphries citing irreconcile differences. that's 72 days after their wedding. >> a lot of people are skeptical about camelot, and this quickie wedding will not help that. >> reporter: kardashian is one of reality tv's highest paid stars. she also has numerous product endorsements, including a p perfume line which she was promoting in dubai where she was talking about the marriage.

>> i want to spend some time with kris before we start to try to have kids. >> reporter: but humphries absence from that dubai trip increased tensions between the couple as well as her family who star in the reality tv series "keeping up with the kardashi kardashians." >> it wasn't just the marriage between kris and kim kardashian it was a marriage between kris and the kardashian family that failed. >> reporter: kim kardashian released a statement saying the divorce filing was not an easy decision, i hoped this marriage was forever but sometimes things don't work out as planned. >> bill has plenty to say about this but we have this to get to first -- >> there's no other news. almost entirely lost monday in the kardashian divorce hoopla, the jessica simpson announcement that she is pregnant and her twit pick of her pregnant mummy costume.

>> and rihanna was in hospital in sweden with food poisoning. >> and michael douglas is stressing the importance of early detection cancer. now bang to the big story, the kardashian divorce. >> a comedian said he was going to sue, right? >> right. >> i want to agree. >> what do you do? do you give back the wedding gifts? >> yes. they had a lot of celebrities that probably gave thousands of dollars of wedding gifts. >> this is why i always wait about six months. you are allowed to do that. >> my wife spent five hours watching that wedding on e, she

wants that time back. >> i'm lynn berry this is "first look" on msnbc. "way too early" with willie geist starts right now. herman cain denies he did anything wrong, but admits a payout from the national restaurant association to a woman who accused him of sexual harassment when he led the group in the 1990s. what more will we learn about the story today and how serious is the damage to the cain campaign? big news in the business world as mf global, run by former new jersey senator and governor jon corzine files for bankruptcy and now some $700 million of customer money is missing. the question is where is it? and the bizarre speech that rick perry