your girlfriends this is "nightline." >> tonight, god's authority in the embattled kentucky clerk still refusing to issue same-sex marriage licenses even though she's required to by law. >> you all will face your consequences when it comes time for judgment. >> frustrated couples confronting her face-to-face and we're there for the showdown. >> have not said one hateful word. it's a brave new wool. sure, it's fluffy and it's soft. this magic merino wool has a hidden secret you might not expect. our adventure high in the alps of new zealand to find out why some say it's revolutionizing athletic wear. and toy joy. attention young jedis. for those who can't wake till the force awakens. the first-ever star wars unboxing event causing global

madness. first the "nightline 5." >> zantac heartburn alert. stop! nexium can take 24 hours to work. zantac's different. zantac rushes relief in as little as 30 minutes. for relief without the wait, try zantac. no pill relieves heartburn faster. when pain goes deep i use salonpas deep relieving gel. this powerful gel rushes three pain fighters deep into my muscles. it's fast-melting, quick-absorbing, penetrating deep relief. salonpas, powerful relief when

and where you need it number one good evening. tonight, a heated dispute over gay marriage coming to a climax with cameras rolling. it's all going down in kentucky where one controversial county clerk is still refusing to issue

marriage licenses to same-sex couples. why? she says god's will is more important than the supreme court's. abc's alex peres is there. >> i have not said not one hateful word -- >> oh, yeah. your actions -- >> have you received death threats for your religious beliefs? no. >> your interpretation of the bible does not trump the constitution. >> reporter: a tense and angry scene erupted at the rowan county clerk's office this morning as jesse cruz and robby blankenship went to get a wedding license they have a right to. >> the supreme court has ruled right to marriage. that marriage is a civil right. >> reporter: the couple came into the county office hoping they would get the piece of paper that would lawfully acknowledge them as a family. >> we're here to get our marriage license. >> we're not issuing marriage

licenses pending appeal to the >> there is appeals. >> yeah, it's over. >> your appeals are over. >> reporter: it quickly escalated as the fight for marriage equality rages on in this small town. the voices echoing in the room are those protesting both sides of the issue. the tone, divided. >> this is my office and we are not distributing licenses -- >> you're discriminating -- >> we're not discriminating because we're not issuing licenses to anybody. >> reporter: kim davis, elected official. >> i pay your salary! >> reporter: she has stopped issuing marriage licenses in row ban county since the june 26th supreme court decision in support of same-sex marriage. >> i'm not doing marriage license -- >> under what authority? >> god's authority. >> you heard her say god's authority? >> you are not in the church. i respect religion, i respect people's faith. okay?

but this is a civil institution. >> reporter: robby and jesse, who have been together nearly 20 years, have hoped of adopting soon. >> we already consider ourselves a family. we want all the rights that everybody else has. >> reporter: standing in their way is davis, who has been holed up in her office with the shades tightly drawn. she believes that her religious right supersedes the supreme court. >> under whose authority are you not issuing -- >> under god's authority. >> reporter: earlier this week she issued this statement rationalizing her decision. it is a heaven or hell decision, she says. i have no animosity toward anyone and harbor no ill will. to me, this has never been a gay or lesbian issue. it is about marriage and god's word. her stance on this issue has caused her personal history to come under attack. she is on her fourth marriage. she has stated that since then, she has found god. davis became the perhaps unwilling spokesperson for the anti-marriage equality front when in july david moore posted this video on his youtube page

after the ruling. >> i'd like you to put your phone down -- >> i dealt with discrimination growing up, living in eastern kentucky. maybe i had a different experience than you did. >> i would say. >> i had to deal with a lot of the bible belt type of mentality, fundamentalists. so for me it was kind of like, oh, this finally says i'm not a second-class citizen anymore. >> reporter: with 1.8 million hits and counting, david and his partner for 17 years have continued to try and get a license from davis, but to no avail. they've been turned away over -- >> give us the application. >> reporter: and over -- >> we are currently not issuing licenses -- >> reporter: at one point blocking the camera. the couple has been denied three types. >> this is our home. we should have the same rights as anybody else to walk in and get a marriage license. we're equal to anyone else. >> reporter: it seems that a slight majority of americans agree.

the pew institute says 54% of americans support marriage equality. >> it's obvious she's on the wrong side of history. she's definitely on the wrong side of the law. >> reporter: but sarah kate ellis, president of g.l.a.d., is worried what davis and other holdouts are doing is sending a wrong and damaging message. >> there are over 3,000 counties in america and we're only seeing a handful, a small handful, of these counties actually having challenges like the one in kentucky. and i think what it does is it sends a dangerous message to our youth, that they don't matter. that they're less than. >> reporter: for david moore, the message is clear. >> number one is victory is getting a marriage license for not just ourselves but for anyone that wants to go into that office and be legally married. victory also is sending a message to other county clerks that it's not okay to discriminate against people just because your religiousnlggious beliefs tell you to do that or you feel like you can do that because you

have the power to do that. >> obey the law, obey the law! >> reporter: at the county clerk's office davis continues to flexion power. the tension in the room so tight police are present, so are protests groups from both sides of the issue. a group in favor of davis held a prayer circle. >> father, we pray lord that you give her supernatural strength -- >> why is it so support to be here supporting clerk davis? >> i stand for religious freedom. this is personal because my husband's a preacher. if the clerks aren't being protected then the preachers aren't going to be either, they'll come after them next. >> i am a christian 100%. our daughter -- >> reporter: while those in favor of marriage equality continue to fight for their legally mandated rights. aclu has asked a judge to find davis in contempt and the judge has ordered her to appear in court. >> the judge has a number of different sanctions at his

disposal that he can use against miss davis if she continues to refuse to comply with the order. he can certainly fine her. jail time is also an option. but that's not something that we're seeking. it's not something that we've asked for. >> reporter: late this afternoon lawyers for davis filed a motion hoping to block the governor of kentucky from forcing clerks to approve same-sex licenses. >> kim davis loves her job. she loves people. she loves god. she's not going to violate her conscience. that's clear in her mind. she's prepared for whatever consequences there may be. >> we can't allow politicians to subordinate the law to their own private religious beliefs. >> obey the law! >> reporter: a hearing will be held in the morning. for couples like robby and jesse, they will have to wait. >> he denies it's a slap in the face.

>> how long are you willing to keep fighting, how long will this go on? >> i'll come back. i'll come back over and over. i will marry. in this building. in this clerk of courts. in this town. >> reporter: and just like david moore and his partner, robby and jesse will continue to come to the clerk's office in hopes to one day have a license. a license to wed. >> we've been through the hardest of times and the best of times. and this is a hard time. but it will turn. it will be a best of time. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm alex peres in morehead, kentucky. up next, testing a miracle material from an unlikely source. high in the southern alps of new zealand. plus, exciting news for "star wars" fans. counting down the days until the force awakens.en i got out of the hospital after a dvt blood clot. what about my family? my li'l buddy? and what if this happened again? i was given warfarin in the hospital

but i wondered if this was the right treatment for me. then my doctor told me about eliquis. eliquis treats dvt and pe blood clots and reduces the risk of them happening again. not only does eliquis treat dvt and pe blood clots, but eliquis also had significantly less major bleeding than the standard treatment. knowing eliquis had both... turned around my thinking. don't stop eliquis unless your doctor tells you to. eliquis can cause serious and in rare cases fatal bleeding. don't take eliquis if you have an artificial heart valve or abnormal bleeding. if you had a spinal injection while on eliquis call your doctor right away if you have tingling, numbness, or muscle weakness. while taking eliquis, you may bruise more easily... and it may take longer than usual for bleeding to stop. seek immediate medical care for sudden signs of bleeding, like unusual bruising. eliquis may increase your bleeding risk if you take certain medicines. tell your doctor about all planned medical or dental procedures. eliquis treats dvt & pe blood clots. plus had less major bleeding. both made switching to eliquis right for me. ask your doctor if it's right for you.

i'm ready to crack like nobody's watching. why? because it's red lobster's crabfest. and there's so much crab, so many ways. and with dishes like this luscious crab lover's dream or savory snow crab bake. i'm just getting started so hurry in and get crackin' there's nothing like the radiant glow of being in love. capture that glow with new stay luminous makeup from covergirl. a long-wear makeup that won't look dull and dry on your skin. stay luminous has all day hydration plus luminosity for a long-lasting natural glow love at first light new stay luminous makeup and for gorgeous long-wear lip color that's loaded with moisture in all the colors of love from easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl we stop arthritis pain, so you don't have to stop. because you believe in go. onward. today's the day.

carpe diem. tylenol 8hr arthritis pain has two layers of pain relief. the first is fast. the second lasts all day. we give you your day back. what you do with it is up to you. tylenol .

layover. 24 hours. hello, reykjavik. oh, so that's how you spell it. what are you looking at? oh, cool. hungry. fish, anyone? hello, seventh waterfall of the day. hello, duck boat. hello, sheep? oh right! itchy icelandic sweaters and no foreign transaction fees. sweet. one last look. ahh. triple points. and we're off. what's next? wherever the journey takes you, carry american express gold.

it's more than a card. it's the gear that gets it done. so when you hear high-performance athleticwear, the last thing you might think of is wool. this is not your grandma's itchy sweater. we're talking about overachieving sheep thousand providing the biggest brands from lulu lemon to the north

face with a secret ingredient. still skeptical? so were the marathoners who tried it out. here's abc's sarah haines. >> reporter: down this dusty mountain road -- is where you'll find mother nature's very own high-tech super fabric factory. the mighty merino sheep. a unique breed prized above all others for a coat so soft, so fine, it's actually redefining how consumers think about wool. and revolutionizing the world of performance athleticwear. so we traveled to lake hawaya station, a farm in new zealand's southern alps. >> bring them on. >> reporter: to see where this magic material comes from, and what makes it so special. >> come on. >> reporter: tom rowley is a third-generation sheep farmer.

>> generally when we get them in the pen like this we like to see what the wool product's like. so we'll open the wool like that. >> it's like the softest thing in here. it's like -- it's very thick. it's very soft. it's a little crunchy. i would love a pillow made out of that. >> it makes you understand that you can actually wear this against your skin because the fibers are so fine and soft. >> reporter: the thick fibers of normal wool can be itchy and uncomfortable. but merino wool is much finer, which is why it's soft against your skin. >> the functional prop tiz are what really make it different. >> reporter: this is rob fife, ceo of icebreaker, a new zealand clothing company that not only specializes in merino products but helped pioneer them. >> we started, just us, trying to convince people they should use merino rather than synthetics. as we've had success and lots of people are looking, lots are looking and saying we should develop a merino range. >> reporter: as hot a merino

wool is now, it's much more than cold-weather clothing with appeal that goes way beyond feel. manufacturers from smart wool to lulu lemon, patagonia to north face, doubt the durability, breathability, moisture wicking, and odor-reducing qualities of their merino products. but a this magic comes at a cost. >> it's a lot more expensive than a synthetic fiber so it took awhile for people to get hold of the benefits. >> reporter: now that they've caught on, shoppers who no longer fear the itch and have made the switch can snuggle up in cozy merino from head to toe, and yes, everywhere in between. >> i think of wool, i think of really thick, itchy blankets, i think of sweaters. but you guys make so many different types of products, including underwear. >> yeah, exactly. check it out. >> you're going to show us. >> you look at how fine -- of course you can -- how fine that is. i mean, it breathes.

it doesn't smell. it doesn't hold odor. it's great for wicking moisture. not that it's a personal problem for me. >> of course not, of course not. >> we've had people write back to us and say, i wore your product nonstop for 40 days without having a chance to wash it. i was on an expedition through the desert or whatever. that's just fantastic. >> reporter: even though the price tag can be hard to swallow, manufacturers like icebreaker are banking on environmentally conscious consumers spending more for eco-friendly clothes. >> it's born in nature, worn in nature. we're about connecting people back with the land. not covering yourself up in synthetics and plastics. for me being able to make it both commercially sustainable and be delivering to the world an environmentally sustainable product, that's special. >> reporter: sales pitch aside, what do potential customers have to say? >> the concept of running in wool?

i'll admit it sounds bonkers. >> i have heard about merino wool. more as maybe something my mom wears in the winter. >> reporter: we asked a group of marathoners from team for kids to test a merino wool tanks mixed with tensile nylon and lycra. >> it feels like a jersey t-shirt. the question do is you run in it? or is it just a relax t-shirt you feel confirm in? >> oh, yeah. extremely light. >> i'm a little concerned about the texture. i'm hoping -- it feels like something might get softer after a couple of washes. but the synthetics come out of the box ready to go. >> reporter: they suit up and they're off. >> it's definitely a different feel. it is light. it moves and it's airy. feels like a jersey tee. it's comfortable. while running, it was loose-fitting. didn't stick to me per se. i was pretty happy about that. >> it's the end of august. new york's hottest and most

humid season. it's incredible that i'm standing here talking to you in a wool shirt. it's a little scratchy which i guess you'd expect from a wool-based material. also feels like something that could get softer after a couple of matches. >> reporter: nature's miracle material, just as at home in the steamy jungle as in remote alpine ledges. i'm sarah haines in new zealand for "nightline." up next, the force awakens with a collector's frenzy. why christmas just came early

for "star wars" fans. if you're suffering from constipation or irregularity, powders may take days to work. for gentle overnight relief, try dulcolax laxative tablets. ducolax provides gentle overnight relief, unlike miralax

thirst for the extraordinary. ahhh perrier!

and finally for us tonight, the reason "star wars" fans all over the world will be sleep deprived this week. just in case you live in a galaxy really far, far away -- and haven't heard -- ers this a new "star wars" movie coming out. not till december. but there's still plenty of fun to be had now. >> we can all save the universe together. >> reporter: tonight the kickoff of a global inboxing extravaganza. >> pull this one out. >> reporter: what's unboxing? >> very interesting piece here. >> reporter: dedicated fans opening up the newest out of this world merchandise. "star wars" enthusiasts in sydney, australia, breaking out classic slight sabers. >> it's like christmas. >> reporter: in tokyo, unveiling these big guys. >> it's like a mini butler.

it's cute, so adorable. >> now your children can create space battles or collect our wonderful "star wars," companion companions. >> reporter: the craze over action figures isn't new. >> any product with "star wars" is gobbled off the shelf. i'm sure there will be "star wars" material around at least 25, 30 years. >> george lucas has built this wonderful fantasy world. people buy all kinds of droids and exciting creatures. we think that it could be another disney. >> reporter: but the massive unboxing trend is not mere child's play. >> go ahead and open up this first one. >> reporter: as hard as it might be to believe the simple act of unboxing is one of the hottest trends on youtube. >> i'm super stoked about it. look what showed up in the mail. >> reporter: people posting videos and reviewing the new products. scoring millions of views. >> judge me by my size, do you? >> reporter: 18 of the top 100 youtube channels are devoted to toys and toy unboxing.