this morning on "early today," another look. reports say the justice department may be looking to prosecute cases of detainee abuse after all. line of fire. thousands flee as a massive wildfire threatens homes and

ancient temples in greece. and what a mouthful. find out how many dumplings somebody can scarf down in just find out how many dumplings somebody can scarf down in just 10 minutes. captions paid for by nbc-universal television hello and good morning, everyone. i'm dan kloeffler. and today we begin with a new spotlight. according to this morning's "new york times," there are new recommendations coming down from the justice department to reopen several cases of detainee abuse at the hands of the cia and private contractors. the move not only reverses the bush administration but also exposes those interrogators to potential prosecution. although president obama has leaned away from any new investigations, attorney general eric holder is learning detainees died in u.s. custody. sourcing a person personally briefed, the move would almost

certainly call for the appointment of a prosecutor and the potential for a renewed criminal investigation. meanwhile, this morning's "washington post" as part of its effort to revamp policy, the white house has approved a new plan to create an elite group of interrogators to question terror suspects in u.s. custody. a move that shifts control away from an embattled cia. new guidelines call for an end to tough interrogation methods employed under the bush administration that includes sleep deprivation. detailing the agency's interrogation program. for the first time in more than 30 years, social security payments are projected not to rise next year, leaving millions of older americans with a smaller monthly check. social security checks can't legally go down, but officials say there will not be a cost of

living adjustment for the next two years. premiums for the medicare prescription drug program are expected to rise, which that means a shrinking benefits check. 50 million americans receive social security. tragedy struck the coast of maine sunday when a deadly wall of water unleashed by hurricane bill suddenly swept some onlookers out to sea, killing a 7-year-old girl. the massive wave washed ashore on the rocky coastline at acadia national park, engulfing 12 people at all. rescuers pulled that girl along with two others from the churning waters. the death of a 54-year-old swimmer in florida saturday has also been blamed on hurricane bill. that deadly storm continues to weaken, though, as it moves out to sea. in greece, authorities have declared a state of emergency there over wildfires raging near the capital of athens. tens of thousands of people

lifgs in suburbs have been evacuated as firefighters struggle with gale force winds. self houses have been destroyed. no reports of any deaths or injuries so far. the fires come two years after a deadly rash of blazes devastated that country, leaving thousands of people homeless. now here's a look at other stories making news "early today" in america. florida police on a man hunt got a little help from a kranl yous local resident. a dui suspect was trying to escape from authorities on foot but a home owner tackled the man in his yard. the brave resident who was formerly a bouncer flagged him down and waved to helicopters. a bizarre freeway accident in california involved three cars and a plane. this was almost unbelievable. the small plane ran out of fuel and was forced to make an emergency landing on the highway. three cars ended up hitting that plane. neither the two passengers in

the plane nor anyone in the cars were injured. elsewhere in california, one dog in san diego may be head and shoulders above the rest. a massive great dane appears to be the world's tallest dog, standing 3'6" inches, up to his shoulders. the aptly named titan measures one inch taller than the record holder who recently died. in los angeles, a very tall order for dumplings as competitors faced off to see who could devour the most. part of the annual japanese festival, joey chestnut, the reigning nathan's hot dog eating champion, put away 81 dump lins in 10 minutes. just in time for breakfast. now for a look at the national and the regional weather, here's nbc meteorologist bill karins with the weather channel forecast. >> should have been made to use chop sticks. >> that could have been dangerous.

they could be lethal weapons if used at high speeds. >> hurricane bill. let's talk about the latest with this storm. amazingly, dan, this storm held together and made landfall in new foundland. it is exiting into the mid atlantic. the waves down at acadia national park down the coast of maine. here's nova shoesh that. still waves reported 10 to 12 feet. i know if you're going to the beach the waves will be a lot lower. rip current risk is still pretty high. waves off southern new england, 7 to 10-foot range. gulf of maine, right around the same. the waves are coming down but there still could be rip currents. as far as the forecast goes for today, as the storm pulls out, the humidity will go with it. dry high pressure will be coming in. coastal north carolina, still storms out there this morning from richmond back down virginia beach and the outer banks. otherwise, it's a gorgeous day

today from chicago to new york, back down into the south. atlanta, what a fabulous monday it will be. that's a look at your national forecast. now here's a look at the weather outside your window. well, in new england, after we watch the storm go by, we had heavy tropical rain. that front has pushed off the coast. concord, new hampshire, 82. watch for early morning rain in richmond. dan, i'll have a closer look at that rain in carolinas and virginia, when we come back. bell tolls for cash for clunkers. and big ben gives a boost to japan. your early morning business headlines are straight ahead. plus, speaking of clunkers was quintin stearns tina a dud this weekend. one swing, three outs. you're watching "early today."

good morning and welcome back to "early today," everyone. i'm dan kloeffler. and here are some of your top headlines this morning. nasa has given the green light to launch space shuttle "discovery" to the international space station early tomorrow. "discovery" will roar out of florida with a crew of seven. forecasters calling for 80% chance of favorable weather. cuban called recent footage of fidel castro yesterday apparently looking healthier and rested. the 83-year-old has rarely been seen in public since falling in three years ago when seating power to his brother raul. a gruesome twist, canadian twist said they found a reality tv star wanted for killing his bikini star ex-wife dead in a hotel. ryan jenkins has prompted an international manhunt after

fleeing the u.s. apparently took his own life while hiding out at this out of the way hotel in vancouver. second year in a row, miss venezuela is the fairest of them all. she beat out 82 others in the abobahamas last night. now here's an early look how wall street will kick off the day today. the dow opens at 9,505 after jumping 155 points friday. the s&p gained 18. the nasdaq rose as well, 31 paints . in tokyo, the nikkei surged 342 points, while in hang congress the hang seng leaped 336 points. a great start to the work for overseas investors. they were swept by the hopes that a gloel recovery may finally be on the way. investors in japan recovered nearly all of last week's losses when the nikkei shot up 3.2%

monday. asian stocks outside japan hit a 10-month high today thanks in part to the upbeat economic news to the u.s. on friday. further optimistic comments from fed chairman ben bernanke. the head of the central bank who a little more than i week ago said the economy is leveling out now projects, quote, good conditions for near-term growth. also driving markets higher friday, jump in 7% of existing home sales. sparked a rally that sent markets to new yearly highs across the board. the wildly popular cash for clunkers program will see the finish line tonight. sales picked up speed over the weekend, forcing some dealers to close their doors early. for some it was due to lack of inventory. others, though, needed time to process the paperwork before 8:00 deadline tonight.

wall street journal is reporting warner chill cot has made an offer to buy the prescription arm of png's business. sales of duringable goods, new home sales and perhaps of most interest to markets, the latest on consumer confidence. finally, a south carolina woman is $2 million richer. and, no, she didn't win the lottery. in fact, she won a lawsuit against her dentist, who was supposed to remove three of her teeth. instead, he pulled 16. so a full set or not, $2 million. definitely guarantees a pretty big smile. bronx bombers bomb boston. and a twin smacks twin homers in one inning. plus, in a game filled with bizarre plays, this one just qualified as, well, you know, run of the mill. your early morning sports headlines are straight ahead. with hurricane bill racing through the canadian maritimes, the weather on the east coast

will be a lot calmer today. your regional forecast is coming up. you're watching "early today."

good morning. if you're just waking up, this is "early today." in sports, there's been a lot of talk about home runs flying out of the new yankees stadium this year. the big problem for the boston red sox last night, the yankees

were making them fly in bunches out of boston fenway park as well. here's nbc's fred roggin with an early look at all your sports headlines. good morning. in the 108 year of the red sox/yankees never runs have been scored than the one this past weekend. first pitch of the game and there it goes. derek jeter with a solo shot. new york up 1-0. couple hits later, matsui joined the hit parade. in all, five home runs, matsui with two of them. team scored 58 runs during the series. kansas city where the twins jumped all over the royals. first time in minnesota history that one player had a pair of homers in an inning. twins scored 8 in the second and robbed the royals, 10-3. john smoltz made his debut for the cards against the padres. it was a good one. five innings of work. pujols continued his mvp

campaign. cards beat the padres 5-2. they have now won 9 of the last 11. mets and phils. angel drove one to the wall. ball got stuck in the padding. shane victorino thought it was a ground-rule double. all the way around for an inside the park homer. top 9, eric bruntlett with a shot to right. made the grab. or did he? umpire said no. he showed his glove. i caught it right here. he indeed made the play. the umpires had a meeting and made the right call. he was out but he would have the last laugh. bottom nine, francouer lined out to bruntlett at short. stepped on second for one and tagged the other for a triple play. triple play to end a game since 1927.

phils beat the mets in dramatic fashion, 9-7. >> thank you, fred. this weekend's box office winner was number one around the world. your early morning entertainment headlines are straight ahead. plus, saying thanks to california's firefighters and don't forget the hot sauce. you're watching "early today."

welcome back on this monday morning. hope you had a wonderful weekend. we do have rain exiting the richmond area just to the south and east of fredericksburg. also, it looks like williams burg, heavy showers popping up. in virginia and also north carolina, that's where you have a chance of a little bit of rain, especially the outer banks getting nailed this morning. in and around charlotte and winston-salem, we have showers, too. that's kind of the rainy spot. otherwise, just a really nice day today from chicago to detroit, cleveland, cincinnati, all of kentucky, tennessee. the southeast will be very nice. only travel trouble spot, miami with a shower or thunderstorm. well, if you're watching us on wrc nbc 4 in washington, d.c., head to the national museum of african art for a look at a collection of striking images depicting domestic and wild animals at the artful animals exhibit. that's your eastern event of the day, dan. >> thank you, bill. now here's an early look at

this morning's headlines in entertainment. brad pitt and quentin tarantino took the number one spot this weekend with "inglourious basterds." overseas, it added another $27.5 million for a worldwide poll of just over $65 million. since the film cost about $70 million to make, it almost paid for itself after just the first weekend out. it was also number one in france, england, germany and australia. district 9 slipped to second with $18.9 million. nevertheless, it's well on its way to becoming the summer's $100 million sleeper hit. g.i. joez the rise of cobra stands at $120 million. finally, the robert rodriguez family comedy short starring william h.macy and james spader,

sputtering into sixth with just $6.6 million. see any of those? >> i did not, actually. but i wasn't going to see the brad pitt movie but i'm hearing some good reviews. it did well this weekend. i may have to take it in. >> district 9. >> everybody loves a sleeper buzz movie. i haven't figured out the psychology of it. >> neither have the critics either on that. when the formula comes in, everyone will know. this comes from ksbw 8 where in nearby daf ebb port, firefighters got a well-deserved although slightly ironic thank you from very grateful residents. people living near the lockheed fire that store through the santa cruz mountains had the firefighters to, well, a barbecue. it charred 7800 acres. happy home acres gathered around

the little fire, controlled fire with their heroes. i'm dan kloeffler. this is "early today," just your first stop of the day today on your nbc station.

>> top of the morning to you. hope you're doing w. we have an active h.d. doppler, butt not over the central part of the state, more so around virginia and southern maryland. that's where you have the best shot of seeing showers today. but it does look like in baltimore, high pressure is going to build in. our temperatures are basically a little cooler this morning,

in the 60's. we're going to go up into the mid 80's, which is near normal for this time of the year. but it's not going to be as humid. we were so steamy and very tropical over the weekend. that trend is going to change. as we take a look at our water vapor imagery, you see air starting to infiltrate the area. that means we'll see a nice drying trend. that trend is going to last through at least the middle part of the we'll. we'll be warmer for tomorrow and wednesday. i've got more on your seven-day forecast and more on the improving weather scenario coming up in our full hour. back to you. >> sandra, see you in a bit. here's a look ahead to 11 news today. >> a week after a double shooting inside the life street pavilion, and police efforts to increase safety result in the arrest of a baltimore raven. we'll tell you who and why, straight ahead. >> i'm brooke hart in washington. liberal democrats in the senate say they might have a new strategy when it comes to healthcare reform. that story coming up. >> and i'm sarah caldwell checking on your morning commute.

an accident on i-95, we'll update that location and check on two city accidents as well.

dad, could you help me build a sand castle? sure, pal. let's just find a good spot. [ dramatic music plays ] a big day at the beach with the legendary taste of dunkin' donuts coffee on ice. this looks like a good spot. you kin' do it. america runs on dunkin'. treat yourself today with an authentic caramel swirl iced latte.