good morning. rising cain. a new nbc news/marist poll shows gop. of the hopeful herman cain running neck and neck in iowa with mitt romney, as president obama takes a hit in two swing states. what's causing the disconnect with voters? we'll be asking the president's senior adviser. stranded. a worker who suffered a stroke at the south pole fighting to be evacuated, she says her doctor told her it needs to happen as soon as possible, but her bosses claim a rescue right now would be far too dangerous. this morning, both sides speak out. and marathon mom, a woman

competes in the chicago marathon while 38 weeks pregnant and just seven hours later she gives birth. was she taking a big risk? we'll hear from her and her doctor, "today," tuesday, october 11th, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television welcome to "today" on this tuesday morning. i'm ann curry. >> and i'm matt lauer. so amber miller, a lot of people talking about amber miller this morning, the 27 years old from out there in chicago who ran in this marathon 38 weeks pregnant and gave birth seven hours later. what do you think? i've learned men should not comment on things like this. > [ laughter ] >> that's probably smart. all women have been told to stay in shape during your pregnancy

but this sounds ridiculous and you know what? it wasn't the only marathon she did while pregnant. she did two with the baby. >> i'm all for fitness and the endorphin rush. take a day off. there will be other marathons, that's my thought but again, more power to her. >> we'll find out more about this and find out more details might change your minds. first of all the latest from kansas city, missouri, police return to the home where lisa irwin was last seen and they are searching the garage and a drainage ditch. are detectives any closer to finding a suspect? coming up we'll talk about where the police investigation is headed. learning more about the dramatic rescue of a family whose boat capsized off the coast of florida, forcing them to tread water for 20 hours. a 4-year-old girl was in this group and survived using a cooler as a makeshift lifeboat. the latest on that story coming

up as well. the new nbc news/marist poll out this morning. chuck todd joins us, good morning. >> good morning, ann. the republican presidential primary campaign may seem like a national contest sometimes but remember it's a state by state contest and while mitt romney is ahead, there are a lot of red flags. warming up for tonight's debate, mitt romney spent columbus day campaigning on virtually his home turf of new hampshire. >>. >> you'd look good in air force one. >> reporter: his new stand something underscored by the marist poll where he holds a lead over the rest of the field, 44%, nearly combined the total of the two closest rivals but in iowa they show romney neck in neck not with perry but with herman cain.

romney's challenge with iowa republicans mirrors his challenge with conservatives nationwide. in iowa, tea party supporters, half of all support caucus goers support cain over romney. another red flag for romney n iowa and new hampshire republican voters say electability and experience are less important than picking a candidate who shares their values and positions. >> the path we pursue will find it's the best one. >> reporter: this new ad from rick perry questioning romney's conservati conservative tributes. >> massachusetts law as the model for obama care. >> i believe with romney. >> reporter: even though the attack ad isn't airing on broadcast tv romney felt compelled to respond. >> you're going to find people will take what i've said and try and say something else. >> reporter: for her man cain tonight tests his staying power.

though he's never held public office he does have a public record, a talk show he hosted for three years, starting in early 2008. >> in the last two years, nearly two years of this hijacking by this ultraliberal president and this ultralibical congress -- >> reporter: president obama, who travels to yet another swing state today to sell his jobs plan, this time pennsylvania, has his work cut out for him in two other swing states. the new nbc/marist survey shows job approval ratings are upside down in iowa and new hampshire, two states he won by big margins in 2008. now the obama campaign is out this morning with a memo penned by david axelrod who is making the case that while you look at the president's job approval ratings don't forget congress has some bad ratings and maybe that will get republicans to support the president on that jobs bill, which debuts today.

matt? >> a senior adviser to president obama, david, good to see you. >> good morning, matt. >> numbers out of the latest nbc news/marist poll in the last couple of days, in new hampshire the president's approval rating is 38%. 53% of people disapprove of the job he's doing. you look in iowa, those numbers are 42% and 47%. considering these are the people who probably know the president best because he spent so much time in those two states, how worried are you about the numbers? >> first of all there's a long time until the election. the president is not focussed on the next election but what we need to do to create jobs right now. that's the debate we're having in washington. we have a tough economy so people out there are struggling but the election next year will be a choice between the president's policy, which is about rebuilding security for the middle class versus republican policies and you'll

see that on the stage tonight on the republican debate in new hampshire. these would build a bridge back to the recession, let wall street write their own rules, cut taxes for the wealthiest, let polluters have their way with our air or water. that's not going to grow jobs in the long-term. >> let's talk about jobs. the bill that's before the senate, $447 billion, and a key provision that was recently added by senate democrats is causing a problem, this is the 5.6% surtax on the wealthiest americans. is there any way that bill makes it out of the senate with that provision attached to it? >> this jobs bill should make it out of the senate. >> will it, with that provision? >> for sure we're going to get the vast majority of democratic votes. hopefully the republican senator also look out across the country and understand the economy is too weak. the question is are we going to put teachers back on the job, are we goinging to put construction workers back on the job, give a tax cut to every

family and help the economy get a jump-start and -- go ahead. >> paul ryan futs as "the president is running around the country campaigning on a bill he knows won't pass. he can't even get it out of the senate." so is this about creating jobs or is this about the president not minding at all the opportunity to force republicans once again to stand up publicly a year out from an election and side with the wealthiest americans? >> well, listen, if the republican congress would do their job there wouldn't be a political issue and that's our argument. we have to act and we have to act right now and none of the ideas you see tonight in new hampshire in the republican debate or most republicans here in congress would do anything to create jobs in the short term. we've got too many people out of work so we need to focus on not just the short term but long-term, building an economy based on long-term american values which is hard work and responsibility pays off and wall street and main street play by the same set of rules. >> let's talk about wall street.

we've got the occupy wall street movement that is either growing or morphing, depending on your point of view. these people are out there, and they're angry at wall street, the so-called fat cats, but you know what, david, they're also angry at democrats and the administration for not taking them on and doing anything about it. do democrats stand to take the biggest hit in the wake of these protests? >> well, i think what you're seeing in new york and other cities around the country is mirrored in what you're seeing in people's kitchens and living rooms across the country, a deep frustration about the unfairness in our economy. the president passed wall street reform and what that means is we'll have a more transparent financial system, taxpayer also no longer be on the hook to bail out large banks and consumers protected in terms of credit card rates and mortgage rates and hidden fees. >> those people out on the streets of new york and other places, david, they don't think enough has been done and those are the same people who put barack obama into the white house three years ago. so are you worried that --

they're not going to vote republican but are you worried they're going to stay home in 2012? >> we're not. we're going to have to work hard to get the people out we need to win. the wall street reform will be a fundamental choice here in washington and the campaign next year because all of the major republican presidential candidates, many republicans in congress want to unwind wall street reform. let's remember the economic crisis was caused for a lot of reasons but one fundamental reason was wall street was allowed to write too many of its own rules. what the republicans are saying, let's go back to the policies that led to the great recession. the president is saying we have to hold wall street accountable, make it more transparent. people concerned about our financial system, i think there's going to be a clear difference in this election next year. >> david plouffe coming to us from the white house this morning, thank you very much. i appreciate your time. >> thanks, matt. let's head over to the news desk now. natalie morales has a check of the other top stories. good morning to you. >> good morning to you. the trialor accused terror

underwear bomber begins in court. >> reporter: umar abdulmutallab decided to represent himself but having a lawyer make today's opening statement to the jury. seven minutes before flight 253 from amsterdam was due to land in detroit christmas might 2009 a nigerian man, umar abdulmutallab hoped to bring the plane down. investigators say he succeeded only in starting a fire, burning himself and charg an area next to his window seat. prosecutors will tell the jury when he was taken to the hospital that night for treatment of his purnz, abdulmutallab spoke freely to the fbi for nearly an hour, bragging he went to yemen four months earlier to train with al

qaeda and while in yemen, the government says, he made this martyrdom video for al qaeda. abdulmutallab decided to represent himself in court sending the judge handwritten motions. one says "muslims should only be ruled by the law of the koran." lawyers say he was given pain medication for his burns so the statements at the hospital should be disregarded because he was heavily sedated. abdulmutallab is 24, a fluent english speaker, by the way. it was this plot that caused the department of homeland security to use more full body scanners and those intrusive patdowns at airports nationwide. >> pete wil comliams in detroit thank you so much. the occupy wall street is heating up in more cities. 100 protesters refused to clear a restricted area and here in new york city the price tag has

hit $2 million as police work overtime to monitor the growing demonstrations. in the nation's capital, protesters have accepted a four-month extension to their protest permit. sharp gains on wall street monday bolstered by europe. mandy drury, can we expect more gains there today? >> you're absolutely right, natalie, the s&p 500 index has come off its biggest five-day rally since march 2009. if you had been invested in the last five days you would have made 9%. there are european issues and american companies start reporting third quarter results as of today starting off with the aluminum giant alcoa and lastly gas prices are still coming down but not as fast before, seeing the national average at $3.39 a gallon, only one penny below where we were a week ago. back to you. >> mandy drury at the new york stock exchange, thank you. disappointment for basketball fans as the nba's

first two weeks of games have been canceled. owners and players are deadlocked in a labor dispute that failed to meet a deadline monday. a total of 100 games will be lost as the lockout drags on. it was a drive-by anteloping that sent a mountain biker flying during a race in south africa. take a look. the territorial beast was guarding his turf. that had to hurt. thanks to his helmet the biker turns out fine. the animal however remains at large, probably partying with the deer. >> that is the one that got me. >> he tweeted that guy. >> he said go get him. >> get him! it worked on lauer. try it on this guy. >> where is tony cornheiser who doubted my story? there you go. >> who is his next victim? >> where the deer and the antelope play. >> exactly.

>> packs of armed and dangerous antelope out there right now. natalie thank you very much. i feel completely vindicated. >> don't antelope me, bro. [ laughter ] let's see what's going on. we have a low pressure system, it dropped a ton of rain in florida and now it's transferring its energy up along the southeastern atlantic coast, dumps a ton of rain over the next 72 hours including here in new york, on into the northeast. look at the rainfall amounts over the next 72 hours, talking anywhere from three to six inches of rain from buffalo down >> good morning. clouds could seem to building from the south. mostly into central maryland by the evening.

>> and that's your latest weather. ann? al, thank you, now to an extremely difficult situation for a woman who works in one of the most isolated areas in the world. she suffered a stroke at the south pole and is pleading to be rescued but her bosses say right now the mission would be too dangerous. nbc' anne thompson is here is details. >> good morning, ann. you know what makes the missions so dangerous are the temperatures which are now at around 70 degrees below zero and that turns jet fuel to jelly so rescues outside the warmer months are rare but this woman says her life depends on it. the remoteness and adventure that attracted rene nicole ducert threatens her recovery.

>> it gets less and less. >> the 50-year-old suffered a stroke in late suggest leaving this retired nuclear engineer to do simple subtraction and blurred vision. >> if you're watching satellite tv and the signal gets scrambled and you see mixed pixels here there and everywhere. >> the doctor at the south pole urge she be evacuated as soon as possible but the national foundation that funds the station and raytheon polar service that employees doucertte claimed the condition was not life-threatening and she was clinically stable. >> the statement is patently false. >> reporter: her attorney calls the decision unreasonable, insensitive and unethical. >> the standard operating procedure states if there is a risk associated with life, limb, eyesight or disability, they consider that to be an urgent

medical event. it's clear to us that they did not follow the protocol because it's expensive. >> reporter: the national science foundation in a statement to nbc news says it's trying to manage risk. "nsf must always balance the patient's condition with the possibility for injury or the loss of life of the patient, the flight crew and the personnel on the ground at the south pole against the potential benefits to the patient." raytheon adds "extremely cold temperatures and high winds make an extraction dangerous for all involved, passengers as well as crew, and such an extraction is considered only in life-threatening conditions." there have been dramatic rescues at the south pole, most nosably dr. gerri nielsen who biopsied and treated her own progressive breast cancer until she was rescued october 16st, 1999. dr. nielsen's cancer went into remission but came back.

she died in 2009. at this year, temperatures are getting warmer in antartica and regular flights should begin next month. she says she can't wait, she's already waited long enough. >> how does this move forward? sounds like they're nose to nose. >> it depends on the weather at this point, because they could get a cargo plane in there perhaps by the middle of this month and then they would put her on that cargo plane. the problem is, a cargo plane is unpressurized and the question is what would that do to her brain, if she has a blood clot, if there's some other problem in her brain. there's no mri, no ct scan so everybody's operating in the dark here and so she may have to wait until the pressurized planes can fly in and that's in november. >> something to watch. anne thompson, thank you so much this morning. at 7:19, once again here's matt. >> thank you very much. hank williams jr. is lashing out at the media, one week after the controversial comment he made about president obama that led es.

n to drop his monday night football anthem. savannah guthrie has more. >> williams is not going away quietly and put it all to muse which can a brand new song. ♪ this country should as hell going down the drain ♪ >> reporter: sound familiar? hank williams is back and firing back. ♪ united socialist states of america ♪ >> reporter: after parting ways with monday night football, the conservative country music star dropped by espn after comparing president obama to hitler on fox news hit the recording studio friday and stuck to his guns. ♪ so fox & friends wanna put me down, ask for my opinion ♪ ♪ then twist it all around >> reporter: it's been only a week since this controversial fox appearance. >> come on, it would be like hitler playing golf with netanyahu. >> reporter: which led espn pull

the plug from his iconic words for monday night football. >> are you ready for some football! >> reporter: hank had this warning for friends. ♪ you can keep fox amp& friendsd espn out of your home ♪ >> reporter: from a spoof on "saturday night live." >> telling him a political analyst -- >> don't give a baby a gun. president barack hitler will take it away. >> there he goes again. >> reporter: to a hot topic on "the view." >> are you calling the president of the united states hitler? she said that. he didn't mean to say it >> musicians do provac of it things, all of the football players and musicians -- >> reporter: hank appreciated whoopi's view writing "whoopi and joy understood what it i was

saying. who knows, whoopi may run for president and i'll be her vice president. now that will really stir it up." a political proposition that could really strike a chord. ♪ i'll keep the usa and y'all can keep the change ♪ >> if you want to download "keep the change" do it for free for a limited time on his website. just ahead dengtives search a drainage ditch behind the home where 10-month-old lisa irwin was last seen in the crib. we'll talk to the captain overseeing

coming up, the latest on the family foorsed to tread water for 20 hours after their boat capsized. >> plus the woman who ran a marathon 38 weeks pregnant, after your local news.

this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. a tsa security officer is suspended from his job after police pressed him on charges of child pornography. michael scott wilson is charged with possession and distribution following a search

of his home. this morning he is out on bail. that's get a check on the morning commute. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> good news on the west side. that accident is clear. delays stretch back to greenspring on the outer loop all the way towards edmondson. park heights and northern parkway, a crash coming in. if you are going to travel in sykesville, route 32 and old frederick road, we have a crash, another one in aberdeen involving a motorcycle at route 22 and paradise road. westbound 100, a crash at magothy bridge road. this is off to the sun, but the delays stretch back to approaching 198 all the way to the capital beltway. southbound have the all the way to the capital beltway. we will switch over to a quick live look before we go just to show you what it looks like on the west side at old court. those delays on place.

let's switch over to a live view of 95 at white marsh. those delays holding on from white marsh down to the split. now we go to ava. >> we see clouds in the sky and this is ahead of our chance for rain. it is just an isolated chance. better chance company to nine and even tomorrow there could be heavy rain showers in the area. we are stuck in the 60's tomorrow. heavy rain at times. by thursday, a slight chance for rain. i have 73. it is going to be cooler and a little bit breezy with the rain onth

♪ new york 7:30 on a tuesday morning, the 11th of october, 2011. i love that view, from the top of the rock here in rockefeller plaza looking out to the north and west over central park, and the hudson river and the leaves starting to turn in central park as we now take a view at plaza level and some of the nice people who gathered on this tuesday morning, still warmer temperatures than normal. that's going to be changing, though, in the next couple of days. we'll get out and say hi to these people in a couple of

minutes. inside studio 1a i'm matt lauer alongside ann curry. drama along the high seas, one woman died, several others forced to tread water for 20 hours. a 4-year-old girl owes her life to a cooler that floated by. we're live with details. >> dramatic story. also this morning coming up, former model carre otis out with a new memoir detailing her tumultuous marriage to mickey rourke. she was once accidentally shot by a gun rourke put in her purse she claims. also how she's found happiness now. one of the most talkable stories of the morning, an illinois woman who ran the chicago marathon 38 weeks pregnant. seven hours after finishing that race, all 26 miles, she was delivering a healthy baby girl. we'll get into that story. we begin this half hour with

the search for 10-month-old lisa irwin, one week since she was last seen in her crib and police seem no closer to finding her. nbc's peter alexander is there. >> reporter: good morning. it's been one full week since baby lisa disappeared. she will turn 11-month-old today and while her family should be celebrating her' still everyone searching for the missing girl and so are investigators who put new focus on a drainage ditch in the family's backyard. does the irwin's family's backyard hold secrets that could help solve the disappearance of baby lisa? investigators turned over rocks and pulling back thick brush. detectives also entered the family's garage looking for potential evidence. just hours earlier, lisa's father, jeremy irwin returned to the family's home but only long

enough to pick up the mail. neither he nor baby lisa's mother deborah bradley has spoken publicly. the family gave nbc these new photos lisa, whom they affectionately called pumpkin pie. taken two days before she vanished from her crib. in 19 years you've never seen a case like this? >> not that i have seen for. >> reporter: fbi agents have knocked on doors asking about a homeless man in his 20s last seen riding a red bicycle who may have done handyman work in the area. this weekend they tried to recreate how a kidnaper might have broken home in the middle of the night undetected. police say there are no suspects they're not ruling any one or anything out including whether lisa's family knows more about what happened to the 11-month-old. >> please, bring her home. >> reporter: last week kansas city police said the parents had stopped cooperating. >> they know the child. they were you know maybe one of

our best bets to help find this child. >> reporter: authorities say lisa's parents began cooperating once again this weekend but police have now subpoenaed raw video from local tv news stations of interviews with lisa's parents, family members and other friends. >> there was no witness to the abduction of lisa irwin. law enforcement always has to look closely at the people closest to the child, and that's uncomfortable for families but it's something you have to go through. >> reporter: abduction or not, authorities have been flooded with more than 300 tips, called in from at least 22 states from california to florida. >> what we're really looking for is specific information about a suspect that may have been at the house that night, about a suspect vehicle, anything suspicious that evening, during the time frame that we're looking at. >> reporter: anything to help bring baby lisa home. >> we hope america will remember is ultimately the story is about this little girl, and lisa irwin's still missing.

>> reporter: decades of statistics on infant abductions show that when a baby does disappear from a home, it is very rarely a kidnapping by a complete stranger, but if that is the case, it's a very, very high rate that they are found safely so ann, there is good reason today for hope. >> peter alexander, thank you. captain steve young is with the kansas city police department. captain young, good morning. >> good morning. >> with 300 tips from 22 states, why do you still say that the kansas city police department is "at the mercy of the next good idea"? >> well, as you know, i mean that's a whole lot of leads to have tried to track down and to have nothing come of that is unusual, but we try to not get too discouraged. we're happy to have any information we can and the detectives spent a lot of time sitting around as well, brainstorming trying to think of something that we haven't done yet and if something comes up

we're going to try it. >> this homeless man the fbi is, according to neighbors, asking people about, how much is this man the focus of the investigation? he has not been seen since lisa's disappearance. >> reporter: well honestly i don't have a great amount of detail on him himself, but we just know that he's somebody that frequents the area and we haven't talked to him yet. i don't want people to read a whole lot more into that and i don't want to get into explaining every lead we have. >> at this point, are investigators spending most of their time looking at the possibility that lisa was abducted or are they spending most of their time looking at the possibility that a family member might have been involved? >> we're spending our time looking at everything. our command post is still operational. we have detectives farmed in and out of it all day long, chasing leads as they come and getting a lot of help from local police departments and some federal agencies as well, so we're spending our time everywhere is

really the best answer i can give you. >> we understand the parents are again cooperating. you were the one who said that they weren't cooperating last week. has the investigation been hurt by the time lag there, by those days where they weren't talking, where you weren't communicating with them? >> well, i mean we don't really want to look backward and try to assess or guesstimate the damage. we're at the one-week mark and we're glad the parents are communicating with us again, no doubt about it, it's the best thing for the case. >> i want to ask one more question about the polygraph test, the mother in this case said she failed her polygraph test according to police. can you confirm that? >> well, again i'm not going to talk about the details of the case. they're free to talk about whatever they would like. >> are you going to have her take another polygraph? are you going to have the father of lisa take a polygraph test, as he said he would, on our

program? >> well, i think it's fair to assume that the detectives have, you know, some ideas of what they would like to do but i'm not going to open up that door to where i am confirming or denying every move the detectives make. >> what can you tell us then about the chances that you feel of finding lisa at this point, given where you are, a week after she disappeared? >> well, we know that the bottom line is, it's a 10-month-old. somebody had something to do with it. if it were a toddler there's the remote possibility that the child could have just walked away. that's not possible in this case, we're convinced, so we're happy to keep getting leads and tips that come in and we know that it just takes the one correct phone call or one right piece of information to really give this thing a head of steam so that's what we're hoping for. >> captain steve young, may you get that one tip. thank you so much, this morning. >> yeah, we're hoping to, thank you. >> and if you have any information in this case you're

asked to call the kansas city police. the number is 816-474-tips. that's 816-474-8477. now let's get a check of the weather from al. >> announcer: "today's weather" is brought to you by advil. make the switch to advil now. >> good morning, everybody. a little bit cloudy but not too bad. wow, where are you guys from? >> long island. >> long island, you came all the way in from long island! made that trip, oh, i don't believe you could make it even. good to see you guys. thanks for coming. let's check your weather, shall we? we'll show you out west it's rough. we got heavy rain coming in, pacific northwest, another storm bringing rain from seattle to eureka. check out the rainfall amounts anywhere from one to two inches of rain especially around the puget sound. as we check the rest of your weather today around the country, beautiful in the northeast, increasing clouds, the double barrel low making its way up the coast.

the heavy sunshine continues through the >> good morning. we have more clouds in the sky. temperatures are not as warm as they have been. >> and that's your latest weather. ann? >> al, thank you. coming up next the latest on a family including a 4-year-old girl who spent 20 hours treading water after a rogue wave capsized their boat. new details on a dramatic rescue. later, do you really need to shut off your electronic devices when your plane takes off and lands?

we're back now at 7:43 with one family's tragic and gruelling ordeal after their boat capsized four miles from shore. one woman died and several others including a 4-year-old girl survived clinging to the boat for 20 hours. kerry sanders is in marathon, florida, with details. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. it is a tragedy because one of the passengers did drown but also a story of triumph and a lot of it has to do not only with the boat that capsized but

because of a cooler like this. the 40 pound girl was able to hang on and at times get inside a cooler like this floating in very rough seas. these are the keys that draw so many novice boaters, calm seas, beautiful weather, but this past weekend was anything but. >> seas were probably five to eight foot, lots of thunderstorms. >> reporter: despite that threatening weather, eight people, family and friends from south florida, motored offshore on this private boat anyway, sticking with their planned columbus day weekend fishing trip. >> the wind started blowing 30, 35 miles an hour, gusting, it was raining and lightning. >> reporter: out near the old tennessee lighthouse, four miles from shore the florida fish and wildlife commission says a rogue wave swamped the back of their boat, submerging the stern. the weight of the water tossed everyone into the water.

investigators believe only three of the passengers were wearing life vests. the panicked passengers fought to keep their heads above the water. three of the women grabbed the 4-year-old girl, making all efforts to save if nobody else little fabiana. among the debris a three-foot cooler floating on the surface which became a lifeshift boat for fabiana, the three women clinging to its side. the three men did not know how to swim so they held onto them the boat. with them the 79-year-old matriarch, not wearing a life jacket. the elderly woman's son tried in vain to keep her head among the violent waves. within minutes he lost her head and she drowned. granddaughter was very upset. >> my aunts are not speaking

much about it, it's grandmother, their mom. you can tell they're sad. >> reporter: for the next 20 hours they treaded water, the two groups drifting farther and farther apart. fisherman david jensen says it was shear luck they spotted the men on the side of their capsized boat. >> they were very fortunate. they were lucky. i don't know how they -- they had to be strong willed is all i can say. >> for somebody to die at sea, it's sad. it's a sad moment, but i mean, there would have been nobody else out there nobody. >> reporter: jensen alerted the coast guard who spotted the others, now drifting seven miles away, exhausted, swollen after countless jellyfish stings, dehydrated but alive, including fabiana now wrapped in a life vest, wedged between her mother and that ice chest. >> it's difficult to find, to

spot a person in the water, the fact they were on a cooler and the cooler was higher above the water than they were definitely played into it and helped us locate them. >> reporter: lynette gonzalez says her 4-year-old niece, fabiana turned out perhaps it was youthfulness to be the cheerleader as she was hanging on to the cooler out there, she is the one who repeatedly told her mother reportedly that "we're gonna make it. they'll find us." matt? >> kerry sanders in florida for us this morning, thank you very much. up next the woman who gave birth seven hours after running in the chicago marathon. we'll hear from her and her doctor, right after this.

back now at 7:50g with a woman who competed in a march thob and gave birth seven hours later. natalie is here with details. >> good morning ann and guys. most people i don't think would

dream running 26.2 miles at all, let alone at more than 38 weeks pregnant. her new nickname, the marathon mother, 27-year-old amber miller, competed in the chicago marathon. >> i ran two, walked two, so i ran half, walked half. mom. >> something i've been doing for a really long time and i know what my body can handle. anything out of the ordinary, and i've been running marathons for many years. >> reporter: in fact, amber says she has run a total of eight marathons and the chicago fir marathon.

excellent shape and so these situations should be reviewed with their obs and physicians to make sure this kind of exercise would be appropriate for that level of pregnancy, and that particular mom. >> the race was definitely easier than the labor. >> meanwhile baby june is doing well, weighed a healthy 7 pounds 13 ounces. amber is feeling as you would expect you feel after giving birth but says she has no pain at all from running the ma are on this. mom and baby are doing well, that's the great news there. >> so running a 26-mile marathon essentially is much easier than giving birth, bottom line on the story. >> exactly. >> doing one after another has got to take a big toll. >> most doctors don't recommend a pregnant woman go and do this but she clearly had her doctor's

approval and experienced runner, had run many marathons as well. >> glad it went well. don't recommend it. >> they both could have crossed the finish line. this is one of the topics we'll be dealing with, with "today's" professionals, itching, at least donnie is, itching to discuss it in a moment.

>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. it is time for a check on your morning commute. here is sarah caldwell and traffic pulse 11. >> you may want to delay your departure this morning. the big delays around big area. on the west side, 8 miles per hour, that delay stretching down to reisterstown road. we have delays as well around park heights and northern parkway, where we have an accident. slow go on the j.f.x. southbound from the beltway down towards 28.

tapping the brakes as well on the inner loop as you make your way over towards the j.f.x. a new accident westbound i-70 approaching 32. further south, southbound crain highway and to cut road, watch for a crash. we are looking at it of the delay on southbound 95 heading towards the capital beltway on 198. speaking of 195, those delays begin just south of route 24, the edgewood and dollar exit, and they continue towards the 895 split -- average speeds right around 21 miles per hour, and a backup on the outer loop beginning around belair road. on the west side, you can see those delays. backlit, things are improving a bit on park heights. ava, over to you. >> a lot of clouds in the sky already but fortunately, it is try right now. -- dry right now.

we read about 784 in the city by 3:00 p.m. -- we reach about 74 in the city by 3:00 p.m. better chance for rain into the evening and night. rainshowers likely to arrive in the afternoon. as we look at the seven-day forecast real quick, we cool

8:00 now on a tuesday morning, the 11th of october, 2011. 67 degrees outside, slightly cooler start than yesterday, but boy, we're really enjoying the summer-like weather. i'm ann curry alongside matt lauer and al roker and this morning, we have a huge crowd. we have carre otis. >> she's written about her life and career, it is extremely revealing. she writes about her relationship also with actor mickey rourke claiming it was

filled with violence. she says at one point he held her down and actually put a gun to her head. we'll talk to her about that and also what it took for her to finally turn her life around, a dramatic change. on a different note "today's professionals" tackle hot topics including the topic the marathon mom. was donnie meditating? >> i think so. >> a researcher says we should touch elbows instead of shaking hands. hard to do a high five. >> it might be bruising. you could miss and it'd be ugly. toot our own horns? more hardware to add to the trophy case, there they are right there, two edward r.murow awards for the viral video "i got a feeling" and for the third consecutive nbc news honored for all-all -- not that, but overall

excellence. >> wow. >> that was a little late that tape roll and you got another award for timely tape rolls. >> i know. savannah did the awarding. nbc has the great overall award from the murrow is a great homage to steve kappas our president. >> you know what we say to our competitors, good night and good luck. >> i don't think that's what we say to our competitors. >> unnecessary fights. speaking of news from natalie at the news desk. >> good morning, ann, al and everyone. president obama heads to the senate for his jobs bill test vote. the commander in chief is speaking in pittsburgh today where his jobs counseling releases its report advising for a strong push to attract $1 trillion in foreign investments. the council also wants federal regulations streamlined to get

infrastructure projects under way quickly. when you fly and you're told to shut off your personal electronic devices have you ever wonder if your phone, laptop or pda can really interfere with the plane's operating systems? nbc's tom costello is at reagan international airport with hopefully a possible answer. >> reporter: the answer is maybe. we all have the devices, nobody wants to take a chance and that's why you keep them off below 10,000 and the transmitter must remain off. we all have them, blackberries, cell phones, iphones, ipads, ipods, laptops. >> all cellular phones need to be in the off position and properly stowed. >> reporter: can our small battery devices upset a modern aircraft's radios and flight instrumentation? to find out we came to seattle and a special boeing test center, engineers laid out a

variety of technology and within minutes the noise was showing up in red. >> there is a potential to cause interference to the radio on the plane. >> reporter: that's serious? >> that may or may not be. >> reporter: may or may not be, turns out this is a very tricky problem. that interference is coming from the video screens and internal computer chips, not the cell transmitt transmitters. turning on the cell phone creates more noise. investigators have never been able to find a concrete link between the pilots' complaints of instruments trouble and use of mobile devices. while an aircraft may have been designed and tested to tolerate a few handheld devices left on during takeoff and landing, what happens if several dozen were left on or several hundred? >> certainly one device in the right spot at the right time could cause interference and disruption, but when you have multiple devices, it does add up. >> there are certain electronic

devices -- >> reporter: that's why airlines require those devices be in the "off" position during takeoff and landing, the most critical moments of flight. on the off chance that somehow that interference might prove to be a problem at just the wrong moment. investigators in new zealand believe that a 2003 plane crash may, may have been caused by a pilot's own cell phone interfering with navigational equipment. that was never proven which is why they want everybody to not take any chances on this issue at all. >> always better to be safe than sorry, tom costello, thanks. for a look at "what's trending today" what has you talking online, joe the plumber is a top google search, became a symbol of the middle class man during the 2008 campaign. joe wants to do his duty in washington, filing for papers to run for an ohio congressional seat. after long delays, facebook users finally have an app that

lets them like, friend on their ipads. occupy wall street people are tweeting pictures of kanye west. some found it odd kanye didn't leave his glitz at home for the protests against greed. back outside to al with another check of your weather for you. al? >> announcer: "today's weather" is brought to you by the u.s. postal service. it's all in the mail. >> we god friends here. where are you from? >> sent sekentucky. >> san diego. >> yell out where you're from! let's check it out and see what's happening. and we've got allentown, pa, partly sunny, 74. nbc 10 checking it out. as we look ahead to the satellite, we've got radar superimposed on top and all of

the rain in the mid-atlantic states, heavy rain in florida over the last 24 hours, more rain in the pacific northwest, some heavy at times, one to three inches around puget sound. plenty of sunshine southwest into texas, sunny skies in interior sections of new york, look for a beautiful day throughout the northern plains.o >> good morning. clouds could seem to building from the south. mostly into central maryland by the evening. that's your latest weather. now ann has somebody, she wants to help the course of young love. >> that's right, because ben here has got a sign saying kelly

pope, will you go to homecoming with me? let's cheer for ben. yeah! hopefully kelly will say yes. good luck to you, ben, on that. coming up, you'll hear from "today's professionals" on everything from the marathon mom to why women are attracted to guys with deep voices and much more, right after this. a refrigerator has never been hacked. an online virus has never attacked a corkboard. ♪ give your customers the added feeling of security a printed statement or receipt provides... ...with mail. it's good for your business. ♪ and even better for your customers. ♪ for safe and secure ways to stay connected, visit usps.com/mail is that we're almost everywhere. thousands of banking centers. and so many atms. all over the place. this technology is very cool. deposit your checks right here

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♪ this serious business we're back at 8:11 with a lot of interesting topics to discuss with "today's professionals" star jones, donny deutsche and nancy snyderman. let's go over this 27-year-old woman out in chicago, ran the marathon, 38 weeks pregnant, had

a baby seven hours later. donny we start with you. you won't even exercise until after four hours after a meal. >> yes. >> because you're worried about cramping. >> thank god the woman is okay. my issue with it as a dad, why do you need to -- i don't care that a doctor said it's okay. nancy, i love you like a sister, you're an amazing doctor. >> a sister, really? >> i don't think it's fair -- do you need to run 20 -- do you need to take a one and a million chance anything can happen with the baby? to me i have a huge issue with it. i don't care even if the doctor says it's okay. >> she's more at risk of being in the car. she's in shape, run a marathon before, did a walk/run, over six hours. >> isn't it just common sense to say -- >> no. >> -- as a pregnant, my wife i would be upset. >> no concern at all. >> when did we become a society where we can interject our opinion between legal and ethical medical decisions? >> i'm sorry --

>> not legal ethical moral medical decisions. it should be between me and nancy. >> but why take a chance? >> it's like running with a baby in a water bed. she's fine. let's talk about a concept called red shirting, when parents hold their children back in kindergarten, don't start them until perhaps a year after what is traditionally the starting age. unfair advantage, good for the kids, bad for the kids? >> in california it's a norm to start kids later than on the east coast but it's for educational reasons that boys socially have a harder time adapting, you don't want your kid to be the last on the bus but for athletics it doesn't pan out. >> my sister faced this dilemma when she sent my oldest nephew to school. now he's a senior in high school. in the beginning he matured a little bit slower than the other children. >> it's different for boys and girl. every parent makes the decision. as a boy born at the end of the

year and to be the smallest athletically you're put at a disadvantage. for boys yes, for girls not so much. women were asked what would you rather have, a child with great manners or great grades? 77% said give me the kids with good manners. how do you feel? >> i've always said i would rather have a child in the middle of the pack. i don't need the brainiest in the classroom and certainly don't want the one always at the bottom of the heap but a child who has good manners, who can make eye contact, strong hand shake. >> star you're not snuure? you snarled. >> i want to you be smart and nice. i want to you be smart. i'm going to raise you to be nice. smart gets you in the door. >> you have a kid, 1 million iq, you look at him, manners is niceness. >> i never disagree with you.

i think manners gets you in the door. >> i agree. >> and good english. >> good for you. >> nice over smart, just that's -- >> nice and stupid, you'll be all right. >> nice and stupid. how about this one, a recent study that found that women are more attracted to men with deep -- let me do this again that women are more attracted to men with deep voices. what kind of voice do you find attractive? >> if you have peewee herman or george clooney, the primordial aspect how we're drawn to each other. >> the grunts of cavemen? >> james earl jones, that's why he's the voice of cnn, darth vader. he couldn't have a woosy little voice. >> i think women like manly men, the sensitive thing, it's one more example -- >> i agree with you. >> -- i have yet to meet the woman that wants the sensitive

guy. >> the '70s and '80s. >> we say we want sensitive. we really want somebody to be like yeah, baby, i got you, very serious. >> take charge. >> there's a lot more to a guy in his manliness than his voice. >> it's demonstrative. >> but a lisp and a high voice. >> when the phone call comes and the eye contact comes the voice matters. last one, important topic, right up my alley. a researcher at stanford university says we should consider instead of shaking hands and spreading germs, touching elbows. >> aren't you happy today? >> i love this, vindicated twice, the deer hitting the biker and now this. what do you think? >> you know my ex-boss, mr. trump, does not particularly like the handshake. he will do it, but he doesn't prefer to do it. i don't like it when people come over to me while you're eating and they want to shake your hand. >> that's the way to get a cold or influenza, the best way is to

shake someone's hands. this is where all of our germs are. >> you'd be in favor of this social experiment of touching elbows? >> you walk into the corner office for your job, you better extend your hand. >> let's do a big one, get it going, we're the trend-setters, "today's professionals" on the count of three, one, two, three, how are you doing? >> you're going to live to regret that piece of video, i can promise you that. star, donny, nancy, thank you very much. oh, yeah, right. good, good. >> now you look like a wuss. more in the next hour. model carre otis speaks out about her tumultuous marriage to mickey rourke and getting her life back on track, right after this.

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♪ she's got the look ♪ she's got the look ♪ she's got the look former model carre otis was a regular in fashion magazines and print ads in the late 1980s and became a household name after staring in the movie "wild orchid" with mickie rourke. they'd later marry and share a tumultuous 9/11 year relationship. a new memoir "carrie otis, beauty disrupted." good morning. >> good morning. >> why are you wanting to reveal so much about your marriage to mickey rourke? >> a huge motivation is that i have two little girls who will someday be able to google me and it felt important and part of my responsibility to set the story straight and have a memoir that is from my side and my words and hoped to offer some benefit to others who have gone through similar circumstances.

>> it's pretty tough stuff for any children. you hope you wouldn't have them read it. "he tackled me, forcing my face into the carpet. a second later i felt something cold against my cheek. it was his gun." describe your state of mind during those years. >> confused, frightened, confused, really lost at that point, and searching, you know, for which way to go and how to make my life better. >> you know, we reached out to mickey rourke for a comment about this and he did not want to comment, but in 2009 he did say "when i married carre, that was all over the public eye. her agent used a lot of our drama to try to further her career, allegations were made about domestic abuse that were not true. you do the crime you do the time but if you didn't do the last thing you'll do is plead guilty. it haurt my soul and pride, a

secret kind of hurt, humiliation. we're both damaged goods." you did have your share of problems. >> absolutely. >> growing up when you were younger. >> absolutely and that is all documented in the book, i'm forthcoming about the challenges i went through and the challenges in the modeling industry and there's never really a blame towards him. it's really you know, investigating the psychology of how we get into certain situations. >> you were drinking by the age of 12. you had a very rough childhood. you left school early and entered the modeling industry and about the modeling industry, you write that "drugs, especially cocaine use, were prevalent." in fact you say "cocaine was the secret to model weight management. cocaine became my one friend." that's, first of all, sad. >> very sad. >> very sad, and second of all, it also talks about how prevalent it might have been. how would you describe it? >> in my experience in the modeling industry and not to say other models have the exact same

experience but that was mine and you have to remember, it was the '90s, and there was so much decadence going on and so much excess all across the board. so it wasn't just isolated in the modeling industry but it was certainly my experience there. >> you came to a very low point, so low that you were think being suicide. you attempted it when you overdosed on sleeping pills. so what saved you, carre otis? >> i think that so many teens and young kids get themselves boxed in and really think that moment lasts forever and it's impermanent. for me it was my buddhist path, it was my path of spirituality that ultimately really helped me find my way home and into the amazing life that i have today with my family. >> amazing life with two little girls. >> two beautiful daughters, amazing husband. >> ages 3 and 4. >> yeah, it's been busy. it's been great. >> how do you skroo i that tran describe that transition? for people suffering and listening, what is it you learned in your spiritual

openness? >> there's a lot of work that i put in, and a lot of therapy, and a lot of discipline towards my practice of sort of cultivating my mind and realizing that i had a responsibility and choices to make my life something different so i was hugely fortunate in that sense that i had teachers and mentors and you know, and was guided along a path. >> but along that way, after all you thought you'd put behind you, then you discovered that there was a legacy from all the eating disorders that you had. >> yes. >> because you discovered because of your anorexia, you had three holes in your heart. >> that's right. you know the raf ishz vishes of anorexia are very real and a lot of people suffer from it. i was fortunate and it was a wake-up call to make some changes and to really get healthy. it was a great wake-up call. >> you're saying really in this book that is deep, as deep down

as your suffering went there can be a happy ending, even after serious drug use and anorexia. >> there can be a huge transformation in one's life and i'm a happy testament to >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. let's get a final check of the morning commute with sarah caldwell. >> we enjoyed a quiet ride yesterday. it was columbus day. now we are back to reality with accidents and big delays. we still have an accident at 32, and those delays stretch was 39. 15 miles per hour on average from reisterstown to edmondson. inner loop delays as well as you make your approach to the j.f.x.

j.f.x. southbound backed up on the beltway down to 28. on 795. putty hill road and harford road, watch for an accident. 23 miles per hour on southbound 95 from 24 to the 895 split. you want to let out on the north side, slow-poke around belair road. southbound green highway and to cut road, watch for accident southbound delays from 97 down to 100. on 295, looking at a backup. that continues from 195 all the way to 32. here's a quick live look outside. this the pace of things on the west side. a lot going on on the northwest corner. live view of traffic in the area of 95. the north side is looking at delays in both directions. still well for all these bills are out. -- still well for all of these delays to filter out. >> fortunately for commuters,

the rain has not started just yet. rainshowers will begin in the southern tier of the state by the early afternoon. those will continue to head north. the happiest, tonight through tomorrow as well. -- the heaviest of the grant comes in tonight for tomorrow as well. cool and dry into the weekend. >> another

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we're back now, 8:30 on a tuesday morning, the 11th day of october, 2011. still a pretty day here in new york city, mild temperatures, about 66 degrees. some crowlouds rolling in but

that's all right, it's still pleasant. >> and getting kelly to go out with ben for a homecoming. >> we'll bring you up to date when it happens. >> putting a little pressure on kelly. i'm matt lauer along with ann curry, natalie morales and al roker. coming up, the changing role of marriage in america. >> an increasing number of women, ages 30, 40 and 50 are not getting married, choosing to stay single. why is this happening in what's causing some of the women's choices? we'll get to the bottom of it, wonderful article came out in "atlantic" magazine. "maxim" magazine conducted a survey and chose the five sexiest female chefs on television. who won number one? >> i already know. >> paula dean? >> paula dean! number one! >> what's up?

>> i swear -- >> yes! >> i swear, beating out our own gianna de laurentiis. >> anyone who gives me a biscuit gets my vote. >> she's going to make southern fried chicken, sexiest female chef on tv. >> i agree with that completely. also endangered animals and what is being done to save them. cute little tiger. oh! >> oh! >> and it gets older and tears your head off. >> tears you apart. after the program i'll be headed down to washington, d.c., and the white house to help, to talk with the first lady michelle obama about her let's move initiative to keep kids healthy and joined by a group of kids in d.c. and here on the plaza tomorrow morning to try to break a guinness world record. >> all right. >> great, that's cool. before do you that, though, and fly off, will you give

>> good morning. we have more clouds in the sky. temperatures are not as warm as they have been. and that's your latest weather. coming up, single by choice, why women are saying no to marriage. why women are saying no to marriage. first this is "today" on nbc.

woman: working in public relations is not for the faint of heart. i love what i do, i enjoy the work, but it's a very hectic pace. ♪ don't want to miss a thing strayer university met my needs in terms of my family, my work/life balance. the fact that leading companies are hiring strayer graduates is impressive, but it's not surprising. these companies want us so badly. [ laughs ] i'm felicia blow, and i earned my m.b.a. from strayer university. back now at 8:35 with a new spin on romance, dating and what some are calling the end of traditional marriage. "today" national correspondent

jenna wolfe has details. good morning. >> good morning to you, ann. decades ago there were a lot of women who actually married young, had children, and took care of the house while their husbands brought home the paycheck. a lot's changed since then and a new report says more women are choosing to be single and loving every minute of it. ♪ all the single ladies, all the single ladies, all the single ladies ♪ >> reporter: in hollywood single celebrities seem to lead bold, powerful and glamorous lives but what about real women, single in their 30s, 40s and beyond? >> i'm single. i'm happy. my life is filled with love and friends and family and good work that i love. >> reporter: meet maria magenti, a successful screen writer in her 40s splitting time between los angeles and new york. maria is single, by choice. >> my identity is not predicated on being in a relationship and joy is not predicated on being

in a relationship, so i have a good identity and i have a lot of joy in my life. >> reporter: marie is not alone. in this month's issue of "the atlantic" author and single woman kate bolik explores the changing role of marriage in today's society. she writes "it's time to embrace new ideas about romance and family and acknowledge the end of traditional marriage as societiest highest ideal." maria agrees. >> i'm not bothered by being single because i don't consider that a negative fate. >> reporter: so why are more women choosing to be single? according to kate bolik, a major factor is the rise of women in the workplace, "as women have climbed ever higher, men have been falling behind." so instead of marrying down, women choose to stay single and successful. >> i wanted to be a writer. i wanted to have freedom. i've wanted to live all over the world and that's what i've ne.

>> reporter: and experts agree, sarah brokaw is a therapist and author of "fortytude, choosing to make the next decades the best years of your life." >> i have not been married, don't have kids and sit back what have i accomplished if i did not reach the traditional milestones? the way i look at accomplishment is to have a real sense of curiosity about life. ♪ i'm every woman >> reporter: for now maria and her single friends plan to enjoy life and if love comes along, well, who kneows. >> if there's any man who can keep up with me and is a gutsy loving man, i'd love to meet him. >> research shows that marriage is declining in the united states, according to the census bureau. in 2010, 50% of the adult population was single compared to 33% back in 1950. ann? >> all right, jenna wolfe, thank you so much. as you just saw kate bolik wrote

her own story about being single. dr. janet taylor is a psychiatrist. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> married house holds in america dropped to a record low of 48% in 2010, according to the census bureau and today 50% of the adult population is single compared to with 33% in 1950. why according to your research is marriage on the decline, kate? >> well, as men have been declining, women have been ascending. >> what do you mean declining? >> well, employment rates are down. they're not as educated as women are. women are outearning men in terms of college degrees and post graduate degrees and meanwhile women have more earning power than they ever have before so we are about to reach economic gender parity which radically changes her arrangements and romantic arrangements. >> changes what we look at in terms of how we look at men, no

longer looking at men to support us. >> exactly. >> looking at men for? >> today marriage is an option. it's not a necessity the way that it was once and that's revolutionary >> this is true in your own life? >> yes, yes. i'm single. i'm 39. i always thought i would get married because that's what people do and then somewhere in my early to mid-30s i realized not only was i not married but that i didn't mind, that i had chosen that way, and that i loved my life the way that it is. it was something i hadn't envisioned for myself, but then here i am living it and loving it. >> so you're seeing this as an opportunity? >> yes. >> it is. >> yes. yes, for myself or for women in general? >> for women in general? >> i think it's an opportunity for women in general and also for marriage as an institution, that women in general have more choices than ever before. they don't have to get married. they don't have to be with someone they don't want to be with. they don't have to make compromises and the way that changes marriage is we're marrying later. that's happening statistically.

we're more ready for marriage. we're choosing marriage pause we want it to be, we want to be with someone we want to be with rather than having to. >> we're also, if this is really true then we're choosing it with a lot of heavy emotional struggle because you know first comes love, then comes marriage, then comes the baby with the baby carriage, that's what we've been taught, the song we've been singing. >> that's the old paradigm. more women are choosing is with emotional contentment because choice is a key word, it confers control and confers saying i'm not going to -- i'm not going to be bothered by my circumstances. i'm going to take action and have stronl social networks and feel happy about the choices i have as a woman who works and can take care of family if you choose to. being single doesn't have to be a deficit. it's a choice that many women are thriving as kate's article pointed out. >> they're not as concerned about the idea of security in the end or being alone, which is another big issue that people seem to have. what are your thoughts about

that? >> yeah, the fact that i can provide my own security is really important and as far as being alone goes, i don't see myself any more alone than someone who is married. i have strong friend networks, strong family networks that will continue to strengthen through time. >> it's not a knock against marriage. >> right. >> it's saying if you are single that it doesn't have to be something that is looked upon so negatively and more importantly that has to come from you yourself and you look at how you've attained and you look at the choices you have made and saying i'm happy and there'at's okay. >> some people are going to feel better about being single. >> exactly. >> george clooney was right, is right. kate balick and dr. janet taylor thank you very much. come up the sexy paula dean shares

requested . >> today's kitchen" is brought to you by maxwell house, good to the last drop. >> what's for dinner, classic southern fried dinner. paula dean says fried chicken is among life's greatest accomplishments. "paula deen's southern cooking bible" welcome back. >> matt, great to be with you darling. >> in addition to "maxim" magazine calling you tv's sexiest female chef, when it came time to put your picture, they just put a stick of butter, i swear. >> i know! >> just a picture of a stick of butter. >> i hope it was salted. >> make me some fried chicken. classic dish in your household? >> there's your piece. >> i love the thighs. >> i do, too. that's where it is. >> you're going to season the chicken, season before you dip it in two separate bowls. >> i would probably season this in the morning for a dinner meal. >> okay. >> because you want it to soak

up all those flavors. >> once you seasoned it, two separate bowls here, egg and flour. >> egg and flour. >> that's it. >> that's it. this is the basic southern recipe. of course at the restaurant we add hot sauce to this. >> okay. >> so there's different ways you can do it but this is your standard, when you think of the preacher coming over for sunday dinner, this is the way it's done. so we're just going to roll that around in there, matt. >> all right. >> then we're going to drain the egg off. >> i didn't drain enough egg. is that what you're telling me? >> you're doing so nice nasty. >> nice nasty? >> yes, i'm going to do it this way. >> you've got a hot frying pan over here. you use shortening or oil? >> i use peanut oil because it has a less resistance to burn. now i'm going to put my dark pieces in first. >> why is that? >> because they take the longest to cook.

>> and the white will dry out if you put it in at the same time? >> right. we're going in with our thighs and legs first. they'll take about 12 to 14 minutes, and then we will add our white. >> you like, is your favorite fried chicken crispy on the outside, very juicy on the inside? >> yes. >> the crispier the better. >> i like it crispy. >> i love when i bite into it i want to hear the crunch. >> yes, i do, too, and hopefully this is going to be very, very crunchy. i especially like my wings crunchy. because it's got a lot of skin on it, and i don't like any soft skin. >> you know what? that's, really turns me off with fried chicken when you bite into a soggy piece of skin. >> i don't like that. >> how long is that going to cook? here. >> the dark -- you're going to use the sink, go ahead. >> let me use the sink because this is gooey. >> the dark piece is going to cook how long?

>> 12 to 14 minutes and the white pieces about 10 to 12. >> the meal we're making tonight is not only southern fried chicken, a classic dish but also with my second favorite come ford food, mashed potatoes. you do buttermilk. why do you like buttermilk in recipes? >> it gives it a little tang, just a little bite. [ laughter ] >> turning into the sexiest chef on tv and you start flirting with everybody. >> you want to mash those and i'm actually going to turn if i can figure this out. >> what are you doing? >> i was going to turn it up? ooh, look. now here's a trick that i want to tell you about. somebody had accidentally turned our grease down. now you want your grease hot. you want it at 350 degrees, and i always recommend, and this is just something i've learned over the years of cooking, you want to pull your chicken out of the

refrigerator and let it kind of get to room temperature, because if it's straight out of the ice box and ice cold your temperature is going to drop. that's going to give you soggy chicken. >> someone will lose their job over that i promise you. >> yes. we will find them. >> we're not going to tolerate that. i have mashed the butter into the potatpotatoes. >> no you have not. >> well i started. what kind of potatoes? >> idahos. no, darling, do the buttermilk first. there you go, mash that buttermilk. come on. >> do you have to use a hand masher? >> do it like you mean it. there you go. you got the fist action going now. put a little pepper. okay >> that's this petter, right? what is that? that's nutmeg. >> yeah, a little nutmeg i forgot. >> it's your recipe. >> all right, a little salt. >> uh-huh. what about this extra butter here? >> wait, yeah, that goes in.

but i haadd the butter lost. these have gotten a little cold but if this happens to you, let me tell you a great way to keep your potatoes hot while you're waiting. >> i know. i know where this is going. i know all about keeping my potatoes hot. >> i make you nervous, don't? i. >> yes, you do. oh look, there's chocolate cake as well. >> no, you're not changing the subject. >> i love you. >> i love you. >> this is what the potatoes look like finished. you drizzled extra butter on those just for me. >> yes. >> you can put these in a pot over boiling water, and these will stay nice and hot until you whistle for your guests. >> great, great dinner. congratulations on the new book. >> thank you. >> and on being the sexiest female chef on tv, paula deen will be back later on in the

morning with kathie lee and hoda. >> i'll be with the girls. up next, animals being brought back from the brink. up next, animals being brought back from the brink. first this is "today" on nbc. complete this merger, and present to the board, sink your teeth into some big n' toasty if you understand. good. you've got spunk. a big day calls for the big n' toasty. wrap your hands around fried eggs, cherrywood smoked bacon, and cheese on texas toast. america runs on dunkin'.

♪ jungle love, its it's driving me mad, making me crazy, crazy ♪ back now today's "call of the wild" with more than 60,000 animals cared for at the parks of sea world and busch gardens,

200 endangered and threatened species, animal ambassador julie scardina here with her friends. good morning. >> good morning. >> we are looking at a beautiful live tiger cub. tigers are some serious trouble, three subspecies are already extinct? >> already extinct. six other subspecies, one of them the south china is basically considered extinct in the wild and the rest of them know if you added up the rest of the tigers in the wild about 3,500 animals, individuals, probably less people standing outside right now. >> it's not just we're destroying their habitat, in some cases we're hunting their prey so they're losing their food sources. >> exactly right. out in the wild it is difficult enough to survive which is what a lot of people also don't understand, how difficult it is for a wild animal to have to hunt every day. they can't go to the grocery store. they're basically having to find enough prey. when people are hunting their prey out, how do they find their prey and their habitat is shrinking as well. it's not like they can go

someplace else and find more. >> there is something people can do involved, a stamp involved. look at those paws. >> can we touch him? >> yes you can. come around to this side. don't put your hand in the mouth. that way we'll keep the mouth busy. they're stronger than you think even though it's a 3 1/2-month-old cub but these animals need help out in the wild. one thing people can do is buy a u.s. postal stamp supporting an endangered species. i think you might have a picture of it, it's got a tiger on the stamp itself. sea world supports anti-poaching, habitat protection and education. people are going out and actually killing these animals for their skin and for their body parts. >> good thing you've got that tiger by the tail. next a black and white ruffled lemur, also spectacular. >> this is just an incredible animal. this is wataka. >> a primate from madagascar.

>> a very primitive type of primate, a black and white ruffled lemur. they have incredible hands. this is a critically endangered species. let me show you something here, they use these hands. come on. they can hang by even the back feet as you can see how that great grip is on them as well. >> why is it endangers habitat? >> again, habitat loss. 90% of madagascar has been deforested, not just because of agriculture but cutting down the forest to sell the wood so not buying tropical hardwoods helps the animals around the world and making sure you don't buy -- >> teak, rosewood or mahogany. we want to get to the success story, because we've got a bald eagle which is called a bald eagle even though he's got feathers on his head.

he has been saved from extinction. >> i'm going to move to this side. >> come on, matt. i had bird on my hand the last time i had this. >> we won't let that happen. maddie was rescued out of her nest in florida. the florida sea park was able to take her, because she wasn't able to be rereleased baaing into the wild. bald eagles numbers recovered from less than 500 pairs back in the '60s and '70s. >> we have to save them. >> and we can. question. >> back after this. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. a tsa security officer is charged with possession and

distribution of child pornography following a raid on his perry hall home. michael scott wilson has been suspended from his security position. authorities sa

>> plenty of clouds in the sky. rain chance is moving to southern maryland by the afternoon and get into the central appear later in the day. heavier rain arrives tonight and lasts tomorrow. cooler temperatures into the weekend.