good morning. upswing. the dow surges nearly 500 points, the biggest one-day gain in nearly two and a half years. what's behind the rally and how long will it last? "today" exclusive ann curry talks to vice president joe biden in baghdad as the last u.s. troops in iraq prepare to leave, and he gets emotional as he reflects on his own son's return from a year of service there. and rocking around the christmas tree. >> three, two, one! >> the rockefeller center tree set aglow, a sure sign the

holiday season is in full swing today, thursday, december 1st, holiday season is in full swing today, thursday, december 1st, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on a thursday morning and isn't she beautiful? take a look at the rockefeller center christmas tree as we have stepped out to the channel gardens on this chilly thursday morning to admire her in all her glory. i'm matt lauer with savannah guthrie and mr. al roker. ann is on assignment. you guys did the honors last night lighting that tree with 250,000 of your closest friends. >> exactly. >> absolutely. >> we slept right under the tree to get here in time for the show this morning. it is beautiful. al, you've done this so many years. this was my first time. it was absolutely amazing.

>> you never get tired of that thrill when the lights go on for the first time. >> it's beautiful. if you look back here, savannah, if you could do this for one second you look like one of the angels here. >> what's come over you? >> it's the cold apparently. >> i know. >> by the way -- how about the good news on wall street? >> wow. >> things definitely looking brighter. >> 490 points on wednesday, good news from the central banks as they take action to alleviate some of the fallout from the european debt crisis. some good jobs numbers. here in the united states and of course holiday shopping sales going pretty well. jim cramer is going to stop by the studio in a couple minutes to talk about the state of the economy. >> okay. if you do have a little extra money to spend these holidays or a lot of extra money we have an idea. elizabeth taylor's beautiful collection of dazzling jewels, memorabilia, wedding dresses, outfits, it's all going up for auction and i'm going to walk down the block in a few minutes and check out this collection. there are really pretty things.

>> kind of funny when you say wedding dresses. >> exactly. >> i wasn't going to say it. holiday spirit, al. >> we have a lot to get to. let's head inside to natalie morales standing by at the news desk with a look at the headlines. good morning, everyone. well, as matt mentioned investors are hoping for another grand slam on wall street today after the dow had its best day since march of 2009 on wednesday closing above 12,000 points. the nearly 500-point surge was touched off when major central banks agreed to make dollar loans cheaper for european banks in a bid to prevent the eurozone debt crisis from spreading. the white house bid of one-time front runner herman cain is now apparently in the hands of his wife. the gop presidential hopeful has come under fire following a georgia woman's allegation that she engaged in a 13-year extra marital affair with cain. the republican candidate says he has not seen his wife since the charge surfaced and says the accusation has taken an emotional toll on her. cain says he'll decide whether or not to abandon his run for

office within days but only after he meets with his wife on friday. we'll have much more on both of those stories in this half hour. the world's top selling drug of all time will now be available in a generic version. pfizer lost u.s. patent protection over the drug lipitor wednesday and in an 11th hour decision last night the u.s. food and drug administration granted indian company rambaxi the approval to sell a generic version. lipitor generated great sales in the past year alone. wild santa ana winds are slamming california today with gusts up to 80 miles per hour possible in some areas today and tomorrow. wednesday night scattered power outages left los angeles international airport in the dark for about an hour causing flight diversions and delays there. and the nominations are in for music's biggest night as british singer adele swept up six grammy nods and kanye west snapped up a total of seven. other nominees include rihanna

and who else? lady gaga. this will be the third year in a row gaga has gotten a nomination for album of the year. this guy is going to need a bigger boat. a tourist caught this great white shark circling his fishing boat off the coast of north carolina. the great white apparently even slammed the boat with its tail at one point. he said he knew something was fishy when everything was biting at first and then suddenly nothing was biting the bait at all. that is huge! i'd be running as fast as i could away from that. >> need a bigger boat! back out to savannah and al. >> classic we're going to need a bigger boat situation. natalie, thank you so much. how about a check of the weather? >> all righty. out west we've been having big problems with the santa ana winds and we're going to continue that for the second day. low pressure in the southwest. high pressure up in the northwest between the two you see those lines. that's the pressure gradient. winds squeezed through there so we have high wind warnings until

noon friday. gusts of 60 miles per hour in the canyons and passes all the way down to san diego where they got wind advisories and it goes as far north as san jose and san francisco with wind advisories until thursday, until this afternoon at 6:00 with wind gusts of 60 miles to 50 miles per hour. airport delays are going to be extensive along the coast and then we got mountain snows in the rockies anywhere from another 4 to 6 inches of snow, >> good morning. it is a chilly start. we will see plenty of sunshine today. temperatures are right around average,

that's your latest weather. matt? >> thank you very much. it was a banner day on wall street. the dow soared on wednesday closing up 490 points, the largest single-day gain since march of 2009. jim cramer is the host of cnbc's "mad money." good to see you. good morning. let's go through the laundry list. up 490 points, closes over 12,000, the nasdaq and the s&p both up about 4%. why were investors so happy? >> we were about three things. first around 5:00 in the morning china cut its interest rates, the equivalent of letting the banks lend more. second we come in and there is coordinated action by many of the great powers to be able to help europe. and then we're hiring, matt. we got a survey that showed real hiring. >> when you talk about this coordinated effort by central banks to help europe, this was not a fix of the debt crisis. they didn't do anything to alleviate the crisis. what they did, and this comes from the bank of japan, the step is meant to buy time for european countries to proceed with their fiscal and economic

reform. so not a fix but a good sign. >> totally true. what happened is there were some major banks in europe that apparently were far worse off than we thought. that's why this emergency action. why? because they own a lot of this debt issued by these countries. unless we fix the debt problem with these major countries we're going right back down. >> the other reason you talked about, the job picture here in the united states, private companies created about 100,000 more jobs than the analysts had expected in the month of november. but it makes you think, are these temporary seasonal holiday jobs? are they going to stick around after the first of the year? >> entirely possible some of them are. look, i'm not going to look through some of this news. we definitely have more people being employed. we'll know more tomorrow when we get the payroll numbers. >> okay. you just beat me. what is the next big indicator you want to see that is going to tell you whether this economy is moving in the right direction or is going to face more volatility? >> two things. we got to see how many people are hired from the labor department but second we'll get another read on how christmas

sales or holiday sales are. this is the most important thing of all. retail is what dominates this country. if it's as strong as it was last week, i'll tell you that our country is much better. >> it would signal the fact that consumer confidence is on the rise if they're out there spending this holiday season. >> that can offset how bad it is in europe. >> all right. jim cramer, thank you very much. good to see you. a reminder you can catch jim on "mad money" week nights 6:00 and 11:00 eastern time on cnbc. it's now nine minutes after the hour. here is savannah. thanks. now to politics and the presidential race. the republican front-runners are trading jabs as herman cain tries to rally support in the states to stay in the race. chuck todd is nbc's chief white house correspondent. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. despite all the talk about herman cain reassessing his campaign following the latest allegations of infidelity cain is showing no signs he is about to drop out of the race, and unless his family is pressuring him to do it there may not be much incentive for him to get out. >> these stupid people are

ruining america. >> reporter: with his fading campaign in jeopardy herman cain is defiant oddly choosing to campaign in ohio wednesday, a state whose primary is seven months away. cain told supporters the allegations were a conspiracy. >> they're attacking my character, my reputation, and my name in order to try and bring me down. >> reporter: cain told fox news he'll decide whether to stay in the race by next week, acknowledging the accusations of infidelity and sexual harassment have taken their toll. >> it is constantly weighing on me and my family, especially my family, because it continues to stir in the news. >> reporter: later, in new hampshire, cain spoke about his wife, gloria. >> i have talked to my wife many times since monday about this situation. i have not talked to her face to face. that's what i said. we have had many lengthy conversations. this is another reason why i am not going to make a decision until after we talk face to

face. >> reporter: still, cain's acting like he's staying in the race. the campaign unveiled this new tv ad set to debut friday in iowa. >> if you make me america's ceo we the people will take this country back. >> reporter: in iowa, another former top tier candidate, michele bachmann, attracted unwanted attention with these comments on iran. >> you may have heard that there is a break-in at the british embassy and the british had to pull their people out. that's exactly what i would do. we wouldn't have an american embassy in iran. i wouldn't allow that to be there. >> reporter: bachmann's campaign tells nbc news she is fully aware there is no american embassy in iran, that she meant the british did the right thing shutting theirs. meanwhile, the race between current cofront-runners mitt romney and newt gingrich is heating up. romney is up with his first serious tv ad, reintroducing himself to new hampshire voters. >> i spent my life in the private sector. i've competed with companies around the world. i've learned something about how it is that economies grow. >> reporter: gingrich, who

refers to romney as a great manager, says his own conservative credentials make him better equipped to take on president obama. >> i think the person who is able to debate obama and draw a sharp and defined contrast has an enormous advantage. i don't think you go to the middle. you bring the middle to you. >> reporter: republican power brokers seem increasingly comfortable if it's these two candidates making it into the finals for the republican nomination. >> mitt romney understands business and job creation. newt gingrich understands government. those are two very important strengths. >> now the gingrich resurgence campaign is having growing pains. they let a few things slip through the cracks which can happen with little staff. he failed to file for the missouri primary, a nonbinding primary, only a thousand dollars filing fee. every other candidate is on it. he doesn't have a full delegate slate in new hampshire. none of them are fatal blunders but symbolic of an organizational issue potentially. meanwhile, take a look at this

moment from president obama on the noncampaign campaign trail in scranton, pennsylvania yesterday, working a rope line. a woman put a scare into the secret service when she was a little too enthusiastic trying to get his attention, grabbing at his bicep. the president kept smiling and did eventually loosen her grip. savannah? >> all right. nbc's chuck todd with the political headlines from washington. thanks. it is now 7:13. here's matt. thank you. vice president joe biden is wrapping up his final visit to iraq before the u.s. military withdrawal at the end of this year. ann traveled to baghdad with the vice president and sat down with him for an exclusive interview. >> reporter: how secure can iraq really be when you, as a vice president, still must arrive under the cloak of darkness, under heavy security? >> there still are concerns here in iraq but if you take a look at it, ann, violence is down to an all-time low, all the way back to 2002.

we're in a situation where it's been that way for the last year and a half, but there are still the one-off jobs that can occur. >> there was one just this morning. >> yes. >> car bomb with casualties. >> right. and, you know, also there are car bombs in europe. there are car bombs throughout the middle east. there's car bombs -- i mean, it is -- but the idea that there is a sufficient capacity to bring down this government, to fundamentally alter this democratic process that's under way, that no longer exists. >> reporter: do you worry that in the rush to fulfill a campaign promise, the obama administration is pulling out of iraq too soon? >> this is no rush, ann. eight years. this is no rush. over 4,500 dead, 30,000 wounded. this is no rush. it's three years since we took office almost. we've done this in a way that no one thought could be done.

144,000 troops when we took office. now in a position with highly trained iraqi military, training their police force. this is no rush. >> in a war that was started to protect the world from weapons of mass destruction that were never found, can the united states claim victory? >> we're not claiming victory. what we're claiming here is that we've done the job our administration set out to do, to end the war we did not start, to end it in a responsible way, to bring americans home, to end the le bleeding both financially and physically that this war has caused, and to leave in place the prospect of a trained military, a trained security force, under democratic institutions, where the disparate parties are, for the

first time, in generations, actually working together. it's not done yet, but there is real hope. >> reporter: what is to prevent iran from moving in as the u.s. moves out? >> there is no possibility of them having the capacity without the world reacting -- not just the united states -- the world reacting -- if all of a sudden iran was to move across its border and invade any other countries in the region. >> you said in your senate farewell speech, quote, personal relationships is the one thing that unlocks the true potential of this place. >> i believe that. >> reporter: has president obama done enough? has he been effective in creating the personal relationships required to lead this country? >> he has tried very, very hard. he's tried repeatedly with the speaker. he has tried with the leaders in the united states senate. he meets regularly with the leadership of both.

i think most of my republican colleagues would say and have said that i have strong personal relationships with them. and yet nothing has moved. and the reason is, this is not your father's republican party. the republican party is sort of trying to find its soul. so i don't think it's personal relationships. i think it's the ability to get a consensus in the republican party through the republican leadership. >> you have not yet closed the door on 2016. are you ready to do that today? are you running for president? >> i am never ready to close the door on anything. that is a foolish thing to do. i learned a long time ago. my dad had an expression. he said, joe, remember, never argue with your wife about anything that is going to happen more than a year from now, and don't make decisions about anything that is going to happen more than a year from now. i am intent on re-electing barack obama president of the united states of america. the rest will take care of itself. >> reporter: when you look in your son's face, a young man who

served in this country, served for the united states in its war in iraq, and you go back to him representing all of the thousands of young men and women who have risked their lives, died, lost their friends, what do you say? >> first of all, i say, i'm so damn proud of you. i am so incredibly proud of him and these kids, and i say it mattered. they straightened out a situation that they inherited. they did it in a way that this is in my view the greatest generation. this isn't the x generation. this is the exceptional generation. they are amazing. you know, when bo came home after a year, obviously there was an overwhelming sense of joy and relief, but there was this -- all i could think of was

those fallen angels whose parents were in dover to recover their child. i'm sorry. this -- anyway, i say to them, be proud of what you did for your country, be proud of the example you showed the world, and, most of all, be proud of how you protected your fellow soldiers. >> that's ann's exclusive interview with vice president joe biden. you can see more of that interview tonight on "nightly news." it's 19 after the hour. here's savannah. >> thanks. secretary of state hillary clinton is on her historic trip to the southeast asian nation of myanmar, a country in the midst of dramatic change after years of isolation.

nbc's ian williams is there this morning. ian, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, savannah. hillary clinton is the highest ranking u.s. visitor to myanmar for 50 years, coming here to judge for herself the progress of reforms that are bringing unexpected change after two decades of repressive military rule. until just a few weeks ago, this would have been inconceivable, a u.s. secretary of state in myanmar, meeting leaders of what had been regarded as a pariah state all in the surreal and isolated new capital, built from scratch in the middle of nowhere, and with so few people its vast eight-lane highways are almost deserted. until recently it was largely off limits to westerners. it's a world away from the old capital of yangon, a city of dilapidated, colonial era buildings and stunning pogodas where the reforms and clinton's visit are generating enormous hope. >> we are welcome and we are happy to see her.

and i hope that it is a good visit for change in burma. >> reporter: until recently, this would have been almost unheard of -- portraits of pro democracy leader aung san suu kyi openly on display. censorship has been eased. political prisoners have been released and restrictions on protests have been lifted. the changes are all the more remarkable when you consider it's only been a year since aung san suu kyi was released from house arrest where she spent 15 of the last 22 years. although not everybody is convinced about the sincerity of the government. this man was a political prisoner for 17 of the last 21 years. >> there had been some changes. i mean, these are changes more nominal than real. >> reporter: more nominal than real. >> real, yeah. but we'll have to wait and see. >> reporter: he estimates that more than 500 political prisoners are still behind bars. clinton is pressing for their release and the speeding of change. the government perhaps now realizes there is a lot to be

gained by opening up, not least from the many tourists who will surely flock here with a little less guilt. secretary clinton is now in yangon where thursday evening she'll have a private dinner with aung san suu kyi who believes the government is sincere and who may soon test the reforms by standing for parliament. savannah? >> all right. ian williams, thank you. just ahead, the primary suspect in the disappearance of a florida mom knocks over a photographer on his way to court where he won back custody of the couple's young twins. why did the missing woman's mother hug him afterward? she'll explain in a live interview. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

still ahead, savannah, good shopping for her own christmas present. >> you shouldn't have. you didn't. an exclusive preview of elizabeth taylor's eye-popping jewelry and glamorous dresses

headed for the auction block. first your local news and weather. twizzlers. the twist you can't resist.

they won't be beat. oh, actually... then i'd be like, you rule! and my kids would be like, you rule! oh, load up the sleigh; this is going to be a great christmas. [ male announcer ] more christmas for your money, guaranteed. >> good morning. i'm jennifer franciotti. here is a look at one of our top stories. fourth district congressman in the harris is endorsing newt gingrich. "the star democrat close " says harris will be co-chairman of the maryland team for gingrich. he says he believes gingrich has the experience to turn the

economy around. the primary is unable. not a check on the morning commute. much better than yesterday. >> but we are dealing with delays. we will point out the inner loop, police activity on the northwest corner, in approaching greenspring, two right lanes taken up, delays to liberty. and delays reisterstown to edmundston. sikesville, 32 n. river road and also delays on the north side. 37 miles an hour on average outer loop from harford to the harrisburg expressway. delays out of the northeast, 11 miles an hour south down 95 from white march to the 895 split. we will show you what it looks like on the outer loop north side -- harvard wrote, sunshine in full force and you will see sun glare inner loop approaching 95 on the northeast corner.

northwest corner, those interludes delays going away from us. all due to police activity on the topside approaching greenspring. tony? >> obviously, a lot of sunshine to start the day. beautiful sunlit -- sunrise. temperatures a little on the chilly side. 37 at the airport, 35 in jared's bill. lots of sunshine today, high temperature this afternoon between 50-55. looks like the weather will be quiet through the beginning of the weekend. sunshine on saturday, 50. upper

7:30 now on a thursday morning, december 1st, 2011, the day after the rockefeller center tree lighting ceremony. the crowd outside in a festive mood as the 25-day countdown to christmas is now officially under way. meanwhile, inside studio 1-a i'm matt lauer alongside savannah guthrie who is filling in while ann is on assignment in iraq. just ahead, elizabeth taylor was known for her remarkable roles and her love of the finer things. >> now many of her personal treasures including her collection of jewelry, the crown jewels of hollywood, they're going on display at christy's

right here in new york city. >> it's an incredible collection. and a fascinating guy is going to stop by. sir richard branson is out with a new book and has a rather interesting message for fledgling business owners. he'll share that and tell us how he is doing in the wake of that terrible fire that ripped through his home, his island home a little earlier this year. we'll begin with the twin toddlers of a missing florida mom ordered to be returned to their father, who is considered the primary suspect in the case. we're going to get reaction from michelle parker's mother and sister in a moment, but first nbc's mark potter is in orlando with the details. mark, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, savannah. there is still no word on what happened to michelle parker, who disappeared two weeks ago today, but at a custody hearing a decision was made about two of her kids. on a day that started rather rough.

just before the custody hearing there was disorder near the court. dale smith who police say is their only suspect in the disappearance of his ex-fiance, michelle parker, lunged at a news photographer, knocking him to the ground. people who arrived with smith could then be heard jeering the fallen photographer. in the court hearing, itself, it was much quieter as state officials tried to take away smith's 3-year-old twins he shares with parker and whom he has been keeping since her disappearance. the state claims he is a potential danger to the children. >> he has a pattern of domestic violence with women he is involved with, which is significant because if you're going to see what he has done in the past it is a good indicator of the future. >> reporter: even though smith has a history of trouble with the law, his lawyer argued that's long in the past, and said there is no reason to believe he'd do anything wrong now. >> you just don't go and take children from a home when this

most minimal and most vague accusations. >> reporter: in the end the judge ruled smith could keep his kids. >> i don't see any evidence that he presents any imminent risk of substantial harm to these children. >> reporter: right afterward parker's sister ran out of the courtroom crying, but her mother, yvonne stewart, hugged dale smith, the main suspect in her daughter's disappearance. stewart explained later she wants to keep a good relationship and still see her grand kids. >> this is the defendant, michelle parker. >> reporter: parker was last seen november 17th, the day she appeared on a taped episode of "the people's court" fighting with smith over an engagement ring. >> he said he wanted his ring so i took it off and i threw it at him. >> reporter: meanwhile, sheriff's divers search an orlando lake near the area where a ping from parker's cell phone was last detected on the day she went missing. police say the search was routine and not based on a tip, and a spokesman says they found

nothing. and that spokesman also explained the reason smith is the main suspect is he is the last known person to have seen her alive when she dropped her kids off at his house, but smith has said that he had no involvement in her disappearance. savannah? >> all right. mark potter in orlando, thank you. we're joined now by michelle parker's mom yvonne stewart, and parker's sister, lauren erickson. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> yvonne, let me start with you. we can't even fathom what you must be going through right now, not knowing where your daughter is. a lot of folks are looking at what happened in court and now dale smith who has been named the primary suspect in the case once again has your grandchildren in his custody and yet you gave him a hug at the end of the court date. what was going through your mind? how do you feel about him at this point? >> what was going through my mind is that this is such an emotional experience and just going so fast and i have so much love for those grand babies.

i just wanted to let him know that if, you know, we can help with those babies and we want to. >> what do you think about dale smith in regards to his alleged involvement in the disappearance of your daughter? are you suspicious of him? >> he is definitely considered the primary suspect. i know that, but he still hasn't been charged. >> lauren, do you take a different view? you and i talked a couple days ago. i sensed from you that you do have some suspicions about your sister's ex-fiance. >> i am her sister so we talked a lot about their relationship. we just had a really close sister relationship. i'm definitely going to be protective over my sister and the things she's told me. of course, it's crossed my mind, but at the same time we still have to, you know, keep focused on looking at all aspects,

because if we put all of our thoughts on one thing and it turns out later not to be there could be somebody sitting out there being like ha ha they're not even looking at me. >> yvonne, obviously the kids were returned to the custody of dale smith. are you disappointed with that decision? are you concerned for their welfare? >> i am disappointed with that decision, because we've raised them for a period of about three years now since they were born. and that's where they're the most comfortable. that's where they're happy. >> they're with their brother, their dog. >> austin is only 11 years old, and he cried so hard yesterday when i told him that the judge said i had to take him back. and he's just like, why? i'm like, well, because right now that's where they need to go and if i don't do it, i can't keep looking for michelle, honey. so i have to keep looking for michelle. >> i know you did have the twins for a brief time before the court returned them to mr. smith. how are they doing? are they asking for their mom?

>> let me tell you what's sad is that i got to pick them up about 10:30 that night. then i found out i had to appear in custody court hearing at 7:00 in the morning. by the time we got done and i got back to my house, i got to spend, you know, a couple hours with them and we looked at train tracks and they saw a picture of their mommy on the road and they went oh, there's mommy. she's at work. yeah, baby. she's at work. >> well, these are incredibly difficult days. we know that it's hard for you to get up and be with us and we really appreciate it. thank you. >> we thank you, too, and the one thing we do want to ask you, all the media, we appreciate everything that you're doing for us. please, please don't print pictures of our grandchildren. >> all right. lauren and yvonne, thank you for your time this morning. >> thank you. we'll turn now and get a check of the weather from al. today's weather is brought to you by coffee mate.

get in the spirit by picking up your favorite holiday flavors. as we look at some of the temperatures around the country, it is awfully chilly back in the rockies anywhere from 10 to 20 degrees below normal from denver, colorado springs, amarillo, texas. a high of only 35. casper, wyoming 23 degrees. the rest of the country today those cold temperatures extend all the way up into the upper plains and the upper midwest. 30s in northern new england. we've got 70s and 80s in southern texas. you see plenty of sunshine in the pacific northwest although it will be a little on the breezy side. sunny skies up and down the eastern seaboard. more seasonal conditions and we're looking at some snow showers around the wes >> good morning. we're off to a chilly start on this thursday. we will be a little below average temperature-wise.

that's your latest weather. check your weather any time. go to the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. coming up next five signs the real estate market may be hitting rock bottom. we'll check out elizabeth taylor's dazzling collection of jewels and other treasures before they hit the auction block. but first, these messages. ♪ ♪ express yourself ♪ [ female announcer ] your favorite holiday flavors are here. with some new ones to love. ♪ ♪ oh, do it ♪ oh, do it ♪ express yourself [ female announcer ] introducing new warm cinnamon sugar cookie and brown sugar maple latte. coffee is like the holidays.

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morning and "today's real estate" has the housing market hit rock bottom? we are starting to see some encouraging signs in the market but do they really mean it is a good time to buy or is it still a time to sell? barbara corcoran is today's real estate contributor. nice to see you. good morning. >> nice to see you, matt. >> let's talk about good news. pending home sales in the month of october up 10% from september. up 13% from a year ago in october. what does that mean? >> that means that's the largest change for one month in a long time. it simply means more people are buying homes but even more importantly, fully 20% of all the homes in america actually have appreciating prices for the first time. >> if you look at who is buying these homes, according to a study i saw 30% of the homes being sold right now are sold to investors. it's important because those aren't people who act on emotion. they don't fall in love with a house. they buy homes because they think they bankrupt to make mond -- about to make money with those

homes. >> they think they'll make money when they flip the homes and most important they know they can hold the homes and rent them out until the market recovers. these are guys who always work in advance of the market. >> even as we talk about that good news we have to continue to look at the foreclosure situation. about 2 million homes fell into foreclosure in the last year, and some people according to "the washington post" fear that some 3.5 million homes are just one piece of bad news away from going into foreclosure. what does that tell us? >> it tells us that there is a giant black cloud that's still hovering over the entire recovery of the real estate market, and that troubles are still ahead of us. it's not only the foreclosures but the upcoming ones with the people that can't refinance their homes. that's the real problem. >> except there is some good news starting very soon for that, this h.a.r.p. program designed to help struggling homeowners, perhaps as many as 7 million of them. >> i hear the numbers and frankly don't believe them because every program announced by the government has always fallen short, but the one great thing about this new program is you don't have to have your home

appraised so it allows the people who are under water, 1 in 4 americans, to actually get their hands on the cheap money for the very first time. >> so more people will qualify for this then. >> hopefully. >> than in times past? >> let me tell you, from every consumer out there who tries to qualify the hurdles they have to jump over with the lending institutions are enormous so it is a question whether they can hit that finish line. >> if people decide this is the time to buy and you're not going to tell them whether they should or not. >> not going to tell anybody. >> you don't want to get in trouble. but you do have five tips for people looking. >> yes. >> the first is do you see more new cars in the neighborhood? why is that important? >> new expensive cars in the neighborhood. new cars come with young people and jobs bring them in and that means the market is turning around. >> can the neighbors afford the average house? >> even if you can afford it you better make sure everybody else in the town can afford it. >> what is the average price per square foot in the neighborhood? >> of course. brokers can give you price trends but the only one that

means anything is what is the average price per foot because there is no emotion and confusion. >> are the cheaper homes in the neighborhood selling? >> you know why? because every real estate market recovers from the bottom up. if you're looking for a $300,000 home you should be checking out the $200,000 homes to see if they're selling because the food chain moves right up the line. >> drive through the neighborhood and see if there are a lot of for sale signs in the neighborhood. that is important as well. great to see you. >> my pleasure. >> thanks very much. up next, hard work, what it really takes to light the world's most famous christmas tree right after this. i'd race down that hill without a helmet. i took some steep risks in my teens. i'd never ride without one now. and since my doctor prescribed lipitor, i won't go without it for my high cholesterol and my risk of heart attack. why kid myself? diet and exercise weren't lowering my cholesterol enough. now i'm eating healthier, exercising more, taking lipitor. numbers don't lie. my cholesterol's stayed down. lipitor is fda approved to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke

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rice krispies®. happy holidays. back at 7:50 with a look at the freshly lit rockefeller center christmas tree. a quarter million people packed the streets for last night's lighting. if the tree wasn't enough to catch your interest there were plenty of stars to do the job. ♪ ♪

>> three, two, one! [ cheering ] >> that's nice. the weather cooperated. >> perfect. >> it really was. and filled with stars. you had quite the lineup. >> it is so funny because it's crowded and you think oh, all the people come down. once you see the tree light up and how festive it is you get it. >> the crowds are there and they don't block traffic and create gridlock. ♪ mr. grinch >> it was definitely hard to get around last night. savannah, it was your first time helping light the tree but al has been doing the honors for many years, almost as long as it took to growth year's 74-foot norway spruce. >> nice. >> from new york city, rockefeller center! >> the place is filling up. hundreds of thousands of our closest friends are here in midtown manhattan. >> the place where the holiday season officially begins.

>> as we turn on more than 36,000 lights. >> i've been doing this for about 14 years. >> any thoughts on this tree? >> two, one! >> thank you so much for helping light the tree. >> oh, al, that looks so great. >> we hope you've enjoyed christmas in rockefeller center. >> good for you. >> i can't keep a host. >> revolving door of women. >> i'm not working with roker anymore. just ahead, the elizabeth taylor auction next door after your local news. card, you get 5% off, right?

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>> good morning. i'm mindy basara. it's time for a check on your morning commute. what are the issues? >> we were hoping for a smooth ride. not the case. in our loop delay pretty substantial. approaching liberty up to greenspring, two right lanes closed, stretching back to 70. nasty. if you are heading up, it will take you awhile. a police activity taking up the two right lanes prior to the greenspring exit, 7 miles an hour, and outer loop delays and

a couple of accident, one at 26 and route 27 and the other at 32 and a river road. eastbound 70, delays approaching 40, jammed from the task over bridge -- patapsco. i 70, this is what looks like eastbound, at a crawl leading to the beltway. a live view of the beltway, this is what looks like on the inner loop heading toward greenspring. tony, here is a check on your forecast. >> nice, quiet weather-wise. a little chilly, colder than it has been the last couple of warnings. northern suburbs, you might have a little frost on the sub -- windshield. the forecast, lots of sunshine, cold but nothing unusual for the beginning of december.

high temperatures between 50-55. a seven-day forecast, a couple of clouds hanging around tomorrow. chilly on saturday. back into the upper 50's to 60 sunday and next chance of rain hey, what are you drinkin'? dunkin' iced. the biggest iced coffee i can get. iced coffee helps me keep up.

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♪ 8:00 on a thursday morning, the first day of december, 2011. it's a clear, crisp morning here in new york city, and we've got an enormous crowd. some of them wearing ear muffs here on the plaza. i'm matt lauer with al roker. ann is on assignment in baghdad. should be on her way home soon. savannah guthrie, who is filling in for ann, has made the long commute a hundred yards down the block to christy's auction house here in new york city. what is cooking, savannah? >> it is really cooking. we are seeing elizabeth taylor's

dazzling collection celebrating her life and legacy. we'll see her jewels, some of her hollywood memorabilia like some of the costumes behind me, some of the art work she has. it's all going on the auction block. we'll tell you how you can get your hands on some of this if you have the means and give you a little sneak preview, too, matt. >> all right. we look forward to that in a couple minutes. what else is happening? >> the open to the loretta young theater. >> dynasty. >> very nice. we all know sir richard branson, an eccentric billionaire who does things differently than a lot of folks. he has a surprising message for anybody starting a business. it's not just about the bottom line. he is going to explain that in just a moment. >> always look forward to having him here. before we go any further let's head inside. natalie is standing by with a look at all the headlines of the morning. >> good morning, matt. good morning, everyone. wall street begins the final month of 2011 coming off its best one-day performance since 2009. on wednesday the blue chips soared nearly 500 points after central banks worldwide made a

coordinated effort to cut borrowing costs. investors are now looking for european leaders to agree on a long-term solution to the eurozone debt crisis. herman cain says he'll make a decision about his future in the republican presidential race after a face-to-face meeting with his wife and family tomorrow. cain says he has yet to speak in person with his wife of 43 years since an atlanta woman accused him of having a long-term affair. cain has denied her claim. penn state's new president is promising to raise ethics at the school to a new level. he told students at a town hall meeting last night that everyone on campus must do what's moral not just what's legal. school officials have been criticized for failing to do more to alert authorities to allege child sexual abuse by former coach jerry sandusky. meantime, the first civil suit in the case was filed wednesday. a new accuser says sandusky sexually abused him more than 100 times in a four-year period and threatened to harm his family if he told anyone about

it. the reverend billy graham spent the night in a hospital near his north carolina home. a spokesman said doctors were testing the 93-year-old evangelist for pneumonia. now for a look at what is trending today, our quick roundup of what has you talking online. smart phone users are heading to youtube to hear a security expert explain how their phones may be spying on them. carrier i.q. software in many phones tracks things like google searches, text messages, and phone numbers and reports them back to carriers. there's currently no way to opt out. music fans are tweeting about the grammy award nominations talking about which artists made the cut. kanye west leads the pack with seven and british singer adele is rolling deep at six nominations along with bruno mars and the food fighters. last night's rockefeller center tree lighting celebration is a popular search on google this morning. justin bieber was among the top performers who helped savannah and al launch the glittering holiday season live here on nbc.

a great night indeed. it's 8:03. let's go back outside to al for a check of your weather. you know, they were yelling so loud because they're so ex excited about these pregnant sisters. i couldn't hear what natalie said. you're sisters and both expecting at the same time? >> six weeks apart. >> congratulations. >> thank you. >> do you know what you're having? >> a boy. >> i find out on tuesday. >> all right. >> along with our cousin. >> grandma is excited? >> absolutely. >> are these the first grand baby? >> no, fourth and fifth. >> still exciting. >> yes. >> all right. let's check your weather to see what's happening. we're going to show you detroit, michigan, nbc local 4. partly sunny, cold. 43 degrees. we've got some snow making its way across the upper great lakes. we're also going to be expecting a few showers or so making their way through parts of the southwest. mountain snows there. plenty of sunshine in the pacific northwest. up and down the east coast we have sunny skies.

a little cooler than what we've been experiencing but actually seasonal. we have all these red hat >> good morning. it is a chilly start. we will see plenty of sunshine today. temperatures are right around average, that's your latest weather. savannah, they want you to visit. >> i will but first i have to look at all this amazing stuff. we'll give you an exclusive live look at elizabeth taylor's dazzling collection of jewelry, hollywood memorabilia, including look behind me, these are her

wedding bands with richard burton for both of those marriages. let me just tell you the jewels get bigger from here. we'll be back right after this. jay ] the type of sled you want depends on the type of snow you have. and i have a sled for every type there is. these old-school toboggans are perfect for hard pack and a steep hill. put a little bit of wax on the bottom of this like you would to ski. but that's the great thing about fast. it doesn't need to be new. it just needs to get you from the top to the bottom and do it in a hurry. my name is jay sprague. i'll get you going down the hill, and the holidays are made here at l.l.bean. hellmann's and holiday leftovers become irresistibly creamy turkey casserole. real delicious hellmann's. make it real. make it different.

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get the mercedes-benz on your wish list at the winter event going on now. but hurry -- the offer ends january 3rd. [ santa ] ho, ho, ho! [ male announcer ] know the feeling? try acuvue® oasys brand contact lenses with hydraclear® plus for exceptional comfort. it feels like it disappeared on my eye! [ male announcer ] discover why it's the brand eye doctors trust most for comfort. acuvue® oasys brand. we have headed across the street to christy's auction house to view this amazing collection of elizabeth taylor's jewelry, hollywood memorabilia, and fabulous clothes all from a woman whose motto was the more the better. elizabeth taylor was the last of the great global hollywood stars. she once said she couldn't remember a day when she wasn't famous. her jewelry collection is legend. her career spanned 50 motion pictures over seven decades,

winning her two oscars. she landed her first big role in "national velvet" in 1944 when she was just 12. she was glamorous and tough but also vulnerable. she married and divorced eight times, endured illness, and substance abuse. taylor challenged convention and those who wanted to sweep aids under the carpet. elizabeth taylor lived life at full tilt. >> hundreds of elizabeth taylor's items will be here at christy's and anybody in the public can see them starting on saturday. mark potter is the ceo and chairman of christy's americas. thank you for this exclusive first look. >> thanks for coming. >> we are starting with a doozie. this beautiful yellow wedding dress. >> this is the wedding dress for the first wedding of richard burton and elizabeth taylor designed by irene sharif who was the designer for the sets in "cleopatra." yellow was her favorite color and the color she was wearing

when she fell in love with burton in rome. >> now we see in photos during the wedding these emerald and diamond jewels and these are here, too. tell us about those. >> they are. they're just right there. during that same period when they were in such passionate love, they visited the jeweler in rome and little by little they assembled this fantastic suite. and elizabeth taylor being elizabeth taylor, she could wear one piece at one time or all of it at once. >> let's walk over because i know we have so many more beautiful fashions. we're about to see another wedding dress. anybody can come. you just pay a ticket price and you can come look at this stuff. >> yeah. it is open to the public and there is an online sale with another thousand lots sold only online. >> let's talk about this dress. >> this is the wedding dress from elizabeth taylor's second marriage to richard burton, and richard burton would say about elizabeth taylor that she blossomed when it was warm. and for their marriage in botswana, they had this

extraordinary, colorful, hippie-like dress made with all of the colors of the african sunset. >> she obviously loved color. let's move over to this pink evening gown, kind of an overcoat to this cream dress. it is gorgeous. >> a cornerstone of elizabeth taylor's wardrobe was christian dior. the most formal, most elegant, most perfectly made clothing of several decades. and that dress in particular is very important because she wore that dress when she went to the theater with robert kennedy and ethel kennedy only three months before his assassination. >> there is so much history in this room. i want to walk over and get to something that i think must be kind of the crown of this whole election called the elizabeth taylor diamond. all i got to say is, wow. >> it is wow. it's one of the greatest diamonds that the world knows. it's 33 carats with no color. it has no color other than the light that comes from the

rainbow and is reflected. and the cuts of the stone are so deep that elizabeth taylor referred to them as steps into eternity. >> one can only imagine what kind of price a diamond like this would fetch anyway but the fact that it was elizabeth taylor's must make the value go into the stratusphere. >> it is estimated at $2.5 million to $3.5 million and because of the fame should bring more. >> i want to show another room. there is so much memorabilia and fashion. you actually have set up here at christy's her dressing room, a replica. tell us about it. >> we have. one of the extraordinary things about elizabeth taylor's collecting is that very, very few people knew that she was such an important patron of designers. so we have created this museum of her collection and an additional online sale of a thousand lots with designers from gucci to dior to gallia

galliano -- incredible versace including these jackets both as elizabeth i the queen and in all her characters in the movies. >> in some ways this auction house as museum of fashion history right now. >> it is the greatest collection of fashion that's ever been shown on the market. >> everybody thinks of elizabeth taylor, they think of the jewels and the fashions but she has great memorabilia. we're standing in a room that has some of this. tell us about the warhol prints, where she got these, and why they're so valuable. >> this warhol, which is actually the portrait of elizabeth taylor, was a gift from andy warhol to elizabeth taylor, and is inscribed to elizabeth with much love, andy warhol. and there is also a thank you note from elizabeth taylor back to andy warhol saying, noting that she was famous because of him. he kept this print for probably 20 or 30 years before dedicating

it to her. >> you said this was a publicity photo basically that he used? >> he used this as a publicity photo for his original shows of elizabeth taylor portraits and their friendship came later. >> we've got a couple scripts from "cat on a hot tin roof" and "national velvet" i see an oscar. this director's chair. tell us about that. >> elizabeth taylor had a number of director's chairs. we haven't been able to identify which one went with which movie but this we know is quite late because on the back it says dame so it was after she was made a dame of the british empire. >> all right. thank you so much. mark port frer from christy's. there is so much to see and people can come down and see it and bid on it, too. appreciate the sneak peek. >> a pleasure. up next richard branson. thi. - you went to kay. she'll love it. [chuckles] trust me. i know. ho-ho-ho-ho-ho. - the charmed memories collection at kay jewelers each charm is hand-crafted in italy, and with hundreds of charms

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he is an entrepreneur, adventurer and one of the most successful businessmen in the

world but in his new book sir richard branson argues the driving force behind capitalism shouldn't be making a profit but caring about people, communities, and the planet. the book is called "screw business as usual." sir richard branson, fwraet to ha great to have you back. welcome. >> thank you. >> i can hear the nay sayers. this guy has made his billions. he's got his money. i'm starting a brand new business trying to make ends meet. i need to turn a profit. i need to be efficient. i can't be worrying about some of the things he is preaching. how would you respond? >> i think i would say they're right. when you're starting to build a business all that matters is survival so, you know, make sure that you survive so you can do good once you've actually built your business. but whatever happens, run it in an ethical way while you're building it. once you build your business, then i think everybody in the business needs to become a force for good and get out of there and try to, you know, help the communities around them. >> how do you respond to people?

and i hear this a lot, who say you know what? running a green business or running a socially responsible business is great for public relations. it's not how you make money and not good for the bottom line. how do you respond to that? >> i would say marx & spencer's in england increased their bottom line by $180 million a year by turning their business into a green business. so there is enormous amounts of money to be saved by going out there and trying to become an efficient business. and so, you know, if you can actually turn your business around and have all of your employees realizing that you have become a force for good, people will work harder. >> it's a devin kiifferent kind capitalism. you're not saying once you become successful you abandon the principles of capitalism but just adjust them. >> obviously making profit is critical to create new jobs and

expand your business and conquer the world in whatever you're trying to do and make a difference within your business. but then, you know, people like myself, we're entrepreneurs, and i think we are able to see problems in the world like global warming or like, you know, disease in africa, or, you know, other major problems and get in there and tackle them. >> do you think if more people at a later stage in business embrace these kinds of ideas we would see less of a back lash, the kind of back lash that we're seeing in streets and cities all across the country and around the world right now, the so-called occupy movement? do you think there would be -- that that form of capitalism would calm some of these emotions that we're seeing in the streets right now? >> well, i'm actually a supporter of -- >> tell me why. >> well, first of all, it's peaceful demonstrations by and large. they're demonstrating because

they don't like business as usual. they want to see business change. i think they're right in wanting to see business change. if every single business leader and person working within every business could actually, you know, persuade the people who are running their companies to get out there and sort out the world's problems we would get those problems sorted. we can't just leave it to the politicians and the social workers. >> so as part of the 1% and some would argue part of the 0.1%, you identify with the 99%? >> i identify completely. i mean, for instance, in america you've got a lot of people who are out of work and you've got a lot of people in work. now, "screw business as usual" would mean every single person had a job. it would mean the people in work, work a bit less, have slightly longer holidays which a lot wouldn't mind and you'd ask for volunteers first of all and share the amount of work around. why have a situation where, you

know, some people are on the dole and, you know, not making ends meet and other people are working sometimes much harder than they would like to work. >> do you really think people would embrace that concept here? >> i believe so. i mean, we are, you know, we've asked work forces how many of you who are in work if you were given the chance to job share or go part-time during a year or two of crisis while other people are being laid off, how many of you would do it? at least 20% of every work force stick their hand up and say, i'd love to have six months at home and maybe more holiday time and a bit less money for a year or two in order to help protect my fellow employees. it's just that kind of thinking that needs to go on. >> let me change subjects for a second. because you were in the headlines. not that you made the headlines. it wasn't by your own making. not long ago earlier this year because your home where i have been privileged to be at one point was destroyed by fire. just take me through what it was like to be there through that. luckily no one got hurt.

>> it was obviously a very frightening night in that my mother and my children were in the house and i was just in an out house at the time and woke up to see these 200 or 300 foot flames. >> an out building is what we call it here. out house is a different thing. >> all right. i wasn't actually in the out house. >> right. >> and, anyway, i mean, you're the number one suspect because they were looking for people who might have had a reason to do it. >> it wasn't me. >> it was the lightning. >> right. >> and massive lightning strike and it was a hurricane, 90-mile-per-hour winds going through. >> losing the place that was so dear to you you also say kind of triggered something in your mind that you have a different way now of looking at stuff. what do you mean by that? >> yes, i mean, i was not wanting to name drop but i was standing with kate winslet's kids looking up at the house and i said to the kids, look. you know, stuff is not important. i mean the fact that we're all

safe and well, that is what matters in life. so it's family, friends, and this wonderful life we live in, just to throw ourselves into it is what matters. and so everything, you know, a lot of precious things went up. you know, putting life in perspective but they're really not that important. >> always nice to have you here. i'm glad you're well and the book is called "screw business as usual." >> thank you. >> come back and see us soon. still ahead what do you hate most about the holidays? we'll ask today's professionals that question but first your local news and weather.

>> good morning. i'm mindy basara. let's get a final check of the morning commute with traffic pulse 11. >> good morning. still have the delays, but the good news is the police activity on an of approaching greenspring is off to the side, but still speeds around 13 miles an hour stretching all the way back to edmonton. outer loop from reisterstown to edmundston, delays eastbound as well. an accident at new windsor at

rte. 26 and at rte. 27 and randallstown at mary its mill road. 70 -- we will take a live view. 195, another accident. traveling on the north side, speeds are around 10 miles an hour or arebel air to the harrisburg expressway. harrisburg southbound to the belt way down to 28. a live view of traffic, 70 crawling in toward the beltway. a live view, told the court, the northwest corner still very congested. it will be a while before it clears out. not look at the forecast. >> the traffic may have been jammed but the sun was nice to see on the pictures. yes, we have a lot of it. the radar shows the nearest storm is at the great lakes. it looks like as it moves eastward, it will miss us and say to the north. something may hit us by the end of the weekend or early next

week. this morning from a little chilly. some reading starting out around freezing. humidity, drive for these early morning hours. barometer is up. northwest wind around 10 miles an hour. the temperature will rise today only into the 50's for the high, low 50's. sunny skies, northwest winds. sunny skies, northwest winds. >> tha

♪ you better watch out 8:30 on a thursday morning, december 1st, 2011. we're doing a lot of time outdoors today for a lot of good reasons. it's a beautiful day. sunny skies. got the christmas tree. and we have our elf.

it's our 18th holiday toy drive. just want to let you know with the donations we're receiving and leah is collecting this morning are being shipped to homeless shelters in iowa and kentucky right after our program this morning. >> right. >> out on the plaza i'm matt lauer with savannah guthrie who is here while ann is on assignment in iraq joined by natalie morales and al roker as well. coming up they're sweet, savory, and abundant, talking about apples and mark is here to show us how to prepare apples four different ways. >> all right. then we have help for parents raising young boys. as we guys age we tend to stop sharing and letting our feelings out. we lose touch with some of our closest friends. coming up, how to get your boys to maintain meaningful relationships and friendships as they grow up. >> that is very good. all right. also, star, donny, and dr. nancy the professionals are back for another installment. today they'll weigh in on what they dread the most about the

holiday season and a lot more. first let's check your weather with mr. roker. >> we'll show you as we look ahead toward the weekend saturday on the east coast looks good with the exception of the eastern coast of florida looking at heavy rain in texas into the mid mississippi river valley with snow in the northern mississippi river valley and the rockies. then on sunday, sunny and mild. along the east coast a little chilly. northern new england more heavy rain in the mid mississippi river valley. snow back through the central plains. sunny skies up and down the west coast though it is going to be a little o a >> good morning. we're off to a chilly start on this thursday. we will be a little below average temperature-wise.

that's your latest weather. make sure you check your weather two or three times a day on weather channel on cable or weather.com online. now let's say hello to actress leah thompson we just saw collecting toys a few moments ago. good morning to you. >> good morning. good to be here. >> you have a new television movie coming on called "game of your life" and you play a college professor. >> it's about a young man who wants to pursue his dream of going to college and learning how to design video games. and i play a professor of story of all things. it's a family movie. he learns about life and love and team work and being a good friend. i get to be a professor. >> did you have to bone up on the lingo of the video game world? or were you already kind of in tune with that? >> no. i'm not very good at it, but there is this new game "connect" where you go like this and i can do that. >> you got that real good. >> fruit ninja. >> i love newt ninja.

it's great. >> it is nice to be in a movie for the whole family. >> it is. it's a really great family movie night on nbc and something they're trying to bring back. it's nice to have little kids and adults watching together. >> i know you suggested we should do some caroling here but you haven't heard our voices. are there some traditions you like this time of the year with your family? >> yeah. i always have a christmas party and we make a lot of it because it's hannukah and christmas and do a lot of cooking. i'm trying to learn sign language so i'm learning "joy to the world" which is good for lots of different things. >> leah thompson, good to meet you and have you here. thank you so much. we remind everybody "game of your life" is on nbc tomorrow night 8:00, 7:00 central time. and coming up next we'll have four delicious ways to cook apples. first, this is "today" on nbc.

we are back now at 8:36 this morning on "how to cook everything today" and four ways to cook with apples that can be sweet, savory, baked, sauteed, fried, or roasted. mark bittman author of the "how to cook everything" cookbook is here with great recipes featured in his "new york times" magazine column. welcome back. happy holidays. >> good morning, matt. >> we're doing apples here and we'll do sweet, savory. are these desserts, side dishes, what are they? >> we sort of have everything and we're using every variety and technique and putting the apples in every different form. they really are, you can make them sweet. you can make them savory, serve them as desserts or a side dish or whatever. >> is there a variety of apples you like better than others? >> the old fashioned varieties are fabulous but hard to get. so the sort of best standards right now are granny smith, gala, and golden delicious. >> okay. >> those will pretty much work for everything. >> all right. do you always core the apple?

>> no. but usually you either take the core out or cut around the core. >> all right. >> these are baked apples with the core out. and a nice way to core them is to cut them in half and then use a melon baller to just scoop that center. it comes out pretty easily. >> you have to take the skin off? >> no. not on these. some of them we're skinning but not these. so with these, you bake them in a lightly oiled pan and after about 20 minutes of baking they'll look like this and we sprinkle them a little balsamic vinegar. >> a lot of people will say that's unusual but that would make this probably not a dessert but more of a side dish because it is sweet and savory? >> it's an interesting dessert but i would serve it more as a side dish. a little vinegar, olive oil, but just look at the delicious reduced syrup of the apples with the balsamic vinegar. >> what is the consistency you're looking for after baking, eat with a spoon? >> really, really soft and tender. >> great. there is one idea. the next one we're going to

make, this is sauteed apples with cranberry and orange. >> this is more of a dessert but, again, it can kind of go both ways. i mean, people are used to cranberries being in a sweet dish. >> you slice the apples kind of thin for this one. >> we core the apples and then slice them. cook them with cranberries and a little butter until they start to juice up. and then a fair amount of sugar. >> why do you need so much sugar? take the tartness of the cranberries out? >> and orange zest. >> okay. >> then you finish cooking that with the cover back on. until then you have this beautiful thing. >> you would go with the dessert on that one. >> i would. i think i would. meeting you over here. >> all right, fine. next we have grilled or, no, fried apple fritters with cheese. >> these are really wonderful. you grate the apple, skin on. and you make a little batter with some cheese and an egg and

the grated apples and some flour. and you wind up with this. >> do you have to get some of the liquid out of there so they hold together? >> no. they're hold together. flour and egg will hold together. you take a nice little scoop artfully created. >> into hot oil. what kind of oil do you use? >> use a good quality, light, oil like grape seed or corn oil. this could be hotter. >> it's starting to go. >> how long do they take to cook? >> three or four minutes and you wind up with those. lemon wedges, even sugar if you like the sugar cheese thing. but these are really great. >> delicious. while i chew, talk about your last -- you're chewing now. a bad mistake for both of us to be chewing. let's talk about the last recipe. >> chunked apples, again, roasted with a little bit of oil and when they're about halfway done as these are, they start to

shrivel. we'll sprinkle them with a mixture of ginger, garlic, cinnamon, cumen and very exotic, highly spiced. >> kind of a moroccan mix. >> it is a moroccan mix. this is definitely not a dessert. this is most definitely a side dish. >> what would you serve this with? >> this would be fantastic with roast pork or grilled or baked chicken. really a wonderful side dish. because you are taking advantage of the fact that they're a little sweet, a little savory. you've got -- it's really unusual. >> to be perfectly honest i love that. the fritters are an acquired taste baufs tecause of the chee. >> you need to eat them hot. >> thank you very much. up next, how to help your young boys foster stronger friendships as they get older. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

back now at 8:43. grow-mance is a tongue-in-cheek term to describe a deep friendship between two guise ys. we asked three teenagers who read the book to talk about their friendships and how they've changed through the years. >> what are the rules? i guess it's different for every set of friends. >> men aren't really supposed to show emotion as much. >> we stay with your friends. the guy code. never leave a guy behind for a girl. >> you can't be too flamboyant. >> you can't really share things that are too personal. >> being too feminine, relating too much to women is kind of a no-no. yeah that's not my personal views but that's part of the guy

code. >> i've had the same two or three best friends my whole life and i wouldn't say that we lost friendship. we just don't talk about certain things we used to talk about. >> there was a slump in high school where i kind of distanced myself from my friends. not purposely but just something that happened. >> they don't say they miss me. they just say where have you been? you haven't been here in so long. i haven't seen you. >> my younger self was a more open person and i was more able to express feelings and emotions, whereas now it's sort of like there's some sort of rule that that's not what grown men should do. >> guys stay away from expressing themselves because it puts them in a category of gay or girlie when it's not really and we just stay away from that. >> kind of asked to be the individual, the stoic individual who can sustain themselves and

doesn't need other people to rely on for emotional support or any kind of support really. >> the author of "deep secrets, boys, friendships, and the crisis of connection." dr. josh winer is a psychiatrist who works with children and adolescents. they are both raising boys. good morning to you. you are qualified on multiple levels. you wrote the book. this is your life's work. you have spent years interviewing hundreds of boys. tell us what happens at adolescence where boys suddenly become more stoic and kind of leave their friendships? >> it's been completely remarkable to watch so that boys, when they're 13, 14, and 15 will talk with tremendous affect and emotion about the closeness of their friendships and then lose them as they get older into adolescence talking exactly what the boys were talking about on the film which is that they feel that it's going to make them look girlie or gay to continue these friendships and these friendships are so critical. >> we'll talk about that in a minute. dr. winer, is this your experience in your practice?

is there this guy code where there is a drop off in connecting as boys become adolescents? >> absolutely. it is really unfortunate because with relationships you get into a relationship or get out of a relationship what you put into one. in order to have a fulfilling, deep relationship you absolutely need to be talking about some of your feelings and how you feel about your friendship and how you feel in general about situations in your life. if you're not doing that, you're just talking about video games and sports and girls, it's going to stay at a superficial level. >> unless we think we're being all touchy-feely and saying we wish boys would be closer with their friends, friendship has been shown by the science to produce not just emotional but physical benefits. >> that's right. incredible. we now see in research that friendships are linked to better physical and mental health, longer lives. we live longer lives if surrounded by good friends. it is linked to all sorts of good things and we need to take them seriously. >> we are going to get to some tips in a moment but we have some skeptics in the audience saying are we trying to turn boys into girls basically or

trying to have them have attributes they otherwise naturally wouldn't have your response would be what? >> my response would be absolutely not. why should boys and men not have emotions and feel like they need to talk about them? i think it's absolutely natural and i think that it's really unfortunate if we send the message to boys that it's really not appropriate. it's not manly. it's not masculine for you to talk about it. i think it becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy essentially. you send that message. then men don't talk about it so you believe men aren't that emotional. >> we've diagnosed the problem. let's do some treatment. you have some tips. you say parents should model healthy relationships. >> that is probably the hardest but most necessary thing for parents to hear, that they need to model healthy friendships and relationships so their kids can see this is important and the complexities of relationship in front of them. >> this seems a little obvious but, josh, you say you should openly discuss feelings with your kids. >> right. absolutely. it was more important than what you say is what you do. you need to talk about your feelings and i think you also need to encourage your kids as

teenagers to talk to their friends about their feelings. what is way more valuable to a teenager is to hear that their friends are experiencing the same things they are. it means a lot more to hear from a friend than from a parent to say, well, son, what you're really experiencing is normal. it means a lot more to hear that from a friend. >> you also say don't reinforce gender stereotypes. we hear it over and over again from boys saying i don't want to seem like a girl or i don't want to seem gay. how do you talk to your kids about not using language that might be offensive to some people? >> well, it's really about emphasizing, similar to what josh was saying, emphasizing the friendships are a human thing, a human need and not associated with one gender or another. it is really showing the stereotypes minority true is the conversation we should be having. >> all right. you say you should talk to your son about friendships. >> yeah. talk to your son about friendships. you don't want to just be talking about what they've been doing with their day. talk to them about how they feel about their friendships and encourage them to share with their friends. you really mean a lot to me.

your friendship is really valuable. i think when you do that it is going to strengthen and deepen the relationship and oftentimes you'll get back what you give and they'll start sharing with you as well. >> makes a lot of sense. an interesting conversation. i hope it sparks more conversation. thank you. and to read an excerpt from "deep secrets" head to today.com. up next the lighter side of sports. len burrman goes spanning the world. but first this is "today" on nbc. i'm drinkin' dunkin'. i'm drinkin' a dunkin' latte. i can't think without my dunkin' iced latte. it's a real latte. i love it. i run on dunkin'. get a premium latte without a premium price. america runs on dunkin' coffee.

back now at 8:51 and our very good friend len burrman has joined us to take us on a wild ride through the wonderfully wacky world of sports. welcome back. >> good morning everyone. the last several weeks featured lots of nfl and the nba settlement but what were truly the top sports stories? let's go spanning the world. >> unbelievable! >> on your mark in australia, come on. play ball. monticello raceway. they're off. except for dr. chaser. his teeth are stuck in the starting gate. so it's ruled no race. he's just stuck out there.

and nobody got hurt. our moves of the month. this was in georgia. what you do is you go over the xylophone through the hedges to grandma's house. nicely done. riley nelson scoring a touchdown and you high five the referee. but the best moves, the texas rangers groundskeeper. this was between innings during the world series. yeah. wipeout. it's kyle delmyer for ohio state. >> oh, wow! are you okay, kyle? kyle, can you give us a wave if you're okay? ladies and gentlemen, let's hear it for kyle! >> let's hear it. he's okay. there was boxing galore and the referee, look at. in finland, you guys want to fight? let's go. drop the puck and go. and as usual, you know, once again the women in the lingerie football league. come on, ladies.

can't we get along? okay. it's time for the halftime show. in the czech republic he makes a tremendous entry. one problem. he wasn't part of the scheduled entertainment. they have no sense of humor so they whisk him away. so let's go back to the action. in iran, after the goal is scored, a little post goal celebration did not go over too well because over there, there is no touching allowed and the -- ooh. the players got suspended for immoral behavior. it's swedish hockey. score a goal, hug your opponent. sure. thank you very much. okay. here's our fan of the month. >> i want the nba back! >> we found the one person who misses basketball. >> i want the nba back. >> it's coming back. grow up. >> ha! >> and a tradition like no

other. john brown university in arkansas, once a year, first home basket? and they call a two-shot technical foul on the fans. nobody seems to care. >> lost by two points. >> more like two ply. >> there you go. i like that tradition. >> very good. thank you. >> happy holidays to you. >> same to you. >> good to have you here. all right. just ahead today's professionals are here to tackle the day's hot topics right after your local news.

>> good morning. i'm mindy basara. here is a look at one of our top stories. the young mother believed to be responsible for a string of carjackings and bank robberies is behind bars. police apprehended stephanie

lynn schwab after she led them on a chase on the capital beltway and fled on foot. she is even accused of pulling a knife on a good

>> good morning. the sun is out. it looks like we are stuck with chilly air for a while. sunday, cooler than it has been. 50-55. but it is still a little bit above the average for the season. >> thank you for joining us. we will have another weather we will have another weather update