good morning. new year, new hope. the cautious optimism on main street and wall street, ahead of this morning's key new unemployment report. are there signs a recovery is finally in sight? cold-blooded killer? joran van der sloot goes on trial today for the murder of a young woman in peru, a brutal crime committed exactly five years to the day after natalee holloway's disappearance. this morning the victim's father speaks out. and the golden guy, ricky gervais caused quite a controversy when he hosted the golden globes last year. will it be an even wilder night this time around? >> they don't know what i'm going to say, and they won't know what i'm going to say until i say it.

>> what the outspoken entertainer is saying to us. "today," friday, january 6th, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television >> and good morning. welcome to "today" on a friday morning, i'm matt lauer. >> and i'm ann curry. now everybody knows where you were on assignment thursday. >> i was in london yesterday with ricky gervais. when you heard he was coming back for a third time at the globes if you placed a bet saying he was going to tone things down, prepare to lose your money. >> you'll be hearing from him coming up this morning. just here the new hampshire politics, it is four days away. gop front-runner mitt romney is already setting his sights on the big prize after that, south carolina. a move drawing criticism from his fellow candidates. also ahead a story that is sad, hundreds of mourners attend

the funeral of three young sisters who died in that tragic house fire in connecticut, the emotional farewell led with a tribute from their mother. we'll share her touching words. there's fallout of the video of casey anthony for the first time killing her daughter. was this video stolen from her computer as one of her attorneys alleges or was it a ploy for publicity? we'll talk about that but first we begin this morning with these positive signs on the economy and this morning's new jobs report. we've got cnbc's carl quintanilla at the new york stock exchange. >> reporter: good morning, ann. >> ahead of the unemployment number, the department of labor says last week their unemployment claims were down 11% for the same time last year and also that the four-week average is at lowest level since 2008. dwichb there was seasonal hiring in december and also people

stopped looking for work, how cure are the numbers? >> december is always a tough month to call but it's not this much alone. data has been getting good for the last couple of months. you have not corporate america coming to the rescue of new jobs, it's mostly small and medium sized businesses saying i've gotten by for two to three years with my existing employee base. i have to start looking at resumes even if i don't know long-term where the economy is headed. >> there are also positive signs from the private sector. can you tell us what those were? >> the public sector, government spending on jobs is probably going to contract on a federal level, on a state and local level. adp looks at private sector jobs, it was a blowout number yesterday and that's leading some to believe today's number could be good. the correlation isn't always exact but leading people to be a little more optimistic than they otherwise would be. >> and there have been other

signs, shopping, the stock market. give us context as we await this number what analysts are saying the economy is doing right now. >> reporter: europe has settled down a little bit. the election is still a little ways off, that creates some uncertainty, but year-end, some employers are clearly thinking maybe i'll take a shot here at one or two people. you mentioned the unemployment rate earlier. we know that's a little misleading because as things get better, if you stop looking for work, maybe you give it another shot, you're now part of the sample and that unemployment number may tick up, even as the overall picture is improving, so the unemployment rate might not be the number to focus on today. it might be the actual shear number of jobs that are being created. >> but nevertheless, people are going to be watching for that number. what are the ablists expecting that number to be this morning, carl? >> reporter: despite the blowout number yesterday not a lot of economists upped their guess partly because december is hard to guess and partly because the coming year has so much uncertainty. the big argument among

economists right now is not whether the picture is getting better because it clearly is. the question is more how long can the economy improve at this current rate? >> carl quintanilla, thank you for your perspective this morning. thank you. here's matt. the race for the white house, the new hampshire primary may just be four days away but gop front-runner mitt romney is already focusing attention on south carolina a tending a grassroots rally in conway, south carolina, today. that's where we find nbc's peter alexander, good morning. >> reporter: matt, good morning to you. welcome to the peanut warehouse in conway, south carolina. this place was actually built more than a century ago to store tobacco. today it will be hosting a mitt romney rally. as one analyst put it, with two back-to-back debates scheduled this weekend, romney may be treated like a political pinata.

mitt romney so confident of a primary win tuesday in new hampshire, is already campaigning here in south carolina. >> that's a great endorsement and that's quite a speech. i should just stop there. that's fabulous, thank you. >> reporter: with the state's governor, nikii haley, could attract social conservatives to the state, who's correctly picked every republican president since 1980. jon huntsman criticized him. >> the people of new hampshire don't want a coronation, they want people to earn the vote as opposed to sit in south carolina so certain of a victory. >> reporter: thursday night huntsman grabbed the endorsement of "the boston bloeb." "while romney proceeds cautiously, strategically trying to appease enough constituencies to get his nomination, huntsman

has been bold." also taking shots, newt gingrich saying he'll beat expectations once voters focus on romney's moderate record. >> it's a "saturday night live" skit. he said he wants to be the paycheck president but his focus on african-americans who make one-fifth of food stamp recipients raised eyebrows. >> i'm prepared, if the naacp invites me i'll go to their convention and talk about why the african-american community should command paychecks and not be satisfied with food stamps. >> reporter: rick santorum is still trying to ride the surge but at one stop he was combatted by a crowd of college students. still his message is to look beyond the polls and vote their

heart. >> don't settle for what is sufficient to do the job. pick who you believe is the right person to take on that challenge to defeat barack obama. >> reporter: the two texans in this race, ron paul and rick perry, who have been off the trail since tuesday's caucusing in iowa return today and tomorrow, matt, they will both participate in this weekend's debate. >> peter alexander in south carolina this morning, thank you very much. nbc's david gregory, moderator of "meet the press" has a timely debate sunday morning. let's talk about mitt romney's strategy saying i've got momentum coming out of iowa. if i believe the polling in new hampshire i have a sizeable lead there, i'm going to go to south carolina and try to deliver a knockout punch. is it risky or smart? >> i think it's where the evidence takes him frankly at this point. nobody's ever won iowa and then new hampshire. he becomes a prohibitive favorite going into south carolina if he goes 2-0. he knows it's a super bowl for

social conservatives down in south carolina but rick perry still being in the race dilutes the field, going up gingrich, santorum and perry and paul and they're going to attack each other along the way particularly in south carolina. >> if he eases up in new hampshire and another candidate has a surprisingly strong showing, someone like a jon huntsman, doesn't that renew the doubt in the minds of people already sitting on the fence about mitt romney in. >> no question about it. huntsman made a decision to camp out in new hampshire, so we can't say before the voting starts what kind of a connection he's had. we see he's still farther down in the polls and it seems to be a long shot and remember that romney has a network in new hampshire building for a long time which is why he has a sizeable lead. what is romney doing in terms of attacking the others? he hasn't gone after rick santorum, he's poised to do so himself perfectly and the super

pac on his behalf. until then you don't see the romney camp overly concerned about santorum yet. >> when you hear the things the pundits are saying about him and listen the stump speech and hear what he has to say and "the boston globe" endorsement, joe klein "he's proposed the most thoughtful initiatives, he's flips none of romneys flops on social issues." people say this guy is a great candidate. why hasn't he broken through? i know he didn't spend a lot of time in iowa but why aren't more people talking about him? >> a lot of people view him as discordant in this primary aseason. doesn't have tea party support, not a favorite among the conservative base. he worked as president obama's ambassador to china. he hasn't taken off the establishment where romney's

been able to absorb the support. it's a question of how you get defined in a race. you define yourself, others define you. very little of either is happening for jon huntsman. a lot of people liking him are they enough taking a hard look. >> mitt romney, front-runner, new ad, let's take a look. >> romney's economic plan, timid. parts of it virtually identical to obama's failed policy. timid won't create jobs and timid certainly won't defeat barack obama. newt gingrich's bold leadership -- >> david, newt gingrich at this moment in your opinion, is he still a viable candidate or simply playing the role of spoiler? >> republicans i talked to kind of all levels do not believe that he can be the nominee. he certainly has a lot of fight in him and we've got two debates including ours coming up on sunday where i think he will try to regain some momentum here. he wants to cast romney as a

moderate here he tries to link him with president obama. there's a quality to his campaign he's casting back and forth, not being as focused as he, himself, said he needed to be. he still thinks beyond new hampshire, south carolina is a place he could have impact. even if you're gingrich, you look at the diluted race. there is not one alternative to romney who has yet to emerge. that hurts those trying to be that person and makes it easier for romney. >> david, before you go, sunday you'll be moderating this kae s candidates' debate. there have been a lot of debates, 16 the last count. what's your approach going to be? >> i want to break new ground and unlike the other debates the clock is ticking. this is time to pin the candidates down on areas where there is still doubt and where they face obstacles to the nomination. i think there are so many americans anxious about where the country is headed. it's an important debate to try to allow them to know the candidates better. >> good luck with that.

we will be watching. david gregory thank you so much. catch the debate this sunday on "meet the press." sounds interesting, now let's head to the news desk and find out about the morning's top stories from natalie morales. >> good morning, everyone. violence in southern afghanis n afghanistan. five coalition service members have been killed in bombings today this according to nato. the nationalities of the dead have not been released. hundreds gathered overnight in utah to remember odgden officer jared frankum who died in a shooting. the shooting suspect is an army veteran whose family says suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. frankum is survived by his wife and two young daughters. new reports from espn this morning that the offensive coordinator of the new england patriots agreed to replace joe

paterno as head coach. bill o'brien is expected to be announced as the new coach saturday. paterno was fired in the wake of the sex abuse charges against jerry sandusky. three air force academy cadets are facing sexual assault charges, this after the department of defense reported that sexual assaults are on the rise at american military academies. some 5,000 artifacts from "the titanic" are said to be auctioned off this april, nearly 100 years to the day the oceanliner sank back in 1912. items range from a tiny hairpin to a large chunk of the ship's hull, many plucked from the wreckage two miles below the surface by remote controlled probes. the collection was recently appraised at $189 million back in 2007. new research in our health news that shows mental function begins to decline as early as

age 45. previous studies had shown the brain's capacity for memory, reasoning and comprehension tapering off at the age of 60 but a joint study from institutes of france and britain showed a 3.6% drop in reasoning starting at age 45. and a bittersweet survival story when dave geyer died this weekend, rescue family members were sure that ollie had been swept away. four days later he was found sitting outside the hotel room the family had been staying on their ski vacation. ollie has been reunited with the family who say the pup provided a much needed moment of happiness. still a very sad story. >> boggles the mind the dog could find the family again.

>> yes, at the hotel. >> al roker is here with a check of the weather. >> let's see what we have for you today. not a bad day, warm weather, 85% of the lower 48 going to be above normal as far as temperatures concerned. they were golfing in iowa yesterday. look for showers moving into the pacific northwest. we have a few snow flurries around the central great lakes and snow in northern new england. plenty of sunshine through the southeast, temperatures start to warm up, in the plains, temperatures in some areas 20 >> good morning.rde a warmup in place. 58 degrees the high temperature this afternoon. light wind out of the southwest.

>> and that's your latest weather. ann? >> al, thanks. is he best known as the prime suspect in the disappearance of natalee holloway in aruba but this morning joran van der sloot is going on trial for another high profile case in peru. lilia luciano is there. >> reporter: good morning, ann. after 19 months in prison joran van der sloot will stand trial accused in the murder of a young woman five days to the day natalee holloway disappeared in aruba. prosecutors said he confessed to cold-blooded murder. he states in the interrogation he admits he strangled his victim. van der sloot is said to go on trial today for the murder of

21-year-old stephany flores. on the tape he says he beat her so hard with his elbow she started bleeding, then says he gripped both hands around stephany's neck until she stopped breathing. van der sloot's attorney says the confession was coerced, he hadn't slept in days and didn't know the language well. holding back tears stephany's father made a statement. >> translator: i hope when this is over i will finally be able to cry. >> reporter: van der sloot has never been charged in natley holloway's case and denies wrongdoing but holloway's mother blames him. >> both of our daughters met their fate at the hands of the same killer.

i would have done anything in order to have this day for natalie's case. >> reporter: charged with murder and theft in the peruvian case van der sloot faces a 30-year sentence if convicted. good behavior and time served would shorten the sentence. a guilty plea could end up with a few years behind bars. >> end up with 20 years which means he could walk out in eight to seven and a half. >> reporter: van der sloot's attorney says the dutch national was suffering from post traumatic stress disorder from the constant questioning in the holloway case. the peruvian attorney says that's not a good defense strategy. >> i think he thinks he's smarter than anybody in the koort room. >> reporter: a man came to gamble in casinos, now betting on his own fate. we spoke with van der sloot's attorney late last night. his attorney says he's 80%

certain van der sloot will plead guilty today. >> thank you so much. it is 7:19, here is matt. the emotional funeral for three young sisters killed in a house fire in stanford, connecticut. hundreds of mourners attended and listened to a heartbreaking eulogy from the girl's mother. in new york city, hundreds gathed on a dark, winter afternoon at this historic church, where a heartbroken matthew and madonna badger paid a final farewell to their three daughters, 9-year-old lily and 7-year-old twins sarah and grace. the pallbearers, 18 firefighters from the same unit that responded to the christmas day fire. they carried the caskets of each little girl, one by one, into the church as their parents, who are separated, followed behind, wiping away tears. inside a very emotional madonna badger delivered the eulogy for her three little girls, breaking

down several times. madonna recalled favorite memories of her children. describing 9-year-old lily as a girl who enjoyed song and dance, with moves that far outdid michael jackson. she told the crowd about 7-year-old sarah's fragile heart and how twin sister grace worried a thousand times she'd die before her mom but madonna assured her that would never happen. madonna said she used to wonder how parents could go on living after losing their children but then told the mourners, "here i am." placing her hand over her heart, she told the crowd, "they're right here and that's where they live now." she continued on saying, "in all the incomprehensible loss and chaos, all i can hang onto is that love is everything." madonna lost her parents in that fatal christmas day fire, too, lomer and pauline johnson.

investigators say badger's friend, mike borcena took embers out of the fireplace, because the children didn't want them to hurt santa. the grief stricken parents have been met with a huge outpouring of support from family and friends. among those at thursday's funer funeral, calvin klein and vera wang. klein worked with badger on an ad campaign. all guests were given these programs with the picture of the three smiling girls, just a small reminder of the love and innocence lost on that tragic christmas morning. the family has set up a foundation in memory of the girls, for more information and to offer your condolences, you can head to our website at today.com. we're back in a moment. this is "today" on nbc.

just ahead, was a video from casey anthony stolen from her computer or did she want to get it out? and rickier have jay, how he'll behave at the golden globe, after your local news. iq. to keep skin smooth all day... all night. nivea. touch and be touched. flavored with real honey. powerful cold medicine that leaves out artificial flavors and dyes and instead uses something more natural, honey. new vicks nature fusion cold & flu. ♪

>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. baltimore archbishop edwin o'brien has been elevated to the position of cardinal. pope benedict named cardinal- designate of bryant to the college of bishops this morning. he will be eligible to vote in papal elections. he will remain head of the baltimore aysha pac is until his successor -- head of the baltimore archdiocese until his

successor is installed. there are problems this morning. >> harrisburg expressway is the big problem, closed at shawan road due to an overturned vehicle. average speed is around 12 miles per hour. all traffic must exit at belfast. avoid harrisburg it if you can. kate york road or falls road. we will find delays on both of the nets. we have an accident in reisterstown bait speeds are up on the west side. bit of a delay on the north side. j.f.x. is in good shape as is 95. 83 and now carmel, traffic is bumper-to-bumper. you might want to just walk to work this morning. you may get there faster. york road, you can see no delays on 83. just avoid harrisburg completely.

>> if you are heading out, look at the temperature is. not bad. 37 at the inner harbor. the sun came up about two minutes ago. high today around 58 in baltimore. 50 in the western mountains. looks like a mild weather will last at least into tomorrow. last at least into tomorrow.

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in the granola bar aisle. caramel...pretzel 90 calorie bar. ♪ ♪ i'm in new york 7:30 now on this friday morning, it's the 6th day of january, 2012. it's' beautiful morning as you can see looking at this view from the top of the rock. lovely. >> making a lot of progress there on 1 world trade center, it will be the tallest building. >> it's about time. we have a happy crowd down below, getting their last look at that magnificent tree across the street because guess what? it comes down tomorrow. >> have you walked by it up close lately? it's looking a little tired. looking a tad on the tired side.

>> inside studio 1a, i'm ann curry alongside matt lauer. are the fireworks going to fly once again at the golden globes? >> i'll give you a simple answer on that, maybe, and i think so. controversial host ricky gerv s gervais, will he tone down his act or might he push the envelope a little further? his answer is coming up. >> at the moment the two of you looked like you were going to make a hit. pretty tough. >> like a mob look. on a much different note the mystery on the high seas for many, many years now, what happened to a groom who vanished on his honeymoon cruise? there's new information come to light now that has the man's mom and sister convinced that foul play was involved, so they'll be talking about this in a live interview coming up. on a much lighter note, from time to time we show you a lot of images of adorable little animals on "today." everyone finds them appealing

but why? we'll go in search of the science of cute. >> oh, so stand by for cute. let's begin this half hour with new details on casey anthony's video diary that's popped up online. anthony's attorneys are claiming it was stolen, so we'll talk about that with legal expert savannah guthrie and star jones in just a moment. for now nbc's kerry sanders is in orlando with the latest. kerry, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, ann. casey anthony, who's been in hiding since july, when she was acquitted of murdering her daughter, caylee, remains in hiding but her lawyers now say they have increased fears for her safety bus they believe somebody stole the video from her computer, by hacking in, which means that that hacker would have access to the ip address which can lead to a pinpoint on a map of where casey is now living. >> and i'm just starting to figure out my new computer. >> reporter: the casey anthony video diary was examined

thursday by florida state officials. >> and now i have someone to talk to, because i'm by myself so i'm not bothering the poor dog, because i've adopted and i love. >> reporter: the legions have closely followed the story since the 25-year-old mother charged with killing her daughter. was the video flipped in a mirror image and if so why. she once wrote "should i go red or blond?" it appears the long-haired brunette now has a blond bob. casey wearing glasses had also once written she admired the librarian look. >> i'm extremely excited. >> reporter: in the diary, casey talks about herself more than 40 times. >> kind of nice finally being able to say that i have some belongings that are mine and i'll be able to take with me. it's obviously a different ball

game for me, because i've never used this before. i want to look directly at myself or look up. >> reporter: she never once mentions her daughter, caylee. casey's lawyer, cheney mason, says he believes the video was stolen from casey's hard drive. >> we want to find out who did it and how they did it, then they are going to be, i hope, answering to state and federal law enforcement agencies. >> reporter: casey's parents now fear for their daughter's security. >> my clients are just worried for casey's safety and hope that this video won't cause her any problems because now people know what she looks like again. >> reporter: who posted it on youtube? >> i'm the one that found it and posted it. >> reporter: john david bryly, who titled "boycott casey anthonys future earnings" says he first found the links asking for $3 to $5 to view the video but then found a link that was free. >> now she ain't going to make a

cent either because it's free for anybody that wants to see it. >> scary because i hate being on camera. >> reporter: if it was stolen from her computer as her lawyers believe internet experts say it could be a sophisticated hack or just as likely, simple operator error. >> i'm excited that i'll be able to skype and obviousry keep a video log. >> skype the new versions link directly in to facebook, it's a button you click one time and whatever you recorded to share with your friends on facebook. >> reporter: casey anthony is serving a one-year probation in the state of florida for passing bad checks but on that video diary she talks about getting a reduction in that probation. state corrections officials say that is possible. ann? >> interesting, kerry sanders, thank you so much. savannah guthrie "today's" legal correspondent and star jones, former prosecutor and veteran legal commentator. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> tammy fein our producer put

it correctly, "she's back." was this an authorized release or plot to boost her publicity? >> i can't wait to hear what star says. i'm skeptical this is a sophisticated strategy. she mistakenly put it up. i find it hard to believe. >> like the old people we had on the show two days ago that made a mistake and put their whole conversation on the video. that seems a little more likely than a sophisticated hacker that happened to discover her brand new computer. >> on the other hand, it is interesting, a couple things about this. why is it in black and white? that makes it harder to find the location, black and white obscure it is more and why are there the audio edits on it. that would be in argument of favor maybe she did release this. >> as a plot to cash in. >> she is still shopping interviews? >> it was pay-per-view initially and then pulled back because it was not ready it makes a little

bit more sense. >> meantime a lot of people watching, 4:15, and on it, it has been noted one of our smart producers basically counted she says "i" used the word "i" 48 times during this tape and makes the point she hates being on camera but that she needs to conquer this fear. the word narcissist has been tossed around. >> dr. nancy said she was a classic sociopath so of course i did my homework, i wanted to learn what are the symptoms, not learning from experience, no sense of responsibility, inability to control ck of moral sense no, change in behavior after punishment, emotional immaturity, lack of guilt, dr. nancy is right. it is the definition of a sociopath. >> we're lawyers, not therapists but she's certainly self-centered, so self-absorbed the video is kind of boring, and that's what makes me feel like it isn't a pr strategy because if she's trying to entice interest or test the waters, this certainly is no draw, other

than just looking at her and wondering what she looks like. >> i think she missed all of us. had she missed a little bit of being in the public consciousness. this is a way to get right back in. >> let's get give her any more this morning. we're going to go. savannah guthrie and star jones. now let's get a check of the weather from al. >> thank you so much, ann. we are talking about some real warm weather to talk about, in iowa. they were golfing in davenport. pretty good shot, very nice. biking? hard to believe. temperatures not quite as warm today but still pretty toasty. look at these records we're talking about. these are all-time highs for january, minot, north dakota, aberdeen, 63. above normal temperatures, 30s, 40s through the plains, teens and 20s in new england. we're looking at 70s into the gulf coast and on into texas. that's what's going on in the

>> good morning. what a beautiful forecast. partly sunny skies throughout the day. upper 50's around baltimore. >> and you know of course, we're done with sunday night football night in america but this is better, it's "wild card saturday!" the bengals at reliant stadium taking on the texans. retractable roof, partly cloudy, mild, temperatures in the mid-70s and our second game in the evening, it's another good one on "wild card saturday" the lions tear into the saints, at the mercedes-benz superdome. mostly cloudy, upper 60s on

"wild card saturday!" ann? >> thank you so much. coming up next, ricky gervais is back to holding this year's golden globe. should actors be afraid? matt will talk to the controversial host, right after this. laces? really? slip-on's the way to go. more people do that, security would be like -- there's no charge for the bag. thanks. i know a quiet little place where we can get some work done. there's a three-prong plug. i have club passes. [ male announcer ] now there's a mileage card that offers special perks on united, like a free checked bag, united club passes, and priority boarding. thanks. ♪ okay. what's your secret? ♪ [ male announcer ] the new united mileageplus explorer card. get it and you're in.

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. we are back at 7:43. an estimated 250 million viewer also tune in to watch the golden globes a week from sunday. for a third year in a row, british comedian ricky gervais will serve as host. remember the fallout from last year? i caught up with him on monday for an exclusive interview. when ricky gervais took to the podium in 2011 to host the golden globe awards for the second time it was clear the gloves were off. >> please welcome ashton kutcher's dad, bruce willis. talking of the walking dead, congratulations to hugh hefner,

two heterosexual actors pretending to be gay. >> reporter: some of his remarks left the a-list audience speechless, he has the last laugh as he's invited to host round three. you like the tight wire? >> that's my adrenalin rush. >> did you feel that going into the second time hosting them? >> every time i go live or tv or an interview i think i could always say the wrong thing. the thing is with me is there's always two little people in my head, one's going, go on, say it, whatever you like. the other one's going why take the risk? might be funny. might be a hero. but you might be living in a car. you know? which wins. >> you did promise you were never going to do it again. >> i did, and this is, no one believes me now. now this will be the last time i think, last time for a while at least. but what really tipped the balance was all the people who said i'd never be invited back.

>> exactly. just dare me. >> people should know that reverse eye coming works better than that. i don't like it when he does that. don't you? well here's some more. >> here are some of the comments. robert downey jr. got up and called your jokes hugely mean-spirited with mildly sinister undertones. "time" magazine, there's a fine line and another, the front-runner for the show's worst host >> i suggested charlie sheen might like a night out. it's going to be a night of party and heavy drinking or as charlie sheen calls it breakfast. many of you know him best as the betty ford clinic and los angeles county jail. please welcome robert downey jr. robert downey jr. spent some

time in clinics and he did. i'm not judging him by that. it's a joke. >> and i don't want to make anybody think there weren't some rave reviews. jon stewart, a lot of people have an awful lot of respect for jon stewart. >> i was offended that a comedian could be that funny on the globe show. ricky was hilarious. >> as soon as i heard you were going to do it again, one of two things are going to happen, he's going to tone it down and not risk the controversy or he's going to go in there with his freaking guns blazing. >> again there's no contest, and the controversy is irrelevant to me. that's people's opinions outside my jokes. i do it my way, i get lead on everything. >> you get to do whatever you want. >> and they don't know what i'm going to say and won't know what i'm going to say until i say it. >> when you're on stage, am i watching ricky gervais or am i

watching a cha, that you've created who happens to share the same name? >> the guy on stage is a lot brasher, more arrogant, more confident than me. i tack a deep breath and go out with swagger. >> sunday night the 15th we'll see that swagger? >> yep. i might even really be drunk. >> we're going to have much more of our interview with ricky next week, more on his rise to fame and foray into pop music. are you hardwired to adoring baby animals like siku the polar bear? we'll talk about the science of cute, right after this. annual b! so you earn 50% more cash. according to research, everybody likes more cash. well, almost everybody... ♪ would you like 50% more cash? no!

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>> reporter: siku, the unbearably cute baby polar bear became a worldwide sensation in a matter of days. [ ooh, baby, baby ♪ >> reporter: and if it's not him sending our hearts a-flutter, it may be the puppy or any of those viral videos online. surprise kitty, 58 million views, more than the entire population of england. even this thing, 56 million. why do we react like this? >> oh, it's so cute! >> reporter: why is it a part of us to care so much about a sleepy puny or hungry hamster? ♪ on the piano >> reporter: in oxford university top researchers may know. here is your brain looking at a person, and here is your brain on "cute," a burst in its pleasure center, when subjects 

look at babies. >> in the higher regions of the brain where emotion and reward is processed, at tremendous speed. >> reporter: in a seventh of a second a rush from chocolate or a drug. >> the size of the infant's eye there, the bulging cheeks, much larger forehead. >> reporter: animal babies share the same ratio, in some ways more exaggerated, more helpless and hit hard on our hardwired love of the baby face. ♪ baby face, you've got the cutest little ♪ >> reporter: and it seems our bar is so low that we can take anything, add a huge forehead, big eyes, cute chubby mouth and the carrot is now cute. and alan stein and kristine parsons found the response to cuteness and how long chose to look at baby faces was the same in men as women.

there's a science behind this? >> there is and you see the same propotions in the baby photo. >> reporter: we give in, and keep on clicking on what our brains adore. for "today," michelle kosinski, nbc news, london. >> oh! >> we can just play that story all over again. >> a hit on the web. >> for the record you're cuter than the cat. >> just a mild portion. >> more after your local news. i think it might be broken. or maybe it's trying to tell you something. yeah, but what could it be -- oh! i left my 401(k) at my old job. and i left a jacket on the back of my door. but i think the line's talking about my 401(k). leave a 401(k) behind? roll it over with the company that's helping more people reach retirement than anyone else. call or come in for a free portfolio review today.

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>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am jennifer franciotti. we need to check on the morning commute. it is awful. >> we have an accident involving an overturned vehicle southbound. all lanes are being forced off at belfast. speeds around at two miles per hour. forced off at belfast. at reisterstown, we have an accident. washington boulevard and hollins ferry road, we have an accident causing some delays. southbound 95 just past the beltway.

delays on the west side. if you travel on the north side, 26 miles per hour. so far so good on j.f.x. we will take in life you of the harrisburg expressway did not moving at mount carmel. avoided at all costs until they are able to clear this accident. here is what it looks like it york road. bright lights in view as folks tried to make the way towards southbound. hopefully ava has better news with weather. >> thinks are looking good at the weather department. 35 at b.w.i. marshall, 38 at the inner harbor. we are warming things up with winds out of the southwest and a mixture of clouds and sunshine. we had a high of 58 degrees. i would not be surprised if a few spots in the city get past

the 60 degree mark. 50 in the mountains. it will be a little bit breezy in the mountains today. we stay warm into tomorrow, and

8:00 now on a friday morning, it's the 6th day of january, 2012. people outside out here on the plaza, chilly day, 39 degrees, blue skies. out on the plaza i'm matt lauer along with ann curry and al roker. lots to get to. coming up, new information in the story of george smith, a connecticut man who disappeared on a cruise during his honeymoon. we'll talk about new information with his mom and his sister in our studio, justñi ahead. also we're going to bring you up to date on a story we had on our broadcast, a grandmother who was falsely accused of stealing her own identity after her appearance on the "today" show another suspect was arrested so we'll hear from her

coming up this morning. and we've got a milestone to mark with this young man over here, mr. lauer. >> very young, we're excited for you. >> a lot to get to. inside, natalie is standing about i at the news desk with a ek ch of the he check of the headlines. the labor department is releasing december jobless figures. they come one day after an encouraging report that showed the number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell last week for the fourth time in five weeks. the mother of three little girls who died in a christmas day house fire in connecticut told more than 500 mourners thursday that her daughters now live in her heart. the funeral was held in new york city, where the mother, madonna banger, works as an advertising executive. songs played at the surface included "this little light of mine" and "over the rainbow," a private service was held for the girls' two grandparents who also died in the fire. this morning at the vatican,

pope benedict named 22 new cardinals who will be elevated in a formal ceremony next month. among they were, new york archbishop timothy dolan. he'll speak with us later this hour. congratulations to cardinal dolan. here's brian williams with a look at what's coming up tonight on "nbc nightly news." >> tonight we'll do something special, look at the road to retirement. how can you bounce back, what can you do to get on the right track to grow and protect your nest egg in this awful economy. we'll have that for you on "nbc nightly news." natalie back to you. >> thank you. "what's trending today" a quick roundup what has you talking online, tiger woods ex-el ex-elinnordgren bulldozed the $12 million mansion.

she plans to build her own dream home on the exclusive waterfront property. president obama's campaign joined the 50 million users of instagram, the number one app of 2011, hugely popular with hipsters. it lets users add special effects to photos and share them on social networking sites. look at this video of a spell-bound harrison ford supposedly watching his "raiders of the lost arc" trilogy for the first time. going viral on youtube. >> no, no, no! the video was created by a prankster who spliced together movie scenes from an ad ford recorded for a computer game. very cute and creative. to al for a check of your weather. >> i love that, fantastic. now get mark hamill watching "star wars" we're all set.

where are you from? >> panama beach florida. >> what is your name? >> tiffany. >> and yours? >> heh! >> that's cute! who is this? >> thomas. >> thomas, thanks so much. heh, i love that! our pick city of the day, san antonio, texas, woai, saturday, sunny and mild conditions, which is great, because they are going to be hosting the u.s. army all-american bowl right here on nbc tomorrow at 1:00 eastern, and we salute all the folks who take part in that including our soldiers. showers in the pacific northwest >> good morning. a warmup in place. 58 degrees the high temperature this afternoon. light wind out of the southwest.

>> and that's your latest. matt lauer? new information tied to the disappearance of a connecticut man who vanished on his honeymoon in 2005. we'll talk to his mother and sister right after this. [ male announcer ] every day, thousands of people are choosing advil. i'm keith baraka and i'm a firefighter. and it's very physically demanding.

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details on the mysterious disappearance of a young man on his honeymoon cruise, 26-year-old george smith vanished in 2005 and newly released investigative documents are finally providing his family with some answers. we're going to talk to his mother and his sister in just a moment. but first, nbc's dennis murphy is joining us with the latest on the story. dennis, good morning. >> good morning, ann. detectives like nothing but a rock solid time line and we don't have that in this cruiseship mistily but this is anything but case closed. >> he made our family complete and now the family is split and every day i miss him. >> reporter: the question, what happened to george smith, a fatal accident or foul play? it's been a mystery ever since that night on a royal caribbean cruiseship that started with george and his bride, jennifer hagel, trying their luck in the ship's casino and ended with the groom missing and presumed

overboard, ugly blood stain on the ship's awning and a host of unanswered questions. >> every day we work on his case. >> reporter: now investigative files released to the family as part of a civil settlement with the royal caribbean cruise line and obtained exclusively by "dateline" provide new information the smiths and their attorney hope will crack the case. among the revelations, jennifer hagal was not considered a suspect early on in the investigation. >> jen passed her polygraph. >> reporter: "dateline" has spoken exclusively with the passengers who remember george telling those in the casino he had money stashed in the state room. >> he was telling people he had $17,000 in his safe cash and we were like why are you saying that? >> reporter: his family wants to know, did the wrong person overhear george? was the commotion that ear witnesses heard that night coming from the smith's cabin evidence of a struggle in this never before released photo from inside the smith's cabin shows

two specks on the bed, specks that turn out to be blood. >> there's blood on the sheets that really it's not explained and no one knows how it got there. >> reporter: george's mother and sister think the true story can now be stitched together. >> i have 100% certainty it was foul play. >> reporter: he was murdered? >> he was murdered. >> i think it was botched robbery. >> reporter: the fbi never made public its own theory of what happened to george or named a suspect but the bureau is actively investigating, which brings the smith family renewed hope. so what about the supposed wad of cash joshlg was carrying? there's no evidence he had any amount like that on him. as the family points out it was the belief on board he was loaded is what matters. >> dennis murphy thank you for your reporting on this. we're joined by george smith's mother and sister, maureen and bree smith and also joining us is michael j. jones, the attorney for the smith family. good morning to all of you. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> maureen is now your having a

theory of what may have happened to your son, is it as painful as not knowing or does it give you a modicum of relief? >> it gives me a certain amount of relief, because we've been fighting for six and a half years to find out what happened to george on that royal caribbean ship, and i think we're getting closer and closer to finding out now what happened to him. and we need to know. >> it gives you a sense that there might have been a motive. >> yes. >> but let me ask you this, we just heard dennis say there's no evidence that he had this kind of money in the cabin, george. would your son have talked about having money in a cabin? does this make sense, that he would boast about having a tremendous amount of money in his cabin? >> not really like him, but you know, you don't know what people are doing when they're away on vacation, you know, he may have said something about some money back in the cabin that he may have said, yes. >> as far as we know, was anything taken from the cabin at all? >> i don't honestly know that.

>> and before he vanished, bree, he wrote an e-mail to your family about his trip. i mean, he wrote "i'm having the time of my life. don't get in contact with me unless it's the end of the world or unless someone dies." does it give you some peace that, to think how happy it sounds as though he must have been in these last few days? >> he was so happy. he married the woman of his dreams. he married his soulmate. you could tell from the pictures on his wedding day that he was thrilled, and he was having a great time on the cruiseship, and all of a sudden, something happened, and we don't know what it is, and that's very difficult, but i think we're getting closer. >> meantime, are you on talking terms with his soulmate, the woman he married, jennifer, and are you confident she had nothing to do with the disappearance? we just heard dennis report that that was decided early on by

investigators. >> she's been cleared by the fbi, along with lloyd, both were cleared, the casino dealer. no, we haven't had contact with jennifer in six years. >> that must be a painful part of this as well. >> it is painful and it's unfortunate. still fighting and so as a result, we've lost contact with her, but all we know is that on a day that george married her, he was madly in love with her and he was really enjoying his honeymoon and that's what we have to remember. >> so now the fbi as we're hearing is involved and it's investigating. what is the upshot, michael? what is it that the family can hope for at this point? >> well, what's interesting and encouraging is that over the last three or four months there's been a significant uptick in the activity that i've been involved with, in terms of discussions with the fbi, the new york office of the fbi has also expressed some interest in getting involved as well as the

assistant u.s. attorneys in new york. so that indicates to us that there's a possibility that the new information that we've provided to them has helped to increase interest from law enforcement authorities. >> so you're looking at some point for an arrest and a prosecution and justice for your family. maureen, it's been a long time. >> a long time, but that's what kept us going. >> well, thank you for being here this morning. it's a pleasure to know you and thank you both for coming in. michael, thank you for joining us. you can see more of the story on an all new "dateline" tonight at 10:00, 9:00 central time on nbc. coming up next, the grandmother who was falsely accused of stealing her own identity, how she finally helped police solve this case, right after this. eet... and more. if you replace 3 tablespoons of sugar a day with splenda®, you'll save 100 calories a day. that could help you lose up to 10 pounds in a year.

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the patch with smart control technology that gives you a burst of nicotine in the morning then continues working for up to 24 hours so you can go from one little win to another. until you reach your goal. nicoderm cq. quit one day at a time. we're back now at 8:19 with one woman's identity theft nightmare. we first told you about margo summerville. she ended up being arrested and charged with criminal impersonation. her appearance on "today" eventually led to the real criminal being arrested. first here's nbc's kristen dahlgren. >> reporter: the story starts with a stolen wallet on a san francisco streetcar, but soon took margo summerville turning her from victim into suspect. >> i've run the gamut of feelings. i've been mad, i've been angry,

i've been sad. i'm very, very happy it's over. i'm sorry it took so long for them to realize what i knew all the time, that i was innocent. >> reporter: you see along with her wallet, her identity was stolen, and though the retired wells fargo bank vice president did everything she was supposed to do, canceling her cards and even visiting the bank in colorado where her money was stolen to report the theft, a year later, the 66-year-old was the one led out of her home in handcuffs. she was charged with 19 felony counts of theft and criminal impersonation. >> i absolutely fell apart. >> reporter: the evidence? mostly circumstantial, including handwriting on some of the checks. >> they never fingerprinted checks, they never looked at my bank accounts, they never seemed to really look at me as a person. >> reporter: two years and $60,000 in legal bills later, the charges were dropped, but only because prosecutors decided there wasn't enough to convict her. that's when summerville took her story to the "today" show and got a break she could only wish

for. >> had she not appeared on your show we never would have caught andrea harris frazier. >> reporter: harris frazier is this woman shown on bank video looting margo's account. investigators thought she and summerville were working together but an investigator in chicago was watching and recognized the woman in the picture. harris frazier was linked to an i.d. theft ring, convicted and sentenced to 24 years. >> i'm pleased that we were able to blame the true suspect bling suspect to justice and she'll be behind bars for a very long time. >> reporter: summerville is unlikely to recoup most of her legal fees or the time she spent fighting to are her innocence. >> those were my last two years with my husband, so it was something that i feel i was robbed of. >> reporter: robbed of more than a wallet, or her identity. finally proven innocent, but still paying the cost. for "today," kristen dahlgren,

nbc news, los angeles. >> margo summerville is back with us along with her son, republican strategist todd harris. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> todd, i remember april 2009 you brought your mom to the show. was it hard to convince her to tell her story? because it was embarrassing on national tv. >> alcohol probably. >> i know it was, she did not want to do it. >> no, you did not want to come on this show. i remember how nervous she was. yes, when you're accused of a crime like this, it's bad enough to go through it but then to talk about it in front of the world. >> and margo the charges were by that time dropped but you were concerned there would be no way you could get your good name back. >> they were dropped but at that point they still thought i had done it because they didn't have anybody else, so it was, i was innocent but i really wasn't innocent. >> what was your reaction when, after appearing here, you heard that in fact a true suspect had

been identified in this case? >> actually it was very exciting, because almost immediately, after i was on this show, my husband actually got a call from a detective in chicago saying "we know who that woman is. we've been trying to find her," and that's what started it. it took up to two years. >> a long ordeal. so many people heard about identity theft and probably think they would know what to do, but let's go back over some of the things you did. you cooperated. you went to the bank where the money was being taken from in colorado while on a trip there, you submitted handwriting samples and even took a lie detector test. you must have thought you were being the model victim. >> i was the model victim. i just couldn't prove to them that i didn't do it. >> was there anything -- now that you look back hindsight being 20/20, is there anything you might have done differently? >> i don't think so, except the original handwriting test. i don't know now if i should have done that, but know one

would know that. you don't know -- they asked me to take a handwriting test and that's what started the whole thing. >> you were being cooperative. >> i thought everybody did things like that. >> you've lost time, you've lost legal fees. you've lost all kinds of money. you say you were robbed of that time with your husband. >> i was. those were the last two years of his life. >> you're angry still? >> i'm angry because of what we went through and what it put our family through. i'm happy with the result. >> todd, talk to me about what this has done to your mom and it may be easier for to you talk about it than for her to talk about it. what's it done to her and the family? >> it's a nightmare to go through, to imagine, you know, laying in bed, thinking about your mom, i remember the night she was arrested and had to spend the night in jail, i was awake all night thinking about, you know, her in a jail cell, and as we talked about, my father passed away the end of 2009 and this really did put a cloud over those last couple of years, because this was the

centerpiece of, i mean she took a second mortgage out on the house. there were vacation plans that were being put on hold because we just didn't know. >> so next time todd tells you come with me on national tv, you will say? >> i will be delighted. and thank you for having me. >> thank you for coming back. todd thanks very much. we appreciate it. we're going to be back with much more of "today" on a friday morning, after your local news.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning to you. i am sarah caldwell. let's start with a check of the morning commute. complete nightmare this morning. we are waking up from a nightmare, because the accident is gone on southbound 83. all lanes have just been reopened at 15 minutes ago. traffic is starting to move again, but it will take a really long time for all of it to filter out. avoid 83 for a while. the one thing you want to avoid on york road southbound, just getting word of an accident taking up the lane and there. further south, washington boulevard and hollins ferry

road, we have an accident with a pedestrian-involved crash. j.f.x. from the beltway down to 28, north and west side outer loop as you can see there. inner loop at quarantine will shut down at her 10 due to construction at the curtis creek drawbridge. two-way traffic pattern set up for two weeks. as we switch over quickly, we will show you what it looks like york road. definitely a void 83 for a while. john has a check under forecast. >> aside from the traffic situation, it is a gorgeous morning. we had clouds just to the south of baltimore. as the sun was rising, it may for a beautiful morning sunrise. clouds not producing any rain. fair weather situation. look at that temperature this morning. 70% humidity. 2993 the barometric pressure but southwest winds will drive mild temperatures and to the area today. cool front will come through but

it should come through dry with the wet weather at gores mill week weather to our north. unseasonably mild. southwest breeze at five to 10 miles an hour. sunday, we will be in the 40's. sunday, we will be in the 40's.

♪ from nbc news, this is today with katie couric and matt lauer, live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> and welcome to "today" on this monday morning, a very special monday morning for our friend, matt lauer. so how did that sound? want to hear it again? one more time. >> play it back, can you? >> this is "today" with katie couric and matt lauer.

and matt lauer. >> do not adjust your set. we did not go back in time. we're actually playing this because today is the 15th anniversary of matt's first day on the "today" show. [ cheers and applause ] >> you don't look any different. >> exactly the same. it's a carbon copy. what are you laughing at? anyway, no. >> 15 years later, congratulations. >> i've loved every day and it's still fun, really is. it's great working with you guys. it's nice. anyway -- >> doesn't seem like it's been 15 years. >> yes. >> we've got a big anniversary next week as well. >> that's right. >> 60th. >> before we get to that, you're going to hate this but we've posted the top 15 matt moments here on our "today" website. i don't know if you'll agree with our website. >> i can only come up with three. >> we had trouble choosing top 15 but if you want to go to

today.com you can find out what we decided to narrow is to. just ahead an exclusive look at prince charles' favorite scottish retreat. we'll take you inside dunfree's estate. that is beautiful. we'll go there in a couple of minutes. >> talk about your fixer-upper. john gresham is here, 20 years since his novel "the firm" launched his career as an author. now it's going to be a tv series here on nbc. john's going to fill us in and explain the series. >> i'm excited about that. it's going to be great. also the 100 girls shares her pick for the right and healthy snacks under 200 calories. let's get a check of the weather. 40 degrees on the thermometer. >> absolutely correct. >> correct, good. >> up into the low to mid-50s today. >> wonderful. >> let's check your forecast and look ahead to the weekend, for tomorrow we have snow showers in

northern new england. showers in the pacific northwest. snow in the rockies, skiers will be happy. then on sunday, lake-effect snow around the great lakes, and plenty of sunshine to the southwest, showers still lingering in the coastal pacific northwest. that's what's going on in the country. here's what's happen >> good morning. what a beautiful forecast. partly sunny skies throughout the day. upper 50's around baltimore. upper 50's around baltimore. . >> don't forget check your weather any time of the day or

night, especially this weekend, weather.com or online. next we check the favorite retreat of prince charles, but first this is "today" on nbc.

♪ so, where do the royals go when they need a week to understand unwind? prince charles prefers one of the greatest country houses in scotland. here with an exclusive look at the dunfee's house is margaret russell, editor in chief ofitec" >> good morning. >> 18th century house, on the cover a setback in time. what is the story about why it is architecturally and historically significant? >> it's a beautiful example of adam architecture, a fine house from the mid 18th century that happens to have one of the most

extraordinary collections of british furniture mostly chippendale, and in a rather dramatic 11th hour save a few years ago, prince charles put together a loan from a foundation and helped to raise funds. it was up for sale. it was being, all the contents being sold at christie's and nothing happened before. the furniture was on a truck going to the sale rooms, everything had been priced. the family that inherited thes house had a substantial house and couldn't keep it. so it was saving a scottish treasure. >> when you say saving the worst that would have happened if they sold the house to a private investor, somebody else would have lived in it but the furniture would have been taken. were they thinking about dismantling the house, when you say save, what do you mean? >> anyone who goes into a house often puts something in about themselves and not about restoring it and what's interesting about this house is that right now it exists exactly as it was in the mid 1700s, when it was finished.

all the furnitures in the rooms, they were designed for. it's as if at that time there were 13 colonies in the united states. imagine what it's like, so to save it, it was completely restored and the furniture was kept together. it's an extraordinary collection and that is an important thing for the united kingdom. >> were you able to go into the home or reporters to get a sense what have it must be like? looking at the images, they are of course stunning but there must be a particular experience from being in these rooms that are so preserved as they existed in the 1700s. >> well, it's just glorious there. and we spent a weekend there and had access to the prince of wales and it was really a very, very special experience for our team. >> and he was very active in this renovation process. of course he's been known for wanting to restore and preserve older estates, older buildings, and i understand that he came into the sitting for your photograph and you thought you had, what, three minutes or

something? >> i think we thought we had about 30 seconds, and he spent about half an hour, and it's clearly because you know, he's very keen on urban design and historic preservation and this is that story. >> um-hum. and so when you walk through the rooms, how many square feet is this would you say? >> it's quite large. i forget exactly how many square feet. it's 2,000 acres. it's a substantial house. it's not a palace but it's a big house. >> and the prince also spends time in this house, and still is going to be able to do so as a result of having saved it, is that right? >> absolutely. it's open to the public which is a marvelous thing but he does spend time there. >> so the rest of us can maybe go there. >> you can. >> you can have a we hadding there if you want. >> you can have a we hadding there. >> good, well it's nice to know. the house is called the dunfee house written about in "architectural digest." thank you for being here to tell us what it's all about.

>> thank you. coming up next, best selling author john grisham on turning "the firm" into a tv series. fi

we are back with author john gri haim. his novel "the firm" became the best selling novel of 1991. the movie starred tom cruise. 20 years later "the firm" is heading to the tv, picks up the story of mitch mcdeer and his story ten years after the events of the book. mcdeer has left the witness protection program but can't seem to escape his former life. take a look. >> adieu, misieur. what number are you calling

from? >> we need to get out of here, code red. >> what? why? who could be listening? what are you talking about? >> john grisham welcome back. >> always a pleasure. >> i want to get to where the story picks up and takes us in a second. the story of "the firm" the book and eventually the movie is fascinating. somebody actually bootlegged a copy of that book before it was published and took it to movie companies. >> yeah the book laid around publishing offices in new york for a few months and nobody wanted "the firm." my agent showed it to a couple of publishes and nobody wanted to buy it and then it was bootlegged in hollywood. we sold the movie rights first. >> before the book was published. >> the first call i got was in january of 1990. my agents said we sold the film rights to "the firm." i said what about the book

rights? he said that will come now. >> it launched your career. have you ever had a chance to thank that copy boy who bootlegged the copy? >> no one would ever take credit for it. we sort of know who did it, who got the bootleg, used to happen all the time. >> security a little tighter now? >> it's the internet now so everything is out there. the bootleg copies used to happen all the time. >> when you were approached to bring requesting the firm" to television or with the idea the characters would come back your response was what? >> i read the script. a young writer wrote a spec script and it was really good, and i read that and i don't read a lot of scripts and you rarely see a good one but i read luke's and it's well written and going to work. >> remind me, did the book and the movie end the same way? >> no, the book is much better. when the book ends, they're sailing off into the caribbean and we're not sure what's going

to happen to them. in the movie i'm not sure what's going to happen, they've kind of packed up and left memphis and went back to wherever. >> boston, something like that? >> yes. >> so when the tv show picks up, they have spent ten years in kind of the witness protection program. >> yes. >> and now feel it's kind of safe enough to come out. >> well, they're tired of being in the witness protection -- they want a real life. okay, we're going to forget this. mitch says to heck with the past and they step out. >> what actual input are you going to have on this? you say it wasn't your idea. do you have input from this point forward? >> it's kind of like the movies, i stay away from it. if it's great i take all the credit. if it's terrible i say it's somebody else's idea. >> you're well practiced. >> no, here's what i'm doing. i'm reading the scripts. i'm concerned -- not concerned, the writing is really good. i want to watch the writing and make sure it stays at a certain level. i help out, i give ideas, if i like something fine, if i dislike it, i say that. they give me as much input as i want. >> it's tough, you've got an actor named josh lucas we saw in the clip, taking on the role of

tom cruise, that's an uphill battle. how do you think he does? >> he does great. this guy is a movie star. this guy has got the presence, the charisma, the talent, and the looks and he's really good. i mean i've seen the pilot. it's going to premiere sunday night on nbc. >> so you're not just sitting here saying you like this. you're excited about it. >> i wouldn't be here if i didn't like it. and i've had bad experiences on television. >> not here. >> not the "today" show. the client came out 15 years ago and was not very good and i didn't really like it, but "the firm" is another story. this is going to be a hit. >> john grisham, it's exciting and nice to have you back. >> always a pleasure matt. >> happy new year. catch the two-hour series o premiere of "the firm" sunday night at 9:00 p.m. on nbc. up next, snacks under 200

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♪ cause i'm hungry for the good things, baby ♪ this morning on "eat smart today" satisfying snacks that are all under 200 calories. lisa williams the star of "hunger girl" on the food network and founder of hungrygirl.com. lisa, good morning and i'm hungry. >> good morning. good because there's lots to eat today. >> a lot of people are concerned about eating snacks because it's going to pack on the pounds. you say it can help you keep the pounds off. how? >> it can. when you snack throughout the

day you keep your metabolism up and when you goet to meal times you're not super duper hungry and won't overeat. eat every few hours. >> all the justification i need. the first thing is jerky. that's an interesting thing. >> jerky gets a bad wrap. >> it does. >> it's not cool, not beautiful. people don't love jerky but it's a good snack because it's low in fat, it's high in protein and low in calories. >> jerky is low in fat? >> low in fat. this is gourmet jerky. >> it is. >> so it's special. this jerky is the best, comes in chicken flavors and beef and the cool thing, it has dried fruits in it and some have beans and cheeses. it's simply snackin' and available online only. this is a vary jerky. i love it. >> i really like salmon jerky. i eat that a lot. let's move on and talk about h m hummus. >> this is super hummus. twice the protein and half the fat. four grams of protein, which is

a lot of protein thanks to the chick peas but it also has soy beans in it as well. that's rare for hummus. >> and also i'm eating it here with a nut thin, is it a nongluten cracker? >> this is a gluten free cracker. you can eat 16 or 17 of them for 130 calories. they're made with almonds and rice, all-natural, and blue diamond makes them and a lot of bang for your calorie buck. >> what about these? >> we all like portion controlled pizza key. these are made by amy's, toaster pops. pizza flavored pop tarts. they're delicious, savory pop tarts, all-natural great for moms and kids. >> i'm surprised, having pizza is a surprise to me. >> it's a snack. >> you got to limit enough to the tiny pizza. >> portion control. >> and cheese you want to make sure you limit your cheese. this is weight watchers. >> this is weight watchers but what i like about the string cheese it's easy to grab, portable, very low in calories,

50 calories a stick and smoked cheese flavor which no other string cheese out there i've tried tastes as good as this. >> you also think soup, we have to move on because we're running out of time. soup could be a good snack? >> people who eat soup throughout the day take in 25% fewer calories throughout the day. great snack, fills you up. >> let me hear that again. you're kidding. we have soup all the time. why is that, liquid? >> it's liquid, water and you look for broth-based soup, read the labels. >> that is good information. >> throw that in the microwave, super easy. >> now you're cooking. >> 100 calories, it's good. we all like almonds. these are cocoa roast almonds dusted with cocoa if you want sweetness. >> don't have a thick chocolate coating? >> no. you get a little sweetness and a little bit of cocoa, a natural amazing nut fix, 100 calories. >> now an eggo. >> waffles. >> as a snack. >> did you ever think you could have two waffles and give you

35% of fiber for the day? nine grams of fiber for two waffles. >> and chocolate chip. >> you don't need syrup. you can have breakfast or a snack or you want a little chocolate fix. >> i would eat ten of them. you have no idea i would totally eat the box. i don't have -- anyway, so if you could limit yourself to two you're fine. >> these are bars, i know there are a lot of bars. i love these, taste like chewy peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, it's light bars and cranberry crunch, under 200 calorie, a great mini meal replacement or a snack. >> as a snack you could eat the whole thing in. >> yes, it's a 200 calorie snack. very satisfying. >> thank you so much, lisa. >> thank you. now here's matt. >> ann, thanks very much. we're honored to have the archbishop of new york timothy dough lon, also president of the u.s. conference of catholic bishops and he was our guide at the vatican not long ago when i

had an audience with the pope. your excellency, happy new year to you. >> what a segment from the dietary snacks. >> no harm intended i promise you. >> before and after. >> you come this morning with really wonderful news. >> well, thanks. yes, i was today at the vatican pope benedict xvi, announced the epiphany, january 6th is the 12th day after christmas we don't celebrate it this america but he announced he was making new cardinals. >> are you allowed to high five a new cardinal? >> thank you, al. >> you got a phone call? >> i got a phone call yesterday so i only found out 24 hours in advance. archbishop called so i only knew 24 hours ago. i promised you when we were in rome last may that great visit, thanks again, i promised i'd let you guys know so i gave you advanced notice. >> archbishop, what will your

differences be in duties as you go forward? >> my major duty is still the archbishop of new york so that's the biggie but there may be a few added responsibilities to the wider church, the church universal. i would probably be for instance appointed to a couple of what they call congregations, the vatican's versions of cabinets to the pope. duty wise not much of an increase. >> huge responsibility in the cardinal in the event of a election of a new pope takes place you take part. >> you're right, that's the weightiest responsibility for the cardinal. when the pope dies, it's the cardinals under 80 who enter conclive to elect him. god willing i'm not going to have to do that in a while. that's the heaviest responsibility a cardinal has. >> you'd be spending more time in rome? >> you want to come? let's go. >> yes, he's already ready. >> i remember the restaurant down the street from the vatican. >> so do i.

exhibit "a." >> will you be there more often than you are now? >> probably, because as i mentioned to al the appointment is some congregations on the vatican, their version of cabinet offices. i might have to go a little bit more often. so. >> you are called by some the face of the catholic church. >> thanks. >> in the united states, and this is a terrific honor just for people biographically if you're not as familiar with this man, born in st. louis. >> stol st >> st. louis, missouri. >> fan of the cardinal? >> i said the only cardinal i wanted to be was stan muciel. >> since you're a fan of the cardinals now you have this brand new honor we'd bestow this upon you. >> champions of the world. you saw what someone gave me today a baby cardinal. >> how cute is that? >> al you want to pass the head? >> congratulations. >> thank you, matt.

happy new year. let's go back to rome. >> absolutely. >> soon to be card know timothy dolan, thank you. we're back after your local news and a look at your forecast. >> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am jennifer franciotti. 28-year-old joseph clark is in police custody in connection with the shooting in anne arundel county. investigators say he shot a man at a party on christmas eve. the victims survived, and clark

turned himself into authorities. he f

>> beautiful morning. gorgeous sunrises, temperatures in the low 30's. we will see our fair share of the sunshine, unseasonably mild temperatures. see you at 9:25.