good morning. decisive victory. mitt romney wins the florida primary by a commanding 14-point margin over newt gingrich. but the former speaker vows to take the fight to 46 more states. we'll talk to governor romney. false sense of security. pfizer recalling 1 million packs of birth control pills because of a problem that could lead to unwanted preg sichlt what women need to know. and brad pitt live. he could walk away with two academy awards on oscar night. first, he's stopping by our studio live for the first time ever. we'll catch up with brad and his former "moneyball" oscar nominee jonah hill today, wednesday, former "moneyball" oscar nominee jonah hill today, wednesday, february 1, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television

touchdown! anp and welcoand welcome t wednesday morning. i'm matt lauer. >r >> i'm ann curry. good morning. mitt romnp mitt romney wmie nominnominee during his speech florida lap florida last fl reaready tp ready to lerea nation. >p >> mitt romn>> mitt romn% of the vor of the votea is a winner take all state. romney had comments on the heated nature of the gop race to date and what it will mean for the general election. we'll talk to him about that and other things ahead. >> also ahead, what's going on with the weather? you can see from our temperature it's 49 degrees on the plaza. about 20 degrees warmer than usual. the question is this unseasonably warm weather, why

is it breaking records across much of the country? we'll fill you in on why this is happening and what you can expect today. >> we're going into the 60s today in new york. also ahead, a 14-year-old girl that has a skill that's led to more than 1.5 million hits on youtube. she has an unusual way with words. we'll put her talent to the test coming up. >> we begin with mitt romney's decisive win in the florida primary. peter alexander joins us from tampa this morning. hey, period of time, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. mitt romney's campaign advisers describe the win in florida as huge. he won among conservatives, tea partiers and among hispanics. his advisers are touting those facts today. reasserting himself as the front-runner and regaining the momentum. he showed after the significant loss in south carolina that he can take a punch. >> my leadership will end the obama era and begin a new era of american prosperity.

>> reporter: confident and in control mitt romney used his victory speech to send a clear message. he's ready for the republican nomination. >> i stand ready to lead this party and to lead our nation. >> reporter: after losing south carolina, romney and his supporters unleashed an assault on newt gingrich with more than 15 million dollars in negative ads blanketing florida's air waves. tuesday night the attacks on gingrich were gone, with romney insisting the birt campaign has only made republicans stronger. >> our opponents in the other party have been watching and they like to comfort themselves with the thought that a competitive campaign will leave us divided and weak, but i have news for them. a competitive primary doesn't divide us. it prepares us. and we will win. >> it is now clear that this will be a two-person race between the conservative leader newt gingrich and the massachusetts moderate. >> reporter: despite losing the pivotal primary by a wide

margin, gingrich isn't giving an inch. his message -- there are 46 states to go. >> the same people who said i was dead in june and july and said i iowa, i want to reassure them. we are going to contest every place and win. we will be in tampa as the nominee in august. >> reporter: setting aside attacks on one another, both men hammered at president obama. >> mr. president you were elected to lead. uh you chose to follow. now it's time for you to get out of the way. >> reporter: gingrich even took a jab at the president's singing. ♪ i'm so in love with you >> i'm not going to compete with obama in singing because i'm not running for entertainer in chief. i'm running for president. i would say to him now, mr. president you cannot sing your way past the disaster of your presidency. >> reporter: already in nevada, the next state to vote, rick

santorum who barely competed in florida told supporters the mud-slinging isn't helping. >> there is one message we got from the campaign in florida. republicans can do better. what we saw in the last few weeks in the state of florida is not something that's going to help us win this election. >> reporter: finishing fourth, ron paul rallied supporters. >> well, if enthusiasm wins election, we'd win hands down! [ cheers and applause ] >> reporter: also today, two sources within the mitt romney campaign tell nbc news that mr. romney will begin getting secret service protection beginning later this week. officials say it is not due to a specific threat but the fact that his prominence has grown and so have the crowds around him. the romney campaign wasting no time celebrating the win in florida. they make stops today in minnesota and nevada. they are already airing negative attack ads going after newt gingrich in nevada. matt? >> peter alexander, thank you very much. mitt romney is also in tampa

this morning. governor, good morning to you. >> good morning, matt. >> hey, congratulations. you had the kind of day in florida the pundits said you needed to have. do you feel like the nominee? >> well, i feel like we had a big night last night and the path ahead is looking very good. i'm confident that if we can keep our effort together and build a stronger team across the country i can become the nominee. >> let me ask you one trivial point here. it's reported that newt gingrich didn't call to congratulate you on the victory in florida. is that true? were you expecting a call and does it say something about the animosity that's developed between the two of you? >> newt didn't call after iowa or new hampshire. i called him after south carolina, his win there, but he didn't call last night. the other candidates all called. i don't know. i guess speaker gingrich doesn't have our phone number. >> as i ask the next question, i want to put the cover of the new yorker magazine up for viewers to see. it shows president obama

watching what they call the big game. it's you and newt gingrich wearing the same team uniform pummelling each other as the president smiles. i know you have said that a long campaign like this does not divide you. it prepares you. but if this goes on much longer and newt gingrich has said he'll go 46 more states with this, how can it not damage you? >> well, you know, i'm not enough of a political historian or a pundit to suggest how the length of the campaign will affect our ultimate success. but i can tell you at this point i think it's been helpful. i think the back and forth and even the attacks have been helpful because what's going to come from barack obama will be the same, just a heck of a lot more of it. having people get a chance to see what the truth is, i think, is a positive thing. as to how long it will go, that's up to the other candidates to decide. if i'm the nominee, up to me to decide as well.

>> whoever is going to be president come january of next year will, it seems, have to deal with iran, a situation that's boiling over. the director of national intelligence james clapper issued a warning before congress on tuesday that iran may now be willing as al qaeda wanes to carry out attacks here on american soil. as you probably saw, the new york times had an article on sunday that israel may now feel the criteria they have imposed on themselves for carrying out a preemptive strike against iran's nuclear capabilities may now have been met. would you support the israelis if they carried out a military strike against iranian nuclear sites sooner than later? >> well, if we reach a point where all the other options have been exhausted, and that hasn't happened yet, and by the way the president's failure to put in place crippling sanctions and stand with the voices of dissent in iran is one of of the reasons we are in the position we are. but if all other options are exhausted of course we have to consider military options

including options that would be taken by israel. i would stand by and make sure israel was defended in the event they were attacked. of course we simply cannot endure a concept of iran having a nuclear weapon, of them having a capacity to provide material to terrorist organizations around the year. >> you used a latin phrase in writing about this a few months ago when talking about iran's nuclear ambitions. i will use the english translation. you said if you want peace, prepare for war. do you think there is a window of opportunity, governor, that is closing fast, that within a certain number of months, not years, iran will have reached a point where a preemptive strike, a precision strike will no longer derail their ability to make a nuclear weapon? >> oh, i think you're right. there comes a point at which they have a nuclear weapon, for instance. or they are so close they can't be persuaded to pull back. we are reaching that point. >> how far away do you think

that is? >> intelligence is doing their best to guess when it is, but it's dangerous. i don't have intelligence from the various agencies of the world. when i become president, if i do, i will get that but it's approaching rapidly. that's one of the reasons why discussions of military options is being spoken by secretary panetta here and the israelis. >> there are reports you're off to minnesota looking for the endorsement of michele bachmann who has questioned your conservative credentials. do you want the endorsement? how important would it be to your campaign? >> oh, i would like all the endorsements i can possibly get. by the way, any question about the support of conservatives, i think, was cleared up last night in florida. people who call themselves conservative and very conservative overwhelmingly supported my campaign. tea partiers supported my campaign. i hope i can convince people in minnesota, nevada, arizona, colorado. i have to get a lot of support

from many in my party. >> congratulations on a big day in florida. thanks for joining us. >> thanks, matt. good to be with you. >> now here's ann. >> how does romney's win change the gop race? we have david gregory of "meet the press" joining us as well as chuck todd, nbc's political director. men, good morning. >> good morning. >> david, mitt sounds pretty darn pleased. was florida the game changer he thought it would be? >> inevitability has been restored for the romney campaign. this was a crucial victory. there was so much potential to go sideways and down in terms of his campaign prospects had he not won florida. that was the firewall. it held in a big way if you look across the board. what he was able to do was demonstrate he's got passion, fight, that he can debate, that he can go a long way toward neutralizing the attacks in fruch. he went in for the kill on newt gingrich who's still out there

with more room to run. i think the pass is difficult for gingrich. i think romney moves into a phase where he continues to nationalize the campaign and puts himself in a strong position. >> he proved he can win over conservatives. but the interesting thing is the exit polling done. you know the numbers. 41% there said romney isn't conservative enough. another 38% said they would like to see someone else run for the republican nomination. is there a danger that people will not show up on election day? >> think about the last number. republicans showed up to tell pollsters they are not satisfied with the field. that's a flashing yellow sign to the republican party and to mitt romney. to go to the conservative point and to build on what david uh was saying which is the idea that the one thing newt gingrich can look at florida and say is i ran a florida campaign, i had no message for the week and i still held the core base, the strong tea party supporters, the

southern part of the state of florida. when david is referring to a path forward, it's difficult but there is one, he can look at the results on how they came in florida. the farther north you go in florida, the farther south you go. in march he can find places to win, but february will be tough. >> as he points out with people holding signs behind him, he has 46 states to go. >> but a ballot in 45. >> thank you so much, chuck and david gregory. once again here's matt. >> now more on the report from director of national intelligence that iran could be more willing to attack the u.s. at home and abroad. nbc chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell has details. how alarming is the report from mr. clapper? >> it is alarming. this is the newest threat facing the u.s. last summer they first unearthed what they say is a failed plot to go and bomb washington and

blow up the saudi ambassador. this is the first time they believe, they concluded that top iranian officials, director clapper said, probably the ayatollah himself have been ready to attack. there have been iranian surrogates like hezbollah attacking but not here on american homeland. >> when it comes to israel watching what happens inside iran with the nuclear program they feel the criteria for a preemptive nuclear strike may have been met and they feel the window of opportunity may close quickly between six and nine months. what's the administration saying about that publically and privately? >> both publically and privately the u.s. is saying their timeline is longer. the president has been ambiguous about things but says no options were off the table. he said it clearly in the state of the union.

but they believe that the window is closing quickly. there is a lot of signalling coming. the top spy was breefg general petraeus at the cia last week and top leaders in both parties seem to believe it needs to be done this year. if the window closes they say it will be no warning and israel will act without the u.s. there's been covert activity killing five iranian nuclear scientists and other computer attacks, cyber attacks against the iranian nuclear program between israel and the u.s. but israel believes covert options are closing. >> andrea mitchell in washington. thank you very much. >> you bet. >> it's 15 after the hour. here's ann. >> now to breaking medical news that will get the attention of a lot of women across this country. pfizer is recalling 1 million packs of birth control pills after discovering a packaging error that could lead to unintended pregnancy.

dr. kerry peterson joins us now. good morning. >> good morning, ann. >> what brands made by pfizer are involved in the recall? >> there are two. one is low ovril 28. it's 14 lots of each. >> do we have to worry women using the birth control pills may suffer unintended pregnancies and also have birth control pill bs harmful to them? is there a concern about that? >> there is no concern. what happened is every pack has three weeks of active ingredient and one week of inactive ingredient. that's when women menstruate. there's been a mix-up so some of the inactive pills were mixed up and placed where the active pills are or vice versa. they are not sure. women will not be protected against pregnancy for the entire month and so if you are someone who had these lots, stop it immediately. use a backup form of birth

control instead. >> if you have been using the lots and you're concerned that you may be vulnerable to being pregnant is there an option? >> first off, see your doctor right away for a pregnancy test. you're going to want to use condoms immediately as a backup form and there are also over-the-counter termination kits available that you can take right away if you think you're pregnant. >> keri peterson, thank you very much for joining us on this breaking news. matt? >> thank you. much of the country is enjoying unseasonably warm weather and it has people asking what happened to winter? nbc chief environmental affairs correspondent anne thompson is in central park. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning, matt. it will feel more like may 1 than february 1 as the thermometer pushes 60 in new york today. this after a january in which record highs outpaced record lows by a ratio of 18 to 1. in upstate new york where lake

george is only partly frozen they are trucking in ice to build the winter carnival castle. thin ice in patterson, iowa took the lives of two friends out fishing. >> you look at it and it's just you slip in judgment and it catches you. >> reporter: across the country, this is the most unusual winter. 2,890 daily records tied or broken this january. more than four times as many as last january. february will get off to a warm start. chicago and st. louis predicted to be 14 degrees above average today. new york city, 20 degrees and minot, north dakota, a dramatic 22 degrees warmer than normal. it is the polar opposite of last february 1st. >> this is a monster of a storm. more than 2,100-mile stretch of more than a foot of snow could fall over the next 48 hours. >> reporter: damage from the

groundhog day storm topped $1 billion. the difference between then and now? the location of the jet stream. last year it dips deep into the u.s. bringing frigid churs and snow from canada. this year it's hovering at the canadian border. >> the systems are coming across the country and bringing mild, sometimes gulf air allowing for incredible record highs. >> reporter: it is confusing crops in california, blooming too soon. >> a normal winter is cold and wet. but not 85 degrees for a week and a half. >> reporter: the sandhill cranes are returning to lincoln county, nebraska, a month ahead of schedule. so, yes, even nature is confused. now scientists are unwilling to win any one weather event on climate change but they say there is no question that our warming world is shifting the odds against a traditional winter as we have known them.

matt? >> anne thompson in central park where it will hit 60-something today. >> mr. roker is in washington, d.c. with more on the weather. good morning. >> hey, guys. we are looking at unusually warm weather as you noted in ann's piece. in fact, we are talking about a la nina year. that means warmer than usual winters and we are seeing that. the jet stream does take a little bit of a dip down to the south. but the cold air up in canada really not moving. so that means we've got scattered record highs in the midatlantic states. northeast, above normal temperatures. through the south. minneapolis will be 19 degrees above normal. in d.c. approaching 70. it will be 25 degrees above normal. albany with a high of 50. 20 degrees above normal. dallas, ft. worth, 75. rest of the country today as far as the weather conditions are concerned, we are looking at sunshine in the midatlantic states. the sun will pop out in the

northeast. the heat and sunshine continues through the southwest. >> good morning. temperatures should make it into the 60's even though we will see some cloud cover and some off and that's your latest weather. ann? thank you, al. still ahead, a "today" first. brad pitt live in studio. first, this is "today" on nbc.

just ahead a california

woman who admits to stabbing her cheating husband to death takes the stand at her murder trial. was that a good idea? >> and why more stars are turning to human growth hormone to feel and look younger. first your local news and weather. ♪ my heart skips a beat ♪ my heart skips a beat ♪ my heart is playing tricks on me ♪ [ female announcer ] introducing new special k granola bars. ♪ i can't break through with 4 grams of protein.

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>> this is wbal-tv 11 news in baltimore. >> good morning. i am stan stovall. here is a look at one of our top stories. less than five hours from now, gov. martin o'malley delivers his state of the state address, a speech his aides say he was still riding last night is expected to focus a lot of attention on higher taxes, specifically the gas tax. also expected in the speech, job creation, same-sex marriage, and separate regulations. you can watch the state of the state address right here on wbal-tv 11. it begins at noon. let's check on the morning

commute. here is sarah caldwell. >> just got word of a brand new accident. according to one of our facebook friends, there is a serious accident at dundalk ave. we're checking on that to get more information. kane street and lombard street, we have an accident. pasadena, watch for a crash. . street -- pratt street, accident wrapping up. drizzle is impacting your right on the west side as well. 32 miles per hour, those speeches began wrapping reisterstown road down to edmondson. tapping the brakes on the north side it. southbound 83, 37 miles per hour. traffic on the west side, heavy volume there. we will switch to a live view in the area of pimlico road. that is the latest on traffic pulse 11. >> most of the rain shower

activity has shifted over to the eastern shore. if you are watching us over there, you will see light rain for a while. around baltimore, the clouds are starting to break up a little bit. that will be the trend as we go through the day. 50 at the airport, 47 in parkton, shooting for a high temperature of 65 this afternoon. 30%

7:30 now on this wednesday morning. it's the first day of february 2012 as we say a warm hello to everyone who's been gathered outside in rockefeller plaza where it is unseasonably warm. al has said it will be a good day. i do see one umbrella out there. meantime inside studio 1a i'm ann curry alongside matt lauer. we'll be talking about the human growth hormone ahead. >> don't look at me. you have heard of it. now it seems hgh is the hot new injection in hollywood with older stars who want to look and feel younger. but is it safe? more on that coming up. >> also ahead, speaking of stars, brad pitt is making his very first live visit to our studio. of course he picked up an oscar nomination for his role in "moneyball" as well as for producing the movie. he'll be here alongside with his

costar and fellow oscar nominee jonah hill. that's exciting. >> and a young, remarkable girl with an unusual talent. say any word and alyssa kramer can repeat it immediately backwards. we'll try to stump her coming up. >> supercalifragilistic- expialidocious. >> she's heard that one before. >> we have a serious turn to make as we begin with a high profile murder trial in california where a woman is accused of stabbing her navy doctor husband to death. aditi roy has the details. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, ann. jennifer trayers admits she stabbed her husband ten times in december of 2010. now a jury must decide whether it was a crime of passion or premeditated murder. 43-year-old jennifer trayer says her mind was full of rage when she plunged a knife into her husband's heart and lungs. >> when you stabbed him, what were you thinking?

>> i was just so angry and mad and i didn't know what was going on. >> reporter: on the stand tuesday, trayers admitted to stabbing her husband eight more times in the back, killing 41-year-old lieutenant commander fred trayers. >> did you aim for the back of his neck or head or did that just happen? >> it was the first place i saw skin. >> reporter: trayers said she was in a suicidal frenzy after learning of her husband's affair with danielle robins who testified last week. trayers said she meant to kill herself with the butcher knife but turned her husband's own military-style knife back on him when he offered to give her something sharper. >> did it seem he was trying to stab you? >> i thought so. >> why? >> he said, let me help you. >> reporter: prosecutors said the day before the stabbing trayers sent her husband's mistress an e-mail. trayers addressed it to dear little miss grass is not greener on my side and wrote, i got to

hear him say, i love you, softly in my ear while he's hugging me. i was the last person he was with. she signed it, mrs. wonderful. prosecutors suggested that e-mail was proof that trayers was planning to kill her husband. >> you plunged the knife into his chest two and a half to three and a half inches. you intended to do that, didn't you? >> no. >> you stabbed him eight times in the back. you intended to do that, didn't you? >> no. >> but you did it, mrs. trayer, didn't you? >> yes. >> reporter: trayers attorney knew it would be a tough day on the stand but felt it was important for her client to make her case to the jury. >> she's been dreading this day for a long time. she doesn't want to relive what happened that day. >> reporter: closinging arguments begin today. if she's found guilty she faces between 26 and a half years to life in prison. ann? >> aditi roy, thank you very much. star joans nes is a former

prosecutor and savannah guthrie is the "today" legal correspondent. gorm to you. jennifer took the stand to testify in a heat of passion defense. what is that? >> when anger, fear, terror, rage just overtakes the person when met with adequate provocation that they are unable to act in a reasonable way and they basically go off the ranch. that's what this is. >> that brought her to the stand. was it effective? should she have take the stand? >> one thing about a heat of passion defense. she's not looking for an acquittal. her attorneys know she'll most likely go to jail. it reduce it is charge from murder to voluntary manslaughter. she's saying, look, i was so overcome with this intense emotion i wasn't in charge of my faculties. the classic heat of passion case in law school is a man comes home, finds his wife in bed with another man, pulls out a gun to shoot him. we don't have a classic case here. >> did it help or hurt her to be on the stand? >> she had no choice.

the only person to make out that level of fear, rage, anger, what would provoke a normal rational person to do something so horrific as stab their husband, you have to convey it to the jury. that's what they will attempt from the defense. >> the prosecution said, wait, this is not something where she was suddenly overcome. she knew about the affair for months. she waited for the prime opportunity to attack having waited until he took a sleeping pill and was asleep. they say that's evidence of premeditation. >> what about the testimony that she pulled out a knife to kill herself and he said something that turned her anger to him. >> the argument is he was basically baiting her. she pulls out a knife and he goes to her, well, i can give you something sharper if you're going to do it. in theory it's back and forth. the argument is that the defendant was just so at a point where she could not think for herself and that he pushed her over the edge. >> it sounds like it comes down to her credibility.

whether the jury believes her. >> if the jury does not want to convict a woman who has been beat up emotionally by a man, to see the beautiful other woman come in, if there was taunting going on the jury could go for the defendant, especially since she's not asking to just walk out. >> it's a complicated, one-witness case. it falls and rises on whether jurors believe her, whether or not they like her and there have been facts in the case including she herself was having an affair. >> what? i didn't know that part! >> she backed off on it. listen, this is the young and the restless. >> this is to say the jurors have a difficult task ahead. >> we better leave it there. star jones, thank you so much. not to laugh because it's a great tragedy. that was more than i could take. let's get a check of the weather from al in washington, d.c. this morning. >> announcer: today's weather is brought to you by jc penney.

there's lots of february to love at jc penney. >> and as we show you what's happening for your weather on the way out the door, we are talking about a big storm getting itself together. this is sometime tomorrow. low pressure in utah making its way down to texas. it brings a lot of snow for the rockies. rain ahead of it. so here's what we are looking for. denver, anywhere from 6 to 12 inches of snow on down to aspen. we are looking at anywhere generally through the rockies, about three to six inches. the rest of the country, we expect a decent day in the east with showers moving through this morning. look for plenty of sunshine through the plains with above normal temperatures. more rain moves into the pacific northwest. cooler but sunny in los angeles. a high of 66 degrees. >> good morning. we will see a chance for some

rain showers as we move into the afternoon. it will not be a steady rain. and that's your latest weather, guys. >> al, don't go away. michelle obama was on with jay leno last night and you were a topic of conversation. take a look. >> uh-oh. >> it looks like you got testy with al roker. show that footage. >> are jumping jacks your exercise of choice? >> i do everything. jumping jacks, squats, lungs. >> uh-oh. >> a little boxing. >> does the president have to worry about the boxing part? >> sometimes when he sees me punching he kind of -- [ grunts ]

[ applause ] >> boy, you are competitive. >> ooh! oh, man, i didn't mean to hit him that hard. >> did she leave a mark, al? >> i'm still feeling it. she went after my family after that. >> al's going from washington, d.c. to the catskills. >> thank you very much. still ahead, we want to tell people if we haven't told you enough that oscar nominee brad pitt will be live in studio for the first time ever. also coming up next, how are older stars retaining their youthful looks? the growing obsession in hollywood with the human growth hormone. that's right after this. y five. [ auctioneer calling ] sixty five! [ calling ] sir, can you go lower, fifty five! [ calling ] can you go lower? fifty five. fifty five. now i'm gonna go forty five. forty five. got forty five, right there, thank you sir,

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we're back at 7:42. a lot of hollywood stars feel constant pressure to look young and beautiful. what happens when famous faces start to show wear and tear? "today" correspondent amy robach is here with that. you're making a lot of friends. >> i know, matt. hgh is shorthand for human growth hormone that some stars are using to reverse the aging process. according to the march issue of vanity fair the phenomenon is very real, even if hollywood's older crowd would rather not talk about it. you can call it the taylor lautner effect. lots of guys in hollywood wish they could retain the youth and vitality of the star who turns 20 next week. >> doesn't he own a shirt? >> reporter: the hollywood ideal, young, fit, sexy on display at barry's boot camp, one of l.a.'s hottest gyms. barry jay knows it's nearly

impossible for clients over 50 to keep up. >> they feel they have to keep as young as possible, as fit as possible. >> reporter: according to vanity fair lots of stars of a certain age are turning to the liquid in these bottles, human growth hormone. it's not a steroid but a synthetic form of a substance naturally produced in the body. nick nolte touted the benefits and suzanne somers has been an advocate for years. >> this is what 60 looks like. >> reporter: and sylvester stallone once defended his use in a "today" interview. >> it' e's archaic the way peop see hgh. it's amino acids. >> reporter: but most users won't discuss the hormone. >> getting names to discuss hgh was only slightly easier than getting names to talk about viagra. it has a stigma. >> reporter: even though hgh is

legal with a prescription. dr. andre burger has lots of famous patients wanting hgh. >> they believe it is the fountain of youth and it will make them look better, retain their looks, improve muscle mass, make them look more buff. >> reporter: 67-year-old uzi rice has been injecting it for years. he's an anti-aging doctor who treats himself with the oh hormone. the fda approves hgh for children with stunted growth but dr. rice says adults can benefit, too. >> it gives me the life energy to do whatever young people are doing. >> reporter: still, drug companies warn about potentially serious risks. actress alana stewart quit hgh, concerned about a possible link to cancer. >> if there is a slight possibility that it could contribute to cancer cell growth i wouldn't put it in my body. >> reporter: back at barry's ot camp this 29-year-old

trainer says he wouldn't take chances either. his solution -- >> sweat every day. that's your hgh. just sweat. >> reporter: supporters of hgh say there are some adults who need to replenish natural levels of the hormone that decreases as we age. find more about the story in the march issue of vanity fair, matt. not that you need to look younger. >> amy, thank you very much. up next, a young girl with the remarkable talent to repeat any word backwards instantly. she'll demonstrate after this. why did you buy my husband a falcon? thanks for the falcon. i didn't buy anyone a falcon. sure, you did. you saved us a lot of money on auto insurance. i used that money to buy a falcon. ergo, you bought me a falcon. i should've got a falcon. most people who switch to state farm save on average about $480. what they do with it, well, that's their business. oh, that explains a lot, actually. [ chuckles ] [ male announcer ] another reason people switch to state farm. aw, i could've got a falcon. [ male announcer ] get to a better state.

[ falcon screeches ] my name is lacey calvert and i'm a yoga instructor. if i have any soreness, i'm not going to be able to do my job. but once i take advil, i'm able to finish out strong. it really works! [ laughs ] [ male announcer ] make the switch. take action. take advil. what? with magic. you are? see the egg. uh huh. ♪ so, look at the orange. now close your eyes. ♪ alakazaam! you're good. and now i'm going to make this flower bloom. presto. "love you lots." do you want to see it again? yes, i want to see it again! [ female announcer ] hallmark blooming expressions delivers your love again and again.

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that's going to have to be done by a certain date. you always have homework, okay? i don't have homework today. it's what's right here is what is most important to me. it's beautiful. ♪ ♪ can you say kaleidoscope backwards? >> she's jumping right? >> because 14-year-old alyssa kramer can. she has the unique ability to repeat any word instantly backwards. her friends put her in a video that has over a million hits on youtube. take a look. >> chevrolet.

[ speaking backwards ]. >> fireworks. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> savings. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> gallon. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> lamborghini. >> huh? [ speaking backwards ]. >> land star [ speaking backwards ]. >> corn nuts. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> bugles. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> combos. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> fritos. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> holy cow! alyssa joins us now as you saw earlier. good morning. when did you discover you had this talent? >> when i learned how to read i just did it both ways. >> it's visual for you? >> yeah. >> any word someone says to you, you immediately visualize and read it backwards? >> yeah. >> how old were you when you discovered this? >> when i learned to read, so 6 or 7. >> has it had a broader benefit? besides being fun in a car? >> not that i know of. >> maybe being on "today" is one of those benefits.

>> yeah. >> are there certain words you have more trouble with? the more syllables the harder it gets? >> no. but it takes longer. >> do the words get pictured in your head? when you hear the word is there a visual? >> yeah. >> does a picture show up in your brain? >> yeah. somebody says the brain and my brain flips it for me and i read it that way. >> do you have problems when you're trying to read in the normal way? >> no. >> you can turn it off and on. >> you don't walk backwards? >> no. >> can we give you a couple? >> yeah. >> pop. >> pop. [ laughter ] >> you didn't even humor me on that one. super bowl. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> this one you have probably been asked before. facebook. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> french fries. >> [ speaking backwards ].

>> did you memorize it? or do you just do the visual thing. >> i just do the visual thing. >> you never seem to wonder if you're pronouncing it? >> well, the way it would be pronounced -- >> gibberish. >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> brad pitt? >> [ speaking backwards ]. >> i'll tell him. >> as a matter of fact why don't you do us a favor and take us to commercial break and tell people what's coming up next? >> evil pitt darb. >> that's brad pitt live. >> thank you so much. >> great to meet you. >> i'm sure some good will come of it. i don't know what it will be. maybe you can come up with names for things nobody can think o. our science teacher helped us build it. ♪ now i'm a geologist at chevron, and i get to help science teachers. it has four servo motors and a wireless microcontroller.

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>> this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. time for a check of the morning commute. here is sarah caldwell. >> we have a light rain at it is creating a lot of problems, particularly in the dundalk region. another one is being worked on at wise avenue and merritt boulevard. avoid those intersections this morning. pratt street and president street, watch for crash. another one of charles and pratt street. fort smallwood road and duvall highway in pasadena, watch for an accident. another went to be backing up traffic in eastbound direction at 100 at maggoty bridge road. we are at 23 minutes on the outer loop west side from top to

bottom. slow going on the outer loop north side. 16 minutes to get you to the northeast corner towards the harrisburg expressway. 95 southbound coming towards us, from the white marsh area to beyond the beltway, those delays are lingering. as we switch over, we will give you a few of the southbound j.f.x. almost jammed completely on the beltway down to 28 straight. tony has a check on your forecast. >> you can see that there are couple of breaks in the overcast. that will be the trend as we head to the morning. around baltimore, clouds are breaking up. temperatures are in the low 50s. 52 in catonsville. today, variable clouds, chance for showers and a forecast. late this afternoon we will get a break. high of 65. 40s going into the

8:00 now on a wednesday morning. it's the 1st day of february 2012. little drizzly here in new york. these people don't mind. it's going to be a really nice day going up into the 50s today. i'm matt lauer along with ann curry out on the plaza. coming up a "today" show first. >> we have brad pitt flooif studstu -- live in studio. oscar nominated for "moneyball" as is jonah hill. we'll catch up with them straight ahead. >> nice of brad to wake up jonah at the last minute. also ahead 2012 could be called the year of the landlord. more and more people who can't afford to buy or for another reason are opting to rent places to live. what a what do you need to know before

you put your name on a lease? we have advice on that. >> and we want to mention that coming up on friday, al and i will be in indianapolis to get things started for the big super bowl day. we want to mention that we've got not only a preview of the ads we'll be seeing a lot of. i watch the game for the ads. throw your eggs at me now. also we ale talk about madonna and the halftime show which is remarkable. also, gym class heroes and adam levine will be performing live on friday. >> alet's go inside to natalie for a check of the headlines. good morning. >> good morning, everyone. we begin with an important recall and warning. perhaps some 1 million women could be at risk of unintended pregnancy. pfizer recalled 1 million birth control packs because of an error that mixed up the active and inactive pill in the 28-day package. the world's biggest drug maker is pulling lots of the loeovril

and the generic version of the pill. women should use backup contraception immediately. the next caucus state is nevada after the florida primary tuesday. romney rebounded from the south carolina loss winning the big spending florida race by a 14-point margin. gingrich has a defiant new slogan, 46 states to go. washington is poised to be the seventh state to legalize same sex marriage t. state senate is expected to pass the bill today and send it to the house where it has broader support. washington's democratic governor said she will sign it. in their final appear, attorneys for wikileaks founder julian assange asked for his extradition to sweden to be blocked. he's wanted for questioning in a sex crimes investigation. here's brian williams with a look at what's coming up on

"nightly news" tonight. >> coming up tonight it's only supposed to live in the arctic. why is the snowy owl showing up across the u.s.? the unexpected visitor from far away. it's an interesting story tonight. see you then. for now, back to you. >> thank you, brian. now for a look at what's trending today. our round-up of what has you trending online. wikileaks has what it calls the set list for the halftime show including "ray of light" and "holiday." madonna says they didn't get it right. tmz has pictures of the super bowl stage and the name of one hit "vogue" is clearly visible. the soup nazi is a top search because of his appearance in an ad featuring jerry seinfeld going to extremes to be first in line for the new nissan nsx only to be bested at the end by a certain late night comic

and kristen bell has gone viral. on ellen she revealed a home video showing her emotional meltdown when she found out she would meet her favorite animal, a oth. [ sobbing ] >> do you want to be a part of setting up his habitat? >> yes. he's coming for the party? >> ellen couldn't resist saying she would bring out a sloth in the studio prompting a new round of joyful tears from bell. that's the reaction we all have around here as well to sloths. it's 8:04. now to al in washington, d.c. with a check of the weather. >> announcer: today's weather is brought to you by kay jewelers. every kiss begins with kay. >> good morning. we're starting to see blue skies in washington, d.c. getting up near 70 degrees today. our pick city, billings, montana. they're going to have a pretty nice day. nbc 8, partly cloudy and mild.

48 degrees. not too shabby. another storm system coming to the pacific northwest. that will dive south, bring snow to the rockies where the skiers will be happy. a weak frontal system pushing through, bringing showers and thunderstorms down to the south where there is warmer moist air to run into. a beautiful day in southern california. 66, sunny in los angeles. fog throughout much of minnesota today. and we are looking for snowshowers to continue in extreme northern new england. >> good morning. e temperatures should make it into the 60's even though we will see some cloud cover and some off

and that's your latest weather. matt? >> favorite sign of the day. we left this guy in charge at the office. coming up, would you put these guys in charge of your baseball team? oscar nominees from "moneyball," brad pitt and jonah hill join us after this. on! okay, we gotta time this just right. okay. ready... mm-hmm. happy valentine's day. [ female announcer ] the charmed memories collection at kay jewelers. each charm is hand-crafted in italy and with hundreds of charms to choose from, the possibilities are endless. and this thursday through sunday, receive this charmed memories bracelet free with any charmed memories purchase of $100 or more. at kay, the number one jewelry store in america. ready... [ camera flash ] ♪ every kiss begins with kay

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back now at 8:09 with brad pitt and jonah hill, the oscar nominated stars of "moneyball" based on the true story of billy bean. it's up for six academy awards including best picture. brad could take the stage twice because he's one of the film's producers. here is a clip. >> he asked me to call you back. he's on the other line. >> tell him we want 225. >> billy says $225,000 for ricardo. >> tell him i'll pay for him when i sell him back for twice that next year i keep the money. >> okay. so billy says he'll pay for it himself. okay. thank you very much. we'll call you back.

thank you. >> come on! >> brad pitt and jonah hill, good morning. that scene stressed me out. i was watching it and i was almost schfitzing. >> any moment next to jonah is cloud 9. it's nice for the film. it's a nice feeling. this thing was an arduous undertaking. it almost didn't get made about three times. a lot of people put their jobs on the line to see it through. i'm happy it paid off. it's been really nice. >> we talked to you right after the nomination. one of the first things you said was how happy you were for jonah. how did you find out about it, jonah? >> i was watching tv. >> oh, good. >> they said it on tv and i freaked out and started running around. then i immediately started speaking to these guys and everyone involved with the

movie, my family. i don't know. we were talking about no matter what it means to you and how exciting it is, and this guy produced the film and worked with it through so many incoronations and it truly -- we would not even be close to here today without his work and care for this project. but what i said to him is no matter what it means to me it would mean so much more to my family, my parents, more than it will ever mean to me. they're so thrilled. they can't believe it. >> you're an oscar nominated actor for a serious role in a movie that almost didn't get made many times. in fact, you know, one of the things that happened went through director, screen writer shakeups, executives killed it. you kept it alive, one could say, stubbornly for years. why couldn't you let this one go? >> there was this great idea about values. about how we value ourselves, how we determine our own self

worth and the worth of others and the value system may be skewed. these guys were fighting just for fair game. they had a quarter of the payroll. they could not compete. so they started questioning everything they do. in it they found great i inefficiencies and billy bean being someone who was devalued by the sport himself found a pool of talent who was devalued and gave them a second shot. it's an amazing story. >> there is an underdog nature to the story. >> certainly so. >> billy bean, the oakland a's manager who puts a lot on the line. your character who -- it's quite an amalgamation of several different people, really doesn't exist. convinces billy bean to rethink the game, rethink what worth is in terms of the players. i wonder to some degree why you learned that this character was

willing to risk so much. i mean, really risk so much for the game he loved and maybe for everything he loved. >> i think it was a necessity. just fighting for a fair fight. we can't fight the other guy's fight. we'll lose every time. we're just outgunned. i think in the process, we start out with a film where you think we're trying to win games. i think by the end of it it's more of a character and characters who were trying to find their own value in a system that is certainly not propping them up in that way. >> so much about the movie is not predictable. just watching, it reveals itself. you're not predictable in the movie for anybody who's seen you in any other movie you have done. where did you find the honesty of your portrayal? >> well, i mean, i don't know. i just love all the comedies i have been a part of. to me, you know, i'm just an actor.

i was never a comedian or anything like that. to me, it's about trying to play all different kinds of parts. when i read this book and met ben, you know, i was like, gosh, i just saw something in that character who i thought was really a beautiful story about a guy who never had a light shined on him before. and honestly the chance to do something different was exciting and enticing to me. i just wanted to play a guy who was stumbling through responsibility for the first time. >> such a bold performance. it's such a study in reserve. you seldom see. it became the perfect counterbalance for this gregarious billy bean character. >> he's like a bazooka. you know? >> exploding constantly. >> yeah. it's so dynamic. it was such a wonderful thing to

watch on set. >> the l.a. times writes about it this way. pitt knocks it out of the park. 'tis character is glowing with love for the furniture, hurling furniture across the room. there is a deep emotion in your portrayal of the character, brad, that's hard to miss. there seems to be such a layering. >> i got such a kick out of it that he's so, so emotionally involved. he can't even watch the baseball games. >> he's working out or driving somewhere. >> he wants to know the result because it affects his decision-making. he gets emotionally involved. many chairs suffered. >> and also big containers full of yiensd water. >> anything that was in throwing -- in reach. >> but technically you were jonah's boss. technically he was working for you. i wonder what kind of boss is brad pitt? >> he's a great boss.

>> yeah? >> yeah. he's the producer of the film. like bennett, our director -- bennett miller, who's a genius and brad were really the brain trust of the film. they were working together in the bunker every day trying to figure out this really intricate book that people said was unfilmable to adapt it and make sure it came across the way they shou thought it did. he was my scene partner every day. i never thought he could actually fire me at any point. >> also it sounds like you had fun on the set. i understand there was a degree of pranking that was involved. >> we were like -- >> totally one-sided. >> we were the underappreciated film on the lot. we were shoved way back in the corner. we had to get ready on the other side of the lot which felt like a quarter mile away. so they gave us golf carts,

really fast golf carts. >> really fun. >> it was not smart on their part. we had to drive by other productions. uh i had jonah's cart rigged whenever you turned it on it would blast "wake me up before you go-go." he had to drive past all the grips and -- >> if it was just that. >> it was pretty good. >> if it was just that, that would be crazy. that would be annoying for me. but it was also he had it shrink-wrapped neon pink and super imposed a picture of me and george michael on the front that said, i'm jonah hill and i love wham. then he attached wedding things like noise makers under the car. >> oh, no. >> i would have a meeting with someone or someone would come to meet with me and i would drive up in this insane, absurd

liberace-style -- >> there is so much insanity and intensity in what you're trying to do. you've got to have a laugh. >> hence the nickname as the bobby fisher of pranks. that's what you call him. >> i call him the bobby fisher of pranks. >> thank you. >> he's three moves ahead at all times. >> how do you explain yourself when you drive that? >> he couldn't. >> what would you say? there is nothing -- you're just mortified. >> all right. we're almost out of time. i have to ask you. how would winning feel? that's a dopey question, i know. but it's a big deal. it's the first time you have been nominated. you have been nominated twice before. winning -- don't tell me the nomination is good enough. what would winning mean to you? >> it is. but i just don't believe there is such a thing really. it's apples and oranges. there are so many good performances this year. so many good performances that aren't even being acknowledged.

what it means for a film to have this kind of support means more films like this will have an easier chance of getting made. for me it's so great knowing what jonah put into it, knowing how bold it was what he did and coming onto the scene in this way is exciting. i feel the same about the writers and everyone else that helped get it over the hill. >> i think he deserves it. >> this is why i brought you. >> i genuinely think if i wasn't in the film he gave my favorite performance this year. my vote goes to him. >> oh, yeah? really? >> if i had a vote. >> thank you. >> the lovefest continues. brad pitt and jonah hill. good luck to you both. the movie is called "moneyball." it's out on dvd and we're back after this. ♪

>> wham! [ laughter ] ew. hey, mom? what? pay you? for what? for unloading the dishwasher?! kid, you need to pay me for making this delicious -- whoa. hold on there, mom. kitchen counselor. um, mom, i think what she means is "greasy dishes." yeah. in fact, check it out. cascade complete pacs are the ones with the real liquid top. they fight tough greasy messes better than the other tablet, which can leave more tough grease behind. oooh, clean. there's only one cascade. love it, or your money back.

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this morning on "today's" real estate, the renting spike. the number of american homeowners is at a record loan as more people opt to rent instead of buy. what do you need to know before you sign a lease? barbara corcoran is here with more on that. >> good morning, matt. >> what are the advantages to renting over buying, other than a lot of people can't afford a down payment on a house? >> there are a lot of advantages. many people rent because it's short-term. easy in, easy out. it's less responsibility. somebody else fixes it. and if people can't get a house it is often the only option but you can always find a rental, even with poor credit. >> someone will drop a lease in front of you and they can be confusing. you say there are three important clauses. the first is -- >> the security deposit. how are you going to get it back and how quickly are you going to

get it back? the second is who is responsible for fixing what? it's often not clear in the lease and you can ask for clarification. >> what about subletting? >> very important. most landlords even if they have that you can't will change your mind if you give them the right to approve the tenant. >> the vacancy rate is low which means prices for rentals are high. but you have ideas on how to lower the price, take immediate home occupancy. >> that's true. every landlord wants to know he'll get his rent on time. when you say i will be there immediately you can get a discount. the other is you can offer six months in advance on the rent. that sounds like an extravagant thing to do but you can usually get a 10% discount. you only make 3% on money in the bank. >> and you say to pay for property upgrades yourself for a lower rent. >> and you can live with a new kitchen if you're willing to do it. >> if you are moving in the

landlord will vet you as, you know, someone to be living there. you should also vet the landlord. >> of course. today nothing is private. you can get all the dirt on your landlord by going on the multiple websites. the two big ones are apartmentratings.com and streetadviser.com. >> say the landlord doesn't turn out to be the greatest landlord in terms of referrals and things like that, but you love the property. should you take a risk? >> definitely not. get your best deals from a slum lord but they are always che cheapskates and you will never get bang for your buck. >> and when walking through a property you say it's not a bad idea to point out things you don't like. >> definitely. you can do it, but you have to do it delicately. the landlord is not always intimidating. i'm a landlord and i'm a push-over. all my tenants call for rent reduction and i will

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. >> trying to wrap this rush hour up. we have a new accident in our county, westbound 32 at 29. if you travel at monument street, another crash coming in to us. in dundalk, continued problems at merritt boulevard. another one to avoid a north point road. pasadena, fort smallwood road, watch for an accident and that it delays and a place at eastbound 100. drive times at 23 minutes on the outer loop west side. delays on the inner loop between 795 and the 83's.

here is a live view outside. 795 and franklin boulevard, coming towards us, southbound traffic. heavier from owings mills to the allied. live view of traffic at greenspring. j.f.x. from the beltway down to 20, looking at delays. >> at least the rain has tapered off a little bit out in baltimore. as a matter of fact, the clouds are breaking up. we will probably get sunshine to breakthrough as we head through the morning. rain will come backed by the middle of the afternoon. 51 in catonsville. it will be another warm day. high temperatures in the mid- 60's. 30% chance for rain showers. same thing tomorrow, but much cooler. thirties' by sunday. >> we will have another update

at 8:55. brad and jill in accounting? crazy!

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8:30 now on a wednesday morning. it's the first day of february 2012. our friends out on the plaza are dealing with a few morning showers, but it will brighten up, we're told, from mr. al and warm up in a big way this afternoon. already 53 degrees. this is nice. i'm ann curry alongside matt lauer and natalie morales. are you guys ready to get in the kitchen and start cooking? >> yes, we are. >> we're doing chicken breasts four ways with mark bittman who knows how to cook everything. he'll help make dinner easier for us. >> and the recipes look good.

looking forward to that. also ahead, an amazing young musician combining his skills on the cello with his skills beat boxing. >> ooh. >> jenna bush hager introduces us to the young man in a little while. >> i love the combination already. super bowl fever is already gripping the nation. today it is all about the puppy bowl. that's right. we're going to meet some adorable competitors as they hit the field. they are actually up for adoption. >> maybe whoever wins might portend what happens on sunday. we'll see. >> it's always an early indicator. let's go down to washington now and get a check of the weather from mr. roker. >> all right. nothing like a little puppy bowl before the weather. let's show you what's going on. the mind boggles at the way we could go with this but we are not going to. wet weather in the pacific northwest. we're looking at snowshowers northern new england. wet weather in the northeast. that will clear out quickly.

we have sunny, beautiful weather down through central florida. for tomorrow, rain in the midatlantic areas for the mid-morning. we look for a slight risk of strong storms through texas. snow developing in the rockies. frigid conditions in the plains. for the super bowl, super bowl sunday, we are looking for partly cloudy skies. cool conditions. low temperature 34. a high of 43. of course inside lucas oil field it will be perfect. >> good morning. we will see a chance for some rain showers as we move into the afternoon. it will not be a steady rain.

don't forget any time of the day or night, get the weather forecast you need. go to weather channel on cable or weather.com online. ann? >> all right, al. thank you so much. delicious and easy. so describes what mark bit man is making in the kitchen. but first, this is "today" on nbc.

>> announcer: today's cooking school is brought to you by i can't believe it's not butter. fresh butter taste with 70% less saturated fat than butter. >> we are back at 8:35. this morning on today's cooking school, chicken breast four ways including poaching, sauteing, roasting and broiling. our teacher is, of course, mark bittman whose recipes appear in the new york times magazine. he's the author and is fast to tell you how to cook everything. >> quite an intro.

>> poaching. that's where we are starting. the other contestants will try as well. >> i have always thought poaching meant less flavor. >> if you boil something in water you don't get a lot of flavor but if you boil in flavorful liquid. let's start with the chicken breast. pretty much a blank canvas. not a lot of flavor there. all of the techniques, the idea is we are going to bring flavor to this chicken. >> how are we going to do that? >> poaching, we have shallots sauteing here. we are adding soy sauce, lemon juice, water, mostly so the soy sauce doesn't burn. we'll get it cranked up a little bit. cayenne, sugar and lemon zest. so you have some really high flavors in here. >> you're going to poach it in there. how much liquid do you need to

poach a chicken breast that thick? >> you don't have to cover the chicken breast as long as you cover the pan. now you're poaching and steaming at the same time really. >> is it hard to determine how long to cook that? is poaching harder to determine than, for example, sauteing? >> they're all about the same. the problem is you're not watching it, but you open after five or six minutes and check. when it's firm it's probably done. but one way to check for sure is an instant read thermometer in the long way so you get a good true reading at 155 degrees or so, you're in business. when you're done, you can reduce the cooking liquid to a nice little graze and put it over with lemon. >> you have a saute dish of chicken with citrus sauce. i use a thermometer because it's easy to overcook and it's terrible when you do. what's your best advice in terms of how long?

>> these are gargantuan chicken breasts and the thickness mat rs. normally, six or seven minutes total. these, more like 8 or 10. they're not done yet. >> we don't want it pink. we want to cook until it's just not pink. >> exactly. i will show natalie, i think, how to check by sight. a different way to check by sight. we're going to pretend these are done but the crew needs to know not to eat them. >> this is a citrus sauce people would like to know how to make easily. >> cut that in half. thank you, matt. we'll take out segments as if they were grapefruit segments. then we'll have orange segments, orange juice. >> like that, okay. fresh from the orange. >> do you want that back on? >> i want it on, actually.

but thank you for taking care of it. >> we had olive oil. >> and butter both. >> now we are adding more butter. >> and sugar again. >> a little? >> that looks like a tablespoon of sugar. >> it will be a sweet, buttery sauce. >> chicken and orange sauce. and the results will look like this. >> wonderful. >> we cook it until it becomes syrupy and nice. >> easy. natalie awaits. >> okay. we are making roasted devil chicken breast. that means -- >> mustard generally means devilled. mustard, shallots and cayenne. feel like getting your hands in there? mix it up and put -- >> coat the breast? >> coat this breast with that. use your fingers. >> oh, okay. >> massage it.

>> come on. >> do you often massage that? >> let me just show you you want to melt this little bit of butter in here. just so it's hot and this will get a little bit of sizzle out of that. just a little. that will go back in here. there's a towel for you. here we can show two other ways of knowing when they're done. one is -- and this takes experience. one is you poke. if it's firm, it's done. but the other is and there is nothing wrong with doing this. you peek. you want white but with a little bit of a trace of pink and you know it's done. >> a little bit of pink? >> a tiny bit of pink is still okay. >> juices running clear is another way? >> but the breasts don't have it so much as legs. really once you have done it 20

times, you can feel when it's done. you really can. all the mushiness is gone. >> that's what you look when you garnish. >> all right. come on over. we are making parmesan crusted chicken breast. this seems easy. >> it's real easy. we'll broil this which is the fastest, straightforward, no turning method. combine olive oil, parmesan, lemon juice and zest. >> pour these into here. >> don't laugh, people. stir it up. >> you're doing well. >> baby steps. this is an intervention. pour it right on? >> half on each. save yourself some. >> should i get the other side? >> no. you can spread it around. >> then we'll broil it. >> even with big breasts like this, six or eight minutes. >> so which approach do we use

to see fit's done? poking, peeking or -- >> any one you like. for gingbeginning cooks do the thermometer or peeking. >> poking is advanced. >> fan it out with a garnish of chive and pardon me chan. >> looks great. >> chicken breast four ways. we did it so quickly. for those recipes and more head to today.com and click on food. up next, the beat boxing cellist becoming a big hit online. first, this is "today" on nbc.

back now at 8:44 with with the grio's 100. african-americans making a big impact on our world. jenna bush hager caught up with one of this year's honorees, an extraordinary young musician.

>> extraordinary just begins to describe kevin. he play placed second in the yo-yo ma competition and is a groundbreaking musician. on top of it he's a really nice guy. ♪ [ beat boxing ] >> music is my favorite language. there are times you feel so much emotion. >> reporter: 23-year-old kevin is an american original, an innovator, a cellist who effortlessly blends classical music with a soulful hip-hop beat. you were four years old and listened to a song and played it by ear. >> just tinkered around on it. my parents freaked out when they saw it. >> reporter: a carnegie halladay buy with his elementary school choir and mastering the cello at 8. >> my mom wanted me to play the

cello. i saw bill clinton play and i thought, saxaphone, done. if my president can do it. >> reporter: at 17, kevin soloed at carnegie hall for the pbs show "from the top." ♪ >> reporter: he debuted his vocal percussions or beat boxing on a national stage. [ beat boxing ] >> reporter: what did your parents think when you were beat boxing? >> my dad hated it. he thought it was just -- why is he making all this noise? i was in boarding school add andover in an a cappella group and he heard it and he was like, wait, that's not noise. that's talent. oh. >> reporter: kevin is the son of a nigerian doctor and a nurse from grenada. >> my father is my inspiration for everything. >> reporter: how have your african roots influenced your mus music? >> african music is heavily

rooted in the beat. that's something i try to portray in what i do. >> reporter: he headed to yale for medicine. it was this youtube video with more than 1 million hits that changed his life. ♪ >> that's me cello-boxing. it went viral. >> reporter: what is cello-boxing? >> playing this pristine instrument and hip-hop which is dirty, gritty. it has that element of edge to it. fusing them together into something that i hope really is inventive and creative. >> reporter: the composer, mark summer, thinks so, too. >> here's a guy that takes my piece and amps it up to a new level. i was a little jealous. >> reporter: that youtube video led to network tv. >> three kids from texas called me up and said, hey, we're going

to try out for "the sing-off." we got together the day before the audition. it was scary, but for some reason it worked out like magic as if we were supposed to be together. >> how has winning changed your life? >> winning "the sing-off" gave me the confidence to pursue music. now there is more of a set path in front of me i can follow. ♪ the dog days are over >> you can have all the talent in the world. if you're not humble no one will care about you. be who you are and be humble. >> kevin and the pentatonics moved to california to record an album. kev has his eye on producing, singing, everything. his star is on the rise. h's 24 and he tried to teach me to beat-box. that footage is unused. it's hard.

it's an art. >> it's rare to find someone who can start something brand new. that's what he's done. thank you so much. up next, we're throwing a puppy bowl right here in our studio. but first, this is "today" on nbc. i'm drinkin' dunkin'. definitely dunkin'. you know, i need to get that jolt in the morning, but i want something good to do that. you can't mistake the flavor. i run on dunkin'. tell us what you're drinkin' for a chance to be famous. america runs on dunkin' coffee.

well, the jiebt giants and patriots may be in the big game this sunday but it is not the only giem in town. jill rappaport is here to explain. good morning. >> not all the sighs in the studio are for brad pitt. today it's about shoulder pads and wee-wee pads and the special game featuring four-legged athletes i had the privilege of coaching. move over manning and brady. it's a dog eat dog line-up as these canines are cruising for a bruising p in animal planet's puppy bowl. i'm going to give you a pep talk or as we call it a pup talk. in my role as confidence builder and puppy protector i led 58 power pooches on the gridiron for an all-star show down waging a war with wagging tails. the added bonus that all of the daring dogs come from shelters across the country and are up for adoption. it's definitely a menagerie of

madness. >> you've got to take it to the end zone. >> reporter: this sunday, how about some paw to paw action. >> he could -- go all the way! >> reporter: which is the odds on favorite game to win? >> touchdown! >> all right, jill. thank you very much. dan is the officially referee for puppy bowl viii. good morning to you. >> good morning. >> it's not about football. it's about finding great homes for puppies. >> don't tell them. they have been training for weeks. it's about adoption awareness. animal planet teamed up with petfinder.com. every puppy is adoptable including these guys. >> let's introduce the starting line-up. puppy one is jet. a 10-week-old beagle mix who weighs ten pounds. puppy two is johnny. johnny is a ten-week-old beagle mix, jet's brother but looks nothing like jet, by the way. >> they are compatible if they were to go together. >> he weighs 8 to 10 pounds.

delta, a 14-week old red bone coon hound mix. laverne is a late addition, a chihuahua mix. and mini, 12-week old boston terrier mix. she's hefty. 20 pounds. what are the rules? >> first of all, these are all from the connecticut humane society, a local shelter doing great work. the rules are loose and fast. as long as the chew tie is dragged into an end zone it's a touchdown. i'm here to watch out for puppy fouls of all kinds. >> for example, if one of the puppies relieves him or herself. >> if i were to do it at every point we'd never go on with the game. >> then it's the poopy bowl. >> or it uh could be roughing the pisser. >> someone make a note for next year. let's begin the game. >> i'm going to drop the chew toy and you can drop your dogs -- gently, please. ready? [ whistle blows ] >> go, guys!

>> come on! >> come here, come here. >> they ignored the chew toy. that's fine. >> usually one picks it up. watch out for roughhousing. usually we don't have humans on the field. >> is there a penalty for the human who speaks with the most ridiculous voice to the puppy? >> go, go! >> that would be jill. >> let's take them out there. >> she didn't like the patriots jersey. >> obviously a giants fan. >> we can encourage them a little bit. >> give me another toy, dan. >> he went that way. >> that's all right. >> we may not have touchdowns scored now, once again these are puppies up for adoption. there are a lot more of these where they came from. >> they're all mvps, most valuable pooches. >> puppy bowl viii airs sunday afternoon on animal planet. just ahead, what you need to know before spending money on

at-home medical tests after your local news.

>> live, local, latebreaking. this is wbal-tv 11 news today in baltimore. >> good morning. i am mindy basara. closing arguments expected in the trial of an inmate accused of killing a corrections officer. the 32-year-old is accused of stabbing at the officer to death in 2006. the state is seeking the death

>> it is going to be another mile a day. off and on rainshowers, but it most certainly will not be a steady rain. you might get another peak of the sun. will have the chance for rain on thursday. >> another