voice of america -- >> this is walter cronkite, reporting. >> he guided a nation through triumph. >> phew, boy. >> and tragedy. >> president kennedy died at 1:00 p.m. central standard time. >> tonight the legendary anchor. >> an tt's the way it is. >> in his own words. critical condition, president obama's uphill fight to save his health care plan. hidden danger, nbc news investigates a safety hazard at public pools. and from the deep, the incredible invasion off the and from the deep, the incredible invasion off the california coast.

captions paid for by nbc-universal television and good evening, the tributes and fond millennium rivalries pouring in for walter kron cite, tonight, the lege legendary news man is the news. his death last night here in new york at the age of 92 was on the front page nearly 23ri american newspaper this morning. for a time in our history, it seemed that each milestone moment, the loss of a preppeds, journey to space, a painful was croon kite was there guiding americans with a trusted voice and becoming something of a national institution in the process. we begin our coverage tonight with nbc's ron allen. >> good evening from the cbs news control center in new york, this is walter cronkite reporting. >> reporter: there's never been a stronger, more reassuring presence in television news than walter cronkite. especially when the news was what we did not weren't to hear. >> martin luther king, the

apostle of nonviolence in the civil rights movement, has been shot to death in memphis, tennessee. >> reporter: today, tributes to a journalist americans came to know as unck 8 walter. >> for deck dade, walter cronkite was the most trusted voice in america. his rich baritone reached millions of living rooms every night and walter set the standards by which all others have been judged. >> when i got to know him personally in the early '90s, i found him to be just a man filled with energy and life. he was so kind to bill and me. took us out sailing off martha's vineyard, offered advice both solicit and unsolicited that we tried to follow. >> this is a cbs news special report. i'm katie couric, good evening. it is my sad duty to tell you that our friend and colleague walter cronkite has died. >> reporter: katie couric delivered the news from what since cronkite's days has been

called the chair, the title anchor first zrind his role as political conventions. cronkite delivered the news for 20 years to some 22 million viewers a might. he always ended the same way- >> and that's the way it it is. >> he reflected the way so many of us felt. he was family. he was someone who made us feel safe and secure. >> he was a quintessential american. he came from the heartland, he wasn't flashy one way or the other. and his reporting was straightforward. >> reporter: walter leeland cronkite was born in st. joseph, missouri in 1916. his news career started early, selling papers at age 7. he covered world war ii for a wire service. >> i'm just back from the biggest assignment that any american reporter could have so far in this war. >> reporter: then onto something new. television. >> hello, i'm walter cronkite. >> as walter grew in stature,

television news grew in stature. cronkite made cbs news respectable sna he began anchoring the evening news in 1962, two years later, perhaps the defining moment of his career. >> the flash apparent official, president kennedy died at 1:00 p.m. central standard time. >> reporter: after a trip to vietnam, rare statement of opinion. >> to say that we are mired in the stalemate seems the only realistic, if unsatisfactory conclusion. >> reporter: outer space seemed to excite him most. >> man on the moon. phew, boinchts okay, we're going to be busy for a minute. >> the biggest thing about him is he loved reporting and presenting the news. he had a passion for it. if the audience recognized that he really cared about it. >> reporter: today that audience remembered. >> i don't know, i just felt safe watching walter cronkite. >> when you think about american news he's the first guy you

think about it. >> reporter: cronkite retired reluctantly. >> we'll we've been meetingike this in the evenings and i'll miss that. and that's the way it s and that's the way it is. and that's the way it is. >> reporter: there's obviously tremendous reverence ant respect for walter cronkite, this reminds me of my days at cbs news some 30 years ago, just learning to become a reporter. working in the newsroom near a separate area that was called the cronkite stud yo. i can remember always trying to catch a glimgs of what he was doing in there or trying to run into him in the hallway, i remember trying to -- he was always very approachable and not that intimidating just as he was on tv. >> nbc's ron allen, thank you for that. we turn to the anchor and managing editor of "nightly news" brian williams in maine with his memories of warlt cronkite. i heard you say you grew up wanting to be walter cronkite and you had the opportunity to know him personally. what are your memories? >> well, it was a great blessing in life, savannah.

you're right, thank you for having me because he was the guy i wanted to be. our black and white television set with rabbit ears was my window on the world. it's how i learned about the cold war, vietnam war, those assassinations and 40 years ago the moon mission. and walter cronkite was the way i learned about it. so as a young man it was easy to have role model. look at this reaction to this man's death across the country. absolutely a giant figure in our time, before it was known as the mainstream media, by the way, it was just the evening news. and walter cronkite along with huntley brinkley on nbc commanded a huge share of it. >> as you mentioned, there were choices even back then. what was his appeal to most americans? >> well, he was a simple man. as tom pointed out, an ason of the american are midwest, missouri, sitting in a newsroom. i made a pilgrimage as a young man, i wanted to see that place that i had watched for so many years. i was disappointed to see it was

a wood cut of the globe behind him on wall painted lime green and just a white formica desk. it kind of pa lechled to his television comparison. >> we learned in ron's piece that the word anchorman itself was coined for walter cronkite. what do you think the lasting impact he will have on this business? >> well, i hope that it's every night we come on the air and do our jobs well. and i hope that's every night. and because of the foundation he laid down, all those 20 years of great work, because of what he meant, the industry he helped to form, the evening newscast, the three network evening newscasts are the nuer one source of news to this day and in this case and age in this country. that's a huge part of his legacy, savannah. >> nbc's brian williams in maine with his memories tonight. brian, thanks. now to the fight over fixing

america's health care system. it's getting critical. the president has been out pushing for reform every single day, a public effort growing more intense as the battle on capitol hill grows ever more difficult. nbc's mike viqueira is at the white house for us tonight. good evening. >> good evening, the health care news just keeps the getting worse for the president. last night we learned that the bill would add to the deficit to the tune of $239 billion over ten years, that's not good news to mr. obama as he tries to move a bill through congress by august and is n skong where he's meeting resistance from his own ranks putting the outcome in doubt. the president left this morning for camp david after ming yet another pitch for his plan. >> think about what doing nothing in the face of ever increasing costs will do to you and your family. >> reporter: health care reform, the signature issue of the bomb first term now threatened in congress. the president responding this

week by keeping the heat on, trying to shore up support. >> we are going to change health care reform are. >> reporter: the plan moving through congress now would create a government-run option fore insurance, require all americans to be insure and force most businesses to either offer a plan or pay a fee to the government. >> no longer will you be without health insurance even if you lose your job or change your jobs. >> reporter: total cost, $1 trillion, paid for in part with a surtax on aricans making more than $280,000 a year. $350,000 for couples. but now news that the plan isn't completely paid for and in a blow to democrats this week the congressional budget office said the bill now moving through the house would result in higher costs. democrats say they'll make fixes. >> we need to do more by way of reform, we need to do more by way of cost savings. >> reporter: but republins are not on board. >> i do not see any republican support at all at this time for

the house bill. >> reporter: the stakes couldn't be higher. vgs choices we don't like is like having no choice at all. >> they choose. >> we lose. >> reporter: harry and louise, the fictional couple who helped bring down the clinton health care plan a debacle that many believe caused a loss of control in kochblgt those same actors are are back. >> a little less cooperation and a little less politic, we can get the job done this time. >> reporter: that last latest ad was paid for by the pharmaceutical lobby, the president points to support from them, doctors, nurses, seniors, to say that's all the evidence you need to know that ultimately he is going to be successful. savannah? >> nbc's mike viqueira at the white house. thanks. this was space walk day for two astronauts aboard the shuttle "endeavour," they're helping it attach a platform for five experiment, it's the first of five planned space walks during this shuttle mission. now the investigation into two deadly suicide bombttac on two american hotels in

indonesia. police have confiscated a handwritten notes, cell phone and a bomb from the jakarta marriott, one of the hotels targeted. investigator are now more sure than ever the mastermind was the fugitive leader of a southeast asian terror group. now to the middle east, in a transformation that someave called a small wonder. in nablus there's hope in a place where law and order has been restored for the first time in years. martin fletcher in nablus. >> reporter: what a transformation. nablus was known as the west bank's hotbed of terror. today it's the palestinian shopping capital, the change begins here at the entrance was israel's roadblock controlling palestinians coming and going. today, it's gone, along with 150 others in the west bank. lifted in the last month. so palestinians are free to travel again, thanks to pressure

on israel from america. and america trained and equipped the new palestinian police. today's challenge controlling the crowds. nablus is going for the guinness book of record, the world's biggest canape, a palestinian pastry. >> the best thing is you can see in every individual state. >> reporter: the best american training didn't prepare the police for this. palestinians storming the barricade, not for freedom but for free pastry. >> the crowd is quickly getting out of control, but the people have heard that the canape is really good and it is. 220 feet long of pastry, weighing 3,891 pounds, devourd in ten minutes. and the crowd, we found an old akwand quaintance, abu that is, once the lefrd of al aqsa

martyrs brigade. >> just a telephone, no gun, no guns. that's good. >> reporter: now he says i live at home at last with my wife and children. we have stability, it's better. it isn't peace but better times have come to nablus for the time being anyway. mar marlten fletcher, nbc news, nablus, on the west bank. a summer safety alert, a hidden danger in many swimming pools that could be a trap for kids. between my dentures and my gums super poligrip makes eating more comfortable. even well fitting dentures can feel more comfortable with super poligrip. just a few dabs of super poligrip create a seal between your dentures and gums to make them more comfortable while you eat. i can eat my steak, i just love it. try super poligrip. a heart attack at 53.

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>> back now with a story that may alarm some parents and save many young lives in the process. it's about a danger lurking beneath the surface of many swimming pools. senior investigative correspondent lisa myers has more. >> reporter: for children, pool drains are a natural curiosity. but can be deadly. drains can pack up to 800 pounds of suction force, a child's hair or body can be sucked in and trapped underwater. watch what happens when he put this rubber toy on a drain. three adult men could not pull it off. >> i've been doing injury prevention for close to 50 years and these stories about as tragic and horrific as i've ar d. >> reporter: 6-year-old abigail taylor fell on the kiddie pool drain on her family's club. the suction pulled out her intestens and she later died.

>> ma'am, where are you today. . >> reporter: 7-year-old graham bake, granddaughter of secretary of state james baker was playing in a spa like this, her mother nancy said she became trapped by a drain suction and drowned. >> it pinned her. she couldn't, she couldn' get up. >> reporter: that tragedy and five years of tireless lobbying by the baker family gave birth are to a new law, it mandated that all public pools basically any pool outside a private home replace these flat drain covers with new safer covers by the end of 2008. so the suction on this one is less powerful. >> that's right. >> reporter: but an nbc news investigation found that six months after the new law took effect, these potentially dangerous drains are still being used. in thousands of pools from coast to coast. we found them at family resorts like these in south florida and at three different hotel chains in southern california. in fact, of the 14 pools we

checked in four states, half still had the flat illegal drains. >> the case of public pools or pools which aren't compliant, should they be closed down? >> absolutely. >> reporter: health departments across the country gave us similar numbers n denver and indianapolis, roughly 50% of pools still use the illegal drains. in someounties in florida, it's 7 a%. and in los angeles county, a whopping 90%. >> that is absolutely not acceptable. >> we shared our findings with ynez tannenbaum, the newly appointed chair of the consumer product safety commission which is charged with enforcing the law. >> if the pools have not made the safety fix, are you prepared to shut them down? >> we are. >> reporter: so sore the cpsc has told states that noncompliant pools should not be opened, but an official says the agency has not yet shut down any pools. safety officials urge families to ask if the drains are

compliant before taking a swim. lisa myers, nbc news, washington. and up next, an underwater invasion you've got it see to believe.

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if you can't afford your medication, astrazeneca may be able to help. something very strange is going on along the coast of southern california, fishermen are reeling in an unusual catch and some divers are getti a real scare. miguel almaguer asking why what are they. >> reporter: something big is lurking in the water. >> i haven't seen anything like this before. >> reporter: you can call it an invasion. >> wow. >> reporter: of humble flying squid, jumbo squid or diablo rojo, red devil. aggressive and huge. fi foot long, 100-pound sea monsters. thousands of them swarming

california waters. dive video shows the tentacle grabbing, invertebrate creatures lunging towards divers. shannon mcgill had what you call too close of any counter. >> the humboldt grabbed my hose, which was strapped here and velcroed, yanked it backwards and pulled me down. >> reporter: she thought this was her last dive. she talked it this morning on "today." >> it was just kicking as hard as i could and get to the surface and escape him. it could have gone real lie, really badly. >> reporter: jumbo squid usually live in warmer waters so some say they're making their way to california because there's few are of their natural predators here. others say the ocean itself is getting warmer. and they're not just in the water. >> most of them are still alive. >> reporter: they're hitting the beach. >> wow, i think it's huge. >> reporter: in san diego, they're washing ashore at an alarming rate. >> i have never seen these squid

in 42 years that i've lived here. >> reporter: we may not exactly why they're here. >> why are they here? why are the squid here? i can't honestly tell. >> you but nearly everyone wants them gone. >> we tried go out swimming. there was like five around us. it was really scary. >> reporter: miguel almaguer along the southern caste coast of california. up next, walter cronkite in his own words. low-dose tablet e is a clinicallyn you take every day, so you can be ready anytime the moment is right. so relax and take your time. tell your doctor about your medical condition and all medications and ask if you're healthy enough for sexual activity. don't take cialis if you take nitrates for chest pain, as this may cause an unsafe drop in blood pressure. don't drink alcohol in excess with cialis. side effect may include headache, upset stomach, delayed backache or muscle ache. to avoid long term injury seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than 4 hours. if you have

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began, with the legacy of walter kr cronkite. we're hearing a lot about his legendary passion for news from those who knew him best. back in 2001 at his home on martha's vineyard, nbc's jamie gangel talked to cronkite himself about some of the biggest stories of his career. here he is in his own words. >> direct from our newsroom in new york. heart'd hard lir a story that breaks i don't want to be covering, i would like to be out there in the street myself. three weeks after the offensive began, the firing still goes on. i went out to vietnam for ttet offensive because we had been told by the military and by the president that we were winning that war. high d a straight reporting job for an hour-long feature except for the clothes. to say that we are mired in

stalemate seems the only realistic, if unsatisfactory, conclusion. >> when you went to vietnam, you rarely expressed your opinion but you did on vietnam. the report was credited with swaying president lyndon johnson. >> we do know that when he saw this on the air, he said if i've lost cronkite, i've lost middle america. and apparently that had some influence. from dallas, tax, the flash apparently official, president k kennedy died at 1:00 p.m. central standard time. 2:00 eastern standard time. some 38 minutes ago. at that moment if i realized what i had been covering, emotionally, my god, this young man is dead. our president is dead. and it gripped me for a minute. took a second to recover. i'm not ashamed of it. it was all, i think, perfectly

natural. >> liftoff. >> looks like a good flight, oh, go, baby! that's my biggest disappointment in life is that i haven't made it into space. when john glenn was announced that he was going to go up the second time and he was going to test the effects of age, the effect of space on age, i called him up. he's a good friend. i called him up, i said john, this isn't fair, i'm two years older than you are. if anybody is going to test age, i ought to be going. he said maybe i'm better qualified. but pretty good answer. >> when you look back at your life and your career, what do you hope people will remember about it? >> that he cried. as a journalist. that he had a vision of what journalism should journalism should be. and in his own practice, he adhered to it.

>> walter cronkite, in his own words that is "nightly news" for this saturday, i'm savannah guthrie, reporting from new york. for lester holt, brian williams and all of us here at nbc news, for lester holt, brian williams and all of us here at nbc news, have a good evening. -- captions by vic -- www.vitac.com