more me time. because the more more i have, the more i have to have... more. [ female announcer ] more room. complimentary drinks. free breakfast. embassy suites. get more. good morning. breaking news. at least five people are dead after storms ripped through the plains overnight. over 120 reports of tornadoes are recorded across oklahoma, kansas, iowa and nebraska, as the residents wake up this morning to assess the damage. we're live in the hardest hit areas. deepening scandal. an international embarrassment involving prostitutes and secret service personnel is overshadowing the president's trip to colombia and his efforts to boost economic ties with latin america. and deadly race. one person is dead, four others missing of a yacht ran aground during a race near san francisco. three people hoisted to safety. four remain missing today,

sunday, april 15th, 2012. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on a sunday. i'm lester holt. >> and i'm tamron hall. jenna wolfe has the morning off. >> nice to have you. we saw this coming. >> yes. >> the warning came for over 36 hours of these tornadoes. and they, in fact, tore through tornado alley. reports of damage and casualties still being assessed. but here's what we know right now. at least five people are dead as storm sirens failed to warn residents in the town of woodward, oklahoma. two children are among the fatalities. the mayor says lightning disabled the town's storm warning system. >> officials in thurman, iowa, say 75% of that town has been destroyed. there are only 250 residents in thurman. none were killed or injured, but many have taken up refuge in

city hall, the town's only building with fire. >> and in wichita, kansas, a tornado caused what's being described as chaos. the storm there downed power lines and caused gas leaks. there was damage at mcconnell air force base and at least one mobile home park. we have live coverage throughout the plains. we want to begin with nbc's jay gray. he is in norman, oklahoma, to start us off. jay, good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you, lester. first light here in oklahoma, and crews really getting out, getting to assess what's happened here. the worst of the damage in oklahoma to the north and east, and woodward, as you talked about, at least five people dead, two of those children, more than 20 injured, and they're continuing to comb through the debris there and across the midwest right now. >> let's call it like it is. this is becoming now a killer tornado. >> reporter: sirens sounded throughout much of the central and southern plains saturday night, warning of monster storms that were moving fast and touching down for quick strikes, leaving pockets of destruction like this in thurman, iowa. rescuers say three quarters of

the town is wiped away. >> it just seemed to last forever and ever. >> we've got a fire, looks like, from the downed power lines. >> reporter: destruction spread from iowa to oklahoma. >> it's about halfway to the ground. >> reporter: storm chasers from affiliate station kfor sent back pictures live. >> now it's right over -- >> reporter: as fasters kept up a steady drumbeat of warnings. >> everybody out ahead of this needs to go to their safe spot, no doubt about it. this thing is crazy! >> reporter: the weather service warned that the storms could lead to a "high-end, life-threatening event." nebraska's governor, dave henman, told the weather channel's jim cantore that advanced notice was extremely important to getting his state ready. >> when you guys put out the warnings that you've put out, we take it very, very seriously, because normally, don't get this much warning. >> reporter: but at times, the twisters were covering so much ground, they couldn't be avoided. >> it's following us. >> but we're okay, right? >> yeah. >> yeah. >> reporter: i think it's important to point out that we're really just getting the first assessments from these storms. the light is beginning to shine.

it's going to show a dramatic picture across much of the midwest, lester. and i think we're going to learn a lot more as these crews can get in and find out what's going on. >> jay gray starting us out this morning. now here's tamron. >> lester, thank you. the small town of thurman, iowa, has been devastated by the storms. the weather channel's jim cantore is there. jim, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, tamron. yeah, you can see homes like the one behind me here, where a tree fell on the roof and pretty much popped the sides of it, have sustained extensive damage in through here. and that's really as far as eye can see this morning. we're just at sunup as well. a lot of damage, trees, power lines down. the good news is no reports of casualties, just some minor cuts and bruises. great news, indeed, for a tornado where we had about three minutes of warning here, according to the mayor. the sirens went off and they had about three minutes. the good news is, again, this was one of the weaker tornadoes. it didn't stay on the ground very long. but obviously, for this town of about 238 people, lives are turned upside down, and they've got a lot of cleanup to do.

curfew picks up in about a half hour. that means residents will be able to get back in here and assess the damage to their homes. power crews about been working all night long and they're hoping to actually get power back in here at least over the next 24 to 36 hours. so a marked improvement from certainly some of the tornadoes i've been on this year, but a small town has been hit pretty hard. back to you. >> jim, thank you. city hall is the only building in thurman that has power. some residents have taken refuge there. others are staying in a shelter. cleanup is expected to start later today. rod humphries is the mayor of thurman and tina lebaritay is with the red cross. good morning to both of you. thai both for joining us. obviously, mayor, our thoughts and prayers with your community seeing the damage. how certain are you that everyone is accounted for? >> we did primary and secondary searches last night with members of other fire departments and local communities, and we're certain that we've accounted for everybody. >> mayor, as mentioned by jim cantore, you've got light now.

in about 30 minutes, half hour, people will be able to go in and assess the damage, but what is your first impression of what you're seeing there? >> well, it's bad. we probably have 100% of the homes in town have some damage. we have some that are completely destroyed, and it's a path of destruction right through the middle of town. >> tina, only one building has power. that's the city hall at this time. as i mentioned, people are seeking refuge there. what do you believe folks there need most at this early hour? >> you know, the red cross is always on the scene to provide food, shelter, clothing, comfort and care, and that's what these folks need. they're a great community supporting each other, so we will be here throughout the day. >> how big of a challenge is it, though, for you, tina, when you have just one building that has power? >> it's always challenging. we do set up sheltering nearby as well. we do have a shelter operating in taber at the high school there, and we will have our

emergency response vehicles, mobile units in the area and be doing feeding. so, these folks are out here. it's a challenging circumstance, but we're all pulling together. >> all right, tina, thank you. and again, mayor, our thoughts are with you and your entire community. thank you. once again, here's lester. >> tamron, thanks. now to kansas, where the governor has declared a disaster emergency. the weather channel's mike seidel is in wichita for us. mike, good morning to you. >> reporter: and good morning, lester. the tornado roared through the area, skipping through the south side of wichita in the 10:00 hour last night. just down the road from where i am, a mobile home park was hit hard, at least 100 mobile homes damaged and 10 destroyed. but we can't get in because of police blockades. they won't let us in there. so we're in a neighboring community and we found one of those who rode out the storm. this is barbara klein with her chihuahua, daisy, this morning. barbara, thanks for joining us, and we're glad you're safe and sound. tell us what happened last night as you arrived home before the storms hit? >> yeah, we were out and we got in about an hour before they hit.

we were kind of watching on the news. we got it about 15 minutes before it hit. and we were in the basement. we weren't in the center of the basement, we thought we were secure. >> reporter: then what did you hear? >> a roar, crash, a huge, huge crash. basically, from that point, we ran for the center of the basement, but then i lost daisy and she wouldn't come with me. she took off. actually, she took off and went upstairs. after it settled down a little bit, i started hunting for her, looking for her. we have a spot right on the couch where she likes to sit, and she was sitting on that spot. >> reporter: and where did you ride out the tornado? >> we rode it out in the basement. >> reporter: and in the tub. >> in the tub, in the bathroom, yeah. my husband had come down on top of me and was kind of over me while we sat there and rode it out. >> reporter: okay, we're glad to see you're okay. daisy still shaking from last night's traumatic experience. that's barbara klein. lester, everybody's fine here. no injuries in wichita, but 19

injuries across the area. back to you. >> thanks to you and all the weather channel folks who rode the night out. it's been a long night for you. we want to turn to crystal egger in the studio to tell us more about the storms and what to expect. >> good morning, lester. it has been a violent start to the weekend already and we do expect more severe weather today. take a look at the satellite and radar composite. you can see the showers and thunderstorms advancing to the east now. most of the tornado reports yesterday across oklahoma and kansas, and now the threat shifts farther to the east and farther north across the upper mississippi river valley. some strong storms expected. these are going to be fast-moving super cells, which could produce strong tornadoes once again. main threat being damaging winds and large hail all the way down into texas. new severe thunderstorm watch box out until 11:00 a.m. you see that shaded in yellow, as we expect that line of storms to quickly move off to the east there. severe storms on monday as well, only in a slight risk for the interior northeast. pittsburgh, you're included. around the eastern lakes, all

the way down into the mountain states of west virginia. and we could see hail and damaging winds once again on monday. be extra vigilant today on this sunday. a lot of cities, lester, still in the danger zone. >> all right, crystal, we'll check back with you in a few minutes for the day's national forecast, but for now, here's tamron. >> lester, thank you. and now to president obama's meeting with world leaders in south america. the trip is being overshadowed by the widening scandal involving secret service personnel. white house correspondent kristen welker is in cartagena, colombia, with details. good morning, kristen. >> reporter: good morning to you, tamron. the secret service has launched an internal investigation into the matter. they have interviewed all 11 personnel involved and placed them on administrative leave. in the meantime, the alleged incident occurred right here at this hotel, which is just a few minutes from where the president is staying. according to u.s. officials, the allegations involve 11 members of the secret service and 5 u.s. military service members here in

colombia on assignment to protect the president. they're alleged to have brought prostitutes back to their hotel rooms. sourses familiar with the incident say there was a dispute over a payment, which brought it to the attention of the authorities. according to the defense department, the service members are now confined to quarters here. the secret service says their personnel, both special agents and uniformed officers, were sent home before the president's arrival and replaced with others. >> the president was made aware of it, of the incident in question, yesterday. the white house was informed thursday evening. >> reporter: representative peter king, chairman of the house homeland security committee, has been briefed on the evolving scandal. >> 11 secret service personnel, 11 have brought women back to their hotel rooms on wednesday evening into thursday morning. >> reporter: in a statement, the secret service said it "takes all allegations of misconduct seriously." the white house press secretary stressed that the president's security was never compromised.

>> the president does have full confidence in the united states secret service. >> and this really is the biggest scandal in the history of the secret service. >> reporter: ron kessler, who wrote "in the president's secret service," says the incident could be indicative of a larger problem within the agency. >> mr. and mrs. salehi. >> reporter: a problem kessler says was brought to light in 2009 when michaela and tareq salahi gained entrance to the white house dinner without an invitation. >> there's a culture in secret service that's fostered by the manageme management, favoritism. what the agency needs is an outside director who can come in and clean house, change the standards. >> this was wrong from beginning to end. if the facts are what they seem to be, this is something that just cannot be tolerated. >> reporter: now, prostitution is legal in some parts of colombia, but the secret service says it has a zero tolerance

policy for personal misconduct and also says it demands more of its personnel. experts tell me the fact that this happened during a foreign trip makes it hugely embarrassing not only for the secret service but also for the white house. tamron? >> kristen welker, thank you. busy morning around here. we want to get a check of some of the other big stories of the day. for that, we head to the news desk with lynn berry. lynn, good morning. >> good morning to you, lester and tamron, and good morning to all of you at home. what appeared to be a series of coordinated attacks by militants hit afghanistan's capital today. nbc's so helu dean is live for us in kabul with the very latest. good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning. well, it all started when we could hear it a mile and a half from our compound. according to nato, this took place in seven different places. our contacts on the scene, on the ground, told us that these included both the u.s. and uk embassy compounds, a four-star hotel used by westerners throughout, and also a

supermarket, which is also used by ex-pats. there are also reports that the afghan parliament is under attack, but there are no further details about that. and these compounds are basically all within the same area. and this is basically a hub for western officials. witnesses say the attackers used a combination of small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades. now, the taliban spokesman told nbc news that these were deliberate, coordinated attacks, what they call a spring offensive, and they haare deliberately targeting the u.s., uk emselves. >> thank you very much. after a year of sanctions and saber-rattling over iraq's nuclear ambitions, negotiators from tehran and six world powers are finally talking again. nbc's ali aruzie reports from istanb istanbul, turkey. >> reporter: after a year of saber-rattling and negotiations,

they resumed talking again in istanbul and found at least enough common ground to have another round of talks in baghdad next month, but the two parts are still pulled apart. iran wants sanctions lifted and the international community to recognize its right to enrich uranium peacefully. the united states says iran needs to take concrete measures and that yesterday's talks didn't yield enough results to lift sanctions. and even though the threat of war still looms, the real danger to the regime is economic stagnation and the burgeoning number of young, jobless iranians, and that's just what might make iran come to make some concessions, which would revive the economy and restore the fortunes of the regime. back to you. >> ali, thank you very much. back here at home, the coast guard is searching for four people missing during an annual yacht race off san francisco. a powerful wave swept the lost crew members off the 38-foot sailboat "low-speed chase" on saturday and hit rocks while attempting a rescue.

one person was killed and three others were rescued. well, there are prayers today for bee gees singer robin gibb. he is reportedly in a coma in london. he contracted pneumonia while battling cancer and is reported to be gravely ill. and finally, animal control officers in los angeles are praising the loyalty of a 2-year-old black labrador retriever. look at this little guy. they say the dog that they've named gracie braved traffic to stay by another lab that had been fatally hit by a car on saturday. now, no one has come forward to claim gracie. she's soon going to be up for adoption. heartbreaking to see there, but i would imagine it's not going to be a hard sell to find gracie a home. well, that's the news. now we'll send it back to lester, tamron and crystal. >> that was really touching. >> it is. >> all right, lynn, thanks. >> wow, it took my breath away. >> yeah. >> that was something. crystal eggert is here with a look at the forecast. a lot happening across the midwest.

>> it's been an active start to severe weather season and we're not out of the woods today. the threat moves a good sunday morning to you. meteorologist chuck bell. the sun is starting to break through the cloud deck first thing this morning and we'll end up with a mostly sunny sky by later on today. temperature are already in the upper 50s and low 60s. thanks to the return of the sunshine, it's going to be a very warm day today. about a 10-degree improvement over yesterday. yesterday we reached 75. today i'm forecasting 85 degrees. 87 and back to you, lester. >> all right, crystal, thanks. up next on "today," the fbi's ten most wanted list. who replaced osama bin laden on that list? we'll tell you right after this. i love that my daughter's part fish. but when she got asthma, all i could do was worry !

specialists, lots of doctors, lots of advice... and my hands were full. i couldn't sort through it all. with unitedhealthcare, it's different. we have access to great specialists, and our pediatrician gets all the information. everyone works as a team. and i only need to talk to one person about her care. we're more than 78,000 people looking out for 70 million americans. that's health in numbers. unitedhealthcare. hershey's drops. a lot of hershey's happiness in little drops of milk chocolate. and cookies n creme. pure hershey's. ♪ spread a little love my way ♪ ♪ spread a little something to remember ♪ [ female announcer ] fresh milk and real cream makes philadelphia and the moment a little richer.

the fbi has enlisted a time-tested method in trying to catch a man accused of producing childpornography. they've placed them on their list of the ten most wanted fugitives, filling one of the gaps left by the death of osama bin laden. nbc justice correspondent pete williams has the details. >> reporter: the fbi believes someone knows where this man is but may not realize he's wanted on child pornography charges. he's eric toff. just turned 30, charged with a crime four years ago after a teacher at a private school in washington, d.c., where he was also teaching, found what police say were pornographic pictures of children on a camera he'd been using. fbi agents are worried he may still be in contact with children while he's on the run, so they've put him on their ten most wanted list, along with a description. 6'3", green eyes, mole under the left eye. hoping the attention will generate a critical tip. >> we believe he is a current threat to the community. and number two, we believe with the public's help, we'll be able to locate him and apprehend him.

>> reporter: the ten most wanted list has come a long way since the days of black-and-white pictures at the post office. now it involves electronic posters like this one at a washington bus stop near the school where eric toth once worked. and it's thoroughly digital, too. >> an alleged child pornographer -- >> reporter: with postings on the internet, facebook and twitter and on electronic billboards along busy highways nationwide. agents can call up the top ten list along with mugshots on their cell phones, too. >> the criminal underworld -- >> reporter: since jay edgar hoover, the fbi's first director, launched the list to generate publicity, who's on it has changed over the years. at first, bank robbers, kidnappers and mobsters, then drug lords and '60s-era radicals. serial murderer ted bundy was a top-tenner, along with james earl ray, wanted for killing martin luther king, identified first by an alias. osama bin laden was on the list before he was killed, and accused boston mobster whitey bulger was on it before his

capture last year. >> the magic of the top ten list is that it projects these images out to the world. people will going to be able to see this individual, pick up the phone and call law enforcement so that we can apprehend them. >> reporter: something the fbi now hopes will catch eric toth. for "today," pete williams, nbc news, washington. still to come on "today," nursing student holly bobo disappeared from her tennessee home a year ago. see what her family is doing to find new information in this case. but first, these messages. ♪ [ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] if you have yet to master the quiet sneeze... ♪ [ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] you may be an allergy muddler. try zyrtec®. it gives you powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin® because zyrtec® starts working at hour 1 on the first day you take it. claritin® doesn't start working until hour 3. [ sneezes ] [ male announcer ] zyrtec®. love the air. [ female announcer ] this week only, save up to $11 on zyrtec® products. see sunday's newspaper.

yeah, it's the new quaker cookie, with chocolate chips, almonds, and, of course, whole-grain oats, so -- uh-huh. mmm. you just... took a bite of my cookie. what? [ male announcer ] new quaker cookies. made with the whole-grain goodness of quaker oats. if it's on the label, it's on your skin. new puristics works without those chemicals. it reduced the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles in 97% of women in just 3 weeks. that's puristics: the power of pure.

still to come on "today," on her own. oprah winfrey's struggles running her tv network and "o" magazine. and social security... security. that's what matters to me... me? i've been paying in all these years...

years washington's been talking at us, but they never really listen... listen...it's not just some line item on a budget; it's what i'll have to live on... i live on branson street, and i have something to say... [ male announcer ] aarp is bringing the conversation on medicare and social security out from behind closed doors in washington. because you've earned a say. so i get claritin clear. this is all bayberry. bayberry pollen. very allergenic. non-drowsy claritin relieves my worst symptoms only claritin is proven to keep me as alert and focused as someone without allergies. live claritin clear. you didn't think what life was gonna be like for me? mom, dad. [ sighs ] [ male announcer ] it's a snack like nothing else. kraft milkbite bars are a calcium-rich mix of real milk and delicious granola.

good morning. look at that beauty shot right there. it's 8:26 on this sunday, april

15th. i'm erika gonzalez. in your news this morning, police in prince george's county are investigating a stabbing that injured six people on the 19,000 block of poplar ridge road. they say suspects came to a party ininvited and an argument started. all the victims and the suspects are teenagers. if you've got any information, contact police. the space shuttle "discover" is preparing for its last flight here to the washington area. crews rolled out the shuttle from its hangar at kennedy space center in florida yesterday. it will be placed on top of a modified boeing 747 jetliner. "discovery" will fly over the potomac tuesday between 10 to 11:00. you can see it from the national point, and southwest water front. the shuttle will then land at

dulles international before it's

last day of the week end, better enjoy it. i think you'll have some good weather to go along with it. meteorologist chuck bell tells us more. >> thanks. bright sunshine breaking through the clouds already this morning. temperatures are going to start to jump now that the sun is breaking through as well. we're already in the upper 50s and low 60s as of the 8:30 hour this morning. current temperature now in washington, 63 degrees. 57 in hagerstown. 673 in culpepper. 65 in frederiksberg and 65 down toward st. mary city. a good day coming our way. the return of is sunshine promises a much warmer afternoon than yesterday. southwesterly winds, 10 to 20 miles an hour. today's high will be in the low to mid-80s and tomorrow mid to upper 80s around here before our

next chance of rain showers arrives tuesday into early wednesday. back to you, erika. >> thanks, chuck. be sure to join us for a full hour of local news, weather and sports coming up at 9:00. to for we are back on this sunday morning, april 15th, 2012. it was a little rainy earlier, but it's absolutely a beautiful morning right now in the heart of new york city. i want to thank all these people from all around for visiting us this lovely sunday morning. outside on the plaza, i'm tamron hall alongside lester holt. jenna wolfe, jenna is off this morning. and still to come, a new -- you know when oprah winfrey says ah-hah moment, do you know what that means? >> no. >> it's like a revelation of life and she has had one in her life. >> i think that ah-hah moment has to do with her network, own. we know there have been documented issues getting that going, and then there's apparently problems with "o"

magazine. we'll look at the challenges winfrey is facing these days. plus, a fellow by the name of smackman, have you heard about him? the internet? you're the big guns. >> that's why i watch the news. >> look at this video. this guy is called a subway superhero. his name is charles saunders. he was calm, cool and collected, eating a bag of chips when he broke up a violent altercation on a subway and it's gone viral. we'll talk about his new-found man by the name of nutman. and this big, big dog. do you know marmaduke? >> of course. >> this puts marmaduke to shame. we had the smallest dog on last week. look at this guy. >> are you kidding? >> he sleeps on a queen-sized bed. he's seven feet long. we'll learn about him. >> i have a 4-pound dog and picking up after him is dramatic, so that's -- >> you went right there! >> i'm a dog owner. we go there. >> we were all thinking it, but

i wasn't saying it. we'll talk about life with big george. first, another check on the weather, including the deadly storms in the plains. crystal y crystal egger is standing by with the weather report. >> the

that little girl will learn, if you have three sisters, somebody's always coming along. right now, high 50s, upper 60s. giving way to plenty of sunshine this afternoon. temperature into the low and mid-80s today. tomorrow mostly sunny start to fin ir. toasty warm, too. highs tomorrow, mid to upper 80s. next chance, if you need showers around here, tuesday into early wednesday ahead all right, we have folks out here from the plains as well, where we continue to keep an eye on severe weather. you can do the same at weather.com 24/7, monitor the weather as we watch some dangerous storms move across the country today. tamron, back to you. crystal. thank you. last year at this time, a family in tennessee was franticly trying to find their daughter. a whole year has gone by and

there's still no sign of missing nursing student holly bobo. nbc's mark potter reports. >> reporter: hundreds of bikers drove the country roads to darden, tennessee, then stopped at the corinth baptist church to return for the safe return of holly bobo. >> why give up? you just can't, can't do that, not in a situation like this. >> reporter: inside the church, holly's parents spoke on the anniversary of their daughter's disappearance. >> it has been a year since our daughter, holly, was taken from us. >> we know a year seems like a long time to each of you, but for us, holly's family, each day seems like an eternity without holly. >> reporter: holly bobo was reportedly last seen being taken from outside her rural home into the woods by an unidentified man wearing camouflage. police theorize the abductor was from the area. >> looks like he was a resident of this community, and this is a very tight-knitted community

where people know each other. >> reporter: widespread searches by volunteers and police turned up some physical evidence, including holly's lunch box. >> the person who owns this property back here, he found a lunch pal down in this area. >> reporter: but the searchers and a reward, which grew to $250,000, fail to find holly. >> when it's been a year and you haven't gotten any clues enough to find a suspect or charge anybody and you have no body, very little evidence, you've got a really difficult case that may never be solved. >> reporter: investigators say they still continue to run down tips but have no new, credible leads. still, holly's parents urge the public to keep in touch with police. >> it is possible that someone does have a new tip or knowledge extremely important to the case. >> reporter: outside the high school where holly graduated, hundreds of people released pink balloons with her picture attached, hoping someone will finally reveal her whereabouts. for "today," mark potter, nbc

news. up next, would your child willingly go off with a stranger? if you think my kid would never do that, think again, right after these messages. i knew it'd be tough on our retirement savings, especially in this economy. but with three kids, being home more really helped. man: so we went to fidelity. we talked about where we were and what we could do. we changed our plan and did something about our economy. now we know where to go for help if things change again. call or come in today to take control of your personal economy. get free one-on-one help from america's retirement leader.

[ male announcer ] it's a big world... and kids need all the nourishment they can get. that's why delicious quaker chewy granola bars are packed with 8 grams of whole grains. give them quaker chewy. and i know there's no orange like a tropicana florida orange. the soil and sunshine are just perfect here. tropicana pure premium is made with 100% florida oranges. because the best oranges make the best juice. chili's $20 dinner for two has a bold new favorite -- steak. first, share an appetizer, then choose two entrees, like our 100% usda choice sirloin, available for a limited time on chili's $20 dinner for two. [ male announcer ] strip away the styling. strip away the rearview monitors, tv screens, bluetooth... and even the cup holders. you know what's left? the only suv's with american-built f-alpha truck frames. the ruggedly capable pathfinder,

xterra, armada. ♪ receive up to twenty-five hundred dollars cash back on select nissan suv's. ♪ on select nissan suv's. i bathed it in miracles. director: [ sighs ] cut! sorry to interrupt. when's the show? well, if we don't find an audience, all we'll ever do is rehearse. maybe you should try every door direct mail. just select the zip codes where you want your message to be seen, print it yourself, or we'll help you find a local partner and you find the customers that matter most. brilliant. clifton, show us overjoyed.

no, too much. jennessa. ah! a round of applause. [ applause ] [ male announcer ] go online to reach every home, every address, every time with every door direct mail. even though it's highly unlikely your child will ever be snatched by a stranger, every parent, of course, makes an effort to teach them how to be safe. the question is, are they listening? natalie morales is here to tell us about her "dateline" hidden camera series that puts parenting skills to the test. natalie, good morning to you. >> good morning to you, lester. we really wanted to see what a child would do when a stranger used free ice cream to lure them into a truck. would they remember what they've been taught or would they put

themselves in danger? >> hey, guys. >> hi. >> i'm matt the ice cream man. >> reporter: our fake ice cream man approaches these twins, mia and dallas. >> what are you guys doing? >> reporter: as their father and sister watched them on cameras. >> we're doing a cost. >> for who? >> people that served in the war. >> you know what? i usually give out free ice cream for anybody who does things for the troops. would you guys like some? >> reporter: will they take the free ice cream? >> well, we have to ask our parents. >> no, it's fine. i have the truck right here. >> come on. >> reporter: mia is reluctant. so our actor tries another tactic. >> have you guys ever been in an ice cream truck? >> no. >> have you ever seen the inside of one? would you guys like to try that out? >> reporter: their dad watches, hoping his twins will continue to ignore our ice cream man. >> i'm nervous right now. >> reporter: but our actor turns on the charm. >> come on, guys. i'll show you. >> reporter: maybe they'll just

peek in. >> right here. >> reporter: not get in. he gets out a stool, inviting them to climb up. >> check it out, guys. i can show you i've got the freezers, i can show you how the music works and everything. go ahead. >> reporter: while dallas marches right in -- >> oh, god. >> reporter: -- mia hesitates, looks around, unsure of what to do. >> it's all right. >> reporter: then, she climbs in. >> watch your step. >> oh, she's not going to. >> reporter: their father is visibly upset. >> no matter how much you talk to them, it just takes something that catches their interest, and they forget everything, and it's innocent. they're so innocent. >> you guys like spider-man or dora the explorer? >> i like spider-man. >> you need me to pay? because i think our parents -- >> no, it's free, guys. it's free. >> i didn't think they would do that. >> reporter: and they're in there a long time, and he could easily shut that door and take

off. >> somebody else inside there, they could just grab them. >> reporter: and as soon as our ice cream man leaves -- >> bye, guys. >> bye. >> bye. >> keep doing the good work. >> you, too. >> reporter: maya tells her brother something just isn't right. >> dallas, we don't know him. stranger danger. >> ice cream. >> yeah, but we need to tell our parents first. >> reporter: parenting expert michele borba said maya had the right instinct. the rest just takes practice. >> you role play it over and over again. you play what-if scenarios. as a result, it's more likely to seep in. show, don't tell. >> well, if you're thinking my kid would never do that don't be so sure. that is what i thought and i put my own son to the ice cream test, and lester, i've got to say it was so emotional, but a real eye-opener for all of the parents who were part of this. >> you had all of our stomachs in knots here watching that. why did you put josh in this test? were you assuming that he would

do everything you've told him? >> you know, i mean, i watched all of these kids in this scenario, and as we were developing the scenario, there were so many stories in the news, with the jerry sandusky case and all that, going on in the background. but knowing how hard it would be to resist the lure of free ice cream, i wasn't sure how josh would do, so i figured, let me put him to the test. and this is very scary and a hard-to-watch moment as a parent. >> and watching that little girl, she knew something was wrong. >> yeah. >> obviously, she had been taught well, but -- >> good gut instincts, as you saw, and that's what our parenting expert says, you know. these kids just really have to learn to go with their instinct. >> i really hope people will watch this because this is an incredible lesson for kids and parents. you can watch more of a special "dateline" "my kid would never do that," join us tonight at 7:00/6:00 central time here on nbc. nat, thanks very much. just ahead, oprah's ah-hah moment. how the queen of talk is revamping her empire. first, these messages. [ school bell rings ] ♪

♪ [ male announcer ] it's a big world... ♪ ...and kids need all the nourishment they can get. that's why quaker chewy granola bars are packed with 8 grams of whole grains. give them the goodness of whole grains with the great taste of chocolate chips. quaker chewy. with no added sugar. just one glass equals two servings of fruit. very "fruit-ritious." or try ocean spray light 50, with just 50 calories, a full serving of fruit, and no added sugar. with tasty flavors like cranberry pomegranate and cranberry concord grape, it's like a fruit stand in every bottle. [ splashing ] just, you know, demonstrating how we blend the fruits. ahem. try all our tasty ocean spray 100% and light 50 juices.

for 25 years, oprah winfrey had been known as the queen of talk, but as her latest venture, own, is struggling to connect with viewers, her successful magazine has now hit some challenges. nbc's mike taibbi has more. >> the brand-new oprah winfrey network. >> reporter: there were hints from the beginning that oprah winfrey's network faced what she would later call a kilimanjaro of a climb. ratings for first two months were lower than the sparsely viewed discovery health channel it had replaced on the crowded cable dial. and when she brought rosie o'donnell back to daytime talk -- >> just know there are many parents who struggle with parents in that condition -- >> reporter: -- anemic ratings fell in five months. >> this was supposed to be a show that would put own back on the map and revitalize the

network that was in a lot of trouble. and now, it feels like that never happened. >> reporter: in fact, own's mix of mostly talk and reality shows was dismissed by one critic as a nonstop televised self-help book. nothing worked. and winfrey admitted on "cbs this morning" that she flipped the on switch for her network before it was ready. >> if i knew then what i know now, i might have made some different choices. i would say if i were writing a book about it, i could call the book "101 mistakes." how are you? >> reporter: one high point, her exclusive interview last month with whitney houston's daughter, bobbi kristina, that drew more than 50 million viewers. >> doing good. just trying to keep going. >> reporter: but before and after that special, own's daily ratings have languished to fewer than 250,000 pairs of eyes. own's first-year scorecard, more than $100 million in losses, say financial analysts, and more

than 30 employees laid off. now, oprah's long-successful magazine is also reporting a 24% drop in ad sales, a tough task for one of the industry's superstars. >> had i known that it was this difficult, i might have done something else. >> reporter: but she didn't do something else. she did this, giving her name and reputation to a network struggling to make it on its own. for "today," mike taibbi, nbc news, los angeles. it's now 48 minutes after the hour. here's tamron. >> thank you, lester. and now to a viral video that's turned a mild-mannered young man into an internet superhero with a pretty unique name. check out this fight on a subway right here in new york city. in comes charles saunder to break it all up, all while casually -- you see him there, snacking on his stack of potato chips. the video has gotten nearly a million and a half hits on youtube, and people are now calling him, what else? snack man! charlie saunder is with us. good morning! >> good morning. >> so, do i keep it form and call you charlie or can i call

you snack man? >> you can call me whatever you want. >> this has to be crazy for you, to see that video and watch your own composure. when you look at it now, do you remember it or was it happening so fast? >> no, i remember it. it was -- i mean, it's a little blurry, but i like that i could just help people on the subway. i mean it was a nice thing to do. >> it was the right thing to do, but a lot of people wouldn't have stepped up the way you did. i know you were a wrestler and used to wrestle, but you're wrestling with the chips at the same time. why didn't you give up the chips? >> i don't know. i just didn't want to cause a scene or escalate it at all. they were having a fight. i just wanted to calm things down, get in the middle so they didn't hurt anybody else on the subway and keep kicking each other. >> i understand you're so popular these days that the ladies are loving the snackman. tell me about this, charles. >> you know, i've been working all week still, so i haven't maybe noticed it too much. >> no, no, don't be modest. i've heard that women are buying you drinks. >> actually, no one has bought

me a drink. i've bought a few drinks for people -- >> you're not working it the right way! i've got to give you some tips later. i've heard that women are proposing to you online. come on! >> yeah. i mean, i haven't been responding too much. most of them are high school girls or older women, people's grandmothers, i think. >> so, you're hot with the cougars? >> yeah, it seems that way, yeah. >> and your mom sent you a text message about all of this. she kind of alerted you to what was going on. >> yeah. >> what did it say? >> i woke up to a message, i guess from my sister and my mom both text messaged me and said, "hey, snackman." so, i had no idea what they were talking about, and i said, what are you talking about? >> right. >> and they said check my e-mail, and it was just flooded with -- >> crazy. >> -- facebook stuff. >> peter parker, he would rip open his shirt and he had on the spider-man gear. superman had, you know, his alter ego. if you pop open your shirt, what's in there? >> a special suit, but i'm not going to do it here on live tv,

so -- >> oh, darn it! well, on live tv, i understand you've reached out to pringles and maybe they are going to, i don't know, hit you up. but we have something for you, while we wait on pringles to see what a stud you are. look! >> oh, wow. >> a basket of snacks. >> great. >> it's not like kryptonite, so it won't hurt your super powers. >> awesome. >> it will only make you more awesome. >> those are all my favorite snacks right there. >> really? >> so that's great, yeah. >> next time we'll get you to pop that top. >> oh, yeah. >> not the top of the chips. >> yeah, i got you. >> charlie, you're awesome. thank you very much, charles sonder, snackman. just ahead, meet the world's tallest dog, after these messages. with the capital one cash rewards card you get a 50% annual bonus. and everyone likes 50% more cash -- well, except her. no! but, i'm about to change that. ♪ every little baby wants 50% more cash... ♪ phhht! fine, you try. [ strings breaking, wood splintering ] ha ha.

[ male announcer ] the capital one cash rewards card. the card for people who want 50% more cash. ♪ what's in your wallet? ♪ what's in your...your... yeah, it's the new quaker cookie, with chocolate chips, almonds, and, of course, whole-grain oats, so -- uh-huh. mmm. you just... took a bite of my cookie. what? [ male announcer ] new quaker cookies. made with the whole-grain goodness of quaker oats.

if you were with us last week, you'll recall we had the world's smallest puppy visit our studio. look at this little guy. actually, this is a little girl, it's beyonce. this morning, we'd like you to meet the world's tallest dog. his name is giant george. take a look at the two of them side by side. yesterday, i spoke with giant george's owners, christie and dave nasser, who wrote the book "giant george: life with the world's biggest dog." well, dave and christie and george, welcome. thanks for joining us. i have to tell you, when your picture popped up on the monitor, everybody in the studio gasped. i have to ask you, is george seated on that sofa with you? >> he's seated just like a human being. >> yep. >> all right, from nose to tail, how long? >> he's about seven feet long, nose to tail. >> obviously, great danes are known for being the largest dog, or one of the largest dogs. when did you realize that he exceeded the typical great dane?

>> i think probably around three or four months when we would take him to the dog park and everybody that knew great danes that knew large-breed dogs, they said, wow, his paws are huge. they had never really seen paws that large. and he had these huge kind of knots on his wrist area that were kind of bone ready to grow. so, we started hearing it from other people. >> i have to tell you, i'm still stunned looking at the three of you there because this looks like a computer graphic, he's superimposed on the top of you. i love great danes and have found them to be gentle. is he a gentle giant? >> yeah, he is super gentle. we have two small kids and he's very careful around them and just loves to be around kids, actually. >> and i'm thinking -- >> he's a great dog. >> i'm thinking of the pet paraphernalia. often you'll get the cute little doggie bed. that's not going to work. where does he sleep? >> he has his own queen-sized bed and it sits right at the

foot of our bed. >> a queen-sized bed? >> yeah, yeah. early on, he had a twin-size bed, but he outgrew that pretty fast. >> yeah. >> i mean, his legs were sprawling all over the twin-size bed and we had to bring it up to a queen-size bed. >> now, i hesitate to ask this question. is he active? does he like to run around? >> oh, yeah. well, you know, you guys wouldn't know this over there, but it's pretty early in the morning over here, so he might be a little more lethargic than normal, but he's actually very active. he runs and almost gallops like a pony. it's pretty incredible for a dog this big, to see him running the way that he does. yeah, he is very active. >> nothing like a pony running through the living room. has he knocked a lot of stuff off? have you lost a lot of items to the wagging tail? >> he's pretty careful, actually. >> pretty good, but he did dent our drywall corner one time, and actually, the dent is still there because i didn't fix it properly, so you can see where his tail did a little damage. other than that, he's pretty good. >> give us a sense of his size. compare him to, what, the sofa

you're on is, what, a 6-foot sofa? >> no, this is actually bigger than that. this is probably 7 or 8 feet long. this is actually a pretty tall sofa. he's a big guy. i mean, the thing is about him is he's like the shaquille o'neal of a dog because he's -- all his weight is stretched out lengthwise. and so, if you just saw a still shot of him, he just looks perfectly proportioned. only when you really kind of see him next to something visually do you realize how big he is, or if you see him in person. he's just so huge. >> i wonder how his free throws are. dave and christie nasser and giant george, thanks so much for coming on. what a treat. we enjoyed having you guys here. what's that, shaquille o'neal on the line there for me? i'll pick it up in a second. >> could you handle that dog? we're both dog owners. >> i like big dogs, but that's a lot of dog. that's a horse. in fact, he's running in the kentucky derby. did i mention that? >> my money's on george. awesome. >> you were thinking of the question i wanted to ask but

couldn't bring myself to. >> yeah, how big is the pooper scooper? >> i wasn't going to say that word. i was just going to say that responsible pet owners. >> okay, fine. time to check with david gregory, see what's coming up on "meet the press." hey, david. >> thank you for that segue. i appreciate that. coming up, the fight for women voters heated up this week and we'll talk about it with kirsten gill brandt and michele bachmann. plus, tim geithner talks jobs, taxes and the sluggish economic recovery. it's all coming up this morning on "meet the press." >> david, thank you very much. that does it for us. thanks to tamron hall, lynn berry and crystal egger. there they are, in the dark. >> in the dark! keeping it classy. >> we'll see you next weekend and i'll see you back here tonight on "nbc nightly news" have. a great day, everybody. so long.

a night of destruction as dozens of tornadoes touched down in the midwest. this morning, we are just starting to see the devastation left behind. good morning, everybody. i'm erika gonzalez in for angie today. >> i'm richard jordan. welcome to "news 4 today" on this sunday, april 15th. >> right now emergency response after deadly stofs in the midwest is what's taking place. >> severe storms killed five people in oklahoma overnight. search and rescue are combing through the town of woodward, looking for survivors. emergency officials believe a