on the broadcast tonight, mean season. as we head into the unofficial start of summer after a season of so much damage, so many extremes, why a new hurricane forecast is getting attention tonight. the mystery. almost 33 years to the day since a little boy disappeared. are police finally about to crack the case that changed everything for so many parents and the search for so many other missing kids? traffic jam at the top of the world. a dangerous, perhaps deadly bottleneck at mt. everest. and star power. after most americans retire, look who the biggest stars on broadway are right now and how do they do it. "nightly news" begins now.

good evening. it's become popular to say our weather in many parts of the country has not been normal of late. in fact, far from it when you consider the historic and severe hurricanes and tornadoes we have witnessed to the freak events like the halloween blizzard in the east to a lack of winter for millions of americans this past season. it's against that backdrop that today's official government hurricane forecast comes out just as america gears up for the traditional start of the summer kickoff weekend, and it's where we begin our reporting tonight with nbc's tom costello. >> get ready for the ferocious power of mother nature. the official start of hurricane season is still a week away, but it's already been an active two weeks. tropical storm alberto has come and gone off the atlantic coast as hurricane bud churns off the coast of central mexico in the

pacific. now a category two storm. >> there is no such thing as a weak hurricane. >> today from noaa, a prediction for a near normal hurricane season between june 1st and november 30th. that means 9 to 15 tropical storms with 4 to 8 strengthens into hurricanes. and one to three of those becoming major hurricanes, category three or greater. the big wild card, the warmer effect from el nino in the pacific. that could help lessen the hurricane risk. >> el nino tends to increase the wind shear. wind shear tends to suppress or even kill off hurricanes. >> last year was one of the worst years on record for hurricanes. 19 in total. including one of the most expensive, irene. it slammed the east coast, and even after being down graded to a tropical storm, reached as far inland as vermont, tearing down historic bridges and isolating entire towns. the total price tag, nearly $16 billion. now, 2012. >> this is something i have

never seen before. >> already a year of extremes. 63 people killed as more than 400 tornadoes tore through the country in late winter and spring. >> we peeked out the window and saw trees coming out of the ground. >> now the national's hurricane hunters begin the yearly ritual of watching and waiting. as if they needed any reminder, this august will mark the 20th anniversary of hurricane andrew the category five storm that tore through south florida back in 1992, killing 26 people. there's no suggestion, though, brian, that that kind of storm might be brewing this year. >> tom costello starting us off at the map in washington. tom, thanks. with us tonight, the hurricane expert at the weather channel, dr. rick knabb, who we're proud to say has been selected and is about to become the new director of the national hurricane center. can you blame a civilian like me for asking a guy like you, in light of we saw new england torn up, joplin, tuscaloosa. all the severe weather.

why wouldn't that mean an equally severe hurricane season en route? >> unfortunately, we're just not very good at this stage before the official hurricane season even starts of telling you where the systems are going to go. if we look at the total numbers in the forecast, including from noaa and the weather channel. in colorado state, the numbers are generally in the same ballpark, a little less than the average since 1995, but pretty close to the long-term average. look what we say all the time. seasonal outlooks cannot predict if or where landfalls occur. even if we have an average season or below average season in terms of total numbers, as tom mentioned, hurricane andrew, 20th anniversary. that was a year in which there were only four total hurricanes. fewer than the number that we're forecasted this year, but that four-hurricane total had one major, andrew, hitting south florida. it can be a bad yew year for you even if it's a bad year. >> congratulations are in order considering the next time we

speak it will probably be in the midst of one of these storms on the way. appreciate you joining us from the weather channel. >> thank you. now to a story in the new york area that is getting national attention all day because it's a case associated with the start of a whole national movement. almost exactly 33 years after a little boy named etan patz disappeared on his way to school, a man has told nypd investigators all these years later that he killed the boy. this comes just a month after authorities dug up a basement near the spot where the little boy vanished originally. we have more on this latest development tonight from nbc's ron allen. >> three decades after 6-year-old etan patz disappeared while walking two blocks to catch a school bus, the trail has led new york police to this new jersey neighborhood where pedro hernandez lives. police sources say hernandez, 51, said he lured etan with candy into the store he worked in back then.

killed the boy, and disposed of the body. >> we have a suspect in custody who has made a statement to the nypd implicating himself in the disappearance of etan patz 33 years ago. >> law enforcement sources say this man, hernandez's brother-in-law, alerted police. after the case burst back into the spotlight last month, when dozens of investigators searched a basement along etan's route for clues. sources say the brother-in-law says hernandez admitted many years ago, he killed the boy. investigators are now trying to determine whether that story is true. and perhaps finally solve an iconic case that launched an era of heightened awareness about missing children across the country. etan was among the first children pictured on a milk carton. amber alerts would follow and a national clearing house for information on missing and exploited children. meanwhile, etan's parents still live in the same apartment on

the same street where their son disappeared so long ago. >> no matter what the outcome of this investigation, we're going to have to go on living. >> 33 years later, police may finally be able to give them an answer, or the search will continue on. ron allen, nbc news, new york. overseas, tensions are at a key breaking point with a key american ally tonight. pakistan, a big reason for this is as we reported here last night, pakistan is severely punishing the doctor who helped the u.s. hunt down osama bin laden. our chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell has more. >> jail, sent to prison for 33 years for treason. shaquilkil alfridi, the pakista doctor who secretly helped the u.s. hunt down osama bin laden. in america, he would be celebrated as a hero. >> his help, after all, was instrumental in taking down one

of the world's most notorious murderers. >> to somehow allege under any country's law that this doctor violated any law is of course just beyond ludicrous. it's outrageous. >> the doctor working for the cia collected dna samples from residents of the abbottabad house, trying to prove bin laden was there. but pakistan still angry over the bin laden raid, said he's a spy. but according to the leader of the ruling party, the president's son even though his own son, benazir bhutto was killed by al qaeda. >> unfortunately, andrea, anyone collaborating with foreign intelligence, even with a friendly country anywhere in the world, that's a crime. >> even worse to the u.s., pakistan has yet to explain how bin laden managed to hide in plain sight for years. >> to find that the pakistanis now aren't trying to answer the question, who was hiding osama

bin laden, but who helped us find him, and that's outrageous. >> plus, pakistan has cut supply lines to u.s. forces in afghanistan. retaliating after the u.s. refused to apologize for killing 24 pakistani soldiers in a border raid last year. pakistan is also angry about drone attacks, including another today that killed eight suspected militants. intelligence experts say relations with pakistan have never been worse, but pakistan is building more nuclear bombs than any other country in the world, making it too big and too dangerous to ignore. >> andrea mitchell, thanks. a quick note here, we planned to ask about the tensions with pakistan among other topics in an interview tonight with secretary of defense leon panetta in the studio. unfortunately, because of bad travel weather here in the northeast tonight and a four-hour hold on all arrivals here in new york, including the secretary's aircraft, we have had to postpone that interview. we'll reschedule. in baghdad, negotiations

over iran's nuclear program have ended with no deal except that the parties will meet again. we have an update on this tonight and what's at stake for our tehran bureau chief. >> brian, there was a lot riding on these talks today, but the only agreement was to keep on talking. the point, to rein in iran's nuclear program, but they were in no mood to make concessions despite severe economic sanctions taking a growing toll at home. the biggest sticking point, iran's insistence it be allowed to produce highly enriched uranium, a key component in nuclear weapons. the talks continue next month in moscow. brian. >> our correspondent based in tehran, thanks. a nuclear powered submarine being worked on in maine caught fire last night, three shipyard firefighters, two civilian firefighters, and two sub crew

members were injured trying to extinguish the fire. it took until this morning to get it completely out. the cause is still under investigation. the reactor on board the "u.s.s. miami" was completely shut down, was not affected by the fire, we're told. bad news arrived today from a great american city where this broadcast has spent a lot of time and put down roots really in the years since hurricane katrina. new orleans, louisiana, is a city easy to love, and that has always included for them their local paper with the unusual name, the times picayune. today's news was about the local paper. and nbc's anne thompson has our story tonight. it's a force even the times picayune couldn't withstand. the new orleans paper that survived the civil war, a threat bay louisiana governor huey long to break every machine it had, countless mergers and most

famously, hurricane katrina, today bowed to the changing economics of the newspaper industry. >> this is the end of the line for something that is very important in a community. >> this fall, it will go from printing papers seven days a week to three while increasing its online efforts. a new direction that will mean job cuts and the loss of community created by everyone reading the same thing. >> online, people tend to go in a lot of different directions. whereas when somebody delivers uthe newspaper, you look at the front page. >> affectionately known as the tp, it chronicled the city like no other. won four pulitser prizes. but to understand the connection between this city and its paper, one reporter said, you must look through the lens of katrina. a near death experience for both new orleans and the times picayune. while thousands escape the historic storm and flood, david was one of a group of tp journalists who refused to leave. >> it was different for us. this wasn't just a story we were

covering. we live here. >> he said the paper exposed the flaws that led to the disaster. he now works for the "los angeles times." >> i worry when you take away the newspaper and its watchful eye or reduce its resources to the point it can't do the job it used to do, i worry about the city. >> a city that has already taken more than its share of hits. anne thompson, nbc news, new york. >> and still ahead as we continue here tonight, the bottleneck. a long line and what could be a dangerous waiting game. question is, why are so many people trying to get to the top of the world? and later, stars of a certain age still the ones shining the brightest on the great white way these days. last season was the gulf's best tourism season in years. in florida we had more suntans... in alabama we had more beautiful blooms... in mississippi we had more good times... in louisiana we had more fun on the water. last season we broke all kinds of records on the gulf. this year we are out to do even better...

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wait until you see these pictures we have to show you. it might be the last place on earth you would expect to see a traffic jam, mt. everest, but a combination of bad weather and too many people looking for that peak experience all at the same time has turned tragic. our report tonight from nbc's stephanie gosk. >> it is the holy grail for mountaineers, the irresistible but deadly everest. in growing numbers, they're lining up to get to the top. this is what it looked like last week. climbers by the hundreds, each hoping to conquer the world's tallest peak. on saturday, there was a short break in the weather and a race to the summit. above 26,000 feet in a place ominously called the death zone, they hit a traffic jam. >> there's not many places to get around these long lines of people. you have hundreds of people stacked up so you can't really pass. >> some were forced to wait for hours. a german doctor and a

33-year-old canadian were among four who died from altitude sickness and exposure. dr. john crudowski made it to the top that day. he came across one of the climbers moments before his death. >> his hat was off, his gloves were off. he was kind of looking at me kind of zombie like. this weekend, 200 more climbers will decide whether or not to go ahead. "outside" magazine's graysen schaefer reported this from base camp. a guide at the top is troubled by the numbers. >> we can't beat these people. they keep starting earlier and earlier. >> a video taken this week shows climbers making their way up in the dark, their head lamps visible on the ridge. >> i expect this to go smoother than the other night, but you never know. >> unpredictable everest already has plenty of dangers. the rugged terrain, the weather, the altitude. now there's another, the crowd.

stephanie gosk, nbc news, london. when we come back here tonight, what does it say about parents of athletes worried about concussions when the parent of one of the most prominent athletes says he's not sure he would let his own son play ball? if you are one of the millions of men who have used androgel 1%, there's big news. presenting androgel 1.62%. both are used to treat men with low testosterone. androgel 1.62% is from the makers of the number one prescribed testosterone replacement therapy. it raises your testosterone levels, and... is concentrated, so you could use less gel. and with androgel 1.62%, you can save on your monthly prescription. [ male announcer ] dosing and application sites between these products differ. women and children should avoid contact with application sites. discontinue androgel and call your doctor if you see unexpected signs of early puberty in a child,

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the privately owned rocket that launched from cape canaveral this week known as spacex is now right on track according to nasa. it will dock with the international space station tomorrow morning. after today's successful practice fly-by. after the docking, they'll open the hatch, unload more than 1,000 pounds of food, clothing, and lab equipment. a delivery that will make history. that's a simulation there, if all goes well. >> ted kaczynski, also known as the unabomber, has somehow

unbelievably updated his facebook page. his harvard reunion is coming up. as a member of the class of '62, he felt the need to state his occupation at prisoner, and his address as the supermax prison in colorado. there's more, under awards, he lists eight life sentences. his mail bombs, you'll recall, killed three people, injured another two dozen people. harvard officials actually apologized for including his updated profile in the upcoming reunion materials. you know the nfl has an issue on its hands when the father of five-time super bowl quarterback tom brady says if he had it to do all over again, he would be very hesitant to let his son play football, knowing what we now know about violent hits and concussions. tom brady, sr., the dad of the patriots future hall of famer, says he didn't let his son play football as it is until he turned 14 because he wasn't yet physically developed enough to play the sportd. los angeles is about to become the third big city in

california to ban plastic grocery bags. they'll follow san francisco, santa monica, they'll be phased out over the next 16 months. shoppers will have the option to buy paper bags for 10 cents each. environmental activists as you know have been pushing for this to keep those bags out of the ocean and out of the natural world. up next here tonight, the stars still packing the house after all these years. [ male announcer ] this is anna, her long day teaching the perfect swing begins with back pain and a choice.

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we live, of course, in a culture obsessed with youth, but thankfully that does not apply to the broadway shows this season. because many of the people who are packing them into the theater are stage veterans to put it mildly, who seem to be reversing time while we watch from the audience. our woman on broadway tonight is nbc's chris jansing. >> it's been 55 years since james earl jones first set foot on a broadway stage, and now at 81, he's back. playing an energetic former president in "the best man," alongside 86-year-old angela lansbury. >> very nicely put. >> this play i look forward to every day. >> far beyond the typical retirement age, they're not just working, they're thriving.

their star power bringing in audiences who watched "murder she wrote." >> surely she's not a suspect. >> and star wars fans who still marvel at the voice behind darth vader. >> i am your father. >> between them, they have seven tony awards, and yet they are modest, open, and utterly charming. >> 18, you know. >> yeah, he's 17. between the two of us, you know, we hardly -- >> you could order a drink. >> we could order a drink. >> they are simply very happy and a bit amazed to still be working. so is their friend joel gray. >> there's nothing like a live audience. >> who still gets a thrill seeing his picture on a billboard. ♪ >> it's been 46 years since he won best actor awards for "cabaret" on stage and in film. and never imagined then he would still be going strong at 80. >> first of all, i didn't know i was going to be 80.

♪ >> doing eight shows a week takes discipline. no partying, lots of sleep, and what about memorizing all those lines? is it different than when you were 25 or 30? >> it's like a windshield wiper came along and went, swish. it's all gone. >> it happens to all actors. it really does. >> even though the occasional lapses are part of the mental challenge that keeps them feeling young. will you always want to act? >> i say providing i can put one foot in front of the other, i will continue to act. >> i love to have the oxygen in my brain. >> where that passion will take them next is happily for their friends, a story that's still being written. chris jansing, nbc news, new york. good note to go out on for our thursday night broadcast. thank you for being here with us. i'm brian williams, and of course, we hope to see you right back here tomorrow evening. as we leave you tonight, one

sure and solemn sign that memorial day weekend is upon us. the placing of the flags. it's under way at arlington national cemetery. 220,000 of them, one for each headstone. thanks to the men and women of the old guard, the third infantry regimen. they have been doing it the same way every year since 1948. a sight that puts a lump in your throat. good nig