good . good morning. doubling down. jussie smollett returns to the set of "empire" and reportedly tells the cast to believe him. police tell a stunning different story,t the actor faked his own assault. >> to stage a hate crime of that nature when he new as a celebrity it would get aot of attention is just despicable. >> this morning new detailshon w the alleged hoax came together and quicklyve unrad. stone cold silenced. the judge imposes a strict gag order on president trump's confidant roger stone after he post inflammatory picture of the judge online. this morning their htrted com showdown as washington waits anxiously for the robert mueller russia report to drop.

're live on capitol hill. ballot chaos. a new election is ordered in the undecided congressional racen north carolina. allegation of tampering and fraud still surrounding the election nearly four months after voters went to the polls. > documentary drama. michael jackson's estate filing a $100 million lawsuit to stop hbo from airing its controversial film. the network says the show goes on. nike feeling the impact of sneaker-gate in that freak injury to the biggest star in college basketnill. this morng why it's leading to newls cal to pay top college athletes. and red carpet ready. hollywood gears up for its biggest night of the year, this week's oscars, how this year's show could lookuch diffent today friday, february 22nd, 2019. >> announcer: from nbc news this is "today" with savannah guthrie

and hod kotb live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> good morning and welcome to "today" on this friday morning. thank u so much for joining us. >> looky who is back. how are you feeling? >> so much bter watching the show from here until their death bed. >> everyone is keeping a five-mile distance. i'm back and so grateful. jussie smollett apparently g right back to work, still facing a mountain of legal trouble and public outrage in the wake of his stunningst ar nbc national correspondent miguel almaguer is in chicago. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. when as a result surrendered to police, he didn't say a word. he also wasn't speaking theer media aeing released from a nearby jail facility. this as he rushed to the set of "empire" where h still works. new porter: this morning a

look for jussie smollett. the mugshot a different kind of head shot than the actor i used to. on thursday he waswarmed by cameras. >> we discovered the actual moti, quite frankly, it piss everybody off. >> reporter: he says smollett was upset with his salary from "empire" when he cooked up a con to make headlines. afr this fake death threat he mailed to himself didn't work, paid the osundairo brothers. detectives says smollett directed the brothers in detail, how, when and where try c out the scam which smollett had hopped would be caught on scamera. poli the fake attack wasn't. but investigators were carefully watchihis interview with abc. >> it feels like if i had said

it was a muslim or a mexican or someblack, i feel like the doubters would have supported me much more. >> reporter: during his bond hearing thursday, smollett appeared visibly frustrated. the legal team writing, together we witnessed an organized law enforcement spectacle. the presumption of innocence, a bedrock in the search for justice, was trampled upon at the expense of mr. smollett. >> what is justice in your eyes? >> absolute justice would be an apology to this cy that he smeared. >> reporter: after smollett suggested the attackers were supporters of ptrump,resident

trump tweeted what about maga. >> reporter: now today the alleged victim becoming the suspected criminal. >> there are reports that smollett returned to the set after he posted bail. what do you know about that? >> reporter: know cameras caught him returning or leaving the jailhouse facility, returning to the production lot wh he shoots "empire." wee told he apologized cast but denied any involvement in any lies. fox says they'rewi rev the actor's situation. now to the waiting game in washington, d.c. thaw white house,kers and the president's legal team bracing for the results of robert mueller's investigation. nbc white house correspondent peter alexander is here with the latest. >> by all indications robert mueller is wrapping up the russia investigation meaning he coeliver his final report to the attorney general within days. it does not mean those

investigatio with a federal judge cracking down down. >> reporter: roger one, one of bert mueller's most outspoken critics this morning silenced after judge amy berman jackson , banningan earf stone from speaking publicly about his case, after stone pictured the judge with a target on her face. stone apologizing for my own stupidity, calling the nowle d post a momentary lae of judgment. i honest he didn't believe they re crosshairs and took it down. jackn telling him the apology rings quite hollow. i have serious doubts on whether you learned any lesson at all. the judge stopping short of sending stone to jail, instead slapping him with a gag order. no public statements about the case, period.an

abrupt halt to stone's commentary about his indictment, accused of lying to congress and witness tampering. denied. he >> they beat me up pretty good. >> i think the way i was treated on thursday was extraordinary. >> they want to silence me because i will stand up forp. donald tr >> reporter: jackson with a sternwarning, i gave you a second chance. this is not baseball. youon't get a third chance.il meanwh the president's former personal lawyer mic cohen ignored questions after meeting privately with his legal team on capitol hill. cohen will be in the hot seat for much of next week. a three-day marathon testifying publicly and private by before house and senate committees. the focus his work for the president including the hush money payments to stormy daniels and karen mcdougal during the 2016 campaign. >> the judge warns him, if he

tests her again, i will forced to change your surroundings making it clear he could be hauled off to jail. >> the biggest headline, when ie theer report coming out? >> a good question. by all indications the president is going to see this and we're going to see in some form in some time. at least the attorney general. do we see it? by all indications the president's lawyer said they haven't had conversations with special counsel's team in weeks. if necessary they'll put out a report, if t bre's anything it says about the president in any form. ihink lot of folks at home think this is all going to show up in their door steps. that's not what happened. it's supposed to be confidential. it's up to attorney general william barr. >> no one knows what it means it's wrapping up. attorney general and w knows what, if

anything, the public speaks. in the meantime north carona's board of elections voted unanimously to hold a do-over in a holtly contested undecided congressionalace amid allegations of ballot tampering. nbc's kristen welker is on capitol hill this morning. good morning. >> reporter: good morning to you. north carolina's ninth is the last undecided congressional race from the 2018 midterms. electi now that the republican candidate has acknowledged the resulted were tainted, voters will head back to the polls. this morning a stunning turn of events in north carolina aftero the state of elections voted thursday for a new election in the ninth district congressional race >> all in favor of the new election. >> aye. >> i bieve it's a you nan mouse vote. mark harris beat mccready by 905 votes. a dramatic months' long

invest ation -- >> my vote didn't koun and i have an option to be heard. >> democrats demanded a new election while harris fought to be certified the official winner harris reversed course thursday efter a four-day hearing. >> it's bec clear to me that the public's confidence inhe ninth district seat general election has been undermined to the extent that a new election is warranted. >> reporter:ust a day earlier harris' own son john, a federal prosecutor gave emotional testimony. >> i love my dad and i love my mom revealing h h warnedis parents about p theitical operative they hired, lesley mccray dallas, accused of running an operation that tampered with absentee ballots.

they may have made mistakes in trosss and certainly did things differently than i would have done that. >> reporter: dan mccready hailing the decision as a great step forward for democracy in north carolina. harris' son calling all politicians to do better. >> we have got to come up with a way to transcend our partisan politics and the exploitation of processes lik this for political gain. frankly, when i'm coming out of this ocess, i'm just left thinking that we can all do a lot better than this. >> reporter: so the big question is what happs now? well, there will be a new primary and general election for the seat. it's not clear if mark harris' name is going to be on the ballot at this point. dan mccreas say he's definitely goinl to run again. t craig joins table now. another story getting a lot of attention. >> federal judge has ruled that one of president trump's cabinet

members broke the law whilein se as prosecutor in the case again a well-connected florida billionaire and alleged serial sex abuser. nbc justice correspondent has more. >> lawyers for t victim say this is long overdue vindication for the womenho once were young victims, but they say it took 11 years to get thisourt ruling because the government kept fighting the girls whose rights it wasin violat >> reporter: the judge ruled when alexander acosta was the u.s. attorney in miami, he and his prosecutors broke the law while negotiating a lenient deal with jeffrey epstein in 2007, the politically connected billionaire accused of sexually abusing more than 30 underage girlst his palm beach mansion. interest was revived by "the miami herald" which interviewed many of them. >> all jeffrey cared about was go find me more girls. his w appetitas insatiable. he couldn't stop.

he wanted new fresh you faces every single day. >> i started going to him when i was 14, 15. >> reporter: a federal judge in florided late thursday while the deal with epstein was in the works, acosta deliberately failed to tell the victims or their lawyers. that meant they have no opportunity to object deal was done, one that allowed only to o plead guilty state charges that brought him 13 months in jail, much of it spentutside on work release. in fact, the judge said acosta and his teamhe misled victims to believe that federal prosecution was still a the judge did not rule on whether the plea deal itself was improper. the ruling is not likely to he anyffect on epstein who served his sentence long ago. ing both sides in the case to suggest what should be done now as a result of the ruling. 's not clear thi morning what that might be. acosta himself had no comment. the labor department says the plea deal with etein followed the rules and was reviewed by

justice department leadership at the time. >> pete williams for us in in waon, thanks. we have a lot more to get to this rning. after one of the wildest leadups to oscars, hollywooigsst stars will hit the red carpet. natalie already has her spot on the red carpet to give us e preview. >> reporter: despite the controversies leading up tohis year's show, producers are saying it's going to be a spectacular show. queen paying a special tribute to the late freddy mercury. this yearwo the hol a listers and nominees on the carpet will be working double duty. shows areelying on at least 40 presente to carry the show. >> because there's no host, the oscarroducersre really trying to ramp up the star

quotient of the peopleng presentihe awards. >> reporter: actor andom cedian kep hart stepped down from the hosting gig in december and apologized for past comedy rohaines and tweets were seen as homophobic. >> i'm just hoping that the apology is accepted. i'm not homophobic. i never have been. >> reporter: no host means no monologue, a move which may save time which has become a hot-button issue around thebr dcast. the academy declaring that four of the 20 categories would be announced during commercial breaks >> there was a lot of outcry from huge actors and filmmakers that said this was a mistake. >> reporter: the academy took back the controversial decision and now says awa ards will be presented witho edits in their traditional format, but still this is already a year of my

firsts. blockbuster hit "black panther" the first superhero film to be nominated for best picture. "roma" is the first netflix film to be nominated in that category and could be the first foreignv fir to win for best picture. that is, of course, if it can at topic "green book." all eyes on glenn close heavily favored for the best actress oscar after setting the record for the a win.inations without spike lee could have a big night with "black clansman." as oscar sundayppaches, show producers, who saw huge ratings dip last year may get lucky with this year's films drawing in ths >> the casual movie goer and movie fan will be much more interested in oscars this year. >>eaeporter: remember four ago the controversy was about the lack of diversityh w the oscars so white hashtag

trding. ur of the 20 nominees are actors of color, the same as it was last . still people are pointing out, no asians nominated despite the popularity of the movie"crazy rich asians" which was not >> i see they already have the music going on the red carpet. reporter: we're ready. >> like you're inlw h at kmart with that music. >> i want to see glenn close grab that oscar. come on. >> you are the biggest advocate of "the wife." you said it'som aw >> i loved "black panther." >> that would b cool. >> just a good movie that lots of people saw would be eat. well, we're not oscar voters. let's go over to dylan who is in for al this morning. >> good morning. more rain to talk about thregh tennessee river valley. we're seeing the heavy rain move into northern mississippi as well where we have flash flood warnings in effect. the ground is totally satuted.

with more rain falling we could see more flash flooding. we also have the chance o stronger storms, especially southwestern tennessee, northn mississippi, eastern arkansas tomorrow. strong winds and largeail a possibility. also tornadoes. this is riding along the stationary tiont. as we ce through the weekend, we'll see more rain overspad that ea. snow across the upper midwest and heavy rain will fall over theasrn third of the country. we could end up to perhaps six inches of rain in northern mississippi which is why they're under a flash flood warning right now. that's a look at the weather across the country. we'll get to your local forecas in the next 30 seconds.

good morning everybody. i'm storm tea4 meteorologist chuck bell. a cloudy start to the day. there might be a sliver or twoe of sunsh across parts of northern maryland. thicker clouds down to the south. a couple of showers early this morning. othat trend is starting move away. we'll be left with a partly to mostlyud day day. temperatures in the upper 30s and low 40s. with all the c around, not a big jump in temperatures. we'll stay in the 40s all day today. tomorrow will start out dry, but end with rain tomorrow afternoon sunday.y and warm o >> that's your late of the forecast. coming up, michael jackson's estate taking on hb. inside the $100 million lawsuit aimed at keeping you from seeing a controversial documentaryn the pop . st the new debate on whether

college athletes should be paid to play. first, this is "today" on nbc. r coe athletes shoul

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than leading brands. because when you start with more, you own the morning. alive! 7:26 i your time now on this friday, february 22nd, ni2019. good m everyone. i'm eun yang. >> i'm aaron gilchrist. in theews thi morning, teachers in a loudoun county elementary school are under fire for instructing students to pretend to be slaves. this happened last week at madison's trust elementary in hb ashburn. students were told to act as runaway slaves and slave owners as part of annderground ilroad lesson. the principal has apologized. if you're in the market for a newjob, today is your day. nbc4 and telundo is working for you with a job fair in the district at the uvc student center. now let's check on your commute

with melissa mollet and your first 4 traffi >> good morning. northbound 95 at stafford, a little hard to see in this camera. let me tell you we're jammed for about a mile now because of a crash that's blocking a lane. centreville southbound 28 at west field, crash investigaon stil under way as for as an alternate. braddock or wall any will work for you. inr loop and outer loop of the beltway just fine. >> thanks, melissa. we'll take aecreak. your ft is next.

good morning everybody. five-day check of the forecast. temperatures in the 40s. a few showers south of the city first thing thisthmorning. e will be pulling out. left with a mostly cloudy day. mperatures in t upper 40s. rain likely tomorrow afternoon and evening into early sunday morning. unday afternoon breezy and warmer. >> chuck, thank you.

we'll have anotherup local news te for you in anti 25 minutes. for now back to the "today" show after this short break. at

>> back on earth here is toy's headlineet jussie smollt is free this morning after posting a $100,000 bond, charged with a felony of making a false police report. the actor returned to the empire set on thursday after his release and reportedly apologized to thecast. that has not been confirmed by nbc news. chicag police say smollett was seeking publicity and upset with

his saly from "empire." they say he paid two men to stage a hate crime against him. his lawyers are vowed to launch a vigorous defense. cardinals at a summit have called for a new cultural of accountability in the catholic church. the focus of debatehied to how church leaders must acknowledge decades of their own coverup that only worsened the crisis. they say bishops and religious leaders who failed to protect children should be helde. accounta a frightening close quality caught on camera in new york city. check this out. you can see a beam from an elevated suby track a crash through the windshield of a passing suv. thankfully the driver was not hurt. he was quite stunned and distraught. transit workers removed several other pieces of wood a a

precaution. a new development tied to an explosive new documentary on music legend michael jackson and thehi allegations of abuse he nased throughout his life. morgan radford has the latest. >> reporter: that two-partar docume is called "leaving neverland." it's set to debut on hbo on march 3rd and 4th. today a new lawsuit by the jackson estate seeks to keep it off the air completely. a nightmare at never land. michael jackson's estate now suing hbo for damages e potentiaxceeding $100 million over this documentary leaving never land in which two men say the pop icon sexually abused them as boys. jackson consistently denied ever abusing children. >> he told me if they ever found out what we were doing, he and i

would go to jail for the rest of r live >> reporter: the accusers, wayne robison and james same chooet chuck. robison, now 36 sa the star molested him until age 14 while the two shared jackson's bed at his neverland ranch in california. >> hello wade. i toda your birthday. so congratulations. i love you. >> reporter: save chuck says his mole less stake began after meeting the star on the set of m pepsi cial. >> everyone wanted to meet michael or be with michael. >> reporter: he says jackson filmed one of their sexual encounters and another time staged the mock wedding with the then 10-year-old actor. after the movie first premieredi in sundan january, jackson's estate repeatedly asked hbo not t air the film and on thursday filed suit

against the network in an effore to keep from running it. jackson's estate also slamming the accusers' credib tity saying th men for many years testified under oath and told family, friends and law enforcement that mr. jackson did nothing inappropriate either of them. during a '90s civil suit brought by anotheroy claimed abuse, both mfy did testi in support of jackson. but years later said they, too, were abused, filing their own lawsuits that weress dismi due to statutes of limitation. throughout his career, jackson denied all ausations of sexual abuse and was acquitted of severalrgolestation c before his death in 2009 at the age of 50. hbo is undaunted by the lawsuit saying in a statement that, quote, despite the desperate lengths taken tohe undermine t film, our plans remain unchanged. this will allow everyone the opportunity to assess the film

and the claims f in it themselves. >> morgan, did the men explain why they decided to come forward now? >> they did. they both said they had young sons whore the age they were when michael jackson abused them. they say these memories caused them to reassess its affect on their own families. >> morgan, thank you. let's get a check of the ain.her once dylan is in for al. >> good morning guys. we had wild weather in l.a. of all places yesterday. pasadena, california, picked up a half inch of snowfall. we had the snow falling in some of the higher elevations as low as about 850 et. lots of pictures and video media. in on social really not knowing what to do in that area when that much snow falls. in flagstaff, arizona, they picked up 35.9 inches of snow yesterday. that's the most snow ever picked up in a day iny. hist we are still seeing the snow falling through flagstaff. phoenix is all rain right now. this area of low pressure will

continue to move into the plains as we go into tonight. that will increase the chance of snow through the northern plains. then as we go into the weekend, we will see a snowier side through eastern nebraska up through westerno iowa and i minnesota where we could end up with four to six inches of snow. the eastern side of this storm it is warming a up to rain, three to six inches through tennessee and northern mississippi. this will affect the east coast on sunday with pockets of heavier rain. we're also see the chance of very strong winds. we could see wind gusts up to 55 miles pehour on saturda in oklahoma city. buffalo could see 18 straight hours of damaging winds on sunday. that's about 65 to 75 mile gusts. that's a look at the weather across the country. >> good morning, everybody. it will be windy on sunday as well with gusts near 40 mil per hour o more your friday morning, cloud cover here over washington, thicker ouds south of town towards southern maryland, thinner spots in thet overc across parts of

northern mare and. most of st of your friday will be rain-free. temperatures stuck in the 40s all day today. for the weekend, tomorrow, may start out dry, but rain likely tomorrow afternoon and evening. rain ends sunday and then windy and warm. >> that's your lat of the forecast. do i clear my throat or power through it. >> dylan, thank you. justahead, an exciting and e-opening new travel trend. why those popular dna test kits have more families hitting the road. she was figuresk ing's golden girl but privately gracie gold was struggling. thisorning she shares her story with us, including her plans for a comeback. >> moren the oscars, a sneak peek at willie's sit down with emily blunt on her oscar nominated hit "mary ppins return." should duke's star ever return to the college courtte af that shoe mishap? af that shoe mishap? that's after this.

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we're back to say good morning to carson. good morning, carson. >> this morning on "in depth today," sneak are-gate. the shoe failed during one of college basketball's biggest games of the year. >> duke star zion williamson suffered a knee injury when his nike shoe fell apart. now nikes investigating and a fierce debate has ignited about williamson's future and college athletics as well. gabe gutierrez joins us from the campus o duke university. y, gabe. reporter: good morning. the good news is it looks like zion williamson is going to be k . the bad news for nike is that its shares dropped and the i company i full-on damage control. nike executives flyin here to meet privately with duke of firms. it's renewing date over whether elite college athletes should be ampensated.

nd injured is zion williamson. >> rorter: this morning nike is on defensefter a wardrobe malfunction for the ages. duke fans still stunned after a shocking sneaker split. >> what did you thinkf sneaker-gate? >> that's what i've been calling it. >> reporter: less than a minute into the high stakes match-up, with former prpt obama looking on, zionwilliamson's shoe tore open. >> he broke his shoe with his own fo t. >> reportehe freshman superstar viewedy many as the next lebron james limped off with a mile knee sprain. cial media pounced. >> shares of nike falling as duke's freshman superstar blows out of its shoe. >> reporter: for its part nike is wishing williamson a speedy recoveryhi saying whiles is an isolated occurrence, we're working to identify the sue. williamson's gyre is reigniting the debate over the ncaa's one

and done rule where athletes are required to play a year n college before going pr some saying he shouldn't return to and go straight to the nba. >> knowing what i know now, college is bull [ bleep ]. college basketball and the ncaa is bull bleep ]. >> beyond scholarships and small stipends, their talents help rake in millions of dollars for the university, tv networks and companies like nike. >> there's some people think there's exploitation going on because you have a lot of minorityesathlet and these schools are getting rich off them and not paying them a fair wage. >> what's next for zion wi biamson? he'l on the bench for tomorrow's game against syracuse. a big rematch against unc next month. duke fans he's hope for that game.

>> the nba, by the way, is ounsidering a proposal reportedly that lower the draft age from 19 to 18. it's got t backing of nba commissioner adam silver. that would help rectify some of this. >> then you still have the one-and-done rule that they have to do a year in college. >> i asked are you hearing a lot about nike-gate. he looked at me and laughed and said not allowed to talk about it. i said, i was dding. was that in the morning meeting? he said yeah. >> one of the biggest stars in college basketball that it haened to. big splash. still ahead, remembering peter torque, the be loved monkeys star. first these messages. piano mus] d mm, uh, whyou do for fun? -not this. ♪ mostly progressive's name your price tool.

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♪ i'm a believer >> for anybody who grew up and loved the monkeys, tributes pouring in for peter tork after his passing at 77. they cranked out hit after hit as well as a belovedtv show. his mus talents can't be overstated. peter tork was born to entertain. ♪ >> audiences fell in love with tork's wise cracks on the emmy wittinghow "the monkees." he helped guide them to on screen stardom and chart topping hits like "daydream believer." ♪

>> after tt group split in the early '70s, he launched a successful solo career and joend his band mates o reunion tours and albums. the band even rocked our plaza. years later al threw on a wig and took center stage with tork. ♪ i saw her face, now i'm a believer ♪ >> his surviving bandmates taking to twitter, writing in part that he was heartbroken. michael nesmitl, i will miss him, a brother in arms. peter toly was t a rare talent. >> guys, you have to remember this was a made-for dtv ban that became world renowned and famous. they were mnt to mimic the success of the beatles, those

comedy musicals, that wasea the behind this. hit songsuge >> and the songs are that catcher. >> i'm a believer written by neil diamond. >> what don't you know? >> this is right in my wheelhouse >> it is. just ahead, our exclusive conversation with u.s. figure skating camp gracie gold. the personal struggles that forced her out of skating and how she's fighting to return to the rink a deeply personal conversation with this young lady after a check of your local news and weather. or people who have been hospitalized for a heart attack. brilinta is taken with a low-dose aspirin. no more than 100 milligrams as it affects how well brilinta works. brilinta helps keep platelets from sticking together and forming a clot. in a clinical study, brilinta worked better than plavix. brilinta reduced the chance of having another heart attack or dying from one. don't stop taking brilinta without talking to your doctor, since stopping it too soon increases your risk

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7:56 is your time on this friday, february22, 2019. good morning everyone. i'm eun yang. right now we want to che on your commute with melissa mollet and your first 4 traffic. good morning, eun. this is the problem we've been southboundh a lot, 28 at westfield boulevard. that crash has still slow northbound and southbound. outbound memorial bridge, crash has it blocked. inner loop and outer loop, no major issues. >> melissa, thank you. we'll check your forecast when we come back. stay with us. everyone's got to listen to mom.

when it comes to reducing the sugar in your family's diet, coke, dr pepper and pepsi hear you. we're working together to do just that. bringing you more great tasting beverages with less sugar or no sugar at all. smaller portion sizes, clear calorie labels and reminders to think balance. because we know mom wants what's best. more beverage choices, smaller portions, less sugar. balanceus.org

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good morni everybody. a lot of clouds from washington southbound. a few showers across far southern maryland. it's a drying trend. we'll be stuck with cloudy skies for the remainder of your friday. temperatures 30s to 40 degrees. it will stay in the 40s all day today with a coupl of sprinkles this morning. higher chances for rain back tomorrow afternoon and night. s early sunday. > another local news update in 25 minutes. for now back to the "today" show.

it's 8:00 on today. back onset and pushing back. overnight actor jussie smollett returns to his hit show "empire" reportedly telling the cast to believe his story. chicago pole and prosecutors not buying it. >> when we discovered the actual motive, quite frankly, it pissed everybody off. >> this morning how the actor's legal team is responding. >> plus gold and opportunity. olympic figure skater gracie gold opens up about the reason she steed away from the ice. >> i read you put papers over the mirrors soou wouldn' have to look at yourself. >> yeah. because at that point even seeing myself or my body was nauseating. >> just ahead,dur candi

conversation on the pressure hcing athletes a plans to return to the rink.> and bursting buble's bubble. he shares the mic with a surprised ccert goer at dison square garden. >> erin with "at last." >> how she wowed the crowd and the crooner, today friday, february 22nd, 2019. ♪ >> celebrating my big 18 in the big apple. >> good morning to my mom in oklahoma. i love you. >> it's our birthday trip from corpus christi, texas. ♪ >> celebrating our 54th anniversary. >> from virginia beach, virginia. >> watching the "today" show from cuyahoga falls, ohio. >> from virginia celebrating our

sweet 16. >> hi everybody, happy friday. what an awesome crowd that is. >> great crowd. g? what is happenin >> maybe it's almost a sprbrg eak crowd. >> they heard you were back. >> i think so. s i'm happy to be back with you all. i'll try not to put my germsn anybody. we also appreciate those mytodayplaza shout-outs. get out your phone, record a short messagre s yours with #mytodayplaza, put it on twitter an instagram. >> i want to mention that new orleans is really represented out there today. ami don't know where they from. it looked like they emptied out one of the towns. >> that's hoda nation right there. lots to get to. let's start with the news at 8:00. actor jussie smolle this morning after posting a $100,000 bond. he'sf accused staging his own hate crime. chicago police say it was all a publicity stunt. nbc national correspondent inguel almaguer has the latest.

good mo >> reporter: good morning. jussie smollett was arrested yesterdayfter he surrendered to poli . the 36-year-old trading a head shot for a mugshot after he poed bond at a nearby jail facility after seeing a jhege for first time. he was swarmedy press w were asking him several questions. he did not answer any. again, as yne ment police say he lied about a hate crime and he's noween charged with a felony. after at hearing he repo drove to the set of "empire" where he told cast and crew that he did not commit the crime. that has not been independently news.ed by nbc fox who produces "empire" says the re evaluating situation. tbs says it's pulling an episode with smollt that was supposed to air later this month. there is stillbl lot of back across social media as well as from police who say their investigation is just beginning. they have several subpoenas out and s they will fully prosecute this case in the days to come.

savannah, back to you. >> miguel, thank you very much. ns this morning concerning johnson & johnson which has been facing mounted lawsuits from customers who blame their cancer on that company's talkum powder. it's advising shareholders it's the subject of several federal t investns. nbc's tom costello has more. >> johnson's baby powder making me feel soft, freshd and loved. >> reporter: it's bn a product mainstay for decades. now the baby powder is at the center of multiple vestigations. the justicert depant, sec. has the company hiddenvidence that the baby powder is linked to asbestos in women who use it around their genitals. >> it's about time the fire department got inlved. >> reporter: attorney alan smith has won big judgments against

j&j, but also losing cases, too. baby powder contains as bess tons, talk, fibrous talc that is a carcinogen. some winning even billions in judgments, though some were overturned. >> i hope johnson & johnson will stepp and take responsibility. >> i hope no woman has to go through this. >> reporter:or decades the company has denied any link to asbestos or cancer. thence in er, reuters reported on internal company documents it says t shows company knew of small amounts of asbestos in its mtalc f 1971 to the early 2000s. j&j responded quickly. >> j&j's baby powder is safe and does not cause cancer. studies of tens and thousands of

women and men show it doesca no e cancer or asbestos-related disease. >> reporter:he american cancer society says talc that has asbestos is generally accepted as being able to cause cancer if it is inhaled. the evidence about re asbeste talc is less clear. this morning johnson & johnson says science is o its side. for "today," tom costello, nbc news right, guys. put on your dancing shoes. the newest olympicompetition could be a sport that originated right here in new york. it's break dancing, people. organizers of the 2024 olympics are proposing bancing for a medal event. breaking wasn included the 2018 youth olympic games in ben kno buenos aires.

>> that's pretty cool. in id you break dance back the day? >> what do you think. >> did you do the coffee grinder. >> is side clapping part of break dancing? then no. a little boost. after a recent snowsrm in connecticut, a good samaritan had no idea he was being caught camera those are sometimes the best, the random acts of kindness. you can see there's an elderly woman who begins to oss a snowy street. that guy was driving a snowplow. he pulled over,nd parktd it just started escorting her across with her walker through the snow. the driver had no idee was being videotaped. he saw it on facebook and he responded this way. he said there are angels out there including this suiteth won i had the pleasure to help cross the street. it's not easy, but it's simple. love god and everyone with all your heart. >> that love isoverflowing. still to come on this friday morning, one michael buble fan

surprise, stunning performance when he decided to give her the mike. > our candid conversation with two-time u.s. figure skating champion gracie gold. she opens up about the reaedn she ste away from the sport. >> i was americs sweetheart o the golden girl. i was afraid to be real with my struggle because then i wouldn't be as perfect as the media saw me. b gracie'sattle to get back on the ice and her big dreams for her future. but fi t these messages. you guys hungry? ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ congrats, kim! you got your own car, with your own insurance.

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♪ back now, back now, 8:11 on this friday moing. with savannah's candid conversation with two-time u.s. women's figure skating champion gold. >> she appeared to have everything going for her.

right before the18 pyeongchang olympics, gracie announced she was stepping away from skang to deal with personal issues. atcently she revealed that includedes with depression and an eating disorder. we sat downbo to talk aut her struggles and her fight to return to the sport she loves. >> heading into the 2014 sochi olympics, gracie gold was figure skating's golden girl. heralded for her grace kelly good looks. >> you came back and w youe a sensation, a golden girl. what was that time look for yo >> it was -- it was incredible, but i also k remember feelid of like a fraud in a way. i was am oica's sweet hea the golden girl, and i just -- i was afraid to be real with m struggles because then i wouldn't be like as perfect as the media saw me. just a teenager at the time, gracie's struggles including a

burgeoning eating disorder which she said startedfter a coach made an offhanded comment about your weight. >> what did he y? >> he was like look at your butt.em i just rr i counted the calories that day. then it became a game of how low can you get it, how low can you get the calories and it just snowballed from there. >> so began a cycle of bringing and restricting her food and all the shame that came along with it. >> no one needs to eat two pizzas in a sitting. come on, gracie. that's weird. throughout the week i would be like you can have three coffees and twod, apples hey, update. that's not right either. >> when you hear that you've got somebody who is really struggling. >> one ofhose things was like, i'll do with it after i'm done skating. >> did anyone know? >> there were a couple of peo e thew. >> you were getting positive feedback, too, aren't you?

>> yeah. it was just like in skating culture, it'sot a unique thing to me. so i would text someone like, oh, i had a tomato. they'd be like, wow, that's so great. i had a can of potatoes. it got more and more extreme until it was just like un barable. >> hreaking point came after the 2016 fig skating world ampionships. gracie was expected to perhaps win it all. she came in fourth. >> what was so crushing about that. experien >> it was everything. it was just one of those things like i couldn't be the best in the world because i could not hack the world championships. >> gracie says she now wishes she had taken time off from skating right then. instead she moved to detroit to continue to train, but she could barely get out of bed. >> i read that you put papers over the mirrors so you wouldn't have to look atyourself. >> yeah, because at that point i was like, even seeing myself or my body was like nauseating.

in my head i was like, well, don't look at yourself. >> b i the time she showed up at a tm usa summer camp in 2017 she was severely depressed and in a dangerous place. >> i remember fling like, they don't need me there because i'm just this washed up loser, i'm toxic. they can see how bad it is and they can kick me off the team and i can go about my sad life. i wasn't actively suicidal, but i definitely was at a point f ere like, i didn't see mys existing much longer. like probably honestly i was going to live until my money ran >> shet help and soon ouout. entered an inpatient program for eating disorders in arizona. >> was that healing or scary? >> it was healin way because i just needed some time apart from skating because i blamed skating for a long but it wasn't skating's fault. life.dn't ruin my i allowed my behavior while i

was skatingo t seeking treatmnef reflection and time off from the spt, gracie said she's now ready to return to the rink. >> i still struggle with those feelings. treatment and therapy isn't magic wand where it's just like fixed. you just want to start having mo good days than bad days. >> do you still have big skating dreams? >> the beijing games in 2022 would be like the ultimate dream. d if i could win like a world medal -- winning a world medal would almost be olympics. >> does it feel good to dream d again, tam about the future? >> yeah. i actually go out in the world freely with some importance and let's see if we can do something with our life today. let's see if we can get this back on track. >> wow. >> you can see gracie is reallyo st. she's speaking out because she wants others to help face their own issues and get help.

she hopes this starts a conversation. i was so struck by -- first of all, she's really, really funny and you didn't get to see it in that piece,he's so sassy, such a huge personality. you can see where the drive comes from. you knowas why she a champion because she drives herself so hard. i think that's also the flip si i of that what drove her into her sadness in some of those behaviors. >> so revealing. >> i think when you look at someone like her from the cheap seats you think, wow, it all.got just the fact that we don't know how many people are walkingou like gracie. >> can you imagine at the olympicsne eating tomato and two cups of coffee? that's not sustainable. >> she knows that now. seems very self-reflective. so people go, i don't know whaha happened in period. >> not blaming anyone. >> going to train again? >> yes, she is. she's on the rink and she's got goals. she keeps it in perspective. she's also training little kids

which is really fun. >> we'll switch gears now and get a check of the weather from ms. dylan. >> the colder temperatures continue out west.y obviouold enough for snow in the southwest and parts of california near l.a., too. on thelip side of that, it is going to be a mild weekend down south. birminam up to 71 today. it's 11 degrees above average. gainesville 85 degrees. on saturday, warmer air is going to move in to areas like nashville and down through new orleans, up into chicago. that's why this warmer air is setting the stage for the next storm system moving through. it will fall in the form of rain. as we go intoay su temperatures still well above average, boston drops to eezing bytuesday. chicago chilly on monday with a high of ongr 24 s. rapid city drops to 5 on monday. here is a peek out your . wind

>> i'm storm team 4 meteorologist chuck bell. still cloudy over wash thinner spots of overcast across northern maryland. still a few lingering drops across the northern neck and southern maryland. temperatures in the 30s and 40s now. with plenty of clouds around today, tempera res will stay mostly in the 40s. good news for your weekend, though. dy and is going to be w turn out mild. be on the lookout. 100% chance for steady rain tomorrow afternoon and evening. windy and warm by sunday afternoon. >> that's l youratest forecast. all right, dylan. thank you. it's our favorite time of the day,popstart time. hard to believe. we are gearing up for another greaeason of "the voice." it kicks off on monday. blake, adam, kelly are all returning. a new kid on the block, named jo legend. as you'll see in this promo, he's ready to go ♪ jo >> , herry up, you're going to be late for your first day on

"thevoice." >> how do i look? >> you look amazing. are you anervous? little bit. >> this is a book of country sayings so you know what blake is seeing. your button so you can practice on the bus. ear plugs, kel talks a lot. >> the bus is here me on, hurry. you're going to be late. have so much fun. perfect. good luck. bye. >> bye, baby. >> my baby boy. >> come on john. >> come on y'all. >> season 16. it's going to befun. come on boys. let's go. >> today is going to be a good day. >> john, come on. you don't want to be late. >> season 16. i'm goi to win. i'm ready. >> come on, hn. >> come on, y'all. >> hey, john, you got this.

>> i loveit. >> season 16 premiers on monday, february 25th at 8:00 p.m. right here on nbc. >> you're like the big pave. >> a great promo. >> speaking of "the voice," michael buble was blown away by a fan's performance. on wednesds night he performing in madison square garden. he asked the crowd if anybody enjoyed sging in t shower. one fan volunteered her sister, aaron belucci. buble asked her to come on mic., handed her and wanted her to perform her shower song. here is how it went down. ♪ at last my love has come along ♪ ♪ my lonely days are over

♪ and love is like a song >> oh! >> the etta james cssic "a last." you can see buble'sre tion. the audience completely blown away. buble swore to the crowd that was not set up. >> i think michael and erin should come on the "today" show and do a duet. >> carson, make that happen. >> working on that. jimmy fallon giving a behind-the-scenes look at the to night show so vie can get a look at what happens during the show. he featured a preview featuring guest tina fey. >> on netflix in may. check this out. >> tell me what the hell your problem is. >> you know what you did?

>> maybe if you weren't popping so many pills. >> popwhng pills. are you talking about? >> let's just not talk for the >>e e,. the clip. f byin>>e me. >> that's all too real. look like it's noto pretty behind the scenes. look forward to watching that that's it. tonight show behind the scenes airs at 11:35 p.m. a sneak peek at willie's sunday sit-down. thiseek it's "mary poppins returns." >> what kind of an honor was it to play that part inherited from julie andrews 54 years >> such an honor. she's so iconic and the

character is so iconic. i was daunted to sort of take it on. as a child it was 'emblazoned into my memory i needed to do my interpretation of her. all new songs. thank god because i don't sing like julie andrews. and big dance numbers and a huge practically big old movie. absolutely beautiful. so nostalgic. >> willie will have muchore with emily on sunday. you can listen on apple podcast or whereve you get yours. >> time for a click? >> i think we do have some time. we do. beng a toddler, this c tough work. but little clyde takes exhaustion to a w new level. caught sleeping in the back at. that's a chicken nugget hanging out of his mouth. he couldn't tring himseo finish the las bite. his dad started yelling his name, turns on the music.

clyde i fast asleep. >> clyde sleeps hard >> why are we bleeping? >> there was a cple of swear words. i think the nugget is big enough it's not a choking hazard. >> you do worry for a second. >> for a kid to have it just -- >> tired. >> the nuggets are the best part of the whole thing. >> carson, thank you. till ahead, we'll reveal allure's picks for this year's must-try beaut >> i'mad rey. >> we're going to put the deal in "steals & deals" after your local news and weather.

gooorning everybody. 8:26 now on in friday, february 22nd. i'm aaron gilchrist. let's get a check on your morning commute with melissa mollet. >> happy f everybody. htner loop and outer loop of the beltway looking l right now. ebening road between 15th street and 17th. stre police activity. all lanes blocked in northeast. in springfield northbound fairfax county parkway at b gambrill, and new crash there. >> melissa, thank you. we'll have a check of the forecast when we come back. stay wit. as nice guarantee means if you're not happy for any reason, they'll give you a refund and replace it. you'll never regret saving aaldi. family-pack chicken drumsticks, now just 69 cents a pound. aldi. shop differentli.

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mom: honey you know some things you can't take back. unless you got it from aldi. their twice as nice guarantee means if yan're not happy foreason, they'll give you a refund and replace it. you'll never regret saving at di. family-pack chicken drumsticks, now just 69 cents a pound. aldi. shop differentli. goodng everybody. cloudy outside. still a little rain down south city. temperatures on the chilly side. upper 30s to low and mid 40s most. we'll stay cloudy today. still a chance for a few sprinkles south of town. most of us will have to endure a cloudy andee sun- friday. temperatures in the 40s. steady rain tomorrow afternoon and night. by sunday afternoon windy and warm.

>> chuck, thank you. you can get the latest news and weather any time. open the nbc washingtonapp. now back to "today." my name is brittney. a little thing i love about the egg white grill is t toasty english muffin. it's toasted perfectly-it's just a little crispy, but not, like, hard crispy, but just crispy enough that when you bite into it everything is perfect. my name is kurtis and i love the egg white grill because the egg itself. it's soft and fluffy like a pillow. and i wouldn't eat my pillow, but i'd eat the chick-fil-a breakfast egg white sandwich for sure!

♪ 8:30 now on a 8:30 on a friday morning. it is february 22nd. an insane crowd out here today. >>ct perfe friday crowd. >> check it out. you know what i was thinking? i was thinking it's such a great crowd, i was thinking it feels almost likeardi gras. i was thinking it fee almost mike mardi gras. >> whoo! >> you guys, check out this

group. this is the krew from the buy you. >> you ready for mardi gras? >> yes. g you all just came together. what are young to do in new york this week? >> everything. we have a huge agenda. >> what you got? >> we're goinghe to hit t subways today, brooklyn. "mean girls." >> where are you from? >> new orleans. >> happy mardi gras. who dat. love y'all. >> that is new >> that is new orleans. >> there are better things to do than just hit the subway. we'll giveou suggestions. >> love you guys. thank you. just ahead, morning, the hottest new travel trend sparked by all of those dna kits. keir simmons has the story including one family's memorable an very meaningful trip of a lifetime. >> it looks really cool. then our fends at allure are revealing their picks for this

year's best beauty products covering everything from your hair to lotns to concealers. it's all there. >> all the goodf. stuf >> have to get a pen for that segment. coming up thkend, if you want to treat your family to a funee recipe,is we're talking cinnamon-spiced french antoast, wait for it, we fry it. >> on the third hour of "today,t it's about get competitive out here when we face off on the american engineentleman warrior junior -- >> i was wondering why that was up there. >> a little post-traumatic, savannah. >> juniors. >> we're not doingthat. there's a wall here and we're supposed to climb the wall. >> just know almost died one time on a set like that. >> i guess we have to run up it. >> we do. >> don't forget to download our new and improved "today" show mobile app. you can catch up on things you o missed, che our deals. how good is it, hoda?

>> it's amazing. the best app ever,y'all. >> text 66866 --od text to that number. >> dilly dilly, you got a chehe of weather? >> yes, alsoam ing. we'll see a pretty wet weekend for the eastern third of the countr especially as we go into tomorrow. the storm system will bring sivere storms py to western kentucky, western tennessee, flooding is a possibility. the ground is totally saturated and w looking at another three to four inches of rain. snow will fall through the eastern plains and upper midwest. very windy back behind the systemn sunday for areas like buffalo, winds could government to miles per hour. raining up and down the east coast. the northern rockies another storm system make its way onshore. lso heavyw likely and rain along the coast. that's a look at the weather across the country. w here is a peek out yo window.

>> a few lingering drops this morning across southern maryland and the northern neck. temperatures are going to be in the 40s prettyll muchay today. tomorrow, another cloudy and rainy day, especially tomorrow afternoon and night. rain ends early on sunday. sunday afternoon it will b windy and warm. breezy and chilly again by monday. >> that's your latest forecast. you'reurning how old? >> 40. >> youeoe gotten pe here to celebrate? >> yes. >> that's going to be a party n,re this weekend. >> dy thank you. are you planning your summer getaways. if yre are, t a new travel trend that could make your trip extra special. it's all tied to those wildly popular dna test kits. our senior international rrespondent keir simmon is checking it out. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. imagine i your dna could connect you with ane incredi place like this. that's what's happening now.

people usingtt g-edge technology to trace their family histories. welcome to naples. naples, florida. here steve and his 82-year-old dad are discovering their italian dna. >> thedna test shows that 39% italian sicilian re. >> together they're about to make the trip of a lifetime. the ancient mediterranean island of sicily in search of their ancestry. >> i don't think you know who you are unless you know where you came from. >> reporter: dna tests are dely available from companies like ancestry, 23andme and my herita heritage. they tell people broadly where they're from. now travel company go aad and ancestry offer unique dna tours to disco >> people who are getting a dna kit want to go and feel a part of that heritage and learn the

stories ofheir past to bring back to their families. >> reporter: first stop the fishing drvillage, hs of years the family made their living from the sea. >> the economy really went bad during the 1870s and '80s. >> expert jean olts has research the family history. >> this is the church your ancestors had their sacraments in. >> reporter: taking them back to where generatio of the family were born, grew up >> this is where they lived. this is the little street they played on. >> reporter: and died. >> so gd to see my ain't rosemary here. >> reporter: in a cafe, a chance to grab an espresso. before the tour continues to the records office. the jean ol have uncovered an important document.

>>he signature of your grandfather. >> that's amazing. >> just unbelievable. >> it's like this was >> reporter: it was steve's great grandfather salvatore who was the first to make it to america, but his wife did not. >> on the boat over to america maria died. they gave up a lot. g shee up her life. >> reporter: despite that tragic start to his new, life salvatore was determined to make it in america. >> my great grandfather would go through the seets yelling tomatoes, cantaloupes, whatever. >> reporter: from that humble grocery cart grew today's hely successful family business. >> can you still spot a good orange? >> i can do anything. >> reporter: time for lunch. this famous fh restaurant is special.ne francesco and his broer

are baisteri, too. they meet for the first time. f preparing ast in their honor with other members of the clan, old and young. all recorded here on the family ee. >> what it comes down to is everybody is relate after so many years. >> you're a very friendly group. >> over ten million people have taken an ancestry dna test. as more people take them in more and more countries, it's going to be exciting to connect to places and people in those countries that wasn't possible before. >> i wish i was sicilian. lute. >> after that typically long sicilian launch, just time for one last stop and two hojues, a few yards apart. >> some of your relatives lived in this house and somef your relatives lived in the house there. >> yeah. >> did they get along?

>> of course. >> they got married. >> oh. so many memories to takehome. bonds once broken, now a family found across the ocean. >> reporter: so the message is go out there and find out about your history before,st ho, it's too late. now you have dna to help you. guys. >> keir simmons. >> i'm jealous. >> i'm in. >> i want to do that. i think about uncle al when he went to senegal. so beautiful. > as more people take these tests, we're all going to figure out that we're a lot more connected than we realize. we might be cousins. >> i think we are. >> at leastn our souls at a minimum. >> let's travel and find out. veteran beauty, allure's new listf must-try products for 2019. but first this is "today" on nbc. y you.

all ofou.

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we are b with today's style and we're back with today's styl and beauty buys. >> this year from customizable face creams to self-setting concealer. 2019 is t year of better-than-ever beaut products. michelle lee is here with what you need to know. michelle, you boiled it all down to this one beautiful table of product. >> boiledll down and i'm so excited about some of these things. i have really dry skin, is specially in into wither time it gets even drier. a lot of creamshat say they restore the skien's barrier are avy and greasy. i love this first aid beauty cream. if you take a look at this, you can stick your finger in. >> is this a nice >> day or night. it's almost like a whipped. >> like a mousse.

>> helps tost e. >> how much? >> this is only $30 great, great product. another skin care product that we're loving is clinique. we know they make amgsz skin care. personalized beauty is a huge end. they're crushing it with this. this is called clinique id. you go to the clinique counter and choose one of three bases.re these meant for different skin types. then you choose a colored cartridge. each of these colors are for a different skin care concern. this one with the white is uneven skin tone. you then have a personalized product. >> t makes two together? >> interesting. >> cool. >> so excited aboutthese. they're my absolute favorite. these are the pantene rescue shots. if you look at these guys, they come in the single ceix. in thehower when you have damp hair, run it from mid lengthnd

the leave it in for a minute or so. once you rinse it your hair is glassy. >> every day or once a week? >> i've been doing them about once a week. they were a best seller in brazil before they were even available here. for a good reason. >> the price is right, too. >> fivks b for three of them. >> we've got to kick it into high gear. >> mcaasra get off. maybe lean has created this which comes off with warm water. colors and add lengths without making it clumpy. >> concealer, what's special about this? >> this is the makeup forever self-setting concealer. for us that wear makeup every day, we set it with powder. it can settle in to finelines. this works and lasts all day without this is the beauty blender redo mist. i'm not going to sprayt on my

own face. once you have your makeup on in the late afternoon, it starts to feel like it's falling off. this will revive your makeup and make your skin look dewey again. >> $32. >> $32. these are t i do care masks. they look so cute. >> look like ice cream. >> they have ingredients which are great skin care active. they put these on leave it on for five or ten minutes. >> that's like a once-a-weaker. >> i would say on a weekend, saturday or sunday would be the masking time. if you're not usingitin c serum, you should be. it's one of thoseen ingre that does it all. it's a little more of a splurge than the oer stuff we have. it's $88. but i will say a little goes a long way. >> especially on my hand right now. i overdid it.ou don't me i'm full of germs. enjoy your stomach bug.

au put this on put your moisturizer on over it. >> michelle, thank you so muu.. >> thank >> for more of "allure's" tocs, head to today.com/shop. the recipe for a decadent breakfast. the whole family will enjoy this one and there's rsbacon. fithis is "today" on nbc.

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oh, it's so good so isod. orning on "today." we're cooking with thomas mckenna the executive c at the public hotel in new york. back when he was 29 years old, chef thomas took on the task of heading up the kitchen. today he's 31. e mind behind some of those beautiful dishes you're seeing. thomas, good morning. me, hoda myself, we'reav excite. >>nah and craig are already polishing it off. >> so od. >> you're supposed to wait. >> french toast is a staple but you have yourst own special t

on it. >> we love to deep fry our french toast. it creates this creme brulee inside but encrusted in this toasty bread. deep frying it in a vat of oil? >> yes. >> yes! that's what we're hoping for. >> we have to soak it first. important to take your eggs, beat them up, i'll pour this in there. >> chef, just for the folks at home, theverall ingredients they're pretty much staples, right. >> super easy. nothing fancy, vanilla, cinnamon, nut meg, eggs, half and half and the brioche is key. >>ook at this. >> powder's sugar. a little vanilla. >> we like to soak it overnightd the before if you're really prepared. >> in the fridge? >> in the fridge. ifou're not epared, you can do it for an hour or two. >> am i pouring it on top.

>> you cover it all the way? >> all the way. you want it to really soakin. make sure you do a flip here. >> look at that. >> imagine the benefit of the soak overnight. >> keeps it from being soggy. >> that's wha this stuff is for. >> i got excited. >> you want to start youres ap you want them to be nice -- >> what kind of apples are those? >> these are granny smith. these are reallyta . it's great if contrast with the sweet french toast. these are sd overnight. we drained them a little bit to get rid of excess oomoisture. >> at that. i want it. >> is that powder's sugar? >> no. we're not that crazy. this is cornstarch. this will create the crustiness at you'll like. >> hoda, i was thinking the same thing. >> is that laundry detergent?

>> is that? ti >> we have the dutch oven. oilt 375. >> what kind of oil is that? >> you can u whatever. i like grape seed. it's a high smoki temp and it's really clean. >> is that motor oil? >> never, never.ou >> lnt want to weigh it . do probably like six minutes. >> when it comes out, it comings out like th. >> on a paper towel to get rid of excess oil that you don't nt. douse it with cinmon sugar. and then you really -- >> it's the crunch. >> so good. >> as if french toast needed to be elevated. >> and how it is not soggy -- >> you need a knife. >> goor . >> the bacon.

>> look at this. >> hoda, get in there, get in there. >> yeah, who dat. who dat. >> we've got to go. mef, thank you so much. if yoused anything, go to today.com/food for the recipe. back in a moment. this is unkelievable. ma it. >> this is amazing. >> this is another level.

s> welcome back on t welcome back on this friday morning. it's national engineering week. because of it, nbc news the division of -- education division of nbc ns has launched a special series. >> that's right. unfortunately many girls lose interest inath and science starting in middle school. you'll meet young women who are inspiring girls to pursue careers in engineering. take a look. >> our vision is to transform peop's lives. >> i want to be doing things thatake an impact. >> it's so fun, trying to make the wor better place. >> you can find out more about

this at nbclearn.com.ll sheinee, good morning. >> no rest for the weary. fresh off her visitk to new yor city, meghan markle is getting readyor another big trip. now heading to morocco for aoy weekend of duties. we'll be there live. >> you didn't get that report. >> darn it. >> stayed in that suite, only $75 grand a night. they only used it for the shower. someone could have spent the night. >> be sure to check out today.com/allday. get ready for sunday's oscars, you can check out our w conversationsh some of the nominees. >> guys, get this. it's national margarita day. whether you take the frozen or on the rocks, we know where to find the best deals, that and more including our all new today app. day.com/allday. back in a few minutes with even more on the third hour. >> even more? >> even more. >> allday. >> the fourth hour we're doing

cats. >> collin quinn. o >> we drinking margaritas at 10:00. >> you need a high five? looks like someone is leaving youhanging. >> never. >> have a greatweekend. we'll see you back here on monday, hopefuy. 8:56 is yr time onhis friday, february 22nd, 2019. good morning everyone. i'm eun yang. wlets check o yourommute with melissa mollet and your first 4 traffic. >> good morning, eun. happy friday everyone. inner loop and outer loop of t beltway looking okay right now. no complaints. memorial bridge between lincoln circle and memorial circle, a crasere. single lanes in both directions.

we're jammed there.un 95 south in virginia, fairfax county parkway, a crashing on the right side. you have to sta t left get by, causing real delays southbound and a little northbound as well. >> melissa, thank you. we'l a take a bre check your forecast next. stay wit.

good morning everybody. cool and cloudy today. not anywhere near as mild and sunny as yesterday afternoon. most of theain chances focused across southern maryland the last couple hours. that i trend a drying one. we'll be left with cloudy skies and temperatures in the 40s all day. you don't have to worry too much out rain today. tomorrow rain returns in the of a noon and evening and dippears early sunday morning. sunday afternoon gusts near 40 miles per hour, but temperares near70. >> thank you, chuck. get the latest news and weather any time on the nbc washington app. the sleep number 360 smart bed is on sale now from $899, during the ultimate sleep number event. it senses your movement, and automatically adjusts to keep you both comfortable. it even helps with this. so you wake up ready to hit the ground running. only at a sleep number store. it's the final days to save 50% on the sleep number 360 limited edition smart bed. plus, 24-month financing on all smart beds. ends sunday.

sleep number. proven, quality sleep. from nbc news, this is "today" live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. and a good friday morning, everyone. craig melvin here. we've got dylan dreyer, shnelle jones. al's been off all week. >> we've been texting him all week. he's here somewhere. >> he feels left out sometimes. >> you might as well just come to work. >> mr. roker we'll see you back here on monday. it seems like every morning there's a new twist in this assie smollett story. three weeks the actor told chicago police he was the crctim of a hate, but now he's accused of making it all up. well, slllett made bai yesterday, and there are reports th he went right to work on the setis of show