good morning. breaking overnight. the death of fidel castro. the long time cuban dictator dead at the age of 90. his brother raul making the late >> fidel castro. >> as celebrations spill out into the streets of miami's little havana. castro's half century reign forced thousands to flee for their lives and brought the u.s. and cuba back to war in the '60s. he presided over 11 presidents in power.

enjoying better relations, what does it mean for the future? a look back at the history and what is to come. today, saturday, november 26th, 2016. >> announcer: from nbc news, this is "today" live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> good morning. welcome to "today" on saturday morning. i'm sheinelle jones alongside dylan dreyer and we have hallie jackson here with us. side. >> nice to take a break after sitting with you after stuffing myself for two days. >> and we start with a busy news day. let's get to it. the top story is breaking news overnight. cuba's long time former leader fidel castro has died at the age of 90. castro in power for nearly 50 years was in failing health in years.

we have andrea mitchell with a look back at fidel castro's life. >> reporter: to his followers, he was commander or fidel. to enemies, a dictator. one of the world's last communists. the illegitimate son of a land owner. he graduated with a law degree and until power seized. in 1953, castro led a coup. castro ended up in jail for two years after it failed. in mexico, castro regrouped with his brother raul and fellow revolutionary. the three led a force back to

war. two years later on new year's day, they marched into havana. at first the young leader promised democracy. telling the u.s. he was not a communist. meet the press in 1959. >> i am not communist. >> later, he went on the tonight show with jack carr. >> the public opinion of the united states about anything you want. >> reporter: almost from the start, castro took the wealthy and silenced newspapers and nationalized oil refineries and signed a pact with the soviet union. in 1961, president kennedy ordered the cia to invade cuba at the bay of pigs using exiles.

ends. >> reporter: that helped castro consolidate power. by then a declared socialist, he improved health care and literacy. also accepted nuclear weapons. >> requiring a full retaliatory response upon the soviet union. >> reporter: until jfk's hard line got the russians to pull back. for 25 years, moscow helped castro throughout with insurgents. but with the end of the soviet union, cuba's economy imploded. on makeshift boats, thousands fled the regime. >> his legacy is a complicated one. there is no for getting how many cubans left the island under duress. >> reporter: in the 1990s, a ruler courted business men and

1988. he won friends by exporting cuban trained doctors and exporting medicine. in 1999, a custody battle over 6-year-old elian gonzalez. months later, a federal court ordered the child removed from miami. elian returned to his father and hero's welcome in havana. the leader collapsed from heat exhaustion in 2001. tripped and broke his knee and arm three years later. the bush administration tightened sanctions cutting off travel. castro arrested hundreds of dissidents.

after surgery, fidel castro turned over power to his brother raul in 2008. then he commemorated the revolution and had a celebration of the 80th birthday. fidel castro did not attend. two years later, he stepped down. he wrote columns about his life experience emerging for a pope benedict and for vladimir putin and president jinping in 2014. he never commented on the president obama break through to normalize relations. fidel was absent when his brother welcomed home three cuban spies. to the end, castro insisted his revolution would out-live him. >> if i die tomorrow morning,

leaders. >> reporter: he never tolerated dissent. his legacy may be holding power for half a century. longer than any other modern leader. >> and andrea joins us now. good morning to you. we are reading this morning. you interviewed him a number of times. in 2002, you interviewed him morning. >> that is what happened with fidel castro. you would stay up fully clothed waiting for the call from the presidential palace. they would summon us and we go at midnight or 1:00 in the morning. sometimes i have to confess, it was difficult to stay awake during his lengthy answers. we timed one of his answers of one of my questions at 45 minutes. >> wow. what do you remember about him

well red. he was on the internet every night. he once took me to a cabinet meeting that started at midnight.rogated all of the people until the very end. he was very popular with the young people. he would have a student leader who was an accolade and then wo the communist hierarchy. he had the repressive police. that was the other key to power. a totalitarian regime. still is to an extent. there are some in the obama white house are concerned that the opening will not last. obviously executive orders can change and it does require an

>> andrea, on the one hand, he was a dictator and on the other, beloved by the people in the country. how do you see his legacy unfolding after his death? >> he is one. iconic figures of the last century. was clearly in failing health in the last decade. the legacy is already eroding that raul castro has instituted some market reform. still the social services and exported throughout latin america and africa to angola, that is part of a legacy. fundamentally, a strong man, totalitarian man and no free elections at all as the passage of power to his brother and soon to be designated leaders. they call them elections. they are not elections in cuba. >> i think a lot of people are wondering how drastically things will change for the cuban people

as dramatically as some suspect. he was at this point fundamentally symbolic figure. only heard from rarely in columns he would write for the communist newspaper. that said, once raul castro passes power to the next generation, that is going to be a moment where you see some changes. raul has been revolutionary in his own way. he has reached out to the united states and market reforms. we see credit cards can now be used. some telephone communications. there's postal service for the first time in more than half a century between the united states and cuba. also airline service as well. there have been changes, but not changes in terms of free expression and democracy. >> very interesting. andrea, thank you. a lot of cuban-americans celebrated as soon as they heard the news.

miami. live havana lighting up with cheers and fireworks in some spots. nbc's kerry sanders in miami this morning with more on that and reaction from around the world. kerry, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, hallie. one of three people who lives in the greater miami area is a cuban-american. not all of them refer to this as home. their political exile. still refer to cube home. their properties were nationalized and businesses were taken. some why imprisoned and tortured. that is the back drop why people would come and celebrate a death of a head of state. they say it is a long time and coming. miami's little havana erupting in joy as nearly six decades in the making. generations of cuban-americans devoted themselves to the end of

now they are hopeful that the death of fidel castro will bring change to cuba. >> the years of repression. >> reporter: a similar feeling. a new beginning can dawn on cuba. international leaders are more likely to see castro as a statesman who left a mark on the 20th century. india's prime ministerle mexico called him a friend. the former soviet union supported cuba. vladimir putin said fidel castro was a true friend of russia. back on the island today, many mourn a man whose life will be synonymous with cuba. many cuban-americans gathered here have never been to cuba. they were born in the united

regime over dinner tables and listening to parents and grandparents. none referred to fidel castro as president fidel castro. they used terms like the vampire saying he sucked out of the country of what they believe could have been. chanelle. >> thank you very much. we should note too that funeral services will be on december 4th in that country. >> you heard him mention in his report -- let's bring in a congressman from the state of florida forced to flee with her parents when she was 8 years old. >> i think it's interesting to see the difference -- hear the different perspectives from world leaders who did not have to suffer the ingists of a fidel castro rule and we bare the scars of what an oppressive

people are optimistic that this will usher in a new opportunity for freedom and democracy for the enslaved cuban people. a tyrant is still in place. but we do have a new president. president elect trump has said he will roll back the concessions that president obama made. so we're optimistic that those somehow the people of cuba. that never materialized, it just benefits the dictatorship. >> given your journey from cuba, what was your reaction when you found out the news? who was your first phone call? >> i first thought of my dad because i was born in cuba, came here when i was 8 and my dad, just like many of his generation

different way but i think of those generations of historic exile figures who they wished they were around to see this day but i don't think thal arer be meeting my father in heaven because i don't think castro's going to heaven. he's a man who executed a lot of family members of my constituency and imprisoned so many of them and his legacy, i believe, is one of hang on to power. it's very simple. you control every aspect of everybody's life, where you live and work, everything is operated with very few exceptions and that's how you can remain in power. like kim jung-iland then his son. that transition from one dictator to the other has taken

changes this will usher in but as long as there's a castro in power there's not much hope for change. >> that's what i was about to ask you. your hope for how things would change. >> we hope the changes will come with the u.s. policy towards that dictatorship that we won't be doling out all this hard earned money to the dictatorship because everything is run by the tyrannical rulers, the hospitals. the everything is operated and controlled and that's why it's so difficult for human rights activists to really break out in cuba and have their voices heard because they get jailed and they get trampled upon literally. the ladies in white who peacefully marched through the streets of havana with pictures of their loved ones their reward

and sent to jail. it's a real harassment atmosphere against anyone who wishes to express an opinion contrary to the totalitarian regime in power. >> congressman thank you very much for your time. >> thank you. >> of course fidel castro was death comes a at a time when relations between u.s. and cuba are finally starting to thaw. so what happens now? >> reporter: we're just hearing that we can expect a statement from the president or the white house administration at some point later today. they've been silent as the developments have been breaking overnight. but the obama administration policy towards cuba is one of the most significant foreign policy initiatives he's undertaken while in office and the question is what will remain when he leaves office?

reverse a lot of what happens. we know the president went there, historic visit back in march of this year. much of what the president has done, all that he has done has been through executive order through regulatory changes, so now there are regular commercial flights back and forth between cuba and the united states. we know it's easier for people to travel there. tourism is up some 12 island. what the obama administration is trying to do is increase people-to-people contacts and they want to make these changes what they say, irreversible so the next president will be hard pressed to essentially dismantle these relationships that have been established in the past few months and past year or so. the question is how permanent will those changes be?

later today. unclear what kind of reaction he will make. i would imagine it will be sensitive to concerns on what's happening around the island. there are big unanswered questions about how much of the changes the president has initiated, how much will remain going forward under a donald trump administration. >> ron all. you heard ron talk about this. what happens next between the u.s. and cuba soon in the han he has been critical in the past of warmer relations cuba. nbc's kristen welker is near his home in florida. >> reporter: good morning. donald trump is on a working vacation in palm beach. i anticipate we will get some reaction later on today. the critical question is what does this mean for u.s. and cuban relations? as ron was discussing, candidate trump talked about reversing the

by president obama. which included lifting restrictions on some imports. take a listen to what he said in september. >> but all of the concessions that barack obama has granted to castro regime were done through executive order. that means the next president will reverse them. that i will do unless the castro regime meets our demands. those demands include cuban people and the freeing of political prisoners. >> reporter: now because the actions that president obama took were executive actions, president-elect trump can roll them back if he so choses. this comes against the back drop of the president-elect trying to pick a secretary of state. rudy giuliani, a hard liner and loyalist.

moderate. both of the candidates largely in line with president-elect's views with cuba. back to you. thank you, kristen. we will have more on fidel castro's death throughout the morning. people are heading home after the long thanksgiving break. dylan, what is the travel forecast like? >> it looks okay for most of the country. the west coast is where most of the trouble spots happen. a storm onshore and heavy rain and snow we are watching a storm system in the middle of the country. if we look at where we can see airport delays today, i think it is seattle and san francisco with the largest delays because we are looking at the possibility of seeing some potential for heavy rain, low level clouds, fog. that reduces visibility. if you are traveling by road, we could see some troubles in the mountain passes. that's where we might end up with 2 feet of snow.

i-95 up into maine, we could see areas of snow and slippery conditions with temperatures close to freezing. we will see the possibility of airport delays on the west coast on sunday, but the possibility of slowing things down in minneapolis/st. paul. overall, not too bad. the west coast and middle of the

travel troubles. i thought it came out right. it just didn't. >> say that 20 times fast. dylan, thank you. still to come, our most talked about stories. including this incredible basketball shot from nearly 600 feet from above the hoop. that doesn't go in? >> and stars are just like us. how a-listers celebrated thanksgiving.

still to come on "today," we go back live to miami where they celebrated all night long with the news of fidel castro's death. and when it comes to good deals this holiday weekend, you may think about travel. the list of hot spots that are easy on your wallet.

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it's now official.. will begin a presidential recount.the recount requested--- not by second place finisher hillary clinton--- but by green party candidate jill stein who finished well behind in the balloting. the recount will take place after liberals raised the threat of hacking having an impact on the outcome. here's meteorologist brian

we are back on this saturday morning, november 26th, 2016. as we follow the overnight breaking news of fidel castro's death. many cuban-americans taking to the streets overnight in to celebrate. that is, of course, one of the headlines today. the former cuban leader dead at the age of 90. the news announced on cuban tv by his brother, president raul castro. as we saw, a lot reaction on the streets of little havana in miami. we will have more on that in a few minutes. a thanksgiving weekend of gratitude for a california family.

after being abducted. and the presidential vote now set for a recount in at least one state. former green party candidate jill stein filing that with the election commission in wisconsin. stein's pushing for the same thing in the swing states of michigan and pennsylvania. her goal isn't to overturn the results, but establish voter integrity. let's go back to reaction in miami where people celebrated into the night after nbc's kerry sanders is there with more. good morning, kerry. >> reporter: good morning. we have a little bit of a sun shower. people have gotten under the overhang. you can see folks gathered out here. she is wearing a shirt that says "cuba." there is anticipation and a lot of people waiting and in some cases almost a lifetime to watch fidel castro die. now it seems odd. why would you want a head of state to die?

of the cuban people. you look at eighth street in little havana. filled with people celebrating. because they were exiled from their country. when he came to power, he took not only power, but he nationalized businesses. he took property. many people were imprisoned. some were tortured. some family members were shot. those that left got out and said that they would return to cuba when fidel castro di anticipate raul castro taking over the position he has right now as the president of cuba. i was recently in cuba. i went by the small town where fidel castro was born. when you see the humble beginnings from where he came, little home there. an old car that's underneath the house. there are some thatched cottages nearby where he started the agriculture cooperative.

when you see that, you can understand why leaders around the world respected that this man who came from such humble beginnings was able to go to the sierra mountains and in the mountains, cement a revolution that took over control of the island of cuba which is from key west to havana, only 90 miles away. the celebrations will continue. the police have closed the streets and they larger crowd as the day proceeds. last night, it was filled. back to you. >> kerry, thank you. time for another check of the weather with dylan. >> announcer: "today's" weather is sponsored by american express. founding partner of small business saturday. shop small today. >> good morning. we are taking a little more detailed look at the storm

heavy rain in seattle. the mountains will have the bad conditions. we have winter weather advisories. we have wind advisories too. stretching into las vegas where winds will be very gusty as the cold front moves onshore. as we go into sunday, a second front onshore. that is why we have rounds and rounds of rain from washington through oregon and into california, too. we could see about 1 to 3 inches of rain. even l.a. could see the rain look at the snowfall. 18 or more inches across the cascades and sierra nevada mountain rage.

and that's your latest forecast. >> dylan, thank you. still to come, a look back at the week's and the gilmore girls are finally back. finally back. finally back. you are gonna love this place. i'm more of a milkshake guy. then i'd say expand your horizons. i'm very open-minded! no no, expand your horizons. it's the name of a smoothie. yeah, i see they have bee pollen. two of my favorite allergies. trust me, john grows half this stuff in his own backyard. it's true. two of my usuals, please. add spirulina. is that a... noodle? it's his first time.

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? here's a story of a lovely lady ?? >> known for her role in "the the brady bunch" florence henderson passed away in los angeles. >> she got her start on broadway and on tv with the "today" show. henderson continued to appear on tv in a variety of shows. and in competed on "dancing with the stars." work on donald trump's administration progressed with new appointments and the narrowing of candidates. >> what we want to do is -- >> transition sources tell nbc news president-elect trump asked south carolina governor nikki haley asked to be the ambassador to the united nations. >> i did vote for him. i was thrilled to see him win.

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24-year-old johnthony walker. charged with vehicular homicide. >> and the first major snow storm of the season hammered the northeast. >> more than 2 feet of snow has fallen in parts of upstate new york. cripping cities. >> we woke up with all this. whoa. >> a star studded group of 21 with the medal of freedom. the highest civilian honor. >> pde 21 distinguished americans who each have left an indelible mark on the nation's fabric. >> extraordinary americans who lifted our spirits. >> the 90th annual macy's thanksgiving day parade ushered in the holiday season. >> cue the opening number. >> cue the opening number. ?? it's macy's ?

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good morning. breaking overnight. the death of fidel castro. the former cuban dictator dead at the age of 90. celebrations on the streets of miami's little havana. world leaders quick to act. he ruled with an iron fist for nearly 50 years. leaving many in fear and fleeing for safety. the dictaor had a relationship with 11 u.s. presidents and brought the nations to the brink of nuclear war. now as the relations are starting to thaw, what will

saturday, november 26th, 2016. >> good morning. welcome back to "today" on saturday morning. i'm sheinelle jones with hallie jackson in for craig and dylan dreyer. >> we begin with the breaking news. the death of fidel castro. the dictator hadn't been seen the last few years. he died at the age of 90 last night. we have nbc's andrea mitchell with a look back at his life. >> reporter: just fidel to his followers. to his enemies, a feared dictator. one of the world's last communists. the firebrand started life simply. illegitimate son of a land owner. he graduated with a law degree and doctorate. tried running for the national assembly in 1952 until batista seized power.

over the barracks and failed. castro ended up in jail for two years until amnesty and he went into exile. in mexico, he regrouped with his brother raul and ernesto. the three led a force back to cuba in 1956 waging guerlla war in . at first the young leader promised democracy. telling the u.s. he was not a communist. "meet the press" in april of 1959. >> i am not communist. >> reporter: he confiscated the property of the wealthy and silenced newspapers and signed a pact with the soviet union. in 1961, president kennedy

at the bay of pigs using a force of anti-castro exiles. the results debacle helped castro consolidate power. by then, declared socialist, he improved health care and literacy. also accepted soviet missiles bringing the super powers to the brink of nuclear war. >> requiring a full retaliatory response upon the soviet >> reporter: until kennedy's hard line got the russians to pull back. for 25 years, moscow helped castro throughout latin america. but with the end of the soviet union, cuba's economy imploded. on makeshift boats, thousands fled the regime. >> the legacy is a complicated one. there's no for getting how many cubans left the island under duress.

business men and american tourists. he showed a new tolerance for religion welcoming john paul ii. and most travel to the island was cut off. castro arrested hundreds. in the final years, the economy was propped up by another ally. venezuela. in the summer of 2006 after going through intestinal surgery, castro turned power over to raul. he stepped down two years later. he wrote columns and emerging publicly for the pope's visit in 2012. and for vladimir putin and president xi jinping in 2014. to the end, castro insisted the revolution would out live him. >> if i die tomorrow morning, there will be no problem here of

nucleus of leaders without a doubt have great authority among the people. >> reporter: still his real legacy may be holding power for half a century. longer than any other modern leader. andrea mitchell, nbc news, washington. >> cuba will hold nine days of national mourning with his funeral are december 4th. >> what happens with the two counc he has been critical of the thawing relationship for months. we have kristen welker with more on that for us this morning. good morning. >> reporter: good morning. so far no reaction from the president-elect. he is on a working vacation here in palm beach. i expected we will get a response by the end of the day. the question is what does this mean for relations between the united states and cuba? as a candidate, donald trump vowed to reverse the actions

normalize relation was the countries. lifting restrictions on imports for example. listen to candidate trump back in september. >> but all of the concessions that barack obama has granted the castro regime were done through executive order which means the next president can reverse them and that i will do unless the castro regime meets our demands. those demands will include religious and for the cuban people and the freeing of political prisoners. >> reporter: as you heard mr. trump say the actions that president obama took are executive action. that means a new incoming president can reverse them essentially with a stroke of a pen. the reality to it is trade has opened up between the two countries. flights resumed. it is hard to unwind all of that.

of president-elect trump trying to pick a secretary of state who will be deeply involved with u.s. and cuban relations. the top two contenders is hard liner rudy giuliani and former antagonist and moderate republican mitt romney. very in line with mr. trump with cuba. sheinelle. >> kristen, thank you. turning to other news. black friday is now over. a lot of the sales will go on throughout the weekend. tens ofho to be the first to grab the big ticket items at a reduced price. how did they make out? nbc's jacob rascon is in texas' biggest mall in houston. good morning, jacob. >> reporter: good morning. we are in the houston mall. most of the retailers were in the middle of black friday weekend. some 137 million americans expected to hit the stores. that's more people than voted in the general election.

expected the sales to be up. that's thanks in part to a surge in online sales. for many, it has become its own holiday. >> like to keep it local and go to the big malls in minnesota. have fun. >> every year, year after year, doing stuff like 27 hours last year. so far, 16 or 17 this year. >> reporter: six in ten americans plan to sho many camping overnight. waiting patiently. usually. to score some of the best deals of the year. target selling 3200 tvs per minute in the first hour. amazon with 100,000 toys in the first few hours. and at walmart, this woman head over heels for its deal of the day. towels. the retail giant would go to sell 2.8 million of them. the busiest holiday shopping season ever the national retail

americans expected to spend $655 billion. more than last year thanks to online sales and all of this, the federation says, thanks to a generally strong economy. >> for the first time ever, we have seen 25% of people say they plan to spend more this year than last year. >> reporter: it is no longer just a one-day event. >> we got some deals yesterday. we got some deals this morning. we got online this morning and did all of our online shopping. that's out of the >> reporter: several shootings at malls in at least one fist fight threatened to derail some shopping plans. the holiday tradition which for most americans has become as indispensable as the turkey. and in a sign of the times, 70% of sales on walmart's web site were done within mobile devices. online records broken. we still have cyber monday ahead

>> that is today. jacob, thank you. in california, relief and gratitude cannot explain the emotions one family is feeling after they were reunited with their mom, wife and sister, allegedly kidnapped three weeks ago. this morning, police are looking for two women who may have kidnapped her. nbc's gadi schwartz is in redding, california with more. >> reporter: good morning, sheinelle. for three weeks, sherri papini's family could not tell her children what happened to her. now she is back and surrounded by those she loves. for the first time, sherri papini's sister describing the mother of two after released by kidnappers on the side of the california road. >> this has been a traumatic event for all of us. >> reporter: on thanksgiving morning, dispatch tapes paint a terrifying discovery.

motorist at 4:30 a.m. >> she is chained to something. >> reporter: when police arrived, they found her beaten. >> be advised, she is heavily battered. >> reporter: investigators confirmed they don't know why she was released after being held for three weeks or why she was abducted in the first place. papini disappeared on a morning jog 150 miles away near redding, californ husband to find her cell phone. investigators ruling her husband out as a suspect after passing a lie detector test. the family still trying to process the horror of what happened. >> it has been a range of emotions. sadness and anger. right now it is joy. lots of joy she is here. >> reporter: meanwhile, sheriff's office are spanning across northern california

may crack this case. >> she is home safe. this is not over. >> oh, no. we're elated that she's safe and reunited with her husband. this is a new chapter to the investigation. now it switches from a missing person to an abduction case looking for the suspects. >> reporter: investigators say so far they have seen no evidence that would lead them to believe this was anything but a kidnapping. right now, the only description of the kidnappers they hispanic women armed with a gun leaving in a dark suv. sheinelle. >> thank you, gadi. dylan is out on the plaza with another check of the forecast. >> good morning, guys. we have a big thanksgiving crowd on the plaza this morning. everybody hanging out through the weekend. let's look at the weather. we can expect this on saturday and sunday. if you do have to travel back somewhere, seattle and san francisco, we could see delays. los angeles, too because of rain and wind. on sunday, same thing.

create delays in seattle and l.a. minneapolis with the storm possible in the afternoon. we could see some of the heavy downpours with delays. today, besides the west coast at t.j.maxx, marshalls and homegoods, we've always believed the holidays should be about joy. where days are filled with magic, not madness. it's why we have amazing prices on thoughtful gifts, everyday. let's bring back the holidays. and that's your latest forecast. sheinelle and hallie. >> dylan, thank you. >> still to come, this might be one of the best mannequin

perfectly still? perfectly still? >> that is creepy. my goal was to finally get in shape. not to be focusing on my moderate to severe chronic plaque psoriasis. so i made a decision to talk to my dermatologist about humira. humira works inside my body to target and help block a specific source of inflammation that contributes to my symptoms. in clinical trials, most adults taking humira were clear or almost clear, and many saw 75% and even 90% clearance in just 4 months. including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems, serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask about humira,

get to kohl's and seize these saturday only deals. for her $17.99 tops $21.99 sleep-sets and $11.99 slippers. for the kids girls' sweaters for just $13.99. $19.99 sheets $17.99 cozy throws and the big one bath towel is just $3.99. plus take an extra 20% off these already low prices. and - only once a year everyone gets $15 kohl's cash for every $50 spent. this saturday only

?? happy thanks for giving! thanks for giving lien the strength to outrun her brother. thanks for giving victor the energy to be the rowdiest fan. and joseph, the ability to see monsters. when you choose walgreens, you choose to make a difference... like how every vitamin and flu shot you get at walgreens helps give life-changing vitamins and vaccines... to children in need. so, really... walgreens. at the corner of happy and healthy. we're back on a saturday morning. it's time to trend. are you ready to trend? >> lead me through. >> first up, we can agree braving the malls is a headache. it looks like the neighbors up north found a way to make black friday a pleasant scene.

canada. no pushing and shoving. hear the applause? they clap for one another. they brought doughnuts. this is in south africa. one that looks like more what happens here in the u.s. it is not electronics or toys they want. here, they are excited to get hands on toilet paper. >> what did they have for thanksgiving dinner? >> it's a deal. >> that scene is what i'm used to. we have challenge sweeping the nation. a video shows a different and let's say unexpected take on it. check it out. look at this. ?? >> that is an australian cattle dog. nailing the mannequin challenge. are we sure that's a dog and not a stuffed animal? no word on how the owner got him to freeze. baking dog treats and loading

bathroom. that is intense. it looks fake. >> it looks fake. is that a real dog? it's funny. >> we cannot stop staring. >> look at it. >> i like it and i'm a little creeped out. i love dogs, but that was weird. >> i'm not over the mannequin challenge. it's still fun to watch. >> "popstart?" >> yes. let's look at how the celebrities celebrated thanksgiving. husband in silly hats. and then check out this picture of her in the kitchen. and mark wahlberg with a huge bottle of wine. and oprah with the thanksgiving table with girls from her

partner steadman. and you may binge watch now "gilmore girls" is on netflix. it is a year in the life. the original series ended in 2007. we finally get to see what happened to lorelai and her daughter rory. actress lauren graham tweeted out a message. we are back tomorrow because of you. i could not be more enjoy. >> no spoilers. i have not watched it yet. 90 minutes per episode. >> we won't spoil it for you. >> thank you very much. we will be back in a moment.

all right. that does it for us this saturday morning.

andy cohen. and before we go, we want to take a moment to say thank you to stephanie ruhle who is leaving the anchor desk to devote time for her msnbc show. she will be a contributor on "today." we wish her nothing but the best. this show went by quickly today. >> thank you. >> a good crowd. >> first time on the plaza.

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into the back of a family car in caledonia.. killing the father and daughter inside. it happened at four mile and and old farm road. a six year old is hurt.. but expected to survive. police say they tried to save everyone when they arrived. here's meteorologist brian

. announcer: when you see this symbol you know you're watching television that's educational and informational. the more you know on nbc. lauren: hi, i'm lauren thompson and heart of a champion starts right now. today, u.s. olympians share their personal stories of when their gold medal dreams began. this is what i want to do, i want to represent my country. lauren: then, nascar driver ryan reed hit a fork in the road when he was diaosed with diabetes. but thanks to his courage and ingenuity he drove right through it. ryan: winning the xfinity series is something i've always thought about and always dreamt of. to date it is the biggest accomplishment i've ever achieved. lauren: plus, one of the most storied soccer teams in the english premier league doesn't have a traditional mascot.