our own bill weir. >>> plus, final witness. a father who survived an unthinkable crime in the dark of night, only to face the shock of a lifetime. a story of love, forgiveness and ultimate betrayal. >>> good evening. i'm cynthia mcfadden. tonight, we mark a sad passing only hours ago legendary writer and film director nora ephron died from complications brought on by leukemia. she created complex female characters who captured american hearts and always seemed to triumph in the end to humor and smarts, sort of like the lady herself. abc's david wright salutes a hollywood legend. >> reporter: you might say she was the aaron sorkin of romantic comedy. ♪ it had to be you ♪ >> reporter: a writer so gifted. when harry met salary boy meets girl formula when the chaerlracs were so smart, so quirky. >> so you're saying a man can become friends with a woman he finds attractive. >> reporter: their quanda quand universal it outlasts big hair. >> men don't want to be friends with women. they have already got friends. they've got friends th

bill weir is at niagara falls where it all unfolded tonight. bill. >> what an incredible night, greets again from here at niagara falls. i was lucky enough to have one of the best seats in the house for tonight's old school, knuckle whitening megastunt standing right here as nic wallenda, this 33-year-old said to all of us, thanks for all your help. i'll see you on the other side and stepped off on to the wire. it's been sthad the journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step. well, this is what the first step looks like on a journey into the daredevil mind. >> it's unbelievable view. you know, i'm so blessed to be in the position i am. to be the first person in the world to be right here. >> sure, the walk isn't that far, only about four football fields long, but in thrill seeking as in real estate, location is everything. and despite the adrenaline fueled old history of this place, no one as ever ab tempted to cross the majesty of the niagara horseshoes falls. it was all too complicated, the mist too heavy, the governments of the u.s. and

in new york city, this is "nightline," june 27th, 2012. >> good evening, i'm bill weir. well, there was valium in the '60s, prozac in the '90s, and now the growing mother's little helper of choice is adderall, normally used to help kids with attention deficit disorder. desperate to find more energy and focus under the content comma demands, they raid their kid's prescription bottles. with the details of what comes next, here's abc's dan harris. >> reporter: this is the story of how one day, a mother of four on a quiet block in minneapolis made an impulsive decision, one that took this mom to darker places than she ever imagined possible. >> i grew up in a house where my mom was very neat and everything was really clean and beautiful dinners every night and that didn't come naturally for me. >> reporter: drowning in the daily drudgery of dinner, dishes and laundry, betsy degree was thrown was seemed like a lifeline. one of her children was diagnosed with attention deficit disorder and prescribed the drug adderall. you were sitting here one day, thinking, this place is a m

in new york city, this is "nightline," june 20th, 2012. >> good evening, i'm bill weir. and ladies and gentlemen, start your air conditioners. man, you didn't need a calendar to tell you today marks the first official day of summer. and if today is any indication, it's going to be a scorcher. the heat index soared past 100 degrees in cities across the northeast. stepping out the front door felt more like stepping into an on oven. and it's not over yet. here's abc's ginger zee with the latest. >> reporter: the relentless wild fires in colorado fueled by low humidity, high winds, and this week, record-breaking heat. that heat shifted east today and picked up a whole lot of humidity along the way. the sudden sizzle brought near record-breaking temperatures up and down the east coast, just in time for the official start of summer. here's how it all goes down. stick with me here. a little science. a ridge of high pressure ahead of a cold front brings more sunshine, compresses the air and on the back side of the clockwise rotating high, you get a strong southwesterly flow. tha

in new york city, this is "nightline," may 31st, 2012. >> good evening, i'm bill weir. john edwards may be a liar, adulterer and per rye ya, but thanks to a hung north carolina jury, he is not a criminal. those jurors never saw the once golden politician on the stand, never heard from the mistress who had his baby or the benefactors who gave him all that money allegedly used to cover the whole sordid miss. the trial ground to a halt, and tonight, john edwards walked, and talked, and abc's bob woodruff was there. >> reporter: today, john edwards walked out of a court a free man. it took nine days of deliberations and a wrenching false start, but a jury found him not guilty on one count, but they could not agree on the five others. so, the judge declared a mistrial. >> while i do not believe i did anything illegal, i did an awful, awful lot that was wrong. >> reporter: the verdict, as full of drama as the trial itself, leaves open the possibility of edwards being retried. but that seems unlikely. but even a decision in his favor is a bittersweet victory for john edwards,

in new york city, this is "nightline," june 7th, 2012. >> good evening, i'm bill weir. maybe you'd never fall for it, but imagine your mom or grandma, getting a call from a person who knows their name, address, social security number and demands they pay down a debt they don't remember owing or else. in that case, it's not hard to understand how a fake debt scam has stung hundreds of thousands of americans and raked in over $5 million, but tonight, abc's brian ross investigates. >> i am the guy who is going to end your life. >> reporter: it was calls like this one in the middle of the night -- >> if you refuse to answer the door to me, i guarantee you, i will wake up every neighbor in your entire [ bleep ] building. >> reporter: and this one, full of racist, profane threats. >> go [ bleep ] back to africa or some [ bleep ]. >> reporter: and many, many others that led to the new laws and crackdowns designed to end such outrageous tactics. >> why don't you just go jump in front of a train? >> reporter: but authorities say that hasn't stopped this man and the people he wor

we sent my co-anchor, bill weir, to find out. >> let's go. >> reporter: some guys golf. some guys fish. some guys lay on the beach and drink, but these guys are spending their vacation at almost 2,000 bucks a week doing sit-ups until they're ready to puke. they're eating mud while being sprayed with pellet guns. setting their shoulders on fire with 500-pound logs. and jumping out of the occasional helicopter into a freezing river, all while being insulted with real salient profanity. >> in a microsecond, if you are [ bleep ] something up, i'll make sure i correct that. >> reporter: welcome to the extreme s.e.a.l. experience, the closest most mortals will ever get to tasting the pain and glory of basic underwater demolition school, a meat-grinder school where 80% of the men who enter fail. but chief fooch and sniper buzic and senior chief shiply not only made it, but became s.e.a.l. instructors. how authentic is this experience to life of a s.e.a.l.? is it just a little taste? >> it's a little taste. it's education. you want to be a pro quarterback, you go to a football c

bill weir is on the u.s. side of the falls where the historic quest will begin. >> reporter: greets from one of american's great natural wonders. that is niagara's horseshoe falls and this is the wire. two inches in diameter, a third of a mile long, and this is the rout nic wallenda hopes to take into history a few hours from now. facing a few family ghosts along the way. >> reporter: this is the view from the wire. a perch where the average person's throat tightens, pulse quickens, and visionary rows. but not this person. in fact, this is where nic wallenda comes to relax. >> you know, i'm gotten on a wire before when i've had troubles, problems going on whatever, i get on that wire and it's gone. all the troubles of the world are gone. >> but before he can enter that zen state tomorrow night, nic is swinging from intense last-minute focus, to self pinching euphoria. >> i feel like a little kid. >> this wire this and this spot caused him years of planning, personal fortune. he had to convince the u.s. and ca

i'm bill weir. the verdict for jerry sandusky tonight guilty on 45 counts of sexually abusing young men, not guilty on three counts. since the allegations first surfaced, penn state and his football program has been rocked by the horrific accounts or seerlt sexual predation by the once beloved coach. this conviction makes it very likely the 68-year-old will live out the rest of his life in prison. abc's jim avila has been following this story from the very beginning and comes to us from bellefonte, pennsylvania. >> reporter: bill, the emotions have been building in the penn state community for nearly a year. tonight they erupted on the courtroom steps. a huge crowd cheering the prosecution and cat calls and boos at jerry sandusky as his defense team. inside the courtroom i was five rows behind jerry sandusky, his shoulders were slumped, his hands in his possibility. his shoulders going deeper into his body and the head juror recited the guilty verdict hah 45 times. jerry sandusky, hands cuffed in fr

. >> "nightline" anchor bill weir was there.e takes us step by step as the history made over the falls as the rest of us held your breath. >> history awaits, the wire. >> until last night. no man, no woman, no one had ever dare try this. stepping out on a two-inch wire over niagara's churning walls. nik wallenda reviving his name, that would make his mom and dad proud. happened after his uncle gave his life. >> nik knew a fall would make it worse. after months of grueling training had no way of knowing what the moment would feel like, marching over the cascade. >> 700 thousand gallons. >> holding his balance. . through the blinding mist and heaving wire. even then he sounded like a guy on a nature hike. >> it's an unbelievable view. i'm so blessed to be in the position i am to be the first. >> for the first time he reluctantly agreed to wear a safety harness but in the end didn't need it. with a steady pace crossed four football fields in 25 minutes. the steady applause seemed visible in those minutes. >> i'm drained. this is so

bill weir was right there. he has the story this morning. >> reporter: townspeople have gazed on the majesty of niagara's horseshoe falls. and a few have gone over them in barrels. until last night, no one has ever dared try this. stepping out on a wire two inches in diameter, one-third of a mile long, nik wallenda revived his family name in a way many never thought possible. after karl wallenda, the patriarch, gave his life to the wire at age 73, the circus family has performed under the pal of tragedy. >> the first terrifying visual obstacle. >> reporter: but 33-year-old, nik, was trying to go bigger than his great-grandad imagined. he spent years trying to lift american and canadian bans against daredevil attempts here. he spent a personal fortune, building a wire cable. >> 700,000 gallons per second cascading. >> reporter: he had no idea how tough this would be until he marched over the churning abyss. but even then, he sounded like a guy taking a stroll through a park. >> oh, my gosh. this is an unbelievab

>> reporter: bill weir, abc news, niagara falls. >> and we thank you for watching. here again tomorrow night. until then, good night. captioned by closed captioning services, inc. this is "jeopardy!" introducing today's contestants...

"nightline" anchor bill weir was there. today he goes step for step as the refts of us hold our breath. >> history awaits. >> reporter: until last night, no man, no woman, no one had ever dared tried this. stepping out on a two-inch wire, two 2 00 feet above niagara's churning horseshoe falls. nik wallenda made his name proud. and happened 40 years after family patriarch carl gave his life to the wire and the crowd. >> this is the first terrifying visual op staobstacle. with that name tainted with tragedy nik knew a fall would make it worse. with months of training he didn't know what this moment would feel like. >> 700,000 gallons cascacadinca. >> reporter: through blinding st and a shaking wire. even then he sounded like a man on a nature walk. for the first time in his career he reluctantly agreed to wear a safety harness but in the end didn't need it. with' steady pace crossed four football fields in 20 minutes. the steady cloud seemed visible in those 25 minutes. >> i'm strained, i'm drained. this is so physical. >> re

>> reporter: bill weir, abc news, niagara falls. >> and we thank you for watching. here again tomorrow night. until then, good night. [ female announcer ] with xfinity, you can always expect more. like more on demand shows and movies than ever. and more ways to discover them too. plus more speed from america's fastest internet provider. so you can run more devices at the same time. ♪ feel a firework [ female announcer ] and best of all, it keeps getting better. no wonder more people choose xfinity

>> reporter: bill weir, abc news, niagara falls. >> and we thank you for watching. here again tomorrow night. until then, good night. >>> tonight the death of a bicycle rider and a lawsuit that takes aim the a local web site for promoting recklessness. >> now, education activists put out an s.o.s.to save our schools. >> legal definition of texting while trifing and an official who should know better is testing limits of the law. >> after a weekend in san francisco, the u.s. government association holds a going out of business sale. >> and imagine barreling down a stretch of a roadway exceeding the speed limit. and oakland bike rider lost his life doing just that. and now, his family is blaming a web site. >> and there is a lawsuit filed by the family of a bicyclist who died. the family suing an internet company that says the web site encouraged him to speed. abc 7 news is live in san francisco with the details. carolyn? >> the family filed a lawsuit this morning after this court, almost two years to the day their son died.

"nightline" anchor bill weir was there.onight here, he takes us step by step to the history made right over those falls as the rest of us held our breath. >> history awaits. >> reporter: until last night, no man, no woman, no one had ever dared try this. stepping out on a two-inch wire, 200 feet above niagara's churning horseshoe falls. nik wallenda revived his family name in a way that would make his mom and great grandpa proud. and happened 40 years after family patriarch carl gave his life to the wire and the rove of the crowd. >> this is the first terrifying visual op obstacle. >> reporter: with that name long tainted by tragedy, nik knew a fall would just make it worse. with months of training he didn't know what this moment would feel like. >> 700,000 gallons percent second cascading. >> reporter: holding his balance at times through a blinding mist and a shaking wire. even then he sounded like a man on a nature walk. >> oh, my god, an unbelievable view, i am so blessed to be in the position i am to be the first perso

we sent bill weir to find out about it. >> let's go. >> some guys golf. >> reporter: some guys fish. some guys lay on the beach and drink. but these guys are spending their vacation and almost two thousand bucks toog sit-ups until they're ready to puke. they're eating mud while be sprayed with pellet guns. setting their shoulders on fire with 500-pound logs. and jumping out of the occasional helicopter into a freezing river, all while being insultded with real profanity. >> in a micro second, if you [ bleep ] something up, i'll mike sure i correct that. >> reporter: welcome to the extreme seal experience, the closest most mortals will ever get to tasting the pain and glory of basic underwater demolition school, a meet-grinder school where 80% of the men who enter, fail. but chief fooch and sniper buzic and senior chief shiply not only made it, but became seal instructors. >> reporter: how authentic is this experience? is it just a little taste? >> it's a little taste. it's education. you want to be a pro quarterback, you hang out with those guys. same thing here. >> reporter: since s

bill weir is on the u.s. side of the falls where the historic quest will begin. >> reporter: greets from one of american's great natural wonders. that is niagara's horseshoe falls and this is the wire. two inches in diameter, a third of a mile long, and this is the rout nic wallenda hopes to take into history a few hours from now. facing a few family ghosts along the way. >> reporter: this is the view from the wire. a perch where the average person's throat tightens, pulse quickens, and visionary rows. but not this person. in fact, this is where nic wallenda comes to relax. >> you know, i'm gotten on a wire before when i've had troubles, problems going on whatever, i get on that wire and it's gone. all the troubles of the world are gone. >> but before he can enter that zen state tomorrow night, nic is swinging from intense last-minute focus, to self pinching euphoria. >> i feel like a little kid. >> this wire this and this spot caused him years of planning, personal fortune. he had to convince the u.s. and ca

abc's bill weir was right there. he has the story this morning. >> reporter: townspeople have gazed on the majesty of niagara's horseshoe falls over the ages. and more than a few have even gone over them in barrels. >> history. nik wallenda, the wire. >> reporter: until last night, no one had ever dared try this. stepping out on a wire two inches in diameter, one-third of a mile long, nik wallenda revived his family name in a way many never thought possible. after karl wallenda, the patriarch, gave his life to the wire at age 73, the circus family has long performed under the pal of tragedy. >> it's the first terrifying visual obstacle. >> reporter: but 33-year-old nik, was determined to go bigger than his great-grandad ever imagined. get famous and stay perfect. he spent years lobbying to lift american and canadian bans against daredevil attempts here. he spent a personal fortune building and stringing a one-of-a-kind cable. and practicing under the spray of fire trucks to prepare for the blinding mist. >> 700,000 g

i'm bill weir. some birds chimps offer meet, to objects of their affection. humans offer pretty rocks. across the animal kingdom, gifts are integral part of mating ritual and one website is cutting straight to the give and take, connecting broke college girls with rich older men to trade their youth and beauty for cash and prizes. so, is it prostitution or a brutally honest search for happiness? here is abc's alex perez. >> reporter: at a time when almost anything can be ordered online with one click and delivered to your house, for the right price and legal, so too can a beautiful college student. meet 63-year-old tommy and 21-year-old monty. they've been together for two years. >> hole in one. >> i love them. >> they look great. >> they're fun. >> yeah, they are. >> thank you for them. >> you're welcome. >> they refer to each other as sugar daddy and sugar baby. >> it's like a high five. >> yeah. >> it's powerful. >> when she needs money, tommy is her go-to guy and for monty, it's a way to get the education she can't afford. >> he's like i can help you get

>> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with cynthia mcfadden, bill weir and terry moran in new york city, this is a special edition of "nightline," vanished: the mystery of flight 447. >> good evening. i'm terry moran. it's one of the most astonishing aviation disasters in modern history. air france flight 447 from brazil to paris vanished three hours into the fight, 228 people were lost, flying aboard a state-of-the-art jet so foolproof it was called unstallable. so what went so catastrophically wrong? here's elizabeth vargas with a special "nightline" investigation. >> reporter: it is may 31, 2009. air france flight 447 prepares to depart rio de janeiro. 7:30 p.m., takeoff. it is it a routine 11-hour flight across the atlantic. the plane is filled with vacationers, businessmen, and families. destination? paris. 8:30 p.m., passengers settle in. there is no sign that one of the biggest mysteries in modern aif of yaigs aviation is about to unfold. among the passengers is ethna walls, an irish medical student and riverdance star on holiday in rio. ethna's sister is kathryn

i'm bill weir. thanks for joining us, well, between prom and college applications, most teens have plenty to fret over without adding body image to the list. but for hundreds of thousands of high schoolers these days concern over size goes far beyond fashion or vanity. it comes down to life or death. last year, my co-worker sin tcy mcfadden interviewed a teen. one year later, this is what she found. >> give me a large fry. >> reporter: when we first met nick preto last june fast food was a way of life. >> can we get a beefy burrito. burrito, cinnamon twist. >> reporter: driving around his neighborhood in baytown, texas. >> i see burger king, mcdonald's. >> reporter: at just 16 years old, nick weighs an astounding 403 pounds. the result of lots of meals like this. oh, double-stuff oreos sonic blast, i wonder how many calories that is. i asked him to show me what he eats on a typical day. 7,000 calories. three times the suggested daily intake for an adult male. it's both appealing and revolting isn't

. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden and bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," june 1st, 2012. >> good evening, i'm cynthia mcfadden. tonight, are those super-sized drinks really responsible for the escalating obesity epidemic? new york city's major michael bloomberg seems to think at least in part they are. this week, he proposed a city-wide ban on sodas and juleses over 16 ounces. and while those sweet drinks do contain a shocking amount of sugar, many opponents are drawing a battle line between big government and big soda. abc's john donvan takes us inside the sugar war. >> hey, mayor mccheese. >> reporter: mayor mccheese versus mayor bloomberg. yeah, that's what we had today. mccheese, of course, the one-time official of mcdonald land in those old tv commercials. bloomberg, of course, the real-time mayor of new york city. where the city has just proposed a law that will bar restaurants and other food service businesses from selling soft drinks in cups that are larger than 16 ounces. >> all we're doing here is saying, if

. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with terry moran, cynthia mcfadden and bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," june 8th, 2012. >> good evening, i'm cynthia mcfadden. tonight, controversy is swirling around a country singing contestant on "america's got talent" who claimed that he was injured by a grenade while fighting in afghanistan. but the army says his war story never happened and while he may have talent, he now has an awful lot of explaining to do. tonight, our new abc news colleague amy robach brings us the latest. we're delighted to welcome her to "nightline" for the very first time. ♪ if tomorrow never comes >> reporter: it was a dramatic fall from grace. from instant reality star -- >> wow! how does it feel, man? >> amazing. >> reporter: to ashame and confused. >> it's the truth that i truly think is real. >> reporter: it was just earlier this week when sergeant timothy poe was all smiles. >> i am doing well, thank you. >> reporter: winning the hearts of americans by telling his touching tale. a wounded soldier left with an audible scar. >> i ha

>> announcer: from the global resources of abc news, with ter terry moran, cynthia mcfadden and bill weir in new york city, this is "nightline," june 13th, 2012. >> good evening, i'm cynthia mcfadden. we begin with crime. it's been said that all is fair in love and war, but when you come across a murder for hire plot, wrapped inside a murder for hire plot, all belts are off. after one woman landed in prison for hiring a hitman to take out her boyfriend's wife, she's now being accused of ordering another hit. this time, on her former boyfriend. here's "20/20" co-anchor chris cuomo for our series "crime and punishment." >> reporter: this woman is the mistress who pleaded guilty or the hiring a hitman to kill her lover's wife. now, in a new twist, michelle gaiser is also accused of taking out a hit on that lover. from behind the bars of her jail cell. >> michelle gaiser, from her jail cell, has plotted yet another murder. she has solicited an inmate to murder jeffrey stern for $20,000. >> reporter: the allegation comes from the attorney for jeffrey stern. he read from an intercepted letter,

i'm bill weir jectof their affection. to huma offer pretty rocks.oss the animal kingdom,ifts ritualndne wsites mat ttinstraight to t give andke, girls with rher to trade their youth andeay for cash and izes. so, is it prostition or a happiness? honesrch for here is abc's alex perez. >> reporter: at a time when almost anything can be ordered online with one click and delivered to your house, for the icright and legal, so too can beautifulollege udent. meet 63-year-old tommy and -year-old monty. ey've beenogher for two ar >> i lovethem.. >> they ok great. >> they're fun. >>yeahhey e. >> thank you for them. heach 're welcome. sugar daddy and sug baby >> yeah. e a high five. >> i powerful. >> when sheeeds ney, toy is her o guy andor monty, it a way to get the edution she can't afford. he's like i can help you get through hool easy. you just travel withme,ave fun, beunp me company. i said, re. we obserd thateing a sugar baby cesith other rks. >> we'll do a little shopping today. >> he drops 5 grand a month on mon te. >> isn't that hot? >> perfec >> the's

i'm bill weir. some birds chimps offer meet, to objects of their affection. humans offer pretty rocks. across the animal kingdom, gifts are integral part of mating ritual and one website is cutting straight to the give and take, connecting broke college girls with rich older men to trade their youth and beauty for cash and prizes. so, is it prostitution or a brutally honest search for happiness? here is abc's alex perez. >> reporter: at a time when almost anything can be ordered online with one click and delivered to your house, for the right price and legal, so too can a beautiful college student. meet 63-year-old tommy and 21-year-old monty. they've been together for two years. >> hole in one. >> i love them. >> they look great. >> they're fun. >> yeah, they are. >> thank you for them. >> you're welcome. >> they refer to each other as sugar daddy and sugar baby. >> it's like a high five. >> yeah. >> it's powerful. >> when she needs money, tommy is her go-to guy and for monty, it's a way to get the education she can't afford. >> he's like i can help you get