george lewis reports. >> reporter: he campaigned as the action hero sweeping up sacramento.mer star of the terminator movies morphed into the governator. seven years later schwarzenegger who came into office with sky-high popularity leaves with his approval rating under 30%. there have been repeated demonstrations over threatened cuts in education and other public services as the state's budget deficit balloons to $28 billion. >> the issues are very complicated. >> reporter: schwarzenegger blamed it on the economy. >> we're in a disastrous situation here. you're absolutely correct. we have a national economic slowdown, the biggest one in 80 years. >> reporter: in coping with that, schwarzenegger has managed to alienate not only the democrats who run the legislature, but also his fellow republicans. >> it turned out that there were weights even arnold schwarzenegger couldn't lift. >> he once referred to members of the legislature as girly men but toned his his approach. >> i realize after looking back, why did you say that? that was stupid. >> reporter: despite speculation ab

george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >>> and that's "nbc nightly news" for this sunday.verage from the red carpet is coming up next here, followed by the 68th annual golden globe wards at 8:00 p.m. team. brian williams will be here tomorrow. i'm lester holt reporting from new york. from all of us here at nbc news, new york. from all of us here at nbc news, good night. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com

nbc's george lewis now with the amazing story. >> good morning. >> reporter: it was a good morning.sen's voice was raspy, the fact that she had a voice at all was remarkable. >> i want to go home. it's simply amazing. i'm still in shock that this ever happened to me. >> reporter: because of complications following her hospitalization in 1998 for kidney failure, her larynx, or voice box, was irreparably damaged. irrepably damaged. she had to speak using an electronic device that gave her had voice a >> reporter: she had to speak using an electronic device that gave her voice a robotic sound. but not now. >> when i wake up in the morning, i reach down and i'm trying to find the machine and then i realize i don't need it anymore. >> reporter: in a difficult and delicate 18-hour procedure, doctors at the university of california davis transplanted the larynx of a dead woman into brenda's neck, connecting minute nerve strands that would make her voice work. >> oh, i just can't thank them enough. i mean, they did a miracle job. >> reporter: the fact that jensen previously had a kidney and

george lewis rolls out the red carpet. >> reporter: they are putting the finishing touches on the ballroomndeliers and champagne. all ready for tonight's ceremony. >> george, the stammerer. >> reporter: "the king's speech" leads the nominations with seven. >> i have a voice! >> yes, you do. >> reporter: followed by six each for "the social network" -- >> that's what the facebook is going to be about. >> reporter: and "the fighter." >> if you don't fight nobody gets paid. >> reporter: there is buzz about natalie portman in "black swan." >> hard to find anyone in town who wouldn't pick natalie portman to win for "black swan." it's the roll that everyone's talking about. >> reporter: the hollywood foreign press has a reputation for making sometimes quirky choices. take the film "the tourist." crucified by the critics but nominated for three globes. while the widely acclaimed "true grit" got no nominations, zero. then there's the party atmosphere of the ceremony itself, complete with open bar. >> everyone there is drinking and partying and with some of the results of who the winners are you wo

. >> the united states is exhausting -- >> reporter: our own george lewis covered the crisis. >> whaty wanted was the shah in exchange for the hostages and of course that was a deal that the united states was simply not going to make. >> reporter: 52 americans were held captive for 444 days. they were blind folded, taunted and even endured mock executions. >> it was theater for them. it was a way to degrade us and a way to make us fearful of them. about. >> reporter: the last american press in iran was one of the hostages. >> i really felt after the first several months in captivity that we would never get out. it seemed interminable counting every day, no communication with the outside world. >> reporter: what was the dimst moment, the darkest day you had while in captivity? >> after we were disbursed all over the country after the attempted rescue, many of us reassembled in a prison in tehran. cement walls, steel doors. bathrooms that were full of cameras to watch us day in and day out. it just seemed that the humiliation would never end. >> reporter: but an end to this long nationa

george lewis is in los angeles with more. orge, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. during the night ted williams checked in with friends said he was headed to rehab at an undisclosed location. he talked about working on being clean and sober and he has decided to take a time-out. ted williams, golden voice and a tarnished history. >> alcohol and drugs and a few other things became a part of my life. >> reporter: he wound up homeless until a columbus dispatch newspaper in ohio put up this web video that went viral in days. >> thank you so much. >> reporter: one week ago williams went from the streets of columbus to the "today" show. >> great to be here. this is a dream come true i'm telling you. >> reporter: commercial contracts followed. an instant celebrity who this week reunited with his children on the dr. phil show in hollywood. >> it's too much, man. >> within a short period of time he goes from one incredible intense reality to another reality of being famous and money and talk shows and an alcoholic can'

for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> we want to get another check of the weather now. for that we'll head outside and say hello again to bill karins in the plaza. bill? >> good morning, lester. 23 degrees with the windchill in the teens. die-hards out here this morning. what's your sign say? >> fantastic and 40. >> where's your mom at? oh, there she is. i don't see anyone close to 40. where do you guys live? >> rhode island. >> still coming in days for you, too. let's talk about your weekend forecast. the cold air, ao the snow. maybe a little morehan you'd like. oflantic city up through areas delaware, you'll be shoveling later on this afternoon. a little bit of light snow head nothing boston this morning and high terrain of the appalachians getting snow. cold air is the story through the great lakes. windchills are brutal from wisconsin to minnesota, also down in chicago. and then a new storm out west. very active weather pattern, not just today but right into next week. >>> it's a chilly start saturday morning. waking up to 30s around the bay toward the north and eas

around the world the parties were just as big as some even bigger as nbc's george lewis shows us. >>hree, two, one -- happy new year! >> reporter: 1.5 million australians gathered around sydney harbor to welcome the new year in style. three hours later in hong kong, there was this over the city's iconic skyline. appropriate since fireworks were invented in china. in the middle east, the glittering emirate of dubai welcomed the new year with a light and sound show. and at the stroke of midnight, the world's highest building, almost a half mile tall, transformed into a gigantic roman candle. in moscow's red square, russians huddled in a snowstorm, as midnight came. in berlin, 1 million people watched the show at the historic brandenburg gate. they also partied in paris. and as big ben chimed in the new year, londoners lined the banks of the thames to celebrate. for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >>> rare and deadly tornadoes in the midwest and south kill at least six people. three of the dead in missouri, about six injured there and 20 homes destroyed, the same powerful

for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> mary kay and vili are with us exclusively.the last time you were on with us was 2006. you were just celebrating your first year of marriage. after that you sort of faded out of the spotlight. you have been raising two daughters. what is life like for you, mary kay? >> actually, parenting, very busy. i work, too. we both work. it's busy. our girls are 12 and 13. anybody with a 12 and 13-year-old, busy. got to stay on your toes for sure. >> vili, do you find people pretty much leave the two of you alone or do you find when you go out there are still those stares? >> i think it's pretty normal how people react when we go out in public. yeah. >> when you first got married, this goes back now years and people still feel this way, i think, wonder what the two of you have in common. you are 48, mary kay and vili, you are 27. what do you have in common? >> what do we have in common? >> um -- >> besides that we are human beings? >> well, that's a start. what has kept you together? >> you mean like what interests do we have that are the

george lewis is in los angeles. george, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, matt.onrad murray, jackson's personal physician said he wants a speedy trial on the charges of involuntary manslaughter. that's what they will get. the trial is scheduled to begin march 28 with jury selection. it is estimated the trial could take two months. the arraignment before l.a.'s superior court judge michael pastor was brief and to the point. >> to the charged defense of involuntary manslaughter, dr. murray, how do you plead? >> your honor, i am an innocent man. i plead not guilty. >> reporter: in june of 2009 as michael jackson was rehearsing for his "this is it" world tour. ♪ >> reporter: he complained he couldn't sleep. later dr. conrad murray told investigators he had given jackson the powerful drug propofol to overcome the insomnia but not enough to kill the star. at a preliminary hearing witnesses for the prosecution testified that after murray administered the drug at jackson's rented mansion, the doctor made a series of phone calls, prosecutors alleging that murray neglected

nbc's george lewis has details. george, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. in gripping testimony, the bodyguard said he was frozen at the sight of michael jackson lying in bed, eyes and mouth opened, dr. murray leaning over him trying to bring jackson back to life. alberto alvarez worked as michael jackson's advanced security man, clearing the way for the pop superstar as he moved about. on the stand, alvarez testified about being summoned to jackson's bedroom, where dr. murray was working on his patient. the bodyguard's voice became choked with emotion as he described jackson's children coming into the bedroom. daughter, paris, wailing, "daddy" as she started to cry. in the courtroom audience, jackson's mother, katherine, dabbed her eyes. then the bodyguard testified that before murray told him to call 911, the doctor gave him another task. >> mr. alvarez opened a clear bag, into which dr. murray dropped many vials. mr. alvarez removed another iv bag, which he described as containing a white, milky substance. >> reporter: prosecutors contend murray, who has

for "today," george lewis, nbc news, los angeles. >> so have you seen all the movies? >> i have seen some of the movies. i have small children so i have seen "toy story 3" and "tangled." >> i have seen a bunch of them, there are a lot of good movies. >> you liked "true grit?" >> i liked "true grit" and i loved "the king's speech." "black swan" i saw. it was strange. who will win and what will the stars wear more importantly, you can get all of the excitement live on sunday night starting at 8:00 eastern, 5:00 pacific time right here on nbc. be sure to join us monday on "today," al roker and natalee morales will be live from hollywood talking to the night's big hungover winners. meanwhile just ahead, an inside look at the life of an animal hoarder, can you imagine living in a home with 150 chicken or 82 dogs? one woman shares her story. but first this is "today" on nbc. [ female announcer ] this is a strawberry pop tart... and this is a warm, fresh baked strawberry toaster strudel. we asked kids what they want... and we got a clear answer. the one kids want to eat. [ ki

george lewis was inside the courtroom. george, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, meredith. yes, those witnesses described a chaotic scene as dr. conrad murray who admits giving a powerful anesthetic to jackson desperately tried to revive the popfrantically called out for help saying does anybody know how to do cpr? >> conrad murray has pleaded not guilty to the involuntary manslaughter. in testimony, he described being summoned to jackson's rented mansion where murray was frantically trying to revive the singer. jackson was lying motionless in bed, his eyes and mouth open. the prosecutor, at that point did he appear alive? mohammad, no. earlier in his opening statement, prosecutor david wallgren said the doctor acted outside of normal standards, in giving the singer propofol, and an anestheticed administered mostly in hospital setting. kenny ortega testified that at one point he was worried about the singer's health when he was pale and looked weak. he testified that he was scolded by dr. murray for interfering. other witnesses testified that the singer's final rehearsals w

secularism en masse sometime in the 1990s joining forces with new secular schemers like george soros, peter lewisd media matters.org. in 2010 glenn beck stripped o'reilly's progressive secularists of their secularism. he told leaders, what we're talking about is an ideological movement that has set its sight on the destruction of the constitution and the fundamental transformation of our republic. it's called the progressive movement. ex-progressives led by obama, pelosi and michael moore combine the revolutionary ambitions of 1950s communists with the repressive tendencies of the secular humanists, the progressives don't stand for anything except the destruction of all that is good in america. every cause they champion is part of their master plan to seize power and tyrannize everyone, but that's a story for another chapter. more broadly, conservatives found in the area of secular humanism and the irs desegregation threat a new strategy for extending and mobilizing their political base. invent a liberal conspiracy that indoctrinates children with immoral, anti-christian ideas. they have repeated

george washington moving west. what is interesting about it is the image of lewis and clark here is in black and white, something thatuture, painted as though it was in the past. what is interesting about it is the very obvious conclusion of slavery. the number of students were expressing unease around some of the themes. the additional mural would be placed in the school, one with more positive representation of the student body. in 1974, they completed three panels that were placed in the library -- in the lobby. they depict native, latino, asian american, and african- american heritage and culture. >> that artist was talking about the history coming alive. that is what we want for the students here. i also think they might share that with past alumni and the community, so they could no the treasure that we have here in the schools. many people have the same experience i did when i first walked into this building three years ago, being the new principal. the grandeur of these murals is fantastic. many of the students who have come here have come here and are very proud of these murals. they're so happy that they're

michael lewis, big six weeks. george w. bush, number one for five weeks. i'm laura bush, number one for four weeks. she went on a pretty extensive book tour as well, didn't she? >> guest: she did. she did. her book has been out since may i believe. and bush's book has only been out since the second week of november i believe. so keep in mind some of these books have and how that went to go. "the immortal life of henrietta lacks" has been out for a few weeks. >> host: before we get the calls, let's talk about game change by john heilman and mark halpert. >> guest: i'm sorry, i'm not that familiar with that boat. >> host: one of the political bios of barack obama in the campaign of she doesn't need. another one that came out about barack obama, and other biography was david remnick scum of the life and rise of rock obama. this also came out in 2010. greenwich, connecticut. good evening, u.n. put tv with jenn risko of self-awareness. go ahead with your question. >> caller: high, one of the game changers this year that everyone was talking about was e-book and

lewis leading us. we had about 30 members of congress over the years. the first time we went, george alive. it was the last year of his life. he was in pretty rough shape. the congressional delegation went to see him. i remember john lewis, earl hilliard, the african-american congressman from that area, they walked right in and were as comfortable as could be. i remember a couple of our white, midwestern, liberal members, standing at the edge of the door wonder whether they wanted to walk in or not. george wallace received them with wonderful spirit, they responded with wonderful spirit. two years ago when we went back, peggy wallace kennedy, george's youngest daughter, came to sell my, spoke at the church, and join us in the march across the bridge. i think martin would look down and say, yeah, you got it, keep going. thank you. kim [applause] [applause] >> thank you very much to everyone. we would like to begin the conversation and also, we plan to have you included in the conversation before the evening is over. doug, i want to ask, how do we get there? i guess i am thinking, dr.

lewis leading us. we have carried 120 members of congress over the years. the first time we went, george wallace was still alive. and he was -- it was the last year of his life. he was in his house. she was in rough shape. the congressional delegation went to see him. -- he was in rough shape. john lewis and earl hilliard walked right in and were comfortable as could be. i remember a couple of our white, midwestern and liberal members standing at the edge of the door not knowing whether they wanted to walk in that room or not, because something was really bad. george wallace received them with wonderful spirit. and two years ago when we went back, peggy wallace kennedy, came to selma, spoke at brown chapel, and joined us in marching across the pettis bride. ge. i think martin would look down, and say, yeah. that's it. you've got it. keep going. thank you. [applause] >> thank you very much to everyone, and we would like to begin our conversation and also do plan to have you included intha that conversation before the evening is over, but doug, i want to ask, how do we get there? i guess i