tonight, a conversation with vanessa williams with 11 grammy nominatio nominations. she sold 20 million records worldwide and starred on "ugly betty." the acclaimed revival of the trip to bountiful in los angeles. she was nominated for a slew of awards. we are glad you joined us. a conversation with vanessa williams, coming up right now. >>> hands by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. >>> the acclaimed play, "a trip to bountiful" began on television in 1953. last year, it was revived on broadway with an outstanding cast with cicely tyson and vanessa williams. the accolades join some 11 grammy nominations, one tony. i'm out of breath. look at a scene from "a trip to bountiful." it's here in los angeles. >> well, it's for her own good. she's crazy! >> why do you talk like that? you know momma -- you know momma isn't crazy. stop saying things like that. >> you better do something or she's going to go out someplace. she'll get to bountiful and die from the excitement. do you know what a thing like that can cost? do you realize she had it

. >>> i'm tavis smiley join me next time for a conversation with singer and actress vanessa williams.t's next time. see you then. ♪ >>> hands by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ >>> the following kqed production was produced in high definition. >> and their buns are something i had yet to find anywhere else. >> and you can come to my house to dinner. >> breaded, fried, gooey, lovely. >> in the words of arnold schwarzenegger, i'll be back. >> you've heard of a connoisseur, i'm a common sewer. >> i may have to ward off some

seth williams unveiled indictment today against vanessa brown and ronald waters. williams says, that both of these philadelphia democrats took bribes, and, brown allegedly accepting a total of $4,000, waters close to $9,000. >> both officials, personally appeared, before our grand jury. and fully, i repeat, fully admitted, that they neglectly, took illegal, cash payments. >>> this is the same under cover operation, that snared the former traffic judge, who was sentenced earlier this month to two years in prison. >>> the city of philadelphia wants to give visitors a whole new view of the city. mayor michael nutter and tourism officials have announced a creation of the new observation deck at one liberty place in center city. it is scheduled to open sometime in the summer of 2015. the project will be over seen by a paris firm men for managing observation decks all around the world. >> santa got an early start today, thanks to some help from the salvation army. the center in roxborough distributed toys with the help of volunteers. they work with parents to pick out to

. >> it's vanessa williams. enjoy your holidays with "fox & friends." >> thank you, vanessa.istmas is just around the corner. we should probably think about putting together a christmas show. >> we probably should. that's a good idea. >> a holiday tradition. ho-ho-ho! find out about elf on the shelf and how it's polluting your kid. >> first we want to bring you this fox news alert. a horrific attack on a pakistani school leaves more than 80 children dead. now the army says they may be hostages there. the army now working to get taliban hostages out of the building. peter doocy is live in washington with the latest. gruesome details coming in. i know there are updates you have for us. >> elisabeth, we're hearing from officials in pakistan that 84 students have been killed and about that many have been wounded as well. those numbers are included in the latest associated press bulletin along with details about what happened at this school which is run by the pakistani military for students in first grade through tenth grade. the assault apparently began in the morning when gunme

seth williams unveiled against state representative vanessa brown and ronald waters. williams says both of the philadelphia democrats took bribes, and brown allegedly accepted a total of $4,000, waters, close to 9,000. >> both officials, personally, appeared, before our grand jury, and, fully, i repeat, fully admitted, taking and neglectly took illegal cash payments. >> this is same uncover operation that thomassin tynes. earlier she was sentenced to two years in prison. >>> three young suspects accused in the beating of the same sex couple appeared in the philadelphia courtroom for their preliminary hearing today. one of the victims took the stan. reporter tony hanson from her sister station kyw news radio was there. >>> it was an attack, he and her boyfriend were walking in center city when they were attack. first verbally and then physically. he a says there were cursees, and gay slurs. >> the evidence showed without any doubt this was about sexual orientation. there was no other interaction between these people until somebody decided to start commenting to these tw

two more officials from philadelphia are busted in an undercover sting, seth williams, state representatives waters and vanessarown, he says that the pair were caught on camera, accepting thoughts of dollars for favors and both admitted to wrongdoing. >> both officials personally appeared before the grand jury and fully, i repeat fully admitted that they knowingly took ill -- illegal cash payments. >> an exphiladelphia traffic court judge was charged back in october. >>> you'll have to look up to see philadelphia's newest tourist attraction, mayor michael nutter announced that an observation deck is coming to one liberty place, the space will give the public a chance to check it out from a height of 57 stories, 56 out of paris operate the facility, is expected to open next summer. >>> eagles have an injury problem so if you can't go that is not good news. and the running back robert griffin iii and the birds have to bounce back after losing to straight game for the first time this season. >> the eagles got back to work vowing to put sunday's debacle behind them. is it hard to let that go? >> it's not easy, but

state representatives vanessa brown and ronald waters were indicted today. philadelphia da seth williamss both the democrats took bribes. brown allegedly accepted $4,000, waters $9,000. >> both officials personally appeared before our grand jury and fully, i repeat fully admitted that they knowingly took illegal cash payments. >> now these same undercover sting ensnared former traffic judge thomasine tynes. earlier this month she was sentenced to two years in jail. >> radnor police say eight people wanted for crimes walked right into their custody. offers sent them fake letters telling them they had unclaimed money but when the suspects arrived at the store front address to collect that money they were arrested. these people were wanted for outstanding fines, dui's theft or burglary. some didn't realize it was a trick even after the handcuffs went on. >> they were taken into custody, we were walking out then asked the question if they were still going to get the check, could they use that towards their bail in a very serious manner. >> out of the eight people arrested, five paid off fine

vanessa brownlee. among five officials caught in an undercover sting. seth williamsgot a grand jury indictment after kathleen ka nerx, said the case was rationally targeted and should not be prosecuted. >>> happening in delaware, a balloon release ceremony will be held to remember the victims of an unsolved murder ten years ago today. a robber shot and killed matthew masarado on this day in 2004. happened in the basement of the casual male big & tall store in wilmington. a friend who organized tonight's ceremony is hoping a decade of guilt will lead someone to come forward in the case. >>> a former rutgers student is accused of setting a fire at a school building last week. fire crews evacuated the building while more than 200 students were inside taking a final exam. the 21-year-old was charged with arson. prosecutors say he set the fire last saturday in the allison road classroom at rutgers bush campus. no one was hurt. >>> 4:35 now. it may not be a best picture nominee, but "the interview" is now being seen by a lot of americans who are determined to exercise thei

representatives ron wattarers a vanessa brown are set for hearings on bribery and conspiracy charges. philadelphia d.a. seth williams got a grand jury indictment against those five after kathleen kane said the case was. >>> victims for an unsolved murders that happened ten years ago. happened at the big and tall store on kirkland highway on this day in 2004. a robber shot and killed two employees. 18-year-old a friend organized a balloon release ceremony tonight and hopes a decade of guilt will lead someone to come forward in the case. >>> setting fire to a school building forcing the evacuation of 200 students who were taking finals. prosecutors say he set that fire last saturday at rutgers but the fire heavily damaged a hallway and a classroom. >>> this morning, philadelphia can claim its own miraculous birth on christmas. last night two septa police officers got a call about a woman in labor. the officers helped the woman deliver a baby boy, even removing its umbilical cord from around its neck. they spoke with the officers about the amazing delivery. >> got to ask. were you nervous? >> inside i was just praying

state representative vanessa brown and ronald waters, they are both charge with conspiracy, conflict of interest and bribery. d.a. seth williams says both of the democrats took bribes. brown allegedly accepted $4,000. waters, $9,000. >> both officials personally appeared before our grabbed jury, and fully, i repeat, fully admitted that they neglectly took illegal cash payments. >> same under cover operation a has snared former traffic judge thomassin tynes. earlier this month she was sentenced to two years in prison. >>> president obama has signed $1.1 trillion spending bill that keeps the the government operating over the next nine months. legislation retains cuts, negotiated in previous budget battles and rolls back some banking regulations. however, it keeps spending for the president's health care law, and pace for the administration's fight against ebola. >>> there is much more to come here on "eyewitness news", a new revelation about the gone man who took hostages in an australian cafe. >>> flyers try to avoid the bolt of lightening. we are back in a couple minutes. good morning. >>> new video has emerged of police storm

announcing arrests of two more elected officials, michael waters and vanessa brown is charged with conflict of interest in a sting. d.a. seth williams says that both lawmakers admitted to taking the cash, they took up the case after district attorney kathleen kane failed to take up the case saying the evidence was flawed. a traffic court judge was charged in october and two others were reported as targets of the sting but they have not yet been charged . >>> two people accused of attacking a gay couple in philadelphia are going to court. they are accused of using gay clurs before attacking the couple. they say both parties played a role and sexual orienttation was not an issue. >>> his rap sheet did not stand in the way of landing a job as a santa. norman burbank was sentenced to 12 years in prison to sexually assaulting a boy. now kids are sitting on his lap and reading off their lists and it's not illegal. >> it's unsettling, but it was not a violation of texas law. >> that is because he is not on parole or probation and not prohibited for being with kids under the age of 17. >>> if you are tired of hearing "let it go" and can't h

vanessa lowery brown are set for preliminary hearings on bribery and conspiracy charges. they were among five lawmakers caught in an undercover sting. district attorney seth williamsot a grand jury indictment after kathleen kane said the case was racially targeted and could not be prosecuted. >>> from our delaware bureau now a balloon release will be held to remember the victims of an unsolved double murder that happened ten years ago today. happened at the casual male big & tall a robber shot can killed two young employees, matthew macerato and jessica watson. they are hoping a decade of guilt will lead someone to come forward with information. >>> a show of christmas spirit for a surviving family of an ocean county mother when a plane crashed into her maryland home. her friend collected $15,000 in gift cards and the friend also received 600 gifts from people around the country. that's not all, a website raised $480,000 for the family. gemmell grew up in brick township and her two sons were also killed in the crash. >>> 6:35. on this morning after christmas, philadelphia can proclaim its own miraculous birth of sorts. two septa police officers got a call about a

philadelphia state representatives ron water and vanessa lou willingly brown, by confident informant, trading cash fosh political favors. da seth williams say the pair admit they did it, this comes from a controversial corruption sting running out of the office of the attorney general. when governor corbett was ag. the new ag, kathleen cane, refuels today prosecute, claiming the sting, which ensnared four and traffic court judge, poorly run, and partially racially tainted. a play-by-play call of what specifically is on tape. >> the office and the capital, informant hasn't dollars the representative an envelope containing $2,000 in cash. brown was related. oh, good, good looking, she said, oh, we, thank you twice. >> representative waters attorney say he may try and cut a deal to save his pension. he in fact turned himself in yesterday as did representative brown. cane said in a statement while she did have concerns about the case, she supports the effort of all district attorneys to win justice under the law. >> new jersey experiments with red light cameras, and that experiment is over. the five year pilot program began in 2009. it oper

vanessa lowry brown both of the philadelphia area. wee relying on audio and video taped recorded by a confidential informant city diss da seth williams took the case to a grand jury and got the charges. they're alleged to have taken cash for favors. williams said they admitted it. >> both officials personally appeared before our grand jury, and fully, i repeat, fully admitted that they knowingly took illegal cash payments. >> reporter: now ex traffic court tomasine tynes already charged in this case is expected to plead guilty wednesday. attorney general kane some will argue this is a black eye for her. in a statement says she supports the efforts of all das to get equal justice unthe law in the newsroom, i'm jeff cole. back to you. >> jeff, thank you. >>> it will be a happier holiday for several pennsylvania families. >> yes, it will. a man calling himself santa walked into a wal*mart, did something amazing. we'll explain. >>> and it may sound like a hollywood movie spot but this is real life incredible video as the coast guard rescues a man from a desert island. howard? >> the eagles play the washington redskins that's saturday in

ron waters and vanessa lowery brown. the da seth williams today starts kwanza the holiday dates back to the 1960s, each day of the seven-day celebration carries a core principle, unity, self-determination and faith. we'll have another update in 25 minutes, you can get the latest news and weather at nbc10.com. have a nice day. >> announcer: from nbc news this is "today's take" with al roker, natalie morales, willie geist and tamron hall live from studio 1a in rockefeller plaza. >> welcome to "today" on this friday morning, december 26th, 2014. i'm tamron hall along with sheinelle jones. >> good morning. >> dylan dreyer. >> good morning. >> the crew. the rest of "the take" at home relax relaxing. >> what do you say? >> a lot of people say happy holiday weekend because you have kwanzaa come inging up and new year's. >> happy holiday weekend. >> yesterday how did you spend your christmas? was it a good day? >> it was awesome. you can't get better when you surprise family for christmas eve. i went up. we drove up to boston. nobody had any idea we

vanessa larry brown are set for preliminary hears on bribery and conspiracy charges. authorities say they were among five lawmakers caught in an undercover sting. philadelphia d.a. seth williamsgot a grand jury indictment after kathleen kane said the case was racially targeted and could not be prosecuted. >>> happening today in delaware, a balloon release ceremony will be held in wilmington to remember the victims of an unsolved murder that happened ten years ago today. a robber shot and killed matthew macerato and jessica watson on this day ten years ago. it happened in wilmington. a friend of macerato who organized tonight's vigil hope a decade of guilt will lead someone to come forward in the case. >>> ending a 60-day deployment. the crew has been on patrol to the caribbean straits. they intercepted drug smugglers confiscating nearly $1 million worth of cocaine. >>> and thanks to some local families and the american red cross, coast guard recruits at the jersey shore are feeling more at home for the holidays. families hosted more than 300 recruits for christmas sell brashzs yesterday. the recruits are going through boot camp in cape may. we were there when joshua rodriguez

vanessa lowery brown were five snagged in an undercover sting operation. when kathleen kane inherited the investigation, she said it was racially targeted and could not be prosecuted. district attorney seth williams the investigation to a grand jury and said jurors just hit the play button in the case of brown. >> i need a contribution. i'll take cash, the informant, how much? ç brown, 500. is that too much? >> eventually the d.a. says brown introduced the government agent to traffic court judge who was recently indicted. but prosecutors say representative waters was the first to take the bait in exchange for influence with the parking authority. he was also recorded. >> informant, it's the usual amount, it's 500. waters, okay, my man. informant, all right. waters, my man, that's two grand. that's for you. waters, okay. informant, just make sure you vote no on that. waters, okay. >> both representative waters and brown were released on their own recognizance in dauphin county today. if convicted both representatives would leave their political office. live in west philadelphia, lu ann cahn, nbc 10 news. >>> we have breaking news concerning bill cosby. los angeles prosecutors will not charge cosb

vanessa lowery brown turned themselves in to state police in harrisburg. their arrest are the result of a grand jury indictment announced by district attorney seth williams.> both officials personally appear before our grand jury and fully, i repeat, fully admitted that they knowingly took illegal cash payments. >> state representatives waters and brown are among four state reps and one traffic judge accused of selling their office in an undercover sting investigation and investigation state attorney general kathleen kane said she could not prosecute today. the attorney general said in a statement she supports the efforts of the d.a. >>> in just hours, red light cameras across the state of new jersey will go dark. they've been catching drivers in the act for years. why the money-making spáe ticket program is about to become history. nbc 10 has video that philadelphia police want you to see. it starts as a knock on the door of a bar but quickly turns violent. what the bad guy is accused of doing next. >> and pot by the pound. 100 pounds of the drug were found in cherry hill. how they made the bust and where it was headed. >>> drivers despise them and have

vanessa brown are among the five representatives that were accused of selling their office in an undercover sting investigation. an investigation state attorney general kathleen kane said she could not prosecute. today, district attorney seth williamsid the grand jury found much of the evidence against these two representatives as simple as hitting the play button. on undercover video. the d.a. says waters took an envelope stuffed with $1,000 worth of cash during his first meeting from a confidential informant. >> at the next meeting the informant reiterated he was paying waters to, quote, exercise that god-given right of leave leverage. he passed waters another $500 in cash. all together, representative waters took illegal cash nine separate times. >> reporter: the district attorney says waters introduced state representative brown to the confidential informant. >> and accepted an envelope containing $500 in cash. the inform and the told her to count it to make sure there were five 100 dollar bills. she answered, cheerfully, if there was ten, i wouldn't tell you. >> reporter: prosecutors say brown introduced the confidential inform and to the then traffic court chief judge. >> the informant handed the representative an envelope co