good morning. all for a show? colorado investigators looking into whether the family involved in that five-hour balloon drama that transfixed the country made it all up, this after the 6-ye-old involved had this to say on cnn. >> said that we did this for a show. >> was he really hiding in his garage while his family worried, or is this all a bunch of hot air? we'll ask the heene family in

their own live morning show interview. let it snow. a rare winter storm in mid-october from pennsylvania to new england. some cities dealing with the earliest snowfall on record. and this morning, a second storm is on the way. and runaway stroller. a carriage with a 6-month-old boy inside rolls off a train platform into the path of an oncoming train. incredibly, the baby is okay, today, friday, october 16th, 2009. captions paid for by nbc-universal television and welcome to "today" on this friday morning. i'm meredith vieira. >> and i'm david gregory in for matt this morning. you had to be watching this incredible scene yesterday. i just say, as a parent, i was literally sickened at the prospect of a boy being inside of this balloon.

absolutely. >> when it landed, there would be very bad news. >> right. >> it's an incredible story. when everybody thought that boy was in the balloon, the national guard deployed helicopters, denver's airport delayed flights, everyone trying to figure out how to save that 6-year-old boy. >> then after floating around in the sky for about two hours, the balloon lands safely in a field, but as meredith mentioned, there's no boy inside. three hours later, we learn that falcon was at home alive, at home the whole time, hiding in his garage. it seemed like a perfectly happy ending, but there are some questions. >> maybe not so happy. some people this morning are wondering if this was all made up, especially when falcon was asked on a larry king live" why he was hiding in the attic. his answer was "we did this for a show." we'll ask falcon's family about this in a moment and give him a chance to clarify it, but we begin with lee cowan with the blow by blow of how it unfolded in front of millions of viewers. lee, good morning to you. >> reporter: good morning,

meredith. originally, the sheriff said he didn't think this was a hoax, he didn't think any charges were pending. now, however, he says he wants to talk to th family again to get to the bottom of all this. after all, at one point yesterday, everybody from the national guard to norad was helping out in a chase like no other. it may be one of the most famous balloon rides never taken that ended th a tearful homecoming for a little boy who never left home to begin with. >> this is a relief. we're goin to watch him a lot closer. >> reporter: it all started with richard heene's invention, a flying saucer he had built in hisbackyard, a helium balloon about 20 feet in diameter that broke loose. >> and it looks like he's going 500 miles an hour. >> reporter: heene's three children had a day off from school and the older brother told his parents that 6-year-old falcon had somehow climbed aboard that balloon. as it floated aimlessly through the busy air space near denver, a frantic two-hour chase began. it played out live on tv sets

all across the country. >> when it finally does come down, what's it going to hit? >> there is no manual for this. it's one of those "apollo 13" type situations, where you have to make it up on the fly with what you have. >> he's 1,400 feet off the ground. >> reporter: there was talk of shooting it down or of military helicopters nudging it out of the air, all to somehow save the boy believed to be inside. >> trying to coordinate things with the air national guard right now. >> reporter: but then fate. as cold air came in, the helium began to leak out and the spaceship came in for an unexpectedly soft landing. >> there's nobody in the balloon. >> reporter: problem was, there was no boy. the balloon waempty. a happy moment, but also a puzzling one. just where was the balloon boy? had he fallen t? for three hours, no one knew. >> he's at the house and he's fine, and that's the only information i have. >> reporter: finally, the news came. the balloon boy had been hiding

all along. why? because earlier, his father had scolded him. >> he says he was hiding in the attic. and because i yelled at him and i'm really sorry i yelled at him. >> reporter: he was never even near the balloon when it lifted off and was apparently oblivious to the adventure that the rest of the nation thought he was on. >> i didn't know, i come out too soon, they would yell at me and i'd be in trouble. we're in the middle of hurricane gustav. >> reporter: richard heene says he's raised his family to be unafraid of adventure. a storm-chaser, he routinely took his children along as they pursued dangerous weather. >> this is the east side of the eye blowing north. >> everything that richard does with them is to do with anything to do wit science and e extraterrestrial and chasing storms. >> reporter: the heenes are not your typical family next door,

said sherry silver. >> i didn't realize this was about insulting each other's children. >> reporter: she should know. she appeared with the heenes on "wife swap," a reality show about wives and mothers trading places with other husbands and families. >> my first initial feeling was, oh, my god, has richard tried to get himself back in the news? >> reporter: in the end, the man who had hoped to make headlines with his brand new invention did just that, but, it would seem, for all the wrong reasons. now, there's no estimate yet on how much all of this cost, but it certainly wasn't cheap. the sheriff said yesterday that it really isn't all that uncommon for a missing child to actually be hiding either in their own house or somewre close by, but this is the first time they've ever started a search for a missing child by chasing after a flying saucer. meredith? >> yeah. at least that little boy is okay. lee cowan, thank you very much. the heene family is with us now, richard and myumi, 6-year-old falcon and his brothers bradford.

good morning to you all. >> good morning. >> good morning. >> good morning. richard, i want to give you a chance to help clarify some of the questions surrounding falcon and this balloon and the disappearance of your little boy last night that are swirling around this morning, and they all revolve around something that falcon said last night on "larry king live." let me play you that sound bite first and then we'll talk about it on the other side. >> falcon, did you hear us calling your name at any time? >> mm-hmm. >> you did? >> you did? >> why didn't you come out? >> you said that we did this for a show. >> richard, i know you've had all night to talk about this with your family. what did falcon mean when he said "we did this for a show"? >> well, first of all, let's clarify, he's 6, and i don't know that he really understood the question that was being answered.

he did answer all the questions kind of on the same level. but after the initial interview with all the people on front, i told everybody, my kids and my wife to come inside, and i looked behind me. they weren't there. so then i go over to open the garage, and falcon's climbing up in the joist in the attic space and rafters there. so then i look to the right and the's like 30 press people there. and anyway, somebody had asked him if he would show them how he got in the attic, so he was obliging them and o of the guys told him it was for some -- one of the guys told him it was for some tv show. so, that's what he was referring to. that's what he was referring to when he made that statement.

>> and i know -- i want to point out that the sheriff's office said last night that they believe your account of what happened, but they do want to question you a little bit more today, richard, as well, and i'm sure some of the questions will be hard for you to deal with. so, let me just ask you right now, just put it out there and get your honest answer -- was this a hoax or a publicity stunt? >> absolutely not. absolutely not. and now i'm starting to get a little ticked off, because i'm repetitively getting asked this the last couple of interviews, and what have i got to gain out of this? i'm not selling anything. i'm not advertising anything. my family and i, we do this all the time. you know, we're always doing some kind of scientific research. we're always building something together. i teach my kids how to shoot cameras. you know, it's highly educational for my boys. so, no. i mean, absolutely not. this is not some kind of a hoax. >> you know, richard, we want to

talk about what happened yesterday, and i know that your son falcon, thank goodness he is okay, but he's not feeling well this morning, and i know that just a few moments ago he got ill. so, let's take a break here so your family can gather itself and we'll be right back and we'll talk to you little bit more about what you went through yesterday with thinking that your son was missing, okay? >> okay. >> all right, we'll be right back to you, richard. in the meantime, i think we're going to go over and check the latest news. >> gives them a chance to come together. >> yeah. and ann is off today, but natalie morales is filling in at the news desk. hey, nat. >> good morning, again, meredith and david. and good morning, everyone. in the news this morning, the taliban is suspected in yet another deadly attack today in pakistan. at least 11 people were killed when a car bomb exploded at a mosque next to a police station in peshawar. two weeks of attacks in pakistan have now left more than 150 people dead. t military says four u.s. service members were killed thursday in a roadside bombing in southern afghanistan.

today in texas, president obama's joining former presidt george h.w. bush in urging americans to volunteer for community service. nbc's white house correspondent savannah guthrie joins us live this morning. savannah, last night the president's focus, though, was health care. >> reporter: that's right. he was at a big-dollar fund-raiser for democrats in san francisco, and he rallied the mostly liberal crowd, saying they may not love every health care reform bill up on capitol hill, but that all of them do a lot to get more americans insured. earlier in the day, he was in new orleans. his first trip as president, and had this exchange with a little boy during a town hall. >> what do you have to say? >> i have to say -- [ inaudible ] >> that's what i'm talking about! you get some of the credit when things go good, and then when

things get tough, you know, you're going to get some of the blame, and that's part of the job. >> reporter: some in new orleans criticized the president for staying less than four hours, but he made several trips before becoming president. this was his sixth visit to new orleans. natalie? >> all right, cute kid there. savannah guthrie in college station, texas, thanks so much. overseas markets are mostly higher this morning. as for wall street, cnbc's trish regan is at the new york stock exchange. today some key earnings reports out. >> you're absolutely right, natalie. that's the key today, earnings. we did hear from google last night. ge, parent of this network, this morning, as well as a few others -- bank of america. most of the news has been good. ibm, google, ge all came out beating expectations. now, the reason why investors are so focused on earnings right now is, yes, we've had a little bit of a mixed bag of economic news, so they're looking to earnings to really get more proof of what direction this economy is going in. so, they'll be relieved that a lot of these companies beat estimates. natalie. >> that is good news. trish regan at the new york

stock exchange, thank you. in australia, some terrifying video, but fortunately, a happy ending. on thursday, a stroller carrying a 6-month-old baby rolled off a platform and into the path of an oncoming train as the boy's mother looked on in horror. the chd was dragged more than 100 feet but survived with only a bump on his head. truly a miracle there. oh, just stopped your heart watching that video. and the philadelphia phillies are up one game to none in the national league championship series after beating the dodgers last night 8-6. game two is tonight. also, game one of the american league series between the yankees and angels is tonight, weather-permitting, of course. doesn't seem like the weather's been cooperating lately. 7:13 right now. back to meredith, david and al. >> as dodgers fan, that was tough to watch. close there, but -- >> no cigar, as they say. >> sorry. >> okay. a lot of sympathy here, apparently. >> on the east coast. >> my red sox lost a long time ago. >> going to get a game in tonight, though. >> it's going to be shaky. i think they'll get it in, but

it's going to be awfully cold out there. talking about the northeast, we've got a nor'easter that's been developing and we've got a secondary one that may develop as well. these are some snowfall amounts, anywhere from four to eight inches of snow, generally speaking. and then you can see we've got more snow still falling throughout parts of pennsylvania up into new england. then over the weekend this low pressure system, double-barrel low pressure develops. the future path and track of it a little uncertain, but we are looking for snow and rain and strong winds developing along the eastern seaboard, and again, more snow in the northeast. snowfall amounts could equal another one to two inches of snow, and heavy rain down around the delmarva peninsula. right now, though, it's kind of rough currently in parts of pennsylvania. mike seidel is there from the weather channel, and he is at center hall, pennsylvania, just outside of state college. mike, what's it like out there? >> reporter: hey, good morning, al. still snowing. amazing totals. the earliest snowfall of the season here nearby state college. look how much we've had, six to seven inches of heavy, wet snow,

kind of like mom's mashed potatoes. this would be an impressive storm even in january. the problem with this weight of snow, the trees still have leaves on them, and this morning, 15% of centre county residents are waking up without power. more snow on the way. the roads aren't in great shape. the major highways are fine. and it's homecoming weekend at penn state. tomorrow's homecoming game likely to be the coldest on record with temperatures in the 30s. it should be in the 60s this time of the year. back to you, al. >> so, mike,et me get this straight, your mother's mashed potatoes are cold, wet and dense. >> reporter: well -- >> okay. >> reporter: let me let you in on a secret. by the time iç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç## . good morning. well, that's only about 100 miles north of washington. here, we've had drizzle, light rain and fog. live picture from our city camera. look at radar where you see the light blue. that is all drizzle and light rain. chilly temperatures, in the low 40s to upper 30s around region.

near the bay, mid 40s. the rest of date will be drippy and drizzly and chilly in the 40s as well as tonight and tomorrow. >> and that's your latest weather. meredith? al, thank you. now let's go back to that captivating balloon story that played out on thursday in the colorado skies. richard heene is with us again. thank you for joining us, richard. >> thank you. >> let's go back to yesterday morning. you're testing out this balloon that you and the family have built. it's a prototype. you hope one day that balloons like this will be used to transport people from one place to another. it gets a boost from its ten-- its tethers. what happened? >> well, first, let me just say, this is very much -- a very minimalistic experiment. it's something that the kids and

i can actually put together, do as a family. this isn't something that could actually be marketed. it's not something that -- i mean, it's not even patentable, you know? but anyway, going back to it, after we constructed it, the kids and i started to fill it up with the helium, and it was tethered down, to our understanding, anyway, and we went to go hit the release pin, and it's supposed to levitate it 20 feet off the ground, and the electronics are supposed to kick in. but anyway, it just kept going. so, myumi and i were shouting at each other about the tether, whether it was tied or not. and then trevor was trying to

get my attention -- >> your 10-year-old. >> right, right. he was trying to get my attention to tell me that falcon was inside, and it wasn't until i started going toward the house that he really got my attention, that he may really be inside. so, we searched the perimeter, calling out falcon's name, searched inside the house, and then came back out and asked him -- >> what's going through your mind? >> -- are you absolutely -- well, the thing that goes through my mind is he might be right, because as time was progressing, we don't see falcon, and so, you've got to kind of believe what he says because, you know, after a while, we're looking up in the sky and this thing is gaining some distance. so, i figured, you know, i've got to call somebody, you know, someone's got to help us out.

but it was -- >> and for the next two hours, richard, i know that people were riveted to their television sets. this was playing out on cable tv coast to coast. people worried about your son being in that balloon, worried about what would happen upon impact. did you realize how huge a story this had become? >> no. we weren't even -- i don't have cable, so i had no idea what was going on. we were in contact with the county sheriff and we were giving him as much information as possible. our focus was falcon. >> so, when it finally -- >> no, i -- >> when it finally landed and falcon was not inside, what went through your mind then? >> well, i was waiting in my littleffice here, my home office, and they had just given

me the news that it landed, and they said he wasn't in it, so -- i mean, the first thing i was thinking, you know, maybe perhaps he had fallen out. i rlly don't want to live that again. it was a horrible, horrible moment for me and my wife as well. >> fortunately, three hours later, he appeared, almost out of nowhere. you're sitting in the house and falcon comes around the corner and he is okay. you have since said that you think that he hid out because you had yelled at him earlier in the day about getting in the compartment of that balloon, something that parents -- we're always yelling at our kids trying to protect them. looking back now, do you blame yourself, richard? do you think if i only hadn't said that to him?

>> yeah. you know, i probably yell at him a bit too much, and you know, he's just a little guy. he's 6 years old, and he -- i think he takes things a little bit too serious. i don't know. you know, his perspective about what i say is probably a bit more than the way i'm presented in my mind, but -- >> well, i think you've been through a very difficult time, obviously, richard, and your family. and so many people were looking for your son. i want to give you the opportunity to say whatever you'd like to to those rescuers who were searching for falcon. >> i'd like to really, really honestly thank everybody that was involved. i just can't imjin that many people helping us out. we had no idea that it was going to grow into somethi like

that. i mean, you just now told us people were watching us and, i don't know, i can't fathom that, but thank you very much for the sheriff's department, for the national guard, anybody else that was involved in the search. it really means a lot to us, and thank you for all the suppt, all the positive prayers that were out there. >> and richard, we thank you for your time. i'm sure you're exhausted physically and mentally. thank you very much and thank you to your family as well. >> thank you so much. and just ahead, the exclusive first photos of that 5-year-old lone survivor of a tragic wrong-way crash. we're going to get the latest on how he is doing. firs

good morning. everyone, i'm barbara harrison. it's 7:26. you will hear more chatter in the busiest stations. there will be expanded cell phone service on the platforms. d.c. residents will get to express their frustrations about the recent fireings of more than 200 teachers due to a budget short fall.

counselman will be holding a

good morning. look at the radar where you see the blue on the screen, light rain and drizzle across northern virginia, washington and much of maryland. temperatures chilly, upper 30s to near 40 degrees in the nearby suburbs west and north of washington. low 40s in washington. mid 40s near the bay. we stale in the 40s the rest of the day. occasional light rain and drizzle and patchy fog. how is the traffic? pretty loaded up on the interstate. no major accidents. we can take that as a blessing. 66, pretty well jammed. a good example of what we are talking about.

elsewhere, the trip in, 16th street southbound alaska avenue, brokenown and route 198 west to 29 remains closed because of a crash. barbara? thank you, jerry. tonight on "news 4 at 5:00," the impact of obesity o injuries strike the "o" line. >> somebody's being watched. >> the locker room or a bowling alley? >> on the next "redskins showtime.

he can make up the time. going through the streamers. watch out for the deer! watch out for the deer! oh, he hit the deer! >> 7:30 now on this friday morning, october 16th, 2009. that is matt lauer, of course, competing in the green car challenge on "the jay leno show" last night, and guess what? matt actually finished the race with the fastest time ever, 55.88 seconds, but he's a little upset there because a costly penalty. he ran into yet another deer, and that cost him one second,

and, of course, the title. he is -- he's arguing that, but jay leno's not giving in. he's not giving in. what's he going to get? oh, my gosh. he's upset now. >> i stopped. i'm sorry. >> oh, that's the thing. he stopped. he stopped. he actually asked me yesterday if i wanted something from starbucks and he made the stop and that cost him. >> that's actually uncomfortable to watch, because it's kind of getting out of control there. became a real incident. >> and this whole thing he has with deer is totally out of control. it's a sickness. >> he hates animals. >> yeah, well, i don't want to go there. he's not here today. he's getting a little help, from what i understand. meanwhile, much more serious news, including latest on that 15-year-old florida boy allegedly set on fire by five other teens. coming up, we're going to hear from the mother of two of the boy's alleged attackers. plus, a scam alert tied to the swine flu. if you thought about buying your own tamiflu, watch out. a new warning is out that some of the products are not what they appear to be and actually

may not be safe. we'll talk about that as well. but first, let's begin with that exclusive story, the details on how the 5-year-old sole survivor of a deadly wrong-way crash here in new york is doing. nbc's peter alexander has the very latest and he's with us this morning. peter? >> reporter: david, good morning. good to see you. 5-year-old brian schuler is now out of the hospital. his mother was at the wheel back in july, drunk and high when she drove the wrong way on a highway. she hit another suv, killing herself, her daughter, three nieces and three other men. amazingly, brian survived, and now we are getting our first look at how me hae's doing, a boy his father calls a miracle child. these are the exclusive, first photos of brian schuler, home with his father daniel, a patch over his eye to help him regain full vision after a severe head injury. tom ruskin, the man hired by the schuler family to investigate the horrific crash, says brian is making an amazing recovery. >> he's doing great. brian is a typical 5-year-old kid. he's in the house. he likes playing ball with his

dad. he likes kicking his new stand-up, blowup punching bag. >> reporter: last july, brian's mom, diane schuler, drove the wrong way on the taconic for two miles before crashing into an suv, killing three men inside, as well as herself, her daughter and three young nieces. both of brian's arms were broken and a leg. >> brian doesn't remember anything about that accident. he remembers noises around him. he remembers fire engines, apparently. and he remembers emergency workers. first responders have told us that brian appeared to be conscious through the whole thing. >> reporter: authorities say at the time of the crash, schuler was high and extremely drunk. >> diane schuler had a blood alcohol content of 0.19%. >> reporter: more than twice the legal limit. but daniel schuler insists his wife was not a drunk driver. >> i know the truth of what happened with my wife. she's not an alcoholic. she doesn't drink. she's an outstanding mother. >> reporter: the schulers about

to retest diane's dna, still disputing the autopsy results, instead claiming a medical condition was to blame. >> something medically had to happen. >> reporter: even though prosecutors say no criminal charges will be filed, the schulers may still face a civil suit from the bastardi family, who lost two loved ones in the crash andalled the schulers' claims assaulting, appalling and beyond outrageous. for now, 5-year-old brian schuler is recovering at home, still too young to fully comprehend his devastating loss. >> he misses them. he asks for them. he asks if mommy's in heaven and is erin with her. >> reporter: brian still has a long road ahead. he's doing physical therapy. he's also meeting with a child psychologist. for now, he's being schooled at home, but his dad hopes he'll be able to rejoin his classmates soon. david? >> peter alexander, thank you very much. we watch that. it's going to be such a long road ahead. it's great to see he's doing better now, but you know it will take quite a while. >> your heart goes out to him. >> absolutely.

meanwhile, al's back with another look at weather. that's right. as we look at what's happening as far as your weekend ahead is concerned, out in the pacific northwest, it's going to be a wet one. we've got another big storm moving on shore. that rain we're looking at over the next 48 hours, about one to two inches of rain. some local areas in the pacific northwest could get three inches of rest of the country, we've got sunshine in new england today, extreme northern new england. sharply cooler throughout the gulf coast with a frontal syste# good morning. live picture from our city camera showing the wet runways at reagan national airport. we continue to have rain and drizzle around where you see the blue on radar across northern virginia, much of maryland and the district. this light rain and drizzle and patchy fog will be with us through the morning. it is certainly chilly. just near 40 degrees in the suburbs, low 40s in washington. upper 30s farther west and north. we stale in the 40s through the rest of the day with occasional

>> that's your latest weather. if you want to keep tabs on your weather throughout the weekend, go to the weather channel on cable or weather.com online. meredith? >> al, thank you. and now to the latest on the 15-year-old florida boy allegedly set on fire by five of his classmates, all because of a stolen bike and a video game. this morning, the mother of two of the teens arrested in the case is speaking out. here's nbc's kerry sanders. >> reporter: doctors at miami jackson's memorial hospital say 15-yeaold michael brewer's life will never be the same. severe burns cover more than 65% of his body. paramedics say brewer might have diedt the scene, had he not run to a nearby swimming pool and jumped in. the young suspects who allegedly doused him with rubbing alcohol and then lit him on fire are all being held in juvenile detention. sherry jarvis says she's at a loss to explain how her 15 and 13-year-old sons who were once friends with michael could have

allegedly turned on him. >> they go to school together. the kid spent the night at my house. they spend the night at each other's house, and it's just something that horribly went wrong, and i -- i don't even know all the facts. that's all i can say. >> reporter: later this morning, the first of five competency hearings will be held. defense lawyers arguing their teenage clients are too young to have understood the consequences of what they allegedly did. attorney steven melnick represents the 13-year-old suspect. >> he may not be mature enough or intelligent enough to even face what happened. >> reporter: but that doesn't absolve him of the alleged crime. >> no, and there is no absolving. this is a horrific incident that happened. >> reporter: this might all have been avoided. michael brewer, who feared h might be targeted by classmates over a dispute involving a bike and a $40 video game, had an appointment to see the school's

on-campus police officer tuesday, but he was so fearful he might be bullied, monday he skipped school, and that's when he was attacked. for "today," kerry sanders, nbc news, fort lauderdale. up next, new scams targeting people's fears over the swine flu. what you need to know.

this morning on "today's health," flu scams. the food and drug administration is announcing a crackdown today on products that claim to prevent, diagnose and treat the swine flu. we're going to talk with the fda's commissioner in just a moment, but first, here's nbc's janet shamlian. >> reporter: with three children, houston mom cindy colvin wanted tamiflu on hand. she got it from her doctor. after realizing many internet ads were just too good to be true. >> well, let's see, my tamiflu cost $120, so, if you get tamiflu for $50, i highly don't think it will be tamiflu.

>> reporter: the fda says in many cases, it's not tamiflu, and it may not be safe. >> i think the key thing is -- >> reporter: deputy commissioner josh sharstein showed us pills purchased over the internet as part of an fbi sting operation. >> this is what arrived in the mail. >> what is it? >> it purports to be tamiflu. >> reporter: sent from india, they won't do anything for the flu. tests show they contain acetaminophen and a filler. >> we found people selling pills that had nothing in it for tamiflu. if people relied on that instead of going to the doctor, they could wind up in trouble. >> reporter: how do you know the real thing? well, legitimate tamiflu requires a prescription, is sold through a pharmacy and the cost is closer to $100. beyond medication, there's a world wide web of marketing going on. hundreds of products claim to prevent or cure the swine flu, like these the fda says are not approved. >> we've seen anything from

shampoos to hand washes to soaps and deeply penetrating megaforce engy waves marketed as effective for the flu. >> reporter: the agency is sending warning letters, warning the companies to pull their claims, including one sent to the celebrity alternative medicine doctor andrew weil, who on one of his web pages recommends a natural supplement. >> if you google swine flu, you'll come up with any one of those that says, you know, e p nk a has authorized the swine defogger for your house. >> reporter: colvin didn't take the bait, but the fda says many consumers have, in a season with high anxiety over the flu. janet shamlian, nbc news, houston. >> and we have reached out to dr. andrew weil and have not yet received a response. peggy hamburg is director of the fda, with us along with dr. nancy snyderman, nbc's chief

medical editor. good morning to both of you. dr. hamburg, besides tamiflu, masquerading as tamiflu, you have products that falsely claim to prevent, treat or diagnose h1n1. what kind of products are we talking about? >> well, there's a whole range. they're the counterfeit drugs pretending to be tamiflu and other things like just mentioned. we've also been seeing things that can be, you know, really quite extreme -- air purifiers that are supposed to protect you against sneezes, wires you can hook up to your bodynd supposedly photons will be pulsed through you that will kill the virus, shampoos, power drops, all kinds of things, and it's very worrisome, because there are medical products that can make a difference that are proven to be safe and effective, and instead, people are going, seeing these other products that are unapproved, unauthorized, unproven, may be harmful, and

certainly give a false sense of protection. >> what can you really do? how much bite does the fda have here to crack down on this and reach out to these companies and make them pull the product? >> well, we are working very hard to identify these kinds of products that are unauthorized as they emerge, contacting the companies, working with them, working with our own law enforcement authorities and with others to get these products off the market. >> well, before i turn to dr. nancy here, let me talk about dr. andrew weil. the fda did send out a letter to him, and this is how it reads in part -- "the fda is determined that your website offers a product for sale that is intended to diagnose, mitigate, prevent, treat or cure the h1n1 flu virus in people. this product has not been approved, cleared or otherwise authorized by the fda for use in the diagnosis, mitigation, prevention, treatment or cure of the h1n1 flu virus." have you gotten any response yet from dr. weil? >> you know, this is not about

one person or one product or one company. dr. weil, i believe, has responded. i think that the information and the product is no longer being advertised on his website. we appreciate that responsiveness. we want to work with people to make sure that they understand what the rules are and get products that are unapproved off of the market. >> right. so, dr. nancy, how much of a problem is this? really playing on people's fears at this point. >> well, playing on fears and on disinformation. the concern is, as always, if you know how to wash your hands and sneeze, that's one thing, but we have to also remember there a very effective vaccine out there now. the concern is always if you delay diagnosis or use something that isn't necessarily going to make you better, or in some cases mht make you worse, there are a lot of products, remember, coming from foreign countries with very limited filter. so, it's a real reminder for people that it's really buyer beware over the web with a lot of products. >> it does raise the question, too, about the vaccine. there are still plenty of

reasons to get the vaccine, but clearly, people are concerned if they're moving to these other remedies as potential. >> people are always, i guess, distrustful of mainstream medicine when it comes down to things like this, but there is a very good seasonal flu vaccine out there, the vaccine for h1n1, effective, works, safe. so, a vaccine in addition to some products. but remember, wash your hands and sneeze. boy, that's the best first letter of defense. and if you get sick, don't self-treat yourself. that's where people get into troubl go ahead, if you're sick, contact a physician immediately. >> all right, nancy, thank you very much. thanks as well to dr. peggy hamburg. for more information, head to todayshocom. still ahead, much more on the balloon boy and other kids who have gotten into trouble in the past.

now to more on that 6-year-old boy who set off a frenzy when everyone thought he floated off in a homemade balloon. it got jeff rossen thinking about how kids do the darnedest things. >> i'm sure you've had a lot of sleepless nights. kids are unpredictable, innocent, mischievous. i still have hair, but my daughter's only 3. who knows, in a few years she could join the ranks of falcon heene or the boy who stole his parents' car this summer or the girl who threw the ball at the phillies game. just roll the tape. he has a nickname already, balloon boy. falcon heene was not in the

balloon, of course, he was hiding in a born in the attic, but no one knew that as the balloon drifted in the sky and the story played out across the country. >> we have a rather incredible breaking news story -- >> reporter: five hours of pure fear. normally, kids just torture their parents, but this one, this one had the entire nation on edge. >> why were you in the attic? >> i was scared. >> reporter: you were scared? what were you scared of, falcon? >> my dad yelled at me. >> reporter: at least he didn't do this. this past july, 7-year-old preston scarborough stole his parents' car keys and then he stole the car, leading police on a high-speed chase that ended at his own house. it's okay. he had a good reason -- didn't feel like going to church. the family joined meredith on "today." >> what is the punishment? >> grounded to my room for four days, no , no video games. >> do you think that's fair? >> mm-hmm. >> reporter: then there was the case this week when 6-year-old zachary christie brought this

spork to school, a camping tool that includes a knife. the school kicked him out, then reinstated him. >> she handed it to the principal, and when they called my name up, i was like, uh-oh. >> reporter: sometimes it takes a while to laugh at our kids'  antics, but there are those precious moments when you have to just laugh right there on the spot. remember this scene at a phillies game this summer? i think every dad in america felt his pain. >> i had been waiting so long to catch a foul ball and here's my first one and over the edge it goes. >> reporter: just when we forget they're only children, they remind us. >> at the end of the day, these are children who have children's brains and developmentally, they're at different places. so, they're not going to think the way that we would think. >> the kid thought he was going to get in trouble, so he hid in the attic. his parents found him. he was forgiven. they were just happy the kid was okay. he wasn't in the balloon at all. anyw, they let the kid go out to play. bad news, fell in a well. >> reporter: we can all relate

to this. when a child is helpless, like baby jessica, trapped in that hole back in 1987, nothing else really matters. the thought of a little boy trapped in a balloon was so chilling, wead to watch. that's what we do when a child's in trouble, when the outcome is uncertain. for parents, real life can be so scary. >> indescribable. >> reporter: but when it ends like this, another reminder that balloon boy is only a kid. >> this is a relief. we're going to watch him a lot closer. >> yeah, just watching that piece, if you don't have kids out there, you're probably not going to have them. >> exactly. >> but they are a blessing sometimes. >> but you're watching that thing, and just the prospect of him being in that balloon -- because it could happen. he could crawl in. >> solutely. anyway, coming up, a fall surprise for meredith. >> after your local news.

good morning. it's 7:56. we have rain around the region. 43, the current temperature in washington. i'm barbara harrison. we are glad you are up with us. in the news, a d.c. mother convicted of killing her four daughters and living with their bodies for months will be sentenced. u.s. marshalls discovered those bodies in january of 2008 when they came to bonita jacks northeast home to evict her. she was found guilty and faces life in prison. students in loudoun county will begin getting the swine flu vacinations available to students during the school day if they have their parents permission. elementary students will be the first to get the vaccinations.

>>. >> chilly and wet. the light blue, that's drizzle across northern virginia, the district and much of maryland. the nearby suburbs are only near 40 degrees. near the bay, mid 40s. 43 in washington. it will stay in the 40s with the rest of the day with occasional

drizzle and watchy fog and light rain. this may continue tonight as well as tomorrow. temperatures in the mid 40s. sunday, we ought to dry out by the afternoon. maybe a little sun breaking out. just a small chance of a passing shower during the day. warming up, drying sunshine back monday into next week. jerry, how is the traffic? pretty ugly for folks trying to get out of silver spring to northwest. southbound 16th street, a broken down vehicle in the way below alaska avenue. elsewhere, the wilson bridge, we are okay. an accident, 66, on the beltway, just moved to the shoulder. we are jammed from fair oaks all the way in. barbara? tonight on "news 4 at 5:00," pudgy pets. the impact of obesity on your four-legged friends. how you can give

8:00 now on this friday morning, october 16th, 2009. cold wind and rain, new york city is the place to be this morning. special thanks to these fine folks for starting the morning with us along with their umbrellas here in rockefeller plaza. i'm meredith vieira along with david gregory, filling in for matt today, and al roker. coming up in this half hour, a very serious subject, teen violence and bullying. >> in the wake of that story out of florida -- remember that 15-year-old allegedly set on

fire by classmates -- understandably, a lot of parents are worried about how they can protect their children from bullies. just ahead, what one expert now suggests. plus, we're going to give you some advice on how to help your high school senior decode the college application process. and 'tis the season for the harvest. around here, that means apples, grapes, pumpkins and more. we're going to show you the surprises that awaited me when i took some little friends on an autumn vacation. but first, a check of the morning's top stories from natalie morales, who is in for ann today. hey, nat. >> hey, good morning to you all once again. and good morning, everyone. the father of that 6-year-old colorado boy who set off a frantic rescue effort thursday when it was thought he had floated off in a balloon says the incident was absolutely not a hoax. rescuers spent several hours trying to figure out how to get the boy down safely. air traffic was even suspended for some time out of denver's airport and even norad was notified and involved in the efforts. this morning his father described how he felt when he found out the balloon landed without his son inside.

>> i was waiting in my little office here, my home office, and they had just given me the news that it had landed. and said he wasn't in it. so, first thing i'm thinking, you know, maybe perhaps he had fallen out. i really don't want to live that again. it was a horrible, horrible moment for me and my wife as well. >> the boy was later found hiding safely in his garage. police are now considering questioning the family again about what they knew after the young boy said on "larry king" last night, "we did it for a show." more attacks targeting police today in pakistan. at least two bombs exploded outside a police station in peshawar, killing at least 11 people. two weeks of attacks now have claimed at least 150 lives. in northern iraq, a suicide bomber killed at least 11 people today during friday prayers at a

sunni mosque. today, president obama heads to texas to promote volunteerism at an event with former president george h.w. bush. last night, the president talked up the benefits of health care reform and criticized the insurance industry for running advertisements critical of democratic plans. and a programming note tonight. a one-hour nbc news special "the secrets of the lost symbol." matt takes a close look at the latest novel by best-selling author dan brown, including brown's ideas about our founding fathers and ancient rituals, all that may surprise you. >> "the lost symbol" takes us on a whirlwind, 12-hour chase through washington, d.c. robert langdon is back, and once again, all is not as it seems. it may be as action-packed as it is thought-provoked. brown spent years researching free masonry. and when they found out that dan brown was going to be dealing with free masonry in this book, what was their reaction?

>> well, i think they were nervous that i might focus on what some would call the macob side of free masonry. >> reporter: some free masons today still practice rituals passed down through the centuries. >> if curiosity spurred you toward us, go away and do not proceed. >> reporter: the enlightment lodge in colorado springs allowed us a rare look at an initiation ritual that's meant to be intense and startling. the subject's vision is taken away with a hoodwink placed over his head. then a master mason dressed as the grim reaper performs a series of symbolic actions to challenge the participant. >> that your soul is fearful, do not proceed. >> i spent a lot of time researching and really had to get to the point where i realized, you know what? the world's a stranger place than we thought. >> sure is a strange place. more tonight on matt's nbc news special called "the secrets of the lost symbol" at 9:00/8:00

central time. it is now 8:04. let's get another check of the weather from al, who is outside on the plaza. all righty. a raw, brisk day, ande've got birthday twins. what are your names? >> ann. >> and? >> sophia. >> where are you from? >> florida. >> miami. >> and what's your name? >> kate. >> how old are you, kate? >> 10. >> 10. very nice. happy birthday. let's check your weather, see what's going on. our pick city of the day, eau claire, wisconsin, 13 nbc. cloudy, cold, 44 degrees. winter outlook is out for the national weather service. it's looking wet throughout florida and the southwestern part of the country because we've got a very strong el nino. drier than normal out to the pacific northwest. temperaturewise, looks much above to above normals ç#ç#ç#ç## roo. >> we certainly have below normal temperatures on this friday morning. temperatures only near 40 degrees now. we do have light rain and drizzle all across northern virginia, maryland, the district of columbia this morning.

we will stay in the 40s throughout the rest of the day. right now, 42 in washington. occasional drizzle and light rain, patchy fog later on today and tomorrow. finally, drying out sunday and of course, it's friday, so you know what we have to tell you about. that's right, "sunday night football night in america." it's a domed stadium, the georgia dome. the eagles, will they fly high? oh, the falcons, i mean, sorry. wrong bird. whoops! oh, dear. well, a big bear will be hunting for some falcons in the dome! cool, temperatures in the 40s on "sunday night football night in america." meredith. >> you are crazy, al roker. thank you very much.

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now to children, violence, and questions raised by a horrifying attack on a florida teen. natalie is here with more on that. natalie? >> david, such a horrible story. 15-year-old michael brewer was set on fire, allegedly by five classmates. now michael's story has prompted a call to action. a mother's anguish. >> this violence has got to stop. people around the world have got to do something. >> reporter: thursday on "today," valerie brewer shared the frightening story of her 15-year-old son michael, allegedly set on fire by five teenage boys after what police say was an altercation over a video game and later a bicycle. just one day before the attack, michael had told his mother he was afraid to go to school, fearing a run-in with the same boys who allegedly s him on

fire. >> we set up an appointment for the resource officer the next morning for him to go talk to her about a game plan about what he could do in school so he could be safe. and it was too late. >> reporter: michael is now fighting for his life. over 65% of his body burned. following our interview, valerie was overcome with emotion. sadly, michael brewer's story is one of a growing number of cases of youth violence. according to a 2009 report by the cdc, youthiolence is the second leading cause of death in people ages 10 to 24. >> it's a gang mentality, it's a group mentality. there's no individualonscience here. it's just do whatever you want to do, and as long as you're hanging with your fries, you could take their example and everybody else takes everyone else's example. >> reporter: for families, especially those like the brewers, personally impacted by

the violence, this is a call to action. >> our children are our future. we have got to get a hold of this, please. everybody in this world, please, help our children. >> and michael still has such a long road to recovery, but his mother hopes that if any good can come out of this story, it's to provide a wake-up call to families everywhere. david? >> natalie, thanks. dr. susan lip kins is a psychologist and an expert on conflict and violence on high school and college campuses. susan, good morning. good to have you here. this really is, as we were talking, so disturbing. >> yes. >> whether you're a parent or not a parent, just to see this kind of violence. but if you look in this particular case, you have a son who says to a mother, i'm afraid to go to school. she says, fine. she's making an appointment with the school to deal with this. it looks like she was being proactive. >> yes, she was doing the right thing, and also her son was doing the rig thing by trusting and talking to the mother and saying, hey, these are kids that i'm really afraid of. and do you know that there are so many kids across the nation who are afraid to go to school because they're being bullied?

>> and what is the most that a parent can expect of a school, in terms of how they respond when you raise these questions? or in the case of michael raising these concerns that he had. >> well, i think all schools want to be safe, but we really have to create a system that's sort of like triage, and immediately, there's somebody there to assess the threat for that child, so that the mother and child can go to the school immediately, speak to a team, like a bully intervention team, whe there would be the proper people -- an administrator, a psychologist, and other people who would evaluate the situation and immediately intervene before the perpetrators have the ability to act. >> you know, onef the things that's disturbing to me, as you see this -- 'tis not the bullying you always hear about, where at worst your kid gets roughed up. this seems so much more severe. in this case for michael, so much more severe. what do you do as a parent, even if those systems are in place in school, to have a threshold to say this is a real concern, there's a real danger here to my child? >> well, you do have to advocate, as this mother did. but bullying is becoming more

violent and more centralized every day, and you have to stop it when it's little so it doesn't get out of control and turn into something that's really assault and way out of control, you know. kids are out of boundaries. >> and listen to your kids if they have a legitimate concern. >> yes. >> in school like this. >> yes. >> susan lipkins, thank you very much. >> thank you.

they say imports always get the best mileage. well, do they know this malibu offers an epa estimated 33 mpg highway? they never heard that. which is better than a comparable toyota camry or honda accord? they are stunned. they can't believe it.

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you know that these days, people are picking their own fruits and vegetables. >> sure. >> this is the perfect time of year to do that. so, i went on a little trip to get a taste of the autumn season. it's the time of year we call the harvest. from farm stands to road stands, the fruits of the growing season are ripe for the picking. >> it's great. >> it is the harvest season. >> at this winery in new york, the harvest is cause for a

celebration. and the first stop on my autumn trip. >> welcome! >> thank you. they said look for the man in the leaverhosen. >> it's easy to find me. welcome. >> the 55-acre property boasts rows of vineyards. it's magnificent. and even though the trees haven't quite turned here, roman says the grapes are ready to be harvested. >> and you can gently hold the cluster like this. >> okay. >> and all you want to do is cut it off here. >> is that all right? >> that's perfect. >> look at me, huh? >> excellent. you're an expert. >> it's not as easy as it seems. ooh! >> oh. >> shoot. okay, i'm sorry! >> start the stomping process now. now it gets real. >> stomping? okay. not a drop of wine, yet, i'm literally over a barrel. well, now, is there a certain speed in which you do it? whoa! >> well, you can do it the south american way, of course, which

is -- >> oh, south american way. >> or the german way, if you want. >> german way. it's a tough crowd. ♪ the minds are alive with the sound of our feet ♪ ♪ i've got those happy feet >> the sunnyland jazz band saves the day. ♪ how do you compete with a man in lederhosen? apparently -- oh, no! ah! you don't. you cheated! the hay ride was more my speed. ♪ i double dare you to do it again ♪ >> we could have stayed at the vineyard all day, but there were apples and pumpkins ready for the picking. jen? hey, nice to meet you. so we met up with jennifer halsey dupree at the milk farm orchard. jen grows 26 varieties of new

york's finest apples. >> when you go to pick an apple, the first thing that we ask you to do is to pick with your eyes. there we go. >> look at this. we both have great taste. wow, it's as big as you! you want toick our own pumpkins? >> yes. >> come on, let's go! let's get a cart. oh, that's great, yeah! yes! across the way at fairview farms, i take a peek at a dizzying corn maze, cut in the shape of a snail with the words "slow food." so, the goal of this maze then is to take your time and enjoy the maze, not just quickly get to the end, which is what i want to do. >> exactly. >> iertainly wasn't going alone, certainly not with my sense of direction. anybody been in a maze before? anybody scared? >> no, never. >> boo! oh, i almost got you. spooky things happen in mazes. well, he's not telling us -- which way is he telling us to go? >> go over there. >> oh!

scarecrow! oh, no. >> he's not dead. >> he's dead. oh, my -- >> are you a good witch or a bad witch? oh, my god. >> which are you? >> i thought he was -- >> follow the yellow brick road. >> what is he doing here? this is my shoot! >> hello. >> hi, matt yvlauer! i guess you never know where in the world matt lauer will show up. >> has she found her way anywhere yet? >> no. >> you own this outfit, don't you? >> this is me on the weekend. >> i was so jazzed up after the corn maze, i had to try my hand at corn popper. >> oh! >> whoa! >> go in the house. >> wait a minute. >> she's going to throw it. >> yeah! >> but this was the real goal. all right, who wasn't cider? >> me! >> oh, okay. we have to make a toast. to experience the harvest, spend a day in the country, and yes,

be a kid again. to the great big pumpkin. happy harvest! that was actually so much fun. >> oh, great. >> that looks beautiful. that is a lot of fun to do with kids, too. >> so much fun. >> now we know what matt does on the weekends. >> i was actually pointing that corn popper at matt. i missed him, too. but look who is here, roman is here in his lederhosen. >> and you actually have something to present this morning. >> we have a little surprise for meredith. >> on behalf of the state team and all of new york and long island wineries, we have a very sexy and voluptuous meredith vieira -- >> sexy and voluptuous! >> are these from when we stomped? >> they are stomped. as serious as we are, we also like a lot of fun, too. >> and meredith, a regular bottle wasn't big enough for meredith. you had to make it a magnum -- >> sofa size. >> you're also here to help us. >> you have to do some serious

barrel rolling. >> uh-oh. >> we're up to it. let's do it. >> serious barrel rolling. >> a team? okay -- >> you're over here, right? >> all righty. one minute. ready? on your mark, get set, go! roll out the barrel! >> okay. >> oh, oh, oh, oh! whoa! >> go, go, go! >> meredith, meredith, come on! >> come on! ♪ >> come on, come on, come on, come on! yay! >> oh, this is a tie, i think. this is a tie. >> no, al won fair and square. >> that was a tie. >> you choked. >> you know what it was? i drank the wine before the segment. that did it. >> i think it was a tie. >> all right. >> oh, my gosh. well, you know what the truth

is, there are so many things to do with kids in the fall, and wherever you happen to be, so go out and enjoy it. those pictures tell the story. make sure you grab your jackets and umbrellas. tom kierein will have the forecast in a minute. >> it is 8:26 on this friday, october 16th, 2009. i'm keith garvin. in 20 of the metro stations, there will be expanded cell phone service for verizon, at&t,

sprint, and nextel, you will have nor service on the platforms. council chairman vincent gray will be holding a hearing about the firing of the school teachers. weather and traffic are

good morning. temperatures now 40 degrees. on radar, light showe and drizzle across the district and virginia and maryland. a much smaller chance of rain sunday. how is the traffic? over on the american legion bridge, both directions, lanes are opened. looking for an overturned car

the ramp from the gw parkway to go on the inner loop. wilson bridge, no hangups. 395 jammed to the 14th street bridge. all lanes are open. be careful. on "news 4 at 5:00," pudgy

8:30 now on this fray morning, october 16th, 2009. it is a messy, messy day here in the northeast as a nor'easter blows. a reminder that winter is just around the corner for all of us.

believe it or not, it is coming. meanwhile, coming up on this show, hillary swank is the third youngest actress to win two best actress oscars, already getting oscar buzz for her latest performance in "amelia." we're going to talk with her. >> she is always terrific. >> always, yes. also, take a look at this unusual looking vehicle that we're going to be showing you. could it actually change the way you see the world literally, or will it just make your legs very tired? we're going to have more on that. >> okay. and then a reminder, country star tim mcgraw is going to be putting on a live concert on the plaza one week from today. hopefully, it's a little warmer. but the good news is, you can pick one of his songs. >> so, here are your choices. ""something like that," "live like you were dying" or "red ragtop." to vote, head to todayshow.com or text your choice to 46833. >> all right. all next week, across the platforms of nbc, a special series called "a woman's nati

nation," and in-depth look at the state of women in this country. maria shriver, the first lady of california, serving as guest editor, and she'll be with us monday on "today." again, it's called "a woman's nation," all next week. >> looking forward to that. meanwhile, kevin bacon is here this morning. >> good morning. >> nice to see you. kevin's here on behalf of the entertainment industry foundation to tell us about a new volunteerism initiative called "participate. what's the idea behind i participate? >> we've got some amazing volunteers back there, by the way. the idea is that volunteering, giving back, finding something to do is both fun and helpful. it makes you feel good. it helps the world. and it's a great website where you can go and actually look for opportunities just to give back. >> and you've actually tied this into your own effort online, six degrees. talk about that >> yeah, sixdegrees.org is a website that we launched a few years ago. it's a place where if you wake up one day and you say i want to help in some kind of a way, we'll steer you in the right

direction. we actually have these really cool good cards that we've created. >> these are great. you did these last christmas. >> yeah, we did them last christmas, we've still got them. what it is is, if you give this to a friend -- you can buy any kind that you want and then give it to a friend and then that friend gets to donate to any charity they want for sixdegrees.org. so, i'm actually going to hand these out to these great people. >> very nice. >> doing their jobs. >> and your other job, the band. are you still touring? >> actually, we played last night here in new york city, had a great time. i'm looking a little too rock and roll this morning. that's what it is. >> your wake-up call -- >> not that you don't have a crack team of show business makeup experts downstairs, but -- >> yes, we do. >> all right, well, kevin, thank you very much. again, if you want to learn more about volunteering, check out the website iparticipate.org. now al, a check of the weather, please. all right. let's see what's going on, show u for today, we're basically looking on the weekend at wet

weather as a low pressure system makes its way along the coast. and the northeast, a big storm coming in the northwest. in between, not too bad, plenty of sunshine, mild conditions. then sunday, sunday, more rain along the eastern seaboa, wet weather in the pacificacificç#ç# wet and chilly on this friday morning. good morning. still getting some drizzle and light rain. where you see the blue on radar, northern virginia, the district and parts of montgomery, prince george's, howard and frederick counties. elsewhere, a little bit of drizzle. only in the upper 30s to near 40. 42 in washington. highs today only the mid 40s and occasional light rain and drizzle throughout the day. some patchy fog tonight with some more drizzle. and you know, with the cold weather outside and all that dry heat on the inside, the months ahead can wreak havoc on your skin, so we've got a new,

online-only series that's all about the science of skin care, including the lotions and potions that release you. so go to ;f skincarescience.msnbc.com and check it out. >> all right, al, thank you very much. we all know that google set out to map the world one street at a time with their street view service. well, now they've taken it one step further. >> and this is the step. it's actually a ride. it's called the google trike, and it's aimed at capturing images from the road less traveled around the world. dan ratner is the designer and builder. dan, good morning. good to see you. >> good to be here. >> explain what that means, the idea o capturing images from the road less traveled. >> right. so, the google trike was ecifically designed to drive off the road less traveled, like a mountain bike trail or pedestrian-only pathway, to capturing panoramic imagery and location information. they get combined and ultimately served to all of you online as street view with google maps and

google earth. >> and there's six categories of places where you're collecting the information. what are they? >> yes. i'm happy to announce that google today, as we speak here on the show, will announce a nomination campaign for all your viewers and groefellow american tell us where you want us to ride this trike. there are six categories. the first is universities, pedestrian malls, trails, sports venues, landmarks, and finally, theme parks like legoland. >> so, if i want you to do my university in rhode island or whatever it is, and then people will do that. >> absolutely. once we get the top nominations, we'll have americans vote on them and deploy the trikes in those areas. >> and you've got ten of these around the world? >> we do. we have them in the united states, in asia, and over in europe, where we've had other successful campaigns like this before. and in the uk, top nominations included warwick castle, and of course, stone hinge. >> i hope your team is in good shape because of all the equipment on the back there. >> yeah, they are. >> dan, thanks very much. this is quite a contraption.

thanks for being here. >> thank you for having me. coming up next, hillary swank is here.

hilary swank is a two-time academy award-winner, and there is already talk of a possible third with her latest performance. i'm embarrassing her now. swank plays legendary pilot amelia earhart in the new movie "amelia." take a look. >> after this round-the-world flight, miss earhart, are you going to give up long-distance flying? >> not while there's always life left in me. always ready for a new adventure. >> frank, give us a big smile for the camera! >> write to me. >> always. >> hilary swank, good morning.

>> good morning. >> obviously, richard gere with you. >> yes, the lovely richard gere. >> the lovely richard gere. let me tell you what the "los angeles mes" said about "amelia." called it a beautifully crafted, a very traditional epic, the kind of adult biographical story movie studios generally don't seem to be making anymore. how would you describe the movie? >> you know, i think more than ever, people have really come up to me and said i can't wait to see this movie, more than any other movie i've been a part of, and i think that just makes you realize that amelia is someone that epitomizes i think what we're all striving for, which is, you know, to live your life the way you want and to not make any apologies for who you are and to live your dream. and to me, that's really what the movie's about. it's also a great love story, and it's epic. it's sweeping. >> but that puts a lot of pressure on an actress, too. on the one hand, it's an irresistible role because she is so iconic. on the other hand, because she

is an icon, getting it right. >> you're right. i think there's a lot of responsibility that comes with playing someone who has lived in the past, especially someone as iconic as amelia. you know, there are all these images we have of her and ideas we have of her. so it's not like you can take a lot of fictional, you know, figure out what you want to do with her. you have to really play true to who she was. >> was she somebody that as a kid you admired? had you paid much attention to her growing up? the story of her. >> i did. i knew the story of her. and it's interesting. obviously, she was american, but she's known worldwide for all of her achievements. i knew of her, but i didn't know, obviously, all that i realized about her in playing her, diving into it. >> more of the human side of her, right? you know her as the aviator, but not the woman as much. >> that's right. that's right. >> you cut your hair for the role. >> i did, i did. >> and went very blond. >> i did. the short blond, yes, which is fun. >> you also learned to fly, something you did not know how to do. did you take to it? do you like it? >> i love it, actually. one of the great things about my

job is i get to learn all these things had i not done because i'm an actor. so i got to fly and i love. it i'm a daredevil at heart. so that's something amelia and i have in common. >> you're not only the star of the movie, you're also the executive producer. so you're not only responsible for owning the part, but also, you've got to pay attention to the bottom line now, whether this thing brings in the money because the bean counters are looking. >> absolutely. >> does that put a particular pressure on you on how you approach a movie? >> you know, it's a good question. i've come on board as executive producer probably my last five movies, and that's really just to make sure that it gets to t screen and you know, trying to help get all the elements together to get it to the screen. because i think a movie's really only as good as its weakest link, so i just try to help put all the components together. >> and now they are talking about another oscar for you, a third oscar. you're hearing them, but why are you shaking your head? >> it's just crazy. first of all, to think -- to hear that word. it's incredible that i have two. it's an honor, and it's something -- it's not what you work for, but just to hear that

is -- it's, you know -- i just, i love being a part of it. >> and you have it for "boys don't cry" and for -- >> "million dollar baby." >> and both times you were up against annette bening and now they're saying she may get an oscar nod again and it would be you two again. is it weird? >> i wouldn't say weird, but it's funny timing, isn't it? it's funny timing. i love annette. i can't wait to see her film. so you know, it would be an honor to be nominated with annette if that were the case. oh, there's a picture of us -- >> hugging. >> hugging. how sweet. >> wait, is that a night gown she has on? no, i'm kidding. >> she's a doll. >> she loves you. >> i really admire her and she's been doing it so long. sh really kind of took me under her wing and is very, very gracious. >> and the truth is, there's room for a lot of wonderful actresses out there. >> that's true. >> there's a great article about you in "marie claire" gazine, but i want to ask you about one

part that's gotten some eyebrows raised. >> yes. >> you're asked about your boyfriend john, and at one point, you say, you know, my boyfriend's son is 6 years old and you wonder at what age you should stop walking around nude. every morning he comes into the bedroom and you're just nude, but he doesn't look twice. he doesn't think about it yet. now, some people, they've criticized that behavior. >> mm-hmm. >> set the record straight. >> the interesting thing is we actually -- the editor in chief and i were having a longer conversation about it. she said what do you sleep in? i said i sleep in the nude, what do you sleep in? and she said i sleep in a night gown now because i have two young boys. and at one point, one of my kids said ew, so i started wearing a night gown. so we had a conversation about what age you do that. i think it's great that you can talk aut things that bring up debates. i think every family is different and you have to know what's right for you and your family. >> before i let you go, you're involved in home for the holidays pet adoption. what's that about? >> yes, home for the holidays.

6 million animals are put to sleep every year and you think, what can i do to help? so i came aboard for iams home for the holidays to raise awareness about this and all the animals that need to be adopted. and everyone usually around the holidays are wanting an animal. and if they are, i'm suggesting they go to the pound and adopt one of those animals that need a loving home that may not find a life without them. i adopted my dog roomi last year and helped, you know -- they're trying this year to adopt 1.5 million. last year was a million and they made that. so let's make this happen. >> absolutely. hilary, it's such a pleasure. nice to see you again. >> nice to see you, meredith. >> again, "amelia" opens nationwide on october 23rd. up next, one man's real life

now to a museum in canton, ohio, that "today" national correspondent tiki barber visited recently, and it was not the pro football hall of fame. hey, tiki. >> you're right, david. it's just down the road from the legends of the nfl, and it's one of america's hidden jewels created by a true american hero. on a quiet stretch of country road in canton, ohio, lies a real-life field of dreams. it began here in the 1920s when a young boy, william powell, watched with fascination as a local golf course was being made. >> it wasn't totally completed, but most of the holes were, and we got excited about seeing something so nice. >> it was then that a lifetime love affair with the game of golf was born. bill was an exceptional athlete. he was captain of his high school football team but was drawn to the game of golf, a

sport that was not always welcoming to an african-american community. his defining moment as an athlete and as a person would come on a golf course. after serving honorably in world war ii, bill powell came home to a segregated america, unwelcome at any of canton's public golf courses. he found that his beloved game had shut its doors on him. so, armed only with determination and a dream, bill powell sets out to create his masterpiece. >> we would say, what is he doing? and they would tell us, he's building a golf course. and we were able to actually see the evolution and the creation of clearview. >> but you did a lot of this by hand, whereas now they have machinery to pull out tree stumps and mow lawns and fertilize. >> i was growing up, i have some

limitations. >> his vision, a golf course designed for all men, regardless of skin color. his daughter rennie is one of only three african-american women to ever play on the lpga. what is it about him that let him see past the racism, the prejudice that he saw? >> you know, my father has a lot of pride and taught us all a lot of pride, taught us all that, you know, you can have a lot of dignity, and i think those are the things that kept him motivated and kept him going, no matter what people said or what people thought. >> breaking ground and breaking barriers in the process. clearview opened with little fanfare in 1946. but what may have seemed like a small step was actually a giant leap. in an era of sports barriers, bill powell became the first and only african-american architect to design, build and own an american golf course. to this day, the course is a

living museum. one man's dreams spanning generations. the clearview legacy foundation has been created to preserve american history and william powell's dream. it is truly a special place where people can actually meet living history. he's 92 years old and very good man. >> and he looks great. wh aninspation. >> thank you, david. >> thank you very much.

and now to the u.s. congressman who recently completed a rather unusual fact-finding mission. representative jeff flake, a republican from arizona, wanted to learn more about himself, so he spent a week on a deserted island with nothing but the bare essentials. nbc's tom costello has exclusive video of that tr. >> reporter: the home video and photos make it look like a vacation in paradise, but when congressman jeff flake landedn a pacific island 2,500 miles from hawaii, it wasn't part of any congressional retreat. >> well, i'm not sure what kind this one is, but it looks tasty. >> reporter: at 46, this arizona republican was out to prove something to himself. >> there's a rat crawling on a tree just behind me. that's why i slept in a hammock last night. and i've always wondered if i could do that, if i could really survive for a while on my own

with the bare essentials, and that's why i did it. >> reporter: congressman flake chose the marshall islands, where the u.s. once conducted nuclear tests, and a tiny island called jabonwod. no people, no fresh water, but lots of fish, coconuts and crabs. >> lots of crabs. all the hermit crabs are red. this one is purple. >> reporter: he brought just the bare essentials -- a magnifying glass to make a fire, a hatchet, knife, cameras and sunscreen, a pan to cook the meals he caught and a lto for his diary. >> i remembered my only conversation with the marshallese about what i should do if i encountered sharks. "look them in the eye." yeah, right, not unless i have eyes in the back of my head while i'm swimming away. >> reporter: and it turns out eels and sharks were lurking every time he went spear fishing. >> i just stuck my mask in the water, and not 30 feet offshore was a big blacktip shark. they would come and they would typically do circling motion a few times.

>> reporter: for a week he documented everything for his wife sheryl and their five kids back home, but this congressman-turned survivalist soon realized without them it was all rather empty. >> whatever you think would be so much fun, it's not nearly as fun when you don't have somebody to share it with. >> reporter: an unexpected life lesson a long way from home. for "today," tom costello, nbc news, washington. >> and of course, his last name is flake, right? >> yeah. >> but i thought that was great. >> a great idea. >> he was great. >> i loved it. we should try that. >> let's just do it. >> girls versus the boys. >> that would be good. you guys would so lose. >> probably. >> i'll just stay here to make sure everything's cool on this end, then you guys -- >> no, no, no. >> yeah, as long as you could bring your little man bag with you. >> it's not a man bag. it's a tote. >> it's a man purse. >> it's a tote. >> oh, please!

gt getting a live look now. hard to see much of anything. the district is in the background. it is hard to tell because of all the clouds and it is still raining out there. meteorologist, tom kierein will have your forecast in a bit. 42 degrees at 8:56. good morning. i'm keith garvin. in the news for today, democrat, creigh deeds is getting some help. he is trailing bob mcdonnell in most polls. mcdonnell is also leading in fundraising. starting next month, it will be easier to get from woodbridge to tyson corner. prtc is starting a new bus

route, monday, november 29th. the first week will be free. they stop at the vdot commuter lot and will head to the tyson's corner area. weather and traffic are next.

good morning. a gray, wet, and chilly friday morning. live picture from the sky watcher camera showing the overcast sky producing light

rain and drizzle. across northern vary varks washington and in the nearby suburbs of maryland. the temperatures, still holding steady in the upper 30s and low 40s. 42 in washington. we have near peak color off to our west. a much smaller chance of rain on sunday. we had an accident south on 270 near shady grove road. we are still slow from germantown on down. elsewhere, no issues at the wilson bridge. on the inner loop, police are wrapping up an earlier accident. thanks. tonight on "news 4 at 5:00," pudgy pets. the impact of obesity on your

and we're back now with more of "today" on a sloppy friday morning, october 16th, 2009. but the good thing is, it's friday. we like that. and we are so happy to have so ny starlets still hanging out with us in rockefeller plaza. they get gold stars today. i'm al roker along with david gregory and amy robach. matt is off and ann is out. natalie is at the news desk handling duties there and we'll check with her in a moment. >> know where everybody is. coming up in this hour, the balloon boy, as he is now

called. thursday afternoon, millions were transfixed by what looked like a homemade ufo flying over the skies of colorado. word was,t was a homemade weather balloon, and a 6-year-old boy was inside. turns out, as we now know, when the balloon finally touched down, thereas no one inside. the boy was at home all along and he was safe. but new video was just released of the balloon taking off from the family's home and we're going to get more on what that seems to show and talk with the falcon family. all that coming up just ahead. also ahead, something you guys might not think about often, beating the bloat. do you even know what that means? >> i don't know, but it doesn't sound right. >> we'll tell you what to eat and what to stay away from on the days where you feel your stomach just can't get any fuller. i guess us women might be the only ones who know what that's like. >> we like full stomachs. >> that's when you just unzip your pants and stretch out on your favorite recliner? >> or something like that. >> while we're talking about body parts, by the way, later with the help from three women from our crowd, we'll sho you how to give yourself a bra

makeover. >> that's what david and i talk about in the makeup room! >> no, that's what we talk about on the recliner. >> that's right. plus, some advice for helping your high school student understand college applications. but first, let's get a check of the top stories from natalie at the news desk. >> wow. >> okay, i'm going to save you guys here, how about that? good morning to all of you once again. good morning, everyone. there's no letup today in the two-week campaign of terror in pakistan. three suicide bombers, one a woman, attacked a police station in the city of peshaw. at least 11 people were killed. president obama is asking even his strongest supporters to be patient on health care reform. in san francisco thursday night, he told democratic fund-raisers he hopes their enthusiasm for his campaign was not just a fad. and an astonishing finish on this heart-stopping video from melbourne, australia. a stroller rolled off a train platform on thursday with a 6-month-old baby inside. a train dragged the stroller 30 yards, but the infant survived with just a bump on his head.

truly a miraculous story. shovels are seeing more action than the rakes in parts of the northeast. a fall snowstorm dumped several inches of snow, a record for mid-october. partof pennsylvania could even get up to ten inches. the storm also kicked up some rough surf along the jersey shore as one reporter found out firsthand. in that live shot there. >> oh! >> yeah. also, a horse was up to its neck in trouble on thursday when the ground gave way beneath it in coolidge, arizona. crews dug an escape route, and with a mighty tug, thank goodness, the nightmare was over and the horse seems to be doing just fine. it is now three minutes past the hour. let's turn it back over to david, amy and al. >> wow, that was a newscast of plenty of amazing video. >> lots of good video. >> i like the reporter. man. >> so, how sloppy, wet, cold -- >> yes, right. and then there's the weather. let's take a look, show you what's going on. and we'll show you for today, we've got anywhere fm one to eight inches of snow throughout parts of pennsylvania and on into upstate new york, and then

we've got more of that still falling, although it is starting to lighten up, but it may reappear over the weekend because we've got a couple of low pressure systems, another nor'easter expected to develop early saturday. we're not quite sure the track, but we think it's going to move up and along the eastern seaboard, bringing more coastal gales, heavy rain and mountain elevation snows. so, it's going to be a real mess. in fact, there could be anoth a#

>> and that's your latest weather. natalie? al, now back to the story everyone is talking about this morning, the bizarre balloon adventure in colorado and the little boy, falcon heene, millions of people thought was inside that balloon. nbc's lee cowan is live in ft. collins, colorado, this morning in front of the heene home. lee, good morning. >> reporter: well, good morning, natalie. yeah, the family that's released new video now of the moments just as that balloon was taking off from this backyard. the video seems to show the father doing a countdown. he says, "three, two, one," the balloon slowly starts to lift off the ground. then he becomes very agitated because the family -- appears to be his wife -- wasn't holding onto the tether. that's why he's mad. at this point, he didn't know that his son, falcon, may have been inside. but that's the moment that the balloon did, in fact, take off. this video is only going to add fuel to the fire that, perhaps, this could be a hoax. the police insisted yesterday they didn't think it was. they said they weren't going to file any charges.

now, however, they say they have more questions for the family. it may be one of the most famous balloon rides never taken that ended with a tearful homecoming for a little boy who never left home to begin with. >> this is a relief. we're going to watch him a lot closer. >> reporter: it all started with richard heene's invention, a flying saucer he had built in his backyard, a helium balloon about 20 feet in diameter, that broke loose. >> and it looks like he's going 500 miles an hour. >> reporter: heene's three children had a day off from school, and the older brother told his parents that 6-year-old falcon had somehow climbed aboard that balloon. as it floated aimlessly through the busy air space near denver, a frantic two-hour chase began that played out live on tv sets all across the country. >> when it finally does come down, what's it going to hit? >> there is no manual for this. it's one of those "apollo 13" type situations, where you have to make it up on the fly with what you have.

>> he's 1,400 feet off the ground right now. >> reporter: there was talk of shooting it down or of military helicopters nudging it out of the air, all to somehow save the boy believed to be inside. >> trying to coordinate things with the air national guard right now. >> reporter: but then, fate. as cold air came in, the helium began to leak out, and the spaceship came in for an unexpectedly soft landing. >> there's nobody in the balloon. >> reporter: problem was, there was no boy. the balloon was empty. a happy moment, but also a puzzling one. just where was the balloon boy? had he fallen out? for three hours, no one knew. >> he's at the house and he's fine, and that's all the information i have. >> reporter: finally, the news came. the balloon boy had been hiding all along. why? because earlier, his father had scolded him. >> he says he's hiding in the attic, because i yelled at him, and i'm really sorry i yelled at

him. >> reporter: he was never even near the balloon when it lifted off and was apparently oblivious to the adventure that the rest of the nation thought he was on. >> i didn't want to come out very soon or else he would yell at me. i thought i would get in trouble. we're in the middle of hurricane gustav. >> reporter: richard heene says he's chosen to raise his family unafraid of adventure. a storm-chaser, he routinely took his children along as they pursued dangerous weather. >> this is the east side of the eye blowing north. >> everything that richard does with them is to do with anything to do with science and extraterrestrial and chasing storms. >> reporter: the heenes are not your typical family next door, says sherry silver. >> i didn't realize that this was about insulting each other's children. >> reporter: she should know. she appeared with the heenes on "wife swap," a reality show about wives and mothers trading places with other husbands and

families. >> my first initial feeling was, oh, my god, is richard trying to get himself back in the news? >> reporter: in the end, the man who had hoped to make headlines with his brand new invention did just that, but, it would seem, for all the wrong reasons. no word yet on exactly what all of this costs, but it certainly wasn't cheap. the sheriff here says it's not necessarily all that odd for a missing child to be actually found in their own home or somewhere nearby and they don't come out because they're afraid, but they say this is the first time they've ever started a missing child investigation by chasing after a ufo. natalie? >> lee cowan, it certainly was such a bizarre story. thank you so much. and earlier, the heene family spoke with meredith from their colorado home about the incident that many believed this morning was perhaps a publicity stunt. take a look. >> richard, i want to give you a chance to help clarify some of the questions surrounding falcon and this balloon and the disappearance of your little boy last night that are swirling around this morning, and they all revolve around something

that falcon said last night on "larry king live," so let me play you that sound bite first and then we'll talk about it on the other side. >> falcon, did you hear us calling your name at any time? >> mm-hmm. >> you did? >> y did? >> why didn't you come out? >> you said that we did this for a show. >> richard, i know you've had all night to talk about this with your family. what did falcon mean when he said "we did this for a show"? >> well, first of all, let's clarify, he's 6, and i don't know that he really understood, you kn, the question that was being answered. he did answer other questions kind of on the same level. but after the initial interview with all the people out in front, i told everybody, my kids and my wife to come inside, and

i looked behind me. they weren't there. so then i go over to open the garage, and falcon's climbing up in the joist, in the attic space. and rafters there. so then i looked to the right, and it was like 30 press people there. and anyway, somebody had asked him if he would show them how he got in the attic. so, he was obliging them, and one of the guys told him it was for some tv show, and that's what he was referring to when he made that statement. >> let me just ask you right now, just put it out there and get your honest answer -- was this a hoax or a publicity stunt? >> absolutely not. now i'm starting to get a little ticked off because i'm repetitively getting asked this the last couple of interviews, and i mean, what have i got to gain out of this? i mean, i'm not selling anything. i'm not advertising anything. my family and i, we do this all

the time. you know, we're always doing some kind of scientific research. we're always building something together. i teach my kids how to shoot cameras. you know, it's highly educational for my boys. so, no. i mean, absolutely not. this is not some kind of a hoax. >> let's go back to yesterday morning. you're testing out this balloon that you and the family have built. it's a prototype. you hope one day that balloons like this will be used to transport people from one place to another. it gets unloose from its tethers. what happened? >> after we constructed it, the kids and i had started to fill it up with the helium, and it was tethered down, to our understanding, anyway, and we went to go hit the release pin, and it's supposed to levitat it 20 feet off the ground, and the

electronics are supposed to kick in. but anyway, it just kept going. so, mayumi and i were shouting at each other about the tether, whether it was tied or not. and then bradford was trying to get my attention -- >> your 10-year-old. >> -- to tell me -- right, right. he was trying to get my attention to tell me that falcon was inside, and it wasn't until i started going toward the house that he really got my attention, that he may really be inside. so, we searched the perimeter, calling out falcon's name, searched inside the house, and then -- >> what's going through your mind -- >> came back and asked him, are you absolutely -- um, well, the thing that goes through my mind is he might be right, because as time was progressing, we don't

see falcon. and so, you've got to kind of believe what he says, because you know, after a while, we're looking up in the sky and this thing is gaining some distance. so, i figured, you know, i've got to call somebody, since, you know, somebody's got to help us out. >> when it finally landed and falcon was not inside, what went through your mind then? >> i was waiting in my little office here, my home office, and they had just given me the news that it had landed, and they said he wasn't in it. so, i mean, the first thing i was thinking, you know, maybe perhaps he had fallen out. i really don't want to live that again. it was a horrible, horrible moment for me and my wife as well. >> fortunately, three hours later, he appeared, almost out of nowhere. you're sitting in the house and

falcon comes around the corner and he is okay. you have since said that you think that he hid out because you hayelled at him earlier in the day about getting in the compartment of that balloon, something that parents -- you know, we're always yelling at our kids trying to protect them. looking back now, do you blame yourself, richard? do you feel, if i only hadn't said that to him? >> yeah. you know, i probably yell at him a bit too much. you know, he's just a little guy. he's 6 years old. and he -- i think he sometimes takes things a little bit too serious. >> you've been through a very difficult time, obviously, richard, and your family. and so many people were looking for your son. i want to give you the opportunity to say whatever you'd like to to those rescuers who were searching for falcon. >> yes. i'd like to really, really, honestly thank everybody that was involved, for the sheriff's

department, for the national guard, anybody else that was involved in this search. it really means a lot to us. >> and that was meredith again talking with richard heene and his family earlier this morning. still to come, helping your high school senior decode the college application process. but up next, why parsley may help slipping into your jeans a little easier. town house toppers-- the only cracker with raised edges... to keep dip in its place. town house toppers-- part of the town house family. when it comes to toppings, we've got the edge.

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jeans, but your stomach is swollen and you can't zip them up. sound familiar, ladies? bloating is a common, very annoying problem wit many causes. "redbook" editor in chief stacy morrison is here with ten bloat-busting secrets. so, we're talking about the bloating, and sometimes you can anticipate when it might be coming on. >> absolutely. >> you have some tips. >> yes, we do. >> the first thing you say is cut out the soda. >> it's the bubbles. the bubbles stay in your body. your tummy will be much flatter if you stick with still water. >> and poe sass yum-rich foods. what does this do? >> cantaloupe, mangos, tomatoes. it regulates your body. eating asparagus, these kinds of things. asparagus in particular is also a diuretic, very powerful in helping your body release extra fluids. >> that's good to know. next, you say nibble on parsley. i've never heard of that. >> it's also a natural diuretic, cleanses your body. >> okay.

also, you say, we're talking about good bacteria. you want probiotics in your system. yogurts -- >> specific yogurts. >> there is a bacteria that they find helps women with ibs, constipation, gas, bloating. there is a similar ingredienin here, where if you have a problem with cramping and bloating, you can anticipate it. >> and you might anticipate bloating for pms. >> prepare for pms. if you feel pudgy before your period, day of your period, you need calcium and magnesium. you can also take mid yol, which has natural diuretics in it that help you shed the extra water. but it's good to stay up on these all t time. >> you have some tips, and this first one is my favorite. keep your mouth shut, you say. >> it's true. if you drink through a straw, if you talk a lot when you eat and the soda bubbles combine to fill your body with air. chewing gum. >> that's a huge problem of

mine. the next, limit sugar substitutes. >> particularly sorbidol. some people have a hard time digesting, fills you up with air. so, if you're chewing sugarless gum and drinking diet soda, there's a couple big awers right now. >> i think a lot of people do that. >> yes. >> you also say stay active and keep moving. >> right. constipation is very easily -- it's a big bloat problem. >> right. >> 15 to 20 minutes a day of just walking. you don't even have to be running. keep your body moving. it keeps everything moving. >> cut carbs in the evening. >> cut carbs in the evening. you retain water overnight and you bloat up like a pizza. exactly. >> and you say apply pressure. >> there's a way here, where, it sounds strange, press up, around, to the right in the direction where your colon is. it can actually break up air bubbles working in there and then maybe the jeans will fit. >> that's good advice because everyone wants the jeans to f on that special saturday night. stacy morrison, thank you very much. >> thank you. moving up from your stomach to giving yourself a bra

makeover, and a special concert from five for fighting, the man behind the national anthem "superman" has a new song out and he's going to sing that for us little later. of all the things made just for women,

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a shot of reagan national airport. it is wet everywhere. maybe not the way you wanted to start the weekend weatherwise. tom kierein will have your forecast. 42 degrees at 9:26. good morning. i'm keith garvin on this october 16th, 2009. in the news, d.c. residents will get to express their frustrations about the recent firings of more than 200 teachers due to a budget short fall. councilman vincent gray will be holding a meeting today and

mayor fenty plans to hold a similar hearing later this month. the d.c. mother convicted of killing her four daughters and living with their bodies for months will be sentenced. they were discovered in january, 2008 when they came to her northeast washington home to evict her. she was found guilty this

good morning. we continue to have chilly rain across the district. we will beholding saiddy in the low and mid 40s for another hour or two and hit mid 40s for this afternoon and hold steady throh the afternoon with more light rain and drizzle. off and on tonight as well as saturday. driving out on sunday. how is the traffic, jerry? pretty substantial delays on the beltway.

new hamshire. had an accident on the inner loop. should find the lanes open. still sluggish. tonight on "news 4 at 5:00," the impact of obesity on your four-legged friends. four-legged friends. what can i say? i love clothes! the only thing better than a great pair of boots... is a bag to go with them! so my girlfriend says, "shop tj maxx" and i thought, "low prices, sure... but isn't it last season's stuff?" boy, was i wrong. their buyers deal directly with designers... the savings come directly to me! behold a fashionista... who's now a maxxinista! tj maxx. let us make a maxxinista out of you!

oh, boy. you really loused up that toast. >> it's not my fault. eleanor didn't leave the recipe. >> sorry. that's suzanne somers, the '70s sitcom star. after a bout with cancer, an advocate for alternative medicine. she's going to be here to talk about why she's so convinced it's the way to go. we're going to hear about that and a whole lot more monday on "today." meanwhile, coming up in this half hour, i'm joined by natalie

morales and amy robe yook and we have susie essman here. the "urban your enthusiasm" star isn't curbing anything in her new memoir. [ laughter ] we'll talk to her about the real susie, just ahead. >> she doesn't even have to open her mouth and she's funny. >> she's actually a very nice person, which is surprising to a lot of people because her character is so awful. if you had your wife standing there with you, you knew you were in trouble. >> dressed just le that. >> exactly, exactly. from susie to bra makeovers, some lucky ladies from our crowd, they got plucked from the plaza this morning. you know, many women have been actually wearing the wrong bra for their figure for years, so we've got some expert help here as well. are you all right? >> yes, we are. and we also have an expert in the college application process. everything has changed, the number of choices, the expense, the competition and the lingo. we'll tell you what you need to know to help your kids navigate the process. and it is a cumbersome one. > that's right. meanwhile, amy, what's coming up

this weekend on "weekend today"? >> al, it's funny you ask. i can actually tell you. first, a somber anniversary. survivors relive the horror 20 years after a major earthquake struck san francisco, killing dozens of experts say it will happen again, so what can be done to prevent tragedy next time? plus, the holiday spping season has already begun. we have the hot gifts already flying off store shelves. we're going to teach you some shopping strategies so you can save big time. it's crazy. it's not even halloween yet, right? >> i know. and the story of skippy, a baby kangaroo raised by hand after his mother abandoned him. >> aww. >> aww. >> that's this weekend on "today." meantime, we did a barrel-rolling segment and natalie hurt her knee. let's have that ice, which she so desperately needs. >> i'm okay. >> she kne ks ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç#ç# good morning. the radar still showing a persistent area of light rain an drizzle over washington and up and down, just north and south of washington. this is going to continue here

over the rest of the day. we'll have this scattered area of light rain and drizzle, perhaps expanding a bit as the day progresses. it is only 43 in washington, just near 40 in the suburbs. upper 30s farther west and north. high today, only the mid 40 and of course, it's friday, so you know what that means. it's time for "sunday night football night in america." that's right. we've got a good one. the falcons, will they fly high against the bears or will the bears take their claws out and mangle the falcons? oh, sorry, i got confused, carried away there. they're going to be in the dome stadium, so don't worry, it's going to be clear and cool, temperatures in the 40s. that's all coming up on "sunday night football night in america"! natalie. >> god, help us. al, thank you. coming up next, desiring the

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it's tough to reach that five servings a day if you don't always le the taste of vegetable good thing v8 v-fusion juice gives you a serving of vegetables hidden by a serving of fruit. v8. what's your number? this morning in "today's classroom," decoding those tricky college admissions terms. what's the difference between early action, early decision and rolling admissions? well, katherine cohen is here to tell you. she's a college admissions expert and founder of ib wise. good morning. >> thanks for having me. >> we have several terms here.

i know none of them. maybe it's because i'm too far gone from college and i've got young ones at home. but this is pretty significant having to go through all these different terms for parents. >> exactly. most parents have been out of the process for over 25 years. >> right. so, the first term is common application. >> right. >> what is that? >> this is a great way of filling out your information once online and sending it to multiple colleges, but you have to be wary, because a lot of colleges that participate in the common application have supplements where you have to write extra essays, so be sure you do those in time. >> all right. the next term is regular decision. what is that versus, i guess, a complicated decision or, what does that mean? >> well, this is the most common time to apply, regular decision. usually, the application is due anywhere between the middle of december to the middle of february, but you need to check the date. and you get your admissions decision the first week of april. you can apply to as many schools as you want regular decision, and it's a great way to compare financial aid packages in the spring, when you find out your decisions. >> all right. the next term is early decision, and there are several ways to

apply early to colleges. what are those? >> exactly. early decision is a binding decision. so, you can only apply to one school early decision, because if you get in, you must attend. so, it should be your first-choice school. and that application is actually coming up. it's due either november 1st or 15th. and you find out early. you find out by the middle of december. >> are your chances of acceptance better if you go with early decision? >> yes, actually, it's been shown that you can increase your chances of admission anywhere between 20% and 70%. so, for example, brown university last year, their regular decision admin rate was 30%, but regular was 24%. >> is there a certain student who should go for this decision? >> it's a student whose end-of-year grades show who they are as a scholar. they finished their standardized testing by october of their senior year and they're not looking to compare financial aid packages. because if you get in in the early round, you're going to take whatever they give you. >> so, regular decision, early

decision, and now early action. what is that? >> it's similar to early decision, but it's not a binding decision. so if you get in, you don't necessarily have to attend. you can still apply to a number of schools regular decision, and then in the spring compare all your offers and decide where you want to go. now, in theory, you can apply to several schools early action, but you really have to read the fine print on the applications. >> wow. what type of student is that for, compared to the early decision student? >> well, a student who still wants to have that advantage of applying early and shows early interest in the school, but they may want to, again, compare those financial aid packages in the spring so they don't want to be locked into a school. and maybe they haven't decided it's their for sure first choice yet. >> okay. the next term is rolling admissions. which schools use this system, and is there a strategy to applying to a school with a rolling admission process? >> yes. this is usually used by larger state universities or community colleges, and it's an open admissions plan where it's kind of like first come, first served. so, we advise students to apply as early as possible.

we're having our students send those rolling applications in september or october, because as they're admitting students, that financial aid and housing, those options are really becoming less and less. >> right. there is a newer term now. it's called score choice. whatoes that mean? >> well, that was a term created by the college board, and they've changed the way you can send in your s.a.t. scores. so, you can choose your best s.a.t. score from one date or one sitting or your best s.a.t. subject test score and send it into your colleges. however, there's a huge, long list of colleges who are not honoring score choice. in other words, they want to see all your test scores. >> right. >> so we're advising students to only going into standardized tests prepared, assuming that at least some of their colleges will be seeing all of their scores. >> all right. the next term may sound like a dream come true for students. it's called test optional. what does it really mean? >> it is a dream come true. well, there is about 840 colleges in the country that are test-optional, where you don't have to send in any standardized tests. you can find a list of those

schools at fairtest.org, and it's great for students who don't want to prepare for standardized tests or don't want to spend the time and money doing that. >> that would be every student, unless the parent says you are taking that test! katherine cohen, thank you. >> thanks for having me. >> up next, susie essman is here. good thing fisher price created drop it here, honey. the geo trax easy rail station. it lines up train wheels so he can do it all by himself. i did it ! and only geo trax timber town railway has it. ( chooo-choo ) the remote control is easy to use. it's simple to put together and built to last. the geo trax timber town railway... keeping his imagination running full steam ahead. only from fisher price. pop-tarts®, please! ♪

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you'll never have to call them to the dinner table twice comedian and actress susie essman has been making folks laugh as the seriously sarcastic susie green on nbc's "curb your enthusiasm." check out her reaction when she finds out that her cemetery plo is next to the show's creator, larry david's. >> because larry, i don't want to be next to you for eternity. may i be so bold? >> your best self emerges -- >> you don't know that. listen, even your best self i'm not interested for eternity. >> susie's written "what would susie say? wisdom aut love, life and comedy." susie, good to see you.

>> you know, al, i'm so happy to be here with you. it was by accident, because i was bumped. i was supposed to be on earlier. i was bumped by balloon boy, which, i don't get the story. he's safe. enough said. >> done. >> done! >> forget about it. so, your character, susie green, it's like you say what everybody is thinking or wants to say. >> correct. and i don't -- i, susie essman, don't say that in real life. so for me, it's such a release to play that character. >> i was going to say, does that feel good when you spew that venom? >> it's the greatest. it's the greatest. i show up on the set and i spew venom and larry inevitably giggles whenever i yell at him because he's a masochist. he loves to be yelled at. so, he's giggling and he ruins take after take after take. so i have to do maybe 15, 20 takes of yelling and scream 'and it's like primal therapy, and nobody gets hurt. >> that's right. >> nobody gets hurt. >> you're saving money on therapy bills. >> exactly. then i go back to the hotel room, because we shoot in l.a.,

i live in new york, and all of my muscles are relaxed and i fall asleep. it's just the greatest. >> do you have people come up to you and ask you to like swear at their husband and things? >> yes, yes. but as i said, i'm acting. that's not who i really am. >> that's not you. so, in this book, i love that you talk about so many different things in the book, including -- you're newly married. you've been married for a year. >> right. >> your husband is in love with the weather channel's jim cantore? >> yes. it's what we call weather porn in my house, because he can't stop -- if there's destruction in a hurricane -- tornadoes. he particularly loves tornadoes. the destruction he can't stop watching. >> so, the worst the weather, the luckier you get. >> the first thing in the morning, he turns on the weather channel. last thing at night while i'm asleep he's watching the weather channel. he's obsessed with the weather, and you know, the weather is the big -- >> your husband kind of looks like jim cantore. >> i know, exactly! i talk about that in the book. it's like there's an identification thing, but he doesn't wear a windbreaker.

jim cantore's always in a windbreaker. he's the bravest man i know, jim cantore. >> he is. >> is he a good guy? >> he is. well, i saw him kill a guy once, but other than -- >> but isn't weather the great equalizer of us all? >> absolutely. >> you know, we think we're so in control and powerful, and then the weather hits and we can't control it. >> like, you're going to the yankee game tonight. you've got tickets. >> i might be going to the yankee game tonight. we'll see what the weather is. should i go? >> i think you should. >> how should i dress? >> bundle up. >> really? >> dress like you're jim cantore. >> i can't get sick right now, because i'm on a book tour. >> it's not the cold weather. it's the touching of the people. i don't touch anybody. purell, purell, purell. i have a chapter about that, too, the hypochondriacs. i used to go on planes, wipe everything down. people would think i was crazy. until now, the swine flu -- >> who's crazy now? she knows. >> also, you have to be careful at the atm, the touchscreen things. what are the odds that not one person before you was not a

nose-picker? >> okay, good thought! susie essman, thank you. >> purell. >> the book is "what would susie say?" up next -- why don't you read this for me. oh, how to find a better-fitting bra. most women don't have the right-fitting bra. courtesy of some of the crowd outside. but first this.

is this morning on "today's style," bra makeovers. there's more to finding the right bra than just knowing your size, apparently. this morning, three lucky women in need of a little lift were chosen from o crowd, and cindy johnson of soul lingerie, is here to show them the difference the right bra can make. cindy, good morning. >> good morning. >> good to have you here. >> thank you. >> now, a lot of us, it turns out, are wearing the wrong bra size, but the average bra size is actually larger than a lot of us think, right? >> it's so true. at soul, we fit over 9,000 women

a year, and our average size is a 32d, 32d and a 36d. >> wow, so, it is a much bigger size than most of us would expect. okay, let's get to our makeovers right now. and as i said, we've picked three lucky ladies from the plaza this morning, who all agreed very generously and courageously to come on the air for this segment. we're not going to see them in their bras, but -- in their full bras. let's take a look. this is debbie before. what was wrong with what debbie was wearing before? >> so, the bra that debbie was wearing was a t-shirt bra, and t-shirt bras are terrific when you're wearing t-shirts in the summertime. but as we go into fall and winter, it's really important to switch your style over to the styles that are going to be lace and have the seams, because they give you more shape and more support. so, what we did was put her in a better bra. we didn't necessarily switch her size so much for her, but put her in a better bra so that she sits in the right spot in her irt, where the darts are, instead of below the spot where she needs to be. >> was she wearing the right

size, though? >> she was. and we find that over the years, women are getting fitted, and they do find their right size, but it's not always the right shape. >> debbie, how does that new bra feel? >> it feels great, and i'm really happy because it's such a pretty bra. >> i was looking at it, you would think something so lacy wouldn't have as much support built in, but they're getting better, right? >> it is so important to do the lace because it is more supportive than a regular t-shirt bra. and it's nice to have something that's pretty. it doesn't always have to be ugly. >> it is beautiful. i know you were a high school teacher and you were like, ooh, before doing this segment. next, let's take a look at pam beforehand. she actually has been fitted for a bra in the past but says the fit still wasn't quite right. so, what was wrong with the bra she was wearing, cindy? >> so, again, much like the previous top, we need a specific bra to make this top work right. >> it's the lower cut top. >> it's got the plunging neckline. you want something different because the pattern and the neckline. you need a different bra.

the bra we went with is a beautiful bra -- >> it's a gorgeous bra. >> and a color that's really popular this season. it looks beautiful with the top but gives her a lot more lift, pulls her in and flatters the neckline more. >> so, when you're shopping for a bra, what do you look for in terms of the fit and the feel? >> so, the first thing that you want to make sure is that the fit is nice and firm around your rib cage. >> right. >> that's where you're getting the majority of your support. anthen you want to make sure that you've got a cup that's doing full coverage so it's giving you that lift and support. >> all right. let's go over to the next model, erin. take a look at what she was wearing before. she also likes low-cut tops like the one she was wearing this morning. so, what was her issue here with what she was wearing before? >> a lot of times, our d cups run into a problem of finding a bra that's low-cut enough that's still going to give them the proper support, and erin was really concerned about doing a demi cut bra like this because she thought she would fall out, but in fact -- >> it's great. >> it worked really good on her. >> and here's the denimi cup.

it's a surprise that a size d woman can wear a demi bra. >> it's amazing. >> al came right on in. >> i love demi moore, but i never knew about demi bra. >> thank you, al. do you want to try it ? >> i'm actually wearing it right now. >> okay, good to know. coming up, we have a song from john from five for fighting coming up. >> performing for hoda and kathie lee.

9:56. good morning. welcome. we have rain falling around the region. i'm barbara harrison. the d.c. mother con viced of killing her four daughters and living with their bodies for months will be sentenced. u.s. marshalls discovered those bodies in january of 2008 when they came to bonita jacks' northeast washington home to evict her. she was found guilty this past july. she faces life in prison but defense lawyers are still raising questions about her refusal to use an insanity defense. let's check the weather now. let's go to tom kierein. good morning. it certainly has been a wet and chilly friday morning. it continues wet. we have, as we look at radar, those areas of blue light rain to even some moderate rain, the

darker blue in northwest washington, parts of charles county. elsewhere, a little bit of drizzle around. it's chilly, only in the upper 30s and low 40s. 43 in washington. reaching mid 40s. drizzle and fog later tthe and tomorrow. drying out sunday. how is the traffic? on the top side of the outer beltway, we will check out. inner loop of the belt way, reports of an accident between connecticut and georgia avenue. outer loop appears to be moving along well. we have the potential for slick roadways throughout the midday. if you are headed for downtown, there it is. 395 looks pretty good at the 14th street bridge. barbara? tonight on

from nbc news, this is "today" with kathie lee gifford and hoda kotb live from studio 1 a in rockefelle plaza. >> hi, everybody. guess what day it is? >> it is october the 16th, the day before my sister's birthday. >> happy birthday to her. >> in dubai. >> way over there. but you have a big weekend coming up. >> yes, i am going to cayman

islands to give a little speech. >> can i tell our little sister sarah to hold it down over there? >> was that me some sorry. >> but this is the great thing. on a day like this in new york where it's rainy and you woke up and it was 38 degree, i had to click on the computer and i looked at the weather in cayman islands, 88. so excited. >> you're giving a speech? >> yes. >> and you're going to make it a long weekend. >> yes, i am. >> are you going alone? >> so anyway, what do you have going on? >> we'll find out the sto and let you know on monday. yes, items going to be a nasty weekend here, but my friends, the hammers, are in town and we'll visit our friends up in levritt. western massachusetts. and they have a car barn full of antique vintage cars and my friend, michael, is a crazy guy. it will be all about cars all

weekend long. >> wow. >> which you can do indoors in a car barn. >> you can? >> it's indoors. >> i don't understand this whole thing you're talking about. >> this is one of the world's great wine collections. i'll be in the wine cellar while everybody else is in the car barn. >> so yesterday i was still at "30 rock" doing some stuff and i walked by one of the tvs and there was an image of a silver balloon just gliding through the air with a banner that says 6-year-old in balloon like flying through the air. i got to tell you, it made me sick watching it because -- >> did they definitively say he was in it? >> that was what the banner said because the last they heard, the brother of the little boy said that there was -- his brother was in that balloon. so keep in mind all these choppers are following it. >> for two hours. >> had there are commentators talking the wind velocity. and i thought you're watching a little boy came reap to his death. there was a point where i just walked away from it. >> when i turned it on, they

were prettyure he was not in it by that time, so i must have -- but i figured i'd come back to it when they find the little boy hopefully saech and sound. and then i tried to go on any other channel and you couldn't. it was everywhere. >> so when the thing landed, this contraption, there was no 6-year-old in it, so everyone was wondering what happened to the kid. s . >> there was a report that something had fallen out of it. >> and lo and behold the little boy was hiding in the gara attic. so anyway, every felt like, wow, thank god. and then the tone kind of changed. >> then the plot thickened. >> then we foundut that the parents of the little boy were on that show called "wife swap." twice. which, you know, that doesn't -- nothing depenagainst that show, they did this thing and they actually interviewed the other couple who they swapped with and one of the women from the other couples said that this man loves publicity and that i bet you he was doing it for publicity.

that was her opinion. so now everybody's interviewing the whole family and -- >> and at a certain point this morning, the little boy threw up several times on, i'm sorry, do you want me to say vomit? i will, if that's -- he vomited. >> it was on live television. which i've never seen that happen on live tv. >> i didn't see it because iwas driving in, but people who saw it thought that he was doing that out of nervous. nobody showeded any concern for him after these projectiles? >> the dad was talking and the boy was resting his head on his dad's shoulder. i thought he was tired because they've been up all night. you know, they were on larry king and doing all kinds of stuff and then whatever. so then the father's been asked a question about -- what was he asked? >> why he said it was for the it tv show. >> right, because the little boy in an earlier interview when they said you were there, did you yell to your parents? he said, yeah, i told my parmts i was there. and then they said is that what happened? and he said, yeah, because it was for the tv show. that left every wondering, wow,

are they doing this whole thing for publicity. >> which the father, by the way, who was talking to wolf blitzer, basically said i'm appalled that you'd ask after all we've been through. i don't know that we'll ever know the truth. what do you think? >> meredith asked the question about that exactly like kind explain what your son said. let's listen to what the father said. >> i go over to open the garage and falcon's climbing up in the joists in the attack space. and so i looked to the right and there was like 30 press people there. and anyway, somebody had asked him if they could show -- he would show them how he got in the attic. so he was obliging them and one of the guys told them it was for some tv show. >> and that's what he was referring to when he made that statement. >> so he's saying it wasn't -- >> and that may be true, but it

is putting a lot of dow in a lot of people's minds. >> whenhe threw up on the air, it was like so disturbing and sad. and you just wanted to jump in and take care of the child. and it seems like everyone was stunned and freaked out and -- >> i think if they didn't have the history that they have having been on the -- >> "wife swap." sd >> yeah, then i think there would be less doubt. >> it will all come out. this is one of those stories that you can in the believe that this baby survived, but a woman was in melbourne, australia, and she had her little stroller with her child in it, and she was by the train waiting i guess for the train to come. and then somehow the brake came off or maybe she -- >> i heard that the wind actually, there was a gust that blew it off. >> and the baby -- watch what happens. watch within second. the train came. hold on temperature it's a hold on. it's all good news. >> the mother is freaking.

>> anyway, what happened was the stroller protected the baby. the baby was fine, okay? >> that's unbelievable miracle. >> fine. totally fine. she's freaking out. >> and when did they move the train some. >> i don't know, to find the -- oh, my lord. >> but the baby, fine. >> not a scratch? >> i think like a few bruises and things hike thlike that butt astonishing? and the thing -- but the stroller was destroyed and the stroller was on top of the baby. >> draw. okay. that you can only call a miracle. and why think anybody's going to think that was a publicity opportunity. >> no, no. >> how about this one? we have to go? megan mccain. >> oh, yes. there was a twit pic that she took. she's showing that she was reading some andy warhol book. we've been doing all these things about pho shopping. it didn't -- i don't know if it looked leak her. and then i got to thinking, something looks not right.

>> she was home alone. or was she? >> yes, now it makes sense. >> i just can't get enough of that andy warhol biography. that's really my thing. all right. our little sister, sarah -- >> hi. we're talking about the kid in the balloon and more people than not think it's a hoax. lois said absolutely a hoax. laura was one of the few people saying just a kid being a kid. but i think there's more to it. >> could have been. >> it's national cupcake day in case -- >> that's why they're all here. and why is the wine here? >> because we're doing a wine segment, but this particular wine, some of the proceeds go to breast cancer. >> half. >> half? >> yeah. and it's not bad. up next, the rain and the cold cooperate keep these women away. >> we'll get the results of today's ambush makeover right after this.

time for our ambush makeovers. and with the weather as cold as it is, it take as determined person to come down to the plaza. escially today. >> our contributors to the stars braved the chill to scour the crowd and they found someone. >> it was awful outside. >> oh, cold. i mean, my fingers felt like they were going to break off, but we found ladies right away. >> in this weather every need as makeover. >> how do you know with the hats on? >> that's a definite one. >> let us begin with vicky. she is 28 years old from akron, ohio. she spends her days working with penguins, lions, tigers -- >> thus the hat. >> oh, my. at the zoo. in high school, her friends were constantly ambushing her trying

to make her look more feminine. the hat, i don't know. she says she doesn't dress up and she hasn't worn a dress in over ten years. >> really so? >> let's listen to her story. >> well, you are going to be an amazing makeover. i know you never get to get dressed up. tell me why this is so important for you to do for yourself. >> again because i never get to dress up. i'm a zoo keeper wearing khaki pants and t-shirts all day. and a penguin hat, of course. but i'm single, i need to get out there a little bit more. it will be a good time. >> well, we're going to pamper you for three hours. are you ready to go in. >> i'm ready to go. let's go. >> i hope you didn't put her in a tux heedo like a penguin. shelly, don't take your blind fold off before i tell you. here's vicky's before picture. all right, vicky, let's see the new you.

>> oh, wow. >> oh, wow is right. shelly, take off that blind fold and check out your friend. >> magnificent! >> vicky, are you ready? first dress in ten years. spin it right here. >> wow. >> i don't know what your hair looked like before, but tell us about the hair. >> vicky's hair did have a little bit of red, so of course i said why not push it, go all the way. and obviously jill followed with the dress. but then of course jennifer layered her hair to make it fluffy, softer, frames her face. >> iant to see the before and after. tell us the dress. >> she doesn't have a dress, so i gave her a dress. now she's going to go out on the town. she told me she would wear it. now she has a dress that you can wear out. and when you have a dress, you make a date to go and wear.

>> terrific. congratulations. step right over there, sweetheart. >> our second lady is candy, she's 40 from platsburg, new york. she's been married to her husband for eight years and she has one ughter. she works at a supervisor at the drug store giving her free reign of the boxed hair dye section. and she's getting her degree in business management leaving her little time to do anything for herself. she's here. mom, put that back on, she's here with her mother and her daughter and let's hear her story. >> well, you are a dedicated mommy out there in the rain with signses. i know you really want your daughter to have a makeover. tell us why. >> because she just turned 40 and she really hated the fact that she was turning 40 and she still looks like a 16-year-old. >> what's up with the peg tails? >> it's easy to put them up in the morning. >> it will be easy to take them down. are you ready for a whole new look? >> yes, i am. >> okay. candy is here as we say with her mother and daughter. let's take one last look at candy before.

there she is. now let's bring the new candy out. >> nice, nice, nice. >> all right. mom and daughter, toward look? yeah, now, take a look. >> oh, my god. >> wow. >> candy, you ready to take a look at yourself? turn around, sweetheart. >> beautiful. >> she's crying. that's good sign. >> candy, that's so great. jennifer cut about accept, eight inches off her hair, which immediately released the hair which is what you needed. i made your hair a little darker and gave you a little bit of lipstick, you look you're 35, 32. >> and what about the outfit, what do you think? >> this will really help her going forward. these are basics. she can put in her wardrobe and mix and match.

>> mom and daughter are crying, too. give your mom and daughter a hug. >> what do you think, mom? >> she's beautiful. >> she is gorgeous. thanks, guys. >> awesome job. congratulations. you have been teschly now ambushed by the "today" show. and we'll be talking about much more today right after this. stay with us.

we're back with our special series looking at breast cancer today. >> and today our focus is how to cope and find the balance with your family. kathy is author of someone i love is sick. and we have a breast cancer survivor with her husband. it is a little tricky when you're trying to figure out how and what to say to your

children, isn't it. >> to talk to everybody, it's tcky. and everybody the first thing is talk to people. tell them what's going on in your life. if you're dealing with cancer, you'll need support. you'll need practical help. >> but people are funny about that,'ve noticed. like sometimes when you say it, there's a look that comes in the eyes. it's almost either a pitying look or and i don't want to know look. >> it can be tricky, but if you just tell people i'm dealing with this, i'm positive, and this is what i need from you. >> and it's very important to use the cancer word with your children. >> yes. first of all, children will probably hear the wrd somewhere. >> or have already heard it. >> preschool children know the word. so if you don't use the word yourselves, and they hear it somewhere else, they'll be afraid. >> when you found out you have breast cancer and you have three gorgeous kids that are here with us, 12, 11 and 9, did you right

away tell them or how did you come to the decision to tell your children? >> we decided right away to tell them. it's their right. it's our duty. they need to know. >> you also took a pretty radical approach to your disease, as well, didn't you? you found a lump in february. take us from there what happened. >> february found a lump. march had a double mastectomy. stage one. no chemo, no radiation. and just the process goes a little, you know -- there's a couple of operations you have to have after it, but -- >> what made you decide not it say mom's sick and she's got -- because what i was thinking was when your children know that you have cancer, they'll tell people that mom has cancer and it's the reaction that they'll get from the other person that might be more frightening than the one that they're getting from you. >> we told them that i had cancer, that it might make me feel sick, i may feel, you know,

certain things might happen. we don't know. but they mow whknow what cancer. clirp are knowledgeable. and if you give them enough information, they're not going to be as scared. >> what about when you told dennis? >> that was terrible. i had to tell him before before he was doing laundry and i wept down and hfr- >> so he's that kind of man. that's a good sign right there. >> and i told him and he said, okay, whatever we have to do. and he's been there the whole time. didn't shoot out the door or anything. >> i think the neck question a child would ask is, oh, it's cancer, but what does that mean? >> we actually discussed what operation we were going to have. because it's just not me. it's the entire family. >> the whole family gets cancer. >> so they all knew about the operation? >> yes. >> and what was the reaction from the kids? >> megan and carly were very calm, very relaxed. my mother and my sister were involved with the decision. about everybody was very

supportive. you know, connor was a little -- he's nine, you know. >> hey, he's right over there. he can hear you talking. he's not up in a balloon somewhere. he's right here. >> there d. they do it right some. >> they d a great job. children need basic information. they need to know if they can catch the disease. they always ask about that. they need to know if they caused it, if it's their fault. and they don't always ask are you going to die, would you sometimes they do. so parents need to be prepared for this that questiat question prepared with hope and honesty. you can't make promise it s to children that you can't keep. >> thank you, dennis, for being the kind of man that a lot of women are looking for. we'll be back with much more of "today." >> yes, a wonderful performance by five for fighting. don't miss it.

app issue that's prompted students, parents and teachers to speak out, the firing of more than 200 teachers in the district. they are holding a hearing on the subject. good morning. i'm barbara harrison. also coming up, a baby stroller hit by a train. the individual

we're back on this friday with more of "today." and mr. preston bailey is best known for creating magical events for the rich and famous and he's sharing his skills so you can create your own magic at home. it's all in his new book. lush flowers, dramatic spaces and other inspirations for entertaining. wow, what a title. how are you? >> great. the great news is that everyone can have a celebration that is cost effective, which is a big

deal these days. >> when you page through that book, it is absolutely gorgeous. where did the pictures all come from? >> they're there all over the world and all of the events that we've done. and i think it's important that people should know that they could have all of that themselves if they choose materials that are readily accessible. >> but some are just too good. come ork i can come on, i can't do that. >> was that a we had somethiddi? >> yes, a wedding in the south of france. >> unbelievable. >> and you start months ahead. are we allowed to say the project you're working on right now? he just did michael douglas's and katherine's shared birthday. >> she's a sweetheart. and such taste. i think people are always intim

dated in really having a great lu lushious. the first thing is start with a great invite. a line basically tells you all different things, so you don't have to worry about your theme, you just invest in $2, $4 each. >> they're ready made. >> you you start there. this is a fall theme. you can start creating wonderful place matts. >> are these real leaves? >> yes. >> how did you -- you just glued them? >> a glue gun. a beautiful center piece. >> we are not at peak yet, but you can buy these in shops, too. >> of course. and of course my paper flaurowe. you you can do them somehi

color you want. >> i like this one the setting in the middle with the little pumpkin. >> and the pumpkins could be like little give arms fway armsr the guests. >> and are these chestnuts? >> very good.s armses for the guests. >> and are these chestnuts? >> very good.armses for the guests. >> and are these chestnuts? >> very good. for the guests. >> and are these chestnuts? >> very good.aways for the guests. >> and are these chestnuts? >> very good. >> you never know when you might want to have a party. >> if you want to create something dramatic, it's some wonderful center piece. all of the leaves are just made with a string. i have absolutely how to do all of this on my website. >> what's the website? >> prestonbailey.com. >> let's go get our hands dirty. >> this is something you could keep it up. >> that's really beautiful. >> this idea is such a simple one. a candle holder. you take a pumpkin, gut it. take the votive candles, put it

in it, and you have this wonderful candle holder. people are afraid of playing and i want to encourage people that you can really create wonderful -- it's all about the detailing. >> and if it doesn't work, don't do 0 20 of them. you'll know. >> a pomegranate wrapping is what we used. don't throw it out. paint it gold. >> that's smart. >> wrap it with a beautiful ribbon. >> that is dar linlingdarling. >> press top, preston, thank you so much. >> and the book, press top bailey celebrations. >> and then a whole more lots of lines. >> and if you don't have a celebration -- well frk you'll have one, you have to have always wine. we'll help you get the season's best right after this. look who's back?

one of our favorite people.

it does feel like winter, but its still fall. and with a change of seasons should come with a sheft of your wine cellar. so we asked the author of the simple d savvy wine guide and judge on on the pbs show wine maker -- how come i've never been on that show -- to wound up her favorite fall selections. you know how much we love you. >> nd i have lots of wines for

you girls to taste. i call these my m wines for fall. we're into comfort food and a big cashmere wrap. so i want you to grab a merlot. this is from simi. and by the way, all these wines here, you said $ under $15, so and sexy wine. so it gives you that -- macaroni and cheese, tomato soup, fabulous. and the other is from arregenti. y it's one of the best values on the market today. >> so more like a cabernet? >> kind of between a merlot and a cab. >> and these i call my fall

discoveries. this is soave. i have an ittal began wine maker friend who is in love with her. >> that's good about. >> so soave -- yeah, cheers. it's from northern italy and it's just this very nice fall kind of nutty wine, but still has a beautiful freshness to it. >> it's good. >> and now i'll might have from you exotic italian to a lovely strapping portuguese. >> like this tour we're taking. >> yeah, we're getting to the wine men here. >> portugal is known for sweet port, but this is dry. this is actually a dry wine.

and it's made with a great variety that usually goes into port and it's dry. so it's got this fruity kind of very deep intense flavor, but paired alongside a steak, this is a sexy wine. you wi it's national boss' day, did you kow that? and just in case you're looking for a gift, we've got "bitch." >> let's get him a case. >> are you serious? >> that's hysterical. >> all right, i'm taking it home. >> don't worry, we saved a few for you. this is from south australia. on the back of the label, it's so funny, it says -- >> it surely does.

ten buck as bottle. kathie lee is taking it with her. >> you're getting on a plane, you can't do it. >> we're here in sherry country. now, this thone of the most undervalued and underappreciated wines of all-time. more than half of sherry is dry, so what i want you to do because it's a food wine, eat something it. >> try it with this. i do have to say, do you realize that your husband did an ad many decades ago for dry sack sherry? >> before i was born. >> and it's a man's drink.

>> stick around, you guys. great performance from five for fighting. a song you don't want to miss. it's called chances right after this. pr ♪

>> announcer: toyota concert series on "today" brought to you by toyota. toyota, moving forward. growing up in a musical family, john started playing piano and then guitar very young and good for us, he haptd stopped since. >> with very thoughtful hits like the riddle, 100 years to have man, five for fighting squlaus released its fifth studio album, this is beautiful, it's called "slice." hello. welcome. we are big fans of yours. >> we were just playing that song, the one that you'll play, "chances." it's gorgeous.

how long does it take for to you write a song like that one? >> some songs ca s come fast. super man came in an hour. >> so do you give yourself a little distance from it, walk away, work on other proper egt js and come back? >> you'll write 100 line, you'll put it in the garage, come back, check it out. but here ricklyrics are the har part. >> you have a family. are you able to go on tour? >> yeah, i've got the kids at home, but we'll probably tour these or four months out of the year. but you have to walk that tight rope of balancing the kids and the job. >> you have to keep a life if you want to go home with it. >> that's right. >> is this song oig chances" about something specific? >> it's about taking a swing. things don'ts always work out being but sometimes there's beauty in the scars. >> beauty in the scar, hoda, i told you. here it is, five for fighting. take it away.

♪ ♪ chances are when said and down ♪ ♪ whole's be the lucky ones ♪ who make it all the way ♪ though you say i could be your answer ♪ ♪ nothing lasts forever ♪ no matter how it feels today ♪ chances are, we'll find a new equation ♪ ♪hances roll away from me ♪ chances are all they hope to be ♪ ♪ don't get me wrong, i never stay never ♪

♪ cause though love can't change the weather noit no act ofd for could pull me away from you ♪ ♪ i'm just a realistic man ♪ a bottle filled with shells and sand ♪ ♪ afraid to love beyond what i can lose ♪ ♪ when it comes to you ♪ and though i'll see you through ♪ ♪ chances are we'll find two destinations ♪ ♪ chances roll away from me ♪ still chances are more than expectations ♪ ♪ but possibilities over me ♪ over me ♪ eight to five or two to one, lay your money on the sun ♪

♪ until you crash what have you done ♪ ♪ is there a better bet than love ♪ ♪ what you are is what you bring ♪ ♪ you gotta cry before you see chances ♪ ♪ chances ♪ chances lost our hopes torn out pages ♪ ♪ maybe this time ♪ chances are we'll be the combination ♪ ♪ chances come and carry me ♪ chances are waiting till they take it ♪ ♪ and i can see ♪ chances are the fascination

♪ chances won't escape from me ♪ chamss are only what we're living ♪ ♪ and all i need ♪ >> wow. >> so great. >> wow. >> five for fighting. thank you so much. >> thank, guys. >> we will be back with more of "today" on nbc.

so we were asking what over number he could suggest off his cd, and you said "slice o" with

the great steven from broadway. >> i thought there was five for fighting? where are the other three? monday we have suzanne sommer who stops by. >> first we want to leave you with a little slice of our week. >> stop it! >> thank goodness we have you to count on. >> what is it? >> you were quite busy in the late night scene. >> really are. you're loveable with a big old love. >> oh, my gosh. just stop it. >> there's some change of focus. ♪ >> see, do i cai do care about . >> a little. >> sometimes you get what you deserve. >> those must be my shoes. >> those things are boats. >> yes, i smell an emmy.

>> there's "dateline" hoda and then there's happy hour hoda. >> you you provide enough spice, honey. >> look at that one bite. >> we'll et llet you know on mo. >> what a great halloween theme.