September 2008 - Posts
The first inkling I had that something was amiss was when I was informed my ride would not be picking me up from the Atlanta airport. And I could forget about my plans to visit the new baby panda cub at the Atlanta zoo – there just wasn’t any gas to spare.
As Hurricane Ike shut down Gulf Coast refineries dried up interstate pipelines, the Southeast is experiencing a shocking shortage that has residents lining up for hours at the few open stations, cancelling long-distance trips, and has some doing something that completely goes against Southern tradition – skipping football games. CONTINUED >>
From John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
Tennis great Arthur Ashe once gave centenarian Margaret Dell a black eye, but she doesn't hold a grudge against him.
It happened back in 1973. Ashe, the first black man to win Wimbledon and the U.S. Open, was competing in a major tennis tournament in Washington, D.C.
"I was sitting in a box way up high, and he served, and the ball came crashing in and hit me in the eye," Margaret remembers. "I was alright, but I did have a black eye.
"Arthur was awfully upset. He came over to see what had happened, and I said, 'Well, you hit me straight in the eye, and it looks like I'm going to have a lawsuit,' and he said, 'Call my lawyer,' and, of course, his lawyer was my son, so we had a lot of fun over that."
Margaret's son, Donald, was Ashe's friend and lawyer for 25 years.< CONTINUED >>
Kathie Lee took to the microphone this morning to perform an original song she co-wrote for TODAY’s new series, “Everybody Has a Story.” Though KLG started her show biz career as a vocalist, she was quick to point out she no longer sings for her supper – and that her lyrics were originally intended for Tony Bennett (aren’t they all?). But she couldn’t fool us with her humility: her skillful and heartfelt performance made it obvious she’s a pro.
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| Pedro Ugarte / AFP - Getty Images file |
| Dara Torres finished second in the women's 50m freestyle at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. |
After winning three silver medals in Beijing at the age of 41, swimmer Dara Torres swore the only way she would be at the 2012 Olympics was as a commentator.
Just over a month later, however, the only American swimmer to compete in five Olympic Games is already showing signs of changing her tune about a sixth.
“I don’t think I’m done swimming,” Torres said after appearing on
Wednesday’s TODAY (video).Torres underwent arthroscopic shoulder surgery at the end of August, and was back in the water two weeks later. Many of her teammates, including Cullen Jones, Brendan Hansen and Aaron Peirsol,
who appeared with her on TODAY, have yet return to the pool.
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Move over Brangelina, TomKat, McPalin… there’s a new couple taking up Us Weekly real estate: HodaLee! The dynamic duo took L.A. by storm this weekend, inching out the celebrities in town for the Emmys. The ladies, decked out their flirtiest West Coast attire (KLG opted for a hot leopard number) started their grand L.A. tour by dining at hotspot The Ivy — where contemporaries like Teri Hatcher, Nicole Richie and Lindsay Lohan have been known to schmooze and nibble.
As I tried to catch up with the TODAY staff, I was aggressively pushed and completely overwhelmed by the paparazzi calling out for the 4th hour hosts. Lalaland was all over them.
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It’s not often you spend your mornings cuddling with real live tiger cubs, but today I was lucky enough to get a close up look at the cubs who were rejected by their mother and nursed by Isabella, the now-famous golden retriever.
Owner Tom Harvey, who actually checked into the upscale Essex Hotel on Central Park South with his “wild” entourage, was kind enough to give me the opportunity to pet the gorgeous animals — but smart enough not to let me leave the set with them. CONTINUED >>
From John Rutherford, Producer, NBC News, Washington
Grace Wolford, who turned 100 years old on Aug. 15, still remembers visiting the White House in 1925 and shaking hands with President Calvin Coolidge.
"Our senior class went to Washington," she said recently. "We only had 33 in our class. They didn't all go. We had to pay our own way and everything. We left on a Friday and came back Sunday, on the train, the B & O."
Grace said she and her classmates from Ferndale High School in Pennsylvania had no trouble getting into the White House.
"Things weren't like they are today," she said. "At that time it wasn't a big deal, but today it would be. The president was sitting there in the lobby or someplace, and we all got to shake hands with him, any of us that wanted to."
Did Coolidge say anything to her?
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Want to get a little closer to the TODAY family?
Universal Studios Hollywood invites you to be part of NBC’s TODAY and join hosts Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb along with special guest stars when they broadcast live from Universal Studios Hollywood, The Entertainment Capital of L.A.
When: Monday, September 22, 2008
Where: Universal Studios Hollywood, The Entertainment Capital of L.A.
Who: You and your guests
Time: To guarantee your spot on live national television, you must arrive to Universal Studios Hollywood at 5:30am where the first 100 people will receive a free theme park pass to Universal Studios Hollywood valid through December 31, 2008.
Parking: Guests will park in the Frankenstein Parking Garage and follow directional signage to the actual shooting location.
Today, Hoda and Kathie Lee went where no female TV personality has gone before: makeup-less. The dynamic duo put on bare, brave faces – without dark lighting! – to show TODAY viewers an essential bedtime skincare routine (a noble cause). It’s not that either of them have anything to worry about: allDay readers love the many looks of Hoda and Kathie Lee was just recently named "the craziest and sexiest woman on TV" by DETAILS magazine. CONTINUED >>
On D-Day, June 6, 1944, Ben Trimboli, who turned 100 years old on March 15, was one of the first American soldiers into Normandy, crash-landing in a glider.
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| Family photo |
| Ben Trimboli in the Army circa 1943. |
"We had more casualties landing with gliders," the former Army private said in a recording of his World War II experiences. "Those fields were all full of stumps and wires and everything. I unbuckled [just before impact] because I knew we were making a nosedive, and I landed on top of the pilot and copilot, who were dead. Getting out of the glider, the Germans were shooting at us, and we were firing back."
Ben and his fellow members of the 82nd Airborne Division fought the Germans foxhole to foxhole, field to field for three days, until June 9, when Ben's luck ran out.
"I got hit with a hand grenade," he said. "I saw my leg go up in the air, and there was all of this shrapnel behind my knee. The Germans came over and told the guys that could walk - they all gave up - to pick up the wounded and take them to the back."
Ben and the other wounded G.I.'s were put in a shelter along with wounded German soldiers.
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After Meghan McCain
spoke with Meredith (video) about the
new children’s book she’s written about her father and about working to help her dad reach the White House, we sat down with the would-be first daughter to talk about everything
besides politics. Meghan, who writes candidly about her experiences on
her blog, was an open book when it came to dishing on campaign fashion, revealing her Decision ’08 crush, helping her dad become tech savvy and (possibly) sharing nachos with fellow Columbia alum Barack Obama after he appears with John McCain in New York on Thursday.
Below are excerpts from our conversation:
Q: Since you’re here talking about your new book, “My Dad, John McCain,” let’s start with a question about your dad. A lot of our viewers want to know: What’s your fondest memory of your dad on the campaign trail?A: That’s a tough one … every day is fun. In the beginning, when I first started campaigning, there was this hotel that didn’t have an elevator and had lots of stairs, and he carried my friends’ and my bags up and down the stairs, which they still love (laughs). He was like, “You girls shouldn’t be carrying your bags.” Now there are people that help out. There’s a person who is in charge of everyone’s luggage, so we don’t have to do that anymore.
Q: Switching gears here: Are you still thinking of going into fashion design after the campaign?A: Possibly. I think I want to go into fashion when this is over. I think I spend an overly significant portion of my life taking things that I have access to and showing them to other people. I’d really like to do something like Jessica Simpson’s done, taking high-end things and making them accessible to everyone. I have so many things in my life that -- because of who my dad is -- I have more availability to, and I’d like to make that available to the masses. It’s what I think I’ve done with the blog.
Q: Who do you think is the best dressed on the campaign trail...besides yourself? CONTINUED >>
From Dr. Nancy Snyderman, chief medical editorTODAY we reintroduced you to
a courageous young woman (video) who not only survived cancer twice, but helped change the dialogue of reproductive needs of cancer patients in this country.
I first met Lindsay Beck shortly after she was diagnosed with tongue cancer at the age of 22. She endured surgery and six weeks of radiation, but two years later, the cancer came back. This time, she not only needed more surgery, but radiation and chemotherapy as well. What she soon learned -- but what none of her doctors, myself included, ever told her -- was that the chemotherapy that would destroy the cancer would also most likely leave her infertile.
Lindsay refused to give up her dream of becoming a mother, and set out to preserve her own fertility.
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From Janet Shamlian, NBC News correspondent
I arrived in my daughter's classroom for an end of the school year performance. A mom I'd met but didn't know well greeted me in a voice that ensured the entire room would hear: "It's great to see you in person instead of on television for a change.” While I was verbally rescued by other parents, she scored the intended bulls-eye. The truth is, I missed the Halloween party, the holiday party and all the field trips last year. And that doesn't include what I missed for my other four children! Her comment was months ago, but it still burns more than yesterday's workout.
I was reminded of that day by the chatter swirling around Vice-Presidential nominee Sarah Palin, also a mom of five. TODAY is reporting on the emerging criticism over her navigating a demanding job and campaigning for an even bigger one, all while raising a large family with special needs and unique circumstances. From "she's a bad mom" to "her daughter wouldn't be pregnant if she'd spent more time at home", there are hungry-man plates of judgment being served up from the corner cafe to the blogosphere. Here's a shocker, most of it is coming from other moms.
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The New Kids on the Block concert scheduled for Monday was postponed due to Hurricane Gustav coverage, but devotees
who had been lining up as early as Thursday (video) won't have to spend any more time on the streets. On Sunday, the New Kids personally delivered the news that their super fans will be given VIP seating at the concert, which will now take place on Thursday.
Good news for fans like this one, who can role up her tent and sleep on a real bed this week...
WATCH VIDEO
From Matt Carluccio, TODAY producerA few images from Houma, La., where Ann Curry and Kerri Sanders are covering
Hurricane Gustav:
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From Dan Fleschner, TODAY producerAround 5 p.m. local time in New Orleans, I went for a walk around the city, and the only people I saw were TV news people, police, and national guardsmen. That's it. The population downtown seems to have taken the warnings seriously.
I saw lots of boarded-up windows, sandbags, signs in the windows saying stores were closed indefinitely. I haven't seen a major city this empty since I walked around Milwaukee on a Sunday about 10 years ago when the Packers were playing the Bears.
