And watches out for you in ways that banks and creditcard companies alone just cant, giving you the most comprehensive Identity Theft protection available. Whenever the patented lifelock identity alert system detects a threat to your identity, youll be notified by phone, text, or email, helping you to stop identity thieves before they do damage. You even get a 1 million service guarantee. Thats right. If your identity is ever compromised, lifelock will spend up to 1 million on experts to help restore it. You wouldnt leave your car unprotected. Dont leave your money, credit, and good name unprotected. Call now, and try lifelock riskfree for 60 days. Act now, and get this document shredder free. Thats a 29 value. Or go to lifelock. Com go. Try lifelock riskfree for 60 days and get this document shredder free a 29 value when you use promo code go. Call now. The rain, the mudbabam were new to the pacific northwest. Its there. The outside comes in. doorbell its a Swiffer Wetjet oh, i love this i could do this everyday. Ewww. Sunshine is overrated, now we can get messy. Stock markets across asia have staged full powerful overnight rallies rebounding after positive news from the United States federal reserve. Janet yellen sparked a buying spree saying the fed would be patient when it comes to raising interest rates. That sent u. S. Markets to their best day in more than a year. All three major averages gaining. The pioneer smartphonemakers new phone is the black berry classic. It brings back the physical keyboard legal that means a smaller screen than other smartphones. Its design will remind fans of the 9900, a muchloved phone. But the classic can run some android apps, too. You love the blackberry. I love the blackberry. Buyou had to give yours up. I had to give mine up over the summer and i think the time has passed for the blackberry. Dont tell me that. I hope they prove me wrong. How about that. Another hightech tool to tell you about that could help you in an emergency. Its being hailed as a personal safety game changer. Abcs Abby Boudreau has the details. Reporter a mothers frantic search. My daughter is missing. Reporter a woman stranded in her car with poor cell reception. I cant hear you at all. Reporter and a man trapped inside his burning home. I can hear you coughing. Is this dan . Reporter all of these are actual 911 recordings. All of them with happy endings thanks in part to smart 911. An enhanced 911 system where you can prepare for an emergency before it happens. I like to describe smart 911 as 911 on steroids. Reporter lieutenant jason sims from culver city, california, Police Department says they are the first city in california to use smart 911. Dramatically increases the amount of information that we have available to our First Responders. Reporter heres how it works. You create a safety profile online which can include your name, home address, photos of family members, even your medical history. Your profile is then stored in secure national databases. If you call 911 from an area that uses the smarts 911 system, your profile will instantly pop up on the dispatchers screen. They can talk that information and pass it on to the First Responders and have them en route much faster. Reporter remember this 911 caller . Choking on the smoke from inside his burning home. Dan . Your smart 911 that you signed up for has your address, and we have help coming for you. Reporter and that smart 911 profile, it cut 11 minutes off the response time. It saved me. Saved my life. Every day im here is a blessing. Reporter Abby Boudreau, abc news, culver city, california. Incredible technology. Coming up coming together through technology, the incredible new way americans can talk with people from other countries. Also a first look at these reallife portals. Yes, portals. Thats next on world news now. Announcer world news now continues after this from our abc stations. Talks between iran and the u. S. Made International Headlines this week as an impending nuclear deal seems closser than ever before. For a group of artists the more important talks are happening between groups from both countries. A reallife portal. Reporter in the movies, portals come in many forms, whether they are rabbit holes or back doors. But real life portals dont exist. Until now. Were at an art gallery in new york city. This looks like an oord shipping container but its a portal to tehran. Were enabling people to meet who wouldnt be able otherwise. Reporter omar is part of an artist thats created portals. Its a converted shipping container that allows people to enter 15 minutes at a time to speak realtime with a citizen in tehran. You have to start from scratch. Reporter in tehran, the setup is the same. I decided to try it out meeting the collaborator who is located there. Hi. Hi. So we just walked inside this portal. Its wall to ceiling carpet all around for the noise cancellation, im assuming. I think the noise is important when working with lower bandwidth. We want to focus transmission and everything on the face. We light it that way. Reporter inside the portal, a camera captures and projects a life size image of each party giving the feeling of an inperson conversation. It is sort of cozy. I think at least. And people ive slept in here. Have you . Not on purpose, but ive fallin asleep in here. And people come out feeling like its a warm space in more the symbolic sense. You actually almost forget where the person is youre speaking to. Reporter that seems to be the point to show that perhaps americans and oiranians have muh in common. Ive never been to iran and the girl i was paired up with studies photojournalism like me. I made a friend today. Reporter the best experience may just be an open mind. Tina trinh, abc news, new york. The next phase is they want to open up portals to haiti, mexico and new delhi. It could be look a bridge to other countries. You think about cuba, right . Exactly. We just dont know much. A lot of people who may not have cuban heritage. Could be a way for people to better understand the world. Technology is incredible. Can we just use this from new york to arkansas. You and your arkansas. Yeah, its my home state. Is that okay . You can i never go home. Mama needs me to get in a portal. Call him up, mama. Give him a call. If you are watch, please, any time of day. Britney spears hot dog. What is this story coming up next . Interesting. Coughing can really be disruptive. Delsym helps silence coughs for a full 12 hours with an advanced time release formula for all day or all night relief. Bianca [cheering] delsym. Silence is relief. Britney spears is one superstar that knows how to get attention. Lots of people are talking about her latest photo shoot. Shes sharing her secrets to staying in shape in Womens Health magazine. Abcs sara haines has more. Reporter there she is. Britney spears, the queen of pop. Showing off her sculpted abs an the brand new cover of Womens Health magazine, looking just as great as she did when she hit us one more time. Hit me baby one more time standing at just 54, the pintsized superstar says she works hard for these killer results. I started noticing changes in my body. My hips are a little bit wider because ive had kids so it was crucial for me to be continuous with my exerseuss. Whats her secret . Spears seen in this behind the scenes footage likes to work up a sweat by attending Group Fitness classes and yoga. And get this. She doesnt have a personal training saying, i dont mind working out. Trainers keep you motivated, but i didnt have a problem being moetsivated. She does a 45minute workout. 20 minutes of cardio. Usually does running and then moves on to free weights or squats, situps, pushups, things we can all do. Reporter its not just about working out. Spears says her svelte physique is also thanks to healthy eating. She makes scrambled egg whites with whole wheat toast. Eats a lot of sushi. When shes snacking she specifically called out nut thins. Reporter but theres one indulgence she cant give up. Sweet tea. You need a lot of discipline and a lot of motivation. Reporter simple steps to an intoxicating figure. For good morning america, sara haines, abc news, new york. I found that refreshing she doesnt have a personal trainer, right . And only 20 minutes of cardio. You like that part . Some people think you have to sweat for an hour. Just 20 minutes and you, too, will look just like that. Why didnt the Graphics Department try to put my face an her body. Why would they need to put your face an that body . That is how you look. They could just put you up there and youd be good to go. How would you know that about my body . Theres all koonds of photos of you floating around here. This morning on world news now historic accord. The white house and cuba making a deal to release prisoners and improve relations. Theres going to be generational chaun aal change i. The president s comments. How the pope was involved and a deal that impacts the world. Major developments in the Sony Pictures cyberattack. The big decision about the movie the interview. New details about who may be responsible. They use new tactics and techniques we havent often seen. As the damage done by the hackers gets costlier every day. Consumer alert. Warnings to holiday shop bers pickpockets. The latest tactics to rip you off and what you can do to avoid becoming the next victim. Its thursday, december 18th. Announcer from abc news, this is world news now. Good morning. Im reena ninan. Im t. J. Holmes. Thank you for being withes. We begin with that surprise deal. An historic prisoner swap restoring ties between the u. S. And cuba for the first time in more than half a century. Alan gross was released after spending five years in a cuban prison for espionage. Also back on u. S. Soil. A u. S. Intelligence agent locked up in cuba for two decades in exchange for the u. S. Released three jailed cuban spies. Heres a look at gross reuniting with help wiis wife after touch down at Andrews Air Force base. Im incredibly blessed to have the freedom to rezooum a positive and constructive life. Reporter the deal follows more than a year of secret meetings between the u. S. And cuba and personal interventions by pope francis. Just hours after president obama announced plans to restore diplomatic relations and open an embassy in havana, david muir sat down with the president for an exclusive interview covering everything from secret talks to the pope and the phone call that made it all official. Mr. President , we all saw that first handshake a year ago with president castro. It went worldwide. Now were aware of the phone call in the last 24 hours. Im curious if theres something in that phone call you can share with the American People that assured you that cuba is actually changing. Im not sure that raul castro at the age of octobe80somethin going to be changing significantly but theres going to be generational change in cuba. This last conversation was substantive. I was insistent that wed continue to promote democracy and human rights and speak out forcefully on behalf of the freedom of the people of cuba. Fidel castro, is he aware of whats happened . Does he approve . Im not sure. I dont know what fidif fidel cs Health Status is. The pope. He reached out to you and president castro. We now hear about this secret meeting at the vatican. What role did the pope play in all of this . He played an important role. Pope france sis the deal real. A remarkable man and an inspiration to all. Alan gross. He looked a lot healthier than images we had seen before. Did you talk to him yet . I did. I had a chance to talk to him an his flight home. The first thing he said, mr. President , for you, i dont mind interrupting my corned beef sandwich. I told him he had mustard an his upper lip. We had a nice conversation. He, obviously, is joyful about being reunited with his family. It was tough while he was locked up. Former Florida Governor jeb bush who says hes now exploring looking at whether or not hell run for president said that cuba is a dictatorship, pure and simple. Do you agree . Is president castro a dictator . Its a oneparty state. So is china. So is vietnam. What we found is were in a position to have more influence on the course of events in those countries when we have an active ambassador there, people to people exchanges. But there are those who argue the embargo should be strengthened, not weakened, pointing to the Political Prisoners that still exist. The fact they cant have demonstrations. Few have access to the internet. Will you visit cuba in your final two years as president . I dont have any current plans to visit cuba. Not ruling it out . Lets see how things evolve. Many cuban americans are outraged over the thaw in u. S. cuban relations. Hundreds of cuban exiles in miami gathered outside a popular restaurant, slamming him as a comrade of the castro brothers. They say the cuban government doesnt deserve to have a normal relationship with the United States and republican senator marco rubio agreed. The could bean people arent any more free today than they were yesterday. Many of the younger people are welcoming the president s announcement. They say any change at this point would be good. Stay with abc news as we cover the farreaching impact of the accord with cuba. More reaction coming up on america this morning and good morning america. Angry reaction after sony decided to cancel the release of the interview. Some believe sony gave in to those anonymous threats, like rob lowe who tweeted the hackers won. Heres abcs marci gonzalez. Reporter federal investigators say they have enough evidence to connect north korea to the devastating cyberattack against Sony Pictures. That the secretive authoritarian regime sponsored it or directed an individual or group to carry out the attack. A formal announcement from the Justice Department expected on thursday. This as sony pulled the plug on the christmas release of its controversial comedy the interview in light of recent threats. You want us to kill the leader of norlth korea . Yes. Reporter executives making the decision after some of the biggest theater chains decided not to screen the movie because of concerns for patrons safety. The group, the guardiabs of peace warned people from seeing the movie. We recommend you to keep yourself distant. Soon all the world will see what an awful movie sony has made. The world will be full of fear. Sources tell abc news the main suspects are members of an elite Cybersecurity Team known as bureau 121 believed to be behind several hack attacks an south korea last year. They use sophisticated malware, new tactics and techniques we havent often seen. Reporter while the department of Homeland Security says theres no credible intelligence to indicate an active plot against movie theaters in the United States the interview for now is being canned. Sony staying we stand by our filmmakers and their right to Free Expression and are extremely disappointed by this outcome. At this point, it is unclear if the movie will ever be released. T. J. And reena . Marci, thank you. A major manhunt near ft. Worth, texas, for a murder suspect. He is considered armed and dangerous. Residents have been told to stay inside their homes and lock doors and windows. The murderer took place last friday in ft. Worth. Its also the biggest krminal case in the u. S. Over contaminated medicine. 14 former owners or employees of a massachusetts pharmacy are charged in a meningitis outbrack. They fond a host of issues including mold and dirty equipment. Disturbing news about Older Americans and antianxiety drugs. They take those three times as much as younger people. The drugs can hamper thinking, movement and driving and increase the risk of falls. New hope for smokers who want to quit this morning. A naturally occurring plant compound may be more effective than nicotine replacement therapy. Its been used in Eastern Europe for decades but its not widely available here. Callers calling a quit line got better results with it. Seems like its hard to smoke. Somewhere like new york thats so expensive and you cant smoke inside anymore. Were you ever a smoker . Never a smoker. Its hard to break. People try the patch, the gum. President obama has done the gum. Think hes really done . Every once in a while we hear about him sneaking a cigarette. Can you blame him trying to get Immigration Reform through. Cuba thing comes through. Calling the pope. Have a smoke. I dont advocate smoking but hes one who could use a pass every now and then. We almost hate to show you this video. It seems to suggest not everyone is a fan of santa claus. A guy set a small santa. In front of the video camera he uses to record wildlife. Everything seems cool. This may be a cool christmas video. Then he took out santa. We dont know what happened there but he roughed santa up here. Santas left down in the dirt. Maybe just his way of getting acquai acquainted. My smelling santas tush . Its a bear. Its a wild animal. They do things we dont understand. Coming up, a letter sent from a little girl to santa. And revised. She no longer wants toys. She wants building materials. Also ahead, little known secrets about the simpsons. After 25 years on the air, youre in for a few laughs. Youre watching world news now. Announcer world news now weather brought to you by United Health care. Approaching medicare eligibility . You may think you can put off checking out your Medicare Options until youre sixtyfive, but now is a good time to get the ball rolling. Keep in mind, medicare only covers about eighty percent of part b medical costs. The rest is up to you. Thats where aarp Medicare Supplement insurance plans insured by Unitedhealthcare Insurance Company come in. Like all standardized Medicare Supplement insurance plans, they could help pay some of what medicare doesnt, saving you in outofpocket medical costs. Youve learned that taking informed steps along the way really makes a difference later. Thats what it means to go longâ„¢. Call now and request this free [decision guide]. Its full of information on medicare and the range of aarp Medicare Supplement plans to choose from based on your needs and budget. 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Vo so you and your passengers can breathe happy. Man mr. Mucus tore do you work, with you. Ing . Its taco tuesday. Man youre not coming. I took mucinex to help get rid of my mucusy congestion. Im good all day. [announcer ] mucinex keeps working. Not 4, not 6, but 12 hours. Lets end this only in georgia could this next story take place. Police there have a tough nut to crack. Three men are charged with stealing thousands of dollars worth of pecans from a form. They are looking for a fourth suspect now. This may sound odd but they are quite common. The farm has surveillance cameras put up. There was a highspeed chase over pecans. These things are fairly expensive. Youre from the south. Yeah, pecans are a big deal. Are you a pecan or pecan . Pecan. In the south its pecan. You see pecan . Today in our Makeup Department they brought up these pecans you just went back to saying pecans. I just said maybe the influence of your sorn roots. I say pecans. Who is on first routine . Lets go to thieves. They are certainly busy this time of year. It might be a good time for a refresher. If you are carrying pecans, be careful out there. Cecilia vega gives us tips an how to avoid pickpocket pros. Reporter while youre busy running lastminute holiday errands, make insure someone isnt running away withior wallet. This shopper turned away from her cart. He takes her wallet and hides it under a tote bag. He then hands off the wallet to his partner. Guts to do it just when shes reaching. Bob knows the game. Shes getting her fruit. Hes getting her purse. Hes not a thief. He gives advice on how to catch neechs the women an the right leaves her purse hanging on her chair. Bob swoops in and steals her wallet. Did you have any idea what he was doing behind you . Check out these cell phones. The one on the left is going, going, gone. Oh, my phone. Think mens wallets are harder to swipe . While i talk with this man, bob slides it right out of his front pocket and hands it over. How much is about your quick fingers and them not paying attention . I think its more about them not paying attention. Reporter tip one dont be distracted by nice conversation from someone who appears well dressed. How do you not become a victim . This is fairly safe. Its always here. Never behind me like this. Reporter thats tip two. Always keep your belongings in your line of sight. I also think having as few credit cards as possible is important. Reporter keep your wallet and phone in the bottom of your purse, not the top. If its easy for you to access, its also easy for thieves as these folks found out. You are clutching your purse. Now i dont trust you. Cecilia vega, abc news. Pickpockets. Seems like we dont hear so bch it. Apparently theyre still out there. An old School Problem that still exists. Coming up are you a simpsons fan . Yeah. Its turning 25 years old. What is behind the secret to the longevity of this cartoon family. And why are they all yellow . We find out next. Ahead in our next half hour crashing and cashing in. Slamming stolen cars right into the front doors, swarming in to steal everything before the police can arrive. Efforts to stop this alarming trend. Youre watching world news now. Announcer world news now continues very few shows can boast 25 years on the air. Were hoping we make it there. World news now celebrating 23 years next month. Enough about us. Its all about the simpsons. Bart still hasnt grown up. Here now clayton sandell. The simpsons reporter one of the reasons the simpsons have enjoyed a quarter century of pop culture skewing success starts with that attentiongrabbing skin color. No accident. The characters are yellow so when you are with your Remote Control and tuning around, the tv, you can only if you go by a flash of yellow, its either simpsons, sponge bob or tweety bird. Reporter there are inside jokes galore. That price when maggie gets scanned at the market. The cost of raising a child in 1989. Actors often pull quadruple duty. Me fail english . Thats impossible. Reporter hank azaria voices at least 16 different characters. You have to promise not to commit any more crimes. No. Reporter what about that classic homer trademark. It doesnt appear that way in scripts. They simply type annoyed grnt. With each episode taking up to nine months to finish, how does the show man tain that uncanny ability to say so topical. We seem to be really good at anticipating whats going to be happening. And for anyone who thinks the simpsons is going away any time soon, listen to bart. Eat my shorts bart reporter clayton sandell, abc news, denver. Homers expression doh is actually in the dictionary now. Whats the definition of what . We should look it up. Als theres a university of california berkeley offers a fourcredit course on the simpsons. See if they have an online course. You can do it between the breaks. T mary. She loves to shop online with her debit card. 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The question was, which of these is not a piece of jewelry worn commonly. She chose anniversary ring and this is when she realized what a mistake she made. Which is not a piece of jewelry not a piece of jewelry. Oh, my god. Thats the most embarrassing thing thats ever happened to me. While that host there gave her a bag of burger rings. The mind goes under pressure. But anniversary ring wouldnt have come to mind as something you give easily. Maybe i wouldnt have looked down d a burger ring. What is a burger ring . Is it im imagining its like the french fries with like burger king, burger ring . The movie well not be seeing any time soon, theres an activist group doing these air lifts, these air drops to north korea. Youve seen clips from the interview. The group wants to use these interviews to do air drops of the movie into north korea. Who knows if they can pull this off. Humanitarian drops. They drop food, information and whatnot from the outside world to the north koreans. What would you think about them dropping the movie the interview in to north korea. Theyre not really going to do that. I wish theyd drop it off in Lower Manhattan because i want to see that. They look like a little bit like kondoms. They are not dropping condoms into north korea. Those are just the air in the balloon there. Im just wondering. Could be a safe sex campaign. Its not. Were trying to help the north koreans. In any way we can. Safe sex oh, reena. Are you blushing . I cant believe im a light skinned brother. When we laugh, we get red. Heres a reason not to get red. A cute story about a girl who all she wants from santa, not toys. Her house burned down in october. Shes asking, instead of all the things i asked for, can i have cement blocks, heater, wood, wiring, doors. Her house burned down. Shes living with family in florida. All she wants is her home back so she can go back. I bet people are going to see this. I bet those materials end up coming from somewhere. Lowes, home depot. Somebody is going to git on this. Poor hi, anne. How are you doing . Hi, evelyn. I know its been a difficult time since your mom passed away. Yeah. I miss her a lot, but im okay. Wow. That was fast. This is the check ive been waiting for. Mom had a guaranteed acceptance Life Insurance policy through the Colonial Penn program, and this will really help with the cost of her final expenses. They have been so helpful and supportive during this time. Maybe i should give them a call. I really could use some more Life Insurance. Is it affordable . It costs less t thats pretty affordable, huh . Less than 35 cents a day . Thats less than the cost of a postage stamp. So, you said it was guaranteed acceptance . Yes. Its permanent coverage with guaranteed acceptance for people ages 50 to 85. Theres no medical exam or Health Questions. You cant be turned down because of your health. It fit right into moms budget and gave her added peace of mind. 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The white house and the cuban government restore relations. A Prisoners Exchange and the secret negotiations. Another football scandal. The San Francisco 49ers kick ray mcdonald off the team. The sex assault accusations and the first test of the leagues tough new player conduct policy. Storming the store. Daring robbers smashing a car into a boutique. Taking off with highend merchandise. A jawdropping crime that was over in just seconds. And hollywood responds to the cyberattacks on Sony Pictures and the shutdown of a major film release. Comments from celebrities in the skinny on this thursday, december 18th. Announcer from abc news, this is world news now. Good thursday morning. Thank you for spending some time with us. Im t. J. Holmes. Im reena ninan. I was asking t. J. If he ever had a cuba libre. Yeah. Its a traditional cuban drink. Its rum, right . I cant remember. I think its rum and coke and a little lime. We should have them on set. I thought about it and then i realized abcs policy about the alcohol. What is it about this policy . Ill pull out the handbook. What an historic moment. Remember a few days ago, our jim avila ran a story about cuban doctors. I find it interesting that jim is over there. He was ahead of the game on this. He always is. Jim is. We really got an historic Prisoner Exchange ushering in a new era in u. S. cuban relations and sweeping away decades of hostility. More than a year of secret talks that led to the release of american prisoner alan gross. And a jailed u. S. Intelligence agent. In turn, three convicted cuban spies were sent back to cuba. The aforementioned jim avila is in havana. Reporter just look at this scene provided exclusively to abc news by senator jeff flake who was on board the plane. This is alan gross looking out the window at freedom. On a plane stocked with popcorn and a sandwich, food he missed in captivity. U. S. Air space. How is that . Reporter alan gross wastes no time breathing it in deeply. And these amazing pictures. The actual reunion with wife judy who he had told goodbye in july. It was too painful for her to visit him anymore. And then another emotional reunion with his Washington Attorney who worked both cuba and the u. S. For his release. Gross first words to his family, im free. Arriving at Andrews Air Force base in suburban washington, d. C. , a brief glimpse before a thank you and a news conference. Today is the first day of hanukkah. And i guess so far, its the best hanukkah that ill be celebrating for a long time. What a blessing it is to be a citizen of this country. Reporter here in havana, bells rang as cuba witnessed something people here thought they might never see. President s from the u. S. And their home island agreeing on the future. A rare sense of optimism now in havana. Ive been covering this country for more than 20 years. For the first time now, were beginning to see hope from the people that a country so close in distance will soon be a country close in fact. Jim avila, abc news, havana. President obama announced plans for a u. S. Embassy in havan and highlevel visits between the two governments. A final phone call with raul castro sealed the deal after more than a year of secret talks. And personal involvement by pope francis. In an exclusive interview with abcs david muir, president obama calling the pope the real deal. The assistance, not only of him and his office in providing a moral authority to the issue, but also his practical facilities in the vatican, i think was very important. Will you visit cuba in your final two years as president . I dont have any current plans to visit cuba. Not ruling it out . Lets see how things evolve. A lot of fanfare in havana as the three cuban prisoners stepped off a plane greeted by president raul castro. They were arrested in 1998 and later convicted of spying on anticastro groups in miami. You can stay with abc news as we cover the impact of this accord with cuba. More reaction coming up on america this morning and good morning america. Now to the fallout over sonys decision to shelve a movie because of threats from hackers linked to north korea. The studio could lose 100 million by not releasing the interview, a comedy that included a gruesome scene depicting the assassination of north koreas leader. A Group Calling itself the guardians of peace had claimed responsibility for the hack. They used very sophisticated malware. They used new tactics and techniques we havent often seen. We are expected to learn more today about the u. S. What the u. S. Intends to do in response to the attack. The San Francisco 49ers have used some of the bluntest language in releasing defensive lineman ray mcdonald. Hes being investigated for possible sexual assault. A Team Statement said mcdonald had been, quote, released immediately effective immediately. Abcs josh haskell reports. Reporter ray mcdonald who played in almost every game for the San Francisco 49ers since 2008 no longer has a job. Thats because of another runin with police. Accused of sexual assault. Rays demonstrated a pattern of poor decisionmaking that has led to multiple distractions for this organization and this Football Team that really can no longer be tolerated. Reporter San Jose Police searched mcdonalds home after a local hospital told them a patient they treated may be the victim of assault. No arrests had been made, but back in august, mcdonald was arrested after his pregnant fiancee reported she was the victim of Domestic Violence. The case was dropped last month due to a lack of evidence. In 2010, mcdonald was charged with drunken driving. This isnt about this one incident. This is about a pattern. Reporter this string of incidents for mcdonald comes during a season when the nfl has taken heat for its handling of Domestic Violence cases. If charged, mcdonald would be the first player punished under the leagues new personal conduct policy approved last week. Its tough. Hes a good friend to a lot of people on this team. No one around him ever thought bad of him. Reporter even though mcdonald is currently unsigned, he could face punishment from the league for these incidents. He faces no criminal charges at this time, but the san jose Police Departments investigation into this latest accusation is ongoing. Josh haskell, abc news, new york. Actor Stephen Collins now admits to doing something, quote, terribly wrong. The 7th heaven star said he did have inappropriate sexual contact with three girls over a 20year period but not in the past 20 years. Collins admitted the behavior during a marriage therapy session three years ago which his then wife secretly recorded. He says he gave a statement to people because the rumors are much worse than what he actually did. Disturbing new details about the kidnapping of a New Hampshire teenager last year. Court documents show that suspect Nathaniel Kibby used death threats, a stun gun, zip ties and a shock collar to control the girl during the nine months of her captivity. Kibby has been held on a milliondollar bond since his arrest. A manhunt is under way after a tv meteorologist was shot outside his station yesterday morning. Police in waco say the suspect and Patrick Crawford exchanged words before gunfire erupted. Crawford was hit several times, but he is expected to be okay. Not clear whether the two men knew each other. In southern california, a police chase for a stolen car suspect. The black bmw led cops through los angeles streets and on two freeways. It was even driven on a sidewalk and blew through three busy intersections. Police caught up with it on the Pacific Coast highway in malibu where the suspect quickly surrendered. About 50 miles south of there, Police Investigating a fatal traffic collision. At least one person was killed and about a dozen others injured when a car ran a red light and struck them as it drove through an intersection. Its believed most of those had just attended a Holiday Service at a church. The car that hit them ultimately collided headon with another vehicle. The driver who hit those people was taken into custody. Were going to turn to some weather now. Light snow early today in kansas and missouri. Flurries possible in western and upstate new york, as well as new england. Thunderstorms in parts of texas and the western gulf coast. No rain this morning on the west coast, finally, until another storm moves in. High temperatures reach the mid40s in the northeast and rockies. 26 in minneapolis. 31 chicago. 61 in los angeles. 50 in portland and seattle. So theres really no other way to describe this other than its a pretty cool scene captured by a resident in park city, utah. She was looking out behind her house and saw a large pack of elk hanging out on the golf course. A number of them made a move toward the road. The whole pack followed suit. Can you imagine seeing this . Where did you say . Utah . Park city, utah. The woman who posted this online called it a beautiful sight to see, noting she was lucky to capture it on video. I love this. I kind of wish i had a backyard that was capable of attracting elk. So you can see elk in particular or just i have bunny rabbits that ate my halloween pumpkin. Coming up in the skinny, the latest hits dropped by Backstreet Boys comeback. The boy band actually growing up. Our friend and former nfl great Michael Strahan is kicking it with the rockettes. This is a dance number you need to see. He was pretty doggone good. Youre watching world news now. Look at that. Giving a run for his money. Lets see your moves. Last time i made a move i ended up in the er. Announcer world news now weather brought to you by Mucinex Fastmax. Eh, you dont want that one. Yea, actually i do. Its Mucinex Fastmax night time and its got a nasal decongestant. Is that really a thing . It sounds made up. I cant sleep when im all stuffy. I take offense to that. Im not going to argue with a talking ball of mucus. I think youre being a little hasty. Hes not with me. Mucinex fast max night time. Multisymptom relief plus nasal decongestant. Breathe easy. Sleep easy. Start the relief. Ditch the misery. Lets end this. Who snoozebuttoned her morning run away. One cap of downy created such irresistibly soft sheets, she wanted to stay in bed forever. Downy. Surround yourself with three times the softening. Welcome back. Youll not believe this story. A couple guys in Central Florida are locked up after an incredible performance at walmart. We see them walk in. Security cameras are rolling. They fill it up with nearly 400 in toys. Then one guy fakes a heart attack near the exit while others turn their attention to him, we see the guy with the cart, he walks out. Rolls all that merchandise out without paying. The tape made it easy to identify them. Theyve been arrested and charged with grand theft. Thats one tactic, faking a heart attack. Its christmas. Its christmas. You know, people thieves are doing their thing. Of course, its christmas. They are getting creative. And they are brazen. Take this new tactic, the crash and grab. Burglars crashing stolen cars into the store fronts. Every moment tightly choreographed. Abcs alex perez has the story. Reporter it happened in seconds. A car smashes into the Louie Vuitton store in suburban chicago. Then as many as eight thieves dressed in dark clothes from head to toe storm into the store, clearing out shelves, making off with 120,000 in merchandise. The smash and grab robberies a growing problem in the chicago area. At least a dozen this year. A few weeks ago, burglars use a stolen pickup to ram through a brick wall, and then the gang rushes in stealing everything in sight. For them, its like fun. We have no choice but to close the store. Reporter and its not just chicago. Take a look at this video in miami. Masked burglars rush into this jewelry store, making off with millions. Thieves are resorting to smash and grab because stores now have smarter alarm systems, more cameras and employees trained to spot thieves. In the windy city, the bad guys all seem to have the same m. O. , working in groups. Most incidents over in less than two minutes. These types of crimes climb during the holidays because thieves can get higher prices on stolen luxury goods. Here in chicago, police are still working to track down those burglars. Alex perez, abc news, chicago. Weve got the skinny coming up. This movie has gotten so much press. The movie you will probably never see now. Everybody is out there reacting to sony scrapping the release of the interview. And backstreets back, oh, yeah. Isnt that part of the song . The band trying to find their way as men. Oh, its all right. There it is. Skinny is up next. Announcer world news now continues after this from our abc stations. Skinny so skinny okay. Leading us off, the reaction to the decision from sony heard round the world. That decision to not release the interview. Hollywood heavy hitters taking to social media to express their displeasure with sonys choice. Actor rob lowe among them tweeting out he commiserated with the films creator and star seth rogen noting the unprecedented nature of the studios decision. The director who gave rogen his first big break saying its disgraceful that theaters are not showing the movie and asking will they pull any movie that gets an anonymous threat now. Even kimmel responding calling sonys decision an unamerican act of cowardice that validates terrorist actions and sets a terrifying precedent. Stern reaction from, really, a guy who is just funny. Hes never really tough about that kind of stuff. Would americans have gone to see it . Would we have been fearful of going to the theater ourselves if they decided to still show the movie. I would have been fine going. But not everyone feels that way, right . Were not sure if well ever get to see that movie the interview. Some films we have seen are being honored by joining the National Film registry. 25 titles including saving private ryan will join the registry. Another notable, the 1971 childhood favorite starring gene wilder, oh, i love this one. Its willy wonka and the chocolate factory. Oompa loompa doompadee doo if you are wise youll listen to reena the film registry chooses movies that are at least ten years old which are considered culturally historic or have aesthetic cinematic treasures. Yeah, well, you know, thats just like your opinion, man. Yeah, many fans glad to see the Cohen Brothers cult favorite the big lebowski fits into that classification as well. A 6yearold who landed an interview with sting. The last ship was a topic of conversation. Before that, the kindergartner had to clear something up. How are you . Hi. Good to be here. So i have a question for you. Why are you called mr. Sting . Thats kind of an unusual name. I like it, but why are you called that . Okay. My given name is gordon. Thats a good question. Sting goes on to explain the story and also gives some welldressed credit for saying it was one of his best interviews hes ever done. Ever done. Thats pretty impressive. And he really did do his homework that young guy. Finally, backstreet is back. The boy band that burst on to the scene in the late 1990s is making a comeback with a brand new documentary answering a burning question. What do you do when you are a full grown man in a boy band . Thats a great question. The documentary follows the band through the making of their 20th anniversary album in a world like this. Its also chock full of flashbacks and drama giving fans a look inside the boys rise to superstardom. Show them what you are made of hits theaters and itunes january 30th. Time to celebrate birthdays. Legendary hollywood director and producer steven spielberg, 68. Brad pitt. Hunkadicious. So tongue tied hes so good looking. Hes 51. Really messed you up just then. Also actress katie holmes, 36 now. Are you related . Distant cousins. Christina aguilera, 34. Happy birthday. Ky yours mine. Yeah, we were nervous to try it. Theres an amazing sensation for her. Amazing. This one feels fantastic for me. And combined. Ohh, its a completely new sensation for us both. Its opened a whole new door for us. Ive come to clean your pool. But we dont have a pool. Ill come in anyway. Next week im going to be a maid. [ female announcer ] ky yours mine. His excites. Hers delights. Together feel them ignite. Keep life sexy. Together feel them ignite. Katy pesoft and fullntrary, how dlike a flower,grow . With new covergirl full lash bloom mascara. Finally volume thats soft not spiky. New full lash bloom mascara from easy, breezy, beautiful covergirl its a holiday tradition, the radio city christmas spectacular. It stars santa. But everyone knows its all about those legendary rockettes. Over 2 Million People make their way to see the famed dancers. Were up all nightline with abcs Michael Strahan who is trying to add rockette to his resume. They make it all look so easy. The kicks, the costume changes, that makeup. But how hard is it really to be a rockette all day . Lucky me, the ladies invited me to find out. Im here at radio city music hall. Im so excited. You know why . Because i am about to become a rockette. They kick more than 300 times per performance. To prepare, they stretch and they stretch. I dont know about this. And they stretch. There are perks to all the hard work. They say theres no need for a special rockette diet. They burn up to 1,000 calories each performance. Put your right arm across. It was time for the dancing to begin. Drop it three, hold four. Were going to jump one and kick your right foot, together, kick your left foot and then do a big pose at the end. With the steps down. Right center, four times in the center. Well, pretty much down, it was time to add some music. Check this out. Okay. I dont know what just happened. But i liked it one, two, three, rockettes a day with the rockettes, thats what i call kicking the holidays into high gear. For nightline, im Michael Strahan in new york. What . Yeah. Thats impressive. Incredibly impressive. Hes a tv host now, but thats a pro football hall of famer. Hes a great athlete. Stays in shape. Hes a great athlete. He got his legs high up there, but whoa, whoa. When was that . Is that your Christmas Card . My goodness. Be careful who you send those. Making news in america this morning restoring relations. United states and cuba slowly putting an end to a 50year freeze. Prisoner swap and how the pope played a key role. What it means for tourism and imports like cigars. They know which country is behind the sony hack as the studio decides to cancel the interview. A car slams into People Living church. The driver under arrest. And a deer comes out of nowhere into the path of a cyclist going 30 miles per hour. Well, good thursday morning