game, today, sunday, september find out if they finished the game, today, sunday, september 4, 2011. captions paid for by nbc-universal television good morning, everyone. welcome to "today" on a sunday. i'm lester holt. >> i'm jenna wolfe. it's been a wicked month of weather, especially a wicked nth. tornados and all that. dangerous storms, tornados and wildfires here all taking a heavy toll on many parts of the country this morning. but the gulf coast feeling the worst of it at this moment, tropical storm lee is causing power outages and flash flooding in new orleans and other yare i along the gulf. a live report in just a moment. president obama will tour flood damaged paterson, new jersey, today. the president is feeling the pressure to jump start the economy. on thursday he will unveil his job's plan to a very anxious country. david gregory will have a preview just ahead. a weekend of tv nostal ju. one of my favorite tv shows growing up, "the waltons." a tight-knit family during the depression. we'll talk to mary mcdonough. find out how that show changed her life. we'll welcome a special little friend. this little baby was born unexpectedly at the central park zoo. zookeepers hoped she would make it through irene, so she's named irene hope. we'll meet her a little bit later in the show. see what she has to say and what she's feeling. >> glad she's up and around. a moment we took the shot before the show and she was dead asleep. >> we were hoping she was just sleeping. a lot to get to. the latest weathermaker to pulverize part of the country. tropical storm lee on the gulf coast this weekend with a deluge that has new orleans holding its breath. charles hadlock is in new orleans with more. charles, good morning. >> good morning, lester. tropical storm lee is a minimal storm, at best. but ever since hurricane katrina eroded the gulf coast, there are places here that even a named storm means trouble. tourists in the french quarter dodged rain storms to take in the sights. but near the bayous away from the levees that protect the city. >> we need levee protection. >> reporter: resants like herbert moore say it is no party. >> people homes flooding, it's amazing. >> reporter: a dozen homes are flooded south of new orleans and thousands more are threatened. >> we're not evacuating because evacuation route is pretty much, basically, under water. my wife has a small car and we can't get out. >> reporter: forecasters fear lee could dump 20 inches of rain along the coast. this is one of the dozens of pump stations at the ready. new orleans is five to ten feet below sea level. any amount of rain that falls here has to be pumped out. the fear is, this storm could bring more rain than the pumps can handle. for now, the pumps are working and the levees rebuilt since katrina are holding. >> we've got a break in the rain right now, mayor. how is the city doing? >> reporter: mitch landrieu says the city is keeping a watchful eye on the storm. >> this one is sitting there and won't make up its mind on what it wants to do. any time you have a storm like that, you have to be very, very careful. >> reporter: but back in the bayou where they're used to this kind of flooding, curtis is taking the storm in stride. >> just cleaning everything off and waiting for it to come back and then we'll go around picking up the worms as the water go down and go fishing, again. >> reporter: no one is bringing out their fishing rods just yet. everyone from texas to florida along the gulf coast remains on guard. lester? >> charles, thanks. as many endure lee many are keeping an eye on katia. >> tracking it all for us is the weather channel's maria larosa. >> welcome to the height of tropical season. let's start with lee. tropical storm. maximum winds still at 45 miles per hour and the heavy rains, gusty winds and also, still, that that tornado threat clear into florida. we track lee over the next few days and get it into the tennessee valley pushing up towards the northeast. the winds stay brisk, about 25 miles per hour through wednesday and on into thursday. along with the track, it's going to take all that tropical rain, as well. those areas shaded in yellow indicate maybe as much as ten inches of rainfall and notice in the northeast anywhere from five inches, that is bad news for already socked in upstate new york and vermont. now, we focus on hurricane katia regained hurricane strength of the last advisory. winds at 75 miles per hour and tracking this one very closely does not look like it will affect land for the next several days but by friday getting close to the east coast. this is one to watch. we do think, though, it will take that right hook. we'll keep you posted. jenna, back to you? >> thank you very much. one week ago today that hurricane irene churned across the northeast and new england. the storm left pillions without power and put communities up and down the east coast without. president obama will tour the hard-hit area later today. nbc kristen is in paterson with more. good morning. >> good morning, jenna. ten weather-related incidents have caused $1 billion in damage each. when the president arrived here in paterson later today he'll find that the pasaic river here is receding just a little bit but that the people are still hurting to rebuild. after a weekend with family at camp david, president obama will come here to paterson, new jersey, to assess the recovery efforts. this is one of the communities hit hardest by hurricane irene. >> i think it's very important to see up close and personal what, you know, the effects of a storm like this were. to talk to local officials and locals. >> reporter: irene brought some of the highest flood waters this working-class town has seen in a century. 1,500 people had to be evacuated as hundreds of thousands lost power and streets became cluttered waterways. homes and businesses were destroyed. some city blocks were completely submerged. many say the president's visit will send a strong signal. >> i think, you know, pretty good for him to see what this area of paterson and what we need to get past this. a lot of people were affected. >> it is very good for him to be here. excellent for the community and rise their spirits or something. >> reporter: the president decla declared new jersey a disaster area this week which means flooded places like paterson are available for federal assistance. fema officials started setting up an office here, which will be tasked with helping people put the pieces back together. for sherry, help cannot come soon enough. she has lived in this paterson apartment for 48 years, but irene destroyed almost everything. >> memories, everything. it's beyond repair. you know, everything. >> right here is where the water went up to. >> reporter: mary an santos says she can't go through another flood. >> i'm not coming back down here. i can't do this, again. >> reporter: irene caused damage to communities up and down the east coast. the growing list of disaster areas spreading to more than half a dozen states now from virginia all the way to new hampshire. fema official os are still assessing the cost. as for paterson, the waters of the pasaic river have started to recede, but this community has only begun to heal. the people here will be watching the president closely. >> if he could help us. >> reporter: now, a lot is riding on this visit for the president, as well. his first public appearance since those dismal job numbers came out on friday that showed the economy added no net jobs during the month of august. paterson was a community that was struggling before irene hit. a lot of folks said things have gotten a lot worse now. >> kristen welker, thank you. one of the many challenges facing the president. david gregory is moderator of "meet the press." good morning, good to see you. paterson is a town that epitomized or symbolized many of the economic woes at this country is seeing. but in this case, does this trip offer a two-fold purpose? >> well, a purpose and opportunity, but it really does underscore how difficult it is for a community like that and local areas, states around the country have already been so hard hit because of layoffs and the economy and then you have a natural disaster on top of it. that money has got to be spent to rebuild communities like in paterson. this is also the nuts and bolts of being a leader and the president is acting on that throughout this hurricane and tropical storm. the one thing the president did not want to fall to was being somehow absent from leadership when people were going through some tough time. >> congress gets back to work this week, as you know, one of the major things is this committee with facing the deadline to find cuts in the deficit. have feelings cooled a little bit. has it cooled a little bit to allow this group to get their work done? >> i don't think the atmosphere cooled at all a lot of the tough decisions were left unmade. i think you'll see ratcheting up all over again. this is a very serious legislatures, folks who understand the need for compromise and the need to tackle some of these difficult issues. but they're so difficult. they're the hardest decisions that have to be made and long-term decisions. very difficult to get people to accept long-term change for the country's overall sustainability. and i think that's the job ahead of him. >> all week long, we've heard speculation about what the president will say in his speech this week, in which he outlines a new job's plan, an effort to get people back to work. where are the expectations in terms of what he might say? >> the politics are still very difficult when it comes to more stimulus. that's what the president is talking about. he'll talk about extending the payroll tax cut and the like and an infrastructure bank. what can the government do to try to create more demand in the economy? that will require government spending. that's not where the politics are in this town right now. they are in the opposite direction. as you look at that figure, recovery feels a lot like recession. there's not demand. a housing crisis that is persistent and companies aren't hiring. government may be the only one to move in and actually create some of that demand. that's the case the president will have to make. the question is, can he get any cooperation from republicans on that? >> david gregory, thanks. >> thanks, lester. a check of the other top stories this morning with thomas roberts over at the newsdesk. >> hi, jenna and lester. good morning, everyone. the former chief of the imf back home now in paris. dominique strauss-kahn arrived to cameras surrounding him and his family as they enter their paris home. the charges against kahn that he assaulted a new york city hotel maid have been dropped but being investigated in france on attempted rape apallegations. severe storms in the midwest interrupted football games that university of michigan and notre dame. lightning appeared to hit the football stadium in south bend, indiana, on saturday. the nearly 80,000 fans evacuated already. game time was a whopping 5 hours, 59 minutes and the fighting irish lost to the south florida bowls. green day frontman wasn't having a blast while flying last week. he was kicked off a southwest flight because of all things, his saggy pants. the flight attendant had asked him to hike them up to which he responded, don't you have better things to do. they apologized to the singer who took the next flight from oakland to burbank. that 22-year-old south african runner that some people thought was a man came in second. he was leading but then lost by half a second back in 2009 after the berlin world championships. she was accused of being a man because of her looks and ability, but gender testing cleared her to compete as a woman. finally, remember the lost penguin that became a worldwide celebrity after he washed up on a new zealand beach? scientists tried releasing the little guy named, happy feet. eventually he slid down the slide and splashed into the southern ocean and he has a gps so scientists can guarantee he makes it back home. >> that was a nudge, my friend. >> i was trying to be ni good sunday morning. i'm news 4 meteorologist chuck bell. a few breaks of sunshine in upper northwest washington. but skies are still mostly cloudy. temperatures are mild to get your sunday under way. low to mid-70s area wide. 75 downtown. 71 in fairfax. 72 in montgomery county. there you can see a few light rain showers across northern frederick county, east of hagerstown there. in and out of clouds today but it will be warm and humid. today's highs in the mid to lester, back to you. >> maria, thanks. up next on "today" from the wrath of hurricane irene, a small wonderple we'll meet irene hope after this. and that's what they do with great grains cereal. see the seam on the wheat grain? same as on the flake. because great grains steams and bakes the actual whole grain. now check out the other guy's flake. hello, no seam. because it's more processed. now, which do you suppose has better nutrition for you? mmm. great grains. the whole whole grain cereal. smoky eyes look amazing. but creating them? that's a whole different story. almay intense i-color smoky-i kit. first, sweep the smoky-i color across your lid. then, add the crease accentuating shade... and a highlight under your brow. only from almay. only for me. new newtons fruit thins. real cranberries and cranberry citrus oat... crispy whole grain. newtons fruit thins, one unique cookie. so last weekend's hurricane took a heavy toll on many, but at the central park zoo in new york, the storm arrived with some welcome news. the weather worsened, the keepers there realized one of their sheep had given birth. naming the newborn, not a problem. with us from the central park zoo, susan and the little lamb, irene hope. good morning to both of you. >> good morning. >> let me start with you, susan. it's been about a week now since irene hope joined us here. how is she feeling? >> she's great. she's very healthy little lamb. we're very grateful for that. >> take us back to last su saturday, susan, if you will. all your animals and stalls are ready and irene's mother's name is truffle and you walk into truffle's stall area and you see this little lamb. did you know that truffle was pregnant? >> we thought she might have been but then when we didn't have a lamb this past spring, we figured maybe she wasn't and we stopped thinking about a lamb. the morning of the storm, the lamb was the last thing on our minds. we were in hurricane mode. our staff was here early preparing all the animals and making sure they were safe and secure and had enough food and water for at least another day and we were getting ready to shut their doors and just keep them safe and then we found a little lamb. >> so, susan, from what i understand the first 24 to 48 hours is crucial between the baby and the mother. they need their privacy and they need alone time to really bond. were you concerned that because of the storm you weren't going to be able to make sure that they had all that quiet time and that something might happen to little irene hope? >> we were concerned. usually when we have a newborn we monitor them very closely and we knew that we weren't going to be able to do that during the height of the storm and we just, we boarded them up safely and gave them their own little private stall in the corner and hoped for the best and that's why she's named irene hope and we were hoping everyone would be safe and secure in all of our four parks and aquarium. sunday morning we were very pleased to see that everybody faired well and the baby was very, very healthy. >> i don't know if it was because i was staring at the baby so long, it looks like she's smiling and falling asleep at this point. >> this breed of sheep are actually called baby doll sheep because they have those little fluffy faces and the fuzzy ears and faces and she does look like she's smiling. >> i do understand that when you came back there was flooding and it took you a while to get back in and you were able to make things right and get everything back up and running, again. is she going to be okay, little irene hope? >> she's going to be okay. on sunday morning we actually needed to get into the children's zoo, we needed to get down by ladders because the flooding was so bad by the main entrance. so, as soon as the sun came out and it was safe it be out we checked on her first and we were happy to see that truffle was a good mom and nursed her threoug had night and irene hope looks great. >> we can hear truffle in the background going, can you wrap this up? i want my baby back. thank you, both, so much. we'll take a break, but, first, these messages. it's so great to meet you! i usually work alone... don't mind him. chocolate's just got a chip on his shoulder. [ female announcer ] new quaker chewy smashbar. kid-loved ingredients, smashed together. with 33% less sugar than the leading sweet snacks. still to come. end game is the appeals case of amanda knox coming to a close? we're live from italy with the latest. life on top. walton mountain. 40 years after this classic aired on tv, it's still a fan favorite. that's right. 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[ male announcer ] nicorette mini goes wherever you go, to help make quitting suck less. good morning. it's 8:26 on this sunday, september 4th. i'm aaron gilchrist. in the news for today, a tragic accident serving as an unfortunate reminder about safety during storm cleanup. orlando hernandez was electric kraouted while cutting down tree limbs near power lines on jackson avenue. pepco crew had to deenergize the line before rescuers could get to him. he was pronounced dead on the scene. chuck brown will join the national symphony orchestra. this year's theme is legends of washington music. brown is considered the godfather of go-go in d.c. it will reach mercedes ellington. you can see this free concert on the capitol west lawn. the show begins at 8:00. take a look at your forecast for you after this break. chuck bell is in storm center 4 with a look at our forecast. >> good morning once again, aaron. plenty of cloud cover west of town. breaks of sunshine getting through the sky in northwest washington. i'm optimistic we'll have a pretty nice day today. a little bit of rain chance with daytime heating. plenty of dry hours to get outside and enjoy more of your labor day weekend. low to mid-70s across the area. there you can see on doppler fading showers across parts of frederick, county, maryland. a few rain drops western howard and montgomery county. these dying sprinkles won't last much longer. warm and humid with temperatures in the mid to upper 80s. tomorrow, though, that's when the clouds and rain really settle in. >> thank you, chuck. we're back on this sunday morning, september 4th, 2011. it is labor day weekend, and that means it's the unofficial end of summer. don't tell that to new york city. we have a beautiful summer-like day today. our thanks to the nice crowd waving to their friends. i'm mildly disappointed. >> respond quite well. >> at least you guys are listening. that's all that matters. i'm jenna wolfe alongside lester holt. >> holt. hi, how are you? pleasure. >> tried to get through that one. we're talking about the aba amanda knox trial. >> the court took a summer recess and they're back at a critical point in her recess. right now the prosecution trying to or many think this could be the linchpin that could free amanda knox. we'll get an update as the court prepares to get back to business tomorrow. did you watch the waltons? were you a fan? >> well, millions grew up in the '70s watching john boy and airen and mary and the rest of the family grow up on walton mountain. it was a hit for so many years and each episode ended with the line, good night, john boy. mary is joining us here in the studio and tell us about life on the mountain. >> she has a little fan club out here. also, the weather is starting to cool down, well, it will start to cool down soon and a new crop of fall movies and we have one of our favorite reviewers in the house. our kid critic, jackson murphy will be here to tell us his picks. >> aka, lights, camera, jackson. first, another check on this beautiful weather. at least right good sawn morning. plenty of cloud cover mainly west of town this morning. temperatures around the city are in the mid-70s already. looking for highs today up into the mid and upper 80s. just enough sunshine to pick up one or two showers or thunderstorms by late this afternoon. keep a weather eye to the sky. sprinkles are fading away as we go into the mid to late morning hours. most of our afternoon looks fairly dry. be on the lookout for a few afternoon showers. and you can always get a check of your weather, 24/7 at weather.com. lester, back over to you. >> maria, thanks. now to amanda knox and what could be a make or break week in her appeals case. the american is trying to overturn her conviction for murdering her british roommate. as we approach a verdict, she's counting on the forensic science to clear her name. chatman is there for us. good morning. >> amanda knox back in the italian courtroom that is hearing her appeal for murder after a break of over a month here in perugia. in the courtroom, emotions are running high. during the last session, the court-appointed forensic experts punched a hole in the prosecution's case. they testified there were more than 50 breaches of international forensic science protoc protocols. it was the dna that helped convict amanda knox and her former boyfriend of murdering her roommate. the scientists, appointed by the appeals judge, said dna on the knife allegedly used to murder her and the sloppy gathering of evidence could have led to convict her boyfriend at the time. knox's legal team didn't question the experts. >> we are satisfied, of course, of the result. we were not surprised because we knew that many of the scientific evidence were not reliable. >> reporter: and her family is happy with the review. >> the independent experts came back and supported 100% and then some. everything that our experts said at the beginning. so, it's like now people are finally listening. >> reporter: another hot summer behind bars for knox. after the court broke in july for its one-month recess. her family says she's ready to get back in the courtroom. >> i think there was a huge weight taken off of her shoulders that, you know, it was kind of like, finally, somebody believes me. >> reporter: tomorrow the prosecution is expected to continue arguing that the independent report does not overturn their findings. asking for a longer sentence than the 26 years she's already serving. while amanda knox and her family hope this appeal will set her free. lester, court is expected to start tomorrow with the continued cross-examination of these independent experts. the focus of the week will remain on these forensics. lester, we could have a verdict in this appeal at the end of the month. >> chatman in perguia, thank you. karen is with us. good morning. great to see you. >> hi, lester. >> laser focused on dna. if you remove that from this equation, does she walk? >> she does. you never know for sure. >> legally, can she walk? >> legally she should, but you never know what is going tee happen. two key items. the murder weapon, which is the knife and also the bra clas. so, there's a 200-page expert report and it's very important to understand that these are independent experts that were hired by the appellate court to do the testing and retest all of the evidence from the first trial. they have said that it's likely that that evidence was contaminated. that it was collected incorrectly and that those items should be nullified. if they are nullified, nothing connecting her with that murder. >> as a prosecutor, how do you punch holes in that? it sounds like your critical evidence has been largely discredited. how do you try to restore your case? >> lester, here's the problem. we started using dna evidence in the united states in the early 1990s. the science is 100%. the problem was always the collection, the contamination and human error. so, obviously, one of the things that you do want to do as a prosecutor is go ahead and say, listen, we have procedures. it was collected correctly and went in these vials and you go by the step-by-step process. however, we do know from this 200-page report that a lot of procedures are different from local police station to local police station which is the problem we had in the early '90s. there is a learning curve. >> it's difficult because, i mean, it's a different system, doesn't mean it's any worse or any better. but now that we're in the appeals process, does the italian appeals process work to her benefit, more so than it might be in the united states to retry the entire thing? >> absolutely because their appellate case review is really like a new trial. you also have, which is different, you have eight people, two judges and you have six jurors reviewing all the evidence and it's very important to note that 50% of the time in italy, convictions are reversed. the third defendant in this case got a 30-year sentence and after his appellate review it was reduced to 16 years. >> it's, hey, kngo back and mak sure we got this right. >> right. like a new evidence, new trial and new albany witness that places her and her boyfriend outside the scene of the crime. >> the court of public opinion can't be fst trial, there was so much tabloid press, especially in italy. there were leaks, many of them turned out to be false and many think that worked against her. this seems to be a very different attitude. the reporting seems to be much more straight forward there. how does that change or affect anything? >> it changes a lot. what happened back in 2010 there was a civil case where she sued the italian media and she recovered, lester, $55,000 for leaks of her personal journal. so, i think that with that case, the italians became a little bit more suspicious of how the case was being, she was labeled as permisscuous and foxy knoxy and all these very salacious items in the media. when she sued and she recovered that money because deafamation n the media there is a criminal offense. that's something they take very seriously. >> this seems to be a much more sober proceeding. as chatman told us, we could have a verdict at the end of the month. >> she could also appeal that, lester. she could go to the supreme court in rome i, if she's not successful there. >> thank you very much. the waltons touches a whole new generation of viewers. the waltons touches a whole new generation of viewers. but, first, these messages. at usaa, we believe honor is not exclusive to the military. and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. from free checking to credit cards to loans, our commitment to the military, veterans, and their families is without equal. ♪ visit us online to learn what makes our bank so different. usaa. we know what it means to serve. ♪ step on it! you only have 4 days to enjoy extra savings at the petsmart labor day sale. save up to 50% on hundreds of items. and select tropical fish are only $1 each. at petsmart®. new newtons fruit thins. real cranberries and cranberry citrus oat... crispy whole grain. newtons fruit thins, one unique cookie. so we made ocean spray cranberry juice cocktail with a splash of lime. it's so refreshing, your taste buds will thank you. mm... oh, you're welcome. what? my taste buds -- they're thanking me. uh-huh. with the best decongestant. my choice is clear. claritin-d. nothing works stronger, faster or longer for allergy congestion relief without drowsiness. get claritin-d at the pharmacy counter. live claritin clear. 40 years has passed since "the waltons" premiered on tv. the show continues to attract legions of fans. in just a moment, we'll talk live to mary mcdonough who played erin walton. but, first, more on a television master piece. the rural setting and the real-life lessons and the tight knit clan that captured our hearts. the waltons. from breakfast at the table to that signature good night ending. >> good night, john boy. >> good night, elizabeth. >> reporter: in the '70s millions watched the family struggle with poverty, but find strength in one another. >> there was something so honest and earnest about the family and looking back, people still can appreciate that simple lifestyle and the simple values that the waltons had. >> reporter: told through the eyes of budding novelist john boy, the series dealt with life and loss, life and death, serious themes delivered with a message of honesty, hope and always centered on the home. >> it doesn't matter how old you are, people just remember the show. it's just one of the series that will live on in television history. >> reporter: for the cast, the series brings back fond memories, as lester found out a few years back when they joined him for a reunion. >> as a fan of the show, this is what i wanted. to know nat you guys have a relationship. >> oh, thank you. >> probably the biggest part of my life outside of my own biological family. we can look back at 30 some years of each other's lives. >> reporter: 40 years since first appearing on television, we can only imagine what a modern walton family would look like. >> they'd probably be texting downstairs to upstairs saying good night where back on the day in the show everyone had this meaningful good night conversation with each other. >> reporter: the world has changed, but the waltons will remain a timeless tv classic. >> and joining us now is, good morning, mary mcdonough. author of the new book "lessons from the mountain." good morning, erin. >> good morning, jenna girl. >> thank you, now i feel better. when you hear the theme song to the show or you hear someone joke around, does it just immediately bring back memories for you? >> it does. wonderful memories. i hear the music and it touches my heart. it's such a grieat -- there it is, thank you. so many people are watching it. it's on three stations. >> so, you write this book, mary. in the book you talk about two families. but both your personal family and the waltons. what was it like balancing both of them at the same time? >> it was a wild, crazy ride. here i was in this irish, middle class family and i spent more time with the walton family than i did with my own mcdonough family. talks about going back and forth and school and growing up in hollywood. it was wonderful. i had great role models and the book talks about my fun memories and the behind the scenes antics. >> a lot of child actors talk a lot about the identity crisis between playing a character and being your own person. did you have a problem with erin and mary? i know you touch on this in the book, as well. >> everybody is looking at you as erin and you're expected to be a certain way and i didn't know who mary was. i went back and forth and trying to find out, well, do i have any value or do people only like me because i'm erin? >> the first half of the book you talk about different stories from, you say, learning from the best. a o the dinner table. you got great advice and you got to learn littlete a me some of memories there? >> so many fond memories. a lot of joking and laughing at the table. ralph singing to us when we got a little down. but will one day took me, i don't want to say under his wing, but into his arm pit in those overalls and he said, mary beth, you need to learn to appreciate every gig. this is the best thing that happened to me. i really learned to appreciate and love the show while i was still on it and now, of course, years later, it's just the amazing thing. >> some mischief went on at the dinner table. >> oh, yes. >> i'm sure. you have that many kids around the table and you're playing characters on tv. >> michael would sit next to me, the mom. ralph would try to make her laugh and poking her under the table and her arm would go and then, of course, i would laugh and i would get in trouble because i ruined the shot. but i knew she was laughing because she was squeezing my hand during prayer. >> you called this book "lessons from the mountain, what i learned from erin." what was the most significant time you spent on that set and with that family? >> so many things. but about appreciating every moment in life and really family values and embracing all different kinds of people and all walks of life because that's what the show taught. and just lessons for me, personally, that i thought i was alone growing up and i felt so different and now i find out now that i'm actually, i just felt the same way everybody else did, i just happened to be growing up on tv. >> you still keep in touch with everybody? >> all the time. we see each other all the time. >> that's fantastic. now you can pass around the book. see if everybody remembers the same memories. >> mine are mine. >> mary mcdonough, thank you, appreciate your time. still ahead, lights, camera, jackson. he joins us with his picks for the fall flicks. first, these messages. [ male announcer ] washington, d.c. a landmark of liberty and opportunity. at bank of america, we live and work here, with thousands of employees and hundreds of branches and atms. every day, we're working to help set opportunity in motion... from supporting the arts and howard university to helping revitalize anacostia and downtown d.c. because when you're giving, lending, and investing in more communities across the country, more opportunities happen. ♪ it's labor day weekend and means fall moving season is on its way and the preview of what blockbusters are coming up. one of america's most unique film critics before he has to go back to middle school. >> he is 13-year-old award emmy award winner jackson murphy. aka, lights, camera, jackson. >> how are you doing? >> i'm doing great. >> every time you come here, you always impress us. someone else you met or smeother show you were on. recently you were in chicago and you met roger ebert. >> such great experience. i went on ebert presents at the movie show. such a lot of fun and i got to meet raunler and his wife and they are really, really nice and i got to go into their studios. >> don't you feel like he should be interviewing us? >> i just got nervous and i didn't know why. >> i had the same feeling. i want to talk about the fall film. "twilight saga breaking dawn". >> comes out november 18th and bella and eduard award >> comes out november 18th and bella and eduard awa are gettin married now and jacob in that scene he's really mad. the highly anticipated part one to the final twilight movie. >> you're a fan of the series? >> i've only seen the last one, "eclip "eclipse." another one comes out that day "happy feet 2" so i'm more excited about "twilight." >> nextiate wa, i want to ask yt "foot loose" do you remember the first one? >> i've just seen a little bit of the original, of course, it was with kevin bacon and now the remake of the original "foot loose" that has dennis quaid and and it looks okay. that one comes out in october. >> "lion king 3d" same movie just 3d? >> it is a money grab and this is, of course, the highly successful 1994 disney animated classic that they're bringing back in theaters for two weeks only in 3d. >> you don't know this. i spent some time with jackson this week. not a fan of 3d because he doesn't think they do it exactly the way that shthey should. >> like real 3d coming right at you. >> that's kind of fun. but it's used well sometimes. >> the thing about "lion king" you get new generations discovering it. it's timeless. >> it's kind of a scary movie. there's death involved in this, so, i'm not exactly sure why they picked this one. they were originally also going to do "beauty and the beast" and they put that on old. i was looking forward to that. >> he appreciates movie. "beauty and the beast" is his favorite movie of all time. >> you strike "happy feet" kind of guy. the new adam sandler movie is coming out. >> "jack & jill." he plays a character named jack and his twin sister, jill. adam sandler plays two characters and this comes out 11/11/11, very appropriate. it looks just okay. but there's also al pacino is in it and regis philbin, hopefully it can be okay. again, 11/11/11. >> name dropper. >> but then he goes somewhere else and he's like, my good friend lester holt called me up yesterday and said -- >> we are good friends now. this is your third appearance on the show. tell me about "real steel." >> with hugh jackson and set in the future about ten years or so where robots are boxing. yeah, the number one sport. and he's a promoter trying to get a new robot. so, yeah, looks exciting. could be a good fall action film. >> jackson, every time you come on, like we said, you met roger ebert this year, you seem to have some huge accomplishment that you tackled. what is next for you? if there was someone you could meet or some show you could go on besides this one, what is next on your bucket list? >> i would love to go on more of these shows. i'm very fortunate enough to be on those she shows and i love being here, as always. >> how do you do this? >> i'm going into eighth grade. >> how do you manage all this? >> i'm still a full-time student. i go back to school in a couple of days and at times it's a bit tricky to manage everything, but i get through it or at least try to attempt to get through it. >> do you only review movies or when you get math homework do you say, i don't like this? >> a lot of times some night can be stressful and i enjoy my school and a great atmosphere and just a lot of fun. but mostly the movies. sometimes i'm like, really, do i need to get this paper tonight. >> he can talk his way into and out of everything. >> i really quickly want to say happy birthday to my cousin who turning 3 today. happy birthday. >> very nice. >> very nicely done. >> jackson, thanks. we'll take a break and be back after these messages. you feel it working, so you know it's working. and that means you're good to go, for whatever the day brings. new crest complete. unlike ordinary toothpaste, you feel a deeper clean. it's a signal that tells you your whole mouth is clean. you're also protected. because most of life happens outside the bathroom. feel it working, know you're covered. with new crest complete, life opens up when you do. we want to check in now, again, with david gregory and find out what's coming up on "meet the press." >> a special round table discussion about the state of america. and then we look at how young people responded to the 9/11 attacks creating this country's new greatest generation. all coming up this morning on "meet the press." david, we'll see you then, thanks. >> our thanks to thomas roberts and maria larosa. coming up next week on "today" remembering 9/11, ten years later. >> thanks for watching, everybody. bye-bye. not out of the woods just yet. good morning. i'm aaron gilchrist. tropical storm lee over the southern coast of louisiana. meteorologists say lee isn't as bad as originally thought but it is still bringing high wind and threats of flooding. charles has the latest from new orleans. >> reporter: tourists in the french quarter dodged rain storms to take in the sights. but near the bayous, away from the levees that protect the city, de