this is nbc nightly news with lester holt. good evening there is significant movement to report tonight in the effort to bring home americans brittney griner and paul whelan, both separately imprisoned in russia. late today, secretary of state antony blinken acknowledging there was a substantial proposal on the table to facilitate their release. griner, the wnba star detained since february, who has pleaded guilty to illegally possessing vape cartridges with cannabis oil whelan, a marine corps veteran, serving a 16-year sentence after being convicted of spying in 2020. both, the u.s. says, are wrongfully imprisoned blinken says the next step, a call with his russian counterpar sergey lavrov. believed to be on the table, a prisoner swap that could prove to be a bitter pill for the biden administration which has been under fire in its efforts to gain freedom for the americans. all this unfolding as griner told her story today inside a russian courtroom. andrea mitchell now
hundreds of people streamed down here to try to get a good spot to watch tonight because my party at the palace. a senior ukrainian official says ukraine s forces are pushing back russia in the key city of severodonetsk, where the two sides are locked in fierce street battles. travel disruption continues. airlines cancel more flights today and rail passengers are being warned of delays because of strikes by conductors. welcome to bbc news. a third day of celebrations for the queen s platinum jubilee is under way, with members of the royal family attending celebrations across the uk. the duke and duchess of cambridge are at cardiff castle with their two older children prince george and princess charlotte. the day will end with an open air concert at buckingham palace where prince charles will pay tribute to the queen for her enduring service. lets head there now and to the bbc s jane hill. warm welcome back to the mall. thousands and thousands, a very large number of people ha
of depth and magnitude, who crossed so many generations, from his years as a crooner in the 1950s to his second act later in life, including his now classic duets with lady gaga. tony bennett was always there, and with his music he always will be. whenever there s music reporter: tony bennett had it all, the looks, the style, and that voice. somewhere over the rainbow reporter: a butterscotch baritone. wonderful reporter: that enveloped audiences. marvelous reporter: the legendary crooner was born anthony dominic benedetto in queen, a kid of the great depression raised by a single mom. at 16 he dropped out of school and was later drafted by the army to serve in world war ii. i decided that when i get out of the army, i m going to go into show business. reporter: and that s exactly what he did. i love my whole life i love what i do. reporter: bob hope discovered him in a new york nightclub and