>> that changes my life right there. >> on this thankful thursday. ♪ rescue me and "gma" to the rescue. we're helping you find the best black friday bargains early. nearly 165 million americans planning to cross items off their list this weekend. when you should buy online. what you should wait for plus our turkey 911 team is here to help save your holiday. what we're cooking up on this thanksgiving morning. ♪ i need you by my side can't you see that i'm lonely ♪ and good morning, america. happy thanksgiving, everyone. let's take a look at the macy's thanksgiving day parade right here in new york city. we are going to be live along that famous route, ginger is with the crowds on this very chilly morning looking beautiful and lara is in philadelphia with all the excitement at that parade as well, hi, lara. >> if you're gearing up to host a thanksgiving feast this morning and i know amy is doing this, don't stress. we've got three expert chefs here in times square answering all your last-minute questions about turkey day. one piece of advice, don't try to shove the whole thing, the turkey, that is into the microwave. >> never put a turkey in a microwave. >> that's why i'm giving advice. >> america thanks you for that. >> i will and here all morning. ginger along the parade route. ginger, good morning to you. >> hey, good morning, you guys. happy thanksgiving, everyone. what a gorgeous morning here on the upper west side of manhattan. we're looking at some of the floats of the 26 threats that will make their way through the 91st annual macy's thanksgiving day parade. but, guys, the balloons are always the biggest hit and this year, olaf is part of the parade. that's right. our friend olaf from "frozen" is going to go up, blow up and be one of many. they have 17 that come along and new ones, "paw patrol worth is one of them and windchill here is the same as the temperature so actually nice. 32 degrees, seasonably cool. the southwest is nice and toasty hot and could see record highs from las vegas to phoenix and overall a decent thanksgiving. i can't remember the last time we could actually celebrate the holiday without the weather interrupting so i'm pretty happy. we'll have some fun and get clowns, cheerleaders. you'll see it all. >> always a nice mix. thank you, ginger. to lara now in philadelphia where they're getting ready for their parade. hey, lara, good morning. >> hi, you guys. good morning, sorry a little hard to hear you here because we are pom-pomming with the philadelphia cheerleaders who wanted me to let you know they're 3r0ud of their season. go, eagles, right? but today it's all about the thanksgiving day parade. the 98th thanksgiving day parade here in philadelphia. very proud to be here. i have always been in new york. this is the oldest thanksgiving day parade in the country and right behind me you can see they are ready to go. kicks off in just about an hour. we're at the start of the parade route, the best spot to be in so you'll want to stay with us all morning long. a mile and a half, 17 balloons and you guys near and dear to my heart rescuing animals and dogs, clifford is all about that. he represents the handlers for clifford are all about adoption so you'll find me probably hanging out over there with the clifford gang working since 4:30 in the morning. you guys have been out here a long time, right? >> yeah. >> so i have great company with the eagles cheerleaders. so excited and be here all morning long and i know you're covering the big guy, the new york parade as well, so i believe, america, we have got you covered on this chilly but beautiful thanksgiving morning. back to you guys. >> that's right, lara. happy thanksgiving to you. the macy's thanksgiving day parade is obviously on high alert right here in new york city, the nypd enforcing tight security along the route just weeks after that deadly terror attack in downtown manhattan. and abc's erielle reshef is at the parade route right now for all of those details. good morning, erielle. >> reporter: good morning, amy. this is one of the most watched parades in the world and security has never been tighter. going to show you here, there are thousands of officers swarming the streets. the entire area cordoned off. new york city police say there is no credible threat to this parade but authorities are on high alert in the wake of that bike path terror rampage that killed eight people in lower manhattan on halloween so deploying their strongest show of force ever. 80 sanitation trucks filled with sand will block traffic along the 2 1/2-mile route and officers with assault weapons will walk the crowds and bomb-sniffing dogs and newest canines that will catch the scent of explosive tears in the air and snipers will keep a watchful eye on the 3.5 million expected to pour into the streets and officers on every single block and police say they are ready. >> erielle, we know they are, but they are also asking for help from the paradegoers themselves and want them to also be keeping that watchful eye out. >> reporter: that's absolutely right, amy. police are saying they want everyone to be vigilant. they want to know if you see anything suspicious but they're saying this is going to be the safest parade ever so they're encouraging everybody to come out and enjoy it. amy. >> all right, erielle reshef, thanks so much. dan. let's talk politics now. president trump, this is his first thanksgiving in office. he'll be at mar-a-lago in florida with his family. meanwhile, though, back in washington, more members of congress facing allegations of sexual misconduct. senior white house correspondent cecilia vega is on the north lawn with the latest. cecilia, good morning. let's start with the republican congressman joe barton. yesterday he apologized for a lewd picture of him that was circulating online and then overnight he was accused of threatening a woman with whom he shared sexually explicit materials. tell us about that. >> reporter: yeah, dan, well, frankly this is so lewd we can't even show it to our viewers. important, though, to point out both sides in this is a this was a consensual relationship, "the washington post" is reporting that they've reviewed recordings that show the texas congressman telling this woman that he would report her to capitol police after he says she threatened to make these photos and their exchanges public. a statement we received from joe barton says, when i ended that relationship she threatened to publicly share my private photographs and intimate correspondence in retaliation. as the transcript reflects i offered to take the matter to capitol police and they will investigate. barton's office says he has no plans to resign. >> there's news on two other members. senator al franken and representative john conyers, both democrats. what's the latest there. >> reporter: it has been quite a week on this front. in franken's case two more women have come forward to accuse him of wrongdoing bringing the total number of misconduct allegation that's now faces to four. the latest two tell "huffington post" that he grabbed their backsides in two separate incidents. franking tells "the huffington post" it is difficult to respond to anonymous accusations and doesn't remember the incidents in question. conyers, a third woman has accused him of wrongdoing and tells "the washington post" he verbally abused him and once went to his office where he was in his underwear. dan, a lawyer for conyers denies these allegations. >> finally let's talk about the president. he is as we said spending thanksgiving at mar-a-lago. his staff is insisting this is a working vacation. >> reporter: yeah, and they are very concerned about the perception that he's not working. after aides told a group of reporters traveling with him that it would be low key yesterday they said it would be low key and quickly changed that and aides wanted it known it would be low key for reporters but the president would be making phone calls and spent five hours at the golf course yesterday. today he has one thing on his public schedule. he's making a call to thank the military and also tweeting with one tweet that just said make america great again so that's the message this thanksgiving and also said happy thanksgiving. >> cecilia vega at the white house this morning. cecilia, thank you. amy, back to you. >> turing to black friday bargain hunters 32 million say they plan to start buying today and are not just getting an early start online. kmart, target, jcpenney and best buy all open for door busters this morning. alex perez is in chicago with those trying to get an early start, alex. good morning. >> reporter: hey, that's right, good morning, amy. this kmart store is already open. 10% to 50% off a lot of things inside the store doing whatever they can to get people off their computers and phones and into the store. it's already happening this morning. >> i was here monday night. >> i'm number one. if you're not first you're last. >> reporter: shoppers camped out for days in front of stores to get first dibs on the deepest black friday discounts. >> i have a portable propane heater and two sleeping bag, a bunch of blankets and things to keep me occupied. >> reporter: what has basically become a holiday tradition could soon be a thing of the past. according to the national retail federation, the number of in-store shoppers on black friday decreased by 3 million people last year. retailers are taking notice. in 2016 just 10% of all black friday door buster deals were offered as in-store only options. this year, that number cut in half. down to just 5%. >> because of amazon, most of the stores can't offer the door busters that they used to. they have to compete online. i don't think black friday deals are going to go away and will probably be equal so that they give the consumer the choice to go either way. >> reporter: with more than 6,000 brick and mortar stores shuttering their doors this year alone, some retailers are going to extremes. fighting to get those shoppers who want to feel and see the deals with their own hands into their stores. >> the holidays are very personal, so people kind of want to touch and feel things, as well. make sure it's the right gift. >> reporter: retailers turning to in-store only deals with deep discounts. like best buy offering this 50-inch sharp smart tv, 179 bucks. that's a $320 discount for going into the store. and one in-tore deal that a lot don't think about buying a new car, many dealerships right now offering big incentives to get people inside the door. amy. >> i know, but, alex, a lot of stores decided not to open today, which ones are they and why? >> reporter: yeah, that's right. you know they're being called black friday purist, these stores that believe the customer really just wants to come in and feel that holiday tradition of shopping on black friday. stores like t.j. maxx, nordstrom, home depot, staples, costco, sam's club all those places closed on thanksgiving. >> i'm sure their employees are happy about that decision. alex, thank you. >> that's an important point actually alex, thank you. holiday shop something setting records online up 18% from last year and thanksgiving is the single biggest day for discounts. abc's becky worley is in san francisco with all that, becky. good morning, happy thanksgiving. >> reporter: same to you, dan. most folks haven't set the thanksgiving table or even fired up any football games but virtual doorbuster sales are happening online as we speak. overnight the websites for walmart, office depot and kohl's going live with their sales. this iphone six $129 at walmart. $70 off. at kohl's a samsung 55-inch tv that cops in at $350 and this laptop at office depot for $299 down 200. but beware with big online deal come big online scams. this holiday weekend online thieves creating spoofed websites and phish e-mails posings big name retailers and brands and 40% of u.s. consumers have fallen victim to these online attacks. now, the hunt for discounts happening now. target just gone live predawn eastern time this morning with their deals. they have ipads for $249. that's $80 off. amazon live now with discounts on almost all of their fire and alexa products. they also have a ninja blender for 67 bucks, that's $52 off -- the lowest price we've ever seen, dan, so for your morning smoothie routine we have a deal. >> i like it. cheap smoothies. we should mention a lot of these specific deals are limited quantities, so any big picture for fining deals today and through the weekend? >> if that online doorbuster is sold out here's some guides. seeing across the board deals on 4ktvs $50 than the ones we saw last year, lots of models out there. small kitchen appliance prices are being slashed. we're talking toasters, coffeemakers, some as low as $5 each and it's not just electronics. think sports and outdoor stores too. lots of things as low as $10. >> thank you very much. we'll talk to you throughout the holiday shopping season. thousand to amy. >> dan, thank you. the retail industry changing so rapidly, so for more let's turn to the ceo of old navy, sonia syngal joining us from emeryville, california. more and more are shopping online. your roots are in brick and mortar. how are you adapting? >> we opened our newest store next to you in times square. well, talking about our business in terms of digital i'm thrilled to say we've been in the digital business for almost 20 years and with our thousand stores and our digital presence, what we're hoping to do is let the customer shop with us in any way she or he wants. our customers often preshop online and try things on and go back and forth and that is really what we aim to do, meet our customers where they are. >> you said preshop and speaking to that, black friday actually happened on wednesday. do days of the week even matter anymore? >> every day is really big this time of year and our black friday sales did start yesterday and for three days, we are offering the best deals of the year at 50% off. both online and in stores and so we're super excited. >> all right, sonia, i know you are dealing with it every day. how does old navy stay competitive with amazon and all the other online retailers. >> we are pleased with our momentum. this is our sixth year in a row of positive sales growth and the way we continue to win is by staying focused on what our customers want. it's about starting and ending with amazing products. it's all about fun, family, value and fashion. >> hottest sale item of the year. >> crushing it with jeans right now. with denim for the whole family. we've got so much amazing innovation with sculpt and flex denim or men and the kids as well. >> happy thanksgiving, sonia syngal, thanks so much for joining us. >> thanks, amy. all right. time now for our turkey 911. our thanksgiving dream team of experts chefs, rocco dispirito, sanders l sandra lee and eddie jackson. amy doesn't need this help. she is an expert. we should just say that. rocco, our first question is from samantha says, help, i forgot to take my turkey out and it's still frozen. what do i do? >> put your hands on your face and call boston market. see what time they close today? no, i'm just kidding. you put your turkey in a large pot of warm water, you allow warm water to run over it until it defrosts then break it into pieces or spatch cock it like i'll do later. >> what if i do if i oversalt the turkey? >> there are a couple of things you can do. citrus would be my number one go to. now, you can rinse it off or you can just cut a lemon in half and squeeze it over and that will cut that salty flavor. but also i would not put so much salt maybe in the potatoes and gravy and eat it all in one bite. >> there you go. >> serve it with tequila. >> i like the way you roll. eddie says what's your favorite way to flavorize a turkey? five-spice avors like a butter and adds a lot of flavor to turkey. keep it simple but spices it up a little. >> awesome. thank you very much. >> easy peasy. >> easy peasy for you. stay tuned for more turkey 911. let's go to ginger back at the macy's parade route. hey, ginger. >> hey, you guys. it is so good to be out here. guess what, the cold never bothered us anyway. i got to tell you, all the volunteers that are here are getting pumped up, we can't wait. what is not cold, the southwest, los angeles, let's get to the sunny cities brought to you by car max. >> reporter: happy thanksgiving everyone are we're dry on storm tracker 6 live double scan, as we take a look outside, the sun is coming up nice and bright over the commodore barry bridge and elsewhere across the region. just a few clouds around. we're chilly with temperatures up in the freezing zone across the region. philadelphia itself down around 32. this afternoon 46 chilly at the parade, but hitting 40 by the end of the parade. tomorrow, sunny and milder, chilly start for shoppers, high of 54. 58 saturday. how she's paying it forward. ♪ make walmart your first and only stop. black friday. thanksgiving 6pm. get the app for a sneak peek at the deals. i used to have more hair. i used to have more color. and ... i used to have cancer. i beat it. i did. not alone. i used to have no idea what the american cancer society did. research? yeah. but also free rides to chemo and free lodging near hospitals. i used to maybe give a little. then i got so much back. ... i used to have cancer. please give at cancer.org. the oats feed your body fiber. fiber helps keep things moving through your system. which is great. because when you're good to your system, it'll be good to you. ♪ and roomba from irobot gets to work using two multi-surface brushes and power-lifting suction to grab and remove everything from fine dust to large debris. daily dirt doesn't stand a chance. you and roomba from irobot. better together. we're 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(all) yes. we brewed the love, right guys? pain from a headache whcan make this...ld, ...feel like this. all-in-one cold symptom relief from tylenol®, the #1 doctor recommended pain relief brand. tylenol®. thanksgiving, 7:23 a.m., thursday, november 23. chopper 6 hd is live over the benjamin franklin parkway and eakens oval. love coverage of the 6abc dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade begins in about an hour. let's go to matt pellman for a look at traffic. >> reporter: we're watching all the parade closures for the dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade. live over eakens oval, the oval is blocked off. benjamin franklin parkway is closed. kelly drive, jfk boulevard, market street blocked off. luckily we don't have a lot of the people that need to be at the work or somewhere else. the schuylkill expressway and vine are nice and clear, exit the vine at broad street and look for parking and hoof it over to the parade area. 202 parkway county line road a turkey trot, everything is blocked county line at 202 parkway in preparation. watching a crash in upper did you lynn, wilmington, the ms run is this morning, a bunch of street closures, dart buses are not running because of the holiday. >> look for karen rogers for the parade coverage and david murphy is after the break in accuweather. >> reporter: good morning, everyone, happy thanksgiving, you can tell i'm dressed for the weather. it's sunny, but as you look at temperatures, we're chilly, 32 the freezing mark. 28 in trenton, 27 in allentown. millville, 26. a cool start. it's chilly today, if you're heading to the parade, bundle up you should be okay. lots of sun an light wind. starting out around the freezing mark, winding up with a temperature 46. 54 tomorrow. love is what inspires me. love is being awakened by a kiss. love is finding calm in your partner's arms. love is intimate. love is everlasting. love is a diamond. if there's one thing i know, it's couples in love. from the runway to the wedding aisle, to the most romantic day of their lives, i'm there. each piece of my jewelry collection is designed with lovers in mind. the vera wang love collection, at zales. the diamond store. as our ocean spray cranberries, which is why we're declaring it "the unofficial official fruit of the holidays." -the fig's gonna be so bummed. -[ chuckles ] for holiday tips and recipes, go to oceanspray.com. ♪ -the fig's gonna be so bummed. when a achoo!alls... ...answer it. with zicam cold remedy. it shortens colds, so you get better, faster. colds are gonna call. answer them with zicam! zicam. get your better back. now in delicious fruit drops. welcome back to "gma" on this thanksgiving morning. you're looking at a beautiful day in philadelphia. lara who is also, of course, beautiful is out there enjoying the longest running thanksgiving day parade in america celebrating its 98th year. >> she's jumping up and down because she's excited but also kind of cold out there. live from the macy's thanksgiving day parade and we'll check in with senior meteorologist rob marciano along the route on a chilly morning, rob, but you're dressed properly. >> it is. that's right. as long as you're dressed for it. you guys may be the only people not wearing a hat here. we're 20 deep and excited to be here. we're lined here about a mile into the parade route, folks are psyched. are you not thanked for today's thanksgiving day parade. look at these two. these kids are really psyched. hey, guys. how is it going? oh, yeah. about the same reaction i get from my kids. whatever you got to do to keep them busy, when the parade comes i'm sure they'll put the ipad away. a beautiful, chilly day, happy thanksgiving from the two cute kids. back to you. >> the two cute distracted kids. >> mine would never do that. just kidding. >> no, no, never. also right now at the macy's thanksgiving day parade, security is tighter than ever. 0 sanitation trucks filled with sand will block traffic along the two-mile -- 2.5-mile route and thousands of officers are in place to protect the massive crowd and president trump celebrating his first thanksgiving in office. a working vacation and the president hoping to push that tax reform before christmas. but we begin this half hour with the former usa gymnastics team doctor appearing in court wednesday admitting to using his position to abuse underage girls. among his accusers are some of the top olympians in that sport and abc's paula faris joins us with details. good morning. >> happy thanksgiving to both of you. larry nassar will most likely spend the rest of his life in prison. three of the girls he admitted to abusing were under 13. larry nassar appearing in a michigan courtroom on wednesday, pleading guilty to seven counts of first degree criminal sexual conduct involving young girls that he was treating for athletic injuries. the former doctor who's now facing a minimum prison sentence of 25 years behind bars whispering his plea in court. >> how do you plead? >> guilty. >> nassar admits they had no medical purpose and lost his medical license back in may. >> i think this is important that what i've done today to help move a community forward and away from the hurting and let the healing start. >> some of his accusers facing him in court crying in the gallery. speaking out after the hearing. >> today i am grateful for the army of women that has stopped a pedophile. today we heard the truth from larry. >> reporter: the disgraced doctor facing 14 civil lawsuits involving over 100 additional accusers, mostly gymnasts and separately some of the sports' biggest stars publicly saying nassar abused them as well including olympic gold medalist mckayla maroney and six-time olympic medalist aly raisman. >> you don't want to let yourself believe that, you know, i am -- i am a victim of sexual abuse. >> reporter: just this week olympian gabby douglas coming forward with her own accusation against nassar saying i didn't publicly share my experiences because for years we were conditioned to stay silent. now, larry nassar will be sentenced january 12th. the judge is permitting his accusers and keep in mind there are over 100 of them to make statements at the sentencing, in fact it's not going to end until all of them have had the opportunity to speak even if that means extending sentencing one more day. >> giving those victims a voice that they so deserve, paula, thank you very much. dan. thank you, paula. a safety alert for the holiday season. should a fire break out in the middle of the night abc's gio benitez is here with the simple step that could save lives. gio, good morning. happy thanksgiving. >> happy thanksgiving to you. what you're about to see is something so many people have never even heard of. something as simple as closing a door can mean the difference between life and death. i'll admit i was amazed when ul put this to the test. this is not a normal house fire. we're with ul which helps that safety standards for a slew of industries and now the company is creating a controlled fire to show the importance of closing a door before you go to sleep. >> when you can't get out the most important thing you can do is close the door between you and the fire can save your life. >> reporter: alexis king survived the house fire that killed her parents and brother when she was just 10. the smoke alarm wasn't working and she believes closing the door helped save her life. >> it helped me still have clean air and to really figure out a way to get out. >> reporter: ul relaunching a safety campaign close before you doze. how much of a difference can it make? we're about to find out. ul built this home to serve as a test facility. >> you're going to light the house on fire. >> for safety. >> for safety. >> reporter: it's wired with cameras and sensors to track temperature and gas levels. all the info being fed to this control center so ul can monitor the fire. two bedrooms will have the doors closed but the other -- >> we'll leave that one open so we get to see the difference. >> reporter: with the philadelphia fire department standing by, i start a fire with a candle on the living room sofa. let's get out. we return to the control center. we got our fire in the living room. >> you can see how -- >> you can already see the smoke. >> reporter: take a look at the bedroom with the open door. >> see the smoke beginning to -- >> yeah, yeah, yeah. >> 275 degrees. >> absolutely. not survivable. >> reporter: but check out the rooms with the doors closed. the temperatures are much lower. >> you've got 97 degrees in one. 69 in the other. these are the closed door rooms. >> very survivable. so there you go, the top of the window came out. >> reporter: after ten minutes ul puts the fire out and we look at the aftermath. here is the room with the open door. look at this. we've got the tv melted. temperatures in that room reached 500 degrees. the carbon monoxide readings 6,000 parts per million. an alarm would go off at 70. but what a difference in the bedrooms with the doors closed. >> stuffed animals are just fine. >> bed is clear. >> i mean, what's incredible is that this door sort of acted like a shield. >> exactly what it did. >> reporter: temperatures only got up to 100 and carbon monoxide levels were ten times lower than the open room. >> every day i wish that my brother would have closed his door and i hope other people know that they really do need to. >> reporter: and listen, so many of us like to close doors at night without even realizing it's a life saver. my grandparent has a fire, a big fire years ago but they always slept with their doors closed and that's why they were able to get out and survive that fire. >> wow. >> that's incredible. >> what else do experts recommend to safeguard the home? >> this only works if you have a working smoke alarm too. know that there is a fire in the first place, couple that with an escape plan and you've got something to be thankful for. >> all right. >> like how you tied it into the day there. coming up on this thankful thursday how a homeless hero rescued a young woman stuck on the side of the road and now she is paying it forward in a very big way. you will want to stay tuned for this story. at t-mobile, when you holiday together, great things come in twos. like t-mobile and netflix. right now when you get an unlimited family plan, netflix is included. ho ho ho! t-mobile covers your netflix subscription... best christmas gift ever! ...so you can binge watch all year long. now you're thinking christmas! and now when you buy any of this season's hot new samsung galaxy phones, you get a second one free to gift. that's one samsung for you. and one to give. t-mobile. holiday twogether. ourbut you can choosee with a "youyour premium finish."mily, you were right, the black slate matte finish really goes with everything. i pulled some stuff for the dining room. jimmy, uh-uh that's not yours. that will really make the paint pop. ooooh i love it... wooowooo come out with your hands up. ooooh. oh. that's my breast pump. (laugh) the most premium finishes, so you have the most choices. another way we make good things, for life. ♪ ♪ this holiday, the best gift you can give, is your time. volunteer at neighbhorhoodofgood.com. state farm. toys "r" us stores open thursday at 5:00pm for black friday. get doorbuster deals like 50% off nerf hail fire and barbie doll five pack. and get $30 off the doc mcstuffins all-in-one nursery. check out toysrus.com each day for new deals. toys "r" us. today we play. check out toysrus.com each day for new deals. i am totally blind. and non-24 can throw my days and nights out of sync, keeping me from the things i love to do. talk to your doctor, and call 844-214-2424. daddy!! did you get my surprise? ♪ it's the little things that make life rich. ritz. we are back now on this thanksgiving with the story of a homeless hero, johnny, a veteran who used his very last $20 to save a young woman who was stuck on the side of the road and diane macedo is here with how she is paying it forward in such a remarkable way, diane. >> amy, this act of kindness set off a domino effect. this woman kate was so moved by johnny's help that rather just reimburse him she got creative. now johnny's $20 sacrifice could bring him thousands in return. just as she approached philadelphia on interstate 95 kate mcclure realized her car was running out of gas so she pulled off onto an exit ramp. it was 11:00 p.m. she was out of cash and all alone. >> i was, you know, a little nervous. >> reporter: suddenly a shadowy figure emerged from the darkness and told her to lock her doors and sit tight because he was going to help her and that's how kate met johnny, a homeless man who can usually be found sitting on a guardrail reading a book. johnny only had $20 to his name but that night he used it all to buy kate gas a few blocks away. >> he said don't worry about it. i got you. and then he came back with a gas can and put gas in my tank. >> reporter: thanks to johnny kate made it to her destination. she returned several times bringing johnny gifts and learning more about him like how he's a veteran and a former firefighter and paramedic. eventually she decided she had had to do more and started a go fund me page. her goal, $10,000 to help johnny get back on his feet. as of this morning, it's over $100,000 and counting. >> y'all did all that? that is awesome. that changes my life. >> it's unbelievable. it's crazy how many people have seen it and shared it. we were so excited when it hit $200 and now we're looking -- he's going to have a future like a real actual future. i really hope to keep in touch with him. he's just the kind of guy who you want to be friends with so i could see us being friends for hopefully forever. >> and you heard johnny say that's a life-changing amount. that was when he thought they were up to $1700. >> what? >> when i checked a little while ago they were up to $115,000 and johnny now says he wants to pay it forward and give some of that money to help more people in the homeless community. >> what an amazing story. >> this domino effect continues. >> how did he enter into this situation of homelessness in the first place. >> i don't know all the details but moved to philadelphia with a job lined up. somehow that job fell through. he had an apartment lined up but without the job the apartment fell through and essentially then something happened to his veterans affairs paperwork and lost that so his attempt to try to get back on his feet didn't work without the paperwork and thought one night on the street turned into a week turned into about a year but got him a hotel for the holidays and helping him get a place vouching for his character to landlords and have the money to help out but planning to get a job and hoping to retrain as a paramedic in philadelphia and new jersey. >> he could buy a house with that money. it's incredible. >> too many of our veterans end up like this. >> a lot of the donations came from vets. turkey 911, our pros are standing by to save your holiday. get ready to make your thanksgiving meal. a hit. why shop kohl's this week? 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>> i love doing mushroom glazed brussels sprouts so what i do is take soy sauce and i cook it down with a little balsamic. easy peasy, right? i love the way it smells. sugar, a little garlic. >> sugar. >> just to sweeten it up. strain it so we have a glaze and pour over my brussels sprouts that i cooked off with some onions. >> nice. >> love them. [ applause ] >> thank you. >> everybody, we just learned how to make brussels sprouts unhealthy. [ laughter and applause ] >> how do you fry them? >> sandra, robin says i'm tired of the usual apple and pumpkin pies. what's an alternative? >> everybody has great cakes an the house. i'll take a carrot cake and maybe some apples and walnuts just what you have in the kitchen and be any kind of cake and then -- then it gets better. ooh. then a little bit of pudding, now, this is out abouterscotch, vanilla, whatever you like and put milk in there and just a whisk and then let that thicken up a little bit. pour that all over. >> wow. >> now, think about it, i like to use a frozen cake so anything in the freezer, a store bought, i am sandra lee and bake that off into the oven but you could do doughnuts, anything frozen would be good. >> that's almost as unhealthy as his brussels sprouts. >> here you go. [ applause ] >> all right. we'll talk about cranberries in just a bit, rocco. sorry, we have to move on. much more of our turkey 911 still ahead. holiday "deals & steals" up to 75% off to help you with your shopping list. ♪ make walmart your first and only stop. black friday. thanksgiving 6pm. get the app for a sneak peek at the deals. but they see you like it's the first time, every time. they see a tough day a mile away. and things they can't unsee. they see life. and they see love. every time they see you. maybe dogs can't see color. but what they see is so much more. dogs are more. let's treat them that way. milk-bone. doing more for dogs since 1908. 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(announcer) 240 pages, 5 albums, and hundreds of never-before-seen photos. available now at sam's club. and honey, there's some things in here that i don't think i would've told. ♪ are you dead di for it? ♪ good morning, america. it's 8:00 a.m. happy thanksgiving. time for turkey and deals. we have all the biggest bargains online and in stores. plus special "deals & steals" right here on "gma." up to 75% off as you kick off your holiday shopping. parenting alert. youtube's new policy to protect kids. how the company is cracking down on inappropriate content and what it means for your family. snoits the secrets to a stress-free turkey dinner. tricky topics to avoid and last-minute tips before the family gets together. ♪ hungry like the wolf >> thanksgiving 911. making sure your turkey is done right. our team is here tackle your turkey troubles. sandra, eddie and rocco all here live saying -- >> all: good morning, america. >> happy thanksgiving. >> happy thanksgiving, everybody. ♪ a little duran duran. so happy to have you joining us this morning. on the busy holiday. >> yes, many people are hungry like a wolf this morn. our team covering the big parades. lara in philadelphia. the country's longest running parade. 98 years. plus ginger and rob along the route height here in new york city for the macy's thanksgiving day parade. >> ginger is very happy. we'll have a little more from them in just a bit. let's begin with the other thanksgiving tradition which is, of course, shopping, dan. americans hunting for bargains both online and in line. o our alex perez is back with us from chicago. good morning, alex. >> good morning. this kmart store has been open since 6:00 a.m. they are not waiting until tomorrow they have deals 10 to 50% off and brick and mortar stores are facing a lot of competition but retarrylers are offering in-store only deals. even with those offers the number of in-store black friday shoppers dropped by 3 million people last year and even those famous black friday door busters are down. last year 10% of those deals were offered as in store only options. this year, half of that just 5%. retailers not giving up counting on those customers that have to come in and touch and feel those deals to see them for themselves. they're counting on those people to walk in the door. amy. >> all right, alex, looks like a lot are staying at home at this point. >> absolutely. given the lack of crowd behind him. now to a crackdown by youtube on what it calls videos that contain, quote, child endangerment. blocking everything from parodies to those with actual disturbing content many of which have millions of views. in a statement youtube said we have expanded our enforcement guidelines around removing content featuring minors that may be endangering a child. the site implemented an age restricting feature to prevent minors from viewing videos with adult themes. politics now, president trump's first thanksgiving in office. he is spending it with the first family at his mar-a-lago estate down in florida. abc's cecilia vega back with us from washington, cecilia, good morning. >> reporter: happy thanksgiving to you, my friend. president trump is back at what he calls the winter white house. he says this is a working vacation. he will be working the phones, having meetings. he did yesterday spend about five hours at the golf course. today he is up early and tweeting saying happy thanksgiving. your country is starting to do really well. he then went on to mention the stock market, the military, the supreme court. he is still promising to build that wall. the first family is right there with him in florida, but a number of top aides who typically travel with the president did not take this trip. among them chief of staff john kelly. he stayed behind here in washington. on the president's schedule today, he is calling members of the military to thank femme for their service. when he comes back here to washington next week, dan, a very busy schedule. at the top of that list tax reform. >> trying to get it done before christmas. thank you. you may think thanksgiving is all about turkeys. in america that's true but in china it's all about pandas. take a look at this guy being released into a forest ready to go. his fellow 2-year-old needs a moment to take a sniff then also speeds away but take a look at this. to help the pandas get used to the forest workers dress up in panda costumes. that looks like something out of a horror show, i'm just saying. >> not a convincing panda. apparently convincing to pandas. >> not scaring them away. our panel of chefs here to solve your turkey troubles plus tory with big holiday "deals & steals." live at the macy's thanksgiving day parade in new york city. rob and ginger along the route and lara at the philly parade. how is it going down there? >> hi, you guys. i'm having the best time. you know i like bragging. this is the oldest thanksgiving day parade in the country. so grateful they invied me to come and also invited these beautiful ladies, the texas strutters. all the way from texas state university. will you show everybody that incredible noise that you guys make? go ahead. get it to me, one, two, three. they have taught me how to do it. i will spare you but it's miraculous. they'll perform 100 strong. so many great performers. we've got balloons and floats and have santa here in philadelphia. we're going to have more of that but right now, guys, back to you in beautiful new york. ♪ etter than a manual. and my hygienist says it does but they're not all the same. who knew? i had no idea. so she said, look for one that's shaped like a dental tool with a round brush head. go pro with oral-b. oral-b's rounded brush head surrounds each tooth to gently remove more plaque. and unlike sonicare, oral-b is the only electric toothbrush brand accepted by the american dental association for its effectiveness and safety. my mouth feels so clean. i'll only use an oral-b. oral-b. brush like a pro. it's the perfect time to get a tv and an xbox for in here. woohoo! and a roomba for everywhere. let's go! black friday doorbusters. doors open 6pm tonight. only at target. discover card. i justis this for real?match, yep. we match all the cash back new cardmembers earn at the end of their first year, automatically. whoo! i got my money! hard to contain yourself, isn't it? 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"let it go" from frozen. see "coco" in theaters right now. >> i love that. [ applause ] that or "let it go." >> i can let go of "let it go" right now but i really like this new song. >> you can work out to it. serenade your husband to it. >> a little romance. finally lara is they thanksgiving day parade in philadelphia so we have to do a "pop news" pop-in with lara. [ applause ] >> thank you, guys. thank you so much. having a great morning here at the philadelphia thanksgiving day parade as i mentioned. the oldest thanksgiving day parade in the country and we thought it would be nice to round out your thanksgiving day pop. i have a little fun fact situation for you with the help of the franklin central high school marching band. they're from indiana and, gentlemen and lady, drum roll, please. [ drum roll ] >> very official. and thank you. that's the magic happening here in philadelphia. wow, i really got too that. here are your fun facts. number one the parade will reach 3 million people, 500,000 of them will be standing along the parade route. another 2.5 million will be home and warm and hopefully cooking some delicious food. fun fact number two, 6,000 people are part of this year's thanksgiving day celebration right here. that ranges from the folks holding the balloons to santa who i'll be interviewing in just a moment. big exclusive. he by the way joined the parade for the very first time in 2015 because he is busy and finally one more drum roll, please. district drum roll ] >> thank you. this one is actually for you, guys. i think i just pulled a muscle doing that. nearly half of the participants in the marching -- in the parade are marching band members. 2531 performers marching along the route. instruments in hand, warmth in their heart, they're not very warm but they've got smiles on their faces and having a ball out here. thank you, guys. great job. see you on the route. the parade is about to start. back to you all in new york right now. [ applause ] >> all right, lara. making our audience laugh all the way from philly, i love it. >> i don't think shy putted a muscle. she's limber. >> yes. >> all right, speaking of parades we have a big one in new york city. let's check in with ginger at the macy's thanksgiving day parade. >> hey. check this out, you guys. the springtime it's about 30 degrees, right? you're freezing. >> freezing. this parade better be worth it, right. you will not be disappointed. welcome from down under. it's chilly a beautiful day. we have video, they have turkeys down there. >> christmas. >> reporter: in parts of the world they have dogs chase the turkeys around. this dog is go get him, get that turkey dinner, it's an american tradition everybody as is the parade. that's a check on what's going on at columbus circle. time for the local forecast, check it out. >> reporter: all right, rob looking good in new york, chilly, dry, lots of sun out there, a few high clouds and temperatures still right around the freezing mark in philadelphia and still climbing out of the upper 20s in the suburbs. if you're heading to the parade, it's chilly and sunny, light winds. 46 later, tomorrow, sunny and milder, 54 after a chilly start for the early morning shoppers. 58 on saturday, a shower around at night, cooler on sunday. then black friday shopping on friday. well, not anymore. abc's becky worley joins us from san francisco with the big discounts live online right now and hitting stores in just a few hours, so, becky, good morning to you. happy thanksgiving and we have so many things to talk about in terms of shopping because we know that people usually wait until tomorrow but that is no longer the case and thanksgiving now itself is typically the best day to get those sales online. we talked to hur alex perez earlier who is also showing us certain stores like walmart and best buy open today as early as 6:00 a.m. so people can start hitting the stores before they even sit down for their big turkey meals so is it true, becky, thanksgiving is the best day to shop? >> yes, i say unfortunately yes. some people like they're shopping on thanksgiving and some people hate it. there will be deals all weekend long but predictions are that today, amy, will have the deepest price cuts. >> so this is one of the only times of the year to get discounts on popular smartphones? >> today and tomorrow, best times, summer is tied to cell phone plans and activation so you may have to go down to the store. the samsung s8300 off at best buy and 8 and 8x. get $300 gift card with your purchase. the apple watch is $179. that's $70 off. this is the apple watch 1 and the bose 25 headphones $179 at the delhomme store. that's $100 off and these things rarely go on sale. great presents. >> yeah, that's incredible. great prices and speaking of great prices, television sets going very low over the next couple of days. >> always huge this time of year. there is a door buster samsung 55-inch 4k smart tv at kohl's for $350 and $100 gift card back for a samsung. a great price. at best buy it's not the top of the line brand but a killer price on a 50-inch sharp roku, $179. the lowest we have seen for a 50-inch tv. >> any other big discounts? >> a couple gift ideas. a kitchenaid stand mixer for $149 at meijer. $50 gift card back. that's a good price, right? this is the smallest of these, i call them the ferraris of domestici domesticity. 99 bucks. >> that's great. >> $150 off. get cozy, amy. $60 off family pajama sets at macy's so you and the hubby and your daughters can be like the pajama family. >> a good look. >> kmart has a great set of gifts for under 10 bucks. we're talking about $9 for kitchen appliances, 5 bucks for board games and 2 bucks for a barbie. pretty impressive. >> all right, becky, those are great ideas and i think you should invest in that family pajama -- >> tory johnson got my wife and i onesies a few years ago and we wear them. we do wear them. you will never get a picture. there will never be pictures and we'll never discuss this again. let's talk turkey, the countdown to thanksgiving dinner is on and have been getting your questions all week and assembled a brain trust, if you will to take on turkey 911 calls. first up our turkey talker, the author of "rocco's healthy and delicious cookbook," rocco dispirito. bring it on in, man. there he is. [ applause ] >> those are the best pants. >> talk to me. [ applause ] >> we love your pant, rocco. we love your pants. up next we have our dessert daredevil. >> the bottom part of the pajamas. >> that you'll be wearing with your family. i'll call her our dessert diva on "modern luxury." sandra lee, get out here. [ applause ] >> there she is. ♪ the final countdown >> an finally for our sizzling side, sandra, welcome, for our sizzling sides, there she is. there she is. >> mwah. >> giving out kisses. what am i? chopped liver. >> sorry. thank you. mwah. okay. >> now i feel better. for our sizzling sides, made by none other than former nfl star and current host of food network's christmas cookie challenge, eddie jackson. [ applause ] ♪ the final countdown >> yeah. picking teams. >> so let's spin our wheel to see who is up first. ♪ final countdown >> and it's spinning and rocco, that's you. >> who's that? my bar mitzvah picture. >> looking sharp. >> here's the question. >> i got a lot of questions, by the way. >> from maggie on twitter and says i'm making thanksgiving for the first time. any turkey recipes you recommend? >> yes, yes, i have a great idea. making it for the first time you'll probably run out of time. so spatchcock. come, let me show you what that is. >> i'm a little afraid. >> only the turkey feels it. take a whole turkey that would cook in four or five hours and remove the backbone. once you remove the back bone you turn it on its side and press until it flattens and you end up with a bird like that. so this bird --s if [ applause ] >> goes in a roasting pan, goes in a roasting pan and cooks flat and will take about an hour. save three hours and cover it with salt and pepper and herbs and all those delicious things. [ applause ] >> that's beautiful. >> and this is what it looks like when it's done. carve it the way you would normally a bird. if the breast gets done early take it off and keep it cooking. >> maggie, there you go, spatchcocking. is that how you pronounce it? >> try to use that word in a sentence, ladies and gentlemen. all right. over to sides. >> we got a spin on the wheel. >> yeah. >> let's spin the wheel. let's see where we're going to go next. [ applause ] oh, yes, we have sandra, ow dessert diva and renamed you. we have an audience question. willie, where are you? all right, willie. [ applause ] >> good morning, sandra. how are you doing? i'm doing well. how are you? >> tell you tell me what is your trick to making sure baked desserts don't stick to the pan? i have a problem with that. >> i like to use butter but everything tastes better with butter. [ applause ] butter -- that's not the tip yet. so butter, the grease the bottom of the pan with butter and flour on top of that and you're good to go. >> that's simple. my grandmother used to always say that and i wholly agree. >> let's spin the wheel and ready for another spin. >> i wonder who it could be. >> who could it be? >> i like to eat my dessert before dinner anyway. we have a question for our sizzling side master, eddie, ashley on twitter is asking about your best mac and cheese recipe and i'm going to brace myself because it's my favorite food ever. >> absolutely. this combines two thanksgiving favorites all in one. this will be dressing and macaroni and cheese together. >> okay. >> so basically i've taken a cajun twist on it with andouille sausage that i'll put inside the co cornbread with bell peppers and onions. you like that, right? you like that. >> stop the madness. keep talking. >> so mix it up. put it inside of a springform pan and on top of that we'll top it with macaroni and cheese, say ooh. >> all: ooh! >> yeah, top it, right then all we do is pop it in the oven. top it with a little bit of cheese, get a little crust on it. and there you have it. >> oh, my goodness. you have got to be kidding me. this is the finished product. it looks beautiful. my mouth is watering right now. >> rocco tells me that dish comes with a defibrillator. >> actually comes with a treadmill. >> he's a personal trainer too. >> one more spin on the turkey wheel, here we go. quick spin. we've got turkeys backstage making that noise. sandra, one more. patrick on twitter says i have never made a pie, only store bought. what's a good recipe for my first pie? >> store bought you did make a pie. you made it with your wallet. happy thanksgiving to those out there that are going to do that trick but i like to do something a little bit different like how about a pumpkin -- >> we'll hit a break and talk about it in a second. ♪ your "gma" moment brought to you by the frame from samsung. the most beautiful tv you've never seen. ♪ the final countdown >>s it is 8:27 a.m., november 23. happy thanksgiving, good morning, everybody, karen rogers will be in the parade. matt pellman has traffic thou. >> reporter: the parkway is full of spectators and floats and balloons. not cars, though, eakens everyone, jfk boulevard, market, 16th 0th blocked off, as we get ready for the dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade. if you're coming in head for the highways like the schuylkill expressway and the vine. they are nice and clear. there will be restrictions in and around the art museum area. it's a turkey trot going on. you see the trotters underneath the ladder trucks 202 bark way, blocked off. same situation in marlton, there's a turkey trot in a half-hour. we have the ms run in wilmington this morning, a lot of street closures down there, as well. dart buses not running today because of the holiday. otherwise we're on a mass transit holiday schedule which is a sunday schedule. >> layers are a necessity if you're going to the parade. >> reporter: a nice day for parades and turkey trots, but you need to dress appropriately. 32 degrees in philadelphia. 29 in allentown. we have bright sunshine and no wind. today on thanksgiving we're expecting a sunny and chilly afternoon building in. a cool high 46 degrees. no issues with travel. tomorrow morning early shoppers will be in the 30s, milder in the afternoon, sunny skies, 54. matt, on saturday, up to 58. >> offer coverage of the 6abc dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade starts in moments, stand by for hosts rick williams and cesily tynan. today's regularly scheduled programs will not be seen so that we can bring you the following special presentation. it's the 6abc dunkin donuts thanksgiving day parade and it's just moments away! i'm counting down so turn around 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and now live on the benjamin franklin parkway, here are 6abc's cecily tynan and rick williams. let's go. ♪ no audio. morning everyone and happy thanksgiving! it's a crisp cool morning here on the benjamin franklin parkway.perfect weather for a parade! this is the 98th thanksgiving day parade here in philadelphia.coming up fast on the 100th anniversary! and there are ..no doubt. families here who've been coming that long..it's a huge thanksgiving morning tradition in philadelphia. and like the city itself, it is historic.the longest running thanksgiving day parade in america! can you believe it? and we broadcast to cities around the country so people in washington, dc, columbus, ohio..and fort myers florida can tune in and watch our 6abc dunkin donuts thanksgiving day parade, as they prepare their holiday feasts. the marchers are stepping off now from 20th and market streets...and we have the rothman institute parade cam following them as they make their way here to the benjamin franklin parkway. the parade ends right in front of the philadelphia museum of art and that's where our karen rogers is. alicia vitarelli and adam joseph are teaming up on the dunkin donuts parade fan cam. let's start with karen. good morning! the art museum is such a beautiful and iconic symbol of philadelphia ...the perfect landing spot for santa and the mrs with their sleigh full of holiday cheer. before they arrive, we've got i've got a long list for is an the, people come from all over to see the parade. we have lots of stars i'll be talking to them getting to know them a little bit bit in the next half-hour. i'll be staying put where the action is, i can't wait. alicia and adam are in the arts and crafts parade zone. happy thanksgiving. >> reporter: speaking of ac we'll be giving away ac moore gifts cards we have a little bit of everything including a lot of beautiful friends. we have a selfie booth here, live entertainment, balloon sculptures so much to do and see this morning. we have a food drive going on, the ram truck is taking donations as we speak they are giving out gift cards, too. >> ac more has a brand new store in center city. they are creating a mural for that, early this morning with the historic landmarks in the mural our parade fans will be coloring that in. >> there's a wall of thanks where you can say i'm what you thankful for, i'm thankful for you, adam. >> we want to hear about your stories and traditions, use the #6abctdp. >> adam and i will be hanging out in the fan zone, of course we'll get on the fan cam. let's check out what you can expect this year. the 6abc dunkin donuts thanksgiving day parade is a star-studded affair with good morning america's lara spencer.. singer and producer kwame... american idol's ruben studdard, melinda doolittle and justin guarini.. josh gallagher and billy gilman from the voice. country music artist ty herndon, gospel singer benita washington..and powerhouse vocalist mari. from broadway philadelphia, performances from waitress, les mis, the color purple, disney's aladdin and finding neverland's john davidson.the cast of anniee walnut street theatre is here .along with walt disney world's mickey and minnie mouse and your favorite disney characters like moana, spiderman and ironman. plus thousands of singers, dancers and musicians..fantastic floats.and giant character balloons.. it all culminates with the arrival of santa and mrs. claus. and with me now is ty herndon .happy thanksgiving! >> it's so exiting, you have crowds like this where you go. >> country music this is what we do all the time. it is amazing. >> reporter: you said if i have not liervegd it, i haven't sung it. is it important to have that connection. >> in country music that's one of our mottos it's such a true music. i decided along time ago if i am going to tell stories i'm going to tell mine, from the heart. music people say you sang that song about me, i say i sang it about us. >> you're going to connect with your fans, singing put a little love in your heart, what do you think we need this. >> we're in such a crazy place in the world, love heals everything, it's a healer. we've got so much love in the world we should talk about it more. >> a good thanksgiving message. now let's send it over to adam joseph in the dunkin' donuts fan family. >> reporter: take a look at this sign, did you make that this morning? >> yes. >> reporter: do you come every year to the parade? >> yes. >> reporter: what do you love about the parade? >> the floats. >> reporter: we've 18 floats so we have plenty for you to see this morning. we're in the dunkin' donuts zone, get some donuts. >> okay. >> reporter: i'm going to find her some munchkin donuts. ♪ ng dunkin' donuts is parade to be part of the dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade with you and your family a happy thanksgiving and a wonderful holiday season! you're looking at a live picture from the rothman institute camera on 16th street as the 6abc dunkin donuts thanksgiving day parade makes its way to the benjamin franklin parkway. and one lucky viewer just won our first 100-dollar ac moore gift card. we'll be giving away a few more in the next half hour...to help you get your home ready for the holidays. ac moore's flagship store is now in center city so we met up with their floral specialist there to learn some simple diy projects to deck our halls with some holiday sparkle. our first project? a country-inspired wreath. so we're going to use probably about 3 rolls of ribbon. wrap the ribbon around your wreath base. the kids at home would have a great time doing this. make a matching bow loop, pinch, twist. then add some festive decorations. we're going to line these up finish up with a reindeer and some cranberries. you've got yourself a wreath for about $29.99. project #2? a sparkling holiday lantern .. we're gonna start mixing the lights with the balls. be sure to hide the battery pack for the mini leds at the bottom so you can access it..then top with a bow. we're gonna make it kind of in a circle form. then schuss it up with some glittery poinsettas. and there you have yourself a little lantern with some lights. project #3... a centerpiece sure to impress your dinner guests. we're actually gonna lay these on the board here then glue on five pieces of glassware. they don't have to be perfect. add some more green around the glasses.and a poinsettia on each side. we're going to put that right there. complete the look with some cute critters.. and light it up with battery operated candles .and mini led lights. and when the lights are dim, it's so pretty. all of the diy projects can be done in less than 30 minutes get the kids involved, get their friends involved, and make a night of it. crafting does make for some really quality family time but here's the great part. if you don't have the time, the experts at ac moore will do the work for you ..at no extra cost. we'll have our second chance to win a free $100 gift card in just a few minutes. later, we're giving away a $500 ac moore gift card! and a few other great prizes. all you have to do is watch to win. all morning long, we'll be giving you a word to text in for a chance to win. and here are the prizes! -a year's supply of coffee from dunkin donuts.to start your mornings off right. -ten tickets to the christmas day matchup between the eagles and the raiders.. plus a tailgate courtesy of dunkin donuts. -and the grand prize! a fun-filled vacation for 6 to the to the don cesar hotel in florida: the legendary pink palace of st. pete beach provided by visitflorida.com. those are some pretty special prizes right? now, here's a few guys who know a little something about winning! josh gallagher and billy gilman.both finished in the top 4, on season 11 of the voice.part of team adam levine..happy thanksgiving guys! you're from central pennsylvania, anybody out there you want to wish happy thanksgiving. >> my mom an dad, aunt and uncle, all my family out there, altoona area. >> you came to your past year of success, you've been in it since 9 years old. with the ups and downs what does it moon for you to see the screaming fans? >> that's why you do it, if you do it for the love of the industry, it's for the fans. >> reporter: i bet you're glad you made the right choice. >> you want to penn state. >> i tried to go to penn state, it was fun, i think i did pretty well. happy thanksgiving. let's send it over to alicia in the parade. >> reporter: thank you karen. can't wait to hear them sing in the parade. i made a couple of friends you can take selfies and get your face painted. we're giving out 100-dollar ac moore gift cards, if you're watching or listening to us while you're cooking right now, come over to the television, because in order to win this gift card you have to answer a trivia question that is on your screen right now. tweet us your answer and you can win the next gift card. i love my festive friends here. we'll have the gift cards out in the next half-hour. right now let's look at the rosman institute camera on 16th street as the 6abc dunkin' donuts dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade makes its way down the parkway. what a beautiful sight. much more of the sights and sounds from the 98th annual parade in just a few minutes. the rothman cam giving us a view of the 6abc dunkin donuts thanksgiving day parade as it makes its way here to the parkway. and look who stepped out to spend some time with us.. singer ruben studdard.happy thanksgiving! and look who stepped out to spend some time with us.. singers ruben studdard and melinda doolitle.happy thanksgiving! >> it's nice to be singing to the crowd, they can't wait to hear you. >> you'll be singing something you know from "american idol." you will be bringing more christmas to our hearts today. >> absolutely, singing at christmastime. >> reporter: we are excited that "american idol" coming back to abc in march, i bet you guys are thrilled, too. >> looking forward to seeing people young people live out their dream. >> i got to see some of them, they were amazing. let's get it over to the dunkin' donuts fan cam. >> reporter: we have free coffee all morning long. it's something the franchise likes to do is give away, would you like coffee. grab some, get some coffee here, you know what? take the whole tray, we want to end hunger around the region. that's the primary mission for dunkin' donuts. enjoy it. did you know -- dunkin' donuts can get a -- give a hot coffee started by the franchisees. we will surpass the 1 million-dollar mark in donations. >> reporter: in addition to giving money. >> they are donating their time. they regularly volunteer at the local food bank. >> we've been doing it 7, 8 careers now. mr. patel brings his volunteers to the food bank once a month. on this day they were packing meals for the backpack program. >> one in five children experience food insecurity. it addresses hunger on weekends during the school year. >> they volunteer hundreds of hours of time each year. >> 1.4 million dollars in labor that is saved based on the number of hours that have been put in here. >> without these private partnerships these would not exist. ment fighting hunger in the communities is a natural fit. >> we're feeding the public every single day, to give back is something i'm proud to do. >> reporter: these are the people you will be feeding, wow i did make a difference. that's amazing. hopefully we keep on growing on the success we've had in coming up with new ways to help the community. if you'd like to help, the boy scouts are here collecting canned goods along the parade route. there's a ram truck here in the parade zone taking donations as well. ram also plays a big part in the parade. you may not think about it but it takes a whole lot of power to pull those giant floats down the parkway. we are so proud of our parade and people have such a connection to it! being a part of this parade each year for more than a decade really allows us to be part of the community and celebrate one of the longest lasting traditions each thanksgiving. these floats are huge, we're talking some of them 18,000 pounds! so what kind of power do you need to pull one of those? you know with ram 3500's towing capacity over 30,000 pounds, ram's heavy duty lineup make slight work of hauling the parade floats and what new and exciting things do you have coming out that we should know about? actually, 2018 really is going to be really exciting year for ram. we have a brand new light duty redesigned lightweight pickup truck. in addition, you'll see many enhancements/ to the existing lineup of ram-technology, entertainment, safety/-all across the full lineup of ram pickups. well thank you so much for being part of this year after year. it means a lot to us. thank you very much. let's have a great thanksgiving now! those trucks have a big job.there are 18 floats carrying some of your favorite stars and disney characters..who've come all the way from walt disney world resort in florida. there is so much to see and do throughout all four theme parks and beyond.and the magic is endless! the magic at walt disney world resort is so powerful, it does things you never thought possible. like bring your family closer together than ever. make you feel young again. and change you in ways you'll never forget. in this enchanting place, you'll experience beloved stories like never before. all while creating memories that will last a lifetime. and while the rest of the world may tell you to grow up, at walt disney world resort.you never have to. that's the power of magic. discover it for yourself at disneyworld.com.and don't' forgg away a trip to florida, this morning as part of our watch and win sweepstakes. first we're going to take a quick break and leave you with a look at the rothman institute camera.as the parade is almost here to the parkway. and we've got another trivia question for you..tweet us the answer using the hashtag 6abc tdp and you could win a 50-dollar ac moore gift card. welcome back to the 6abc duncan donuts thanksgiving day parade.e from our rothman cam.the first of the marchers will be here at the art museum in just a few minutes and for the next three hours, we're going to wow you with giant balloons, floats, marching bands and count 'em..30 performances! a sneak peek for you, central bucks high school choir is singing jingle jingle take a look. (do do do do do do do do) - jingle -a - jingle -a - jing jingle jingle) you will hear his sleigh bells ring jingle jingle) he is old kris kringle jingle jingle) he's the king of jingling jing-ling jing-ling) jingle jingle reindeer (ooo - - jingle jingle) through the frosty air they go (ooo - - jingle jingle) jenny lee (bg) they are not just plain deer (ooo - - jingle jingle) they're the fastest deer i know. (ahh - - - believe on christmas eve (dah dah dah dah dah) he won't pass you by system. >> ♪ wasn't that great, we have a few more broadway stars with us. happy thanksgiving to >> how happy are you to be here. >> i'm excited i'm from trenton new jersey. what are you most thankful for on thanksgiving >> i'm thankful for my family whom i can't be here on thanksgiving. i love them so much. >> we'll be your family today. thanksgiving dinner favorite side dish, go. >> macaroni and cheese. >> sweet potatoes. >> bluffs sprouts. >> reporter: the color purple will be here from december 12th to the 17th. the waitress is here in time for valentine's day. it's time to start a parade, 98 year tradition, getting ready to kick it off. the 6abc dunkin' donuts thanksgiving day parade we'll be starting after this break. we cannot wait, hang on, we'll be right back! happy thanksgiving, are you guys ready for a parade? are you ready? let's bring in the holidays! we celebrate our 98th year we'll make dreams come true, i have local philadelphians, tell me what is your dream come true. >> to dance in the parade. today is your lucky day because we're going t

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