a 5.6 magnitude quake hit close to bushehr, a province in iran. it was 40 miles north of a nuclear power plant. it damaged buildings and affected electricity in many areas. a ferry in hong kong crashed killing 85 people. it was travelling to macau when it hit an unidentified object. there are no reports of people missing and an investigation is underway. those are the headlines america tonight is up next. hello, and welcome to hello, and welcome to this special holiday this special holiday edition of america edition of america tonight. tonight. since since thanksgiving brings thanksgiving brings to mind the origins of to mind the origins of this country. this country. to begin, we look to the to begin, we look to the star spangled banner, star spangled banner, america s most famous america s most famous flag is safely tucked flag is safely tucked away at the smithsonian away at the smithsonian museum here in museum here in washington. washington. be 200 years ago
good morning and welcome to al jazeera america. i m stephanie sy, thanksgiving has come and gone and black friday is in full swing. some of the biggest chains have been open for hours. toys r us and, walmart and target opened hours ahead of the midnight start on black friday and macy s opening on thanksgiving evening for the first time in the 155 year history. the retailers want to makeup for the shorter span this year between thanksgiving and christmas and, walmart has protests with workers demanding higher pay and better working conditions and patricia is at roosevelt field in new york. sorry we do not have patricia now. we will tell you a little bit about black friday s history. thanksgiving thursday may have given black friday a run for its money this year. some of the nation s biggest chains started the holiday shopping season on thursday. kmart welcomed shoppers at 6:00 a.m., toys r us, target annual mart opened before the usual start on friday. retailers say they n
and a brand-new spin on turkey 911. we re helping you have your best thanksgiving ever. today, three top chefs are taking your questions all morning long. and you don t want to miss these big deals & steals made in america. only on gma. well, we do hope you re sleeping in on this thanksgiving morning. a good morning to all of you, america. thank you so much for spending a little bit of time with us on this thanksgiving. and happy hanukkah, as well, to everybody celebrating there at home. lots of bookkeeping to take care of. sam, meanwhile. samuel j. joining us in philadelphia this morning. right there in the middle of the oldest parade in the country. we ll talk to him in just a bit. ginger zee, meanwhile, outside in the sub arctic new york. hopefully the balloons shall fly this morning. and it is great to have paula faris, dan harris and sara haines all here this morning. happy thanksgiving. and happy hanukkah, guys. and thanks to everybody who tuned in to us this
experience type of thing. i didn t realize it had a name. reporter: it s called black wednesday. school s out. and most college kids aren t docking turkey dinners. reporter: they a hanging out with their friends. that pretty much leaves a free night to play with old college buddies or a high school reunion for a lot of people. reporter: the party atmosphere can turn ugly. in years past police have made multiple arrests for being drunk in public and fights. i think if you hang around for a couple hours you might find some troublemakers. reporter: police using social media to get the word out about not drinking and driving. i don t think you d want to be hung over and hang out with the family the next day. reporter: as you can see, taxicabs are keeping close just in case folks need it. police say they will be out in force all weekend long. reporting live in palo alto, cheryl hurd. stores are opening for business tomorrow instead of waiting until friday. and
for so many, the holiday is finally here. we ll have more on that in a moment. but first, all eyes are on the stars this thanksgiving morning. of course those 16 balloons flying in the macy s thanksgiving day parade. but the weather system that snarled holiday travel is not over. and it has many wondering if snoopy and others will even get off the ground. nbc s jay gray is live along the parade route in new york city. good morning, happy thanksgiving. will it be happy for those looking to see those balloons in the air? reporter: hey there, good morning. so far, so good, betty, and a happy thanksgiving to you. let s look at the balloons you re talking about, snoopy in the background, one of the bigger balloons, 16 of those are in jeopardy are not flying if the wind is sustained at 23 miles an hour, if it gusts to 34 but right now it s looking good, seven wind monitors are watching things closely. the decision won t come until right before parade time, right before things sta