Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Live At Daybreak
Suspects Released; Reunion Surprise; Future of Dieting; The Comets
Aired July 05, 2005 - 05:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(WEATHER REPORT)
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you -- Chad.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You're welcome.
COSTELLO: And now there is one, one suspect in custody in the disappearance of Natalee Holloway. A judge set two more men free, saying there's not enough evidence to keep them locked up.
CNN's Chris Lawrence is in Palm Beach, Aruba with details of their release and more on the person who stays behind.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): One of the suspects, Joran Van Der Sloot, could remain in prison for up to two more months. But right now he is the only suspect that police still have in custody. Two of his friends were released earlier in the day on Monday.
Cameras almost crushed Deepak and Satish Kalpoe as they arrived home from prison. Nobody was happier to see them than their mother, who had been waiting 25 days to get her sons back home. While she was happy, she was also very sad for Natalee Holloway's family. She said she still believes that Natalee is alive, and said she continues to pray for her mother every day.
NADIRA RAMIREZ, MOTHER: I know that, yes, she is in a more difficult situation than us, because she don't know where her daughter is.
LAWRENCE: Now the Holloway's were obviously very disappointed with Monday's ruling. Prosecutors had argued that the suspects had been changing their statements and those stories did not match up with other evidence and other witnesses' statements. But the judge decided there just was not enough evidence to detain Deepak and Satish Kalpoe for another 60 days. Prosecutors are considering whether to appeal that decision.
And as for Joran Van Der Sloot, he has up to three days to appeal the judge's ruling and take that to a higher court.
Reporting from Palm Beach, Aruba, I'm Chris Lawrence.
(END VIDEOTAPE) COSTELLO: President Bush kicks off a weeklong trip to Europe this morning. The highlight of course, the G-8 Summit in which the leaders of the world's richest nations are hoping to boost aid to Africa. The summit follows an unprecedented warm-up act over the weekend, a series of concerts across the globe aimed at raising awareness of African poverty.
This morning the president heads to Copenhagen, Denmark where he'll say thanks to a wartime ally. And then he'll fly to Gleneagles, Scotland. That's where the three-day G-8 Summit starts tomorrow.
The president tells Britain's ITV network he's looking forward to the meeting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I bring you know a strong record of support for countries in Africa. I think people are going to be surprised to learn about all the efforts we've made here in America to clean up our environment and to invest in new technologies. And so I'm confident we'll have a good G-8.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: On another front, President Bush is telling conservatives settle down. In a "USA Today" story, he defends Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, the target of conservatives who want someone who is more of a hard-liner on the Supreme Court. Gonzales has often been mentioned as a potential nominee to the court. President Bush says he'll interview perspective nominees himself to replace Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.
CNN-"USA Today"-Gallup Poll did a poll about filling the vacancy created by O'Connor's resignation. Asked which judges are more likely to let personal views influence their legal decisions, it is evenly divided, 40 percent say liberal judges are more likely to let their views influence decisions, 39 percent say conservatives.
And asked how much would a new Supreme Court justice matter to you, 75 percent of you say it matters either a great deal or a moderate amount. Almost 20 percent responded not much. The poll has a plus or minus sampling error of 3 percentage points.
In news "Across America" this morning, you could say this is a dam shame, and I'm not using profanity. A dam break caused flooding at Fort Ann, New York, about 55 miles northeast of Albany. The dam held back a 220-acre pond. Some homes were destroyed. About 200 people were displaced. Several roads were washed out. And somebody has some explaining to do. The dam had just been built six weeks ago.
In Largo, Maryland, authorities are trying to determine what led to a woman's death at Six Flags America Amusement Park. The woman was on a water ride called the Shark Attack. Officials say she had a medical emergency and was found in cardiac arrest.
In Chesterfield County, South Carolina, 60 to 80 people have been arrested and charged in connection with cockfighting and animal cruelty charges. Authorities say they've been investigating cockfighting in the area for two years. But until these arrests, they had not been able to find the cockfighting pit.
You have to see this to believe it. Flames burst into the air as a man was pumping gas into his car at Bellevue, Washington. Derrick Walker jumped back just as the flames exploded. Now that quick action saved his life.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DERRICK WALKER, EXPLOSION SURVIVOR: And then you see it surround me and then you see it completely surround me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: Amazingly he did not get burned. And the gas station owner moved in quickly, pulling out the burning gasoline nozzle and hosing everything down with a fire extinguisher. Wow!
Still to come on DAYBREAK, a Peachtree Road Race these families will not soon forget. That story is up next.
But first, here's a look at what else is making news this Tuesday.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BUSH: Our strategy can be summed up this way, as Iraqis stand up, we will stand down, and then our troops can come home to a proud and grateful nation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
COSTELLO: A tribute to the troops. They're not home yet, but in a Fourth of July speech in West Virginia, President Bush promised they will be once their mission is done.
In the meantime in Georgia, some military families didn't have to wait to see their loved ones serving overseas, they got a happy and unexpected reunion.
Tom Regan from our Atlanta affiliate WSB has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TOM REGAN, WSB-TV REPORTER (voice-over): Four military wives, proud to be honored for their sacrifices, and the husbands they think are still thousands of miles away in Iraq. As Miss America Deidre Downs sings a heart-stirring hymn, a hotel bus with tinted windows crosses onto Peachtree Street. The wives assume it's just part of the parade's setup. And then moments later, the shocking surprise, out steps the love of their lives. Their jaws drop as they open their arms. SHERRY ALFORD, SOLDIER'S WIFE: Yes, I'm still shaking. I'm excited, really.
REGAN (on camera): Is it hard to believe?
ALFORD: Yes. I mean I'm right now just -- there's no words.
SGT. TERRANCE ALFORD, U.S. ARMY: I feel great. I feel lucky that I was chosen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And I was like, oh my gosh, they brought somebody's husbands home. Hey, those are our husbands. That's my husband.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'd say that's a blessing. I can just say that just to come back to do this and see my family, so.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well I didn't say anything, I just kept on hugging him.
REGAN (voice-over): But the joyous reunion will soon make way for painful good-byes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm not even going to worry about -- I'm not thinking about that right now. Right now I'm going to think about the time that we're going to just have together.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Now that's a happy Fourth.
That was Tom Regan reporting for our Atlanta affiliate WSB.
Your news, money, weather and sports. It's 5:42 Eastern. Here's what's all new this morning.
Joseph Duncan, the man accused of kidnapping 8-year-old Shasta Groene, makes his first court appearance today. The registered sex offender is expected to be formally charged with kidnapping and being a fugitive from justice.
In India, there's been a fierce firefight between gunmen and police at a Hindu temple on a disputed religious site. Six gunmen were killed; one is in police custody. Three police officers and two civilians were wounded.
In money news, a for sale sign may soon hang on T-Mobile's U.S. wireless operation. "The Wall Street Journal" reports the German telecom company that owns T-Mobile expects to make a decision by December. The price tag could reach $30 billion.
In culture, Sir Elton John picked up the Humanitarian Award in Philadelphia. The city gave him its first-ever Brotherly Love Award for his charity work on HIV and AIDS. Elton John celebrated his award by playing a concert at the same spot as Philadelphia's Live 8 show. In sports, legendary football coach Hank Stram has died at the age of 82. The Hall of Famer is best known for leading the Kansas City Chiefs to a pair of Super Bowls and one win. He coached in the NFL, rather, for 17 seasons.
To the Forecast Center and -- Chad.
MYERS: And good morning, Carol.
(WEATHER REPORT)
COSTELLO: Thank you, Chad.
That's a look at the latest headlines for you.
Still to come on DAYBREAK, is there such a thing as a miracle diet pill? Could keeping your weight in check be as easy as popping a pill? Maybe. That story is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: Now to a matter concerning your kids. Technology teachers say kids need to start taking computer classes early. They say states have few required courses in computer science for elementary and secondary school students, which means many kids don't have the chance to study computers until college, and fewer of them are majoring in the subject.
When it comes to TV the problem is the reverse. Three new studies have found the more time children spend watching television the poorer they perform academically. Researchers also say too much time in front of the tube raises the rates of childhood obesity and aggressive behavior.
And speaking of obese children, a respected medical panel says there is more to spotting whether your child is too fat than those height/weight charts at the pediatrician's office. The experts say there is no evidence that all kids with a high body mass index need to lose weight to be healthy, nor is there proof that weight counseling results in weight loss. They say much more research is needed.
Still on the subject of obesity, and not just about the young, I talked with Dr. Louis Aronne. He's with the Association for the Study of Obesity. I asked him about the future of dieting, keeping your weight down. And my first question was about the drug Symlin, which is used to treat diabetics and could be that magic pill.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. LOUIS ARONNE, NEW YORK PRESBYTERIAN HOSPITAL: We did a study with Symlin in people who didn't have diabetes and found that people lost more than nine pounds, even though they didn't have diabetes and they weren't even on a diet, they weren't told to lose weight.
COSTELLO: So how does it do that?
ARONNE: We're still not quite sure, but it definitely makes people feel full sooner. It's a hormone that comes from the intestine and we think that it stimulates fullness.
COSTELLO: So is this on the market now?
ARONNE: It's available for the treatment of diabetes. But here's one catch, it's a shot.
COSTELLO: It's an injection.
ARONNE: That's right. But soon...
COSTELLO: So it's not so pleasant. But can you go to your doctor and say I want some Symlin to lose weight and will your doctor prescribe it for you?
ARONNE: Well really it's for someone who is taking insulin for the treatment of their diabetes. And if you substitute Symlin for insulin, we think that the vast majority of people will start to lose weight. And that's a good thing if you have adult type diabetes.
COSTELLO: OK, let's talk about Acomplia. This is not on the market yet and not available, but it's pending FDA approval.
ARONNE: Right. Acomplia, or Rimonabant, which is its generic name, is a very promising medication. What it does is it works on the metabolic risk factors that we associate with being overweight and obese. It has a direct affect on the liver, on fat cells. It stops people from eating too much. So it has multiple affects that have made it what looks like one of the most promising drugs in the near future.
COSTELLO: So two different drugs. Is one drug better for some people?
ARONNE: Well whenever we do these studies, we find that some people do incredibly well, other people don't do well, and we just don't know how to pick those people out. What we will find is that in our studies of Rimonabant, or Acomplia, for example, we found that about a third of the people lost more than 15 percent of their body weight. That's an incredible amount of weight.
COSTELLO: Wow!
ARONNE: That's right.
COSTELLO: That's like a magic pill.
ARONNE: That's not a good way to describe it. These people were very effectively treated for all of the metabolic risk factors they had, plus they lost a lot of weight. That's the way we want to look at this.
COSTELLO: OK, I want to get this in because researchers are working on a pacemaker for the stomach. How does that work?
ARONNE: Well this is a standard pacemaker that has been adopted for use, attaching it to the stomach. And what it does is it sends signals to the brain and to the stomach, makes people feel full sooner so they can't eat quite as much. There may be other signals that are sent. We're trying to figure out how this works. And we're doing a very good trial right now to see how effective this is.
COSTELLO: But that's way in the future, right?
ARONNE: Not that far away. This study will be completed by the end of the year. This type of treatment has already been approved in Europe and in Canada.
COSTELLO: OK, when all is said and done, what is the best way to lose weight?
ARONNE: Well I think right now there are a number of different treatments, depending upon how severe your weight problem is. For people who are severely obese, surgery is definitely an option. For people who are less overweight, there are currently available medicines like Meridia and Zenical, in addition to diet and physical activity. You know diet and physical activity are still the standards. But if they don't work, I don't think that people should give up, I think you need to move on to the next form of treatment.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Dr. Aronne.
In the next hour of DAYBREAK, is there such a thing as healthy fast food? Yes, says our guest from "Men's Health" magazine. We'll tell you what to order at the drive-thru.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: The Beatles you recognize, I'm sure. But do you know The Beatles were influenced by the '50s group Bill Haley and the Comets? As a matter of fact, the number of the groups that played the Live 8 concerts this past weekend were influenced by the Comets. And get this, the Comets are playing today for NASA scientists celebrating their Deep Impact probe hitting the comet Temple One. It's fitting.
Brian Todd has their enduring story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These guys were not part of Live 8, but maybe they should have been. Some prominent names on the bill at Live 8 got their earliest inspiration from this group that now looks ready to shake it up at your local bingo hall.
The early '50s, seven guys from around Philadelphia, led by a transplanted Midwesterner with a spit curl, hit on something. They begin as a country and western band wearing cowboy suits but fuse that with rhythm and blues. JIM DAWSON, ROCK HISTORIAN: You start seeing it come together about 1951, 1952 with Bill Haley and the Saddlemen, which later became Bill Haley and the Comets.
TODD: Around this time, someone's dubbed their music rock 'n roll.
DICK RICHARDS, COMETS' DRUMMER: I don't think any of us realized the impact this is really going to have at the time.
TODD: March 1955, the Comets' hit, "Rock Around the Clock," makes the soundtrack of the movie everyone is talking about, the teenage rebellion flick "Blackboard Jungle."
In early July 1955, exactly 50 years ago, "Rock Around the Clock" makes it to the top of the Billboard chart. The first rock 'n roll song ever to hit number one. Rock is catapulted and will never turn back. But it doesn't really hit these guys for a couple of weeks.
JOEY AMBROSE, COMETS' SAXOPHONIST: We just really didn't realize until it was being played all over the place and we were getting calls from Ed Sullivan.
ED SULLIVAN, HOST: And now more in my grove than perhaps is this number one band, the number one record seller in the band field, Bill Haley and his Comets. So strike up the band there, boys.
TODD: "Rock Around the Clock" stays at number one for eight weeks, sells millions. Today it remains the third biggest selling single ever. Dick Clark calls it the national anthem of rock 'n roll.
The Comets would have other hits, but as quickly as they build their success, it crumbles. Larger bands give way to rising solo acts like Chuck Berry and Elvis with more of the edge teenagers are looking for.
By 1963, the Comets break up, but not before leaving their imprint on music. In a European tour in the late '50s, they play before audiences that include Paul McCartney, Pete Townsend and Graham Nash. All would later say that experience defined them.
MARSHALL LYTLE, COMETS' BASSIST, SINGER: It's really an honor that we know that we inspired a lot of the English groups to go on and become the big stars that they became.
TODD: Most of the Comets go on to other careers, all but forgotten in rock lore. Bill Haley dies of a heart attack in 1981. When the five surviving Comets reunite years later, they don't recognize each other. But somehow they regain relevance, get popular again in Europe. And now these five grandfathers in their 70s and 80s are booked solid and winning new fans in the U.S. not even alive 50 years ago.
RICHARDS: Man you guys rock. And that says something.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We hear it all the time. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We hear that all the time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the biggest compliment we could ever have is by young people saying you guys rock.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
COSTELLO: Good for them.
The next hour of DAYBREAK starts in just a minute.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
COSTELLO: It is Tuesday, July 5.
We've heard from the world's musicians, now it's the world leaders turn. Leaders from the top eight economic nations prepare to meet in Scotland.
Also, the man suspected of abducting two Idaho children faces a judge today while investigators make a grizzly discovery in western Montana.
And it wasn't your typical fireworks display at the nation's capital as emergency plans are put to the test.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
