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Fallon's "Tonight Show" Reign Begins; Dunn Jailhouse Call: "I'm The F--Ing Victim"; Iran Nuke Talks Begin In Syria; Obama Hosting Clooney, "Monuments Men" Tonight

Aired February 18, 2014 - 14:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: -- in Chicago. They say since most of the players on a team get scholarships, they should also get the benefits of a full-time job. We'll keep you posted.

Did you watch last night? Maybe you sat in front of the computer watching clips today. Talk show host, Jimmy Fallon, officially took over the reins of "The Tonight Show." He began this new era in late- night TV with a new set, huge stars, the trademark grin here, and he wasted no time putting his comedy skits to the test. One of the highlights, this dance segment with his first guest, Will Smith, roll it.

I could watch that on loop. By the way, I'm told there is a guy standing outside the window, you can't see, in the CNN tour, trying to do the leg thing. The leg move that no one could do. Will Smith, he's from Philadelphia. The debut, though, was very much a New York show. A who's who of the big apple A-Listers paid surprise visits to the set. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Joe Namath.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thanks for bringing it back to New York.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: That was all the people who, you know, had betted he'd never had a late-night show, bet him a hundred bucks, all the people. By the way, the show is opening a Spike Lee joint. The famed New York filmmaker directed it. No bones about it, the new "Tonight Show" starring Jimmy Fallon is decidedly empire state of mind.

So let's discuss with CNN senior media correspondent and "RELIABLE SOURCES" host, Brian Stelter and comedienne, Christina Pazintsky who was a writer for some time on the "Chelsea Lately Show." So welcome to both of you. Nice to see you.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN SENIOR MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Stelter, let me begin with you, and then Christina, to you, just quick out of the gate reaction. How do you think Jimmy Fallon did last night?

STELTER: Fantastically. And I think the reviews have been almost unanimously positive. Of course, it's going to be a lot harder. He's got a thousand or 2,000 shows to go. But for a first night, I thought he did a great job to introducing himself, warming up older viewers and younger viewers, and of course, creating lots of viral video moments.

BALDWIN: Christina, what'd you think of the monologue?

CHRISTINA PAZINTSKY, COMEDIAN: Yes, I just caught the monologue and he's so lovable and so endearing. And obviously, from what I see, it's a star-studded event, and I could watch him dance all day.

BALDWIN: Forever and ever, on repeat. We showed the celeb roll call, but Fallon got also a very special welcome from one of his late-night competitors. Watch this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Be careful. Be careful in those shoes.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome to 11:30!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: So, Stephen Colbert with the penny, the selfie, you had Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian, Rudy Giuliani, the list goes on, you had the cameos, I love U2 rocking the roof of "30 Rock." Bryan Stelter, obviously, he came out swinging, as you mentioned a moment ago. He's got a lot of shows to go. What of this can he actually maintain say three months in?

STELTER: It's going to be a brutal booking war between him and Letterman, you know, because, both, he, his "Tonight Show," and the "Late Show" are both in New York now. Celebrities who come to town will have to choose which show to do. But I think Jimmy Fallon has an incredible amount of goodwill. He's eager to please. He wants to do those kinds of videos like he did with Will Smith, doing the evolution of hip hop. He's going to try to use his stars, his guests in different ways than Leno did before him on "The Tonight Show," and that may warm-up some guests.

BALDWIN: OK, so Christina, you wrote for the only woman on late-night TV, you know what it takes. You know what it takes for that late- night TV magic. What do you think is that special formula?

PAZINTSKY: Well, I think you have to be likable, number one, and you have to be willing to take risks, and listen, anyone that can survive "Saturday Night Live" can survive late-night. So I think Jimmy's going to do just fine.

BALDWIN: When do you think, Christina, we will see a woman, you know, creating the laughs on network television? That was a deep sigh.

PAZINTSKY: I don't know. That would be nice, but I don't know if it can happen. But us gals, we can't stay up late, because we have to wake up early to make breakfast for our husbands and children.

BALDWIN: Who are the possibilities? Let's start naming names. Who are options, other than Chelsea?

PAZINTSKY: Yes, OK, Chelsea, obviously. I think, I love Wanda Sykes. Why not Tina Fey, hello! She's already owning NBC, Amy Poehler, Amy Schumer. There are so many wonderfully talented women. Christina Pazintsky, you know what I'm saying. The list goes on and on.

BALDWIN: Good for you. Good for you. Christina Pazintsky, thank you so much for joining me. Brian Stelter, thank you. Best of luck to Jimmy Fallon and the show. Thanks, guys.

Coming up next, we're going to talk about Michael Dunn convicted of three counts of attempted murder in the so-called loud music trial. He is facing the rest of his life in prison, but after being recorded calling his fellow future inmates animals, what will life be behind bars for this guy. We'll discuss.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: In newly released jailhouse calls, you heard the man who shot and killed 17-year-old, Jordan Davis, call himself the victim. During a conversation between Michael Dunn and his fiancee, Rhonda Rouer, recorded shortly after his arrest, keep in mind, this is back in November of 2012, Dunn talks of being victimized and complains about being housed alone in a cell.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL DUNN (via telephone): I was thinking about that today, I was thinking, I'm the f-- victim here. I was the one who was victimized. I don't know how else to put it, like, they attacked me. I'm the victim.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.

DUNN: I'm the victor, but I was the victim too. I guess it would be better than being in a room with them animals.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Saturday night, Michael Dunn was found guilty on four of five counts, but the jury deadlocked on the most significant charge, first-degree murder in the death of Jordan Davis. Let me bring in former federal inmate, Larry Levine, he is the director and founder of Wall Street Prison Consultants. Larry, welcome to be back.

LARRY LEVINE, FORMER FEDERAL INMATE: Glad to be with you, Brooke.

BALDWIN: So here's what I'm wondering first off, Larry, I am even wondering if prisoners, these so-called animals to whom Dunn refers, if they would even know who Michael Dunn is. I mean, how closely do people behind bars actually follow the news?

LEVINE: You do. You've got a lot of time in prison, a lot of time on your hands. And people are watching CNN, fox news, reading "USA Today." The inmates are up on what's going on in the world, and he's going to have a rough time when he gets in there, being, he'll end up in a reception center first. Florida's got 62 actual prisoners. Four of them are reception centers.

So they're going to classify him as such. And I'm sure that the black gang members. I mean, you've got the black Guerrilla family, the black gangster disciples, they'll be waiting for him and they can get to him.

BALDWIN: Now, given the target that will likely be on Dunn's back, I know you're betting that he'll ultimately be put in PC, in protected custody, but how protected will he actually be from the general prison population?

LEVINE: Well, the state of Florida calls it close management, where they have three levels, CM-1, CM-2, CM-3. I think what they'll do when he first gets there, they'll assess the threat against him because they've got rats throughout all prisons, the management, that administration, and determine if there's any chatter going on.

Eventually, they may move him to less restrictive custody, but he's going to have a target, crosshairs on his back while he's there because you're going to have some of the younger gang members that want to make a name for themselves, and you know, they'll take this guy out. They'll stick a knife.

You can take a toothbrush, turn it into a knife, stick it into his throat, slit his throat open. You can take a pencil, a pen, make a paper-mache knife out of newspaper and kill this guy. So he's going to have a rough time ahead of him, really.

BALDWIN: How does he survive that?

LEVINE: Well, I mean, he's 47 years old. He could ally himself, potentially, with maybe the Aryan Brotherhood or one of the white gangs. If I was him right now, what I'd be doing is having somebody send in a book perhaps on personal self-defense. But it's not like he's a child molester or something, he's really not going to be an outcast.

But who knows, the White Supremacists, they may view this guy as some kind of hero for killing the black teenager or something. So he really -- that's really his only option, is to ally himself up or live in protected custody the rest of his term, which potentially, 60 years inside, he's 47, he's going to be living in there the rest of his life.

BALDWIN: That's right. Six decades, is what he's looking at. Larry Levine, thank you.

Coming up, President Obama hosting some big names at the White House tonight, including, George Clooney, they're screening the new film "Monuments Men." We'll take a closer look though at the real-life soldiers who inspired the film, this fascinating true story, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The talks in Iran have begun. Here we go. Major powers including America sat down with Iran today in search of that deal to keep Tehran from obtaining nuclear weapons. As you know, talk of possible war in the absence of a deal makes these talks of crucial importance.

John King is with me now from Washington, our chief national correspondent. And so, we have these talks, John, they're beginning in Geneva. We have a Congress considering more sanctions, something we know the president doesn't want at all. Could the talks be a progress or lack thereof really plays a role in what happens when it comes to sanctions out of Washington?

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely, Brooke. Now the president as you know has said, I don't want sanctions now, give this diplomacy a chance and I'll veto anything you send me. But, remember, A, a lot of lawmakers feel strongly about this. B, it's an election year, so some may feel extra strongly about it if they think it helps them.

So what is said publicly could affect the climate here in Washington, and that's hard for the administration because Iran just today drawing a red line saying, we'll negotiate here, but we're not going to dismantle any nuclear facilities. Well, the United States and its partners want Iran to dismantle some of those facilities.

So if you're in favour of sanctions in Congress, you are going to say I told you so, Mr. President. They are not serious and try to advance sanctions. Now will that happen on the first day, after the first day? No, because the White House can go back and say, look, everyone's going to come in with a little bluster on the first day, give this time.

But if you see over the next couple of weeks and maybe the next couple of months, Iran saying no, no, and no, there will be people in Congress who say, the only way to get them to negotiate in good faith is to threaten more sanctions.

BALDWIN: So that talks on Iran then you have the talks in Syria. We know that's gone nowhere, the U.S. blaming Russia. We have Secretary of State John Kerry today, saying he has spoken with the Russians today about a future round of talks. Should anyone be optimistic about this?

KING: No. I hate to say that, but, no. I mean, if you want to be real and you talked to people who understand this issue, you know, understand the private conversations, understand the details, there's reason to be more optimistic about Iran than there is to be about Syria. And I'm not telling anybody to be terribly optimistic about the Iran talks.

Look, Brooke, when it comes to Syria, this is a huge frustration for the White House and the president has as many critics in Congress who say, he should have gotten involved earlier. He should be doing more. He should be more muscular. Jay Carney just voicing exasperation, what happens at the White House a short time ago about, you know, shouldn't you be putting regime change on the table for Syria?

And he says, what do you want us to do, invade? You know, there is no support in the United States for the invasion of Syria. The administration has been frustrated with everybody, but especially the Russians, because they believe Russia is the one power that can nudge Assad, perhaps to some sort of a compromise in the talks, something in the talks to -- they're talking here about trying to get some kind of a cease-fire, try to get some kind of a dialing back.

There's no one who has a road map for any peaceful settlement of this, Brooke. But here's all I can say is you'd rather be talking than not talking, despite the fact there's no clear path for progress.

BALDWIN: John King, thank you very much.

KING: Thank you.

BALDWIN: Let's stay in Washington because tonight the president is hosting one of his biggest supporters at the White House. Recognize that guy in the middle, those two gentlemen, you probably recognize as well, George Clooney. Along with his cast, they'll be watching the new film "Monuments Men." Clooney stars and directs the film and CNN takes a look at the real-life soldiers who inspired the flick.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Nazis are on the run, taking everything with them, so we have to get as close to the front as we can.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "Monuments Men" is an action-packed movie based on a true story. But what was the work of the real monuments men like? We went to their former headquarters in Munich, Germany.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And they arrived here outside of this entrance door. They were brought in this way, straight ahead.

PLEITGEN: Today, the building is an institute for art history and Iris Lauterbach is one of those in charge. The recovered art was first brought into this atrium, where it was catalogued and photographed. Lauterbach says more than battlefield adventures, documentation work was the monuments men's daily routine and their greatest achievement, especially with all the shortages in post-World War II Germany.

IRIS LAUTERBACH, CENTRAL INSTITUTE FOR ART HISTORY: They complained about not getting bicycles, not having typewriters, and not having paper or these normal things, of not getting gas in order to go by jeep somewhere and to take things.

PLEITGEN: The monuments men managed to get tens of thousands of pieces back to their rightful owners. But even today, not all lost art has been returned. More than 1,400 missing paintings were spectacularly discovered with a German collector named Cornelius Golic. And just recently, 60 additional master pieces surfaced in this apartment in Austria. Lawyers are now trying to determine if any of them might be art looted by the Nazis. One of the places the German stashed a lot of works was this castle in the Bavarian Alps. Part of the movie is also set here.

(on camera): This is the front gate of the castle. The inside area is absolutely massive, but, still, it didn't take the monuments men long to find the artworks that were stashed here and to bring them to Munich.

(voice-over): That's because the master pieces were hidden in plain sight. Hans Schneidberger worked at the castle as a young carpenter when the Germans moved the art there in 1943. It was all on the second floor and in the kitchen, he says. There was nothing on the floors above. Anyone who says the whole building was full of art, that's not true.

But, then again, George Clooney admits that the movie is only loosely based on the real monuments men. They were heroes, whose greatest feat was saving much of the cultural heritage of Europe. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Fred, thank you.

Coming up next, this 8-year-old with some pretty awesome dance moves, an artist just smashes a million-dollar vase, and the pope gets a passport. "CNN Pop," coming up.

Also, incredibly intense turbulence hits this commercial plane, injures five people, sending a baby flying out of its mother's arms. How does something like that happen? And what, if anything, can be done to prevent it? Stay with me.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Cameras are everywhere. They caught the guy creeping through a stranger's house, right past the bedroom doors, while this family, including a brand-new baby, was sound asleep.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He broke in through the side door of the house and came right through this hallway, went all the way through the house, looking around for things.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: The homeowner says the guy got away with car keys and the family car. Police say he may have broken into another house in the same neighborhood. Fortunately, he didn't hurt anyone, but police are hoping this video will help catch him.

And if you want to watch a million dollars smash on to the floor and compare your passport picture to the pope's, you won't want to miss this. Here is CNN pop. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN (voice-over): The kid's got moves and this isn't your average 8-year-old. This is the breakout star of "India's Got Talent," performing in front of a mesmerized audience on "Ellen."

No one likes a passport photo. Not even the head of the Catholic Church is immune to an awkward one. Pope Francis may technically be the leader of his own country, Vatican City, but he's not giving up the right to travel as just an ordinary citizen of Argentina.

Maybe this wasn't their best side, ask these ladies. "Sports Illustrated" 2014 swimsuit edition hitting the stands today. Just look out for the cheeky cover.

That vase he just smashed was worth a cool $1 million, made famous by artist Iwayway. The guy who smashed it, also an artist who citizen it was Iwayway's thought-provoking artwork that inspired him to destroy this precious piece of art. That's today's CNN's Pop.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: OK, we're going to begin the hour here with breaking news. These are live pictures out of the Ukraine, the Ukrainian capital. And you can see the masses of crowds and obviously smoke, fires. We've been watching this intermittently and have flashes here. This is what we are learning right now. We are going to bring our correspondent in, in just a moment. But -- listen to that --