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World Averages a Million Cases a Day as Omicron Spreads; New York City Ready for Scaled Back New Year's Eve Celebration; U.S. to Start 2020 Seeing Record-Breaking 365K+ New Cases a Day; TV Icon Betty White Dead at 99. Aired 3:30-4p ET

Aired December 31, 2021 - 15:30   ET

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

[15:30:00]

RYAN NOBLES, CNN HOST: It is the last day of the year, and the United States is entering 2022 in what one health official calls a, quote, viral blizzard with more COVID infections than ever before. For the fourth consecutive day, the nation smashed through its daily case count record. The U.S. now averages a whopping 355,000 new infections per day fueled by the Omicron variant. Which also led to a global first this week, the world averaging a million cases in a single day.

And that's led some cities to cancel their New Year's events. Still many places are opting -- otherwise, I should say -- with scaled back celebrations. New York is among those cities sticking with the New Year's plans. CNN's Polo Sandoval is in Times Square. So, Polo, once again, tonight is going to be a very different experience than in the past.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, Ryan, it's going to definitely different compared to last year. As they are going to allow people to actually come in and see it firsthand. And then it's also going to extremely different from the pre-pandemic times as the number of folks who will be allowed to actually come here in person and witness that iconic ball drop, will be significantly lower than previous years.

We're talking instead of the usual 58,000, only 15,000 will be allowed to actually make their way into these pens, and part of the reason is because of that lingering concern about those numbers in New York City alone.

[15:35:00]

And a significant increase, nearly over 80 percent increase in the number of COVID positive tests that have turned up here.

Now, in terms of what measures are being put into place today, multiple. There's obviously, the reduction of the folks who actually be able to come. There is the mandatory vaccination, or at least people will have to be vaccinated and show proof of that. And they'll also have to wear these things again in order to be able to be here.

But here's the thing about the social distancing. Authorities can only do so much. You see a lot of excited revelers here. And you can see a lot of empty space that authorities here, the NYPD, have purposely left so that folks could have a little bit more elbow room. But as you can imagine, Ryan, because of the excitement a lot of these folks are basically huddled as close as they can to the side of that ball drop.

So, that is where it might get a little bit complicated, but in terms of what we have seen overall, again, people feel like they want to be participating in this, and as we've heard from New York State authorities, they want to send a message to the rest of the world, that New York is open and they will fight through this, according to Mayor Bill de Blasio. Who's administration is basically at the point of wrapping up right now. But they can do so with appropriate measures to make it not only a happy but also a healthy New Year. But still it has done little to actually calm the concerns of some health officials out there that worry that this could potentially act still as a super spread come next year.

NOBLES: All right, Polo Sandoval live in Times Square. Hopefully maybe this time next year we are just reporting on the revelry of introducing a new year as opposed to fighting this pandemic. Still, after all this time. Polo, thank you so much.

With me now, Dr. Rob Davidson, an emergency medicine physician in West Michigan. He's also the executive director for the Committee to Protect Healthcare. You know, doctor, you and I spoke at the beginning of this week, you said the hospital -- your hospital was still in the thick of the Delta variant. Now we're at the end of the week. What's your status there now? Are you now starting to see Omicron take over as we've seen in many parts of the country?

DR. ROB DAVIDSON, EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN IN WEST MICHIGAN: Happy New Year, and thanks for having me again. The reality is in real time, we just don't know which case is Delta, which case is Omicron. In our state, Delta is still the dominant variant. And so, we think that most likely most of the cases are still Delta. But we're seeing new cases coming into the ERs.

You know, the problem with this disease is once people get hospitalized, they end up staying in the hospital a very long time. So, we have people who have been in the hospital for three or four weeks. Clearly those are the folks with Delta, folks on ventilators, folks being flipped on their bellies, flipped on their backs throughout the day to try to keep them alive and get them to recover.

That is the stress right now in our system. Folks taking up hospital beds for such a long time that we can't get people admitted both with COVID who come in new, but also people who come in with belly pain, chest pain, you know, the routine things we see all of the time. And now we're seeing influenza start to come around and people are getting sick with that. It still tight. It's still extremely tight and getting beds is still an absolute challenge every single shift.

NOBLES: So that's despite the fact that, you know, we all have seen reports that Omicron is a less severe disease. It seems as though you saw the crunch from the previous surges with Delta and everything. Is it still by and large though, the cases that your dealing with, these are unvaccinated people? DAVIDSON: Absolutely. Absolutely. The only so-called breakthroughs are

the folks who haven't had that so-called booster shot or the third does or second dose if they had J&J.

That's the only thing I'm seeing of people and those folks, again, aren't even that sick. You know, they're breakthrough cases. They're maybe sicker than the sniffles, but those are folks getting admitted to ICU. Those are not folks getting put on ventilators.

You know, and the reality is, we don't know what Omicron will present in low vaccination areas. We know what Omicron does in big cities on the coast in this country, because that's where its hit thus far. And those are places with much higher vaccination rates.

I'm in a county of about 45 percent. We're surrounded by counties where it's still under 40 percent in some of them. And so, when it hits these places in an area with the obesity rate of 35 percent, a VAX rate of 45 percent, you know, that's an experiment that's going to have to play out in real time. And I guess we'll have to look back in four or five weeks and see what happens. I don't think we can declare victory such that, you know, Omicron is no big deal. Except for the vaccinated, and the boosted it probably is no big deal. And hopefully we can get to that reality. You know, zero COVID is probably gone. I don't think we'll ever be zero COVID. We can certainly be in a world of COVID that doesn't land in the ICU, if you just do the things we've been talking about for so long.

NOBLES: So, the state of Michigan, where you are, is not following the new CDC guidance on reducing isolation and quarantine times. Have you been told why? And do you agree with that decision?

DAVIDSON: Well, breaking news, they actually reversed today --

NOBLES: Oh, did they? OK, all right.

DAVIDSON: Yes, just this early afternoon. And you know, messaging is the most important thing in public health, and it's been a challenge.

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It's mostly been a challenge because this is an evolving infection with different variants and different levels of protection in different communities.

You know, I support shortening the isolation period with a testing feature. I think if everyone were to test on day five and they came out of it with a negative test, that's great. A negative antigen test showing they're not shedding the virus. They're not contagious. And if they don't want to do the test, then we should keep it a little bit longer. Five days without a test for most people I've talked to in the public health world and those of us working clinically and going back to work with other healthcare workers who have been out sick, doesn't sit all that well. The reality is for vaccinated people, is probably fine. Vaccinated people shed for a shorter period of time and have a lower viral load and they shed, you know, last virus. It still, again, those unvaccinated folks, that's a wildcard. We just don't know. So, I'm hoping as the information becomes more available, they will revise and put in that testing requirement so we can be as safe as possible.

NOBLES: And I have talked to a lot of doctors over the course of this pandemic, it seems like every single conversation comes back to you, get vaccinated. It seems to be the solution to this problem. If we can just convince most Americans to go along with that. All right, Dr. Rob Davidson, thank you so much for being here, Happy New Year.

DAVIDSON: Happy New Year to you, thanks. T

NOBLES: We're back now to our breaking news on this New Year's Eve. Comedian and actress Betty White has died just a short of her 100th birthday. CNN's Camila Bernal is along the Hollywood Walk of Fame, where fans are already starting to honor her memory. Camila, what can you tell us?

CAMILA BERNAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Ryan, there are so many people already gathered here. Many of them coming because they found out about what happened. Others passing by and now in shock as they hear the news. So many people saying they just loved her as a person, as an actress and just as an American icon.

I want to show you the star because some people have started bringing some of the flowers here and people are gathering. But I also wanted to talk to Gregg Donovan. And he specifically met Betty White. And I wanted to talk to him about who you remember her as and how you remember her. Because you told me you met her.

GREGG DONOVAN, CEREMONIAL AMBASSADOR TO HOLLYWOOD: Yes.

Tell me how you will remember her.

BERNAL: And so, tell me what you remember.

DONOVAN: Well, she was a lovely human being, warm, very humble. Just gregarious and it's a sad thing. I was waiting to see her hundredth birthday. It's only a few days away, and oh, it's a sad day in Hollywood, around the world. But her tenacity for life. And I remember -- I quoted her -- we are all the same age only at different times. And look, I mean she could it.

BERNAL: And you brought flowers. And you told me that you were not expecting her to die. You were waiting for that 100th celebration. What were your thoughts when you found out?

DONOVAN: Oh, I was in shock. And these tourist told me, oh, they wanted to know where Betty White's star. I go, what, why? Oh, she just died. I go, no. Yeah, so I just -- yeah, is sad a sad day.

BERNAL: Thank you so much.

So, a lot of the fans here are really telling me that they did not expect it. They were waiting for that hundredth birthday celebration. And many of them who are just finding out now, telling me that they're sad because they watched her and continued to do so in the reruns. And they're here to bring those flowers, to gather around and to talk about the many times that they watched her on television and the many times they say they will continue to watch her on television. Because this is someone that we will continue see through reruns and through the many things that she accomplished.

We're also hearing about her love for animals. Because people here also bringing that up. So, just everybody gathering to honor her legacy -- Ryan.

NOBLES: OK, Camila Bernal live along the Hollywood Walk of Fame at Betty White's star where the tributes are already starting to pour in. Camila, thank you.

Comedian Carol Burnett writing about Betty White today. Quote, I love Betty very, very much. The world has lost one in a million.

And actor Ryan Reynolds who starred in "The Proposal" with White. Writes, quote, the world looks different now. She was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow not old enough. We will miss you, Betty. Now you know the secret.

Let's talk now to Jim Colucci. He is the author of the book "Golden Girls Forever." He has had many conversations with Betty White for the writing of this book. Jim, you know, I think Betty White is one of these people who we hope is the same person in real life as she is on television, because she was such a wonderful beloved figure on camera. What was she like when the cameras were off?

JIM COLUCCI, AUTHOR, "GOLDEN GIRLS FOREVER: AN UNAUTHORIZED LOOK BEHIND THE LANAI": Ryan, it's incredible, that she is everything that you would have wanted her to be and more.

[15:45:00]

And I get to meet a lot of classic stars in my line of work, and a lot times the adage is true, you don't want to meet your idols. But with Betty you certainly did because what's so interesting is she had all the best parts of Rose Nylund in being warm and supportive and funny. But she also had a brilliant mind that Rose didn't have, and she needed to be that brilliant to play Rose. So, everything that I've been hearing fans have said and what Ryan Reynolds and Carol Burnett have said is so true. She was one in more than a million and had that unique quality, that unique combination of a brilliant mind and a loving heart.

NOBLES: So, you know a lot about the formation of "Golden Girls", that run, the incredible run that it had on television. Take us back to that period of time where this show was being conceived. It's pretty incredible to think they were able to get something like this on primetime television, and maybe even more surprising that it became a massive hit.

COLUCCI: It is. I don't understand how it even happened then, it certainly wouldn't even happen now, because then as now, television is an ageist medium. But it took some forward-thinking writers and producers and network stars and then the talents of those four incredible women to put together this package of a show, that even today recruits new generations of fans who weren't even alive when the show was first on.

And that's why you're going to be hearing from so many fans who are mourning Betty, who are not just older people who watched the show when it was on in the 80s and 90s. But are as young their teens and 20s, who love that show anew and are still going to be watching it for decades.

NOBLES: Can you talk a little bit about the relationship she had with her costars on that show because much like her personality we all wanted to think that they were all best friends. Was it really like that?

COLUCCI: Betty had been around forever because she literally was practically there when they turned on the first TV cameras in L.A. when it was experimental, and she was hosting live talk shows for five or six hours a day.

So, Betty had worked with Rue and with Bea before and had certainly known them socially, and this was a team dream. It was a super group of comedic talent, and so Betty and Rue had their shorthand where they liked to play little word games backstage and keep the minds sharp, and they were just really just two of a kind in terms of being good friends.

And it's been reported that Betty and Bea had some friction together, but that's mostly because as people and as just in their performing styles they were so different, and yet look how they convinced us that they were best friends and will always be models of best friendship for decades to come as we watch that show. So, they certainly found a way to love each other, and to really be a team when they approached the press or when they approached the network. Those four women were a great team.

NOBLES: Does it surprise you how popular the show still is? It is one of those things that if you are clicking through on cable, and it pops up in a rerun, you find yourself stopping. It obviously does really well on the streaming platforms as well. Does it surprise you that a show like that resonates even now during this period of time?

COLUCCI: It does and it doesn't surprise me. It only surprises me when I think the way that I've heard some maybe some more clueless network executives talk and say, what, that's a show about four old ladies. But it's not just that obviously, it's universal. We all feel like we've been outsiders like those women were in the world. They had to cling together for support because as older women they were marginalized.

We've all had that outsider feeling. We've all had the feeling sometimes where we were a ditzy person like Rose or we were sexually adventurous like Blanche or we were smart like Dorothy. It speaks to us and maybe because other than some of the outfits they wore it wasn't particularly anchored in the 80s and 90s, that is seemed so relevant today. Especially with the issues they tackled.

NOBLES: And we all have a retired member of our family that lives in Florida that has a group of friends that they like to hang out with. We see our loved ones in those four characters.

Jim Colucci, thank you so much for sharing your insight on this breaking news, of course, a sad day but a life that was well lived. We appreciate you being here, Jim.

COLUCCI: Thank you, Ryan.

NOBLES: And we're back in a moment.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You didn't see this.

BETTY WHITE, ACTRESS: You didn't see this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[15:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NOBLES: Back to our breaking news on this New Year's Eve. Comedienne and actress Betty White has died just days short of her 100th birthday. Joining us to talk more about her career, Stan Zimmerman. He was a writer for "The Golden Girls."

Stan, just talk about that experience. What was it like to write for such an iconic show?

STAN ZIMMERMAN, WRITER FOR "THE GOLDEN GIRLS": Well, I was there season one, and she was such an iconic performer. I had grown up watching her on the "Password", which is a game show that she did with her husband Allen Ludden. And of course, was a huge fan of the "Mary Tyler Moore Show" when she played Sue Ann Nivens.

So as a baby writer, I couldn't believe that she was actually going to be saying my lines, and it was such a thrill to watch her do it every week.

NOBLES: I mean what is it like? You had such an incredible team there on "The Golden Girls" a group of actresses that were so accomplished at that time. Did that sometimes make your job harder or easier? Because I can imagine that was somewhat of a challenge to live up to their expectations.

ZIMMERMAN: Well, especially in season one when you have that level of performers and every single one of those women, we knew had to write every joke to kind of hit it out of the ballpark. So, it made it very nerve-racking for us and being so young and being in that room of such experienced writers, but we stayed late until we did the best jokes and the best lines and most meaningful stories. And the cool thing was that unlike any other show that I've ever been on, those four women would always go on every talk show and always mention the writing staff and how much they appreciated good writing. But we appreciated such great acting.

NOBLES: Yes. There's been a lot of talk today about Betty White's comedic timing. That she was able to nail jokes in a way that few actresses had the ability to do.

You know, as a writer, you must have had, you know, kind of a concept in your mind as to how you wanted your jokes to play out. What was it like to see her just execute them in a way that you had hoped they'd turn out?

ZIMMERMAN: Well, it was like watching a great sports figure or a baseball player hit it out of the park every single time.

And you knew if -- especially Betty, if she couldn't get a joke, then we just had to rewrite it. It wasn't the joke. It was our fault. We had to get a better joke.

So, I was very, very fortunate to be witnessing that and to see that show start -- you know, we didn't know if anybody would watch the show in the first season.

[15:55:00]

You know, conventional wisdom that nobody would care to watch a show about four older women. And I think we proved them all wrong because we're talking about it today.

NOBLES: No doubt about that. I mean talk a little about that challenge, though. I mean, did you just assume that maybe you'd only get one crack at this? Did you ever imagine that it would take off in the way it did and even resonate now decades later?

ZIMMERMAN: I was just lucky to have a job and to keep the job and to be there every week. And -- but I had no idea that we'd be talking about it all these years later.

But I knew, you know, just from her experience, that we were in the hands of really good people and good actors. And for any actor or writer or person in this business, you are lucky if you get one hit show. And the fact she had so many, "Mary Tyler Moore", "Golden Girls" and "Hot In Cleveland", it just goes to show what a special person she was and what a special performer she was.

NOBLES: A lot of people have talked today, too, that the person you saw on camera was very similar to the person you saw in real life. Just talk about your personal interactions with her. What was she like when the camera was off?

ZIMMERMAN: She was still on. She was just really sharp and funny. And even years later, I was shadowing the director on "Hot In Cleveland" and when that audience came in, she was on, I just couldn't believe she was saying the things that she would say. She was just so -- such a great point of view. And I know I'm getting so many texts from people that are very sad

about this but being a rose-colored glass kind of guy and because she's a Rose, I think today is a day to celebrate the wonders of Betty White and not to be sad. I mean obviously, we'll all miss her and miss what she brought to television and film and just our worlds.

NOBLES: Well, Stan Zimmerman, a writer for "The Golden Girls", thank you for sharing your memories of Betty White and Stan, thank you for being a friend. We appreciate you being on.

ZIMMERMAN: Thank you, Ryan.

NOBLES: And before we go today, I just want to say a special shout out to my father, Ron Nobles, who turns 70 today on this New Year's Eve. Happy birthday, dad. I love you very much and thank you for everything.

And thank you for watching CNN TODAY. "THE LEAD" starts after a quick break.

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