Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Saturday Morning News
Security Tight in Baghdad To Quell Violence During Shiite Pilgrimage; Three Coalition Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan; Jules Sylvester Discusses Handling Snakes
Aired August 19, 2006 - 10:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: Now in the news, there is new information this morning about plans to bring the JonBenet Ramsey murder suspect back to the U.S. John Mark Karr is expected to arrive in Los Angeles tomorrow evening on a flight from Bangkok, Thailand. He'll be taken to Boulder, Colorado, to face charges.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: A story developing out of Afghanistan now, few details are known but what we do know is that three coalition soldiers have been killed in fighting in Kunar province in the northeast. The Associated Press is reporting most coalition soldiers in Kunar are American. We are working to learn the nationalities and identities of the soldiers.
NGUYEN: In Lebanon's southern port of Naqoura, about 50 French troops came ashore today to take up U.N. security duties. They are the first reinforcements of some 15,000 U.N. peace keepers expected in that region. Their job will be to enforce the cease-fire between Israel and Hezbollah.
HARRIS: Israel launched a raid today in the Bekaa Valley that it says was successful at stopping a weapons transfer to Hezbollah. The Israeli military says one of its officers was killed and two others were wounded in the operation. The Lebanese prime minister denounced the raid as a quote naked violation end quote of the U.N. cease fire.
NGUYEN: Former President Gerald Ford will remain at the Mayo Clinic at least through the weekend. Now he was admitted Tuesday for tests, but hospital officials won't comment on his condition. Ford, who is 93, was treated last month for shortness of breath and he was hospitalized back in January for pneumonia.
HARRIS: We have a problem here. We have snakes in the news room. We have snakes in the weather center. Reynolds is clear of the snakes.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: OK, Reynolds, thank you. We run down the top stories every 15 minutes here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING with in depth coverage all morning long. Your next check of the headlines is coming up at 10:45 Eastern time.
NGUYEN: Well, security is tight in Baghdad this weekend. It's an effort to quell violence during a Shiite Muslim pilgrimage. The Associated Press reports seven Shiites were killed in one attack last night in a Sunni neighborhood. At least 13 other people were killed across the country today and last month saw the highest month of roadside bombings in Iraq this year alone. U.S. forces and Iraqi authorities are learning to become experts at gathering evidence from explosion sites. Justice correspondent Kelli Arena visited the FBI bomb school.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Iraq and Afghanistan, lethal truck bombs are a constant threat. When they explode, U.S. troops are forced to become crime scene investigators, a role few are prepared for. The FBI is trying to change that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's going to be a record breaker, guys. This may be the biggest crime scene we've ever had.
ARENA: At the FBI's large vehicle bomb school, bomb technician Kevin Miles oversees the construction of a 4,000 pound truck bomb. Another 400 pounds is loaded into this smaller vehicle to recreate a real life scenario experienced by U.S. troops in Baghdad, in which a suicide bomber attacks those who responded to the first blast.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 2-4, we're going, fire in the hole. Shot one.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fire in the hole. Shot one!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Push it.
ARENA: The second explosion also goes off without a hitch. The next day, students are brought in to try to figure out what happened. Debris from these explosions scattered almost 4,000 feet, creating a 374-acre crime scene. With only 45 students investigating the bombings, instructors here think that maybe they gave them a little more than they could handle. An advanced team does a preliminary search for evidence and all are keenly aware of the clock.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In Afghanistan and Iraq, if you get an hour you're very lucky. I have seen where you only have maybe 15, 20 minutes on the ground due to the area may not be secure.
ARENA: This Navy lieutenant commander expects to be redeployed soon and for security reasons doesn't want his name used. Teams photograph and flag pieces of potential evidence, and swab a vehicle caught in the cross fire for explosive residue.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Any indicator of any type of initiation device, you know.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nothing here. Nothing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. They might have it up over on that end then hopefully.
ARENA: They eventually find most of what they're looking for, including batteries and a telephone key pad they determine was used to trigger the second bomb. Robert Pursley, a 27-year law enforcement veteran says the training is invaluable, in part because he expects terrorism to make its way back to U.S. soil.
LT. ROBERT PURSLEY, SANTA CRUZ CO. SHERIFF'S DEPT: We've had our incidents here already. That's an indicator and that's why we're doing this training.
ARENA: Kevin Miles says more than 400 people signed up to take the course. To keep up with the enemy, he's constantly modifying his classes, but not his message.
KEVIN MILES, FBI BOMB TECHNICIAN: The evidence that they're looking for is out there somewhere and if they know where to look for it, they'll find it.
ARENA: Kelli Arena, CNN, Fallon, Nevada.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Going global now, for more international stories, our Brenda Bernard joins us with the search for two journalists in Gaza. Brenda, good morning.
BRENDA BERNARD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Tony. It's been five days now since two Fox News journalists were abducted in Gaza. The wife of one of them is pleading for their release.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANITA MCNAUGHT, WIFE OF KIDNAPPED JOURNALIST: If somebody knows any information, can they please tell us because I want him home so much. He and his colleague Steve don't deserve this. They are good men. They are good men and they should be allowed to come home.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERNARD: Major militant groups have denied kidnapping camera man Olaf Wiig of New Zealand and American reporter Steve Centanni. Their kidnappers have not made any demands yet.
In Ecuador, the locals call this volcano the slope of fire and right now some would say peasant farmers are playing with fire. They're returning home, despite warnings that Mount Tungurahua will explode again. Tens of thousands of villagers fled for safety when the volcano erupted two days ago. At least one man was killed and 30 people are still missing.
And these are matches made not in heaven, Tony, but in the park. Some Chinese parents have a unique match-making thing going on. The parents go to a park in Beijing and meet with other parents, hoping to find a spouse for their unmarried children. They show off pictures of their kids and swap information, like my daughter makes good money.
She's got her own car, her own crib, stuff like that. Parents have specifics. They're looking for certain ages, education. Looks count, so no Internet hookups for these folks Betty and Tony. They leave the match making to mom and dad.
NGUYEN: OK. Come on now. They're holding up signs with the stats and their kids' pictures. I mean, can't people just do it the old fashioned had way and find the love of their life by themselves without getting mom and dad involved?
HARRIS: That's good, Betty. That's good.
NGUYEN: Look at me, I'm still single. Maybe I should get mom involved.
BERNARD: Well, Betty, you know what? I've got to tell you this. My favorite part about this is that in China, the women have the advantage because there are more men than women in China, so the Chinese sisters get their pick of the men. They can be selective.
NGUYEN: That's true.
BERNARD: Love it.
HARRIS: Not exactly working out, though, is it? Anyway --
NGUYEN: Enough of you.
BERNARD: It's working out, Tony.
NGUYEN: Thank you, Brenda. All, right, talking about an online phenomenon.
HARRIS: This is great.
NGUYEN: It is slithering into theaters with a cast that you wouldn't believe. Ahead, "Snakes on a Plane" and the famous animal trainer who served as big-screen snake charmer.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Good morning, everyone. Now in the news, detained and soon to be deported details this morning about plans to return the JonBenet Ramsey murder suspect to the United States. Authorities say John Mark Karr is expected to arrive in Los Angeles tomorrow evening on a flight from Thailand. He will be taken to Boulder, Colorado to face charges.
Officials at San Quentin say they found no evidence of contact between Karr and the killer of Polly Klaas. Authorities questioned Richard Allen Davis and searched his belongings after learning of a possible link. Davis is on death row for killing Klaas in Petaluma, California in 1993, Petaluma, California in 1993. Karr is said to have been fascinated with that case and the Ramsey murder.
Iran this morning began large scale land, air and sea war games. The military maneuvers come as tensions increase with the west over Iran's controversial nuclear program. A report on Iran state television, Iran said the maneuvers are expected to last five weeks and it's aimed at improving the country's combat readiness. Mesa, Arizona, now, a 350-pound man leads police on a chase, then during the standoff holds up a three-month-old baby that was in his car. Police convinced the man to put the baby down, then attacked with smoke and a police dog. You're going to see this in a second here. The smoke will come in a second and then watch the dog.
NGUYEN: Wow, look at that.
HARRIS: Well, it took awhile.
NGUYEN: My goodness.
HARRIS: But they eventually were able to ...
NGUYEN: It looks like the dog won.
HARRIS: ... subdue the man and the baby is OK.
NGUYEN: That's good news.
HARRIS: We run down the top stories every 15 minutes here on CNN SATURDAY MORNING with in-depth coverage all morning long. Your next check of the headlines is coming up at the top of the hour.
NGUYEN: All right. Making sure your serpent star doesn't kill its co-workers. That would be good. It's all in a day's work for Jules Sylvester, Hollywood's snake wrangler. Opening this weekend, possibly his biggest project to date, "Snakes on a Plane." I know you've heard of it. So how do you get a reptile to move on cue? Quite a task.
Joining me now from Los Angeles is Jules Sylvester. He likes to call himself a vermin wrangler. Hi there.
JULES SYLVESTER, CELEBRITY ANIMAL HANDLER: Good morning, Betty. How are you doing?
NGUYEN: What in the world do you have in between your fingers?
HARRIS: Nice.
SYLVESTER: This is a pueblan milk snake. He's actually -- sorry, not a pueblan, a Sinaloan milk snake. He's a coral snake look alike. He's really a nice snake, very gentle. And his name is Fred.
NGUYEN: Fred?
SYLVESTER: Well, it is this morning, yes.
(CROSSTALK)
NGUYEN: This morning. I like that you name your little friends there. Well, so did you use a lot of milk snakes because they look like venomous snakes in the movie?
SYLVESTER: Yes, we used as many colors as we could get. The milk snakes actually are a great double for a coral snake except the black and yellow are not the same. The two bright colors together, usually correlates to a coral snake. They say red and yellow, kill a fellow, red and black, you're dead, Jack or alive Jack.
NGUYEN: That's a little close to your face there.
(CROSSTALK)
SYLVESTER: ... what I'm talking about there.
NGUYEN: So I got to ask you this. Did anyone get bit during the filming? How do you get snakes to strike on cue? How does that happen?
SYLVESTER: We don't, actually.
NGUYEN: Really? It's all by magic and mistake.
SYLVESTER: We get to this point, we come down, the snake is like -- then cut. Then computer graphics or animatronics takes over and goes whack and bites you in the face. My snakes are all nice. Mine are good snakes. The animatronic, bad snakes.
NGUYEN: Bad snakes. That's key, because when you watch Samuel L. Jackson or any of these other folks in the movie -- hey there, Tony -- really just beat the snot out of these snakes, those weren't the real ones, mind you, correct?
SYLVESTER: No, the rule of thumb is everybody goes home alive, no damaging, no bruising, no screaming, no yelling with my guys.
NGUYEN: What's an hourly wage for a snake? Do they get medical benefits? That's what we really want to know.
SYLVESTER: I'm the doctor. I'm the banker also.
NGUYEN: They work for you.
SYLVESTER: Yes.
NGUYEN: You know, here's the thing that's interesting to me. You have trained just about any animal. You name it, you've trained it, but you're not a vegetarian.
SYLVESTER: Well, I like animals. But I like them inside and out.
NGUYEN: Inside and out. I love that.
SYLVESTER: I'm a very practical man. I've been hungry before. As you know, these days, what, they've decided that vegetables actually feel pain, so where do you go with that? I don't know.
NGUYEN: Oh my goodness. Here's another interesting fact that I know about you. I understand if you were to be taken out by a snake, hopefully not the one that you have in your hand, you would rather be squeezed than bitten. Really?
SYLVESTER: Well, I think so. If you're definitely going to go, go with a large constrictor. You'll unconscious in about 15 seconds. You get bitten by a cobra or a large rattlesnake or a puffadder, you could take days.
NGUYEN: Who wants that?
SYLVESTER: Really I don't really want to go. I want to be around for a long time.
NGUYEN: We hope you are around for a long time. We're looking at video right now of the movie. It is so action-packed. Come on. Give us the secret. Samuel L. Jackson, was he just as fearless in real life of these snakes as he appears to be or was he just a big baby?
SYLVESTER: He's a very cool dude, actually. His agents I believe were more worried than he was. He's actually a very good snake handler. I told Sam that if the acting thing doesn't work out, please give me a call because he's quite good with these snakes.
NGUYEN: What's next for a snake wrangler like you?
SYLVESTER: I've actually got a couple of offers for a couple of shows, one going in Tokyo and one in New York City. We'll see about that. These are all offers, it doesn't really mean much until the contracts are signed and we're traveling with snakes.
NGUYEN: Right, right.
SYLVESTER: The funny thing is to get there you have to go on a plane.
NGUYEN: Snakes. Well, will you just let me know where you're headed to make sure that I don't get on that same plane?
SYLVESTER: I'll let you know, for sure.
NGUYEN: Don't want those things popping out. All right. Jules, it was a pleasure. Hey, best of luck to you, and try not to get bitten, OK?
SYLVESTER: I will. Thank you very much.
NGUYEN: All right. Take care.
SYLVESTER: Bye.
NGUYEN: That was Jules Sylvester, snake wrangler joining us today. That man is fearless.
HARRIS: That was good. That was good. Still to come.
NGUYEN: Yes, it's been a long time coming. HARRIS: The president offers a sort of deliverance, if you will, for a man who appeared in the 1972 film "Deliverance." We will fill you in on the details in about five minutes. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's been a very busy morning. So for six, five and four, you're going to have to head to CNN.com. In the meantime, I have three, two, one for you. The snakes ate my time this morning.
HARRIS: Yes.
DE LA CRUZ: File this one under disturbing. A former judge has been sentenced to four years in prison for exposing himself while presiding over trials. A former court reporter testified that she saw the judge expose himself at least 15 times during trial between 2001 and 2003.
Number two, a British man is facing a murder charge after a suicide attempt in Greece. He plunged with his two children off his hotel balcony, after a fight with his wife. His six-year-old son was killed. He and his two-year-old daughter survived with injuries.
And number one, drum roll, please. Thank you, Tony and Betty. By pardoning a convicted moonshiner, President Bush also earns the title of being the first president to grant absolution to a cast member of the movie "Deliverance."
Randall Deal had a small role in the film. He was convicted on two counts of violating liquor laws and one count of conspiring to violate liquor laws. The crimes are commonly known as moonshining. Of course, you can get all those stories online at CNN.com/most popular. Yes, the snakes ate my time this morning.
HARRIS: Cold-hearted snake.
NGUYEN: We're out of time. OK. Here's what we're talking about, though, coming up loopholes in teacher background checks.
HARRIS: John Mark Karr was a teacher in the United States before he got a job in Thailand. What's being done to keep your kids safe? That's ahead on CNN SATURDAY MORNING.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
