News & Sports

TODAY's Savannah Guthrie and Matt Lauer chat with Amy Kule, executive producer of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, about what to expect from this year's show, which will feature 28 floats, 11 marching bands and more than 1,600 cheerleaders, dancers and singers. (TODAY)

Inspired by his experience at Deerfield Academy in Massachusetts, King Abdullah of Jordan has opened a new academy that is breaking Middle Eastern tradition, allowing boys and girls to study together, as well as students of all financial backgrounds. NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin reports. (TODAY)

Statistics show that piano sales have decreased by 80 percent in the last century and increasingly more pianos are winding up in landfills or, as some say whimsically, piano heaven. NBC's Kevin Tibbles reports. (Nightly News)

Soldiers gathered at Arlington National Cemetery to place flags on nearly 260,000 gravesites for the annual "Flags In" ritual performed before each Memorial Day. (Nightly News)

Stores are opening earlier than ever and the mad dash for Christmas bargains is already on, and retailers are desperate for shoppers' business. NBC's John Yang reports from Chicago's Magnificent Mile.  (Nightly News)

Hundreds of riders every year race down San Francisco's Vermont Street on Big Wheels and tricycles. TODAY.com's Dara Brown reports. (TODAY)

A pair of 130-year-old Live Oak trees that have long served to symbolize Auburn University's football championships have been poisoned by an apparent rival. NBC's Ron Mott reports. (Nightly News)

After signing a six-year, $42 million deal with the Bears, defensive end Julius Peppers says he's looking forward to working with everyone in the organization. (NBC Sports)

Dec. 18: At more than 400 cemeteries across the country, Wreaths Across America makes sure fallen military members are remembered at Christmas. NBC's Roger O'Neil reports. (Nightly News)