From the archives, a January 3, 2008 John Williams conversation with The Amazing Kreskin. They recall Kreskin’s visit to Peoria in which he located a pin that John and his radio colleagues at the time had hidden on a parking meter somewhere in the town. Also, they discussed the possibility of Kreskin joining in the investigation of the Drew Peterson case. Kreskin died Tuesday at age 89.

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Jon Hansen of WGN Radio and Block Club Chicago, and Brandon Pope, host of ‘On the Block‘ on WCIU, This week, the Rascals start the show breaking down the Chicago visit from Tom Homan, President-elect Trump’s ‘border czar.’ Do the Rascals believe the new administration’s plan for mass deportation will happen? And what of birthright citizenship? Do the Rascals think the 14th Amendment survives? Mayor Brandon Johnson’s senior advisor Jason Lee is causing controversy for voting in Texas during the last election. What do the Rascals make of the latest Johnson administration slip up? New information continues to come out about Luigi Mangione, the person who shot UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. Will this tragic incident spur any change with the U.S. healthcare system? And finally, it’s recommendation time for the Rascals! What are John, Jon, and Brandon watching? Oh, and as an added bonus, we get a brief appearance from Rascal Cate Plys at the end!

Lt. Colonel Barbara Rich, Divisional Leader for the Salvation Army’s North and Central Illinois Division, joins John Williams, to talk about her responsibilities with the Salvation Army, being the Camp Administrator for the Salvation Army’s Wonderland Camp & Conference Center, what the camp facilities are like, what the kids do when they attend camp, the various types of children that come to camp, the role faith plays in the camp, and what makes the camp so special.

Click here to help John fill his virtual Red Kettle and help our neighbors in need this holiday season!

Neal E. Fischer, award-winning author, filmmaker, podcaster, and pop culture fanatic, joins John Williams to discuss his two recent books, ““Christmas Movie Ultimate Trivia Book: Test Your Superfan Status and Relive the Most Iconic Christmas Movie Moments,” and “The Rom-Com Ultimate Trivia Book: Test Your Superfan Status and Relive the Most Iconic Romantic Comedy Movie Moments.” Neal talks about his interest in trivia, and how he decided which movies made the cut in each book. Neal also tests John’s Christmas and rom-com knowledge!

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to [email protected].

Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, joins John Williams to talk about the latest on the arrest of Luigi Mangione, the UnitedHealthcare CEO shooting suspect, and to share his thoughts on President-elect Trump’s ‘border czar’ saying mass deportation efforts will start in Chicago.

Dr. Michael Bauer, Medical Director at Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital, joins John Williams to talk about the 5-year anniversary since we first started hearing about COVID, how the virus has changed through the years, the vaccine being a medical miracle, his thoughts on RFK Jr. being nominated for HHS Secretary, and what you should know about blowing your nose.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to [email protected].

David Schultz, Distinguished University Professor of Political Science and Legal Studies, Hamline University, joins John Williams to talk about birthright citizenship, why we have the 14th Amendment, how many countries have birthright citizenship, the difficulty taking citizen rights away, and if the president has the authority to end birthright citizenship.

The great Mr. Fix-It, Lou Manfredini, joins John Williams to tell us the projects we need to be working on this week. Lou says this is probably the last day to get all of your outside winter stuff done if you haven’t already. And as always, Lou answers all of your home improvement questions.

Listen to HouseSmarts Radio on WGN each Saturday morning at 6 am.