Steve Stout, historian and author of the book, “The Starved Rock Murders,” joins John to talk about Chester Weger, the man known as ‘The Starved Rock Killer,’ losing his bid to have his conviction overturned.

It’s time once again for our Best of the Midwest feature! Are you trying to come up with some vacation ideas that are only a quick getaway from the Chicago area? Well, John Williams has some great recommendations for your trip! Today, we head west to beautiful Princeton, Illinois and chat with Victoria Yepsen, Director of Tourism, City of Princeton! Victoria talks about how accessible it is to get to Princeton, the main business in Princeton, some of the great festivals they have coming up this summer including the Down on Main Street concert series, the best places to stay when you visit, the ‘can’t miss’ places to eat and drink, and why it’s the perfect destination for a weekend stop! Click here for your chance to win a Princeton getaway!

Josh Sach, Founder of Meela, joins John Williams to talk about the new AI chat app that was designed to help seniors feel less lonely. Josh explains how the AI companion works, the average conversation length, how much the service costs, how they operate with trust and transparency, and what he would say to people who might be fearful of the technology.

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

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, longtime Chicago journalist Cate Plys, and political pundit Marj Halperin! The Rascals kick off today’s podcast talking about some Illinois politicians being denied entry to ICE facilities this week. What are these types of actions designed to accomplish? The ‘No Kings’ protests across the country took place on Saturday. What were the big takeaways from the protests? And what did the Rascals make of the military parade in Washington DC? Former ABC news correspondent Terry Moran defended his tweet that criticized Stephen Miller and President Trump saying, ‘“You don’t sacrifice your citizenship in journalism and your job is not to be objective.’ Do the Rascals agree? The Israel-Iran conflict continues on. Are the Rascals concerned about the role the U.S. is playing? The ‘snap curfew’ ordinance in Chicago passed the City Council 27-22. Do the Rascals believe Mayor Johnson will veto it? Former Illinois Speaker of the House Mike Madigan was sentenced to 90 months in prison. Do the Rascals think the sentence was fair? And finally, it’s time for red light, yellow light, green light. What are the Rascals recommending (or not recommending) this week.

Attorney Matthew Custardo of Custardo Law joins John Williams to talk about the motion he filed that would block the Village of Dolton from getting ownership of the childhood home of Pope Leo XIV.

Bob Bertog, president of Bertog Landscape Co. in Wheeling and a certified landscape professional with the National Association of Landscape Professionals, joins John Williams to answer all of your lawn and garden questions. Bob tells us how you can care for your lawn and garden with the hot and humid weather.

Daryl Pass, Senior Manager of Recovery Support Services, Kenneth Young Center, joins John Williams to talk about the importance of his sobriety date and what it means to him, the type of counseling they give at Kenneth Young Center, the focus on harm reduction, his thoughts on the use of AI in recovery, the various services the Kenneth Young Center offers, and the many ways Kenneth Young serves the community.

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

Dr. Jeffrey Kopin, Chief Medical Officer for Northwestern Medicine Lake Forest Hospital, joins John Williams to talk about the benefits of using AI in the hospital, men’s prostate enlarging with age, older people deteriorating mentally at rehab facilities, another new COVID strain in the U.S., and what we should know about COVID, flu and shingles vaccines.