WWDTM: Jeff Gordon

Summary

Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! — Episode Featuring Jeff Gordon
Release Date: June 7, 2025
Host: Peter Sagal | Guest: Jeff Gordon | Panelists: Adam Burke, Negin Farsad, Zach Zimmerman

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Introduction & Guest Announcement

The episode kicks off with Peter Sagal expressing his excitement about the live show at the Studebaker Theater in Chicago, Illinois. He announces the special guest for the evening: NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon. To make Jeff feel more at home, Peter humorously mentions that halfway through their conversation, a crew will change all four of Jeff's tires—a nod to Jeff's racing background.

Peter Sagal [00:39]: "It's a little, you know, this sort of thing not what he's used to. So to make him feel more at home, halfway through our conversation, a crew will come out and change all four of his tires."

Listener Quiz with Lauren Ring

The first segment features Lauren Ring from Seattle, a nephrologist, participating in the show's signature quiz. The panel introduces themselves:

• Adam Burke, a comedian performing at Hey Nonnie in Arlington Heights.
• Negin Farsad, comedian and host of the podcast Fake the Nation.
• Zach Zimmerman, a comedian whose debut special Surprise Me is available on YouTube.

Lauren Ring [01:15]: "Hi, this is Lauren Ring calling from Seattle, Washington."

During the quiz, Lauren successfully identifies quotes related to the sudden fallout between Donald Trump and Elon Musk. The witty exchange includes humorous banter about public feuds and personal relationships.

Peter Sagal [03:02]: "Trump gave Elon Musk, his partner, a nice send off in the White House last week. But then things suddenly got real dark."

Lauren answers correctly, showcasing her sharp wit and understanding of current events.

Bluff the Listener Game

Next, the panel engages in the Bluff the Listener game, presenting three fictitious money-making schemes. Craig Ventura from New Haven, Connecticut, participates and correctly identifies the real story about a fake AI company that raised $450 million by pretending to be an innovative AI product.

Peter Sagal [17:33]: "An AI company raises hundreds of millions in investment for their technology that turns out to be just 700 people."

Lauren Ring [19:40]: "Is that right? You just go with Negeen's story? Yeah. About the A.I. okay. That's your choice."

Craig's successful guess earns him the prize, demonstrating the panelists' knack for entertaining storytelling and audience engagement.

Interview with Jeff Gordon

The highlight of the episode is the live interview with Jeff Gordon, a living legend in American auto racing. The conversation delves into Jeff’s early racing days and his transition from BMX bikes to professional car racing.

Jeff Gordon [21:13]: "Yeah, I mean, I guess I just think all professional race car drivers started racing when they were five or six years old."

Peter probes into Jeff's experiences on the track, particularly focusing on the challenges drivers face with radio communications during races.

Jeff Gordon [22:38]: "And these things are being broadcast to everyone, really. So you have to be careful."

Jeff shares amusing anecdotes about communication mishaps and emphasizes the importance of staying focused during races.

The discussion also touches on Jeff's life post-retirement, including his role in co-owning racing teams and his philanthropic endeavors. A humorous exchange arises when Jeff talks about teaching his children to drive, balancing his racing instincts with parental concerns.

Peter Sagal [26:29]: "Here's the question. Are you, Jeff Gordon, one of the greatest race car drivers who have ever lived, going to teach your children to drive?"

Jeff candidly discusses his fears and aspirations as a parent, providing a personal glimpse into his life beyond the racetrack.

Listener Limerick Challenge with Jenny Legath

Jenny Legath from Moorestown, New Jersey, participates in the Listener Limerick Challenge. Bill Curtis presents her with three news-related limericks, and Jenny successfully completes them by filling in the missing words, demonstrating her quick wit and familiarity with current events.

Bill Curtis [38:19]: "Though diet fads often entice me, their meal plans are often too pricey. Now I'll lose my spare tire. When my tongue is on fire, I make sure that my food is too spicy."

Jenny correctly identifies the theme, adding humor to the segment.

Lightning Fill in the Blank Game

The episode continues with the high-energy Lightning Fill in the Blank game, where panelists Adam Burke, Zach Zimmerman, and Negin Farsad race against the clock to complete as many sentences as possible. Adam leads with impressive speed and accuracy, followed closely by Zach and Negin.

Peter Sagal [43:05]: "Fill in the blank. On Wednesday, Adam. President Trump announced a [blank] ban targeting 12 countries travel."

Adam swiftly responds, showcasing his quick thinking under pressure.

Panel Predictions and Closing Remarks

In the final segment, the panelists predict the summer's hottest book. Each brings their unique comedic flair to their selections, adding laughter and anticipation for upcoming releases.

Adam Burke [49:15]: "And Adam Burke, I'm Cheating and Getting AI to read the books for me. So it's working its way through the Asimov classic, you robot."

The episode wraps up with acknowledgments to the crew and sponsors, along with a teaser for future live shows and segments.

Peter Sagal [49:29]: "This was great. Thanks to our fabulous audience here at the Studio Baker Theater in downtown Chicago. Thanks to all of you listening wherever you might be. I'm Peter Sagal. We'll see you next week."

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Notable Quotes

• Peter Sagal [03:02]: "Trump gave Elon Musk, his partner, a nice send off in the White House last week. But then things suddenly got real dark."
• Jeff Gordon [22:38]: "We have to be careful because these radios are being broadcast to everyone."
• Adam Burke [49:15]: "I'm Cheating and Getting AI to read the books for me."

Conclusion

This episode of Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! masterfully blends humor with current events, featuring engaging panel discussions and a captivating interview with Jeff Gordon. The seamless integration of games and listener interactions keeps the audience entertained and informed, making it a standout installment for both regular listeners and newcomers alike.

Transcript

[Peter Sagal]

This message comes from HomeTap. With a home equity investment from HomeTap, you get access to your home equity in cash without monthly payments. Use it to pay off debt, pad your emergency fund and more. See if you pre qualify [e-mail] from.

[Bill Curtis]

NPR and WPEZ Chicago, this is Wait, wait, don't tell me, the NPR News quiz. You may know me as the voice of Bill Curtis. I am Bill Curtis, and here is your host at the Studebaker Theater at the Fine Arts Building in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Sagal.

[Peter Sagal]

Thank you, Bill. I share your excitement. We have a great show for you today. Later on, we are going to be joined live on stage by NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon. It's very exciting. It's a little, you know, this sort of thing not what he's used to. So to make him feel more at home, halfway through our conversation, a crew will come out and change all four of his tires. But first, it's your turn to do a lap with us. Give us a call to play our games. The number is 1-888-WAIT-WAIT. That's 1-888-924-8924. Let's welcome our first listener. Contestant. How you are on Wait, wait, don't tell me.

[Lauren Ring]

Hi, this is Lauren Ring calling from Seattle, Washington.

[Peter Sagal]

Oh, Seattle, one of my favorite places. What do you do there in that beautiful place?

[Lauren Ring]

I'm a nephrologist or a kidney doctor.

[Peter Sagal]

A kidney doctor is I've always wondered about anybody like yourself who specializes in just one organ. Right. Do you ever get bored and say, man, I wish I could work on something else just once, another organ?

[Lauren Ring]

Well, even I would rather just be.

[Peter Sagal]

A left kidney versus a right kidney. So even more specialization.

[Bill Curtis]

Oh, really?

[Lauren Ring]

Yeah.

[Peter Sagal]

Has it gotten to this point? Oh, no, no, no. Wrong side, lady. You have to go see someone else. Well, welcome to our show, Lauren. Let me introduce you to our panel this week. First up, it's a comedian you can see at hey Nonnie. In Arlington Heights, Illinois, on August 1st, it's Adam Burke.

[Adam Burke]

Hi, Lauren.

[Peter Sagal]

Next up, a comedian and host of the podcast Fake the Nation, a news and culture show that the federal government would also defund if they could. It's Nagin Farsad.

[Lauren Ring]

Hey, I'm Nageen.

[Peter Sagal]

And making his debut on our panel, a comedian whose debut comedy special, Surprise Me, is now out on YouTube. Vulture just called it a comedy special you should watch. It's Zach Zimmerman.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Hi, Lauren. I have some questions for you after you get off.

[Peter Sagal]

Well, welcome to the show, Lauren. You're going to play who's Bill this time, Bill Curtis is going to read you three quotations from this week's news. If you can correctly identify or explain just two of them, you will win our prize. Any voice from our show you might choose on your voicemail. Are you ready to go? I'm ready. All right, now, your first quote is actually two quotes. They're from both sides of a partnership that suddenly ended this week. Here's the first quote. This is from President Trump.

[Bill Curtis]

We had a great relationship. I don't know if we will anymore.

[Peter Sagal]

And here is his devastated ex.

[Bill Curtis]

Donald Trump is in the Epstein files.

[Peter Sagal]

So who is no longer President Trump's bff?

[Lauren Ring]

Well, it's not Melania, so I think.

[Peter Sagal]

I'd say Elon Musk. Right, right. Trump gave Elon Musk, his partner, a nice send off in the White House last week. But then things suddenly got real dark. Musk called Trump's big budget bill an abomination. Trump then called Musk a big disappointment. Musk said Trump couldn't have won the election without him. And then, as you heard, Musk escalated things. Poor Elon. We're about to find out how much ketamine it takes to fix a broken heart.

[Adam Burke]

Like, I know we're supposed to do other questions or whatever, but this is all I want to talk about.

[Peter Sagal]

I know. For this very special edition. Wait, wait, don't tell me.

[Adam Burke]

First off, Merry Christmas. Secondly, while we're renaming, like, gulfs and stuff, can we just change, just for today, the American flag to that gif of Michael Jackson eating popcorn today? Here's the thing about this show. Like, I've been in this show 10 years, and the production team here, I know you think it's all gonna be, like, polysyllabic fart jokes and gags about some weird study about Swedish cats, but the one thing we really love in this show is a pair of messy bitches just going at it in the employee parking lot. It's just like.

[Peter Sagal]

And, you know, I mean, they had this terrible breakup. But it gets worse. I'm sorry. I mean, it gets better.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Happy pride, Trump.

[Peter Sagal]

Yes. Trump said he would cancel Elon's government contracts. Elon said Trump should be impeached. And then, oh, the hardest blow of all, Elon canceled his X account. That's a low blow, but we've all been there. We've all had these experiences. You know, the whole time, Elam was still wearing Trump's old hoodie because it spread.

[Adam Burke]

And we still. The thing is, I mean, we're gonna enjoy it while it lasts. Cause obviously Trump is gonna back down in five days or tackle Tuesday, as it's now known. But I don't know, man. I love that Elon was like, oh, he's in the Epstein files and I should know. So am I.

[Peter Sagal]

We're right next to each other.

[Lauren Ring]

But then you're also like, now comes the phase where you're always worried that you're gonna run into your ex. And so you try and look hot while you' you know, in public.

[Peter Sagal]

Right.

[Lauren Ring]

At least that's what I do. And so now I'm just like, is Trump going to wear an extra long tie? Like, what are we going to see?

[Zach Zimmerman]

The revenge bodies are about to drop.

[Peter Sagal]

All right, your next quote is advice from the Atlantic magazine this week.

[Bill Curtis]

Lying whole heads might keep you from barfing up your Caesar salad.

[Peter Sagal]

Due to increasing cuts to the fda, among many other things, people are being advised to stay safe by avoiding. What is it? Cucumbers? It's not cucumbers. It is something that goes into your salad. The advice was to buy whole heads of something rather than the way we all usually buy it.

[Lauren Ring]

Oh, lettuce.

[Peter Sagal]

Yes. Bagged lettuce is what we all need to avoid. Let's give it up for bagged lettuce, the greatest convenience ever. Experts are saying bagged lettuce could be the most dangerous thing in your house now, thanks to all the inspectors who have been fired from the fda. So, you know, forget about worrying about measles. Now you can die by food poisoning. Luckily, bagged lettuce, though, has its own built in safety feature. It turns into a brown goo before you can eat it.

[Adam Burke]

This is such great vindication for jerks like me who, like, have pretty much just red meat diet. Turns out I've been the healthiest one all along.

[Peter Sagal]

Oh, they're not inspecting the meat plants either, Adam. They'll get you. Don't worry about it.

[Zach Zimmerman]

As a vegetarian, this hits close to home.

[Bill Curtis]

It really does.

[Peter Sagal]

It's bad.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Bagged lettuce is disgusting. Maybe it's just the produce near my home.

[Peter Sagal]

So you're one of those. You're one of those fancy people who buys heads of lettuce and cuts it up yourself, are you?

[Zach Zimmerman]

Well, the quiet contemplation of chopping a vegetable is a little too much for me, actually.

[Peter Sagal]

Really?

[Zach Zimmerman]

I don't.

[Peter Sagal]

So you just eat them whole or you just chew on huge?

[Adam Burke]

Do you put them in, like, a shredder? A letter shredder?

[Zach Zimmerman]

I'm using an innovation called Uber Eats in order to Consume most of my daily calories.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, I'm so glad how you people you worked. You vegetarians are getting back to like you people.

[Zach Zimmerman]

It's hard to be on the right side of history.

[Peter Sagal]

It really is. All right, your last quote is from a New York Times commenter bragging about a recent accomplishment.

[Bill Curtis]

I wanted to read 52 of them in 2024, but I actually read 54.

[Peter Sagal]

That person no doubt will be competing in the hot new contest this summer. People all over the country vying to see who can do what the most. I would say books. Yes, read books. Forget your softball leagues hanging by the pool. The cool new way to avoid your children this summer is reading summer reading programs. Like when you log your books you've read and you count them up. And if you win, you get prizes. They were once just for kids, but now bookstores across the country are launching them for lonely adults as well. Now, don't be intimidated by the challenge of reading as many as 50 books in the summer. Getting through a lot of books is easy. Just keep a book nearby you at all times and read it while you're waiting until you can skip the ad on your YouTube video.

[Lauren Ring]

How big is summer reading getting?

[Peter Sagal]

No, it is apparently quite popular. I have seen everywhere summer reading lists, people putting out. This is what you read. Some of them were even written by humans, which is nice.

[Adam Burke]

It's gotten so crazy here in Chicago. You'll see guys on the sidewalk with long coats, and they'll open it up and they'll just have paperbacks. Can I interest you into Maeve Benchy?

[Peter Sagal]

You know, by the way, if you don't want to read anything this summer, but you want to pretend you did, just say all you read this summer was Romantasy. And if somebody asks you what the book was about, just say it was elf sex. You'll be close enough.

[Zach Zimmerman]

The ears are involved. I'll leave it to that.

[Adam Burke]

Is that a title?

[Zach Zimmerman]

Right.

[Peter Sagal]

And on that note, Bill, how did Lauren do in our quiz?

[Bill Curtis]

Her score was so perfect, she could now move over to the left.

[Peter Sagal]

Kidding me. Well done. Thank you so much for calling and playing.

[Lauren Ring]

Thank you so much.

[Peter Sagal]

Take care. Right now, panel, it's time for you to answer some questions about this week's news. Zach, this week, a woman went viral when she found her husband's diary and made an amazingly surprising discovery. What was it?

[Zach Zimmerman]

He was cheating on her? No, he was loyal his whole life.

[Peter Sagal]

That may or may not be true, but that's not what she was amazed and put on the Internet.

[Zach Zimmerman]

He Couldn't write?

[Peter Sagal]

No, he could, but he wrote a novel. She had. The first thing she did was she had to go and get her magnifying glass.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Oh, he wrote very tiny.

[Peter Sagal]

Yes, he had the tiniest, tiniest handwriting. And she put this on the Internet and everybody goes nuts for it. After hesitating for as much as three seconds, the woman opened up her husband's diary to learn his secrets. But the real shock wasn't like a mistress or a secret family, but her husband's quote ant sized font handwriting. Maybe she should have suspected something considering his diary was written on one grain of rice.

[Lauren Ring]

Wait, and then also she just like put that page online.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, well, she just put it online and you can't read it. And maybe she should have tried to read it more carefully before she put it online because what if, like he wrote in his tiny handwriting was, you know, I don't know if I can keep myself from killing again. Like, oh, look at his cute handwriting.

[Zach Zimmerman]

I want to see his murder weapons, though.

[Adam Burke]

They're probably.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, yeah, they're really cute.

[Lauren Ring]

Yeah.

[Peter Sagal]

Could have been worse.

[Lauren Ring]

Well, what has he said about this? Like, what does. What? Apparently defended himself.

[Peter Sagal]

Apparently he's, he's quite proud of his tiny little handwriting.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Wasn't he dead?

[Peter Sagal]

No, no, no, he's still alive.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Oh. Why is she reading his diary?

[Peter Sagal]

That is a very good question. I mean, in all the excitement, this incredible violation of trust has not been discussed.

[Zach Zimmerman]

That's terrible.

[Adam Burke]

Yeah, I'd love to. She gets like three magnifying glasses out and he finally says, it's called privacy, you jerk.

[Lauren Ring]

You know the divorce papers are going to be on a post it note.

[Peter Sagal]

Coming up. Hundreds of millions of dollars could be yours if you simply follow the instructions in our bluffed listener game. Call 1-8 8, wait wait to play. We'll be back in a minute with more of Wait Wait, don't tell me from support for npr. And the following message come from Goodrx. Goodrx helps keep your prescription costs low, from diabetes to allergy relief to heart health. Save up to 80% on prescriptions for you and your family and pets too. Goodrx lets you compare prescription prices at over 70,000 pharmacies and instantly find free coupons. Goodrx is not insurance, but may beat your co pay price. If you do have insurance, beat high prices at the pharmacy. Go to goodrx.com wait, this message comes from Britbox. The stories you remember are often the ones you didn't see coming. Britbox invites you to see it differently with British TV Shake up the everyday and discover worlds that are new, unexpected and perhaps just what you were looking for. Stream British series including new BritBox original mystery Ludwig starring Peep Show's David Mitchell. Sign up today and get 50% off your first month when you use the code. Wait at BritBox. Public media is facing the most serious threat in its history. Congress is considering a White House proposal that would eliminate federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which helps fund local NPR stations. This move would immediately threaten many stations ability to serve their communities and could force some to close. Take a stand for public media [e-mail].

[Bill Curtis]

From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, don't tell Me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm Bill Curtis. We are playing this week with Zach Zimmerman, Red Hot Adam Burke and Nageen Farsad. And here again is your host at the Studebaker Theater in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Sagal.

[Peter Sagal]

Thank you, Bill. Right now it's time for the Wait, wait, don't tell me. Bluff the listener game. Call 1-88-wait- wait to play our games on the air or check out the pinned post on our Instagram page. Wait, wait. NPR hi. You're on Wait, Wait, don't tell me. Hi, Peter. This is Craig Ventura calling from the pizza capital of America, New Haven, Connecticut. All right. Now listen, I know, I know you think you're throwing down on us here in Chicago, but I've got a little surprise for you, my friend. I agree with you, Craig. It's great to have you with us. You're going to play our game in which you must try to tell truth from fiction. Bill, what is Craig's topic?

[Bill Curtis]

How I made millions.

[Peter Sagal]

Somebody recently made millions and millions of dollars. And I'll give you a hint. They do not work in public broadcasting. Our panelists are going to tell you how they made all that cash. Pick the one who's telling the truth. You'll win the weight waiter of your choice in your voicemail. Are you ready to play? Let's do it. Let us do it. First, let's hear from Adam Burke.

[Adam Burke]

Uno Khan seemed poised to realize his lifelong dream of becoming a big time movie producer earlier this year after raising an impressive $150 million from investors in his native Estonia. Those same backers, however, say Khan deliberately misled them about the talent he had arrayed for his supposedly star studded blockbuster. Obviously, when he texted me that Brad Pith was set to star, I assumed the H was a typo, says now disgruntled investor Arno Anson. But can had indeed secured the services of one Brad Pith, a little known Scottish actor he had seen performing on a cruise ship production of Greece. A lawsuit filed earlier this year says Kahn knew exactly what he was doing when he hired the Tino brothers as writers, just so they'd make the wrong assumption when he said the script was by Clinton Darrentino. Steven Spielberg is definitely lined up to direct, though, insists Kahn, neglecting to mention that the Steven Spielberg in question is a retired piano tuner from Berlin.

[Peter Sagal]

A man raises a lot of money to make a movie by using talent who sounds a lot like famous people. Your next story of fast fundraising comes from negeen Farsad.

[Lauren Ring]

When AI like ChatGPT, Claude and the little thing that appears on the top of Google now started popping up, the tech sector couldn't get enough. That's when building AI entered the scene product, promising that their AI could build software and that it was, quote, as easy as ordering a pizza, by the way, in another one of its disruptions, the tech world replaced easy as apple pie with easy as ordering pizza. So Building AI promised an AI future for coding and managed to raise $450 million from people like SoftBank and Microsoft because corporations are people. But then the house of cards or pizzas all came falling. An early whistleblower noted that the whole operation was, quote, just a group of Indian developers pretending to Write code as AI, which I'm assuming means like any good AI, the 700 coders tried their best to subjugate humanity while also destroying the environment. The company has since filed for bankruptcy, leaving tens of millions in unpaid bills. It turns out defrauding people when there's no real oversight is actually as easy as ordering a pizza.

[Peter Sagal]

An AI company raises hundreds of millions in investment for their technology that turns out to be just 700 people. Your last story of somebody bagging serious cash comes from Zach Zimmerman.

[Zach Zimmerman]

If you've ever tossed a coin in a fountain and made a wish, odds are it didn't come true. But it is making one woman very rich. Deborah Pearson is the founder and CEO of a commercial wishing well company called Wishing well well well. That's reporting record profits. Now it's illegal in most states to take coins from the bottom of water features, not to mention unethical, to manhandle someone's hope for a boyfriend by summer wedding season. But laws famously only govern human behavior. Deborah has adopted 400 raccoons, which have been trained, shaved and pumped full of beta blockers, to go deep sea fishing for state quarters. Half dollars, whole dollars and the occasional token from Chuck E. Cheese. Animal rights activists called the company bad. Like very, very bad. But Pearson maintains her Nursery. Of raccoons enjoy the late night skinny dips. The company is rapidly expanding into other verticals, training anteaters to dig in couch cushions, woodpeckers to check vending machines, and just hatch chicks to straight up just pickpocket people.

[Peter Sagal]

All right, somebody figured out a kind of sneaky way to make a lot of cash. Was it from Adam Burke, a movie producer who got a lot of money raised for his film by staffing it with people who sounded a lot like but weren't, big Hollywood stars? From Nagin, an AI company that raised hundreds of millions for their technology that turned out just to be 700 people perhaps pretending to be an AI or from Zach, a woman who figured out that she can rake in literally the money from wishing wells simply by dispatching raccoons to get it. Which of these is a real story of a money making scheme? Okay, these all sound pretty wild. I'm going to go with B. The fake AI scheme. You're going to go with Negeen's story. Yeah. About the A.I. okay. That's your choice. The audience seems excited about it. Well, to bring you the correct answer, we spoke to a reporter covering the real story.

[Lauren Ring]

The reason why some companies can get.

[Peter Sagal]

Away with doing this kind of thing.

[Lauren Ring]

Is that nobody really knows how AI even works.

[Peter Sagal]

They just see it as this magic black box. That was Parmee Olson from Bloomberg who originally reported on the story of these 700 engineers pretending to be an A.I. congratulations, Craig. You got it right. You earned a point for Nagin and you have won our prize.

[Bill Curtis]

Thank you.

[Peter Sagal]

Craig, voice of your choice for your voicemail. Well done, sir. Thank you, Doug. Have a great one. Take care. And now the game where we ask people who've accomplished everything they ever set out to do to do one more thing, we call it not my job. Jeff Gordon is a living legend of American auto racing. He set modern NASCAR records for career wins, most wins in a season, among many other honors before he retired 10 years ago. These days he spends his time with various businesses as well as co owning racing teams. And so far, we believe he has resisted the urge to kick the driver out of the car and say, here, let me do it. Jeff Gordon, welcome to. Wait, wait, don't tell me.

[Jeff Gordon]

Thank you. Glad you're here.

[Peter Sagal]

Thank you. It's such a thrill to talk to you.

[Jeff Gordon]

You really didn't have to say all those things, but please go on.

[Peter Sagal]

Do you want me to just list your wins by season. I have it here. One of the. We learned so many amazing things about you this week, but one of the most amazing things, to me at least, was that you won your first auto race when you were five years old.

[Jeff Gordon]

Yeah, I mean, I guess I just think all professional race car drivers started racing when they were five or six years old. I mean, that was pretty common for me. I grew up in California and the kids I was racing with were basically the same age.

[Peter Sagal]

So. Did everybody know. Did you know that this was something you were going to be very good at?

[Jeff Gordon]

No idea. No, I had no clue. I'd actually. My first racing experience was previous to that. I raced BMX bikes when I was like four and a half years old.

[Peter Sagal]

Four and a half?

[Jeff Gordon]

Yeah.

[Peter Sagal]

What does a four and a half year old get if they win a race? They get to skip their nap. What a surprise.

[Jeff Gordon]

Well, I didn't win a race, so I wouldn't know because I realized then that I did not have the physicality to pedal a bicycle as fast as others. And when I got in the car, I'm like, I don't need that. I've got an engine.

[Peter Sagal]

Oh, yeah.

[Jeff Gordon]

So it did come pretty quick. And I realized, gained confidence and said, oh, I can do this.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. This is actually another thing I'm very curious about. I know, for example, that on the track, you drivers are in radio contact at all times with your pit. What are you talking about? It's like, oh, did you see what the president just tweeted?

[Jeff Gordon]

I will say there were a few times in my career where I was fortunate enough to have a pretty big lead.

[Peter Sagal]

Just a few times.

[Jeff Gordon]

And your mind starts to wonder. And I think there were a few times I noticed some fans or something happening up in the grandstands and I radioed to the team and say, hey, just.

[Peter Sagal]

Did you see that?

[Jeff Gordon]

They're like, seriously, Jeff, you're noticing things up in the grandstand?

[Peter Sagal]

Really?

[Jeff Gordon]

We're trying to win this race. Get back to the race.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, I'm going to win, but what are we going to have for dinner later? I'm getting a little peckish out here.

[Jeff Gordon]

The other thing you have to remember is that these radios are being broadcast to everyone, really. So you have to be careful.

[Peter Sagal]

Really.

[Jeff Gordon]

I didn't always do that well, but you try, really.

[Peter Sagal]

So, like, let's say, and I'm sure this happened to you more than a couple times, let's say things go poorly, you spin out, maybe something catches fire. You have to be careful to Say, oh goodness, I am truly and well fudged.

[Jeff Gordon]

Yeah, that as well as if somebody else caused it.

[Peter Sagal]

Oh, yes.

[Jeff Gordon]

Then the choice things that you are thinking about saying, really?

[Peter Sagal]

I find that, I mean that is.

[Jeff Gordon]

Here's the part you guys are going to love because you guys are comedians and I'm not. But in order for that to be broadcast, there's a button on the steering wheel. So in order for the driver to talk back to the team, you have to push the button. And these things are being broadcast. So you don't have to push the button. You could just say them. And in my case, 100% of the time I wanted to make sure I pushed the button. So everybody, really.

[Peter Sagal]

Now you've retired and as I said, one of the many things you do in addition to your businesses and philanthropy is you co own some racing teams. Right. And how hard is it for you to like, just look at the driver or watch them and just think, just let me do it.

[Jeff Gordon]

I mean, I realize things have evolved, technology's evolved, the cars drive different today. But what does happen to me? And I think of my wife every time because when I was racing, I would get out of the car that day, let's say, you know, we didn't win. And she would go, I don't understand why you didn't just pass that car.

[Peter Sagal]

This is your wife?

[Jeff Gordon]

Yeah. She's like, couldn't you just push the pedal down further and go by? I'm like, honey, like, it's already all the way there. Like, that was as fast as I could go. So I then while I'm watching the drivers, I'm going, just pass.

[Peter Sagal]

Why can't we just pass them? Right? And I just, in credit to your wife, just comparing her to myself, at least you knew you had a pedal. That was news to me. Really? You're like, come on, just do it. Just do it. I know everybody asks you guys after you've, you know, all the racers current and retired, if you speed when you're driving your car. I'm not going to ask you that. I know you're not going to ask me that. Well, unless you want to tell me. Do you? I just understood. It was like the big cliche that all the race drivers get.

[Jeff Gordon]

Well, I mean, I'm not saying that it's that, you know, I just get in the car and say, how fast can I go? But I mean, I'm still human.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, sure.

[Jeff Gordon]

Sometimes you gotta go.

[Peter Sagal]

What I really wanted to know, what I really wanted to know is if you're Just driving, just doing an errand, maybe doing something with your kids, driving out of the grocery store. If you ever say, if you're just sitting there and going vroom, vroom, I.

[Lauren Ring]

Have one more question, which is that I learned how to drive on a stick shift.

[Jeff Gordon]

Nice.

[Lauren Ring]

Does that improve your opinion of me?

[Jeff Gordon]

Yes, 100%. I have an 18 year old, soon to be 18 year old daughter and a 14 year old son and my goal this summer is to get them to learn. Wait a minute. My son is like going through driver's ed and stuff, so maybe my daughter, I want her to learn how to drive.

[Peter Sagal]

Here's the question. Are you, Jeff Gordon, one of the greatest race car drivers who have ever lived, going to teach your children to drive?

[Jeff Gordon]

I mean, yes, reluctantly, because it's probably one of the scariest things I've ever done is sit in the passenger seat while, you know, somebody has zero experience driving, is driving the vehicle. And I kind of like to be in control of the vehicle. Yeah. So that's probably the most terrified I've ever been when my daughter was learning how to drive.

[Peter Sagal]

Just imagine you turning to your daughter, she's 16 or whatever she is. You're like, why don't you just pass them?

[Jeff Gordon]

I just want her to use the brakes. When somebody's brake lights come on, I'll be happy with.

[Peter Sagal]

Okay, start there. Well, Jeff Gordon, it is such a pleasure to talk to you. We've asked you here to play a game.

[Bill Curtis]

We're calling leave the driving to us.

[Peter Sagal]

As we have discussed, you're an accomplished driver, so we thought we'd ask you three questions about passengers. Answer two out of three correctly, you'll win our prize. One of our listeners, the voice of anyone they might choose for their voicemail. Bill, who is NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon playing for?

[Bill Curtis]

Kelsey woods of Wendell, North Carolina.

[Peter Sagal]

All right.

[Jeff Gordon]

Oh, North Carolina.

[Peter Sagal]

North Carolina.

[Jeff Gordon]

North Carolina.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah.

[Jeff Gordon]

Gotta take care of my Carolinians.

[Peter Sagal]

Exactly. Here's your first question. In 2017, a taxi driver in the UK was pulled over for speeding and he laid the blame on his passengers, telling the police what? A, they kept farting and it was so bad he had to get the ride over as quickly as possible. B, one of them said, follow that car. And since there wasn't any car in sight, he sped up to find one. Or C, one said, the acid we just took will kick in in 10 minutes. And whether it happens back here or at our home is up to you.

[Jeff Gordon]

Oh, my gosh, my son is going to be so proud of me for.

[Peter Sagal]

Picking a Your son should be proud because you're right. Yes.

[Jeff Gordon]

Oh, nice.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, he said. He said I had to get out of the car. They were farting so badly. There were three of them. So let's have some sympathy for him. All right, Very good. People love to ride on roller coasters. This, of course, is passengers, including one in Arakawa, Japan. And this roller coaster is famous for being what? A, a nearly surefire way to induce labor leading to long lines of pregnant women. B, it is the slowest roller coaster in the entire country, so slow some riders didn't realize once when it had derailed and stopped cold. Or C, it's the world's only one way roller coaster, meaning every ride ends in a long walk back to the start.

[Jeff Gordon]

Oh, Lord. Well, I don't do anything slow, so I'm not going with B. I'm going to go with the one way.

[Peter Sagal]

No, it was actually B, the slow one. It is the slowest roller coaster in Japan. It is so slow.

[Adam Burke]

The family coaster.

[Jeff Gordon]

I want you to never go to an amusement park. Next time.

[Bill Curtis]

I'm in.

[Peter Sagal]

All right, here's your last question. If you get this, you win. In 2016, on a Southwest Airlines flight from Oakland to Kansas City in full of Oakland Raiders fans, the pilot actually took to the PA at the end of the flight to congratulate the passengers for what? A, they had, he felt the most creative heckles of the safety announcement he had ever heard. B, for the first time in his experience, they had drank literally all of the alcohol on board the plane Or C, every passenger had boarded the plane, stowed their bags and got their seatbelt buckled in eight minutes flat.

[Jeff Gordon]

Oh, gosh. Oh, my goodness. It's a crowd participation.

[Peter Sagal]

It really is.

[Jeff Gordon]

B.

[Adam Burke]

B.

[Peter Sagal]

Yes, it was, of course, B, they were Oakland Raiders fans. Thank you. They drank all of it during one three hour flight. Bill, how did Jeff Gordon do two out of three?

[Bill Curtis]

Checkered flag flies everywhere.

[Peter Sagal]

There you go. Nice. Jeff Gordon is a NASCAR legend and the vice chairman of Hendrick Motors Motorsports. NASCAR Chicago Street Race returns to this fair city on July 5th and 6th. Jeff Gordon, thank you so much for being with us. Jeff Gordon, everybody. Living legend in just a minute. Be careful who you kiss. We'll tell you why in our listener Limerick challenge game. Call 188. Wait wait to join us in the air. We'll be back in a minute with more of wait wait, don't tell me. From npr, I'm Tonya Moseley, co host of Fresh Air. At a time of sound bites and short attention spans. Our show is all about the deep dive. We do long form interviews with people behind the best in film, books, tv, music and journalism. Here, our guests open up about their process and their lives in ways you've never heard before. Listen to the FRESH AIR podcast from NPR and whyy. Decades ago, Brazilian women made a discovery they could have an abortion without a doctor thanks to a tiny pill. That pill spawned a global movement helping millions of women have safe abortions regardless of the law. Hear that story on the network from NPR's Embedded and Futuro Media. Wherever you get your podcasts.

[Bill Curtis]

From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, wait, don't tell Me, the NPR News quiz. I'm Bill Curtis. We are playing this week with Nagin Farsad, Zach Zimmerman and Adam Burke. And here again is your host at the Studebakers Theater in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Sagal.

[Peter Sagal]

Thank you so much, Bill. Thank you, everybody. In just a minute, it's a game. A man from Nantucket gave his life for the listener Limbert Challenge. If you'd like to play, give us a call at 1-88-WAIT-WAIT. That's 1-888-924-8924. Right now, panel, though, some more questions for you from the week's news. Megheen, forget about all those expensive summer camps. According to one parenting column this summer, you should just let your kids do what?

[Lauren Ring]

Oh, just like throw them onto the streets.

[Peter Sagal]

Yes, let them go wild.

[Lauren Ring]

Oh, okay.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah. Millennial parents says Emil Nyazi, are tired of over scheduling their kids all year. And then the summer comes and they keep doing it. So more and more of them are just letting their children go feral. Some millennials are saying they want their kids to experience what they had, which is quote 90s summers. So here you go, kids. Let's light a campfire, drink some Sunny Delight, and tell spooky stories about Monica Lewinsky.

[Lauren Ring]

But I do have to say I love the idea of kids not having anything to do because I worry that kids don't get in enough trouble. You know what I mean? Let's just get them out there touching tetanus or whatever you're supposed to do.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Commit crimes this summer.

[Lauren Ring]

Yeah, let's do some light shoplifting, like just experience some stuff.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Aren't the kids just gonna be playing on their phones, though? You can't bring back a 90s summer in the era of, you know, smartphones and tech.

[Peter Sagal]

That's true. I guess.

[Adam Burke]

You know, that's why you precede it by smash a phone with a hammer Spring.

[Peter Sagal]

That's Right. Zach, this week the Internet debated something called the Danny DeVito rule. Now that is a theory that the way to tell if a romantic comedy is actually good is it is good if it would work if What?

[Zach Zimmerman]

If Danny DeVito was the romantic male lead in it?

[Peter Sagal]

Exactly. Right. So this is the test. This is the test. We all see these rom coms and the handsome guy goes to great lengths to win the girl. Right? But would it still be charming and not kind of creepy and scary if instead of like a heartthrob, the role was played by Danny DeVito. Right. So think of, say, Danny DeVito holding a boombox over his head outside his girlfriend's window. From the movie, say anything. Is that still adorable or does she get a restraining order?

[Adam Burke]

Is this a dish on Danny DeVito or a diss on the fact that most rom coms suck?

[Peter Sagal]

I think it is meant to be the latter. The idea being that these rom coms, these movies about, you know, guys trying to doing everything they can to get the girl who may not deserve the girl, are just nonsense that we are fooled by because the guy is so handsome and the woman pretends to fall for it. If you put a normal looking person, say, Danny DeVito, you would realize how creepy and strange the man's behavior was.

[Lauren Ring]

Okay, hold on. Because there's entire industries and life itself based on men thinking women are hot or not, right?

[Peter Sagal]

Right.

[Lauren Ring]

And so women get this one little area of culture, right, where they're allowed to think that the guy is cute and picture themselves making out with him. And now that that's being threatened by Danny DeVito.

[Peter Sagal]

Wait a minute, Nagin. They're not actually going to put Danny DeVito in the movies.

[Lauren Ring]

I know. I'm escalating the threat.

[Peter Sagal]

I understand. I just want you to know you will still go to the movies and there'll be handsome men.

[Lauren Ring]

Like, let's. It's okay if the movies are garbage and just it's about the guy being handsome. I just want to, like, let women have one thing, all right?

[Adam Burke]

And Danny DeVito.

[Bill Curtis]

No, nothing.

[Peter Sagal]

We were actually thinking that one rom com that would be hard to apply this to is Sleepless in Seattle. Because in that movie, the two leads, Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks, don't meet. They don't see each other till the very end of the movie. So we're like, if Danny DeVito was in it, like it's the top of the Empire State Building. End of the movie, Meg Ryan walks out and says to Danny DeVito, excuse me, little boy, but have you Seen a handsome man around here?

[Adam Burke]

Jerry Maguire. You had me at hello.

[Peter Sagal]

Coming up, it's lightning. Fill in the blank. But first, it's the game where you have to listen for the rhyme. If you'd like to play on air, call or leave a message at 1-888-WAIT, that's 1-888-924-8924. You can see us most weeks at the Studebaker Theater right here in downtown Chicago. Or catch us on the road this summer. We'll be in beautiful Salt Lake City on July 31st and then Tanglewood in Western Massachusetts on August 28th. Salt Lake info [e-mail] and for tickets and information to all of our live shows, you can go on over to nprpresents.org and also check out our brand new TikTok. It's atwaitnpr. Hi, you're on. Wait, wait, don't tell me. Hi, Peter. This is Jenny Legath from Moorestown, New Jersey. Oh, hey. Moorestown, New Jersey. Now I know. Not Morris. I was about to say I know Morristown. I mean, they won't let me back into Morristown. What do you do there? I'm an administrator at Princeton and sometimes.

[Lauren Ring]

They let me do a little teaching.

[Zach Zimmerman]

In the religion department.

[Peter Sagal]

Do they really?

[Adam Burke]

Yeah.

[Peter Sagal]

Okay, you've been good. Go over and give a lecture. Right, right. Well, congratulations. I should say congratulations to Princeton because you haven't been noticed yet. Yes, we're trying to keep it that way. Keep your head down. Well, Jenny, welcome to the show. Bill Curtis is now going to perform for you 3news related limericks with the last word or phrase missing from each. If you can fill in that last word or phrase correctly and two of the limericks will be a big winner. Ready to go? I'm ready. Here is your first limerick.

[Bill Curtis]

Though diet fads often entice me, their meal plans are often too pricey. Now I'll lose my spare tire. When my tongue is on fire, I make sure that my food is too spicy.

[Peter Sagal]

Spicy? Yes. According to researchers at Penn State, the quote oral burn that comes with spicy food makes you eat slower and thus less, leading to eventual weight loss. The idea is simple, right? If it hurts to eat, you eat less. That's how I lost 20 pounds recently. I just sprinkled a little broken glass on everything.

[Zach Zimmerman]

I'm very proud. I just upped to medium salsa from.

[Peter Sagal]

Did you really congratulate? Yes.

[Zach Zimmerman]

I've been on a journey in order to, you know, increase my spice tolerance.

[Peter Sagal]

Here is your next limerick, the White.

[Bill Curtis]

Dust on their nose is so plain. Those small pesky bugs have no brain. My party supplies got snorted by flies because fruit flies got hooked on cocaine. Yes.

[Peter Sagal]

In a world first scientist at the University of Utah have engineered fruit flies susceptible to cocaine addiction. Oh, boy. You do not want to see a fly the day after a long weekend cocaine binge. 1000 red and puffy little eyes. The scientists say the cocaine addicted fruit flies will help advance addiction research. So first they're going to get the little guys addicted and then they're going to sit them down and be like, fly. This is an intervention. We're worried about you.

[Lauren Ring]

Wait, I already feel like flies behave like they are on cocaine.

[Peter Sagal]

How can you tell?

[Lauren Ring]

So why. Yeah, how can you tell that they're now susceptible to co. It doesn't make any sense.

[Adam Burke]

Especially like the fourth time you see a fly go to the bathroom, be like, come on, dude.

[Peter Sagal]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Zach Zimmerman]

I will say fruit flies doing cocaine just describes Pride month. To be honest, the vibe.

[Lauren Ring]

Wait, so, but why did these scientists do that?

[Adam Burke]

Because they were also doing cocaine.

[Peter Sagal]

Exactly. They were like, you know what would be really cool? All right, you know what? Be really cool. Cool. How about.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Or an intern is just like, covering their tracks. Like, oh, crap, we left out the coke last night. It's a study.

[Peter Sagal]

All right, here is your last limerick.

[Bill Curtis]

It's not marital bliss I am dissing, but I'm sad and my old life I'm missing. And anxiety slips through the touch of our lips. I got sad because we've done too much kissing.

[Peter Sagal]

Yes. New research suggests that anxiety and depression can be transmitted to another person through kissing. That's bad. You can make it even worse if while you're kissing, you also whisper, you're bad at this. Apparently they say that it has something to do with your biome, your bacteria, and that can be transmitted through kissing. As much as 80 million bacteria get transferred from one person to another in just one kiss. There. I just depressed you without touching you at all.

[Adam Burke]

I don't care. So then the bacteria are depressed.

[Peter Sagal]

Apparently they're like, oh, man, how come we can't get cocaine like the fruit bill? How did Jenny do in our quiz?

[Bill Curtis]

She did Princeton Strong, three in a row.

[Peter Sagal]

Congratulations. Thank you. This was great.

[Adam Burke]

Thank you.

[Peter Sagal]

Bye. Bye. These days there is a lot of news. It can be hard to keep up with what it means for you, your family, and your community. Consider this from NPR as a podcast that helps you make sense of the news. Six days a week, we bring you a deep dive on a story and Provide the context, the backstory and analysis you need to understand our rapidly changing world. Listen to the Consider this podcast from NPR on the Indicator from Planet Money podcast. We're here to help you make sense of the economic news from Trump's tariffs.

[Zach Zimmerman]

It's called in game theory a trigger strategy or sometimes called grim trigger, which sort of has a cowboy esque ring.

[Peter Sagal]

To it to what exactly a sovereign wealth fund is. For insight every weekday, listen to NPR's the Indicator from Planet Money. Now onto our final game, Lightning Fill in the blank. Each of our players will have 60 seconds in which to answer as many fill in the blank questions as they can. Each correct answer now worth two points. Bill, can you give us the scores?

[Bill Curtis]

I can indeed. Nagin has three. Zach and Adam each have.

[Peter Sagal]

That means Zach and Adam are tied for second and I'm going to arbitrarily pick Adam to go first. So the clock will start when they begin your first question. Fill in the blank. On Wednesday, Adam. President Trump announced a blank ban targeting 12 countries travel. Right. According to a new report, the net worth of the 10 blankest people in America increased $365 billion last year. Richest, yes. Wealthiest. This week, U.S. blanks on steel increased to 50%. Tariffs. Right. On Tuesday, a judge ordered the White House to continue offering blank affirming care to inmates in federal prisons.

[Adam Burke]

Gender.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. This week, the US Beat out Australia to become the country that blanks the most in the entire world. Sleeps no swears. On Thursday, a Japanese spacecraft attempting to land on the blank crashed during its descent.

[Adam Burke]

Moon.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. On Thursday, the Switch 2, the newest gaming console from blank was released.

[Adam Burke]

Nintendo.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. This week, officials in Washington state had to release a warning to drivers after a truck tipped over on the highway while carrying blank.

[Adam Burke]

I heard about this. Was it a bunch of coins?

[Peter Sagal]

No, it was millions of bees. According to the local sheriff, millions of bees escaped from a cargo truck after it tipped over near the Canadian border. Fortunately, less than 24 hours later, a group of volunteer beekeepers helped recover most of them. And they swear they're definitely the escaped bees, not just a bunch of new ones. You can tell because they're still wearing their tiny orange jumpsuits. Bill, how did Adam do in our quiz?

[Bill Curtis]

Very well. Six.

[Peter Sagal]

Right.

[Bill Curtis]

12 more points. Total of 14 puts him in the lead.

[Peter Sagal]

All right, so Zach, you are up next. Here we go. Fill in the blank. According to the Congressional Budget Office, the so called big beautiful blank would add $2.4 trillion to the deficit.

[Bill Curtis]

Bill.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. On Wednesday, the U.S. vetoed a U.N. resolution calling for immediate ceasefire in Blank.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Gaza.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. On Tuesday, flash floods hit parts of Kansas after over a month's worth of Blank fell in. Just one day.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Rainfall, right?

[Peter Sagal]

Yes. This week, a dedicated doordash driver in Chicago drove onto Blank while trying to deliver an order.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Lakeshore Drive.

[Peter Sagal]

No, that would be scary. He drove onto the tarmac at o' Hare airport. On Tuesday, Food safety inspectors said that some ground beef sold at Whole Foods may be contaminated with Blank.

[Zach Zimmerman]

E. Coli.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. After their playoff loss to the Indiana Pacers, the New York Blank fired their head coach.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Nix.

[Peter Sagal]

That doesn't seem nice. Yes. This week, a man in Norway was shocked when he woke up and discovered that he had slept through Blank.

[Zach Zimmerman]

The pandemic?

[Peter Sagal]

No. A 450 foot long cargo ship crashing into his front yard.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Same same.

[Peter Sagal]

Which happened to be on the ocean. Authorities have determined that the ship's watch officer fell asleep while on duty, leading to the vessel veering off course and right into the guy's front yard. Also asleep, the house owner, who did not wake up when the ship, which was very large, crashed right there. Call it a disaster if you want, but I think it's a touching story of two men miles apart, napping in harmony. Bill, how did Zach do on our quiz?

[Bill Curtis]

Well, he did very well. Five.

[Peter Sagal]

Right.

[Bill Curtis]

Ten more points total to 12. He's in second place.

[Peter Sagal]

All right.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Also known as last.

[Peter Sagal]

We're encouraging here. All right then, so how many does Negeen need to take it?

[Bill Curtis]

Six to win? Nagin.

[Peter Sagal]

Here we go. Negin. Okay, this is for the game. Fill in the blank. Following a series of surprise drone attacks from Ukraine, Trump and blank had a 75 minute phone call.

[Lauren Ring]

Putin.

[Peter Sagal]

Right. This week, the White House said it was suspending international visas for new students at Blank University, Harvard. Right. On Wednesday, the mayor of Baltimore confirmed that a blank spill had stained part of the waterfront red oil. Right. This week, a woman in China who said she cried for three days after her boyfriend broke up with her finally got her revenge by Blanking.

[Lauren Ring]

Getting rid of his Twitter account?

[Peter Sagal]

No. Sending £2,000 of onions to his house. In order to avoid spreading outbreaks overseas, the CDC suggested travelers get the blank vaccine before flying.

[Lauren Ring]

The foot and mouth vaccine.

[Peter Sagal]

The measles vaccine. On Wednesday, the trailer for the second part of the film adaptation of the musical Blank was released. Uh.

[Lauren Ring]

The musical? Once Upon a mattress.

[Peter Sagal]

No. Although. Deep pull. Thank you. The musical. Wicked. Wicked. For good. This week, a man in Colorado escaped with just minor injuries after he was hit by a car while he was in a blank.

[Lauren Ring]

Doing ketamine no, he.

[Peter Sagal]

Was in a porta Potty, apparently, the driver who had veered off the road and ran straight into this porta. Porta potty. And you know, okay, we've all been there. You have an emergency, you're desperate. You see an old, uncared for porta potty, and you're sitting in there and you think, well, at least this couldn't get any worse. Bill, did Naguin do well enough to win?

[Bill Curtis]

Well, she got three right for six more points. Total of nine goes to the Irishman. He's our champion. Adam Burke.

[Peter Sagal]

Yay. In just a minute, we're going to ask our panelists to predict, with the all the competitive reading going on, what will be the hit book of the summer to come. But first, let me tell you that Wait, wait, Don't Tell Me. Is a production of NPR and WBEZ Chicago in association with Urgent Haircut Productions. Doug Berman, benevolent overlord Philip Ga writes our limericks. Our public address announcer is Paul Friedman, our tour manager, Shayna Donald. Thanks to the staff and crew at the Studebaker Theatre. BJ lead him and compose our theme. Our program is produced by Jennifer Mills Miles Drone Bus and Lillian King. Special thanks to Mohanad Elshehi and Monica Hickey. Peter Gwynn is the Goat, the Gwin Iest of all time. Emma Choi is our vibe curator. Technical direction is from Lorna White. Our CFO is Colin Miller. Our production manager is Robert Newhouse. Our senior producer is Ian Chillag. The executive producer of Wait, Wait, don't tell me is Mr. Michael Danforth. Now, panel, what will be this summer's big hit book?

[Lauren Ring]

Negeen Farsad, the Grapes of Raps, Sonoma Weekend.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Zach Zimmerman, the latest novel in the Hangry Games trilogy.

[Adam Burke]

And Adam Burke, I'm Cheating and Getting AI to read the books for me. So it's working its way through the Asimov classic, you robot.

[Bill Curtis]

Ah, well, if any of that happens, we're gonna ask you about it right here on Wait Wait, Don't Tell me.

[Peter Sagal]

Thank you so much, Bill Curtis. Thanks to Nadine Farsad, Adam Burke, this is Zack Zimmerman. And a great debut in our show. Thanks to our fabulous audience here at the Studio Baker Theater in downtown Chicago. Thanks to all of you listening wherever you might be. I'm Peter Sagal. We'll see you next week. This is npr. This message comes from NPR sponsor Insperity.

[Lauren Ring]

Providing HR services and technology from payroll benefits and HR compliance to talent development.

[Peter Sagal]

Learn [e-mail] HRMatters Congress is considering a rescissions package from the White House that would claw back more than $1 billion of public media funding. Federal funding for all of public media.

[Zach Zimmerman]

Amounts to about $1.60 per person per year.

[Peter Sagal]

That helps bring you the news and podcasts you rely on from npr. Please take a stand for public media today at Go on the Planet Money podcast. You've seen them, those labels that say made in China or made in France, but what do they really mean? The reaction was, it can't possibly work like that. That can't possibly be right. We dig into the delightfully convoluted rules behind country of origin, what makes, say, a Chinese product Chinese, and how companies facing tariffs are getting creative. From Planet Money on npr. Wherever you get your podcasts.