WGN - The John Williams Uncut Podcast

Wendy Snyder (in for John Williams) is joined by legendary television journalist Bill Kurtis to talk all about his new book, Whirlwind: My Life Reporting the News. Kurtis shares fascinating stories from his storied career while promoting his interview with WGN’s Larry Potash at the Museum of Broadcast Communications on Saturday, December 6th, 2025.

Tom Appel, Publisher, Consumer Guide Automotive and host of the Consumer Guide Car Stuff podcast, joins John Williams to talk about the Trump administration rolling back fuel economy standards. Tom breaks down what this means.

Author and registered dietician nutritionist Dawn Jackson Blatner joins John Williams to talk about why you should not eat lunch while you a working, and the one habit that could decrease your risk of heart attack, high blood pressure, diabetes, and weight gain. Dawn also answers your health and nutrition questions.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, political pundit Marj Halperin, and long-time Chicago journalist Cate Plys, publisher of Roseland, Chicago: 1972. This week, the Rascals start the podcast discussing Northwestern University paying $75 million to the federal government over the next three years to to get federal funding […]

Captain Christine Coreano, Corps Officer, The Salvation Army Oakbrook Terrace, North and Central Illinois Division, joins John Williams to talk about her career in the Salvation Army, how food insecurity is an issue in every community, who their food programs serve, the reliance on food donations, their desire to meet every need in the community, […]

Mortgage and real estate expert David Hochberg joins John Williams to talk about mortgage rates coming down a bit, if he thinks the Fed will cut interest rates later this month, how homes have appreciated in the area, how much credit card debt Americans are holding, why he insists on paying off credit card debt every […]

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

Clem Martin from Christ the King Jesuit College Prep joins John Williams on this Marquette Bank Giving Tuesday to talk about how long the school has been around, the students who make up Christ the King, where most of the students come from, the support they receive from Marquette Bank, and the unique Corporate Work […]

Dr. Jeffrey Kopin, Chief Medical Officer for Northwestern Medicine Catherine Gratz Griffin Lake Forest Hospital, joins John Williams to talk about what you can take to combat the common cold, the World Health Organization issuing the first-ever guidelines for use of GLP-1 weight loss medications, and what you can do to protect yourself from Norovirus.

Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, joins John Williams to talk about Northwestern University agreeing to pay $75 million to the Trump administration to restore frozen funding, and the controversy surrounding a Sept. 2 attack on a boat in the Caribbean Sea. And don’t forget! You can still get tickets to Eric’s wonderful Christmas event, “Songs […]

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

The great Mr. Fix-It, Lou Manfredini, joins John Williams to tell us the projects we need to be working on this week. Mr. Fix It offers his suggestions to prevent porch pirates, and to give some tips on how to best prepare your home for winter. Listen to HouseSmarts Radio on WGN each Saturday morning at 6 am.

Marge Sipla, Speed Jokes spirit animal, cataloger and Member of the Speed Jokes Committee, joins John Williams and the gang to give us her favorite Speed Jokes of November 2025 (and John likes these)! What was your favorite joke this month? Keep sending your jokes to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com

Envoy Scott Hurula, Corps Administrator and pastor at The Salvation Army Joliet Corps, and Salvation Army volunteer Novel Woods, join John Williams to talk about the importance of Salvation Army volunteers, and what you can do if you want to be a bell-ringer this season. Your donations to The Salvation Army will help keep families […]

Matt Singer, editor and critic at ScreenCrush, and author of ‘Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever,’ joins John Williams to talk about the 50th anniversary of the TV show starring famed movie critics Roger Ebert and Gene Siskel. Matt explains how Siskel and Ebert impacted movie criticism, their influence on films in […]

Elder law attorney Kerry Peck joins John Williams to answer all your questions about elder law, trusts, wills, and elder abuse. 

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 says continue to water your trees and shrubs and remember to cut your lawn down to 2 inches for the winter.

John Williams read a portion of a letter from listener Janelle from Michigan: Good morning, John.  I wanted to share this with you, after listening to it again this morning….. So interesting to look back and recall the thoughts and emotions so many people were experiencing that morning a little over a year ago.  It's also nice to reflect on where we […]

U.S. Representative Lauren Underwood (D-IL 14) joins John Williams to talk about what she found when she visited the Broadview ICE detention center. Rep. Underwood details the inhumane conditions at the facility and also tells John what she expects from Operation Midway Blitz in the months to come.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

Dr. Jeffrey Kopin, Chief Medical Officer for Northwestern Medicine Catherine Gratz Griffin Lake Forest Hospital, joins John Williams to talk about why you should go for a brief walk after having your Thanksgiving meal, why he suggests getting a COVID shot and a flu shot in separate arms, Pfizer’s mRNA flu shot outperforming the standard flu vaccine in […]

Eric Zorn, Publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, joins John Williams to talk about the best Thanksgiving food, why he thinks Chicago’s winter-parking rules are more of a cash grab, and his idea to get rid of divisions in the NFL.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, Austin Berg, Executive Director of the Chicago Policy Center and author of the The Last Ward, and Jon Hansen of WGN Radio and Block Club Chicago. This week, the Rascals kick off the podcast with ‘News or Noise.’ What are the news stories that are […]

Davis Jaspers, Founder & CEO of VitaLife, joins John Williams to talk about their weight loss and wellness program, how they are able to figure out what the body needs, their focus on getting metabolism working the way it should, what their weight loss program looks like and the typical client they serve, if they […]

Kelly Leonard, Vice President, Creative Strategy, Innovation and Business Development at The Second City and host of the “Getting to Yes, And…” podcast, joins John Williams to talk about a podcast he recorded with Dr. James Kimmel about his new book, “The Science of Revenge: Understanding the World’s Deadliest Addiction and How to Overcome It.” Kelly […]

The great Mr. Fix-It, Lou Manfredini, joins John Williams to tell us the projects we need to be working on this week. Lou has some amazing advice on how to pre-clean your dishwasher before Thanksgiving. And, as always, Lou answers all of your home improvement questions. Listen to HouseSmarts Radio on WGN each Saturday morning at 6 am.

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

After 6 rounds of voting on 64 of Chicagoland’s favorite Christmas events and attractions, polls officially closed at 10 AM, November 24th. WGN Radio senior digital strategist and bracketologist Michael Piff joined John Williams to announce and call the winner of the Chicagoland Christmas Traditions Tournament, sponsored by Treetime Christmas Creations. Listen to the announcement […]

Craig Bolanos, Founder and Wealth Advisor at VestGen Wealth Partners, joins John Williams to talk about the likelihood we see an interest rate cut in December, why the stock market likes the idea of a rate cut, where people should be putting their money considering the volatility in the market, why consumer sentiment is down, his thoughts […]

Dr. David J. Gunkel, Distinguished Research Professor, Distinguished Teaching Professor, Chair – Department of Communication, Northern Illinois University, joins John Williams to talk about AI generated music, what the AI landscape in the arts is like right now, how human artists are using AI in their music, the ethical problems that come with AI, who […]

Enjoy this edition of “The Best of Speed Jokes.” What was your favorite joke of the week? Keep sending your jokes to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com!

NewsNation Now anchor Connell McShane joins John Williams to talk about President Donald Trump meeting New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, the Coast Guard changing their swastika policy, President Trump telling a reporter, ‘Quiet, piggy,’ and President Trump accusing several Democratic lawmakers of “seditious behavior,” after they posted a video telling military and intelligence officers to “refuse illegal orders.” […]

Kimberly Bares, CEO, Magnificent Mile Association, tells John Williams to tell us everything we need to know about this year's Magnificent Mile Lights Festival! Kimberly also talks about the economic impact and what it means for the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois.

Judy Socha, who has organized the Addison blood bank for over 50 years, joins John Williams to talk about her personal connection to blood drives, the importance of people donating blood, why she continues her mission to help bring in blood, the wonderful people that she has met on her journey, the amount of blood they […]

It's time once again for our Best of the Midwest feature! Are you trying to come up with some holiday 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 north and visit with the always delightful Stephanie Klett, President […]

Author and registered dietician nutritionist Dawn Jackson Blatner joins John Williams to talk about the three things she’s going to add to her Thanksgiving routine, how to add color to your Thanksgiving meal, the most important tip to enjoy a healthy Thanksgiving, and how to R.E.S.E.T. your health the next day and beyond!

John Williams brings you another round of Speed Jokes. Keep sending yours to JohnWilliams@wgnradio.com.

John Williams talks with Jeff Nydegger of JeffBuysYourHouse.com and Chris Kasper, both veterans of the U.S. Army. The two became friends while serving in the 864th Combat Heavy Engineer Battalion at Fort Lewis, Washington. In 2003, while attached to the 101st Airborne, the two were among the first to cross the border into Iraq. They […]

The Mincing Rascals this week are John Williams of WGN Radio, Eric Zorn, publisher of The Picayune Sentinel, political pundit Marj Halperin, and long-time Chicago journalist Cate Plys, publisher of Roseland, Chicago: 1972. This week, the Rascals start the podcast talking about Illinois launching Mobile ID for iPhones. Are the Rascals on board with the new technology feature? Next, Mayor […]

Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias joins John Williams to talk about Illinois implementing Mobile IDs. Secretary Giannoulias explains how the digital technology works, why this technology is both convenient and safe, where you can use your digital ID right now, when the mobile ID will come to Android phones, and if passports will be coming to your […]