Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! - WWDTM: GWAR, Gretchen Whitmer, Josh Gad, Kara Jackson, and Amber Maykut

Episode Date: May 17, 2025

This week, we celebrate the arrival of spring with special guests Josh Gad, Gretchen Whitmer, GWAR, Kara Jackson, and Amber Maykut!Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

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wait, wait, don't tell me, the NPR News Quiz. Invite me to your Memorial Day picnic. I'll eat your deviled eggs no matter how long they've been out in the sun. I'm Bill Curtis, and here is your host at the Studebaker Theater in the Fine Arts Building in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Segal. Thank you, Bill. Thanks, everybody. So good to see you all.

I am going to be honest with you all. The year's not even half over, and we are already exhausted. So inspired by the hit TV show, The White Lotus, we're going to take a week off. We're going to an exotic retreat, and we're going to work on our wellness. Oh, no. There's been a murder. Who could have seen this coming? While we try to get to the bottom of this, we've got some soothing treatments for you selected from the finest naturally derived radio segments. First up, actor Josh

Gad, the voice of Olaf, the snowman in Frozen among many other roles. He joined us in January to talk about his new memoir. And congratulations on the book which I devoured this week. Was it a little intimidating to write a memoir at the age of 43? Well it was. Just sitting there and typing all the words was intimidating because I had to come up with them. Yeah.

And you know as it started to expand, it just felt like, OK, this may be a story worth telling. And then a publisher paid me. And I was like, OK, it is. Yeah, that'll do it. Now, the question I often ask people like you, who have done so many different things, is what do you most recognize for?

And you say in the book that you wish you had used a different voice for Olaf the book? that you wish you had used a Different voice for Olaf the snowman because whenever you're talking in public children hear you and go insane Yeah, it was a stupid decision I Will get recognized in like grocery stores Just being like hi is the milk over there? It can be something as innocuous as that and And all of a sudden, three children will just

give me an exorcist there. So I regret that now. But at the same time, I'm grateful that so many people love the voice of Olaf, which is me. The other thing that I'm weirdly recognized for is Bear Claw from New Girl, which makes no sense. There you go. Yeah, OK, there's some people.

So I myself have never watched the show. Why is that surprising? Who is Bear Claw? That's my question as well. I did two episodes of that show. And what's so funny is people went nuts for Bear Claw. He was this guy who, like, kind after Jess, played by Zooey Deschanel.

And I was actually with Zooey's real-life husband, Jonathan yesterday. And he looked at me, and he goes, Bear Claw and Jess should have ended up together. Which is a very weird take. Yeah, from her actual husband. Yeah, there's like a small community, including her own husband, who just really loved Bearclaw. Wow.

Can I ask a question about Olaf? So I have a six-year-old daughter. So your voice is like in my apartment all the time. And I, you're great. This feels like less of a question and more like a threat. Like what kind of relationship do you have with the parents of the children that go nuts? One that's very volatile, like whatever we're having here. Like this thing that's happening right now.

You know what's funny is I've now been on the other side of it where my girls are obsessed with Wicked right now. I'm having to listen to Ariana Grande's popular over and over and over again or Cynthia Rivo's song so I'm I'm with you I'm struggling and I know so I'm texting them and I'm like can we please just put you know a moratorium on this yeah great job but I can no longer listen to these songs on a loop. Wow. It's like a Twilight Zone episode thing where it happens to you, man. It took so much empathy for you to give that detailed answer instead of just saying, as I would have, Nagin, let it go.

He has more dignity than that, Josh. He has more dignity than that, Josh. He has more dignity than that. He's the superior Josh G. You did tell the story in the book of one person who did not recognize you, which was the director David O. Russell. Oh, God. Yeah. So, David O. Russell, this is such a crazy story.

David O. Russell, brilliant director. We were at the same Mommy and Me program, because we're both mommies, and we were outside, and it was after he had just been nominated for one of the many films he was nominated for. And he looks at me and I said, I said, congratulations on your nomination. And he goes, oh, thank you. What do you do? And I said, oh, I'm an actor. And he says, well, what do you do?

What do you act? And I said, oh, well, you know, your ear, I do this, I do that. He didn't recognize any of them. And I said, you know, your ear, I do this, I do that. He didn't recognize any of them. And I said, you know, your kid may know me from something called Frozen. And he goes, what's that? I said, oh, what? Animated movie that's sort of, you know, everywhere,

but you're home. And he goes, oh, what are you doing it? And I said, I'm a snowman. And it was, do it. He said, what? He said, do it. And I said, do the snowman? He goes, yeah.

And I looked at him, this Academy award-winning director, and I said, Hi, I'm Olaf. And he looked at me and he goes, huh. And I have not been in a David O. Russell film. Really? There you go. Yeah. Should have done a song dude that would have done it. But then afterwards he goes oh you're bear claw. I got to ask one thing the book does cover some of your struggle and one story I loved is when you applied as a young man

when you were living in Florida to work at Disney. There were two rides that I always wanted to be the sort of host of. One was this ride called the Great Movie Ride. And then the other was the Jungle Cruise. Right. And so I said, you know, I really think that I would be an amazing skipper

on the Jungle Cruise. And this person looks at me and goes, well, yeah, I don't know about that, but we do have openings on our janitorial staff. And then years later, I told this story at something called the Disney Legends Award, and the head of the parks came up to me and said, would you like to be a skipper for a day on the Jungle Cruise? So I got to live out my dream. Really?

And it was a skipper. In fact, when David O. Russell got in that boat. Game over. Well, amazing. Well, Josh Gad, it is a pleasure to talk to you after seeing you do so many amazing things over the years, but we have asked you to play a game we're calling Josh Gad meet posh lads. So we've decided to ask you about posh lads, those fancy boys produced by British universities and boarding schools.

Bill, who is Josh playing for? Larry Anderson of Denver, Colorado. All right. Here we go. Here's your first question. In 1805, posh lad and poet Lord Byron attended Cambridge University, but Cambridge wouldn't let him bring his dog with him as dogs were banned. So Lord Byron, that scamp did what? Was it A, he kept a bear in his

dorm room instead because nothing in the rules said he couldn't do that. B, he built a doghouse 50 feet away just off school grounds with a tunnel connecting it to his room. Or C, he submitted a fake application that got his dog hired as a professor. I think it's the bear thing, because that's just crazy to come up with. Well, you think it's the bear? Well, you're right. It was the bear. That's right to me, man.

Yeah, he used to walk around. He used to walk the bear around campus on a chain. All right, Josh, your next question. The famously elite Eaton College has a longstanding tradition called the Eaton Wall Game. It's a sort of combination of soccer and rugby, and it's played against this big brick wall. Yes, I've played it.

You have. No, I lied to you. I understand. There's an annual game between the fanciest king scholars and the rest of the school, it's a big deal, even though which of these is true? A, the last time anyone scored a goal in the game was in 1909. B. The wall completely encloses the playing field so none of the spectators can actually see anything. Or C. The game is played with a 95 year old ball that deflates if you kick it. I'm gonna go with C. You're gonna go with C

that is played with a 95 year old ball. No, the answer is actually A. No one has scored a goal in this game for more than a hundred years. Here's your last question. If you get this, you win. Here we go. Eden was founded in the year 1440. So obviously a lot has changed over the years. For example, in the 17th century, what was a rule imposed on all Etonians? A. Before exams, the headmaster inspected each boy to ensure his upper lip was sufficiently stiff. B. Students were forbidden from even learning the cleaning staff's first names.

Or C. For their health, all students were required to smoke before breakfast. I'm thinking it's B. B! C! C! C! C! C! Wait, what are you? What is your audience screaming?

It's getting faster. The audience is screaming C. The audience is screaming C. All right, well, my friend in Denver, if the audience gets this wrong, it's on them, not me. C. You're all right. It was C. Yes!

Yes! Yes! We did it! They smoked tobacco. They were forced to smoke tobacco for their health that probably protected I love you guys. Thank you for bailing me out bill. How did Josh Gad do in our quiz? Well, how can you get a bigger winner? congratulations Josh Gad's new memoir is in Gad. We trust Josh Gad. Thank you so much for joining us on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me.

What a joy to talk to you. What a pleasure to talk to you. Stay safe. When we come back, the taxidermist to the stars and a woman affectionately known as Big Gretch. That's when we return with more. Wait, wait, don't tell me. From NPR.

This message comes from WISE, the app for doing things and other currencies. With WISE, you can send, spend, or receive money across borders all at a fair exchange rate. No markups or hidden fees. Join millions of customers and visit WISE.com. T's and C's apply. Hey, it's Peter Sagal with a quick plug for a recent bonus episode. A former contestant fesses up to cheating. I got scared. I got nervous about looking foolish on national radio.

So we gave him a bluff the listener do over. I had no real idea. Wow. Really? To hear it, sign up for NPR Plus. You get other perks, too, like sponsor free listening and discounts at the NPR shop. Just head over to plus dot NPR dot org. I'm Tanya Mosley, 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. From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm Bill Curtis. Here is your host at the Studebaker Theater in downtown Chicago, Peter Segal. Thank you, Bill. So, thank you all so much. So right now, all of us at Weight Waiter are off in a spa somewhere looking at custom reports on our biometrics and nodding along as if we understand them.

All I know is my heart chakra is outperforming the Dow. Our therapy for you though, is some delightful conversations we've had in the past few months. One of the more interesting was in February with Amber Maycut. She's known in the media by an unusual title which Peter asked her about when she joined us. We saw that you were called taxidermist to the stars. What exactly does that mean?

How did you earn that title? I guess that a lot of celebrities have bought stuff for me or commissioned work for me or I go to their houses and fix their fax that I mean hang it up for them. Can you describe without breaking any confidences what the kind of work you've done for some of these people? Let's see so for Drew Barrymore I did some framed butterflies to hang on the wall. And then for Amy Sedaris I did a pheasant. And then for Adam Jones, he's the guitarist of Tool, I did a ram head with four horns on it and a goat head for the band Slayer. I'm sure the goat heads are very popular with the whole heavy metal genre, right?

They all need their goat heads. Yeah, definitely. Could you, I mean, I think people should understand this, that when we're talking about your taxidermy, for the most part, we're not talking about what they're thinking of, which is like, I don't know, a deer head, you know, mounted above a bar or in a cabin somewhere. Could you describe your work and what makes it special? Sure. A lot of what I do is called anthropomorphic taxidermy.

So it's kind of giving life human characteristics or activities to the taxidermy. So behind me here I have like a raccoon cowboy. So it's a raccoon wearing a cowboy hat and a red bandana around his neck and he's doing finger guns with his paws. That was actually for Justin Long and Kate Bosworth that's shipping to LA. And then the one next to it is actually a squirrel riding a horse waving a cowboy hat. Cowboy theme happening here. And that one's for Maura Tierney who's an actress from the show ER. Yes, yes. I have so many questions. Yeah. Let's just focus on Justin Long's

raccoon with the cowboy hat and the finger guns. Yes. So that one is probably one of my best sellers that went viral online. I made one once and then I put it online in my online shop that people could just click and buy it. And then... So you came up with it. Where did that come from? Were you like thinking about raccoons and going, you know what would make them even better?

Oh, geez, I don't know. I write down things in the middle of the night sometimes that make no sense at all. So who knows? Is there like, do taxidermists have like their own aesthetic? Like what makes a great taxidermy? Yeah, a mount, a good mount. A good mount, thank you. The taxidermy is, if you see like the mannequin behind me on the one side, so this is a Himalayan

goat on one side that's mounted with the skin on it already, and the one on the other side is just a mannequin with just a form, so it's an anatomically correct mannequin to that specimen. How do you get anatomically correct models of animals? Or do you make them? So there's taxidermy supply companies, dozens of them in the US, where you can order your deer mannequin or skunk mannequin. And then you basically, it's kind of tailoring in reverse. You whittle down your mannequin or build up your mannequin to custom fit it to your skin.

And then you use glass eyes that are also anatomically correct to the specimen, to the millimeter, a wire for the tail. And then you do, you know, you kind of clay for musculature and sculptural work and sew it up, do your hair and makeup, do airbrushing, painting. So there's a lot, it's a lot of sculpture. Yeah. This is how I get ready in the morning too. Yeah. Ah! You're just basically a polyurethane core.

There's tons of molds. You're a thing. I mean, obviously you're so deeply invested in this. I have a problem with stuffed animals because whenever I look away, I assume they're moving their heads to stare at me. And I turn and I look back and they're immediately still again.

I find it discomforting to be near all those completely still animals. It's creepy. Do you ever? Thanks for having me on then. Oh, you're welcome. It was an act of courage on my part. Well, Amber Maker, we have invited you here to play a game we're calling They're Alive! So as we have been discussing, you specialize in putting deceased animals

recreated in people's homes, so we thought we'd ask you about three instances of live animals getting in there. Get two or three right, you will win our prize for one of our listeners. Are you ready to play? Sure! All right, Chioki, who is Amber Maycup playing for? Larry Gold of Minneapolis, Minnesota. All right. Minnesotans here. Here's your first question. An Australian family was surprised when a koala got into their house, especially because it took them a little while to notice it. Where was it? A. On their couch next to a throw pillow with a koala printed on it. B. Hanging on their Christmas tree as if pretending to be an ornament. Or C. Sitting on top of their ceiling fan until that is they turned the

ceiling fan on. Oh no. I'm going to go with A. You're going to go with A that was on their couch next to a koala throw pillow and they were like, oh, I guess we have two koalas. You pick it up because you're choosing B, hanging on their Christmas tree? I guess so. That's right. Oh, wow.

Nice. It was like hanging on the Christmas tree. They like trees. It makes sense, all right? Good. All right. Next question. Some people actually welcome wild animals into their homes, including some surprising

people. Like which of these? A, Britain's King Charles, who not only lets red squirrels into his Scottish estate, but leaves jackets hanging on chairs with nuts in the pockets for them to find. B, Jamie Foxx, who has a deal with local animal control for them to bring any captured foxes, naturally, to his house, or C, Peyton Manning, who learned to imitate six different mating calls

so he could attract animals to his patio. I'll go with A. You can go with A. Britain's King Charles, you're right. Yeah. He loves those red squirrels. He says, sometimes when I leave my jackets on a chair with nuts in the pockets, I see them with their tails sticking out as they hunt for nuts. They're incredibly special creatures. All right.

Last question. You're doing very well. It's not just houses that can have trouble with wildlife. A high school in Little Rock had a bat infestation, but dealt with it quickly and decisively. Just by doing what? A, changing their mascot from the running rebels to the fighting bats.

B, enrolling the bats as students, which allowed them access to state funds to get rid of the bats. Or C, just ceding control of the school to the bats and making all classes remote for a while. C. Yes, exactly right. It took them about four days to clear out the bats and clean up everything and bring

the students back. Chokie, how did Amber do in our quiz? Amber got three taxidermy finger guns. She is a winner. Amber Maycutt is a taxidermist to the stars and the founder of Brooklyn Taxidermy. You can see her work at BrooklynTaxidermy.com. I recommend it highly. Amber, well, thank you so much for being on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me.

Take care. Bye-bye. In April, we all traveled to Detroit to speak to Michigan's Governor, Gretchen Whitmer, who had just published a book with a title inspired by her nickname, Big Gretch. I asked her how she came to embrace that handle. So I'm named after both my grandmothers, Gretchen and Esther. And Grandma Gretchen always said, never let anyone call you Gretch, your name is Gretchen. Gretch sounds like retch, it's not pretty.

So I've always had this aversion to being called Gretch. And I don't know many women that want big in front of their nickname. You know, so. So big Gretch, when it first came to be during the pandemic, I was not sure what to make of it. And a woman who worked with me, Shaquilla Myers, who is from Detroit, said, you don't understand, this is a compliment. This is

like the people of Detroit just gave you the key to the city. This is, they love you. This is a nice thing. So now it's my favorite nickname. Big Retch. If there's not, if there might be somebody in the audience who's not as old Coral with Detroit hip-hop as you and I That came from it, but it was bestowed upon you by a rapper a Detroit rapper named G Mac, right? So he made it into a song it started in the city of Detroit But he made Big Gretch into a song and that's really what yeah what blew it up, right? And and for people who don't know it I'm not going to attempt to perform it But the chorus is throw the buffs on her face because that's Big Gretch.

We ain't about to stress, we got Big Gretch. You can find her in the press under Big Gretch. Fresh in a new dress, yeah, that's Big Gretch. And you said you weren't going to perform it. It's almost like GMAT cash is here with us. It really is. Sticking with nicknames for a second, you mentioned in the book that you've had other nicknames before Big Gretsch, one of which was Gravity Gretscheth.

And could you tell us how you got that particular nickname? Well, I'm a very accident-prone person. I'm a klutz. I've run into things. I fall down. I mean, I was practicing in my state of the state last year, and I ran into one of the podiums. I had a huge bruise. It just happens all the time. But when I was in middle school I went to church camp and for some reason

it was out in Virginia or West Virginia of all places and I was running to a base and the other girl tagged me but pushed me really hard and I went right into the cement and knocked out my front teeth. And so I came back from church camp in a wheelchair because I got 30 stitches in my knee. Both my hands were cut up, my face was cut up, and I was missing my teeth. And my father just looked at me and said, Gravity Gretchen. What did you do to anger God? It's a good question. I've, you know, I felt most bad about my dad because he just paid for braces to fix the gap between those front teeth.

Well. But now I think I got to figure out how I angered God. Thank you. Well, something for the next book. Yeah. Since we brought it up, I have to ask you about another time you fell down or at least were found on the ground in high school. Again, I think it's a unique story among America's governors.

I was wondering if you could share that. Well, I'll just say this. No dogs were shot in my book. That's true. Yeah. Yeah, so when I was in high school, I ran with a fast crowd. And it was the 80s, you know, there was a lot of, not a whole lot of parental oversight and a lot of access to alcohol. And I drank a lot before a football game and I passed out between two cars and my principal found me and I

Tell the story because that was really when I I kind of got it together. Yeah, and Became the best, you know the most improved student that year and went to Michigan State and you know ended up Thank you. Don't agree Ended up, you know on the Dean's List and then I went to law school and graduated magna cum laude But I think it was I think it was that moment that really, it was devastating and I was punished. But it really inspired me to get my act together. Right. I get that. But in the telling of that story, which as you say is inspirational both in terms of its effect on your life and I think hopefully to the many young people who might read the book, there was a detail that

you left out just now. Which is when the principal found you. Yeah. Didn't you like- Oh, I threw up on him. Yeah. I gotta tell you, this all sounds like Big Gretch Bay. It really does. Continuing, this is great because one of

the interesting things about your life is that we can tell it in the form in like via nicknames another famous one of course you could find it on merch that woman from Michigan which was bestowed upon you by President Trump or or as I guess we should call him, President Trump 1.0. It must be exciting. Are you hoping for a new nickname in the second term? I mean, we'll see. We'll see how it goes.

I'm going to, you know, see how it goes. All right. Yeah, but you know, the t-shirt printers are ready in case it comes up with something. That Michigan's Etsy community is ready to roll. Governor Whitmer, it is an absolute thrill to be able to talk to you here in Detroit. As we have with so many important people, we have invited you here to play a game that this time we are calling... Check out these not so great lakes.

So Michigan, as I'm sure you know, is the Great Lakes state. Oh, we are? Yeah. So we thought we'd ask you about some not so great lakes that is much, much smaller bodies of water. Answer two or three questions about tiny lakes correctly and you'll win our prize for one of our listeners, the voice of anyone that might choose for our show. Bill, who is Governor Whitmer playing for?

Jeff Krueger of Livonia, Michigan. Are you ready to do this? I'm ready. Here's your first question. One of the smallest bodies of water you can find is, of course, a hot tub. And if you happen to have a hot tub outside of your house in Monrovia, California in the 1990s, you had to watch out for what? A, a brand new STD that evolved in the heated water called Jacuzzi Ria. B, Samson the hot tub bear, a 500 pound black bear who loved ending his day in somebody's

hot tub. Or C, a business called Peeping Tim's aerial hot tub helicopter tours. Samson, the hot tub and bear. You're right. You just knew. I just had a feeling. You just had a feeling because of your knowledge of hot tubs, your knowledge of bears, both, neither? All of the above.

All of the above, yes. All right, that was very good, Governor. Here's your next question. Puddles. Harmless little bodies of water, but they can cause problems from time to time, as in when which of these happened. A. A Japanese government official got in trouble for making a subordinate give him a piggyback ride over a puddle. B. A single puddle caused a massive traffic jam in Texas when a cyber truck rolled through it and shorted out. Or C. A Florida billionaire got caught trying to get a tax break by calling a puddle on his property an endangered wetland. I mean, I think it's A. You think it's A, the Japanese government official, you're right. Oh! You're right. This happened back in 2016.

And there was this this big typhoon that damaged and the minister in charge of like emergency relief showed up and there was a big puddle and he says he forgot to bring his overshoes so he had a subordinate pick him up and carry him through the puddle which did not go over well with the Japanese public. We had to apologize. All right. That's very good. You have one more.

Let's see if you can be perfect here. The largest public swimming pool ever, we think, was the Fleischhacker public pool in San Francisco. It was so enormous during its heyday that what once happened? A, it was taken over by a pod of gray whales. B, it had to close twice a day for low tide. Or C, they had to put lifeguards out to patrol the pool in rowboats. C. That's right. Wow.

It was an enormous pool, now closed, now gone. Those with seawater piped in from the ocean next pool, now closed, now gone. The sea water piped in from the ocean next door they say could accommodate 10,000 people at once. Bill, how did Governor Whitmer do in our quiz? She's perfect. Yes. Gretchen Whitmer is the Governor of Michigan.

Her new book, True Gretchen, is available now. It's a hoot and a half. Governor Gretchen Whitmer, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. Give it up for yourch, is available now. It's a hoot and a half. Governor Gretsch and Whitmer, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. I'm Wait, Wait, Don't Come.

Give it up for your governor, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. When we come back, two of the humans behind the heavy metal aliens of Guar and a singer-songwriter

with a very special connection to me. That's when we come back with more of Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me from NPR. Tariffs, recessions, how Colombian drug cartels gave us blueberries all year long. That's the kind of thing the Planet Money podcast explains. I'm Sarah Gonzalez and on Planet Money, we help you understand the economy and how things all around you came to be the way they are. Para que sepas. So you know. Listen to the Planet Money podcast from NPR. Keeping up with the news can feel like a 24 hour job. Luckily, it is our job. Every hour on the NPR News Now podcast, we take the latest most important stories happening and we package them into five-minute episodes so you can easily squeeze them in between meetings and on your way to that

thing, listen to the NPR News Now podcast now. The scary new movie Sinners from the director of Black Panther finds Michael B. Jordan playing twin brothers. It's got vampires, it's got great music, and it's a fun one to see with a big crowd. This is the most exciting I've been about a movie in a very long time. We'll tell you why you should see Sinners on the biggest screen you can. Listen to the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from NPR. From NPR and WBEZ, Chicago, this is, wait, wait, don't tell me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm Bill Curtis, and here is your host at the Studebaker Theater in the Fine Arts Building in downtown Chicago, Illinois, Peter Segal. Thank you, Bill. So by this time, at the exotic spa where we're spending the week, we've had the massages,

the yoga, the meditation, and frankly, none of us are feeling any better. That's it. I'm going to find a way to relax even if it kills me. Well, you work on that, Bill. Here are two more treatments for our audience in the form of music therapy, by which we mean interviews with musicians. We went to Richmond, Virginia in February

to celebrate what the city was most famous for, the legendary shock rock band, Goire. We were joined by Mike Bishop and Mike Dirks, who did something they almost never do. They got up on stage without their elaborate costumes and makeup. So I started by asking them to describe their band. It's a theatrical shock rock, shock heavy metal band that is very performative on stage. And we are theatrical show that involves a lot of costuming and set pieces and phony executions.

Oh, that old saw. Quite literally. They use a saw sometimes. We're also from outer space, though. We have a whole narrative. Gorg is a band of extraterrestrial war gods that has been banished to the planet Earth for all the crimes they committed in outer space. Right. So just to, and you two were right there in the beginning, and when you joined the band, did you pick your own characters? I inherited mine. I am Bal Zak, the Jaws of Death.

Bal Zak, the Jaws of Death. I was the third Jaws of Death. There had been a couple incarnations because the first few shows that Gore played, they were... It was just a collective of whoever, whatever artists and musicians they could grab from VCU and the surrounding areas to throw on these costumes and do a show. Yeah. I love how folksy that sounds, you know, like,

my father is Mr. Balzac, call me Balzac. But his grandfather was the Jaws of death and his grandfather before me. And Bishop, who are you on stage? So originally I was Beefcake the Mighty, who was the bass player. Beefcake has some fans here. And now I am the singer, following the passing of the original lead singer, Dave Brockie, who everybody knows and loves. I came back and now I play the Berserker Blothar.

The Berserker Blothar. That's right. And for people who haven't seen it, these costumes you wear are not just, I mean, like the guys from Kiss, for example, are just amateurs when it comes to you guys. You've got like enormous head pieces and huge full body costumes that often have, shall we say, over the top anatomy. Oh yeah.

Oh yeah. This is not your first time at NPR because famously, Guar did a tiny desk concert. That's just true. And by the way, I recommend everybody watch this. When you walked into NPR headquarters in the full Guar Regalia, what was the reaction from our colleagues there? It was enthusiastic.

No, they made us go around the whole studios and I think- Yeah, they were kind of using us to scare their co-workers. Wait a minute, what do you mean? It'd be like, hey Scott Simon, could you step out of the office just for a second? Yeah, yeah. Sylvia. And you, Guar, very popular in Richmond, of course, and you even have a Guar bar. We do.

Yeah. People have been to it for fans, and Dirk, you work there sometimes, right? I do. I bartend and I'm one of the managers there. Right. And do people ever come in, I presume they'll be their goire fans, do they recognize you? We'll get people in there all the time. I'll be bartending and people will come up and ask me like, so do the guys in goAR ever hang out here? And they're always like, not very often. No. Well, Mike Dirks and Mike Bishop, we have invited you here to play a game we're calling...

You guys are GWAR. Meet Jaguar. That's right. We're going to ask you about Jaguars. Answer two out of three questions about Jaguars of various kinds. You'll win our prize for one of our listeners. Chiochi, who are Mike and Mike playing for?

Sharon Lowry of Richmond, Virginia. All right. One down lady. If you win, maybe she'll come by the bar to thank you. All right, here we go. Now, the Jacksonville Jaguars are an NFL team that's had some good seasons, but they have also been very unlucky,

including one year when their punter suffered a unique injury. What was it? A, he bet somebody he could punt a 35 pound kettlebell and broke all his toes. B, he accidentally ch accidentally chopped himself in the leg with the inspirational axe kept in the locker room. Or C, he joined the team's cheerleaders for a kick line

and ruptured his groin on the first kick. C sounds weird. Yeah. The kicker joining a kick line? But I know that they have strict rules against the fraternization between the players. So I'm thinking it's the, he broke his toes. Broke his toes.

So, let me get this right. Dirk, you're picking, he broke his toes trying to punt a kettlebell. Yeah. And Bishop, you're choosing he got in the kick line with a Julie. It was actually the other one. The coach kept an axe and a stump in the locker room to inspire his team to quote, keep chopping. What does that have to do with Jaguars?

And one day the punter did. All right, that's okay guys, you still have two more chances. Here is your next question. The Jacksonville Jaguars mascot is Jackson DeVille. It's a person in a skin tight suit and a big Jaguar head. And he has been so innovative in the mascot arts that he has actually inspired a rule change for all mascots across the NFL.

What is that rule change? A, no mascot may ever mime intimate acts with the other team's mascot. B, all mascots must be drug tested before each half. Or C, no mascot may get closer than six feet to the field of play, especially not if they are carrying a life-size dummy of the opponent's quarterback that they intend to stomp on midfield. Well, it sounds like a very gore answer, so having the pink rubber dummy of the opposing quarterback.

Yeah, it could be inspired by gore, maybe it was, that's the real answer of course. The rule arose from an incident in a game against the Steelers in 1998. Okay, let's start talking about real jaguars. According to the scientists who work at a wildlife reserve in Guatemala, the best way to attract one of the big cats, they can do it without fail, is to do what? A, turn on music by Kenny G, which the jaguars find irresistible. B, wear lots of obsession by Calvin Klein, which draws them like flies. Or C, dress like Jackson DeVille, the Jacksonville Jaguars mascot.

I bet it's Kenny G, man. The audience is saying... B. B, the audience is shouting B. Obsession. Calvon Kline, obsession by Calvin Kline. I think cats don't have a super sensitive smell like dogs. Yeah, well they got that thing where they go...

Like that. Alright, alright. We're trusting these people are obviously more intelligent than us. So you're going to go for B? B, yeah. Yes, that's right. Congratulations, everyone. So, Chiochi, how did Dirks and Bishop do in our quiz? The scum dogs of the universe do not know defeat.

Well done. Conductor Robert Fron says a good melody captures our attention. And it moves you through time. Music is architecture in time. If you engage in the moment with what you're listening to, you do lose a sense of the time around you. How we experience time. That's on the TED Radio Hour from NPR. Politics is a lot these days. I'm Sarah McCammon, a co-host of the NPR. Politics is a lot these days. I'm Sarah McCammon, a co-host of the NPR Politics Podcast, and I'll be the first to tell you what happens in Washington

definitely demands some decoding. That's why our show makes politics as easy as possible to wrap your head around. Join us as we make politics make sense on the NPR Politics Podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts. When the Star Wars prequels came out, they were polarizing. Many fans of the original trilogy hated the phantom menace attack of the clones and revenge of the Sith, though many younger fans loved them then and love them still.

So we're rewatching them with fresh eyes 20 years later, from Jar Jar Binks to the climactic gnome that broke the internet in half, listen on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast. Finally, in October of last year, we hosted the singer-songwriter Cara Jackson, a former Illinois and then national youth poet laureate. But we, of course, focused in on her most important formative experience, being coached at T-Ball by none other than Peter Saylor. Thanks for having me.

Now, I have left off what I think of as one of the most important items on your resume, which is that you were one of the starting players on the Angels, an eight-year-old girl's tee ball team in Oak Park, which I coached. Little nervous about the answer. What do you remember about Coach Coach Segal on the on the Angels and being on the Angels? You know, I was pretty good at tee ball.. I've got to say, I was just really tall. I feel like some people struggled. There were some people where it was like they were shorter,

so they had to lower the T. But the taller kids, they would make it bigger and everyone would be like, back up. There really is no better feeling, I imagine, than coming to bat with the tea and all the other players. Yeah, I feel like I'm still chasing that high, honestly. Right?

So, you moved from tea ball to poetry and were named the Chicago Youth Poet Laureate while you were still in high school. Do you remember any of those early poems? Well, unfortunately for me, I, a part of the youth poet laureate program in the city, every poet laureate is responsible for writing a chapbook, so like a mini book of poems. So I have, you know, a living archive. Right. Of all the poems I wrote at that time.

Right. Do you ever go back and look at them and how do you feel about them? I think it's been a minute since I've looked back at them, but I think I have mixed emotions. Sometimes it's cringey just because I think that having a living record of things you thought as a teenager would just be cringey probably for everyone here. It gets people cancelled. It's also a chance for me to... I'm trying to do better the older I get to also, you know, treat my younger self with

care and, you know, appreciate what I was doing at that age because I think you take for granted a lot. Yeah. My advice would be go to that young girl you once were and give her a snack and a juice box because it always worked. After the game snacks. Oh, the best part of T-ball. So good.

I can see we're never going to get off that topic. You then became, and I remember hearing about this and being very impressed, the national youth poet laureate. Yeah. Right. And what kind of, I mean, that sounds like a serious post. What kind of obligations, duties, ceremony, or otherwise come with it? Yeah, so when I became the youth poet laureate, I was the third one. So I think the program was still kind of establishing itself in terms of what it entails as a role.

I think it was still kind of becoming a real tangible thing. So you were the third one and there have been plenty since then. So do you look at the new ones like, man, y'all got it good. You know, like how college athletes are getting paid a lot more money now? I don't know. I really think I only look at the new ones with admiration because they're younger than me. So, either way, I think I would never trade places with someone who's like 19 at this age, no matter what I'm going through.

Yeah. Yeah. You're 25 right now. Yeah. OK. Yeah. Almost 25 in a couple weeks. You're not 25 yet? She's 24. You're at that age?

She's like, yeah, back in the day when I was just 19. Yeah. Yeah. 24 and a half, baby. Let's talk about your music. So you have a song about the various losers you've dated. It's called ****head blues. It's pretty scathing. And I'm wondering what has that done for your social life?

I don't know. Because I think that I am really associated with like-minded people, so I think it maybe only enhanced it. I feel like for people who needed that song, they really leaned into it. It's been fun to travel and perform that one in front of many different audiences. I had to perform at the US ambassador in London, and I did that song for the US ambassador. And she was really cool with it.

I feel like she may be related, possibly. And the response was positive? Yeah, yeah, well, they are. The ambassador was like, right on, right on. He said, yeah, girl. Give him a glove. Well, Kara Jackson, it is great to talk to you, and we've invited you here to play a game we're calling... It's a yes fun party.

So you wrote a song called No Fun Party. Yes. So based on that, we thought we'd ask you about some really fun parties, answer two to three questions correctly. You'll win our prize for one of our listeners, the voice of anyone they might choose for their voicemail. Bill, who is Kara Jackson playing for? Maureen Tarr of Hennetic, Massachusetts.

There you are. All right, ready to play? Okay, yeah. First question. The former executive of a company called Tyco was sent to prison back in the day for stealing money from his company to fund his lavish lifestyle, including a 2002 birthday party for his wife, which included which of these?

A, each guest getting a new Mercedes Benz in a giant bag as they departed. B, an ice sculpture of Michelangelo's David that dispensed vodka from his little David. LAUGHTER Or C, a musical background of instrumental versions of U2 songs played during the cocktail hour by U2. I feel like maybe it's B? It is B.

So if you think about it, it's sort of like a spigot, right, the ice sculptor. Anyway. Here is your next question. A British woman named Ivy Smalls celebrated her 105th birthday back in 2016. She only had one request for the party. What was it? A. Life-size blown up photos of all her enemies that she had outlived.

That's what I would want. That's outlived. That's what I would want. That's my kind. That's what I would want. That's next to me. B, hunky firefighters with tattoos. Or C, pot brownies. The first one speaks to me the most, so I'm going to go with A. Life-size photos of all the people she had outlived.

No, it was actually hunky firefighters with tattoos. Really? Yeah, that's what you wanted. All right, here's your last question. Get this right, you win. Colleges are known, of course, for huge parties. And in 2017, one house party at a college in Maryland became such a rager that what happened? A, NBA scouts showed up just to recruit

from the beer pong games. B, when the cops came to bust up their party, their breathalyzers all went off just from the air inside the house. Or C, the party became so big, it could be seen from space. Yeah, I'm gonna go with B. Sorry in advance to this person.

You're right again. The air was so thick with alcohol that the breathalyzers on their belts started beeping. Bill, how did Kara Jackson do in our quiz? Two out of three, Kara. You are the poet laureate who won the game. Congratulations. Kara Jackson is an award-winning poet and the celebrated singer songwriter behind Why Does the Earth Give Us People to Love and speaking from personal experience, she's a contact hitter who can hit with power to all fields. Kara Jackson, thank you so much for joining us.

That's it for our Wellness Retreat edition. Kara Jackson, thank you so much for joining us on Wait Wait Don't Tell Me. That's it for our Wellness Retreat edition. 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 Godica writes our limericks, our public address announcer is Paul Friedman, our tour manager is Shayna Donald. B.J. Liedemann composed our theme, our program is produced by Jennifer Mills, Miles Dornbos, and Lillian King. Special thanks to Monica Hickey. Our jolly good fellow is Hannah Anderson. The Hut Stones and Armassage, those are Peter Gwynn.

Our VibeQ editor is Emma Choi. Technical Directors from Lorna White. Our CFO is Colin Miller. Our Production Manager is Robert Newhouse. Our Senior Producer is Ian Chilag. And the Executive Producer of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me is Mr. Michael Danforth. Thanks to everybody you heard on the show this week, all of our panelists, our special guests, of course, Bill Curtis, and thanks to all of you for listening.

I'm Peter Segal, and we'll be back next week, Revivified, with a new sense of wellbeing. This is NPR.