In 1997, Peter got a call from a friend telling him about a new show at NPR, which was looking for “funny people who read a lot of newspapers.” He auditioned, appeared as a panelist on the first broadcast of Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me! in January of 1998, and moved with his family to Chicago to become the host in May, alongside the original judge and scorekeeper, Carl Kasell. In the two decades since, he has traveled the country with the show, playing in venues such as the Pritzker Pavilion at Millennium Park, Red Rocks, Tanglewood, the San Francisco War Memorial Opera House, and Carnegie Hall. He’s interviewed two Presidents, a number of Nobel Prize winners, astronauts and rocket scientists, musicians–such as Elvis Costello, Yo Yo Ma, and Ice Cube– actors Tom Hanks and Scarlett Johansson, and many, many others. Wait, Wait has grown from 50,000 weekly listeners on nine stations at its launch to over five million listeners on more than 700 stations, making it the most-listened-to hour in public radio. This, however, has not gone to his head.
Join us for this special one night only event, where Peter shares stories about hosting Wait, Wait… Don’t Tell Me!, recounts his days as a playwright, recalls his random cameo as an emotion in Inside Out, and offers life lessons to aspiring comedians and middle-aged radio hosts. You won’t want to miss this one time event!
We are excited to also announce that Sagal’s longtime friend Chris Jones of the Chicago Tribune will be moderating the show.
