CHIOKE I'ANSON: From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is WAIT WAIT... DON'T TELL ME, the NPR news quiz. I'm one of the voices of the NPR credits, Chioke I'Anson. And here is your host at the Chase Bank Auditorium in downtown Chicago, Peter Sagal.
PETER SAGAL, HOST:
Thank you, Chioke.
(CHEERING)
SAGAL: Thank you, everybody. Thank you. So in August, we went to Wolf Trap - the spectacular outdoor venue outside of Washington, D.C. And we loved it so much we couldn't just do one show. On the second night, Bill Kurtis and I were joined by panelists Tom Bodett, Maz Jobrani and Roxanne Roberts. And then we convinced opera superstar Renee Fleming to come play Not My Job. Here's some of that show which we've never broadcast before.
Right now it's time for the WAIT WAIT... DON'T TELL ME Bluff the Listener game. Call 1-888-WAIT-WAIT to play our game on the air. Hi, you are on WAIT WAIT... DON'T TELL ME.
CAROLINE THIESSEN: Hi, friends. This is Caroline Thiessen (ph) calling from the beautiful Washington, D.C.
SAGAL: Oh, my goodness.
(CHEERING)
SAGAL: I've heard of that place. What do you do there not very far from us?
THIESSEN: I'm a student at GW.
SAGAL: Oh, yes - GW...
(CHEERING)
SAGAL: I was just around there today. And what are you studying there?
THIESSEN: I am studying international affairs, Spanish and psychology.
(CHEERING)
SAGAL: What do you...
THIESSEN: Oh, my goodness.
SAGAL: What do you do with a degree in international affairs, Spanish and psychology?
THIESSEN: I - listen to me. I'm kind of torn between running for office, and I also really want to be secretary of state.
SAGAL: OK.
(APPLAUSE)
SAGAL: It's nice to have you with us, Caroline. Now you're going to play the game in which you must try to tell truth from fiction. Bill, what is Caroline's topic?
BILL KURTIS: No more for me, thanks.
SAGAL: So it turns out you can have too much of a good thing like ice cream or children or people running for president. Our panelists are going to tell you about someone getting more than they bargained for in terms of a good thing. Pick the one who's telling the truth, and you'll win our prize - the WAIT WAITer of your choice on your voicemail. You ready to play?
THIESSEN: I was born ready.
SAGAL: Oh, I could tell.
(CHEERING)
SAGAL: Here, then, first is Tom Bodett.
TOM BODETT: Erling Juergenson (ph) has a good life. He's Danish, tall, blond, handsome, health care. And his job installing solar window awnings is satisfying, endless and a comfortable living. The only problem is he's the spitting image of Chris Evans, the "Avengers" movie superstar who plays the do-no-wrong Captain America. Well, you wouldn't think being taken for an attractive movie idol would be much of a problem, but for Juergenson, it's ruining his life. Everyone expects me to be super nice, says Erling. And I'm just sort of nice.
(LAUGHTER)
BODETT: People call me Cap and ask, where's Iron Man? How's Natasha? Well, it all came to a head last Wednesday when a group of football hooligans decided to take on the sullen Captain America as he loaded up his van at the end of a day's work near the stadium. They threw beer bottles - Beck's, for God's sakes. It hurt. To protect himself, Juergensen grabbed one of his solar awning stretchers, which looked unfortunately similar to Vibranium shields...
(LAUGHTER)
BODETT: ...And cowered behind it until the rowdies lost interest. And, of course, the whole thing was captured on a now-viral video, which has added a whole new dimension to Juergensen's problem. Now I have to answer for being a superhero, which I am not, who is really a pathetic coward, which I am. I have to try to restore a reputation I never had. When asked for comment, the real Chris Evans replied, welcome to my world, Erling.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: A Danish guy who looks...
(APPLAUSE)
SAGAL: ...Too much like the incredibly handsome Chris Evans. Your next story of somebody who got more than they wanted comes from Roxanne Roberts.
ROXANNE ROBERTS: Fundraisers at the Royal Humane Society of Australia thought they had a hit with Pennies for Puppies, a campaign asking animal lovers to donate all those unused and unloved pennies sitting in jars at home. The nationwide appeal kicked off in June then went viral when Aussie native Nicole Kidman, who just adopted a little red poodle, tweeted her support. But all those pennies in all those donation bins throughout the country have become an unexpected problem. It turns out the cost of sorting the one- and two-cent coins, which are no longer produced but still legal tender, plus rolling and shipping to banks exceeds the value of the pennies themselves.
(LAUGHTER)
ROBERTS: Quote, "we're obviously thrilled with the support," RHSA President Franklin Dorsey (ph) told ABC TV. "But it turns out we were, as it seems, barking up the wrong tree."
(LAUGHTER)
ROBERTS: Hundreds of bags of coins are currently in storage, said Dorsey, while the organization seeks donation for their new fundraiser, dubbed Dollars for Pennies for Puppies...
(LAUGHTER)
ROBERTS: ...To cover the costs of processing the not-so-common cents.
(APPLAUSE)
SAGAL: The Pennies for Puppies fundraiser brings in too many pennies. Your last story of an overflow of goodness comes from Maz Jobrani.
MAZ JOBRANI: We have heard of divorces based on irreconcilable differences, an abusive relationship or growing apart. But this week, we found a case of a wife in the United Arab Emirates who filed for divorce because her husband was too nice. In filing her case, she said, (imitating accent) he never yelled at me or turned me down. I was choked by extreme love and affection. He even helped me clean the house. Choked by extreme love and affection...
(LAUGHTER)
JOBRANI: The woman went on to complain, I long for one day of dispute. But this seems impossible with my romantic husband who always forgave me and showered me with gifts.
(LAUGHTER)
JOBRANI: The poor husband asked the court to advise his wife to withdraw the case. Apparently, he didn't want to ask her himself because we know he doesn't like to argue. The court ordered the adjournment of the case to give the couple a chance at reconciliation.
SAGAL: Aw. All right, then.
(APPLAUSE)
SAGAL: Caroline, you've got three choices. From Tom Bodett, a guy in Denmark who looks too much like the incredibly handsome Chris Evans, who plays Captain America, causing him problems. From Roxanne Roberts, a Pennies for Puppies fundraiser that was too successful, and now they need another fundraiser to pay for processing the pennies. And from Maz Jobrani, a woman files for divorce because her husband is too nice to her all the time. Which of these is a story from the news about too much of a good thing?
THIESSEN: I'm going to have to go with the second story.
SAGAL: You're going to go with the second story. That was Roxanne's story...
(CHEERING)
SAGAL: ...Of the Pennies for Puppies. Too many pennies - they need to have a second fundraiser to raise money to process the pennies.
THIESSEN: Yeah.
SAGAL: All right.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: That's your choice. To bring you the correct answer, we spoke to someone familiar with the true story.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING(
KOSTADIN KUSHLEV: A wife in the UAE had filed for divorce because her husband showed extreme affection.
SAGAL: That was Kostadin Kushlev, who's an assistant professor of psychology at Georgetown down the street...
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: ...Talking about the divorce case in the United Arab Emirates. I know it was hard to believe because of Maz's accent.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: That's what the problem was.
JOBRANI: I'm doing my best.
SAGAL: I understand. So I'm sorry, Caroline. You did not pick the correct answer. That, of course, was Maz's. But you did win a point for Roxanne.
THIESSEN: It's OK. This is the best day of my life no matter what happens.
SAGAL: Well, thank you.
ROBERTS: That's very sweet.
SAGAL: Thank you, Caroline. Thanks for playing. Take care.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "TOO MUCH OF A GOOD THING")
THE TROGGS: (Singing) Too much of a good thing is what she wants. But she can't see too much of a good thing... Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.