Riley O'Neil

Riley O'Neil has logged more hours behind a microphone than any other Rockford radio personality, starting out with his hiring at WROK in February of 1983. He’s also the longest-tenured morning show host in WROK's 100-year history, with 22 years as the host of the WROK Morning Show. He’s a multi award-winning commercial producer, voice-over artist, and much sought after product and service endorser for multiple local businesses. In addition to hosting the WROK Morning Show with Joe Dredge, Riley also writes for 1440WROK.com, covering everything from Illinois' best local restaurants, to some of the wildest and funniest things Illinois residents have gotten themselves into, and everything in-between.

Leaving Illinois? You’ll Probably Move To 1 Of These 3 Places

We may not be leading the nation right now in "outbound migration," but Illinois is still losing population to other states. These 3 take most of Illinois' departing residents.

Illinois Included In Huge Recall Of 84 Tons Of Frozen Chicken

It seems like just yesterday that we were talking about massive recalls of vegetables and deli meats due to fears of listeria contamination. Oh, wait...that was just yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that. If it seems like there have been a lot of food recalls lately, it's because there have been. Now, nearly 100 tons of frozen chicken is being recalled. But, not for listeria. Something just as bad.

Most-Googled Parenting Questions: What Illinois Wants To Know

Sure, you could ask people who are actual parents some questions when you need parenting advise, or you could totally trust an impersonal algorithm to pass along child-raising tips. According to a new study, these are the questions parents in Illinois and neighboring states are turning to Google for.

Here’s When You’ll See 6 Planets At Once Over Illinois Next Week

We've recently been treated to the Perseid meteor showers, the first Supermoon of the year (with another in coming in September), and now we get a rare occurrence of 6 planets being visible at the same time next week. Here's what you need to know to see it.

Watch: Passenger Flips Out At O’Hare, Throws Monitor At Staff

If you've ever wondered if airport travelers in today's world are nastier, angrier, and more unhinged that they used to be, take a look at the video of this outburst at O'Hare airport. That should answer your question very well.

It’s About Time: Illinois Now Has An Official State…Mushroom

Forget about high property taxes, high gasoline taxes, higher unemployment than any of our neighbors, a shrinking population, and crime. We've got a cool new official state mushroom!

Illinois Skies Will Feature A Meteor Shower This Weekend

Experts say that the Perseid meteor shower is this year's "most prolific" meteor shower, meaning that at its peak, you could see up to and beyond 75 shooting stars per hour this coming weekend. Here's the information you'll need to look up at the best time.

Illinois’ Favorite Drinker: Here’s How Much Harry Really Drank

Longtime baseball broadcaster Harry Caray has been gone for 26 years, but his legendary drinking exploits are still talked about and referred to. Sometimes, legends turn out not to be true, but the legendary boozing that Harry did seems to be pretty accurate. Here's how much he drank, by his own count.

Illinois Mosquitoes: Instead Of Sprays, Grab This Stuff Instead

Sure, you can light the citronella candles, use a yard-fogger, and cover yourself in some DEET this summer to ward off Illinois' aggressive mosquitoes, or you can use something that's a lot more plentiful and a lot less expensive to get the job done. You probably already have this stuff at home.

Illinois Weird: Why People Are Putting Toilet Paper In The Fridge

Apparently we have social media to thank for this strange bit of behavior. In response to a problem that some were having with their refrigerators, it's been suggested that toilet paper is a problem solver.