PETER SAGAL, HOST:
Now on to our final game, Lightning Fill In The Blank. Each of our players will have 60 seconds in which to answer as many fill-in-the-blank questions as they can. Each correct answer is now worth two points. Bill, can you give us the scores?
BILL KURTIS: Rox has three. Joel and Paula have two.
SAGAL: We flipped a coin, and Paula has elected to go second. So that means, Joel, you are up first. The clock will start when I begin your first question. Fill in the blank. On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister blank was indicted on charges of bribery and fraud.
JOEL KIM BOOSTER: Netanyahu.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Monday, a doctor at Walter Reed Medical Center said that blank's surprise hospital visit was part of a planned interim checkup.
BOOSTER: Trump.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, Prince Andrew halted his royal family duties over his relationship with blank.
BOOSTER: Epstein.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, thousands of protesting union members took to the streets of blank as part of a nationwide strike.
BOOSTER: Seattle?
SAGAL: No, Colombia this time, A church in Mexico is attracting new visitors after it unveiled a giant statue of baby Jesus that blanks.
BOOSTER: That winks.
SAGAL: No. The giant baby Jesus looks just like British rock star Phil Collins.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: On Monday, fast-food restaurant blank announced it would no longer donate to anti-LGBTQ organizations.
BOOSTER: Chick-fil-A.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: Newly declared presidential candidate Deval Patrick...
(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)
SAGAL: ...Had to cancel the campaign event Wednesday when blank.
BOOSTER: He farted.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: No. He had to cancel the event when only two people showed up.
BOOSTER: Oh.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: Oh, I know. The event was scheduled to take place at the same time as Wednesday night's debates, where - we should point out - there were 10 people on stage, which is 400% more people than showed up...
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: ...To Governor Patrick's rally. Bill, how did Joel do on our quiz?
KURTIS: He did OK. He got four right - eight more points.
SAGAL: There you go.
(APPLAUSE)
BOOSTER: I'm sorry. I don't...
KURTIS: Ten points - and he's in the lead.
SAGAL: Paula, you're up next. Please fill in the blank.
PAULA POUNDSTONE: Yeah. OK.
SAGAL: Here we go.
POUNDSTONE: I'm ready.
SAGAL: On Tuesday, Swedish prosecutors announced they were dropping their investigation into WikiLeaks founder blank.
POUNDSTONE: Assange.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, Congress approved a bill supporting pro-democracy protesters in blank.
POUNDSTONE: Hong Kong.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Monday, California filed suit against Juul, claiming they're responsible for fueling the blank epidemic.
POUNDSTONE: Vaping.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: Saying he considers it a gateway drug, blank said he wouldn't legalize marijuana if he was elected president.
POUNDSTONE: Biden.
SAGAL: Right. This week...
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: ...A Miami professor who teaches a class on money laundering and corruption was arrested for blank.
POUNDSTONE: Money laundering and corruption.
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, an actor revealed that HBO shot an alternate ending to blank series finale.
POUNDSTONE: "Game Of Thrones."
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: With nine nominations, Lizzo topped the contenders for this year's blank awards.
POUNDSTONE: Grammys.
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, a robot police officer that was part of California's...
(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)
SAGAL: ...New crime prevention initiative blanked.
POUNDSTONE: Got arrested.
SAGAL: Completely failed to prevent crime.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: The robot officer was equipped with an emergency button allowing people to immediately contact police. But when a fight broke out in Los Angeles and a bystander pressed the button, robocop did not call the police. He just told the person to get out of the way...
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: ...And then wheeled around in circles yelling, keep the path clean. Keep the path clean. Eventually, human police officers showed up and handled the fight the proper way by shooting everyone involved.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: Bill, how did Paula do on our quiz?
KURTIS: Seven right - 14 more points...
(APPLAUSE)
KURTIS: Total of 16 - now she's got the lead.
SAGAL: Congratulations. And Bill, how many does Roxanne need to win?
KURTIS: Seven to win.
SAGAL: All right, Roxanne. This is for the game. According to reports, Secretary of State blank is considering stepping down and running for the Senate.
ROXANNE ROBERTS: Pompeo.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Monday, the White House announced it now supports Israel's right to build settlements in the blank.
ROBERTS: On the West Bank.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, the House passed a short-term bill aiming to prevent a blank.
ROBERTS: A shutdown - government shutdown.
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Wednesday, Catherine Pugh, the former mayor of blank, was charged with fraud stemming from illegal book sales.
ROBERTS: Children's books - it was Baltimore.
SAGAL: Yes.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: This week, a French court threw out a lawsuit accusing blank of making too much noise.
ROBERTS: Ducks.
SAGAL: Yes, a pond full of ducks.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Sunday, Ford unveiled their new all-electric blank.
ROBERTS: It's like a muscle car, like, a Mustang or something like that.
SAGAL: Yes, it's a Mustang Mach-E.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: On Wednesday, struggling office-sharing startup blank laid off over 2,000 employees.
ROBERTS: WeWork.
SAGAL: Right.
(SOUNDBITE OF BELL)
SAGAL: After he was busted for having cocaine in his possession...
(SOUNDBITE OF GONG)
SAGAL: ...During a routine traffic stop, a Florida man told police blank.
ROBERTS: Oh, Florida - oh, claimed it was powdered sugar?
SAGAL: No, he claimed that the wind must have blown it into his car.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: According to the arresting officer, the man claimed he was innocent and that a gust of wind must have blown the bag of cocaine into his open window, an excuse that probably would've worked better if the bag had not been found in his glove compartment.
(LAUGHTER)
SAGAL: Bill, did Roxanne do well enough to win?
KURTIS: Well, she got seven right - 14 more points with a total of 17 for her and the win.
POUNDSTONE: There you go.
SAGAL: There you go.
(APPLAUSE)
SAGAL: The sun rises in the morning, and Roxanne wins. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
