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.
Riley O'Neil
Illinois Pets: Here Are The Animals You Can’t Have In Illinois
Is a dog, cat, hamster or fish a little too ordinary and pedestrian of a pet for you? Before you decide to add an exotic animal companion to your household, take a look at the list of animals the state of Illinois says you're not allowed to own.
One Illinois City Lands On Best Places To Live For Families List
This Illinois city has a population of about 25,000 people and is ranked as the 20th best place to live for families in the entire country. In 2022 it was ranked 9th. Any guesses?
Big Discount Retailer Closes 3 Of Their 29 Illinois Stores
A little over a month back, this major discount retailer with 1,389 locations in 48 states said that they'd be closing up to 40 stores this year, including stores here in Illinois. The closings have begun, but it looks like a lot more than 40 stores will be closing their doors forever.
This Illinois Caterpillar Will Ruin Your Day If You Touch It
Sure, it's cute and fuzzy, but...this particular caterpillar has some defense mechanisms that can be really annoying and painful for any human being who decides to pick it up. Oh, and that's not the only Illinois caterpillar you should be avoiding this summer.
Guy In Illinois: Here’s Every Illinois Triple-D Spot He’s Visited
I've read time and time again about people in other states who've made it a game or bucket list thing to hit every single restaurant from their state that has been featured on TV's Diners, Drive Ins, & Dives. If you're up for a similar challenge, take a look at where you'd go if you wanted to do the same thing here in Illinois.
It’s Wasp Season In Illinois: Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Kill Them
For those who work under the theory that bees are good, but hornets, yellow jackets, and especially wasps, are bad (and I'm one of those people), you might want to reconsider and adopt a live and let live attitude with them.
Illinois’ REAL ID Deadline Is One Year Away: Here Are The Details
The pandemic caused all sorts of things to be delayed, and the switch over to REAL ID is certainly one of those things. The deadline kept getting pushed back, and now you have until May of 2025 to decide whether or not REAL ID is something you need and/or want.
Here’s How Much Illinois Cities Each Get From The Marijuana Tax
Illinois' Cannabis Use Tax ensures that when someone buys marijuana legally in the state, local communities get a piece of the action in the form of dollars flowing into a city's coffers. Here's how much individual cities and towns in Illinois received from Illinois' weed tax in fiscal year 2024, which just ended on June 30th.
Illinois’ Neighbor Has 41 Of The 50 Drunkest Counties In The U.S.
As long as we're this close to a holiday involving green beer and drinking to excess as its theme, I thought it would be fun to look at one of Illinois' next-door neighbors. This neighbor has quite the reputation for elbow-bending, and as it turns out, that reputation is well-earned.
Big Retail Chain With 29 Illinois Spots Closing 40 Stores In 2024
The way things have been going lately, it might be easier to write about restaurant and retail store chains that aren't thinking about bankruptcy or shutting down multiple stores. We've had a lot of announcements this year, and they don't seem to be slowing down.