Art Bell opens this Thanksgiving eve broadcast with a sweep through the day's headlines and listener calls. He reports that the U.N. AIDS agency has dramatically revised its global infection estimate upward to 30 million people, one-third higher than previous figures, with 16,000 new infections occurring daily. A new California study on declining sperm density also draws his attention, showing an average annual decrease of 1.5 percent per year across Western countries.
Listeners call in to react to the previous night's program with Major Ed Dames, offering their own theories about the discontinuity. Art shares news items including Defense Secretary William Cohen's statement that more than 25 nations have or may be developing nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons. He also discusses a Duluth research team's confirmation that UV radiation is causing widespread frog deformities, and reports on a deer in Ohio found with an extra leg growing from its back, noting the mutations are moving up the food chain.
The broadcast features lighter moments as well, with Art describing his newly adopted stray dog and the outpouring of name suggestions from listeners. He recounts the saga of the dog stealing tools from construction workers and caching them in her doghouse. Callers weigh in on topics from two-foot mutant rats in Chile to the lovable qualities of pet rats, and Art previews his unconventional 4 AM Thanksgiving dinner of roast beef instead of turkey.
