Big Slick magic: KC Chiefs, Eric Stonestreet and magician wow Children’s Mercy kids

What happens the day before Big Slick Celebrity Weekend officially begins has been a private affair.

For several years now, magician Blake Vogt has quietly visited Children’s Mercy Hospital — no media invited — to entertain pediatric patients with the same sleight of hand that made Simon Cowell’s jaw drop when Vogt competed on “America’s Got Talent” several years ago.

But this year the media were invited to the exclusive show on Thursday, where Big Slick co-host Eric Stonestreet and several of the massive men from the Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive line, including center Creed Humphrey, signed autographs and T-shirts for a small group of patients and their families.

One little boy was so excited after the show that he ran up to each player — tall as trees from his perspective — and jumped up to reach their hands to high-five them.

“Love to bring the big guys in to do magic,” Stonestreet said. “It’s a great visual of the juxtaposition of these literal giants with these young, adorable kids with Blake doing what he does. He always comes in a day early to do the show for us.”

Humphrey said Stonestreet “hit us up and asked us to come out. I love magic so I was definitely down to come.”

The magic show was created to give as many kids as possible access to the Big Slick festivities, which officially begin Friday and end with a show at the T-Mobile Center Saturday night. (Humphrey predicted that he will probably “strike out” at the celebrity softball game Friday night.)

“We’re here for a limited amount of time on Friday morning and Saturday morning and this was just a way that we thought we could include more patients and more kids in the weekend, and who doesn’t love magic?” Stonestreet said. “And Blake, again, he is an incredible performer and entertainer and even better person.”

Stonestreet’s fiancee, pediatric nurse Lindsay Schweitzer, was with him. The two got engaged in the fall of 2021. She doesn’t typically speak to the media, but the public has come to see through Stonestreet’s Instagram videos that she is the perfect foil for his antics.

They met at the hospital during Big Slick.

“Yeah, it’s pretty crazy that Big Slick did provide the opportunity for me to meet Lindsay. We don’t take that for granted,” Stonestreet said.

“We know that it’s a special story. Not everybody has such a unique story of meeting, meeting over a patient, with a patient, in a patient’s room that she herself was taking care of was pretty great.”

The amount of money Big Slick raises for Children’s Mercy grows every year — $3.5 million last year. And this year’s guest list is the largest yet.

Stonestreet talked of a day when he and his fellow hometown co-hosts — Rob Riggle, David Koechner, Jason Sudeikis, Paul Rudd and new this year, Heidi Gardner — can pass the Big Slick torch.

“Hopefully there will be more people that go to Hollywood and find their success that want to take over Big Slick,” Stonestreet said. “And that’s at least what we’ve all talked about as we keep cultivating great talent here in Kansas City, bringing in new hosts and hopefully be able to step away and let somebody else take it at some point.

“Not anytime soon. I’m not saying that. But that’s the idea to let this thing live and breathe forever and hopefully other people will go to Hollywood or do what they do and find success that Paul, Jason, Rob, myself and Dave have found … and Heidi … and be able to come home and take control of it as well.

“I think it would be great for the city that it never goes away.”

Big Slick events

▪ The Big Slick Celebrity Classic softball game will be played at 5 p.m. Friday, June 2, at Kauffman Stadium before the Royals play the Colorado Rockies. Anyone with a game ticket can watch.

▪ The Big Slick Party & Show is the weekend’s main event at 8 p.m. Saturday, June 3. Tickets are $75-$125 for standard lower level and $375 for upgraded seats with Founders Club access including open bar. Tickets are at bigslickkc.org and T-MobileCenter.com.

The celebrity guest list

Big Slick organizers said Thursday that because of health issues, Al Roker of NBC’s “Today” show could no longer come to the event.

▪ Becky Ann Baker, actress, “Freaks and Geeks” and “Girls” (married to Dylan Baker)

▪ Dylan Baker, actor, Amazon’s “Hunters” and “Happiness” (married to Becky Ann Baker)

▪ Aisling Bea, actress, “Living With Yourself”

▪ Philip Bowen, musician, TikTok fiddler

▪ Sarah Chalke, actress, “Firefly Lane,” “Scrubs”

▪ Richard Christy, radio personality, musician/drummer

▪ David Cook, Blue Springs native, musician and “American Idol” winner

▪ Dustin Colquitt, former Kansas City Chiefs punter

▪ Baron Corbin, wrestler, WWE

▪ David Dastmalchian of Overland Park, actor, “Ant-Man,” “The Last Voyage of the Demeter”

▪ Chris Daughtry, musician

▪ Sean Evans, YouTuber, “Hot Ones” host

▪ Jonathan Fernandez, actor/comedian, “Gossip Girl,” “Lethal Weapon”

▪ Will Forte, actor, “MacGruber,” “The Last Man on Earth,” “The Great North”

▪ Ginger Gonzaga, CBS’ “True Lies,” “She-Hulk” and “Attorney at Law’”

▪ Tim Heidecker, comedian, Showtime’s “Moonbase 8”

▪ Seth Herzog, comedian

▪ Anthony Hill, actor, “Grey’s Anatomy”

▪ Creed Humphrey, Kansas City Chiefs center

▪ Bradley James, actor, BBC’s “Merlin” and Netflix’s “Vikings: Valhalla”

▪ Punkie Johnson, actress/comedian, “Saturday Night Live”

▪ Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs tight end

▪ Samm Levine, “Raven’s Home” and “Freaks and Geeks”

▪ Patrick Mahomes, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback

▪ Katherine McNamara of Lee’s Summit, actress, CW’s “Walker: Independence,” “Shadowhunters”

▪ Logan Mize, country singer from Clearwater, Kansas

▪ Rashida Olayiwola, actress, “Ironheart,” “Jury Duty”

▪ Kevin Pollak, actor, “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”

▪ The Potash Twins, musicians and TV personalities

▪ Kevin Rahm, actor, “Madam Secretary,” “Lethal Weapon,” “Mad Men”

▪ Peter Schrager, Fox Sports

▪ Darius Rucker, musician

▪ Jake Tapper, CNN anchor

▪ Charissa Thompson, Fox Sports

▪ Sarah Tiana, comedian, “Lights Out With David Spade”

▪ Joe Lo Truglio, actor, “Reno 911!,” “Brooklyn Nine-Nine” (Directorial debut, “Outpost,” features the Bakers.)

▪ Blake Vogt, magician

▪ Taylor Williamson, comedian, “America’s Got Talent”

▪ Finn Wolfhard, actor, “Stranger Things,” “It,” “Ghostbusters: Afterlife”

▪ Al Yankovic, musician