The only talk radio I used to listen to was WGN to figure out if the Dan Ryan or Kennedy expressway I was on would ever let up and allow me to get to my destination. I mean sure I liked the occasional news story or sports update, but why would I put it on by choice for my entertainment?!
That has all changed. A couple years ago, (which wasn't soon enough) I was introduced to the radio show "This American Life" on NPR. This got me started on the talk radio obsession. This American life was just the beginning, I began searching for enjoyable shows all throughout the radio world.
But still, even now, after I am much experienced in the talk radio genre, This American life still remains in my opinion, unrivaled.
If you have NO IDEA what This american life is....
Let them explain it to you. This is from their website:
"One of our problems from the start has been that when we try to describe This American Life in a sentence or two, it just sounds awful. For instance: each week we choose a theme and put together different kinds of stories on that theme. That doesn't sound like something we'd want to listen to on the radio, and it's our show.
So usually we just say what we're not. We're not a news show or a talk show or a call-in show. We're not really formatted like other radio shows at all. Instead, we do these stories that are like movies for radio. There are people in dramatic situations. Things happen to them. There are funny moments and emotional moments and—hopefully—moments where the people in the story say interesting, surprising things about it all. It has to be surprising. It has to be fun."
And oh yes is it fun. My husband Alex and I usually scramble to Itunes every monday to update our podcast list to make sure we get the new episode quickly. We often savor the episode, saving a special time to listen to it. It's like a favorite TV show, but in my opinion, much, much better.
So now, without further ado:
MY FAVORITE EPISODES: the ones i laughed so hard i peed, teared up so much it caused stains, or smiled so long it hurt:
#203: Recordings for Someone: : The little mermaid bit is one of the best TAL moments. Period.
#407: The Bridge: Amazing story through and through.
#403: NUMMI: More tragedy than comedy, but about a car factory in CA that captures what has gone wrong with American cars. Why are they STILL not as good as foreign cars?! AWESOME AWESOME STORY!
#394: Bait and Switch: Bait cars? tricks? traps? love it!
#213: Devil on MY shoulder: The idea of a "hell house" is so repulsive to me, i can't stop listening.
#233: Classifieds: LOVE IT! love the rocket man song so much, you can't even believe it!
#317 Unconditional Love: I cry so much. So beautiful
#352: The Ghost of Bobby Dunbar: Perhaps my favorite history story on TAL
#339: Break-up. What's not to love about this episode? Phil Collins? oh yes.
No comments:
Post a Comment