This American Life

An exploration of the very upper limits of what you do for someone you love. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Friends and ex-friends finally talk about the one thing between them they've been avoiding. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

One call to a very unusual hotline, and everything that followed. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Nine radio reporters. Two days. One rest stop on the New York State Thruway. Stories of people who are just passing through, and the ones who can’t leave, because this is where their jobs are. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

The mysterious hold supers have on their buildings, or that their buildings have on them. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Legendary radio broadcaster Paul Harvey had a popular show called “The Rest of the Story.” Today on our show, we do just that. We hear from people who, whether they want to or not, find themselves face-to-face with the rest of their stories. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

It’s the last few weeks of summer, so we’re going to the beach! This week, stories from the surf and sand. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Nadia's family is split between Russia and Ukraine, which is pretty common. And when Russia invaded Ukraine, it didn’t just start fighting on the battlefield. It sparked family conflict, too. An intimate story of the war from writer Masha Gessen. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

People on the verge of a big change, not wanting to let go. And the people who give them the final push. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

The true story of an abandoned house, discovered by a young boy in the 1970s, and the mysterious family who disappeared without a trace. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Governor Ron DeSantis is running for president on the argument that he'll do for America what he's done for Florida. So what's it like in Florida? Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Many Americans have dreamy and romantic ideas about Paris, notions which probably trace back to the 1920s vision of Paris created by the expatriate Americans there. But what's it actually like in Paris if you're an American, without rose-colored glasses? Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

At a Yale fertility clinic, dozens of women began their I.V.F. cycles full of expectation and hope. Then a surgical procedure caused them excruciating pain. In the hours that followed, some of the women called the clinic to report their pain — but most of the staff members who fielded the patients’ reports did not know the real reason for the pain, which was that a nurse at the clinic was stealing fentanyl and replacing it with saline. What happened at that clinic? What are the stories we tell about women's pain and what happens when we minimize or dismiss it? The Retrievals, a new five-part series from Serial Productions, is hosted and reported by longtime This American Life producer and editor Susan Burton. We're excited to bring you the first episode today. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Humans encounter non-human intelligences of various kinds and try to make sense of them. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Ira's own father, Barry Glass, co-hosts this special Father's Day show. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

The one animal we can’t seem to live without, even when we really, really want to. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

In these dark, combative times, we attempt the most radical counterprogramming we could imagine: a show made up entirely of stories about delight. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Five years after the #MeToo explosion, what’s happened in the lives of the women who stepped forward and went public with their stories? We tell the story of a teenager who spoke out against one of the most powerful people in her state, and what happened next. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

We answer the following questions about superpowers: Can superheroes be real people? (No.) Can real people become superheroes? (Maybe.) And which is better: flight or invisibility? (Depends who you ask.) Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org

Looping thoughts about people you barely know, or don't know at all. Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org