This American Life Archive

33: A Night at the Wiener Circle 23.08.1996 ↓

Ira Glass spends a night at one of the most boisterous hot dog stands in the nation: Chicago's Wiener Circle.

32: Republican Convention 16.08.1996 ↓

Unusual stories about day-to-day life at the Republican Convention.

31: When You Talk About Music 09.08.1996 ↓

Stories of people whose lives are transformed by music.

30: Obsession 26.07.1996 ↓

What happens when a little idea starts to control you.

29: Bob Dole 19.07.1996 ↓

Unusual perspectives on the presumptive Republican nominee.

28: Detectives 12.07.1996 ↓

David Sedaris recalls the days when his mother and sister played armchair detective.

27: The Cruelty of Children 21.06.1996 ↓

A story of youthful backstabbing by David Sedaris.

26: Father's Day '96 14.06.1996 ↓

Ira's own father, Barry Glass, co-hosts this special Father's Day show.

25: Basketball 07.06.1996 ↓

The Chicago Bulls and their grip on Chicagoans' hearts and lives during the NBA playoffs.

24: Teenaged Girls 24.05.1996 ↓

Girls who have to figure out how they're going to act when the ground rules are constantly shifting.

23: Drama Bug 10.05.1996 ↓

Stories of the people who fall for a life in the theater.

22: Adult Children 03.05.1996 ↓

Stories of the difficult relationships between parents and their grown children.

21: Factions 26.04.1996 ↓

Friends get together to start a business, start a church, do political action together. And after a while, they start fighting and split up.

20: From A Distance 19.04.1996 ↓

Stories of admiring someone from afar, and trying to get closer to them.

19: Rich Guys 12.04.1996 ↓

Men who had comfortable, decent lives, yet decided to do something wild and eccentric.

18: Liars 28.03.1996 ↓

A girl who adored her father tries to figure out what to think after he takes some of her college money and lies to her about it.

17: Name Change / No Theme 21.03.1996 ↓

Our first show as This American Life.

16: Economy 14.03.1996 ↓

Politics, the economy, and the big picture.

15: Dawn 28.02.1996 ↓

Jack Hitt stumbles onto an epic story of the Old South and changing cultural norms in America.

14: Accidental Documentaries 21.02.1996 ↓

Stories made from old recordings found in attics and thrift stores.

13: Love 07.02.1996 ↓

The dream of true love and the difficulties with achieving and maintaining that dream.

12: Animals 31.01.1996 ↓

The animalness of animals, and the irreducible ways in which they are not human.

11: Enemies 24.01.1996 ↓

A friendship between two young boys that was destroyed through the manipulative acts of one of them.

10: Double Lives 17.01.1996 ↓

People living their lives, just like the rest of us. Plus an extra life.

9: Julia Sweeney 10.01.1996 ↓

Julia Sweeney and her brother found out they each had cancer six months apart.