Radio Archive by Contributor

David Rakoff

David's the author of several books, and is one of very few to fill in as guest host of our show (248).

  • 472: Our Friend David 08.17.2012

    David Rakoff died a week ago, on August 9th. He’d appeared on This American Life 25 times, first ...

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  • Stiff as a Board, Light as a Feather.

    464: Invisible Made Visible 05.18.2012

    David Rakoff tells this story, about the invisible processes that can happen inside our ...Cancer • Live Performance

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  • Occupancy May Be Revoked Without Notice.

    433: Fine Print 2011 04.15.2011

    David Rakoff tells the story of a contract between a son and his visiting mother. David Rakoff ...Business • Housing • Mothers

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  • Speak Now Or Forever Hold Your Peace.

    389: Frenemies 09.11.2009

    David Rakoff demonstrates—in rhyme—how to make a wedding toast for people you never wanted to ...Funny • Poetry • Weddings

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  • Occupancy May Be Revoked Without Notice.

    386: Fine Print 07.24.2009

    David Rakoff tells the story of a contract between a son and his visiting mother. David Rakoff ...Family • Fiction • Funny

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  • You’re Willing To Sacrifice Our Love.

    354: Mistakes Were Made 04.18.2008

    There's a famous William Carlos Williams poem called "This is Just to Say". It's about, among ...Funny • Poetry

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  • Fred And Barney.

    345: Ties That Bind 12.14.2007

    Jonathan Goldstein's story about trouble in the Town of Bedrock. One day, when he's backing out ...Fiction

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  • The Meaning Of A Bird.

    343: Poultry Slam 2007 11.23.2007

    Writer David Rakoff explains how his life was changed—in a single evening—in a room of 5000 ...Animals • Education

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  • 29.

    328: What I Learned from Television 03.16.2007

    This American Life contributor David Rakoff, who swore off TV in college, returns to it in ...Funny • Live Performance • Television

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  • Twas The Morning After.

    305: The This American Life Holiday Spectacular 12.23.2005

    A Christmas poem from David Rakoff, about holidays in The Big City. Rakoff's the author of, most ...Alcohol • Funny • Holidays

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  • Life In The Fast Lane.

    259: Promised Land 02.20.2004

    For millennia, people have tried to reach a spiritual promised land by fasting. Jesus did it. ...Food/Drinks/Cooking • Religion

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  • Prologue.

    248: Like It or Not 10.24.2003

    David Rakoff tells a story from when he was a kid, about the day he realized the he would ...Film/Film Making • Teenagers

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  • Mister Prediction.

    241: 20 Acts in 60 Minutes 07.11.2003

    Author David Rakoff worked at an advertising agency, and could see exactly where its technology ...

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  • Contest-osterone.

    220: Testosterone 08.30.2002

    The men and women on staff at This American Life decide to get their testosterone levels tested, ...Health Care/Medicine

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  • Sheetcakes In The Conference Room, Whiskey After Dark.

    208: Office Politics 03.15.2002

    David Rakoff discusses the world of birthdays and other holidays, as they're celebrated on the ...Holidays • Jobs/Employment • Live Performance

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  • Watching From The River's Edge.

    194: Before and After 09.21.2001

    David Rakoff tells the story of the day that used to hold the record as the worst disaster in ...Boats • Death • History

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  • Martha, My Dear.

    192: Meet the Pros 08.31.2001

    Contributor David Rakoff visits his dream job: In the crafts department at Martha Stewart Living ...Jobs/Employment

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  • One Man's Treasure Is Another Man's Trash.

    169: Pursuit of Happiness 09.29.2000

    David Rakoff tells a story about an actual pursuit—a scavenger hunt—that takes hundreds of ...City

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  • I Used To Bank Here But That Was Long, Long Ago.

    156: What Remains 03.31.2000

    David Rakoff goes in search of the only existing mementos of a year-and-a-half of his life when ...Cancer • Health Care/Medicine

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  • Interpretation Of Dreams.

    146: Urban Nature 12.10.1999

    Building everything that comprises modern life—constructing cities and suburbs both—means ...City

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  • What's A Grecian Urn?

    140: Family Business 09.24.1999

    David Rakoff takes us inside the world of a Greek family-owned ice cream parlour, and what he ...Business • Drugs • Family

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  • What Do Arnold Schwarzenegger And Sigmund Freud Have In Common?

    124: Welcome to America 03.19.1999

    Because of a shortage of math and science teachers, New York City decided to import instructors ...City • Education • Jobs/Employment

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  • Climb Every Mountain.

    118: What You Lookin' At? 12.18.1998

    Writer David Rakoff travels to a place where everyone seems to be looking at him, a place where ...Funny • Journalism • Live Performance

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  • The Meaning Of A Bird.

    116: Poultry Slam 1998 11.27.1998

    Writer David Rakoff explains how his life was changed—in a single evening—in a room of 5000 ...Animals • Childhood • Politics

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  • White Like Me.

    65: Who's Canadian? 05.30.1997

    David Rakoff on how he tried to pass as a local once he moved from Toronto to New York. He ...City • Immigration

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  • More Animals Eating Other Animals.

    49: Animals 01.10.1997

    An original radio drama called "Kathleen on the Carpet," in which animals talk and hold their ...Animals • Funny • Legal System

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  • Christmas Freud.

    47: Christmas and Commerce 12.20.1996

    David Rakoff on playing Freud in the windows of Barney's department store. (15 minutes)Jobs/Employment • Retail/Commerce

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  • More Animals Eating Other Animals.

    12: Animals 01.31.1996

    An original radio drama called "Kathleen on the Carpet," in which animals talk and hold their ...Animals • Children • Theater

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