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Full episode
337: Man vs. History
Act One

Man Of Lamagna

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Dal LaMagna made a fortune selling high-quality grooming products. And after retiring, he wanted to do some good in the world. His plan: Curb the violence in Iraq. He thought he could get the Sunni resistance to sit down with Coalition forces to negotiate a cease-fire. So he hooked up with a member of the Iraqi parliament named Mohammed Al-Dynee and headed to Baghdad and Amman, where, remarkably, doors opened to him.

This American Life gave Dal an audio recorder to carry into his meetings, and he recorded 25 hours of his remarkable journey through the Middle East as a would-be citizen-diplomat. Producer Sarah Koenig sifted through the 25 hours, talked to Dal about what happened, and put together this story. (22 minutes)

Dal also ran for President.

By

Sarah Koenig

Song:

“Overture from The Man of La Mancha” by Original Broadway Cast Recording (1965)

More in Iraq

View all
607: Didn’t We Solve This One?
Jan. 6, 2017

Act Two: He’s Making a List

Nancy returns with a story that explains the origins of the special visa program for interpreters.
607: Didn’t We Solve This One?
Jan. 6, 2017

Act One: Good Things Come to Those Who Wait. But Not Always.

An Iraqi translator named Sarah has been trying to get to the U.S. for eight years.
593: Don’t Have to Live Like a Refugee
Aug. 5, 2016

Act Two: Thank You for Smoking

People don’t have a lot of money in the refugee camps, and our producer Miki Meek went to see what that’s like at a camp that’s been built on the grounds of an abandoned psychiatric hospital.

More by Sarah Koenig

View all
745: Getting Out
Aug. 27, 2021

Act Four: Blue Kid on the Block

Leo’s family moved away from Rochester, NY, leaving behind all of Leo's friends and stranding him in a new — and in his opinion, much worse — middle school. (10 minutes)
537: The Alibi
Oct. 3, 2014

Act One

Sarah Koenig tells the story of the murder of Hae Min Lee, a popular high-school senior in Baltimore County, Maryland.
535: Origin Story
Sept. 19, 2014

Act One: Mad Man

Sarah Koenig tells the story of her father, Julian Koenig, the legendary advertising copywriter whose work includes the slogan "Timex takes a licking and keeps on ticking" and Volkswagen's "Think Small" ads.
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This American Life is produced in collaboration with WBEZ Chicago and delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange.

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