Musician David Berkeley has gotten a lot of requests in his life, but none quite like the offer his agent got last year. A fan wanted Berkeley to come to his house and help save his relationship by serenading the troubled couple with a personal concert.

Ira talks to Rachel Rosenthal, who spent years trying to figure out who had stolen her identity. She was closing bank account after bank account, getting more and more paranoid, until she realized she knew exactly who the thief was.

Ira relays advice from a staffer’s family on what to do if you’re thinking about something you don’t want to think about.

A year ago, we did a story about a study that found that a simple 20-minute conversation could change someone’s mind about controversial issues like gay marriage and abortion. But a few weeks after we aired the story, the study was discredited.


Ira visits an 83-year-old man named Dick Paterniti who’s been waging a long and lonely war against a woodpecker.

Ira hears from a woman named Shannon about a phone call she got in 2008 that cast doubt on whether an 18 year old named Marie was telling the truth about being sexually assaulted. This idea leads to one of two investigations—one small and bad, and the other stunningly big and good.

As a California game warden Terry Grosz went to great lengths — and some depths — to stop illegal fishing. Terry also tells this story in his book Wildlife Wars.

We tell the story of that patient, Alan Pean, and how his delusions lead him to a situation that's just as strange as the worst thoughts his mind is cooking up. This story is a collaboration with the New York Times.

Host Ira Glass talks with Adam Mansbach about what happened when he went looking for an apartment and was mistaken for someone else. Adam is the author of the book Go The F*** To Sleep.

Ira asks Jefrey Emtman do to the impossible—describe the indescribable color he sees in his left eye. Jefrey Emtman is the host of the podcast Here Be Monsters.