This hour, some of the winners of our annual documentary competition. Featuring... John Thompson vs. American Justice, produced by Andrew Marantz, Sarah Lustbader, and Katherine Wells and edited by David Krasnow for The New Yorker Radio Hour.  Winner of the 2018 Best Documentary: Bronze Award  When John Thompson was investigated for the murder of the son of a prominent family in New Orleans, he insisted on his innocence. But prosecutors wanted a conviction and he quickly landed on death...

This hour we’re all about honesty. An honest look at fat, and an honest answer to this burning question, “What are the real lyrics to ‘Louie Louie’????” The Host’s Fat By Jonathan Zenti for Meat As an overweight man, Jonanthan Zenti explains how his shape and his diets often cause him to question his identity… but not to lose it. Louie Louie: the strange journey of the dirtiest song never written By David Weinberg, Nick White and Myke Dodge Weiskopf for KCRW’s Lost Notes An FBI...

This hour, a single commercial that ran for twenty-five years and two women who’ve been running from each other for even longer. Moo and Oink By Cher Vincent for The Nod from Gimlet Media With a long-running TV commercial featuring a dancing cow and pig, Moo and Oink grocery stores were a staple for Chicago’s black South Side communities. But producer Cher Vincent digs a little deeper into the origins of these iconic stores. Man Choubam (I am good) By Sharon Mashihi for KCRW’s Unfictional...

This hour, we go into a hypnotherapists office and come out with a story of international intrigue. No Bad News By Sarah Geis for Love+Radio from Radiotopia Three decades ago, American hypnotist Larry Garrett committed himself to abstaining from the news. So, in 2001, when he received a phone call inviting him to Iraq, he didn’t think twice about saying ‘Yes’. This episode of Re:sound was produced by Dennis Funk.

Today we go back in time to try and heal old wounds and revisit history. Buzz By hosted and produced by Jonathan Goldstein and with Wendy Dorr, Chris Neary, and Kalila Holt for *Heavyweight* from Gimlet Media Buzz (Jonathan Goldstein’s father) and Sheldon (his uncle) are brothers in their eighties who have been estranged for decades. With Jonathan’s encouragement, Buzz visits Sheldon to see if there’s still a relationship left to salvage. Sandi And Princess Di By Arwin Nicks for *How...

This hour, we trot across middle America, with a story from a Nashville neighbourhood, and a Missouri payphone that won’t stop ringing. The Great Divide By Meribah Knight for The Promise from Nashville Public Radio (2018) Big Man, a public housing resident from Nashville’s Cayce Homes, walks across the street to meet the wealthy couple who live in the fancy new home on the hill. In many ways, their lives couldn’t be more different, but in breaking the silence between the two sides of the...

This hour, a deep dive into the anthem of the Confederacy, two different kinds of waves and a modern take on Romeo & Juliet. The Song By producers Chris Neary, Chiquita Paschal, and Saidu Tejan-Thomas and hosted by Jack Hitt and Chenjerai Kumanyika for Uncivil from Gimlet Media (2017) On this episode, the *Uncivil* team dig deep into ‘Dixie’, the anthem of the Confederacy only to find out that everything we thought we knew about the history of the song… was wrong. Migraines &...

This hour, the most famous chord in pop music, swimming pools, skateboarders and more! The Pool and the Stream by Avery Trufelman for 99% Invisible (2017) A story in three acts, that connects one idea, born in Northern Europe, to a four-wheeled phenomenon in 1970s Southern California. Magical Mystery Chord by Joel Werner for Sum of All Parts (2017) The opening chord to The Beatles ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ is one of the most iconic sounds in pop music history. But for decades, no one...

This hour more of our faves, including Gloria Gaynor, a seventeen year-old retiree, and two spoofs: one microbiological and one murderous. Episode 1: A Perfect Murder by Katy Yeiser, David Sidorov, Ryan Natoli, and Fran Hoepfner for A Very Fatal Murder from The Onion In the first episode of “A Very Fatal Murder,” longtime Onion Public Radio reporter David Pascall, who has searched tirelessly for the most resonant true-crime podcast that is also about middle America, heads to Bluff Springs, NE...

This hour, a teenage taxidermist, a community of medical migrants who settled in Snowflake, Arizona, and, a day in the life of a sacred cow. A Cow A Day by Pejk Malinovski for Falling Tree Productions and& Between the Ears from BBC Radio 3 At sunrise, on the banks of the Ganges river, the poet and radio producer Pejk Malinovski picks out a cow at random and starts to follow her. He continues to follow her until sunset. A meditative journey unfolds within the sonic backdrop of the ancient...

This hour: lawyers-turned-pinball wizards, two extraordinary minds meeting in a field of poetry and, forty years after the phrase was coined, the skinny on 420. Geis & Geis: Pinball Machine Distributors by Sarah Geis & for Falling Tree Productions'Short Cuts on BBC Radio 4 When Sarah was 10-years-old, her lawyer parents decided to quit their jobs and and take a spin in the world of pinball. 420 by Phoebe Judge and Lauren Spohrer for Criminal The Colorado Department of...

This hour an unlikely best-seller, a colorful hero and the legends of burlesque. “Naked Came the Stranger”: an oral history By Sam Kim for PRI’s Studio360 In 1969, the erotic potboiler “Naked Came the Stranger” climbed The New York Times bestseller list. According to the back cover, it was written by a “demure Long Island housewife” named Penelope Ashe. Except… that wasn’t the whole story. Becoming Barbara by Natalie Kestecher for Falling Tree Productions and Short Cuts on BBC Radio 4 When...

This hour, three stories from the annals of analog.   ‘Second Side Up’ By David Waters with Asst. Producer Robbie MacInnes and Exec. Producer Francesca Panetta for Between the Ears on BBC Radio 3 (2017) For over four decades, Mark Talbot recorded scenes from his life and used them to create a cassette radio show, which he called Second Side Up. Complete with music, interviews and phone-ins, Second Side Up sounded like professional work, but not a single episode was ever broadcast. The tapes...

This hour, we remember the audio work of two brilliant producers who recently passed away — Jesse Cox & Joe Frank. Part 1: Jesse Cox (5 September 1986 – 18 December 2017) ‘Keep Them Guessing’ [excerpt]  by Jesse Cox for ABC RN’s 360Documentaries (2013)  As a young boy, producer Jesse Cox discovered a set of old cassette tapes which turned out to be a hugely popular BBC radio show featuring his grandparents performing telepathically. The tapes had been sitting in the front room of his...

This hour, we look back on some of our favorite moments from the past 14 years of Re:sound. With former producers Katia Dunn, Roman Mars, Delaney Hall and Katie Mingle, we listen to excerpts of memorable Re:sound moments and episodes: - The Karaoke Tupperware Show - The Confessions Show - The Phone Show - The Transmissions Show - The Feedback Show - The Music of Everyday Things Show - The Night Show - The Centenarians Show - The Stories from Childhood Show - The Driving...

This hour we're going behind-the-scenes at two top podcasts The Daily and 99% Invisible. Bringing Together Narrative and News [EXCERPT] presented by Lisa Tobin and Michael Barbaro of The Daily from The New York Times When the New York Times got into the podcast business in 2017, they hired producer Lisa Tobin, a public radio veteran, as executive producer. Lisa and her team went in thinking they would make one type of podcast and came out with something completely different. The form they...

Happy New Year! Before the end of a busy and exciting year for radio and podcasts, the Third Coast staff got together to recap and reflect on 2017. Johanna, Maya, Gwen, Dennis and Isabel discussed the shows and moments in the audio world of 2017 that they won't soon forget... and talked about what they look forward to hearing more of in 2018 and beyond. Happy New Year!

This hour, Third Coast’s take on the holidays. No Santa  By John Biewen for Scene on Radio (2015)  A father turns on a recorder while tucking in his 7-year-old, having no idea he’s about to capture a poignant growing-up moment in his son’s life. (Advisory: This episode is not suitable for some young children.) Vince Guaraldi: A Charlie Brown Christmas  By Ben Manilla for Inside the National Recording Registry for Studio360 (2012)  The soundtrack of the holidays is lousy with annoying songs...

This hour, some of the winners of our annual documentary competition, including the Best Documentary: Gold Award winner. The Discussion — Best New Artist  by Rosa Gollan for PocketDocs from ABC Radio National  For some friends there's no subject too secret, or content too confronting. Rosa and Ryan have that kind of friendship. But five years after they first met, Rosa realized there was still one discussion left to have, and it wasn't going to be easy. Los Cassettes del Exilio — Best...

This hour, some of the winners of our annual documentary competition. Featuring... Quiet Revolution — Best New Artist Award  by Laura Irving for BIRSt.co.uk  This autobiographical account follows a middle-aged woman embarking on an unconventional new hobby of roller skating. Is she a fearless warrior against age and gender stereotypes? Standing Out from the Crowd at a Trump Rally — Best News Feature Award  by Ike Sriskandarajah for Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting and...

This hour, we're diving deep into the strange, beautiful world of modern music composition. The Producer By Alex Overington for WXQR's Meet the Composer (2017) Staff paper and key signatures are great for concertos and sonatas, but the composers in this story don’t think that way… in fact most of them aren’t even sure they should be called composers at all. That includes producer Alex Overington who takes us on a road trip to unravel the creative process of those who write without a...

This hour, what we see - and what we want to see - when we gaze into our reflections in the mirror. Mirrored By Cathy Fitzgerald for BBC Radio 4 / World Service (2017) Each of us cultivates an image of ourselves at certain point in our lives and, once it’s there, it’s a hard image to shake. So much of our identities are expressed through our appearance. So what happens to our self-image as we get older and our features begin to change? In this story, we hear from people between the ages of...

This hour, amateur detectives, spiritual revelations and other stories of dogged perseverance. The 27th Amendment  By Matt Largey for Pop-Up Magazine and KUT Austin (2016)  With everything that’s going on in politics these days, it helps to remember the power that we have as individuals to make change. Examples of this are far too few, of course. But there is one that stands out. And you’ve probably never heard it. Angie  By Phoebe Judge and Lauren Spohrer for their...

This hour, we dive into the audio features of the multi-talented musician and poet, Phil Smith. Satchmo Encore By Phil Smith for Short Cuts a Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4, 2014 The Smith Brothers' Ain't Misbehavin' was a highlight of the 1994 Cheadle Hulme Junior School's Informal Concert. Jazz historian Alyn Shipton assesses its critical value. Die Fremde By Phil Smith for Short Cuts a Falling Tree Production for BBC Radio 4, 2014 An nod to Kafka, language and...

This hour, we’re sharing a few of Third Coast’s favourite stories that didn’t quite fit the mold of past episodes. Smart Old Broad By Gideon Brower and Nick White for Unfictional from KCRW (2014) Maureen "Mo" O'Neill was spending her days mostly alone. She didn't have many friends, she was getting older, and didn't know who she was. After work she could never summon up the inspiration it took to get off the couch and leave the house. But that's when she discovered the solution that opened...