In the midst of the five biggest poultry-consumption weeks of the year—the five weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, when Americans consume one-fourth of all the turkey they eat in a year—This American Life presents stories about turkeys, chickens, ducks, and fowl of all kinds.
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Act One
Act Five Preview
Chickenman
Chickenman was a short daily radio show airing from 1966 to 1969, and it was incredibly popular. It started locally on WCFL in Chicago, then proceeded to spread to over 1,500 radio stations. It has been translated into German, into Dutch, into Swedish. It is still on the air even today in several dozen markets, making it one of the longest running radio features anywhere. (8 minutes)
Act Two
Turkey
Julie Showalter, who grew up on a turkey farm, tells the story of the night 3,000 turkeys died. (10 minutes)
Act Three
Act Three
Writer David Sedaris tells of the giddiness he felt when he purchased a taxidermy's turkey head— attached to its foot. (2 1/2 minutes)
Act Four
South African Chicken Blood
Michael Stumm on the uses of chickens in South African sangoma (witch doctor) culture. (9 minutes)
Act Five
Chickenman, Like The Phoenix
We invited Dick Orkin to create a new Chickenman episode for our Poultry Slam. He put a cast together and created the first new episode since 1969.
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Act Three: Resurrection
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Part One
Boen visits Norman, Oklahoma, where he was born, to meet the man he thinks changed his parents’ lives—and his life, too. (31 minutes)
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