Two stories of how to get money from strangers. In both stories, the money is made by people who make the strangers feel good about themselves and about their nation.
-
Download Control-click (or right-click) Tap and hold to download
- Transcript
NOTE: This episode originally included a story by reporter Stephen Glass, which we have removed because of questions about its truthfulness. This story is included in the transcript only for reference.
Act One
Act Two
What Makes Grammy Run?
Sarah Vowell, on selling the secrets of art dealer Graham Arader. (14 minutes)
Act Three
Futures Market
This episode originally included a story by reporter Stephen Glass (no relation to Ira) about working as a telephone psychic. We have removed the story because of questions about its truthfulness. It is included in the transcript for reference.
Related
If you enjoyed this episode, you may like these
Act Two: When The Telephone Is Your Medium
Sure you can try to get your pop songs onto records, or on the radio, or onto MTV.
Act One: Froggy Goes A-courtin'
The story of a series of misunderstandings with very dire consequences.
Act One: Started From Phle-Bottom, Now We’re Here
When Adele wrote into our show last summer, she described herself as “the worst phlebotomist in the whole hospital.” Producer Diane Wu couldn’t resist calling her up to find out exactly what she meant by that.
Staff Recommendations
No Coincidence, No Story!
We asked listeners to send us their best coincidence stories, and we got more than 1,300 submissions!
Three Miles
What happens when of a group of public school students in the Bronx goes to visit an elite private school three miles away.