This American Life - How Married People Tell Stories

The public radio show This American Life has just begun its second season as a TV program on Showtime. If you're not watching, you're missing out. (Or you can't afford Showtime -- and you can't be blamed for that.) But today you can get a little free content from the show, in the form of an animated segment that hasn't aired yet.

But first, a little more about the new season. To mark the beginning of its second season on TV, TAL hosted a live event in movie theaters around the US -- though for those of us on the West Coast it was tape-delayed by three hours. The show consisted of a live performance of the radio show by Ira Glass in front of a theater audience, filmed and simulcast to movie theaters. It was an interesting format, combining stage show (with various guests and interactive bits, including questions from the audience) and radio show, and even showing Glass flubbing a few cues as he mixed the music and interview clips live.

One of the best pieces shown that night was an animated segment by Chris Ware and John Kuramoto, illustrating a story that originally appeared on the radio show some time back. In the segment, NPR's Robert Krulwich (whom you may know from Radiolab) and his wife tell a story they've been telling all their married lives...then talk about which one of them has it all wrong.

Although this segment won't hit Showtime until June 1 (in the fifth episode of the second season, "Every Marriage is a Courtroom"), you can watch it now:

See also: This American Life Season 1 on iTunes. ($10.99 in the US for the six-episode season.)