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STORIES by Lea Thau: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Lea Thau
STORIES by Lea Thau is storytelling for the 21st century from Peabody award winning director and producer, Lea Thau.
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- 3 days ago26 min
Summer of Strangers: Pabba's 32nd Year
Imagine your parents controlled your online dating profile. That’s what happened to Pabba and this is his story. We first ran this story 10 years ago and next week we’ll have a brand new story with him. I can already reveal that a LOT has happened in the meantime.This two-parter with Pabba is curated by Lulu Miller from Radiolab and Terrestrials. In addition to Pabba's story, she's made a Spotify playlist for you of her other favorite stories from our show. They're normally paywalled but we've unlocked them for you for the next month. If you don't use Spotify, here are direct links to the episodes wherever you listen: Falling Slowly, Gay Talese: Committed Voyeur, Terry's Treasure, Love Hurts # 1.If you’d like to see photos of Pabba, including the pictures his parents wouldn’t let him use for his dating profile, and the one they chose instead, check out our free posts on Substack or Patreon. And course, if you’d like to support our work and unlock many more premium episodes, you can also become a paying subscriber on either platform. Huge thanks to Pabba for letting us rerun his story and for taping the update with me for next week. We aren't using Pabba’s full name here because he’d rather his family didn’t hear this story, but he performs and teaches improv at Mettlesome in Durham, North Carolina, and he moonlights as a robot from the past, who traveled to the future to party and fight in Giant Robot Fight Club. Like all tech bros in a midlife crisis, he has also gotten really into Brazilian jiu-jitsu at Revenant Combat Club. Big thanks to Lulu Miller for curating this week. Lulu is perhaps best known as the co-host of Radiolab, and the co-creator of Invisibilia, and she also makes the fantastic show Terrestrials for the whole family. It’s one of those rare podcasts that you can share with your kids but enjo
- 1 weeks ago31 min
Summer of Strangers: Midnight in Mexico – Then & Now
A family tragedy sends the Corchados from Mexico to California, searching for greener pastures. Upon arrival, that’s hardly what they find, but some years later, a deal involving a 1978 Camaro sets the oldest son on a path to unlikely success.Today we revisit the story of renowned journalist and outstanding storyteller, Alfredo Corchado, with a present-day update at the end. If you’d like to see photos that go with his story, check out our free posts on Substack and Patreon, and if you like what we do, you can also become a paying member on either platform and unlock 100+ countless benefits and episodes. Alfredo Corchado is a multi-award-winning journalist and the 2026 recipient of the I.F. Stone medal for journalistic independence. He is the Executive Director of Puente News Collaborative and the author of Midnight in Mexico, a memoir about his childhood and his journalism career in Mexico, and of Homelands about the history of Mexican-American migration and the guest worker program that brought his family here. Alfredo is at work on a third book about the U.S.-Mexico border. He was a 2009 Nieman Fellow at Harvard University, and he recently completed this moving tribute to his father, who passed away in March – if you enjoyed Alfredo’s story, you might really enjoy this too!Thanks to the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard for introducing me to Alfredo, and to then-Curator, Ann-Marie Lipinski, and then-Deputy Curator, James Geary, for hiring me to direct Alfredo's story and many other Nieman stories for the stage.Big thanks, as always, to my team:Vix Jensen: Associate Producer Extraordinaire, Aviva Barry: Indispensable Intern, Paul Dreux Smith: Music maker, mixer, and soul mate, Heather Kitching: Viral reel maker, Jen Alevizos, Volunteer Project Manager & new friend.To see more photos and episode reels, and to follow the story-making process behind the scenes, join us on Instagram and Facebook.We value your feedback, and you can contact us at stories@leathau.com. The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon an
- 2 weeks ago46 min
13 Years Later – Franky Carrillo #3: Still Franky
This is a brand new installment in the Franky Carrillo saga that I’m very excited to share with you. Franky is the same great storyteller he's always been, and he goes deeper than ever here. If you haven’t heard the first two episodes with Franky, which we shared last week and the week before, I would go listen to those first. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you’ll be better prepared for this chapter, though it could also stand alone.If you’d like to see pictures from my day with Franky on the ranch, check out these free posts on Patreon and Substack.If you want to listen ad-free, access my member-only seriesThe Way Forward, and unlock the entire Strangers archive of nearly 100 premium episodes, plus all my Hopeful Locals stories, become a paying subscriber today, starting at just $5 per month on Patreon. Paying subscribers make our work possible. Franky Carrillo is a criminal justice reform advocate and a leading voice for the wrongfully convicted. He has served as Chief Policy Advisor for the Los Angeles Innocence Project and on the Los Angeles County Probation Oversight Commission. He also sits on the boards of Death Penalty Focus and the Anti-Recidivism Coalition and he’s been profiled in the Netflix series The Innocence Files. You can find him on Instagram. Thanks as always to our production team: Vix Jensen, Aviva Barry, Jen Alevizos, and Paul Dreux Smith. Please help us keep the podcast going by spreading the word, hitting 'subscribe' wherever you’re listening, and perhaps giving us a good rating or even a little review there. It goes a long way, thank you! You can follow us on Instagram and Facebook, and you can write to us at stories@leathau.com. Thanks for listening:) The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and <a
- 3 weeks ago30 min
Summer of Strangers: Franky Carrillo, Part 2: Life Now – 2017
I hope you heard Franky’s story from last week, because it’s heartbreaking, and uplifting, and enraging, and inspiring, and it’s the foundation for today’s episode, which is Part 2 of his story. If you haven’t heard it yet, I'd go listen to last week’s episode first.This episode is nine years old, but on Monday I went to meet Franky for a present-day follow-up and I can’t wait to share that story with you next week. You might think of this trilogy with Franky a bit like the 7-Up documentary series, which has followed a group of British children every seven years for more than 60 years now to see how their lives have evolved. Of course, I haven’t followed Franky since childhood, but I’ve known him since two years after his release, which you might call his rebirth. For many exonerees and the formerly incarcerated, the return home can be fraught, so four years after the first episode, I went to see how Franky was settling in, and this is the story of how I found him in 2017.If you’d like to see photos that go with today’s episode, you can find them in these free posts on Substack or Patreon. If you want to unlock 100 more paywalled episodes and help support our work, consider becoming a paying subscriber on either platform today! Franky Carrillo is a criminal justice reform advocate, who spent 20 years in prison before his exoneration in 2011. After his release, he earned a bachelor's degree in sociology at Loyola Marymount University, and he has since become a leading voice for the wrongfully convicted. He serves as Chief Policy Advisor for the Los Angeles Innocence Project, sits on boards including Death Penalty Focus and the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, and has also served on the Los Angeles County Probation Oversight Commission. After the first two stories about Franky aired on Strangers, his case gained wider public attention when he was profiled in the Netflix docuseries The Innocence Files. You can find Franky on Instagram.You can also follow us on Instagram and Facebook, or you can write to us at stories@leathau.com. The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com
- Aug 20, 202634 min
Summer of Strangers: Franky Carrillo: Life
Franky Carrillo was 16 when he received a double life sentence for a crime he had nothing to do with. This is his story. It's one of the most beloved Strangers stories of all time, and it will be the first of three episodes about Franky Carrillo's life, including a brand new one.If you want to see pictures that go with today’s story, check out these free posts on Substack and Patreon, where you can also get our free newsletter. Or you can follow us on Instagram and Facebook, or write to us at stories@leathau.com. We welcome all your feedback, and if you like what we do, please spread the word and give us a good rating wherever you’re listening. Since this story aired, Franky has finished his degree in sociology from Loyola Marymount University, and he has become a leading voice for the wrongfully convicted, serving as Chief Policy Advisor for the Los Angeles Innocence Project and sitting on the boards of organizations including Death Penalty Focus and the Anti-Recidivism Coalition. Franky has also served on the Los Angeles County Probation Oversight Commission. After the first two stories about Franky aired on Strangers, his case gained wider public attention when he was featured as one of eight exonerees profiled in the Netflix docuseriesThe Innocence Files. You can find him on instagram.This week, our Summer of Strangers is curated by Glynn Washington of Snap Judgment and Spooked. Glynn picked Franky’s story among his other favorite Strangers stories, which have aired in adapted versions on Snap. They include A Father’s Story – Then & Now, Henry & Jane, Falling Slowly, Terry’s Treasure, and Man on Fire. To unlock all those episodes and 90 more, become a paying subscriber on Patreon<
- Aug 13, 202625 min
14 Years Later: And Justice for All?
Last week we posted Sharon Houston's hilarious and beloved old Strangers story And Justice for All? and this week we're following up with Sharon to see what she's up to now....which turned out to be a lot of different things.If you’d like to see photos that go with today’s episode, you can find them in these free posts on Substack and Patreon, where you can also sign up for our free newsletter. If you’d like to access more than 100 exclusive episodes and join our community at a deeper level, consider becoming a paying subscriber on either of those platforms today. Or follow us on Instagram – we’ve gained more than 7,000 new followers there in the last month alone! – or on Facebook, or write to us at stories@leathau.com. This episode makes a brief reference to suicide and suicidal ideation. If anyone is struggling with thoughts of self-harm, you can find help by calling or texting 988 in the US. Big thanks to Sharon Houston for letting us rerun her original Strangers story last week, and for doing this follow-up with me, and for showing me around Chinatown on Sunday and taking me dancing tomorrow night (follow us on the above platforms to see those photos!). Sharon is a comedian, actress, content creator, producer, writer, social media consultant, and property manager. She continues to create and innovate and you can follow her on Instagram, TikTok and across all platforms as @goforsharon.Thanks to our production team: Heather Kitching, Aviva Barry, Jen Alevizos, and of course my Associate Producer Vix Jensen, who is my indispensable partner in the daily ups and downs here at the podcast factory, and thanks to my partner in life and also on the show, Paul Dreux Smith, who makes the music and mixes and is also my main squeeze and my true love. Our new regular post day is Thursday, and we’ll be back in a week with one of the most beloved Strangers stories of all time. All your feedback is welcome!The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Aug 6, 202622 min
Summer of Strangers: And Justice for All?
Welcome back to our Summer of Strangers. Today's story is an old Strangers episode with Sharon Houston, and next week we'll do a follow-up with her. If you want to see photos that go with today’s episode, you can find them in these posts on Patreon or Substack, where you can also join our free community and sign up for our newsletter. If you’d like to support our work, consider becoming a paying subscriber on either platform. Sharon Houston is a comedian, actress, content creator, producer, and writer, who has experience across all aspects of web and TV production. She has numerous court shows under her belt, including "Judge Joe Brown", "Divorce Court", "Judge Alex", "The Hollywood Judge", "Judge Faith", and "Judge Jerry." Sharon has produced TV and digital programming for VH1, MTVTres, Mun2, FOX, Universal Music Group, E!,OWN, Oxygen, NBC, FX, and CBS. Her original concepts have garnered deals with The Gurin Company, Scout Productions, UnbelEVAble Productions, Wanda Sykes' Push It Productions, Live Animals, Fox21, MGM, Catalyst Content Group, EveryWoman Studios, and Russell Westbrook's Westbrook Enterprises. Sharon continues to create and innovate and you can follow her on instagram and across all platforms as goforsharon.Big thanks to my man, Paul Dreux Smith, for making the music for the new parts of this episode and for helping me mix, and to our production team: my associate producer, Vix Jensen, and our intern, Aviva Barry, as well as Heather Kitching and Jen Alevizos.Want to join the conversation? Let us know what you think of this episode, or share a story of your own, by writing to stories@leathau.com. You can also find us on Facebook and Instagram. The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
- Jul 29, 202647 min
10 Years Later – The Son, The Goddess & Leopoldo
Thank you for all the love we’ve received about Joshua Safran’s story from last week. This episode is a follow-up with Joshua about his life now.It's quite different from the original episode, because it's more of a conversation and less of a story, and because a lot has changed in 10 years – in Joshua's life, and the U.S., and the world. Big thanks to Joshua Safran. He is the author of the memoir Free Spirit: Growing Up On the Road and Off the Grid, which formed the basis of last week’s story. Joshua, and his co-counsel, and their client, Deborah Peagler, were also the subjects of the multi-award-winning documentary Crime after Crime, about the long effort to free Deborah from prison. Joshua is the co-founder and general counsel of Medical Justice Alliance, a nonprofit that protects the right to medical care for the incarcerated. I’m deeply grateful for the help from my associate producer, Vix Jensen, and Heather Kitching, who’s been making promo reels for us, including the one about Joshua's story that has gone viral on Instagram this week, as well as Jen Alevizos who has been helping us project manage, and who picked Joshua’s story for the Summer of Strangers. Also big thanks to our fabulous interns, Aviva Barry and Crab Saylor Hochsprung-Cottrell, and of course to my love, Paul Dreux Smith, for making the music and mixing. Finally, thanks to Avi Odenheimer for making the epsiode art this week.You can join our member communities on Substack or Patreon, where you can sign up for our newsletter and join the chat about the latest episode, free of charge. Paying subscribers also get access to 80 exclusive Strangers episodes like Joshua’s from last week, plus all my new work, all of it ad-free, as well as invitations to member hangouts, and much more. Want another way to get in touch? Drop us a line at stories@leathau.com or find us on Facebook or Instagram.The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See a
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About STORIES by Lea Thau
STORIES by Lea Thau is storytelling for the 21st century from Peabody award winning director and producer, Lea Thau.
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