Hodgman appearances on This American Life

Even the biggest John Hodgman fans may not realize how many times he has appeared on public radio's This American Life. Here are all of the episodes that contain Hodgman segments (if an episode can really be said to "contain" Hodgman).

• This American Life Episode 178: Superpowers
  Act 1: Invisible Man Vs. Hawkman.
  Hodgman's first appearance on This American Life was the famous piece now known as "Flight vs. Invisibility":
  "John Hodgman conducts an informal survey in which he asks the age-old question: Which is better: The power of flight or the power of invisibility? He finds that how you answer tells a lot about what kind of person you are. And also, no matter which power people choose, they never use it to fight crime. (14 minutes)" This segment appears on a TAL greatest hits CD: Crimebusters & Crossed Wires: Stories from This American Life
• This American Life Episode 190: Living the Dream
  Act 2: Agent To The Stars.
  "Writer John Hodgman in New York tells the story of how he dreamt of getting to know the B-movie star Bruce Campbell, and how his unlikely dream accidentally came true, partly to his delight, partly to his horror. (16 minutes)"
• This American Life Episode 205: Plan B [February 2002]
  Hodgman is in Act 1 (It's Another Tequila Sunrise).
  "Writer and contributor John Hodgman first encountered Cuervo Man on a press junket to Cuervo Nation, a small island owned by Jose Cuervo Tequila. Cuervo Man was wearing nothing but a Speedo, wraparound shades, and a red cape. Occasionally he'd stick a toilet plunger on his bald head. John was fascinated and eventually got to know Cuervo Man, whose real name was Ryan. Though the Cuervo act was Ryan's Plan B, it had a special power that John couldn't help but envy." (19 minutes)
• This American Life Episode 226: Reruns [November 2002]
  Hodgman appears in part of Act 2 (Marriage as Rerun), starting at around 35:20. He tells a story about breaking into a zoo. And Ira Glass interviews him!
• This American Life Episode 232: The Real Story
  Act 3: Jar Jar Head.
  "John Hodgman tries to tell the real version of a war movie that's already been written, filmed and released on DVD—Star Wars." (10 minutes) You can buy this and all other TAL episodes through the Amazon mp3 store.
• This American Life Episode 243: Later That Same Day
  Act 3: Slingshot.
  This is a 9-minute story in a very different style for John. Much more somber.
• This American Life Episode 298: Getting and Spending
  Act 3: Mall Rat.
  "John Hodgman provides an occasionally true account of seven days spent at the Mall of America. After crossing mall officials, he goes rogue, drinking from the flume ride and exploring what he describes as a secret tunnel lined with human skulls." This hilarious piece appears in the book and audio versions of The Areas of My Expertise. (10 minutes)
• This American Life Episode 305: The This American Life Holiday Spectacular [December 2005]
  Hodgman is in Act 2: No Tenenbaum, No Tenenbaum.
  "This American Life receives an emergency transmission from a rooftop somewhere in New York City, where John Hodgman reports on the true-life origins of Christmas traditions." (7 minutes long)
• This American Life Episode 329: Nice Work If You Can Get It.
  Act 1: I'm Not A TV Star, But I Play One On TV.
  Hodgman on becoming famous. This was recorded in front of an audience as part of the 2007 This American Life live tour. A lot of this piece is also in More Information Than You Require and its audio adaptation