Driveway MomentSM 2005 Archives

The following listener-nominated stories were published as Driveway Moments during 2005:

A Beer for Hanukkah

The founder of the Schmaltz Brewing Company talks about his Jewish-themed beers.
Weekend Edition Saturday, December 11, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: December 28, 2005

 

Truman Capote's 'A Christmas Memory'

A recording of the author reading his story in 1959.
This American Life, December 19, 2003
Posted as a Driveway Moment: December 21, 2005

 

Peter Jackson, Before 'Lord of the Rings'

A tour of the director's decidedly quirky early films.
Weekend Edition Saturday, December 13, 2003
Posted as a Driveway Moment: December 14, 2005

 

'My Lobotomy': Howard Dully's Journey

Howard Dully embarks on a quest to discover the story behind the lobotomy procedure he received as a 12-year-old boy.
All Things Considered, November 16, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: December 5, 2005

 

Nudging Killer Asteroids Off Course

Space scientists say they've come up with a novel way of a preventing a killer asteroid from hitting the Earth -- without laying a hand on it.
All Things Considered, November 10, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: November 16, 2005

 

A Courageous Fight Against 'The Worst Thing'

A remembrance of Seth Carey, who described his battle against ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease.
Weekend Edition Sunday, August 21, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: November 7, 2005

 

Mommy as Role Model? Get Real

Commentator Gwen Macsai is the mother of three children. And she's finding that their standards for motherhood are higher than hers.
All Things Considered, October 19, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: October 31, 2005

 

Return of the Hula Hoop

The hula hoop isn't just for children any more: jam band String Cheese Incident has spawned a hooping craze among its followers.
All Things Considered, October 5, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: October 20, 2005

 

Returning to Find What's Left of Home

New Orleans' Sharon White was determined to go home again after Hurricane Katrina. In an update, the New Orleans evacuee makes it back and evaluates the damage, her resolve to rebuild holding firm.
All Things Considered, October 5, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: October 11, 2005

 

Town Doctor Battles Katrina's Bad Breaks

During a recent day's work, Dr. Regina Benjamin of Bayou la Batre, Ala., patched together patients while workers tried to put her office back together after Hurricane Katrina.
All Things Considered, September 17, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: September 29, 2005

 

Cute Tadpole Becomes a Voracious Bullfrog

Commentator Julie Zickefoose thought a bullfrog might be a pleasant and decorative addition to her backyard water garden. Until it matured.
All Things Considered, October 20, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: September 20, 2005

 

Back to School: Bus Drivers

Two homages to school bus drivers who touched the lives of their students and parents.
All Things Considered, March 8, 2005 and June 19, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: September 8, 2005

 

Ridin' with Junior McGee

An end-of-summer, cross-country trip in 1974 and what happened along the way.
All Things Considered, September 2, 2002
Posted as a Driveway Moment: August 31, 2005

 

John Prine Performs, Talks Music

The singer-songwriter talks about family, writing and recording as he sits down with host David Dye for performance and conversation.
World Cafe, July 2, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: August 24, 2005

 

'My Father the Spy'

John Richardson, Jr. pieces together the story of his father's CIA career, including time in Saigon, in what the author calls an "investigative memoir." All Things Considered, August 13, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: August 16, 2005

 

Encountering Racism in a Bar

Commentator Kenji Jasper finds that despite the convergence of mainstream and black cultures, many Americans are still uncomfortable seeing a black man and a white women together in public -- even just as friends.
Morning Edition, December 28, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: August 8, 2005

 

A Racehorse Inspires the Memory of a Child

Commentator Frank Deford describes why Afleet Alex, the thoroughbred that won the Belmont Stakes on Saturday, holds special meaning for him.
Morning Edition, June 15, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: August 3, 2005

 

An Abortion Law's Dramatic Passage

Melissa Block looks back on New York State's historic abortion law. The measure legalizing abortion in the state passed in 1970, three years before the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision legalized abortion nationwide, after one legislator's last-minute, pivotal vote change.
Morning Edition, April 11, 2000
Posted as a Driveway Moment: July 25, 2005

 

Dancing with the Chi-Town Squares

When commentator Angeli Primlani wants to go square-dancing, she hooks up with a club called the Chi-Town Squares. The members are mostly gay men, but recently, groups of older straight couples from the suburbs have started showing up at their dances.
All Things Considered, June 28, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: July 19, 2005

 

Wartime Sacrifice

At two war memorials in Washington, D.C., visitors discuss American involvement in Iraq and the idea of sacrifice during wartime. Many say they feel no direct connection to this war; but some have relatives in the service.
All Things Considered, July 1, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: July 13, 2005

 

Godless America

This American Life spends an hour trying to remember why anyone liked the separation of church and state in the first place.
Morning Edition, June 3, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: July 5, 2005

 

Merck Attempted to Quash Vioxx Criticism

Drug maker Merck attempted to censor critics of Vioxx as early as 2000, an investigation by NPR finds. That year, a study indicated that the painkiller might cause heart problems.
Morning Edition, June 10, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: June 24, 2005

 

Yiddish Radio Project: 'Reunion'

In 1947, a radio program called Reunion debuted. The first broadcast features the heart-wrenching story of Siegbert Freiberg, and a surprise on-air reconnecting of Freiberg with his father.
All Things Considered, May 21, 2002
Posted as a Driveway Moment: June 15, 2005

 

The High Cost of Private Universities

The Viklund family of Washington state had no idea what it was getting into when daughter Zoe applied to several elite private colleges. Like many middle-class students, Zoe found that her family had too much money to qualify for grants and scholarships, but not enough to pay her way.
All Things Considered, May 25, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: June 8, 2005

 

Al Franken's KISS Encounter

In this interview with host Terry Gross, satirist Al Franken discusses his comedy, his politics and a bizarre encounter with KISS frontman Gene Simmons. He tells the story to comfort Gross about her own unfortunate interview with Simmons.
Fresh Air, April 30, 2002
Posted as a Driveway Moment: May 31, 2005

 

'Are You Somebody?'

Author Nuala O'Faolain discusses her memoir Are You Somebody?, in which the accomplished television producer, professor and columnist examines her life to discover why she ended up alone without children or a partner in her mid-50s.
Weekend Edition Sunday, March 22, 1998
Posted as a Driveway Moment: May 25, 2005

 

Go Ask Your Father

Sons and daughters get to find out the one thing they've always wanted to know about their father. And the answers aren't always what they hope for. This American Life, May 13, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: May 18, 2005

 

To the North Pole!

Hear a conversation with the leader of an expedition to the North Pole, who phones in from his frigid destination.
Talk of the Nation, April 27, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: May 10, 2005

 

The Sanctity of Marriage

A set of stories tries to understand what actually happens in marriages, during this time when the definition of marriage is up in the air.
This American Life, March 26, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: May 3, 2005

 

A Chaplain's World War II Bravery

Lt. Cmdr. Joseph Timothy O'Callahan was the Jesuit chaplain aboard the aircraft carrier USS Franklin in World War II. We hear his story via his nephew, Jay.
All Things Considered, April 3, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: April 25, 2005

 

Gay in the Heartland

Reporter Sarah Neal brings us a portrait of being gay in rural America through the eyes of her mother and her friends.
Weekend Edition Saturday, April 9, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: April 18, 2005

 

One Driveway Moment Inspires a Writer

Author Calvin Trillin was so struck by this story that he was moved to seek out the Slavenas family for a follow-up in the March 14 issue of The New Yorker magazine.
Morning Edition, November 4, 2003
Posted as a Driveway Moment: April 5, 2005

 

'Deciding to Walk the Aisle Without Dad'

When Caroline Bicks decided to get married, she told her father that she would walk herself down the aisle rather than have him give her away. Her father was hurt; eight years later, she still has misgivings.
All Things Considered, February 10, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: March 17, 2005

 

'A Teen Quest to Remake 'Raiders of the Lost Ark'

More than two decades ago, a trio of Mississippi kids embarked on a seven-year endeavor to make their own version of Raiders of the Lost Ark. As adults, they talk about the project that dominated their teenage lives and its potential afterlife.
Morning Edition, July 13, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: March 1, 2005

 

'The House on Loon Lake'

Adam Beckman offers a sort of real-life Hardy Boys mystery about a young boy, an abandoned house, and the mysterious family who once lived there but seemed to disappear without a trace.
This American Life, November 16, 2001
Posted as a Driveway Moment: February 22, 2005

 

'Interview with George Carlin'

Comedian and actor George Carlin, whose famous routine about seven verboten "dirty words" was the center of an obscenity case in the 1970s, joins host Terry Gross.
Fresh Air, November 1, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: February 14, 2005

 

'A Bit of a Chat with Dame Edna'

Dame Edna Everage (a.k.a. Australian comedian Barry Humphries) shares insights into her success, cracking up host Scott Simon in the process.
Weekend Edition Saturday, January 25, 2003
Posted as a Driveway Moment: February 7, 2005

 

'A Soldier's Dog Waits'

Commentator Carol Wasserman has the story of Cooper, an old dog who bravely copes at home while his master serves in Iraq.
All Things Considered, November 16, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: January 31, 2005

 

'Children at War'

Author and security analyst Peter Singer offers insight on the use of children as soldiers, which happens much more than many of us would like to think.
Fresh Air, January 12, 2005
Posted as a Driveway Moment: January 24, 2005

 

My So-Called Lungs

Laura Rothenberg chronicled her battle with cystic fibrosis in an audio diary recorded while she was 21 years old.
All Things Considered, August 5, 2002
Posted as a Driveway Moment: January 17, 2005

 

Braving Home: Anne Howell

When Hurricane Floyd struck Princeville, N.C., the damage to the historic town was extensive. But town commissioner and resident Anne Howell refused a government buyout and fought to save her hometown.
All Things Considered, May 15, 2004
Posted as a Driveway Moment: January 10, 2005

 

'A Dead Groundhog in the Yard,' Translated

Commentator Bill Harley explains all of the implications his wife is able to pack into the single sentence, "There's a dead groundhog in the yard."
All Things Considered, November 11, 1999
Posted as a Driveway Moment: January 3, 2005

 

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What Is a Driveway Moment?

You're driving along, listening to a story on NPR. Suddenly, you find yourself at your destination, so riveted to a piece that you sit in your idling car to hear it all the way through. That's a Driveway Moment.

 
 

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