Family Secrets
Family Secrets. We all have them. And while the discovery of family secrets can initially be terrifying or traumatic, often these discoveries have the power to liberate, heal, and even uplift us. Join Dani Shapiro, bestselling author of the memoir Inheritance, and her guests as they explore astonishing family secrets and uncover the extraordinary lessons the truth can teach us.
Episodes
Karen vanishes with her children to escape a violent marriage, erasing a life in order to save it. But eventually, when it’s safe—if it’s safe—she must come out of hiding.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
In 1998, long before Dani discovered the truth of her biological paternity, she published a story called “The Secret Wife” about the discovery of her father’s second wife, a secret marriage that had been hidden for decades. Today, she reads and reflects on this story—the uncovering of the silent grief and buried histories that shaped her.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
When Francesca sets out to understand her father’s past, she is faced with a world of crime, silence, and denial. But it’s not just his past she must reckon with; it’s her present, her inheritance of a story no one wanted to tell.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Sam grows up without knowing his biological father. As he enters adolescence, he begins to resemble Bob Dylan. A lot. So when Sam learns his mother had a brief relationship with Dylan in the 70s, the cascade of questions begins to flow.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
After centuries of ancestral trauma, Julian must listen closely to the stories of his family —stories of survival, memory, myth and generations of erasure—in order to discover the story of himself.
Julian Brave NoiseCat's book, We Survived the Night, is out now.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
When Amanda’s parents’ eccentricities take a dark turn toward hoarding, scheming, and secret-keeping, the walls begin to literally close in on her. As the chaos and deceit grows in volume around her, she must figure out how to escape.
Amanda Uhle's book is titled Destroy This House.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
When Kate begins to recover haunting memories, she must confront a family history shaped by silence and generational harm. What follows is her quest to piece together the truth and reclaim a stolen childhood.
Kate Price's book, This Happened to Me: A Reckoning, is out now.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Ari’el has spent his life playing characters, trying on different identities. But at a certain point he must discover who—beneath all these competing selves—he truly is.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Thursday, November 13th. New Secrets. New Stories. New Season. Join us next week for our thirteenth launch!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Author and podcaster Gretchen Rubin joins Dani to talk about aphorisms and family secrets.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Updates, Workshops, and Special Guests!
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
A ninety-year old father and his youngest daughter come together to unpack a secret that altered—and ultimately made sense of— the shape of each of their lives.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Not every member of a family is told the same story. Elissa wrestles with the necessity of claiming her voice, even as telling her own singular truth may exact a painful price.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
A box of letters. A hidden life. A history rewritten. Susan must reckon with how to move forward—how to be a daughter, a sister, a mother—after so much staggering change.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
As E.A. takes to the road on a route once taken with her mother, she must confront the stories we inherit, the ones we choose to tell, and the one’s we don’t.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
What does it mean to be a family of one? Steven examines his search for belonging in the wake of disappearance, loss, and profound mystery.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Marian’s body knows something her brain does not. It takes years before she finally has the language to define herself. To be herself.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Erin grows up in and around violence and anger. But nothing could have prepared her for the tragic discovery she makes at age twenty-seven.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Through the dual lens of a devoted sister and parent, Julie explores the emotional terrain of family illness and secrecy, puzzling over how she can care for others without losing herself entirely.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
As Sarah navigates the world as an artist and writer, she must confront the genetic history—its myriad patterns and traumas—at the heart of her story, her very self.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Latest News
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Burden is a documentary series that takes listeners into the hidden places where justice is done (and undone). It dives deep into the lives of heroes and villains. And it focuses a spotlight on those who triumph even when the odds are against them. Season 5 - The Burden: Death & Deceit in Alliance On April Fools Day 1999, 26-year-old Yvonne Layne was found murdered in her Alliance, Ohio home. David Thorne, her ex-boyfriend and father of one of her children, was instantly a suspect. Another young man admitted to the murder, and David breathed a sigh of relief, until the confessed murderer fingered David; “He paid me to do it.” David was sentenced to life without parole. Two decades later, Pulitzer winner and podcast host, Maggie Freleng (Bone Valley Season 3: Graves County, Wrongful Conviction, Suave) launched a “live” investigation into David's conviction alongside Jason Baldwin (himself wrongfully convicted as a member of the West Memphis Three). Maggie had come to believe that the entire investigation of David was botched by the tiny local police department, or worse, covered up the real killer. Was Maggie correct? Was David’s claim of innocence credible? In Death and Deceit in Alliance, Maggie recounts the case that launched her career, and ultimately, “broke” her.” The results will shock the listener and reduce Maggie to tears and self-doubt. This is not your typical wrongful conviction story. In fact, it turns the genre on its head. It asks the question: What if our champions are foolish? Season 4 - The Burden: Get the Money and Run “Trying to murder my father, this was the thing that put me on the path.” That’s Joe Loya and that path was bank robbery. Bank, bank, bank, bank, bank. In season 4 of The Burden: Get the Money and Run, we hear from Joe who was once the most prolific bank robber in Southern California, and beyond. He used disguises, body doubles, proxies. He leaped over counters, grabbed the money and ran. Even as the FBI was closing in. It was a showdown between a daring bank robber, and a patient FBI agent. Joe was no ordinary bank robber. He was bright, articulate, charismatic, and driven by a dark rage that he summoned up at will. In seven episodes, Joe tells all: the what, the how… and the why. Including why he tried to murder his father. Season 3 - The Burden: Avenger Miriam Lewin is one of Argentina’s leading journalists today. At 19 years old, she was kidnapped off the streets of Buenos Aires for her political activism and thrown into a concentration camp. Thousands of her fellow inmates were executed, tossed alive from a cargo plane into the ocean. Miriam, along with a handful of others, will survive the camp. Then as a journalist, she will wage a decades long campaign to bring her tormentors to justice. Avenger is about one woman’s triumphant battle against unbelievable odds to survive torture, claim justice for the crimes done against her and others like her, and change the future of her country. Season 2 - The Burden: Empire on Blood Empire on Blood is set in the Bronx, NY, in the early 90s, when two young drug dealers ruled an intersection known as “The Corner on Blood.” The boss, Calvin Buari, lived large. He and a protege swore they would build an empire on blood. Then the relationship frayed and the protege accused Calvin of a double homicide which he claimed he didn’t do. But did he? Award-winning journalist Steve Fishman spent seven years to answer that question. This is the story of one man’s last chance to overturn his life sentence. He may prevail, but someone’s gotta pay. The Burden: Empire on Blood is the director’s cut of the true crime classic which reached #1 on the charts when it was first released half a dozen years ago. Season 1 - The Burden In the 1990s, Detective Louis N. Scarcella was legendary. In a city overrun by violent crime, he cracked the toughest cases and put away the worst criminals. “The Hulk” was his nickname. Then the story changed. Scarcella ran into a group of convicted murderers who all say they are innocent. They turned themselves into jailhouse-lawyers and in prison founded a lway firm. When they realized Scarcella helped put many of them away, they set their sights on taking him down. And with the help of a NY Times reporter they have a chance. For years, Scarcella insisted he did nothing wrong. But that’s all he’d say. Until we tracked Scarcella to a sauna in a Russian bathhouse, where he started to talk..and talk and talk. “The guilty have gone free,” he whispered. And then agreed to take us into the belly of the beast. Welcome to The Burden.
"SmartLess" with Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett is a podcast that connects and unites people from all walks of life to learn about shared experiences through thoughtful dialogue and organic hilarity. A nice surprise: in each episode of SmartLess, one of the hosts reveals his mystery guest to the other two. What ensues is a genuinely improvised and authentic conversation filled with laughter and newfound knowledge to feed the SmartLess mind. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of SmartLess ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!