Cover art for podcast Long Haul: Documentaries to Go!

Long Haul: Documentaries to Go!

88 EpisodesProduced by Long Haul ProductionsWebsite

Audio documentaries and stories hand-crafted by award winners Dan Collison and Elizabeth Meister.

episodes iconAll Episodes

Farewell

February 22nd, 2024

0:39

An important message from RadioPublic

Dog Mountain: A Love Story

November 20th, 2014

22:16

The story you’re about to hear is, at its heart, is a love story — between two artists, and a whole lot of dogs. It’s also the story of what it means …

Coming Home: Nick's Story

May 21st, 2013

19:59

A young Marine comes home after his first tour of duty in Afghanistan. His parents tell his story.

The Lord God Bird

April 17th, 2013

11:59

The Ivory Billed Woodpecker was thought to be extinct – until recently, when a bird was allegedly spotted near the small town of Brinkley, Arkansas. The sightings were big news in a community depressed by recession and …

The Swap Shop

April 17th, 2013

7:57

For the past 60 years, people in northwest Tennessee have tuned each weekday at noon to a radio program on WENK/WTPR called The Swap Shop. For twenty minutes, listeners call or write offering to buy, sell or trade an …

Sî Se Puede

April 17th, 2013

22:00

It's been 71 years since the "strike heard round the world" - when autoworkers in Flint, Michigan, occupied a General Motors plant and and jumpstarted the union movement in the United States. But in recent years, as …

Loaves and Fishes

April 17th, 2013

7:25

Since the 1930s, delighted throngs have gathered just outside Linesville, Pennsylvania, to toss bread to a writhing stew of carp and ducks at the Linesville Spillway. The carp are so thick that mallard ducks literally …

The Tower

April 17th, 2013

7:44

The small town of Baudette, Minnesota, sits on the U.S./Canadian border, about as far north in the contiguous U.S. as you can get. Famous for snowy winters and a giant concrete walleye that sits downtown, it's also …

Mother Nature Kneels (Instrumental, by Bonnie "Prince" Billy)

April 17th, 2013

2:17

Written and performed by Bonnie "Prince" Billy in 2011 for "The Natural State," a Long Haul Song+Story.

The Natural State (with Bonnie "Prince" Billy)

April 17th, 2013

11:01

Faulkner County, Arkansas, has a whole lotta shakin' going on these days. Some of it is from the cash infusion brought on by the gold-rush like …

Fear on the Inside

April 17th, 2013

29:59

A week in the life of a woman trying to leave her physically-abusive husband. The documentary begins three days after Anna's estranged husband has threatened to kill her and their baby at gunpoint. Anna keeps an audio …

Scenes From a Transplant

April 17th, 2013

51:57

In November 1995, journalist Rebecca Perl was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. She learned had a tumor in her chest, six months after giving birth to a baby boy. Months of chemotherapy and radiation proved …

Life On the Outside

April 17th, 2013

29:32

The story of two chronically mentally ill, homeless repeat offenders as they attempt to break the cycle that, for years, has spun them from jail to psychiatric hospitals to the streets and back to jail again. The …

When All Else Fails

April 17th, 2013

21:19

"When All Else Fails" is a first-person account of a man undergoing electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), formerly known as electroshock. Rob MacGruder …

Learning to Live: James' Story

April 17th, 2013

28:47

"Learning to Live: James' Story" is the story of an ex-felon's transition from prison to the free world. James, who narrates, is 38 and has been in …

A Danger to Self or Others

April 17th, 2013

28:55

"A Danger to Self or Others" portrays everyday life inside Cook County Jail's Mental Health Division - the largest provider of mental health services in the United States. On any given day, there are 10,000 men and …

Public Housing Relocator

April 17th, 2013

8:48

Right now in Chicago, thousands of public housing residents are being forced to move as the Chicago Housing Authority systematically demolishes their …

Movin' Out the Bricks

April 17th, 2013

27:46

In the fall of 2002, Catherine Means was living on the tenth floor of what she describes as "hell" -- Chicago's Stateway Gardens high-rise housing project. In September, she finally got out from under the "bricks" at …

The House of Pain

April 17th, 2013

29:03

The House of Pain was the gang name for a ten-story high-rise at Stateway Gardens, the Chicago Housing Authority (CHA) development that once sat …

IVF: Suzanne's Story

April 17th, 2013

12:32

Each year, more than 100,000 women use some form of doctor-assisted artificial insemination to try to get pregnant. Suzanne is one of these women. She's single, in her mid-40s, and has been trying for two years to get …

Hospice Chronicles

April 17th, 2013

54:20

Over the course of eight months, Long Haul followed two hospice volunteers through their training and first assignments in patients' homes. Trained …

American Dreamer

April 17th, 2013

45:51

American schools teach students that with hard work, they can realize their dreams. But some kids do everything right, only to graduate from high …

Mom's Good Move (part 4)

April 17th, 2013

10:54

PART 4 of 4.

Whether they are forced to, or whether they plan to, each year more and more seniors move into retirement homes. In 2000, Peg Collison …

Mom's Good Move (part 3)

April 17th, 2013

11:28

PART 3 of 4.

Whether they are forced to, or whether they plan to, each year more and more seniors move into retirement homes. In 2000, Peg Collison …

Mom's Good Move (part 2)

April 17th, 2013

12:43

PART 2 of 4.

Whether they are forced to, or whether they plan to, each year more and more seniors move into retirement homes. In 2000, Peg Collison …

Mom's Good Move (part 1)

April 17th, 2013

12:57

PART 1 of 4.

Whether they are forced to, or whether they plan to, each year more and more seniors move into retirement homes. In 2000, Peg Collison …

Dear Birth Mother

April 17th, 2013

29:00

After waiting for Mr. Right – and after years of fertility treatments – Suzanne, a single woman in her forties, decided to adopt. She chose …

Autism Chronicles

April 17th, 2013

57:59

Most autism experts generally agree that early intervention beginning immediately after diagnosis can help a child conquer some of the most debilitating aspects of the disorder. Yet, society's approach when it comes to …

The Sad Decline of the Passenger Pigeon

April 17th, 2013

7:15

At one time, it was believed there were as many as five billion passenger pigeons in eastern North America. By the mid nineteenth century, their numbers began to decline sharply – killed by sportsman, commercial hunters …

Waterman

April 17th, 2013

5:16

Eastern Montana is a land of extremes. The mercury can swing from 50 degrees below zero in the winter to over 100 in the summer. A recent drought has made life even harder on people relying on water for their livelihood …

Journey of the Asian Carp

April 17th, 2013

9:35

This is the story of a good fish gone bad … an immigrant brought here with good intentions … a tasty fillet with a bad rap. A victim of stereotypes. …

Buffalo Commons

April 17th, 2013

20:16

Twenty years ago, academics Frank and Deborah Popper wrote what they thought would be a little-noticed, four page article subtitled "A Daring …

Birdathon!

April 17th, 2013

24:00

Every spring since 1989, bird lovers in Berrien County, Michigan (directly across the lake from Chicago), have taken part in a grueling competition to see which team can track down the largest number of species within a …

Nachusa Volunteers

April 17th, 2013

10:23

About twenty years ago, some locals got together with The Nature Conservancy to buy about 300 acres that was slated to become a subdivision near the town of Dixon, Illinois. Since then, Nachusa Grasslands has grown to …

Hogwash!

April 17th, 2013

20:32

Every year wild boar cause an estimated 1.8 billion dollars in damage to farms, lawns, and natural areas, primarily in the southern United States. …

Oh, Coqui!

April 17th, 2013

25:08

The coqui is the national symbol of Puerto Rico: a tiny, but vociferous tree frog that's a beloved part of the Puerto Rican soundscape, lulling …

Aunt Mary's Storybook Project

April 17th, 2013

5:08

For the past several years, detainees at Chicago's Cook County Jail have been reading to their kids. These parents in prison meet in one of the jail's small libraries, pick out a children's book and record it onto a …

Charles Lewis Jr: Juvenile Justice?

April 17th, 2013

17:14

Team Long Haul follows the sentencing of a boy in Lansing, Michigan, who was 13 years old at the time of a murder in which he took part and for which …

Execution Day: Huntsville, Texas

April 17th, 2013

21:48

On March 11, 1998, 47-year-old Jerry Lee Hogue was put to death for the 1979 arson-murder of an Arlington, Texas, woman. Unlike the lethal injection …

Huntsville Prison Blues

April 17th, 2013

9:32

Texas has the largest prison system in America, with more than 150,000 prisoners behind bars. The headquarters of the state's Department of Criminal Justice is in Huntsville, a small, conservative town that's home to …

The Port Chicago 50: An Oral History

April 17th, 2013

25:12

The story of the worst homefront disaster of World War II -- an ammunition explosion that killed more than 300 men -- and what happened to the 50 African-American men who refused to go back to work loading ammunition …

Regent, North Dakota: The Enchanted Highway

April 17th, 2013

28:34

North Dakota's population is shrinking dramatically – so much so that many counties there now meet the U.S. Census' definition of frontier land, much …

Branson, Missouri: Postcards

April 17th, 2013

29:00

Branson is home base for aging country and pop stars such as Mickey Gilley, Roy Clark, Wayne Newton, Tony Orlando, and Charlie Pride. With a …

Three Oaks, Michigan: Poet Laureate

April 17th, 2013

7:45

Throughout America, a growing number of communities have selected their own poet laureate. Among the smallest is Three Oaks, Michigan – population …

Three Oaks, Michigan: 2008 Obama Sign Thieves

April 17th, 2013

4:06

The presidential election of 2008 was particularly acrimonious in rural America. At Long Haul, we saw it first-hand in our own neighborhood when a …

Three Oaks, Michigan: Friday Night Bites

April 17th, 2013

11:16

The River Valley High Mustangs, in the southwest Michigan town of Three Oaks, lost eighteen football games in a row from 2003-2005. But it's not just the number of consecutive games the Mustangs lost, it's how soundly …

New England, North Dakota: Building a Community Grocery

April 17th, 2013

7:30

Usually, the opening of a grocery store in a small North Dakota town wouldn’t get our attention. But in 2007, in New England, ND -- which had been …

Mississippi: Catfish Culture

April 17th, 2013

26:17

From songs and literature, folklore and fishing, the catfish occupies a special place in American culture. It's also replaced cotton as the number …

Lockport, Illinois: The Roxy

April 17th, 2013

5:11

The Roxy, a private nightclub on the main drag in Lockport, Illinois, may be the only one of its kind in the nation. The club's sole clientele are …

LaPorte, Indiana: A Portrait Photographer's Legacy

April 17th, 2013

13:11

For more than 25 years, Frank Pease was the primary portrait photographer in LaPorte, Indiana - a town of about 20,000 just south of Lake Michigan. Starting in the mid-1940's, Pease took tens of thousands of black and …

Keysville, Georgia: Old Dreams in the New South

April 17th, 2013

29:02

On January 4, 1988, 63-year-old Emma Gresham became the first black mayor -- the first mayor in a half century -- of Keysville, Georgia, winning the …

Braddock, Pennsylvania: City of Magic

April 17th, 2013

24:25

"David Lynch goes into clean neighborhoods and finds the germs and bugs beneath; I go into dirty neighborhoods and find the life." That's how filmmaker Tony Buba describes his twelve documentaries about his hometown of …

Cheepers (baby bluebirds, day 16)

April 16th, 2013

0:14

Little narratives we crafted for the joy of it.

Catfish Handgrabbers

April 16th, 2013

6:22

The Harrington family explains how they catch gigantic catfish by hand on the Ross Barnett Reservoir in Mississippi. Produced in 1994.

Merry Christmas, Mr. Slickenmeyer!

April 16th, 2013

2:57

Usually when people dial the wrong number, it's pretty annoying. But, here at Long Haul, we're actually intrigued by these calls-gone-awry – as long …

Canary Song Trials

April 16th, 2013

8:29

Back in 1934, a group of eight women in Milton, Massachussetts gathered with a goal: to create an uniquely tuneful pet canary for American homes. …

Dovekie's DNA (Part Two)

April 16th, 2013

7:13

Part two of the story behind our mystery puppy – allegedly a Chocolate Lab/Golden Retriever mix -- as heard in 2011 on All Things Considered.

Dovekie's DNA (Part One)

April 16th, 2013

4:43

Part one of the story behind our mystery puppy – allegedly a Chocolate Lab/Golden Retriever mix -- as heard in 2011 on All Things Considered.

Soldiers of Production

April 16th, 2013

24:25

Oral histories of men and women who worked on the homefront in civilian industries -- shipbilding, textile manufacturing, the postal service -- during World War II. Produced in 1995.

Semi-pro Basketball Players: Omaha Racers

April 16th, 2013

11:51

A month with a minor league basketball team: trying to make the team and life on the road. Produced in 1997.

Blind Baseball Reporter: Craig Lynch

April 16th, 2013

6:26

Craig Lynch has been to thousands of Chicago Cubs games at Wrigley Field, and he's reported on hundreds more for a small Illinois radio station – but he's never actually seen a baseball game. Blind since birth, Craig is …

Baseball Scout

April 16th, 2013

6:41

A 1993 profile of veteran baseball scout Al Lamachia at work in Florida.

The Potato Ball Incident

April 16th, 2013

7:46

On August 31, 1987, one of baseball's most peculiar plays took place in the minor leagues in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. It was a variation of the …

Another Lousy Day

April 16th, 2013

17:35

A few years ago, Chicago writer David Kodeski found two diaries from 1960 and 1961 in a resale shop. The diaries' author, a single, working woman who …

Sweetheart's Ball

April 16th, 2013

4:10

When a partner dies, romance doesn't have to. Team Long Haul followed single seniors as they try to date again, beginning at the city of Chicago's …

Walking With My Father

April 16th, 2013

8:59

Charlie Rizzo’s dad died about twenty-five years ago, but he remains a constant presence in Charlie’s life. As a very young boy, Charlie’s mother and father split up, and Charlie’s mom took him to Los Angeles, leaving …

Sandhogs

April 16th, 2013

22:14

A look at the workers building City Water Tunnel #3, a project to add to the New York City water supply. Produced in 1994.

Salesman: Diamond Jimmy Roy, An Obituary

April 16th, 2013

3:53

An obituary for "Diamond" Jimmy Roy, who Long Haul originally profiled in 1999.

Diamond Jimmy Roy

April 16th, 2013

19:00

Once Jimmy Roy owned half the businesses in Braddock, Pennsylvania, a steel town just outside Pittsburgh. Braddock's decline paralleled Jimmy's; he now sells jewelry out of a family restaurant. But he's managed to …

Polish Immigrant House Cleaner: Barbara's Story

April 16th, 2013

18:46

Profile of an undocumented immigrant, working as a cleaner, trying to make her way in America. Produced in 1995.

Nuclear Weapons Disassemblers

April 16th, 2013

15:13

Once, workers at the Pantex weapons plant in Amarillo, Texas, built nuclear weapons -- now they dismantle them. Produced in 1994.

Lincoln Memorial Cleaner: James Hudson (with obituary)

April 16th, 2013

7:32

James Hudson, a National Park Service worker whose job included keeping the Lincoln Memorial clean, talks about what his job meant to him. This …

Junk Artist: Wes Bobo

April 16th, 2013

5:34

A profile of Wes Bobo, who turns collected junk and found objects into art and mechanical inventions. Produced in 1994.

Death Row Guards

April 16th, 2013

16:43

Prison guards working death row at Alabama's Holman Prison and Louisiana's Angola Prison talk about their work: what they do and how they feel about …

Coal Miners: Pittston Strike

April 16th, 2013

21:30

Vernon Short and Elwood Brannen, former coal miners in Southwest Virginia, talk about their work and recount mine explosions. Produced in 1993.

Children's Portrait Photographer

April 16th, 2013

8:02

Profile of people who work in family portrait studios during the holidays. Produced in 1992.

Catfish Taster

April 16th, 2013

5:00

Stanley Marshall, "supervisor of flavor" for Delta Pride Catfish, and how he decides just what catfish is good enough for Delta Pride. Produced in 1994.

Bible Salesman

April 16th, 2013

10:14

Former door-to-door Bible salesman Jim "The Rabbit" Baker, featured in the classic 1969 Maysles Brothers film "Salesman," explains the secrets of his now extinct occupation. Produced in 2000.

Barber: Red's Barber Shop

April 16th, 2013

4:50

A conversation between barber "Red" Swarz and one of his customers at Red's Barber shop in Braddock, Pennsylvania. Produced in 1993.

Bail Bondsman and Bounty Hunter

April 16th, 2013

13:24

A profile of Washington, D.C. bail bondsman Mardis Mitchell, and bounty hunter Robert Anderson.

(Produced in 1995)

Anjelica

April 16th, 2013

7:05

A profile of a young gang member in Detroit's Mexicantown neighborhood, who with the help of an after-school program, uses her passion for rap music …

Chicago: Life After Steel

April 16th, 2013

29:54

When the South Works steel mill shut down in the early 90's, it marked the end of "big steel" in the city of Chicago. A plant that had anchored the steel industry in Chicago, employing as many as 20,000 workers, was …

Washington, D.C. Riots: Then and Now

April 16th, 2013

25:53

The 1968 Washington, D.C. riots and the federal government's response altered the social and political climate of the nation's capitol. This portrait …

Chicago's Lincoln Avenue Motels

April 16th, 2013

11:03

Long before the expressways, travelers coming to Chicago from the north or northwest entered the city by way of Lincoln Avenue. Back then, Lincoln …

Chicago: Naloxone, Back From the Dead

April 16th, 2013

6:23

In the early 2000s, the Chicago Recovery Alliance, a group that works on the street with intravenous drug users, distributed Naloxone – a drug that's been used for years by paramedics and in hospital emergency rooms to …

Chicago: Meet Me at Unity Playlot

April 16th, 2013

15:08

An urban fable that tells how a once-scruffy park in Chicago' s Logan Square neighborhood fostered a movement that took on an entrenched incumbent …

Chicago: Maxey's Mansion

April 16th, 2013

26:38

Alva Maxey-Boyd defied race covenants, urban renewal bulldozers, and two Mayor Daleys, in a seven-decade battle to get and keep her gorgeous …

Chicago: Hog Butchers for the World

April 16th, 2013

28:23

A look at the history of Chicago's meatpacking industry and the formation of the Packinghouse Workers Union. Produced in 1993.

Winner: 1995 Edward R. Murrow Award (Radio-TV News Directors Association), 1994 National …

Loading ...

Are you the creator of this podcast?

Verify your account

and pick the featured episodes for your show.

Listen to Long Haul: Documentaries to Go!

RadioPublic

A free podcast app for iPhone and Android

  • User-created playlists and collections
  • Download episodes while on WiFi to listen without using mobile data
  • Stream podcast episodes without waiting for a download
  • Queue episodes to create a personal continuous playlist
RadioPublic on iOS and Android
Or by RSS
RSS feed
https://feeds.soundcloud.com/users/soundcloud:users:36930635/sounds.rss

Connect with listeners

Podcasters use the RadioPublic listener relationship platform to build lasting connections with fans

Yes, let's begin connecting
Browser window

Find new listeners

  • A dedicated website for your podcast
  • Web embed players designed to convert visitors to listeners in the RadioPublic apps for iPhone and Android
Clicking mouse cursor

Understand your audience

  • Capture listener activity with affinity scores
  • Measure your promotional campaigns and integrate with Google and Facebook analytics
Graph of increasing value

Engage your fanbase

  • Deliver timely Calls To Action, including email acquistion for your mailing list
  • Share exactly the right moment in an episode via text, email, and social media
Icon of cellphone with money

Make money

  • Tip and transfer funds directly to podcastsers
  • Earn money for qualified plays in the RadioPublic apps with Paid Listens