Imagined Life

Last updated
Imagined Life
Imagined Life podcast Logo.jpeg
Podcast art for Imagined Life
Presentation
Hosted byVirginia Madsen, Robbie Daymond
GenreBiography
FormatSecond-person narrative
LanguageEnglish
Length40–50 Minutes
Production
No. of seasons3
No. of episodes48
Publication
Original releaseNovember 4, 2018 
present
Provider Wondery
Related
Website Imagined Life – Wondery

Imagined Life is a podcast produced by Wondery and hosted by Virginia Madsen and Robbie Daymond. [1] The podcast presents biographies of famous people in an unusual format. The first episode premiered on November 4, 2018 and 48 episodes have been produced by the end of the third season. [2] Imagined Life won the 2018 podcast award by online publication Quartz in the categories "Best podcast on the human condition" and "Best new podcast". [3] The podcast will be developed into a TV documentary series by Universal Content Productions. [4]

Contents

Format

Each episode tells the life-story of one famous person. The subjects often include entertainers, political leaders, businessmen or sportsmen. An episode begins with a dramatic unresolved moment in the person's life, before going through the biography of the person in chronological order. The life events are presented in a dramatized way with reenactments of conversations. [5]

The defining feature of "Imagined Life" is its second-person narration. Listeners are invited to imagine themselves being the famous person, although the person's identity is not revealed until the end. [6] Identifying characteristics, such as gender, profession or country of origin, are intentionally omitted in the beginning and only gradually revealed among with other "clues" as the episode progresses. The creators describe this format as "second person biographical guessing game". [7] Each episode ends with a reveal of the subject and recommended further reading.

The podcast also produces shorter episodes labeled as "Imagined Life Family" that cater to younger listeners, or for families to listen to together.

Episodes

#Title [2] DateSubjectRecommended reading
1The OutsiderNovember 4, 2018
Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future
2The DaydreamerNovember 4, 2018None
3The PerformerNovember 11, 2018None
4The BrideNovember 18, 2018None
5The WarriorNovember 25, 2018
  • Ali: A Life
  • The Greatest - My Own Story
6The TrailbrazerDecember 2, 2018None
7The AdvocateDecember 9, 2018
Podcast "Ellen on the go"
8The ChameleonDecember 16, 2018
  • My Life So Far
  • Jane Fonda: The Private Life of a Public Woman
  • Jane Fonda in Five Acts
  • Jane Fonda's Original Workout Series
9The PerfectionistDecember 23, 2018None
10The OfficerJanuary 13, 2019
  • The New Tsar: The Rise and Reign of Vladimir Putin
  • The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin
11The CommonerJanuary 27, 2019None
12The WinnerFebruary 3, 2019None
13The EverymanFebruary 17, 2019
  • Never Grow Up
  • I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action
14The AchieverFebruary 24, 2019None
15The StudentMarch 10, 2019None
16The Grown-UpMarch 17, 2019
  • Wlidflower
  • Drew Barrymore: The Biography
17The MisfitMarch 31, 2019None
18The EntertainerFebruary 24, 2019None
19The TravellerApril 14, 2019None
20The FirecrackerApril 21, 2019
  • Reba: My Story
  • Comfort from a Country Quilt
21The LoverSeptember 6, 2019
Death in a Prairie House: Frank Lloyd Wright and the Taliesin Murders
22The BallerinaSeptember 13, 2019None
23The CaptiveSeptember 20, 2019None
24The PassengerSeptember 27, 2019None
25The TroublemakerOctober 4, 2019
Here Comes Trouble: Stories from My Life
26The RejectOctober 11, 2019None
27The ModelOctober 18, 2019None
28The EccentricOctober 25, 2019
Mockingbird: A Portrait of Harper Lee
29The LoudmouthNovember 1, 2019
I'm the One That I Want
30The PatronNovember 8, 2019None
31The SearcherNovember 15, 2019None
32The WannabeNovember 22, 2019
33The HandlerNovember 29, 2019
  • Jim Henson: The Biography
  • Imagination Illustrated: The Jim Henson Journal
34The HotheadDecember 6, 2019
  • The Rock Says...
  • Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson: The Life, Lessons & Rules for Success
35The PioneerDecember 13, 2019None
36The WidowDecember 20, 2019None
37The WorkhorseApril 3, 2020None
38The SurvivorApril 10, 2020
  • All In a Lifetime
  • Ask Dr. Ruth
39The IdealistApril 17, 2020
Permanent Record
40The ExileApril 24, 2020
Princess Noire: The Tumultuous Reign of Nina Simone
41The WandererMay 1, 2020
The Big Sea
42The FugitiveMay 8, 2020
Marilyn in Manhattan: Her Year of Joy
43The CaretakerMay 22, 2020
"Personal History" by Katharine Graham
44The DreamerMay 29, 2020None
45The OrphanJune 5, 2020None
46The Secret AgentJune 12, 2020
Roald Dahl: A Biography
47The StriverJune 19, 2020None
48The SoloistJune 26, 2020
  • "Wham! George & Me"
  • George: A Memory of George Michael

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References

  1. "Imagined Life". Wondery. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  2. 1 2 "Imagined Life". ART19. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  3. Wolfson, Elijah (23 December 2018). "The best podcasts (and podcast episodes) of 2018". Quartz. Retrieved 17 August 2020.
  4. Porter, Rick (2020-09-02). "Seth MacFarlane, Jim Henson Company Land Unscripted Projects at UCP". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
  5. Jackman, Robert (2 July 2020). "Why haven't podcasts cracked the recipe for audio drama?". Spectator. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  6. Soltes, John (2018-12-12). "INTERVIEW: New Wondery podcast keeps audience guessing until the end". Hollywood Soapbox. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
  7. Chhetri, Priyam. "'Imagined Life' is changing podcasts as we know it, Wondery's chief content officer Marshall Lewy explains how". MEA WorldWide. Retrieved 16 August 2020.