This American Life, Season 2 Premiere

By Tim State in News on May 3, 2008 3:20PM

High school students who ride horses in the streets of Philadelphia. An Iraqi who takes to the streets of Savannah to talk to Americans about the war. The life story of people named John Smith. These are some of the stories that will unfold in second season of the TV version of This American Life when it premieres on Showtime Sunday night.

Thursday night, in a live performance simulcast to movie theaters across the country, executive producer and host Ira Glass and TV show director Chris Wilcha talked about the new season. While viewers can expect the same quirky stories, Glass and Wilcha explored a new storytelling technique: no narration, let the characters and visuals tell the story. Is it the influence of New York? Is TAL moving away from its Chicago roots? While the clips previewed were beautiful, elegant, and simple, hardcore TAL fanatics who found the foray into the world of television a bit unnerving will not be comforted by this latest evolution. Still, unlike most everything else on television, the show is worth tuning into.

This American Life will premiere Season 2 at 9 p.m. on Sunday on Showtime. Shows will also be available for purchase in the iTunes store.