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Infertility doctor secretly fathered dozens of children: how strangers became family episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 19, 2026 · 34 MIN

Infertility doctor secretly fathered dozens of children: how strangers became family

from Up First from NPR · host Jodiveb

What defines a family? For a group of strangers, that question took on a profound, unexpected meaning after DNA tests revealed a hidden, decades-old deception. They discovered they were all half-siblings conceived through artificial insemination in the mid-20th century. Their biological father was not the man who raised them, but Dr. Charles Charny, a Philadelphia fertility specialist. In this week's episode of The Sunday Story, Frank Langfitt follows this unique family as they piece together their strange creation tale and decide to become a family. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy 🔗 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: 📩 Get the full transcript and daily news alerts: 👉 https://goo.su/rXoU5U8 👈 📌 Support the show by visiting our sponsors and partners. 🎧 New episodes every morning at 6 AM ET.

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Jul 19, 2026

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Infertility doctor secretly fathered dozens of children: how strangers became family

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