PODCAST · arts
Telling Twain
by Steve Daut
These are some of Mark Twain's best short stories, adapted and told by Steve Daut. Episodes include historical notes and comments from Steve's book, Telling Twain, available through Amazon. To learn more about Steve, visit www.stevedaut.com Steve's storytelling program, also entitled Telling Twain, is currently listed in the Michigan Arts and Humanities Council travel directory. Special online presentations can be arranged by emailing me through [email protected]
Episodes
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The Facts in the Great Beef Contract
This story, first published in 1870, is refreshing in a way, because it demonstrates very clearly that a dysfunctional government bureaucracy has been with us for a long time, yet, we have managed to survive so far. So the next time you spend countless hours trying to straighten out an incorrect...
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A Curious Dream
In this humorous but thought-provoking story, Twain reminds us to respect and honor those who have gone before. This is a adaptation is from a story Twain probably wrote around 1870, and was first published in 1875 in the volume, "Sketches New and Old". Music from FreePD.com includes "Footsteps…
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Mrs McWilliams and the Lightning
This is one of three stories that Twain claimed was told to him by a man he met on his travels, Mr. McWilliams. I suspect the stories are homage to a couple he was friends with while he worked at the Buffalo Express.
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The Salesmans Tale
This story was originally called The Canvasser's Tale, was first published in 1876. I changed the name because in today's language, we would call the man Twain encounters a travelling salesman, as we reserve the term canvasser mainly for get-out-the-vote types. Frankly, it seems to me that the...
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Experience of the McWilliamses With Membraneous Coup
This is one of three stories Twain wrote about the McWilliamses. He claimed that they were told to him by Mr. McWilliams, who he encountered on his travels, but it seems more likely to me that the stories were written in homage to friends who lived in the same boarding house as Twain when he was...
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A Fable
This story was first published in 1909. As one of Twain's later stories, it was tightly written, and it is also very reminiscent of the folk tale genre that he was emulating. In fact, it sounds do much like an actual folk tale, that I tried to find one that inspired it, but I couldn't find…
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A Medieval Romance
A convoluted European folktale with a particularly Twain twist at the end. Originally published in 1870 as The Awful, Terrible, Medieval Romance, Shakespeare would probably have appreciated this one.
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The Professors Yarn
This story was originally part of Twain's book, Life on the Mississippi. It's a story that takes me back to my childhood growing up on the Mississippi River, riding the Delta Queen and watching episodes of Maverick. It's a classic tale of riverboat life.
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Editing an Agricultural Paper
This story was first published in Galaxy Magazine and the Buffalo Express. Although it is certainly fiction, it is also very likely that it is based on arguments that he had with his partners at the Buffalo Express about increasing circulation versus staying strictly with journalistic accuracy.…
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My Watch
In this story, first published in 1870, Twain talks about his travails with getting a watch fixed that didn't need fixing. I have told this in front of various audiences and quickly discovered that I needed to explain what it was like to have a pocket watch in an era when there was no place to…
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The Killing of Julius Caesar
The Killing of Julius Caesar was first published in a compilation of stories, and is Twain's little exercise in imagining what it would be like to be a reporter in ancient Rome, writing about Caesar's murder. Not wholly successful, so I have tried to modify it to make it less complicated (and...
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Captain Stormfield's Visit to Heaven
Twain claimed that the original version of this story was his satiric counterpoint to The Gates Ajar, by Elizabeth Stuart Ward. It pokes fun at the absurd contradictions we carry about the nature of what Heaven is like. This adaptation is based on the revised version that was published in 1909.
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One Little Tale
This story is my adaptation of Twain's story entitled Two Little Tales. The original is a story within a story, but it seems to me that the "outer" story that wraps around the other one actually distracts from the message of the inner story, so I got rid of it, leaving me with One Little Tale. I...
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Running for Governor
This story is pure Twain, full of sardonic humor and dry wit. It is a telling statement of the nature of political campaigns, and manages to be a refreshing reminder that the squabbling we experience today have long been a part of politics in America.
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Five Boons of Life
This is a minor adaptation of a dark and pessimistic story by Twain. It was written during a time when his wife, Libby, was dying and he was beginning to think about writing his autobiography. The story almost seems like a short autobiography itself, at a dark and hopeless time in Twain's life.
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Some Learned Fables For Good Old Boys and Girls
This is one of the more complex episodes in the series. Twain's original was written in multiple parts, and the connection between them is not always consistent, so it took a fair amount of adaptation. On the others hand, it was great fun to put it all together with voices and sound effects!
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Political Economy
In trying to write an essay on political economy, Twain is interrupted repeatedly by a lightning rod salesman. In trying to dispatch the interruption quickly without looking foolish, Twain just makes things worse . . . . and worse . . . . and worse . . . .
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A Ghost Story
A Ghost Story was first published in an 1875 volume entitled Sketches New and Old. The inspiration for the story has been called "The greatest hoax every perpetuated on the American people". This episode contains both Twain's story and the true story that inspired it.
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Arguing With a Raven
An excerpt from A Tramp Abroad that was published to promote that book in the Cincinnati Daily Star
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The Facts in the Great Landslide Case
An 1860's courtroom drama. Absurd as it sounds, it may have actually happened!
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The Thirty Thousand Dollar Bequest
The Fosters have come into an unexpected bequest from a relative they didn't know existed. Is it a blessing or a curse? This is a modern, condensed adaptation of Twain's story, originally published in 1904. Adapted and narrated by Steve Daut.
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The McWilliamses and the Burglar Alarm
Twain's struggle with cutting edge technology, circa 1880.
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The Wild Man Interviewed
One of Twain's darkest stories, with some disturbing recent events included to underscore the power of the story. The original version of this story was published in the September 18, 1869 issue of the Buffalo Express.
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Journalism in Tennessee
Steve Daut's adaptation of a Mark Twain slapstick story about Fake News and the battles of journalism. For you sensitive souls out there, some violence is depicted in this episode.
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Curing a Cold
Mark Twain's unique approach to curing a cold, first published in the May 42, 1867 edition of the Marshall County Republican
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The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County
This is an adaptation of Mark Twain's first and best known short story, about a man with a very special frog.
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
These are some of Mark Twain's best short stories, adapted and told by Steve Daut. Episodes include historical notes and comments from Steve's book, Telling Twain, available through Amazon. To learn more about Steve, visit www.stevedaut.com
Steve's storytelling program, also entitled Telling Twain, is currently listed in the Michigan Arts and Humanities Council travel directory. Special online presentations can be arranged by emailing me through [email protected]
HOSTED BY
Steve Daut
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Telling Twain have?
Telling Twain currently has 27 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Telling Twain about?
These are some of Mark Twain's best short stories, adapted and told by Steve Daut. Episodes include historical notes and comments from Steve's book, Telling Twain, available through Amazon. To learn more about Steve, visit www.stevedaut.com Steve's storytelling program, also entitled Telling Twain,...
How often does Telling Twain release new episodes?
Telling Twain has 27 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Telling Twain?
You can listen to Telling Twain on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Telling Twain?
Telling Twain is created and hosted by Steve Daut.
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