I Couldn’t Throw It Out
Revisit pop culture history as former People Magazine reporter Michael Small and guests share never-heard celebrity interviews and other treasures they've saved for decades -- as they try to toss their stuff. Will it be an epic case of Swedish Death Cleaning? Or an epic fail?
Episodes
41 episodes
Olympics Outtake? The Treasure Toss
Craving more Olympics? I Couldn't Throw It Out has staged its own world-class event: The Treasure Toss.In our first mini-episode, photographer and collage artist Joyce Seymore commits to the daring feat of throwing out an artwork a...
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Season 3
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Episode 39
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7:55
What a much-loved partner left behind
Janny Scott explains how saving things helped her grieve – and preserve her connection with journalist Joseph Lelyveld ---------------When someone you love dies, the grieving process is different for each of us. But one...
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Season 3
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Episode 38
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36:56
Happy Ending! A Violinist's Dream Comes True
You heard how I smashed violins as kid (in a previous episode). Hear how I saved one as an adult.-----These days, we all could use a story with a happy ending, right?Well, here's one that answers the question: What ever hap...
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Season 3
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Episode 37
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33:41
Salt-N-Pepa: We Talked About Sex
1991 flashback: Hear candid talk about female rappers, obscenity, sexism, and more with Salt-N-Pepa, 2025's newest members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame -----------When I interviewed Salt-N-Pepa for my 1992 book ...
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Season 3
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Episode 36
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53:39
Swedish Death Cleaning - A global challenge?
The director and cast of the TV series Waack Girls (Amazon Prime) explain why saving stuff is so common in India, and around the world--------------If you ever suspected that an obsession with saving things is a mostly American ha...
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Season 3
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Episode 35
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39:15
Carl Sagan and Stormy Daniels: Workplace gems?
Treasures saved from past jobs spark memories of a scientist, a porn star, The Pet Shop Boys, The Partridge Family, and long-lost websites-------------------------------Man, do we ever spend a lot of time at work. That's one...
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Season 3
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Episode 34
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50:50
Nicolas Cage goes wild? Yes, and no. Hear him in 1994
Nic Cage delivers another explosive performance in the new movie "The Surfer." But the actor I interviewed was somebody else.----------When I talked with Nicolas Cage on the phone for an hour in 1994, he already had a bit of a rep...
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Season 3
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Episode 33
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57:45
The Lost Interview: Led Zeppelin’s Page and Plant
Hear my never-shared 1995 talk with Jimmy Page and Robert Plant about their music, books, diets, girlfriends, hair loss, Led Zeppelin myths, and their Unledded reunion-----If you find it hard to visualize Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page...
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Season 3
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Episode 32
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1:14:25
Sending a Valentine's Day card? 10 rules to follow
Learn a lesson from the Valentine’s Day cards I’ve saved since the ‘70s: 10 important rules for sending cards to the ones you love, and tips for deciding which love notes to save-----If you’re sending Valentine’s Day cards this ye...
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Season 3
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Episode 31
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29:55
How Keith Haring Changed Art: Hear Him in '83
His graffiti in NYC subways made him a world-wide art star before his death at 31. Hear my 1983 interview as Haring answers his critics, plus: a chat about Keith with Andy Warhol Even if you don’t know one artist since Michelange...
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Season 2
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Episode 30
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58:36
Christmas Gifts and Hanukkah Cards: Toss or keep?
Get out the holiday treasures you’ve saved for years, and join us as we decide why we kept them and what to do with them.---------Attention holiday revelers! Are you someone who just can’t let go of Christmas and Hanukkah gifts fr...
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Season 2
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Episode 29
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45:21
Listen up! A Violin Lesson With Strings Attached
Inheriting a violin is wonderful. But what if it comes with instructions that it must be played? And you resorted to violence as a kid to get out of playing? Then what?-------------- If you’re lucky enough to inherit so...
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Season 2
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Episode 28
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57:27
Kooky reunion: 67-year-olds perform their 5th grade play
Does a 1967 elementary school magazine -- or a fifth grade school play -- still have value? Only if you’re looking for lost memories, new insights, and hilarity- - - - - - - - - Somewhere in your home, you might have saved a...
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Season 2
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Episode 27
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1:00:29
Ice-T: Never-heard 1991 interview
Hear the rapper and actor talk about crime, Hollywood, racism, and more -- before he was a Law & Order SVU detective and just after he created the metal band Body Count---------In 1991, Ice-T had just appeared in the movie Ne...
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Season 2
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Episode 27
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1:08:13
Scary! Stephen King and Peter Straub's lost interview
When I interviewed Stephen King and Peter Straub in 1984 about their fantasy novel The Talisman, their book was breaking records for hardcover sales. But the fame of their collaboration has faded over the years.Most people recognize Kin...
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Season 2
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Episode 26
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1:13:23
Love, Mom: Mother's Day advice from a 98-year-old mom
The best way to honor your mother -- on Mother's Day or any other day? We wanted to figure that out. So we got expert advice from family and friends, including 98-year-old Barbara Welsh, mother-to-be Emily Libby, the Von Klem...
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Season 2
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Episode 25
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42:51
Adults and stuffed animals: Can we bear to part?
Some of us just can't toss our furry friends from childhood. And we're not talking about a cute new collection of plushies. We're talking about stuffed animals with some history, saved for decades till fur and eyes are missing. Why do we ...
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Season 2
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Episode 24
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45:14
Memories of Melanie: A friend shares fun times with the singer
When singer/songwriter Melanie Safka died in January, many people remembered her for the #1 pop song "Brand New Key" (also known as the roller skate song.) But those of us who loved her know that her biggest hit never conveyed the richness of h...
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Season 2
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Episode 23
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1:01:22
The Funniest Movie You Never Saw
Why should you watch Eli Wallach and Anne Jackson in 1967's long-lost-comic gem The Tiger Makes Out?The surprise reason: After 50 years when you couldn't watch it anywhere, we just discovered that you can stream it for free.
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Season 2
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Episode 22
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49:49
Swedish Death Cleaning: Meet the World's Experts
Welcome to the invasion of the most entertaining people in Sweden -- who want all of us earthlings to start thinking about... death. Yup, it sounds kooky. But, in this episode, we have a blast absorbing the wit and wisdom of three e...
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Season 2
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Episode 21
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52:09
Olympic Figure Skating: Meg's Rink-side Adventures
Covering live Olympic figure skating on TV is no easy task. Just ask Meg Streeter Lauck, who worked for 23 years as a director for ABC Sports and other networks. Her behind-the-scenes tales -- which she shares in this episode -- rev...
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Season 2
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Episode 20
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50:48
Diana Ross: Three Crazy New York Nights
How fun was VIP access to Diana's '80s concerts? Very -- if you liked chatting with Andy Warhol, stalking Richard Gere, and dancing with Diana on a party boat at 1:30 AM
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Season 2
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Episode 19
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48:42
Theresa Rebeck on Her Broadway Play, I Need That
With Danny DeVito and his daughter Lucy starring in her play about our favorite topic, Theresa tells us how she cast them, why she wrote it, what she saves, and what she tosses
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Season 2
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Episode 18
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35:58
