7 Minute Stories w/ Aaron Calafato
257 episodes - English - Latest episode: 1 day ago - ★★★★★ - 125 ratingsAward-winning storyteller Aaron Calafato uses 7-minute story vignettes to share his memories, explore his psyche and attempt to make sense of the world.
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Episodes
S3 E25: The Four Seasons: Winter
March 09, 2023 12:00 - 9 minutesIn this second installment of a four-part series: Aaron shares a Rockwellian guide for you to enjoy the changing of each season. This episode: Winter! Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E24: Over 200 Episodes!
March 02, 2023 12:00 - 8 minutesIn these 7 minutes, Cori comes to Aaron's rescue as he struggles with an episode where he can't tell a story. Special Guest: Cori Birce Story Direction: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E23: Special Guest Chayla Hope
February 23, 2023 12:00 - 10 minutesAaron takes 7 minutes to unpack the cocoon story of singer/pop artist Chayla Hope. Stream Chayla's debut album: Damn, Feelings https://www.chaylahope.com/ Special Guest: Chayla Hope Story Direction: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E22: The Red Balloon
February 16, 2023 12:00 - 10 minutesAaron calls upon a magic red balloon to help a friend in need... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E21: The Riddler
February 09, 2023 12:00 - 9 minutesA cryptic text from a delivery driver (The Riddler) ignites a mystery and turns Aaron & Cori’s evening into a Batman Comic Book. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke With your purchase of any 7MS merch item, you're ensuring Aaron's stories will remain free and open to the public. https://www.7minutestoriespod.com/merch
S3 E20: The Church with the Red Doors
February 02, 2023 12:00 - 9 minutesThe answer to whether Aaron would become a pastor lies somewhere behind these red doors... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E19: The Diagnosis
January 26, 2023 12:00 - 9 minutesMy friend Juan got a phone call that would change everything, and when he hung up, he had to prepare to fight for his life. Original Story by Juan Caminero Story Direction: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E18: The High School Reunion
January 19, 2023 12:00 - 9 minutesIn these 7 Minutes, Aaron makes his first appearance at a High School class reunion. It doesn't go as expected... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E17: The Dandelion Salad
January 12, 2023 12:00 - 11 minutesAaron’s grandfather never would have thought this little story about growing up during the depression would reach tens of millions of people around the globe. Story Created & Performed by: Aaron Calafato Original Story Told by: Joseph Collier (Calafato) Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E16: The Man and the Birds
December 22, 2022 12:00 - 8 minutesIt’s a Christmas tradition on 7MS. Aaron recites a story popularized by the radio legend Paul Harvey. Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E15: The Story Behind 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'
December 15, 2022 12:00 - 10 minutesIn this episode, Aaron invites you to join him as he examines the story behind the original lyrics of the popular holiday song 'Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas'. Lyric guide for this episode: https://www.7minutestoriespod.com/lyricguide Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E14: The Snowman
December 08, 2022 15:10 - 10 minutesIn this 7 minutes, Aaron revisits a very special snowman from his youth. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E13: So God Made a Farmer
December 01, 2022 12:00 - 12 minutesIn this episode, Aaron pays tribute to his late cousin with the retelling of this popular speech. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E12: Sunday Mass
November 24, 2022 12:00 - 9 minutesAaron races to Sunday Mass to meet his grandmother, and as usual, gets more than he bargained for. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E11: The Violinist
November 17, 2022 12:00 - 10 minutesIn this 7 Minutes, Aaron tells the tale of how he became the Milli Vanilli of his youth orchestra. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E10: The Heartbeat
November 10, 2022 12:00 - 9 minutesIn this 7 Minute Story, Aaron tells the story about how his future wife Cori captured his heart... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E9: Disclosure
November 03, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesAaron explores the making of a miraculous film called Disclosure - A student film that turned Aaron and his high school friends into movie stars. Okay, maybe not movie stars, but what they did learn was life-changing. *Today's story reference Jay Ellison, Aaron's longtime friend, and current film industry professional. Learn more about Jay and his company at https://shadowcastpictures.com/ Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Co...
S3 E8: Something's Wrong with this Haunted House
October 27, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesCori and Aaron talk about Halloween and a haunted house that's gone too far. Story Created & Performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music & Sound Design: thomas j. duke
S3 E7: The Four Seasons: Autumn
October 20, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesIn this first of a four-part series: Aaron, Thomas J. Duke, and the 7MS team create a Rockwellian guide for you to enjoy the changing of each season. This episode: Autumn! Story Created & Performed by: Aaron Calafato Original Music & Sound Design: thomas j. duke Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead
S3 E6: The Story That Got 1 Million Views
October 13, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesAaron tells a story that gets millions on YouTube & is proven wrong about something in the process. Follow Aaron on YouTube Shorts https://bit.ly/3fRBCBd Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E5: The Chinese Restaurant
October 06, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesAaron learns a lot more than he expected when he gets a job as a cook at a Chinese Restaurant owned by an Iraqi-American family. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E4: Living the Dream
September 29, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesThe sound of wind chimes sends Aaron on a surreal journey through a profound dream and a mind-bending bike ride. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Sarah Drago Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E3: Take your space
September 22, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesFind out how Aaron unwillingly became a pawn in an office takeover. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E2: The Wave
September 15, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesWhat will Aaron do when he comes face to face with The Wave? Join us for a tale of survival and growing up too fast. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Music: thomas j. duke
S3 E1: Take your shirt off!
September 08, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesWelcome to the Season 3 premiere of 7 Minute Stories! In this episode, Aaron tests the limits of how far he will go for fame... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Senior Audio Engineer: Ken Wendt Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Art: Pete Whitehead Music: thomas j. duke
S2 E40: Season 3 Preview
August 11, 2022 11:00 - 8 minutesAaron couldn't wait until September 8th for the 7MS Season 3 premiere. So, he jumped into the recording closet to say hello and preview the upcoming season.
S2 E39: Season Finale: The Prayer
June 09, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesAt some point in most of our lives, we have this conversation with the unknown. Talk to you in September for Season 3 of 7 Minute Stories! Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce
S2 E38: Prejudice Against Italians?
June 02, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesAn unexpected visitor came to my house on a Sunday afternoon and you won't believe what he said. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce
S2 E37: Say Anything w/ Cori Birce
May 26, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesThis week, my fiance Cori Birce gives her take on the classic movie Say Anything. Episode Direction by: Aaron Calafato & Rob Montague Special Guest: Cori Birce Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Music: thomas j. duke Additional Vocals: Cori Birce More on Cori Birce and her voiceover work https://www.coribirce.com/
S2 E36: The Toxic Decades w/ Rob Montague
May 19, 2022 11:00 - 11 minutesA continuation of last week's story. This week, filmmaker Rob Montague talks about the toxic elements of 80s and 90s pop culture. Here's a clip supplemental clip from the movie "Sixteen Candles" to give more context to Rob's take in this episode. https://youtu.be/Oxo7F75kd6w Episode Direction by: Aaron Calafato & Rob Montague Special Guest: Rob Montague Audio Production: Ken Wendt Additional Vocals: Cori Birce
S2 E35: She looked like Alicia Keys
May 12, 2022 11:00 - 11 minutesI've always considered myself a romantic but how much of this quality is truly my own? And/or how much of it is just a product of watching 80s & 90s rom coms and high school dramas? In today's episode, I'll tell you a story about one of these "romantic gestures" and I’ll let you be the judge. Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Story co-creator & additional vocals: Rob Montague Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: thomas j. duke Additional Vocals: Cori Bi...
S2 E34: Halley's Comet
May 05, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesIn 1986, a famous comet became the steward of one of my most precious memories. Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl http://joinfishbowl.com/7ms
S2 E33: The Blue Plastic Bag
April 28, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesThe terrifying but meaningful journey of a blue plastic grocery bag. Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl http://joinfishbowl.com/7ms
S2 E32: Vince Carter featuring Joe Leo
April 21, 2022 11:00 - 11 minutesWhat do you do when you have a chance to meet your hero? My friend Joe Leo faced that exact situation when he found himself on the same basketball court as NBA All-Star Vince Carter. Episode and Story Direction by: Aaron Calafato Special Guest: Joe Leo Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl https://fishbowlapp.com/7ms
S2 E31: The CM Punk Difference w/ Chris Maffei
April 14, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesChris Maffei, Podcast Production Manager for Hatch.fm, shares the reason why he wanted to be CM Punk growing up. Episode Direction by: Aaron Calafato Special Guest: Chris Maffei Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl https://joinfishbowl.com/7MS
S2 E30: Wrestling is a Love Story
April 07, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesMy love letter to professional wrestling... Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl https://www.fishbowlapp.com/7ms
S2 E29: 7 Minutes of Contemplation
March 31, 2022 11:00 - 9 minutesThings would be better if we were less reactive and more contemplative. 7MS Created by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Music: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl
S2 E28: Stand-up
March 24, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesEvery journey is made up of a million little moments, but there's usually one domino moment that makes the whole thing possible. Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Season 2 of 7MS is made possible by Fishbowl http://joinfishbowl.com/7ms
S2 E27: Room Service
March 17, 2022 11:00 - 10 minutesSometimes if you have big dreams, you have to do weird jobs. Today, I’ll take you inside the star-studded world of doing room service at a Holiday Inn off the Jersey Parkway. Season 2 of 7 Minute Stories is made possible by Fishbowl http://joinfishbowl.com/7ms Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce
S2 E26: Emails to the Other Side
March 10, 2022 12:00 - 11 minutesTen years after my grandfather passed away, I decided to send him an email on the other side... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Additional Vocals: Cori Birce
S2 E25: The Address Book
March 03, 2022 12:00 - 10 minutesThere is a place where faded memories and forgotten people live forever. In this episode, we examine an ancient text called: The Address Book. Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce This episode is brought to you by Fishbowl http://joinfishbowl.com/7ms Merch & more at https://www.7minutestoriespod.com/merch
S2 E24: VR Storytelling with Elijah Allan-Blitz
February 24, 2022 17:31 - 8 minutesIn this special guest episode, award-winning director Elijah Allan Blitz talks about the transformative power of Virtual Reality storytelling. Special Guest: Elijah Allan Blitz Story Direction: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Music Contributor: thomas j. duke Vocals and Coordination: Cori Birce Photo: Michael Muller
S2 E23: The Bed & Breakfast Redux
February 17, 2022 12:00 - 16 minutesLast year Cori & Aaron booked a stay at a bed & breakfast, but they didn't count on it being haunted. In this special episode, we present both Part 1 & 2 of this story together. Story Direction: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Music: Nature Camp Vocals and Coordination: Cori Birce Creative Consultant: Anthony Vorndran
S2 E22: Dr. Mann
February 10, 2022 12:00 - 10 minutesI didn't think I could relate to an astronaut stranded on a foreign planet in another galaxy. However, it ends up we may have more in common than I thought. In this episode, we explore the intergalactic adventures of Dr. Mann. Story performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Additional Vocals: Cori Birce Story Consultant: Anthony Vorndran
S2 E21: Warheads
February 03, 2022 12:00 - 9 minutesSome wars never seem to end. This one has been going on for nearly 30 years...
S2 E20: Mrs. Brown
January 27, 2022 12:00 - 10 minutesA story for all the elementary teachers out there, and one in particular, who literally helped shape the direction of my life. From Jan-27 thru Feb-27 - One hundred percent of proceeds from 7MS Merch go to benefit Ella Canavan Elementary PTO in honor of Mrs. Brown. https://www.7minutestoriespod.com/merch Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Original Music Composition & Performance: thomas j. duke Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Podcast Coordinator: Cori Bir...
S2 E19: The Date
January 20, 2022 12:00 - 8 minutesGeorge is on his way to the most important date of his life with Marie. The only problem is, no matter how long he drives, he can never seem to get there… This week on a new 7 Minute Stories our team presents our first-ever audio drama. It’s titled “The Date”. Story written by: Aaron Calafato Characters George: Aaron Calafato Female Narrator: Cori Birce Officer Sterling: Ken Wendt Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Original Music: Aaron Calafato Podcast Coordinat...
S2 E18: The Brick Walkway
January 13, 2022 12:00 - 9 minutesI didn't know Doril Tetrick well, but I do know he was my grandfather and we built something together... Story created & performed by: Aaron Calafato Audio Production: Ken Wendt Original Art: Pete Whitehead Music Contributor: thomas j. duke Podcast Coordinator: Cori Birce Creative Consultant: Anthony Vorndran
S2 E17: Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas feat Frank Ivy
December 25, 2021 12:00 - 9 minutesMerry Christmas! Enjoy this classic rendition by Frank Ivy. Podcast Tile by Wunderul Design
S2 E16: The Man and the Birds, a Christmas Tradition
December 23, 2021 12:00 - 8 minutesA 7MS Christmas Tradition. A story by an unnamed author titled The Man and the Birds.