Is This Heaven? No, It’s Iowa and NPR’s Danielle Kurtzleben Talking Field of Dreams

Is This Heaven? No, It’s Iowa and NPR’s Danielle Kurtzleben Talking Field of Dreams

June 17, 2026 · 39 min · Episode 175

About this episode

Danielle Kurtzleben discusses her love for the movie Field of Dreams and its connection to her Iowa roots.

We have to imagine that the life of an NPR White House Correspondent does not consistently feel relaxed, homey, sentimental, and warm. But you know what does? Field of Dreams, the 1989 Kevin Costner movie about an Iowa farmer with a field overrun by baseball ghosts. Danielle Kurtzleben, a White House Correspondent for NPR, is from Titonka, Iowa (population 491) and has probably seen the movie eleventy squillion times. She can quote large portions of the dialogue and proved it in our interview by reciting James Earl Jones’ “They will come” monologue in her most sonorous NPR voice. You’ll be asleep soon. By the way, do baseball ghosts sleep? Are there bunk beds out in the corn fields? Am I overthinking this?

People in this episode

Host: John Moe

Guest: Danielle Kurtzleben

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NPR

Books & works: Field of Dreams

Places: Iowa, Titonka

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