The Apology Line

by Wondery
7,295
True Crime #217

If you could call a number and say you’re sorry, and no one would know…what would you apologize for? For fifteen years, you could call a number in Manhattan and do just that. This is the story of the line, and the man at the other end who became consumed by his own creation. He was known as “Mr. Apology.” As thousands of callers flooded the line, confessing to everything from shoplifting to infidelity, drug dealing to murder, Mr. Apology realized he couldn’t just listen. He had to do something, even if it meant risking everything. From Wondery the makers of Dr. Death and The Shrink Next Door, comes a story about empathy, deception and obsession. Marissa Bridge, who knew Mr. Apology better than anyone, hosts this six episode series.

Listen to The Apology Line ad-free on Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting wondery.com/links/the-apology-line/ now.

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Recent Reviews
  • Mrw3738
    Best Listen in a While
    Ok, so it may not be fully true crime, but as someone who listens to pretty much exclusively that- this was such an interesting story and I am so happy I chose to listen. It’s a story about art, New York in the 80’s, and all of the interesting people who called the line, but even more about the man behind the machine. So good. Sad it’s over TBH.
  • blondie4012
    Not really a true crime…
    This isn’t really a true crime. But it is very intriguing and interesting story of a man’s life and his unique social experiment from the person who loved him most.
  • Erkhhj
    Can’t hear
    You can’t understand any of the voice recordings.
  • Teon77
    Wait..
    This is NOT the apology line? Where confessional calls by random people needing to share something shameful, sad, or just heart broken💔
  • composeyourself
    Excellently done
    This podcast has it all — true crime, mystery, love, and heartbreak. Ignore all of the bitter people who are mad about the paywall. If you are Wondery subscriber, I highly recommend this listen!
  • AriLCass
    Not true crime
    This isn’t really a true crime show at all. I can’t say anything further without spoilers but the way this show is presented is really misleading and it’s only about an art installation and marriage. Plus being paywalled?
  • Kaylalajoy
    Not available through Amazon Prime account either
    Really disappointed to see that Eps 2-7 are behind a pay wall. Making ep 1 available to hook people is deceiving and leaves me very disappointed with Wondery. I downloaded the amazon music app thinking my prime subscription would give me access, but it’s behind an upgrade wall over there too. This dissuades me from listening to other wondery ones as well, unfortunately.
  • Shotataduck
    So intense!
    I remember when this was happening in the 80s in NYC. The Line was incredible, powerful, moving, and sometimes scary.
  • October3651
    Would have liked to listen
    Don't make a podcast page if you're not going to make the show available. I don't use another app, I can't be convinced to use another app. You've just dramaticly lowered my opinion of Wondery- and I used to dig most of your podcasts. But this is just gross.
  • "Too many adds" 73
    Paywall??? 🤡🤡🤡
    WAS a decent listen. Enough to get me to return to see that you now must pay money to listen?? They should have been more choosy about which content to paywall because this isn’t worth your hard earned money. Don’t waste your time paying to get access to this podcast. It should be free like thousands of other podcasts.
  • Herrow herrow how low
    PAYWALLED
    Wonderful seeing this and all my favorite OLD Wondery Podcasts suddenly paywalled on Wondery+ as “exclusives.” This is an OLD podcast. A very good old podcast. No warning AT ALL. You have every right to MAKE new exclusive content, but paywalling content years later is unethical at a minimum. And to add insult to injury, Wondery+ has ads AND forces you to use THEIR app. Meaning Amazon—I mean Wonder—I mean Art19 — all the same corporation now… aren’t doing actual podcasting. RSS = Podcasting. You can’t bind podcasts to an app. Release the old podcasts from your unfair retroactive paywalling, and I’ll update this to what it originally was. If you’re lucky enough to hear this podcast — definitely listen to it. One of my favorites :(
  • MMS145
    Apology Line—don’t waste your time
    Long and drug out filled with unnecessary personal drivel. Episode 1 and 2 strayed out ok but the whole podcast could’ve been wrapped up in a total of about three episodes. The rest was her angst about her unhappiness in her marriage and discussion of Alan’s narcissism.
  • Soccer-mom
    Bland
    This was my least favorite of the Wondery podcasts. The tapes were difficult to hear properly and it felt like the series dragged on to an anticlimactic ending. But mostly it felt like the host’s self indulgent trip down memory lane.
  • Nomegustafutbol
    Excellent podcast
    Such a bizarre and original story- it’s hard to believe it really happened. Mystery, intrigue, nostalgia, crime, psychology, plot twists… it’s all there.
  • bat adam
    Excellent!
    This is a podcast that has stayed with me long after I listened to it. Touching, mysterious, and thoughtful.
  • Karma-Police!
    Late to the party
    This was really cool. A fresh story that will have the hair on your neck standing up. I really enjoyed this
  • Ssmelsie
    I’m so sad it’s over… omg 😭
    So so good. Long live Allen
  • deadleaves X dirtyground
    Wow!!
    A friend of mine told me about this a while ago and I’m sorry I didn’t listen till now! So interesting. I can really see why and how Allan because so engulfed in his work with the line. Such a great story!
  • lanzz12
    Great
    Really interesting stuff. Definitely never knew about this before and I was super interested!
  • BAlisonMarie
    Just Ok.
    Female host, Marissa Bridge is overly excited and literally stressed out. Not ideal for a podcast host’s disposition. Wondery has too many ads in all their shows.I also dislike like the way they bait and switch listeners by making a third or fourth episode in a series Subscription only so non-subscribers cannot hear the rest of the show unless we sign up. So low, and it’s not going to work.
  • Robo2830
    Very good
    Binged in a day. Well done and so very interesting
  • Hipie@heart
    Excellent
    Wish this show could go on longer. I didn’t want to listen to the last show, I was afraid
  • Shelbs.jpg
    Not True Crime but an Ok biography
    Really is just about how the wife feels in the aftermath of the Apology line. If that was how it was presented I would’ve enjoyed it more. But the wife is annoying and I feel like I could’ve gotten more from an outside standpoint.
  • wwkpzmb
    Waste of time
    They build up for the first 3 episodes and make you think something happened and in the end it wasn’t even related. Boring.
  • Lynn6412009
    R I c h I e
    🤫
  • Srvinhim
    Loved it!
    Such a great podcast. Tried to put myself in Allen’s shoes in regards to his obsession with Richie. I think I would’ve been the same way. I never knew The Apology Line ever existed. Wish we had something like that now...
  • ricky4rmthebay
    Great!
    I have been addicted to podcasts this last month or so. I just started this one and it amazes me how it puts me right there! I have never been to New York but this makes me feel like I’m there and I kinda scared to listen at night! It’s great! Looking forward to the next episodes.
  • MakMack
    Not True Crime
    If you are interested in true crime, this podcast will only disappoint. It’s a nice story, but definitely not true crime. It’s a love letter from a widow to her lost husband. If you a looking for a good story, it’s an easy listen.
  • Ryeee G
    Not great.
    Feels kind of bait-and-switched. Too much about the narrator (the subject’s wife) and not enough about the story. We don’t need the story of how they met to hear about The Apology Line.
  • Dibbledoob
    Bad narration
    The female voice is so annoying and forced the fact that it goes from the apology line to the life of this nothing lady is a complete disservice to listeners nobody cares about this dumb ladies life and the fact it’s herself telling the story just makes it so self conceited this is supposed to be about Allan not his loser gf
  • AlyssaRose924
    Super eerie!
    Perfect for spooky season. Disturbing and interesting!
  • Krazyman98😄
    Perfect
    👌🏻
  • nenesb
    Binge-worthy
    A friend recommended I listen to this and I couldn’t stop. Binged all tapes today and I laughed, I cried, I was scared for people..it was everything I wasn’t expecting and I love it!!!! Made me think: “what would I apologize for?” Thank you for sharing this story! ♥️
  • C@pri15
    Apology
    It’s creepy listening to how crazy people are.
  • Spring Wieder
    Great story
    Very interesting. Def binge for me
  • BIG NOAH
    Worth the listen!
    Worth the listen!
  • Luna Loper
    A life lesson
    This is an intriguing story. It goes to show how gullible we can all be, then experiencing the disappointment of reality. Something I think we can relate to.
  • NewMomFranki
    I felt cheated
    This was an anticlimactic series of cliffhangers. Perhaps it would have been an interesting story if told in a single hour podcast format. I am a Dr. Death fan, this is not that.
  • CF_Texas
    Good story
    Whether a true crime story or not, it definitely kept me interested. The story is well put together and has a great flow. Easy to listen to and the narrator has a pleasant voice. Thank you for sharing your story.
  • BoloMay
    Love it!
    I absolutely loved this show! I want more!
  • marquesamoore
    Worst story ever
    HORRIBLE. Don’t bother
  • Emmes101
    More of this!
    Wish it had been longer! Wow. Amazing storytelling of her life with Allan and his obsession with Apology.
  • M Monks
    Need more of this podcast
    Marissa Bridge is an amazing storyteller and host. I love that she has shared Apology with the world, and I would love to hear more audio of these callers as well as other work Allan has done. Keep it going please!
  • Ayyotayylo
    Episode 3, no sound??
    Is it just me?? I can’t get episode 3 to play with sound! I’m loving the podcast, but I can’t skip an episode. :( help! What do I do?
  • Adeerable
    Not much of a story
    Was super excited after the first episode but really tapered off. There was not much of a story, certainly not true crime. Kinda felt like a waste of time in the end
  • Meow4ever321
    Decent- but probably not worth all the time
    To start off this is definitely a HISTORY/BIOGRAPHY podcast NOT True Crime. The only thing true crime is criminals and “serial killers” who may or may not have committed their crimes. I also agree with the other reviews that say that it is much too dragged out. Putting up with him is also only possible for so long till his quirky artist persona turns into self absorbed unloving jerk. There are a lot of ads but I’ve come to expect that with podcasts now and am not surprised.
  • rloco
    Stunning
    This is unbelievably good ! Hooked…
  • Wildriverrun
    Captivating
    Very intriguing…..like a chat room in the 80’s.
  • Ken rochelle
    One word
    WOW!!! This has to be one of the most interesting podcast I have ever listened to. This story is so intense. They say “fact is stranger than fiction “. This story proves it. From the first episode to the last, super engaging. Highly recommend
  • OpenAir56
    Hauntingly beautiful story
    very well done
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