HISTORY This Week
221 episodes - English - Latest episode: 11 months ago - ★★★★★ - 3.7K ratingsThis week, something momentous happened. Whether or not it made the textbooks, it most certainly made history. Join HISTORY This Week as we turn back the clock to meet the people, visit the places and witness the moments that led us to where we are today.
To get in touch with story ideas or feedback, email us at [email protected], or leave us a voicemail at 212-351-0410.
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Episodes
Beethoven's Silent Symphony
May 04, 2020 07:00 - 30 minutesMay 7, 1824. One of the great musical icons in history, Ludwig Van Beethoven, steps onto stage at the Kärntnertor Theater in Vienna. The audience is electric, buzzing with anticipation for a brand new symphony from the legendary composer. But there’s a rumor on their minds, something only a few know for certain... that Beethoven is deaf. He is about to conduct the debut of his Ninth Symphony—featuring the now-famous ‘Ode to Joy’—yet Beethoven can barely hear a thing. How was it possible for h...
The Hunt for the Hunley
April 27, 2020 07:00 - 23 minutesMay 3, 1995. The Hunley has been missing for over 100 years. This Civil War submarine and all eight of her crew disappeared after completing the first successful submarine attack ever. When a team of divers finally locates the wreck in the mid ‘90s, it seems the mystery has been solved, but what they find is more perplexing than the sub’s disappearance. The boat is undamaged, and the crew are still at their battle stations. What sank the Hunley? And why didn’t her crew try to escape? Special ...
Introducing: Hope, Through History
April 23, 2020 20:00 - 4 minutesWelcome to Hope, Through History with Jon Meacham. This limited series explores some of the most historic and trying times in American history, and how this nation dealt with these moments, the impact of these moments and how we came through these moments a unified nation. Season One takes a look at critical moments around the 1918 Flu Pandemic, the Great Depression, World War II, the Polio Epidemic and the Cuban Missile Crisis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. T...
When the Environment United Us
April 20, 2020 07:00 - 23 minutesApril 22, 1970. Nearly 20 million Americans come out in solidarity for one of the largest mass movements of the century. It was called Earth Day. And 50 years later, we still celebrate this day. But in 1970, this call to action crossed the aisle and brought major change to Washington, a feat that seems almost impossible today. Why did that first-ever Earth Day bring such a huge number of Americans—from across the political spectrum—out into the streets? And what might it take to unite the cou...
"Houston We’ve Had a Problem”
April 13, 2020 07:00 - 28 minutesApril 14, 1970. Apollo 13 is a quarter million miles from Earth, speeding towards the Moon, when a sudden explosion rocks the ship. Against all odds, the astronauts pull off one of the most remarkable survival missions in NASA history. On the 50th anniversary of this harrowing flight, Apollo 13 Commander Jim Lovell explains exactly what it took to save his spaceship. Special thanks to Captain Jim Lovell, Steven Barber and Vanilla Fire Productions, www.vanillafire.com. To our listeners, thank ...
The First Flight Around the World
April 06, 2020 07:00 - 23 minutesApril 6, 1924. Four planes rest in the water, preparing for take-off. At 8:30 AM, they pick up speed and hit the air. Eight pilots have begun a dangerous mission: to be the first to fly around the world. This will change our future in a way that few could see in 1924. What did it take to complete this historic flight? And, when this new technology went global, what were the unintended consequences? Special thanks to our guest, Jeremy Kinney, Chair of the Aeronautics Department at the Smithson...
The Deadliest Pandemic in Modern History
March 30, 2020 07:00 - 21 minutesApril 5, 1918. The first mention of a new influenza outbreak in Kansas appears in a public health report. That strain, later called the Spanish Flu, would go on to kill at least 50 million people worldwide. In a time before widespread global travel, how did this disease spread so far, so fast? And what does it teach us about fighting pandemics today? Special thanks to Dr. Jeremy Brown, author of Influenza: The 100-Year Hunt to Cure the Deadliest Disease in History. To our listeners, thank yo...
When Basketball Meets Jim Crow
March 23, 2020 07:00 - 21 minutesMarch 28, 1939. Two teams are facing off for the final game of World Professional Basketball Tournament in Chicago, the first professional tournament to feature both white and black basketball teams. This is several years before the start of the NBA, and Jim Crow segregation was still the law of the land in many parts of the country. The New York Rens, an all-black team, have made it to this championship, but their road to the top was anything but easy. Who were the Rens? And how did they fig...
How Lady Luck Saved Vegas
March 16, 2020 07:00 - 21 minutesMarch 19, 1931. Las Vegas is a small, desert town of a few thousand. And it’s not doing so well. In fact, people are worried it might turn into a ghost town. But then something big happens: Nevada decides to legalize gambling. And the ground begins to shift beneath the city...but no one notices, at least not at first. So, how did Vegas become Vegas? Special thanks to our guest Professor Michael Green from UNLV's Department of History. To our listeners, thank you for subscribing to History Thi...
The Real Assassination of Caesar
March 09, 2020 07:00 - 19 minutesThe Ides of March, 44 BC. Ancient Rome’s most powerful dictator, Julius Caesar, is running late to a senate meeting. When he arrives, senators surround him and stab him 23 times. The assassination of Caesar has been told and re-told for centuries, but the facts are wilder than the legend. What really happened on the Ides of March? And why do we tell this story over and over? Special thanks to Professor Barry Strauss, historian and author of The Death of Caesar and Ten Caesars. To our liste...
Lionel, Stevie and Tina Walk into a Studio…
March 02, 2020 08:00 - 24 minutesMarch 7th, 1985. “We Are the World” hits the shelves. It's an instant hit, breaking the top of the charts and making music history. This one song has the star power of 45 of the biggest singers of the era: Lionel Richie, Stevie Wonder, Tina Turner, Michael Jackson, Diana Ross, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan - just to name a few. And with their power combined, the song raised millions of dollars to help combat a devastating famine in Ethiopia and Sudan. What did it take to bring all these icons ...
The DNA Debate
February 24, 2020 08:00 - 19 minutesFebruary 28, 1953. Two scientists, James Watson and Francis Crick, burst into a bar and exclaim that they have discovered the secret of life. But there was another person involved in the discovery of DNA’s double helix, a scientist named Rosalind Franklin. Why didn’t she get any credit, and what does her story tell us about the politics of discovery itself? Special thanks to Michelle Gibbons, Ph.D., author of "Reassessing Discovery: Rosalind Franklin, Scientific Visualization, and the Structu...
A Mole in the CIA
February 17, 2020 08:00 - 22 minutesFebruary 21, 1994. Early in the morning, FBI agents assemble near the home of Aldrich Ames. They wait for him to leave his house and then they pounce, arresting one of the deadliest double agents in CIA history. He received almost $2 million from the KGB, selling CIA secrets and lethally betraying undercover agents for years. Who is the real Aldrich Ames? And why does a spy turn on their own country? Thank you to our guest, Pete Earley, author of "Confessions of a Spy: The Real Story of Aldri...
The Legacy of an Oscar
February 10, 2020 08:00 - 22 minutesFebruary 11, 1940. Hattie McDaniel becomes the first-ever African American to be nominated for, and then win, an Oscar. Her legacy is complicated. And the Oscar itself has been missing, mysteriously, for almost fifty years. What did it take for McDaniel to win? And, 80 Oscar ceremonies later, how do we understand her legacy today? Thank you to our guest, Professor Emeritus of Law, W. Burlette Carter. You can read her article about searching for the missing Oscar here: https://bit.ly/2OF5cts T...
The Legacy of an Oscar
February 10, 2020 08:00 - 21 minutes - 49.4 MBFebruary 11, 1940. Hattie McDaniel becomes the first-ever African American to be nominated for, and then win, an Oscar. Her legacy is complicated. And the Oscar itself has been missing, mysteriously, for almost fifty years. What did it take for McDaniel to win? And, 80 Oscar ceremonies later, how do we understand her legacy today? Thank you to our guest, Professor Emeritus of Law, W. Burlette Carter. You can read her article about searching for the missing Oscar here: https://bit.ly/2OF5cts...
When Black Men Won the Vote
February 02, 2020 08:00 - 19 minutesFebruary 3, 1870. The 15th Amendment is ratified, which establishes the right to vote for black men in America. While Jim Crow laws would grip the south by 1877, there was a brief, seven-year window of opportunity. Half a million black voters turned out at the polls, and 2,000 black officials are estimated to have been elected during this time. What did this moment of progress look like? And how do those votes still impact our lives 150 years later? Special thanks to our guest, historian and ...
Surviving Auschwitz
January 26, 2020 08:00 - 27 minutesJanuary 27, 1945. This week, we commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, one of Nazi Germany's largest concentration and extermination camps. Auschwitz has since become a symbol for the Holocaust itself, but what did liberation actually mean for its survivors - and is the full story being forgotten? Thank you to Mindu Hornick and Bill Harvey for sharing their personal story of surviving Auschwitz and to Fulwell 73 for helping make it happen. Thank you to Jeremy Dronfie...
The Apple Ad That Changed the World
January 20, 2020 08:00 - 18 minutesJanuary 22, 1984. Apple launches the first Macintosh computer, with a showstopping Super Bowl commercial. The ad itself was revolutionary, but the product it launched almost single-handedly brought computers into the mainstream, changing the world as we know it. Special thanks to Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, author and producer of the “Making the Macintosh” digital archive. To our listeners, thank you for subscribing to History This Week. We want to hear your feedback: https://bit.ly/3a4FGqJ Hoste...
The Great Boston Molasses Flood
January 13, 2020 08:00 - 18 minutesJanuary 15, 1919. Boston PD receives a call: “Send all available rescue personnel...there's a wave of molasses coming down Commercial Street." The bizarre flood decimated Boston's North End. How did it happen? And why does it still affect us all today? Special thanks to our guest, Stephen Puleo, author of Dark Tide: The Great Boston Molasses Flood of 1919. To our listeners, thank you for subscribing to History This Week. We want to hear your feedback: https://bit.ly/3a4FGqJ Hosted on Acast....
Warning: The Surgeon General Has Determined...
January 10, 2020 08:00 - 21 minutesJanuary 11th, 1964. The US Surgeon General announces: smoking is killing us. It’s an announcement that changed the course of American public health – and took years to finally come out. But it was only the beginning of an uphill battle to take down an all-American pastime. This week we ask: why did it take so long for the public to learn this deadly truth? And why has it taken even longer for us to accept it? Special thanks to our guests, Dr. Boris Lushniak, 2014 Acting U.S. Surgeon General, ...
Introducing: HISTORY This Week
January 02, 2020 21:04 - 2 minutesThis week, something momentous happened. Whether or not it made the textbooks, it most certainly made history. Join HISTORY This Week as we turn back the clock to meet the people, visit the places and witness the moments that led us to where we are today. New episodes every Monday, starting January 2020. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more abou...