October 27, 1962, also known as “Black Saturday," was the most dangerous day of the Cuban Missile Crisis as events began to spiral out of control. With two contrasting messages from Chairman Khrushchev, President Kennedy had to find a way to resolve the crisis or risk a nuclear war. Outside of the White House, the crisis took a fatal turn and war was expected to break out at any moment.

Atomic Gambit: Black Saturday

John F. Kennedy, the 35th President of the United States, inspired a generation that transformed America. But not everyone knows the stories behind the man - his experiences as a young serviceman in World War II, how he wrote some of his most memorable speeches, what sparked him to set the country on a path to the moon. Join Matt Porter and Jamie Richardson of the JFK Library Foundation as they dig into the archives at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston and interview their colleagues to get a behind-the-scenes look at JFK’s life, legacy, and the era he lived in.

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In 1934, the National Archives and Records Administration was created to oversee the protection and dissemination of governmental and historic records of the United States. In this episode, we speak with the Dr. Colleen Shogan, the 11th Archivist of the United States.

A Conversation with U.S. Archivist Colleen Shogan

The Hemingway Letters Project seeks to publish a comprehensive edition of the writer Ernest Hemingway’s letters. In this episode, we talk with two of the project's editors, Verna Kale and Sandra Spanier, in advance of the publication of volume 6 of the series. We talk about the detective work they’ve done and how Hemingway’s letters give a deeper understanding of the man.

Hemingway's Letters

What did President Kennedy think of the presidency himself? And what makes a president? In this episode, we hear from JFK himself and talk to historian Alexis Coe about her project at New America on the presidency, as well as her work as an historian.

Being the President

On August 28, 1963, 250,000 people of different races, religions, and economic backgrounds convened on the nation’s capital for the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The man behind organizing the event – Bayard Rustin – is profiled in a new Oscar-nominated film “Rustin.” In this episode, we speak with producers of the film, Tonia Davis and Bruce Cohen, and historian Dr. Clayborne Carson of Stanford University.

Bayard Rustin: The Man Behind the March

In February 1963, President Kennedy said, “A man may die, but an idea lives on.” In this episode, we look at the legacy JFK left behind and how some are continuing the spirit of his work. We speak with NASA astronaut Victor Glover who represents the new generation of space explorers and is set to be the first black man to travel to the Moon. We also have a conversation with JFK Presidential Library Director Alan Price and JFK Library Foundation Executive Director Rachel Flor about their work preserving President Kennedy’s legacy for generations to come.

Atomic Gambit: Black Saturday

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