Our American Stories

On this episode of Our American Stories, as a teenager, Jim Johnson landed what he thought was a dream job selling hot dogs at Minnesota Twins games in Metropolitan Stadium. But between spilled hot dogs, difficult customers, colorful coworkers, and unforgettable moments with baseball's biggest stars, he discovered that the biggest lessons had nothing to do with baseball.

The longtime Minnesota pastor and Our American Stories regular contributor shares his story of how hawking hot dogs at the Old Met changed his life for the better.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, when Brent Timmons' son was involved in a motorcycle accident on his way to work, a frightening phone call sent his family racing to the scene, unsure of what they would find. Thankfully, the crash was minor, but it became a powerful reminder of how quickly life can change.

Brent reflects on what the accident taught his family about balancing caution with courage, and why a life without risk isn't really living at all.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, many people remember Pat Boone as one of the biggest pop stars of the 1950s and '60s, but his story began in a church choir. He grew up learning how to hold a melody, lead voices in harmony, and carry a room without a single instrument behind him.

Those simple lessons in discipline and presence became the foundation for a career that lasted longer on the charts than even Elvis Presley. Boone looks back on those early days in the choir loft and reflects on how they shaped his voice, his confidence, and his path into music.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, The Fugitive Slave Act, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, Bleeding Kansas, the Dred Scott decision, and John Brown’s raid pushed the United States ever closer to civil war. As the nation fractured over slavery, a little-known Illinois lawyer emerged with the words, principles, and political skill to meet the crisis.

In Episode 27 of our ongoing Story of Us—Story of America series, Hillsdale College professor Dr. Bill McClay, author of Land of Hope, shares the story of how Abraham Lincoln rose from a Kentucky log cabin and a single term in Congress to challenge Stephen A. Douglas, lead the newly formed Republican Party, and win the presidency in the election of 1860.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, John McCormack spent decades telling Americans he was the son of Irish immigrants who overcame poverty to become Speaker of the House. The truth was more complicated. To make his way to the top, McCormack reinvented his own family story before rising to become the first Catholic Speaker in American history.

Professor and Jack Miller Center fellow, Jeff Bloodworth, shares the story of why McCormack reshaped his past, how he helped bridge the nation's Protestant-Catholic divide, and how his leadership helped make possible one of the most consequential immigration laws in American history.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, when Lieutenant Ernie Latham's B-24 crashed into the Adriatic Sea during World War II, he escaped the sinking bomber, rescued five members of his crew, and refused to leave the war when the Army wanted to send him home. All he wanted was another chance to fly.

Our American Stories regular contributor Roger Latham shares the story of his father, the World War II fighter pilot who taught him that real heroes don't need capes.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, most Americans learn that the Revolutionary War ended at Yorktown. Fewer know the British Army occupied New York City for two more years before finally sailing away on November 25, 1783. For generations, New Yorkers celebrated that day as Evacuation Day, one of the city's biggest holidays.

Our American Stories regular contributor Bill Bryk shares the remarkable story of the British departure, George Washington's triumphant return to New York, and the forgotten celebration that once rivaled Thanksgiving.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, growing up in Bayonne, New Jersey, Giovanni Rocco was surrounded by mobsters, outlaw bikers, and the kind of street culture that most parents hope their children never experience. He was, in his own words, a pretty "bad" kid. Those same experiences eventually made him one of the FBI's National Covert Operations Unit's most successful undercover operatives, culminating in Operation Charlie Horse.

Author, former undercover investigator, and Mob Museum speaker Giovanni Rocco (aka Giovanni Gatto) shares how he infiltrated the New Jersey Mafia family that inspired The Sopranos, earned the trust of a feared Mafia captain, came within reach of becoming a made man, and paid an enormous personal price to bring the organization down. His book, Giovanni's Ring: My Life Inside the Real Sopranos, tells the remarkable story in full; be sure to check it out.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, when Tyson Timbs used his $40,000 Land Rover to sell drugs to an undercover police officer, Indiana seized the vehicle through civil asset forfeiture. Getting it back should have been straightforward. Instead, it took seven years, three trips to the Indiana Supreme Court, and a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court.

For our Rule of Law series, legal scholar Ilya Somin explains how one man's fight over a single SUV reshaped American law on excessive fines, civil asset forfeiture, and the constitutional limits of government power.

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On this episode of Our American Stories, it started with a dropped wrench. Moments later, a missile exploded inside its silo, launching a nuclear warhead into a roadside ditch outside Damascus, Arkansas. For hours, few people understood just how close the country had come to catastrophe.

Former Arkansas newsman Randy Dixon was there from the beginning. He shares how one of America's most forgotten nuclear accidents unfolded, the secret recording that revealed what really happened that night, and why the story became one of CNN's first major live news events.

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