Following nearly annihilating our planet, the families are friends’: the gripping audio series from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the planet came nearer toward destruction than at any other point during modern times. This occurred after a US reconnaissance aircraft discovered that Soviet nuclear weapon installations were being built in the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period was almost two weeks of unbearable stress.

The Catastrophic Danger

The peril was palpable. Should Kennedy, or the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, were to fire on the other side, a cascade involving worldwide nuclear attacks followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, thrusting humanity into all-out destruction.

The Cuban missile crisis has been covered extensively, through volumes, films, as well as television programmes. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series The Bomb introduces a completely new perspective into the story. It is co-presented featuring Kennedy's relative alongside Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, over 13 days, grasped the destiny of humanity within their grasp.

"What was the Russians thinking? What was the American side considering?" asks Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant who is also a professor of global relations.

For her, the beauty of the show is its endeavor to explore: "Why do individuals hate each other to the point they confront one another?"

"I am acutely aware how profound it is that individuals can be friends or else have the potential to be total enemies," remarks Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and now a writer as well as attorney. "We see this dynamic over and over in instances where countries enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

A Brink of Disaster

What is notable regarding this event is that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, citizens around the world were able to observe nearly as it happened as it edged towards armageddon. Nonetheless, the threat of annihilation came closer than what anybody realised.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House were advocating for a military strike followed by a ground invasion," explains Kennedy. "If we had struck the Cubans using the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have destroyed the naval vessels as well as sunk our largest and most important naval force. And, we would have retaliated through massive retaliation that would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in exercise restraint and calmly negotiate when everyone in their governments were advocating military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the missiles in the Caribbean island and President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) removed his missiles from NATO ally Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism.

A Divergent Perspective

Still, for those two weeks in October, the tension was palpable by everyone. The podcast's co-hosts came into the world in the years following these events, with Khrushcheva learned about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which presented an alternative narrative of what happened.

"You said your father recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, people were largely unaware that much regarding the crisis, because it was a crisis, whereas in the Soviet Union we were told that things are always wonderful or positive."

Inside Khrushchev’s family, though, the perspective was distinct. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment for the USSR, as it was eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, which was a positive thing," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view would not be held by everybody. "For a long time in Russian politics, it was considered a setback for Khrushchev, because he refrained from destroying the United States."

A Unlikely Collaboration

This podcast is so even-handed , well produced so much so that Khrushcheva jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This is, partly, thanks to contributions from historians. Yet, truly, the most significant aspect remains the involvement of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and Soviet Union would appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals can do that, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, must be seen as a sign of progress.

"We are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, my uncle Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with the former president's family."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along immediately and we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following nearly 60 years since nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now friends, so I think the world is safer, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Present Perils

Is that truly the case? Part of the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is that we now are living living through a perilous era. The Doomsday Clock is closer to midnight in its history, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to learn