‘After almost annihilating our planet, our families have become friends’: a thrilling audio series featuring John F. Kennedy & Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, humanity veered closer to annihilation than at any other point during modern times. This transpired when an American reconnaissance aircraft found that Soviet nuclear missile bases were being built on Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President John F Kennedy ordered a naval task force to impose a naval quarantine around Cuba. The ensuing period constituted almost two weeks filled with extreme tension.

The Catastrophic Danger

The danger was palpable. Should President Kennedy, or else the Russian opposite, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack on the other side, a cascade of worldwide atomic strikes and counterstrikes would have ensued, thrusting mankind into all-out oblivion.

The October crisis has been documented extensively, through volumes, movies, as well as television programmes. But, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series The Bomb presents a novel element to this historical narrative. It is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders that, for two tense weeks, held the fate of humanity in their hands.

"What were the Kremlin considering? What were Washington thinking?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's descendant and a professor specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the unique appeal of the show lies in its attempt to question: "Why do individuals detest one another and oppose each other?"

"It struck me how spectacular it is that individuals have the potential to be friends or have the potential to be complete enemies," remarks Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and currently a writer and lawyer. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where nations have gone to war, highlighting the sheer folly it is to fight."

The Brink Towards Disaster

What’s striking about the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it unfolded so publicly, citizens worldwide were able to observe nearly in real time as it crept towards disaster. Even so, the danger of destruction was more imminent than what anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted an airstrike and an invasion," says Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, it is certain Soviet forces on the ground would have launched a tactical nuclear weapon at the American ships, and that would have obliterated our aircraft carriers and destroyed our largest and most important naval force. In turn, the U.S. would have responded through an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended most life on the planet."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who succeeded in exercise restraint and calmly negotiate when many advisors in their governments were advocating military action. Consequently, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba while President Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was immense, matched by a feeling of hope.

The Divergent Viewpoint

Still, for those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was felt globally. The podcast's presenters came into the world in the years following the crisis, with Nina learned about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which portrayed an alternative narrative of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening day," she says. "However for Soviet citizens, the public were largely unaware that much about it, since it was a crisis, whereas under the Soviet system we were told that things are always wonderful and sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, however, the perspective was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant occasion it was, as it represented a direct confrontation. They were able to find a solution, thus avoided a global war, seen as a positive outcome," she continues. Later on, though, that view would not be held by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for the Soviet leader, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Khrushcheva quips it almost made her forget the known outcome. This is, in part, due to contributions from historians. But, truly, the most significant thing is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of the United States and the Soviet Union would appear side by side. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth with each other, has to be a sign of hope.

"Max and I are not the first," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"However we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we got along really well and we are friends, which is really great. Finally, after almost 60 years since nearly annihilating the world, our lineages are now allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Echoes and Current Perils

Or is it? Part of the reason The Bomb seems so urgent is because we now are living in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to comprehend