‘After nearly annihilating our planet, our relatives have become friends’: a gripping audio series from JFK & Khrushchev’s descendants.

During October 1962, humanity came nearer toward ruin than at any other point in modern times. This happened after a US reconnaissance plane identified the fact that Soviet atomic weapon installations were being assembled in Cuba, less than 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. In response, U.S. President JFK directed the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval quarantine around the island. The next phase was nearly a fortnight filled with extreme tension.

An Unthinkable Danger

The peril was palpable. Should President Kennedy, or his Russian opposite, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against the other side, a cascade of global nuclear strikes followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, thrusting humanity toward all-out oblivion.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined extensively, in volumes, movies, and TV documentaries. But, in its latest installment, a prominent audio documentary series The Bomb has brought a novel dimension into the story. It is jointly hosted featuring Max Kennedy alongside Nina Khrushcheva, family members belonging to the leaders that, over 13 days, controlled the fate of the planet in their hands.

"What were the Russians planning? What was the American side thinking?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and a professor specializing in international affairs.

For her, the beauty of the show is its attempt to explore: "How can individuals detest one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It struck me how remarkable it is that humans can be friends or else can become complete enemies," adds Kennedy, the son of Robert Kennedy, related to JFK and currently an author as well as lawyer. "History shows this dynamic over and over when nations have gone to war, highlighting the profound irrationality involved to fight."

The Brink Towards Disaster

What is remarkable regarding this event was that, since it transpired so publicly, people worldwide were able to observe nearly as it happened as it crept towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the risk of destruction was more imminent than anybody understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted an airstrike and an invasion," says Kennedy. "Had the U.S. attacked the Cubans with the naval blockade, undoubtedly Soviet forces on the ground would've fired a nuclear warhead against the American ships, which would have destroyed the naval vessels and sunk our primary fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have responded with massive retaliation that would have ended most life on the planet."

The fact this did not occur stands as credit to Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to remain calm and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements in their governments was pushing for action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons from the Caribbean island and Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew American missiles based in Turkey. The relief was worldwide, matched by the sense of optimism.

The Different Viewpoint

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the fear was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following the crisis, and Nina learned about the crisis through the USSR's school curriculum, which presented an alternative picture of what happened.

"You said your father remembers it, describing it as a scary time," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system the official line was that things are always wonderful or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was different. "They told me what a great occasion it was, as it represented eyeball to eyeball. They were able to resolve it, thus didn’t start the war, which was a positive outcome," she adds. Subsequently, however, that view was not shared by everybody. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying the United States."

An Unprecedented Partnership

The Bomb is remarkably balanced and expertly crafted so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This effect is, partly, due to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most groundbreaking thing remains the participation of the hosts themselves. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable for descendants of the heads of state of America and Soviet Union to appear together publicly. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, must be seen as a sign of hope.

"Max and I are not the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "After 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is a shame since we connected immediately and now we are friends, something that is wonderful. Ultimately, after nearly 60 years of nearly annihilating the world, our families have become allies, so I think global relations is more secure, a little bit."

Contemporary Parallels with Current Dangers

Or is it? One reason why this series seems so urgent is because we now are living living through a perilous era. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe in its history, in part because world leaders don’t seem to have the capacity to comprehend