‘After nearly annihilating the world, our relatives are allies’: the gripping audio series from JFK & Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, the planet came closer toward destruction than at any other point in the contemporary era. This occurred after a US surveillance aircraft discovered the fact that Russian atomic weapon installations were being built in the island of Cuba, less than 100 miles from American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK directed a naval task force to enact a maritime blockade around the island. What followed constituted almost 14 days of extreme tension.

An Unthinkable Threat

The peril was palpable. If Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, were to fire against their enemy, a cascade involving worldwide atomic strikes followed by retaliatory strikes would have followed, thrusting humanity into total destruction.

The October crisis has been documented endlessly, through volumes, movies, as well as television programmes. However, in its latest installment, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" presents a completely new element into this historical narrative. The series is jointly hosted featuring Kennedy's relative and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the men who, for two tense weeks, controlled the destiny of the planet within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin planning? What were the United States considering?" ponders Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter and a professor specializing in international affairs.

In her view, the strength of the show lies in its attempt to question: "How can individuals hate one another to the point they confront one another?"

"It was not lost on me how remarkable the fact that individuals can be allies or have the potential to be total adversaries," states Max Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and now an author as well as attorney. "We see this over and over when countries enter into conflict, demonstrating how unbelievably stupid involved to fight."

A Precipice Towards Catastrophe

What’s striking regarding this event was that, because it transpired in the global spotlight, people around the world were able to observe nearly as it happened while it edged towards catastrophe. Nonetheless, the threat of annihilation came closer than what anybody understood at the time.

"The overwhelming majority in the White House wanted an airstrike followed by an invasion," notes Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba with the Sixth Fleet, it is certain the Russians stationed there would've deployed a nuclear warhead at the American ships, and that would've destroyed our aircraft carriers and sunk America's primary fleet. And, we would have responded through massive retaliation which would have ended all life on Earth."

The reality it didn’t is a testament to both leaders, who succeeded in keep their heads while calmly negotiate at a time when many advisors around them was pushing for military action. As a result, Khrushchev agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba while President Kennedy (although not reported at the time) withdrew American similar weapons based in Turkey. The relief was palpable, as was the sense of optimism.

A Divergent Viewpoint

Yet, during those 13 days in October, the anxiety was palpable by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born shortly after these events, with Khrushcheva being taught about it via the Soviet school curriculum, which painted a slightly different picture of what happened.

"As you mentioned your father recalls it, describing it as a frightening time," Khrushcheva notes. "But for Soviet citizens, people really didn’t know a great deal regarding the crisis, since it was a tense situation, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that everything was always wonderful or sunny."

Within the Khrushchev household, though, it was different. "They told me what a great occasion it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to find a solution, and avoided the war, seen as a positive thing," she adds. Subsequently, though, that interpretation was not shared by all Russians. "For decades in Russian politics, it was considered a failure for the Soviet leader, because he didn’t blow up America."

A Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is so even-handed , expertly crafted that Nina quips it almost made her forget she already knew the ending. This effect is, in part, thanks to the participation of renowned scholars. Yet, truly, the most significant thing remains the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the leaders of America and the Soviet Union to appear side by side. The fact that Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and exhibit such warmth toward one another, has to be a symbol of hope.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son where he became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," adds Kennedy. "Which is a shame because we got along really well and now we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, after nearly 60 years since almost destroying the world, our families have become friends, so I think global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Contemporary Echoes and Present Dangers

Is that truly the case? One reason why this series feels so necessary is that we once again are living in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to midnight than ever before, in part because today's statesmen don’t seem to be able to comprehend