‘After nearly destroying our planet, the relatives are friends’: a gripping audio series from John F. Kennedy and Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

In October 1962, the planet edged closer toward ruin more so than ever in modern times. This occurred after an American surveillance aircraft discovered that Russian nuclear weapon bases were being assembled on Cuba, a mere 160 kilometers off the coast of American soil. Reacting to this, U.S. President JFK commanded the US Navy’s Sixth Fleet to enact a naval quarantine encircling the island. The ensuing period was nearly two weeks of impossible anxiety.

An Catastrophic Danger

The threat was obvious. If President Kennedy, or else his Soviet counterpart, Nikita Khrushchev, had fired on their enemy, a chain reaction of worldwide nuclear attacks followed by retaliatory strikes might have ensued, casting humanity toward all-out ruination.

The Cuban missile crisis has been examined endlessly, through books, movies, and TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" introduces an unprecedented element to the story. The series is co-presented featuring Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva, relatives belonging to the men who, for two tense weeks, held the fate of the world in their hands.

"What were the Russians considering? What were Washington planning?" questions Khrushcheva, the Soviet leader's great-granddaughter who is also a professor of international affairs.

For her, the unique appeal of the show is its attempt to explore: "How can individuals detest one another to the point they oppose each other?"

"I am acutely aware how remarkable the fact that humans can be friends or else can become complete enemies," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, nephew of JFK and now an author and attorney. "We see this over and over when countries enter into conflict, highlighting how unbelievably stupid it is to fight."

The Precipice Towards Disaster

What is striking about the Cuban missile crisis is that, because it transpired so publicly, individuals worldwide could watch almost as it happened while it edged closer to catastrophe. However, the threat of destruction was more imminent than most people understood at the time.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted an airstrike followed by an invasion," notes Kennedy. "Had the U.S. struck Cuba using the Sixth Fleet, there is no question the Russians on the ground would've launched a nuclear warhead at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have obliterated our aircraft carriers as well as sunk our largest and most important naval force. In turn, we would have responded with an overwhelming counterattack which would have ended all life on Earth."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of both leaders, they succeeded in keep their heads and calmly negotiate when hawkish elements around them were advocating action. As a result, The Soviet premier agreed to withdraw the nuclear weapons in Cuba and Kennedy (although not reported then) removed American missiles from Turkey. The relief was palpable, matched by a feeling of optimism.

A Different Perspective

Yet, for those two weeks of October 1962, the tension was felt by everyone. The podcast's presenters were born in the years following the crisis, and Nina being taught about it via the USSR's education system, which portrayed a slightly different narrative of events.

"As you mentioned your parent recalls it, and it was a frightening day," she says. "But for Soviet citizens, the public really didn’t know that much about it, since it was a crisis, and in the Soviet Union the official line was that things are always fine or positive."

Inside the Khrushchev household, though, the perspective was distinct. "I was informed what a great moment it was, because it represented eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, thus avoided a global war, seen as a wonderful outcome," she continues. Subsequently, though, that interpretation was not shared by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, it was considered a defeat for Khrushchev, simply he didn’t blow up the United States."

An Unprecedented Collaboration

The Bomb is remarkably even-handed , expertly crafted so much so that Nina jokes it almost made her forget she already knew outcome. This is, in part, due to the participation of historians. Yet, really, the most momentous thing is the participation of the descendants. Even within living memory, it would be unthinkable that descendants of the heads of state of America and the USSR would appear together publicly. That Max Kennedy and Nina Khrushcheva are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of progress.

"Max and I aren't the first," notes Khrushcheva. "Following 1991, a relative Sergey Khrushchev’s son and formed a close bond with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we were strangers before the podcast," clarifies Kennedy. "Which is a shame since we connected really well and we are friends, which is wonderful. Ultimately, following almost 60 years of nearly annihilating the planet, our families are now friends, suggesting the world is safer, a little bit."

Modern Echoes with Current Dangers

Or is it? Part of why this series seems so urgent is that we now are living in dark times. The symbolic clock of doom stands nearer to catastrophe than ever before, partly since today's statesmen appear not to have the capacity to learn