‘After almost annihilating our world, the families have become friends’: a gripping audio series from JFK & Nikita Khrushchev’s relatives.

During the month of October 1962, the planet veered closer to destruction than at any other point during the contemporary era. This transpired after a US reconnaissance plane discovered the fact that Russian atomic missile installations were being built on Cuba, less than 100 miles off the coast of American soil. In response, President John F Kennedy commanded a naval task force to enact a maritime quarantine encircling Cuba. The ensuing period constituted nearly a fortnight of extreme tension.

The Catastrophic Danger

The threat remained palpable. Should Kennedy, or the Soviet counterpart, Premier Khrushchev, initiated an attack against the other side, a cascade involving worldwide nuclear strikes followed by counterstrikes could have ensued, casting mankind toward all-out ruination.

This pivotal 1962 event has been examined endlessly, in volumes, films, as well as TV documentaries. However, for its third season, the audio documentary series titled "The Bomb" introduces an unprecedented dimension to this historical narrative. It is jointly hosted by Max Kennedy and Khrushchev's descendant, family members of the leaders who, for 13 days, grasped the fate of humanity within their grasp.

"What were the Kremlin planning? What was the American side planning?" asks Nina Khrushcheva, Khrushchev’s great-granddaughter who is also an academic of global relations.

For her, the strength of the show lies in its endeavor to question: "How can nations hate one another to the point they go against one another?"

"It was not lost on me how spectacular the fact that people can be allies or have the potential to be complete adversaries," states Kennedy, the son of RFK, related to JFK and now a writer and attorney. "History shows this repeatedly in instances where countries have gone to war, highlighting the profound irrationality involved to engage in warfare."

A Brink Towards Catastrophe

What’s remarkable regarding the Cuban missile crisis is that, since it transpired so publicly, people worldwide could watch almost in real time while it moved closer to armageddon. Even so, the risk of destruction came closer than what anybody realised.

"Virtually everyone in the White House wanted a military strike and an invasion," explains Max Kennedy. "If we had attacked Cuba using the naval blockade, there is no question the Russians on the ground would've deployed a tactical nuclear weapon at the US Sixth Fleet, and that would have sunk the aircraft carriers as well as destroyed America's largest and most important fleet. In turn, the U.S. would have retaliated through massive retaliation that would have eradicated most life on Earth."

The fact it didn’t highlights the composure of Kennedy and Khrushchev, who managed to exercise restraint while engaging in diplomacy when everyone around them were advocating action. As a result, Khrushchev removed the missiles from Cuba while Kennedy (although not reported then) withdrew his missiles from Turkey. The sense of relief was worldwide, as was a feeling of optimism.

The Divergent Perspective

Still, during those 13 days of October 1962, the anxiety was felt by everyone. The Bomb’s presenters were born shortly after these events, with Nina learned about the crisis through the Soviet school curriculum, which presented a slightly different narrative of what happened.

"You said your parent recalls it, and it was a frightening time," she says. "But in the Soviet Union, people really didn’t know that much about it, because it was a tense situation, and under the Soviet system we were told that things are constantly wonderful or sunny."

Within Khrushchev’s family, though, it was different. "They told me that it was a triumphant moment it was, because it was eyeball to eyeball. The leaders managed to resolve it, and didn’t start the war, which was a wonderful thing," she adds. Subsequently, though, that perspective was not held by all Russians. "For a long time within Russian historical analysis, the crisis was viewed as a setback for Khrushchev, simply he refrained from destroying America."

An Unlikely Partnership

This podcast is remarkably even-handed , well produced that Nina jokes she nearly forgot she already knew the ending. This is, partly, thanks to the participation of historians. But, truly, the most groundbreaking thing remains the participation of the descendants. Not so long ago, it would be inconceivable that descendants of the leaders of the United States and the USSR to appear together publicly. The fact that these two individuals are able to do so, and be so warm toward one another, has to be a symbol of optimism.

"Max and I aren't the pioneers," smiles Khrushcheva. "Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, a relative moved to America and became great friends with Dwight Eisenhower’s children."

"But we had never met prior to this project," clarifies Max. "Which is unfortunate since we got along immediately and we are friends, something that is really great. Ultimately, after almost six decades since almost destroying the planet, our lineages have become allies, suggesting global relations is more secure, somewhat."

Modern Echoes with Present Perils

Or is it? One reason why The Bomb feels so necessary is that we now find ourselves living through dark times. The symbolic clock of doom is closer to catastrophe than ever before, in part because today's statesmen appear not to be able to grasp